DB London Special/Spezial tickets not appearing?

[eastwestdivide]

Just trying to book some tickets back from Germany for September, and the DB site is showing "Unknown tariff abroad" for all dates back from 21 Sep into August.
Anyone else finding the same?

I successfully booked my outward ticket last week for 17 Sep, so what's happened in the meantime, that nothing at all is showing?

And yes, I have checked that:
- it's within the normal booking horizon
- it uses ICE for the stretch between Cologne and Brussels

It appears that Europe-special tickets DO come up (for €29) on the same services if you attempt to book Germany-Brussels.
Also Eurostar's booking site isn't offering any "Cologne via Brussels with DB" dates at all, saying "destination combination is not for sale". Eurostar is offering Cologne via Brussels with Thalys.

I emailed DB last night - no response so far.

Thanks in advance for any insight.

 

[Passenger John]

Having exactly the same problem, trying to book for September for St. Pancras - Frankfurt, appears you have to apply for a quote, don't really understand why.

 

[M28361M]

The Man in Seat 61 retweeted this exchange between a customer and DB:

Looks like it is a fault with DB's booking system (Loco2 is also failing to show any London-Spezial fares). Fingers crossed they are able to fix it quickly.

 

[eastwestdivide]

Thanks people, not just me then.

 

[k-c-p]

The problem is fixed. London Special can be booked now.

 

[eastwestdivide]

Ta. That was quicker than their estimate of a week. Pity I booked a separate Thalys + Eurostar yesterday!
Mind you, my preferred ICE routing was already up to €89 when I just looked, versus the £85-ish I paid for Thalys 1st class and Eurostar 2nd class, so things could be worse.

 

[burns20]

Seems that London Spezial tickets have disappeared again for travel in 2016.

Messaged DB who deny there is a problem.

Is it just me?

 

[30907]

Seems that London Spezial tickets have disappeared again for travel in 2016.

Messaged DB who deny there is a problem.

Is it just me?

No. Just asked same question on Drehscheibe-online. See if anyone comes up with an answer!

http://www.drehscheibe-online.de/foren/read.php?3,7654840

I've noticed glitches over the timetable change period before, so it may be that.
--- old post above --- --- new post below ---
Picked up a comment that it's a glitch and being worked on.

 

[Merseysider]

Seems that London Spezial tickets have disappeared again for travel in 2016.

Messaged DB who deny there is a problem.

Is it just me?

Not just you, I'm having the same issue. It's been a week now so rather annoying.

 

[FrankZappa]

Hi guys,

I just found this thread as I had the very same issue . According to the folks at German ice-treff.de, travel agents and DB are also unable to book the London Spezial. I called DBs German Reiseservice Hotline and was told that they currently cannot book any Eurostar reservation, apparently because of an (unspecified) dispute between DB and Eurostar.

I assume (but this is pure speculation) that this is because DB is not able to submit names into Eurostars reservation system (at least this caused some trouble in the past).

Let's hope they resolve it soon.

Btw: Hello everyone, I am the new guy here

 

[30907]

Herzlich willkommen! Welcome aboard, and thanks for the info.

IIRC the problem in June was sorted relatively quickly.

 

[burns20]

Just an update.

DB London Spezial will be bookable from January 15th.

Daniel King
Rail Adventures Travel

 

[FrankZappa]

Just an update.

DB London Spezial will be bookable from January 15th.

Daniel King
Rail Adventures Travel

That's great to read! Many thanks

 

[burns20]

So DB have finally replied to an email and London-Spezial is only available from Germany to London only. Not from the UK to Germany.

Daniel King
Rail Adventures Travel

 

[blackfive460]

According to DB's web site, tickets from St. Pancras to Germany will be available from 19th January.

 

[burns20]

To say it's been a farce chasing them on this issue is an understatement.

Two different answers depending if you ask the Twitter or Facebook teams.

 

[M28361M]

How are the London-Spezial tickets affected by the security checks at Brussels Midi?

Doing a search on DB's website for a random Tuesday in April, I get offered the 10:58 Eurostar from St Pancras which arrives Brussels at 14:05. The onward ICE to Cologne leaves at 14:25 - that's less than the 30 minutes you are apparently now supposed to allow for the checks. Or does this not apply to people changing trains? If I missed my connection would I be refused travel on the next service because I hadn't allowed enough time?

For me it's a theoretical question at the moment, although I am considering a train trip to Germany later this year so would be interested to know how this works in practice.

 

[30907]

Google can't find any reference to security checks at Brussels other than Eurostar. Can you provide a link? I can't see how they could be managed there....

If you miss the connection, Railteam rules say you should be accommodated on the next service, but to you may have to insist.

 

[jnjkerbin]

From what I've heard, there are security checks of passports and possibly metal detectors for the Thalys platforms. Since ICE also use these platforms, it seems that these security checks take place on ICE passengers as well. From what I've heard, it doesn't cause too much delay and that connection is still possible.

 

[laird]

At Brussels it is just an ID check when transferring from Eurostar to the ICE. The ICE is going out delayed each time according to the Eurostar crew. Checks are by Belgian police. Sadly 20 minutes is now a tight connection.

The Midi station is not well layed out to accomodate the checks, since its only an ID check it could be done on the train allowing Eurostar passengers to then use the old connections corridor to get to the Thalys and ICE platforms. Or indeed on the Eurostar platforms.

 

[FrankZappa]

It probably depends on the time of day you travel through Bruxelles-Midi. 20 Minutes is definitely not impossible (make sure you exit the Eurostar at the front) outside of rush hours.

No one was waiting on the security checkpoint next to the Thalys Lounge the last time I boarded a train there, so you might want to use this one. See the station map at the bottom of this page in case you haven't been to the station yet. You might also consider taking a domestic train to Brussels Nord as the ICE stops in Nord as well and there are no checks at all.

 

[gordonthemoron]

So DB have finally replied to an email and London-Spezial is only available from Germany to London only. Not from the UK to Germany.

Daniel King
Rail Adventures Travel

Since London-Spezial tickets are one way, how will people get back to Germany? :roll:

 

[M28361M]

As promised, the Spezial tickets are now available again for journeys from London to Germany.

I was actually doing some speculative journey planning on the DB website last night and at just after 11pm (midnight German time of course) I noticed the Sparpreis fares had suddenly appeared.

 

[30907]

Officially now called Sparpreis Europa London (all the other Europa Spezials have also been renamed); and a Flexpreis is also now available (interesting to know how this fits with compulsory reservation on ES!).

 

[Merseysider]

Since London-Spezial tickets are one way, how will people get back to Germany? :roll:

Fly, presumably. I was close to booking flights for a journey I had originally planned to do by train.

 

[Polrail]

Officially now called Sparpreis Europa London (all the other Europa Spezials have also been renamed); and a Flexpreis is also now available (interesting to know how this fits with compulsory reservation on ES!).

The ES reservation is included at no extra charge. If you want a reservation on a connecting DB train, this is payable at €4,50.

 

[catlover606]

I kind of stumbled onto this forum. I'm from the U.S. and planning a trip to London and then on to Berlin with my family. I was thinking about using the London Special rate, but now I'm concerned about the connection in Bruxelles Midi, 18 minutes to be exact. There will be four of us travelling with luggage and the connection is at 10:07 am. Are we likely to miss the connection, and if so how do we proceed if the train itself arrived on-time? Should we give up on the train and fly?

 

[Merseysider]

I kind of stumbled onto this forum. I'm from the U.S. and planning a trip to London and then on to Berlin with my family. I was thinking about using the London Special rate, but now I'm concerned about the connection in Bruxelles Midi, 18 minutes to be exact. There will be four of us travelling with luggage and the connection is at 10:07 am. Are we likely to miss the connection, and if so how do we proceed if the train itself arrived on-time? Should we give up on the train and fly?

Using the Deutsche Bahn website (available in English) you can adjust the transfer time between arrival and departure at Brussels to give you time to grab a breather, take a look around etc. In any case, if you miss a connection (due to security checks or delays) you will undoubtedly be accommodated on the next train.

 

[catlover606]

Jakef - I tried adjusting the transfer time, but then the fare disappears and you only have the "price enquiry" option. It also changes from having 2 connections to 4.

 

[gordonthemoron]

Jakef - I tried adjusting the transfer time, but then the fare disappears and you only have the "price enquiry" option. It also changes from having 2 connections to 4.

you need to put a delay of 4 hours, the next train after 10:25 is 14:25