CFR Călători

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The Societatea Natională de Transport Feroviar de Călători “CFR Călători” S.A., or CFR Călători for short, is the state railway company of Romania and operates the majority of passenger services on the Romanian rail network.

Summary

  • FIP 50 and FIP Coupons are accepted
  • Reservation required on most long-distance trains and partially on regional services
  • Limited booking options

Validity of FIP Tickets

Validity FIP Coupon

First select the issuer of your FIP Card. If you are eligible, you can request the FIP Coupons through your employer. Please note that we are unable to assist with the issuance of FIP Coupons. You can find an overview of all FIP Coupons in the FIP Application.

Please select a FIP Card issuer first.

Validity FIP Reduced Ticket

Railway companies typically offer a discount with FIP, also known as FIP50 or FIP75. The discount is usually 50 %, sometimes 75 %. To find out what discount applies to you, first select the issuer of your FIP Card. You can find an overview of all discounts in the FIP Application.

Please select a FIP Card issuer first.

FIP Coupons and FIP 50 Tickets are valid on CFR Călători services. For cross-border journeys, either a continuous FIP 50 Ticket or FIP Coupons for both countries are required.

Train Categories and Reservations

The train categories are partially used by other operators in Romania as well. For FIP usage, it is important to verify that the operator is CFR Călători.

InterCity (IC)

FIP accepted Reservation required Risk of confusion

National long-distance trains with few intermediate stops and comparatively higher comfort. They mainly run from Bucharest in various directions across the country.

Risk of Confusion

IC trains are partially operated by other operators in Romania as well. For FIP usage, it is important to verify that the operator is CFR Călători.

Reservations

A seat reservation is mandatory. If the train is fully booked, a standing reservation can be purchased.

Reservation cost: RON 6.5

InterRegio (IR)

FIP accepted Reservation required Risk of confusion

Comparatively fast trains connecting major cities with few intermediate stops. Some also run cross-border, particularly to Hungary.

Risk of Confusion

IR trains are partially operated by other operators in Romania as well. For FIP usage, it is important to verify that the operator is CFR Călători.

Reservations

A seat reservation is mandatory. If the train is fully booked, a standing reservation can be purchased.

Reservation cost: RON 6.5 for national routes

InterRegio Noapte (IRN)

FIP accepted Reservation required Risk of confusion

Mostly international trains running overnight. They are also partially listed as D in the journey planners of other providers.

These trains usually include couchette or sleeper cars, which can be used with a corresponding reservation.

Risk of Confusion

IRN trains are partially operated by other operators in Romania as well. For FIP usage, it is important to verify that the operator is CFR Călători.

Reservations

A reservation is mandatory, either for a seat, couchette or sleeper berth. If the train is fully booked, a standing reservation can be purchased.

Reservation cost: RON 6.5 for seat and standing reservations on national routes

For couchette and sleeper cars, the following prices apply on national routes: Price list for couchette and sleeper cars

Other international trains

FIP accepted Reservation partially required Risk of confusion

International trains to Bulgaria, Moldova and Ukraine run without a specific train category and only have a train number.

These trains often include couchette or sleeper cars, which can be used with a corresponding reservation.

Risk of Confusion

These trains are partially operated by other operators in Romania as well. For FIP usage, it is important to verify that the operator is CFR Călători.

Reservations

A reservation is often mandatory (indicated by an R in the journey planner). If the train is fully booked, a standing reservation can be purchased.

Reservation cost: RON 6.5 for seat and standing reservations on national routes

For couchette and sleeper cars, the following prices apply on national routes: Price list for couchette and sleeper cars

Regio (R)

FIP accepted Reservation partially required Risk of confusion

Regional trains that also serve smaller towns. The various trains on a route often do not have a fixed stopping pattern, meaning smaller stops are only served by some R trains.

Risk of Confusion

R trains are partially operated by other operators in Romania as well. For FIP usage, it is important to verify that the operator is CFR Călători.

Reservations

A reservation is required for some trains, indicated by an R.

Reservation cost: RON 4.5

Ticket and Reservation Purchase

Online

DB Website

Only seats for individual trains to/from Hungary
Reservation FIP 50 Tickets
Reservation Costs:
1st Class: € 6.90 2nd Class: € 5.50
Reservations

The reservation price is calculated per journey. This means that for connections with transfers, you only need to pay once for multiple trains.

Seat reservations can be purchased via the Deutsche Bahn website. To do so, select the “Book seat only” option in the search.

Book DB reservation
Important Information
If an error occurs while booking trains requiring reservations, it may be that reservations are not yet available for that connection. Please observe the relevant advance booking deadlines and, in this case, try again later, check the connection on the operator's website, or use other booking methods.
To Booking WebsiteAdditional Information

On-Site

CFR Călători Ticket Office

Reservation FIP 50 Tickets
Reservation Costs:
1st Class: RON 6.5 / RON 4.5 2nd Class: RON 6.5 / RON 4.5
FIP 50 Tickets

At the CFR Călători Ticket Office, FIP 50 Tickets can be purchased for journeys within Romania, and at international ticket counters also for journeys to Bulgaria and Hungary. Since FIP tickets are not valid in Moldova and Ukraine, tickets and reservations can be sold up to the last stop in Romania for journeys to these two countries, with full-price tickets for the remaining section. The situation is similar for Turkey, where bookings can be made up to the last stop in Bulgaria.

An overview of the international ticket counters can be found on the CFR Călători Website.

Reservations

Seat and standing reservations for national routes can be purchased on-site for a price of RON 6,5 for long-distance trains and RON 4,5 for R trains. When using a FIP Coupon, it must be presented. The number of the FIP Coupon will then be printed on the ticket.

For couchette and sleeper cars, the following prices apply on national routes: Price list for couchette and sleeper cars

Additional Information

DB Ticket Office

For the Vienna – Bucharest night train and InterCity trains
Reservation FIP 50 Tickets
Reservation Costs:
1st Class: € 6.90 2nd Class: € 5.50
At DB Ticket Offices, FIP 50 Tickets and reservations for the Vienna – Bucharest night train can be purchased. Bookings can be made 90 days in advance. Reservations are available for InterCity trains.

Deutsche Bahn ticket offices are called DB Reisezentrum and are located in many larger stations throughout Germany.

FIP 50 Tickets

At DB ticket offices, FIP 50 Tickets can be purchased for journeys within Germany and to many European countries.

It is also possible to issue FIP 50 Tickets where only the section outside Germany is charged, and an additional ticket is required for the German section. This is especially important for DB employees, as FIP 50 Tickets are not valid in their home country.

Reservations

The reservation price is calculated per journey. This means that for connections with transfers, you only need to pay once for multiple trains.

Reservations can be made not only for Germany but also for a large number of trains throughout Europe.

Additional Information

On the Train

FIP-discounted tickets cannot be purchased on the train. Reservations must also be obtained before departure.

Discounts

The FIP Discount generally applies to adult fares and not to children’s fares. For this reason, it should be checked whether public fares are cheaper. The discounts in the following table therefore only apply to public fares and are not additionally applicable to FIP. More information in the FAQs.
AgeDiscount
0–4 yearsFree of charge, if not occupying a separate seat, otherwise 50% discount1
5–9 years50% discount1
from 10 yearsRegular price1

On trains with a reservation requirement, the full reservation fare must be paid regardless of the discount.1

On board berth and sleeping coaches, if 2 children share one bed, only a single bed supplement is paid. If a child does not require a separate bed, no bed supplement is due (one accompanied child per bed is allowed).1

Personal Tip

Balkan Flexipass

For travellers through several Balkan countries, the Balkan Flexipass could be worthwhile in terms of price. It enables unlimited travel on the rail networks of:

  • Bosnia and Herzegovina (ZFBH),
  • Bulgaria (BDZ),
  • North Macedonia (MŽ-Transport),
  • Greece (HT & Attica),
  • Montenegro (ŽPCG),
  • Romania (CFR Calatori & Regiotrans),
  • Serbia (SV),
  • Slovakia (ZSSK / ŽSR),
  • Turkey (TCDD).

More information on the ŽPCG website

Special Tariff Conditions

Break of Journey

With FIP 50 tickets, a journey interruption is permitted only once and for a maximum of 24 hours from the time of arrival at the station where the journey is interrupted. To qualify, the ticket must be validated within one hour of arrival.2

Recommendations

Personal Tip

CFR Călători provides a solid basic service on Romania’s largely ageing rail network, especially on the main routes. Apart from the reservation requirement on most connections, travelling the country with FIP is relatively straightforward. Particular highlights include the international trains towards Western Europe as well as the well-known trains towards Moldova and Turkey, even though the latter cannot be used with FIP for the entire journey.

Sources

  1. CFR Călători – Children ↩︎ ↩︎ ↩︎ ↩︎ ↩︎

  2. Rail Delivery Group ↩︎