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The cheapest train tickets are being hidden from you. Most Europeans get their rail tickets on major rail operator booking platforms, but in most cases these platforms don’t display all the options. It’s even rarer that they would sell other operators’ tickets. Let us explain 🧵⤵️

But these platforms dominate the market, selling 90% of long distance rail tickets in some countries. There's a strong case to ask major rail companies to display and sell all available journeys (not just their own) so that passengers can consider all options, including the cheapest tickets. 3/

The EU is currently looking into this and two other requirements: • If major operators should share their tickets with other booking platforms willing to display and sell them under fair conditions. • If independent booking platforms should show and sell willing operators’ tickets. 4/

The current system is flawed. Sometimes even the same service has ridiculously different prices depending on the platform you book on. On Trainline, a Eurostar ticket from Amsterdam to Paris is more than double what it costs on Snap, Eurostar’s platform to book reduced last-minute tickets. 5/