Nederlandse Spoorwegen - Fares and Tickets - Off-peak Discount Passes

Off-peak Discount Passes

NS defines off-peak hours as weekdays 00:00-06:30, 09:00-16:00 and 18:30-24:00 and on Saturdays and Sundays the whole day. With a discount product on the pass one is automatically granted the discount based on the type of the discount product and the time of checking in. The term discount includes 100 percent discount, i.e. free travel.

There is an Off-Peak Discount Pass (in Dutch: Dal Voordeel) for €50 per year, allowing a 40 percent discount on journeys starting in off-peak hours. In the case of a group of up to four people, all get the discount even if only one has a pass. This card replaced the old off peak discount pass (in Dutch: Voordeelurenabonnement, which can still be renewed, but is otherwise no longer available). These are the advantages/disadvantages of Dal Voordeel compared to the Voordeelurenabonnement.

Advantages:

• Discount during the week from 04:00-06:30
• Slightly cheaper by €10
• Up to three free "kids vrij" passes (kids travel free with the cardholder of the Dal Voordeel)

Disadvantages

• No discount in the busy afternoon rush hour
• No discount in the morning AND afternoon rush hours in July and August and in the period from 25 December to 31 December
• No discount on the NS-24 hours card (from 09:00 valid)
• No right to buy a paper ticket with discount; the holder of Dal Voordeel HAVE to use the OV-chipkaart, while Voordeelurenabonn. holders still possess the right to buy paper tickets with discount; this way, the traveller does not need to load €10 of credit on his/her card before being able to travel.

Travellers aged 60 years and older can buy a supplement for €14 for free travel during off-peak hours on 7 days of choice (with some limitations) during the year. It is not possible to buy multiple supplements for the same year.

There is also an Off-Peak Free Pass (in Dutch: Dal Vrij) for €1140 per year, allowing free journeys which each start in the off-peak hours (compare the OV-Jaarabonnement).

For €295 per month, travelers can buy an unlimited travel pass which is always valid, even during the peak hours. Even with this card, checking in and out is always required; otherwise, the traveller risks a fine. Regulations involving time periods (they apply to NS; for other operators there may be differences):

• 2-3 minutes: minimum time between checking in and out or out and in, except at gates
• 5 minutes: margin in favor of traveller applied to times of start and end of off-peak hours, compared to those published
• 30 minutes: maximum allowed time between checking in and scheduled departure time of the train
• 1 hour: maximum allowed time between checking in and out at the same station without travelling; this is free of charge
• 6 hours: maximum allowed time between checking in and checking out