Frequent Asked Questions about NS group return tickets (groepsretour)

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Note: Meanwhile some things changed because of new rules of NS (everyone of the group must have ticket with same departure station (so not only final station), so not everything on this page is up to date now. See also jilz.nl/faq2
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Where can I see how to buy tickets via jilz.nl?
Go to jilz.nl/i

I have never bought a group ticket before and I heard that people buy via Facebook, but I don’t understand. Can you explain this?

Via this link you can read more general information (in Dutch). I noticed that buying via fb sometimes works really good. Very nice that there are people who want to offer their time (and also want to accept risk) to organize a group, to wait till everyone has paid, and then to buy the tickets.
But many times I saw that this don’t work so good. There are scammers active. Or many people are always waiting for other people who are willing to buy the tickets, because they don’t want to spend their own time to buy the tickets. In short: many times, people have to spend a lot of time before they can receive a group ticket. Therefore, I decided to offer my service to buy group tickets for you, via my fb groups and jilz.nl. Because it costs for me, naturally, also a lot of time, and there is a risk for me that sometimes I don’t have enough people for a set of 10 tickets or that I get scammed (so then no profit but loss), you have to pay a bit more for the tickets. I noticed that many people appreciate my service, although there are also people who don’t like it that I ask some extra money. Of course it’s your own choice; especially if you have lots of time and are a poor student who do not mind spending extra hours to save 1 or 2 euros, you can maybe better try other FB groups. But I am glad that many people appreciate my service (via www.jilz.nl/i you can see how many likes my page has, and see the link to many positive reviews about me, and more info).

Is the ticket valid anywhere in the Netherlands?

You can choose your own departure station. This can be any railway station in the Netherlands. If the final destination of your ticket is f.e. Amsterdam-Centraal, you can travel from mentioned departure station to Amsterdam-Centraal, and also from Amsterdam-Centraal to mentioned departure station, because it’s a return ticket. You have to choose an obvious route, f.e. if your departure station is Enschede and your final destination is Amsterdam, you will travel via Apeldoorn, Amersfoort and Hilversum, and not via Groningen!

How can I look for the route of my travel; which stations will pass through the train?

See following websites:    ns.nl ;   9292.nl ;   trein-kaart.nl

I want to buy a group ticket with (final) destination Amsterdam-Centraal but I want to travel FROM Amsterdam TO (f.e.) Eindhoven/Maastricht/Enschede; is this possible?

Yes, when you have received the link for your ticket, you can fill in that your departure station is f.e. Eindhoven, and then you can also travel FROM Amsterdam to f.e. Eindhoven, because it’s a return ticket. Maybe it’s officially not allowed according to the rules of NS, but I read that several employers of NS several times wrote that it’s OK, when some people asked NS. And I read that many people on FB say that in more than 99.99% of the cases it’s not a problem at all and that you can do this.

And when I after this (see previous question) want to travel to Amsterdam on the same day, is this possible?

See also answer on previous question. Maybe it’s officially not allowed according to the rules of NS, but I read that several employers of NS several times wrote that it’s OK, when some people asked NS. And I read that many people on FB say that in more than 99.99% of the cases it’s not a problem at all and that you can do this. I read that in a few cases the ‘conducteur’ (ticket controller) wrote on the ticket that a person could not return to Amsterdam with this ticket. But I read that people have a solution for this: they advise in this case to print your ticket two times. In this case you can use the second ticket, if the conducteur wrote this on your first ticket.

When is the ticket valid?

Ticket if valid on the date mentioned on the ticket; on Monday till Friday after 9am; Saturday and Sunday whole day.

Do I need ov chip card or do I have to check in/out when I travel with a group ticket (‘groepsretour’)?

No. When the ‘conducteur’ (ticket controller) in the train ask you to show your ticket, you have to show your printed ticket (with your ID card / passport).

I want to buy tickets for my friends as well; do we need to depart from the same station at the same time?

No, every passenger can choose a different departure station and can travel on the same day at a different time. When you have paid you ‘ll receive by email a link for your ticket and then each of you can fill in name, birthday and departure station.

I want to travel to/from Schiphol airport, can I also use a ticket with destination Amsterdam-Centraal?

If you travel via/from/to Rotterdam, you can*, because Schiphol is on the route Rotterdam – Amsterdam-Centraal. For most other routes, f.e. via/to/from Utrecht, Amersfoort/Hilversum, Almere, you cannot use this ticket to/from Schiphol. So in this case, you can maybe better look for a group Schiphol or a group … (maybe your departure station?). If you cannot find such a group, you can use a ticket with destination Amsterdam-Centraal and then buy an extra (regular) ticket for the traject Schiphol – Amsterdam-Centraal.
* see also other info on this page

What are the terms and conditions of the NS Group return ticket offer?

Some important terms and conditions are:
– Valid after 09.00 on weekdays and all day at weekends. Valid until 4am at night.
– NS Group returns are not valid on King’s day (27 April).
– Accepted by all train operators.
– Each group member needs their own personal e-ticket to be able to travel.
– This offer is not valid in combination with other offers.
– You can only get money back from NS in the event of a delay.
(source: NS)

Can I use NS Group returns with other operators too?

NS Group returns are also accepted by other train operators, although ICE and Intercity direct charge a supplement. If you are travelling with Intercity direct on the Rotterdam – Schiphol route, you can put a supplement on your OV-chipkaart at the Supplement post on the platform, at any NS ticket machine or online. You can put an ICE supplement on your OV-chipkaart at any NS ticket machine or service counter. (source: NS)
You can also get “normal” trains on this route, then you don’t have to pay extra.

Why is the price in your groups mostly a bit higher?
See jilz.nl/price.

Where can I see how to buy tickets via jilz.nl?
Go to jilz.nl/i

Note: Meanwhile some things changed because of new rules of NS (everyone of the group must have ticket with same departure station (so not only final station), so not everything on this page is up to date now. See also jilz.nl/faq2