While searching for flights recently, I noticed that some direct flights, especially on Star Alliance carriers, are actually cheaper when booked together with a rail segment through operators like Deutsche Bahn or Swiss Federal Railways (SBB).
What surprised me is that the bundled train-plus-flight itinerary can sometimes cost noticeably less than booking the exact same flight on its own.
Is there a specific pricing or revenue-management reason airlines do this? I assume it may relate to competition, fare classes, or intermodal agreements, but I would be interested to know the actual logic behind it.
Another interesting detail is that these train station origin points usually do not appear on most flight comparison websites, so the only way I have found these fares is by searching directly through the airline’s own booking system.
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