Across Europe By Rail
With the dollar maintaining its high value on international currency markets, more Australians than ever are winging their ways to distant shores to enjoy the local cultures, whether they be pale Irish or swarthy Brazilian. As always, Europe remains a top destination, and with so much culture wooing us in any number of languages, we are smitten by the possibilities.
To survive the long flight to Europe is one thing, but getting around Europe is another, altogether more enjoyable experience. That’s because trains easily replace planes as the most convenient mode of transport for visitors on the move. Europe’s dense rail network and speedy services lend themselves to easy travel between major capitals and, in some cases, to even the smallest of towns—all the more reason to travel with a Eurail Pass. In this age of extra-early check-in times, security queues, and delays, the train can be faster than the plane and deliver you directly to the city centre rather than an outlying airport.
What exactly is a Eurail Pass? The original, introduced way back in 1959, permitted unlimited train journeys for a specific time period with just one ticket. Today, Eurail offers a wide array of options for travel; from the all-encompassing Global Pass, the current version of the unlimited pass, to individual country passes, the perfect option exists to suit your itinerary. Eurail Passes also entitle their owner many discounts off the train in association with Eurail partners ranging from major hotels to small tour operators in a variety of cities.
There are other ways to make your Eurail Pass more effective, maximising your return on investment. Making a base in a well-connected city allows for daytrips previously impossible with standard rail speeds. France’s Trains à Grande Vitesse (TGV) are great for this, permitting daytrips to practically any point in the country from Paris, centre of the network. Conversely, for those wanting to avoid the high cost of hotels in Paris, basing oneself in a smaller city on a TGV line is a perfectly viable option that can see many more cheeses, chocolates, and bottles of wine purchased with the money saved on accommodation.
The French TGV high-speed rail network requires reservations for its seats—not the case on the German ICE, making spontaneous travel that much easier. ICE trains are state of the art transport machines whizzing passengers from Hamburg to Hanover, Munich to Frankfurt, Berlin to Leipzig—so many possibilities. Simply decide where you want to go, board the train, flash your Eurail pass to the conductor, and enjoy the ride. What could be simpler?
For those taking the environment into consideration, rail travel is far less polluting than air travel, making the train the way to go to keep the pristine landscapes seen out the window just that. Travellers who appreciate feats of engineering will marvel at the viaducts and tunnels allowing tracks to be laid in what would seem to be impossible locations, sometimes saving many hours of travel by traversing a deep gorge or ploughing through a mountain rather than going around or over it.
Did I mention Eurail Passes are for travel in First Class? It is all too easy to become accustomed to the extra space, the free newspapers, and even the occasional snack, as is served by on the Swedish X2000 tilting train between alluring Stockholm and vivacious Copenhagen. Hey, travelling First Class is nice, even on the ground, so if a seat at the front of the plane is beyond your financial means, a seat at the front of the train doesn’t have to be.
The First Class treatment does not exist only on the train itself. In an effort to make rail travel as pleasant an experience as possible, many national rail associations have taken cues from airports and improved their services while leaving airports’ problems at home. Train stations themselves start off the VIP treatment. Some rail stations such as the ones in Zurich and Stockholm have First Class lounges similar to those found in airports, offering complimentary food, WiFi, and a comfortable place to await departure free of the crowds. Some rail stations are themselves attractions; Antwerpen-Centraal, Budapest-Nyugati, and Madrid-Atocha, which has a huge, indoor tropical garden, are particularly interesting.
In many countries such as Switzerland, Eurail Pass includes travel on entirely different modes of transport, in the Swiss case that being the charming boats serving the ports of the country’s major lakes. Some of these rides are offered at a reduced rate, but other are entirely free—the latter including the excellent services of the CGN boats on Lake Geneva, which effectively permits (in summer) a daycruise all the way from genial Geneva to magnificent Montreux via lovely Lausanne.
For the savvy traveller who does the homework before embarking on a trip across the Continent, a Eurail Pass can pay for itself several times over. Eurail Passes, available in Australia through Rail Plus, are a unique option for travel experiences unavailable anywhere else in the world. Bon voyage!
Robert La Bua
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