Trains in Europe

TRAINS IN EUROPE

Times have changed! It used to be that 95% of the Rail Europe tickets were rail passes; today, that is down to 25%.  Only a small number of spaces are allotted to the rail pass on some trains so you might not get a seat when you want it,  whereas if you have a point to point ticket you get a seat assigned to you when you get your e-ticket, a much smarter way to go. The trains are always full, so its best that you have an assigned seat.   I remember the trains all having to stop at each border, and a customs chap got on board to check your passport.  Thank goodness many are now in the European Common Market so journeys are faster, no more showing your passport every few hours.  I hated getting woken up several times during the night yet I still went skiing as soon as I got to my destination.  I carried skis, boots, poles, and a huge rucksack all over Europe, I was a skiing fanatic and always went by  train.  Today, I am married to a retired U.S. Marine Colonel who doesn’t believe in carrying anything, if he can help it.

 If you work with a travel professional who knows Europe, your trip is planned around high speed point to point journeys.  I am from Europe, and you are crazy if you fly from country to country.  It takes twice the time and is more expensive.    Most popular route is London to Paris, 2.15 minutes city center to city center, going by air takes you 5 hours if you are lucky.   Spain will be on the high speed track in September cutting a 12 hour journey from Barcelona to Paris in half.  There is a new privately owned high speed train in Italy, the Italo, but the tickets are non refundable so you have to be careful with your dates.   It’s a great overnight journey Paris to Rome, in addition to the Paris to Venice route.    It’s worth paying a small fee to work with an expert when booking a train journey.   

With petrol at $11 a gallon, it is much better to use a train for the long portion of your journey, then perhaps rent a car when you get to the destination.  For many clients, I don’t rent a car, we do customized tours and it’s less stress for the person who would be driving.   There is also an issue with age and insurance when renting a car in many countries.  The new trains are luxurious, comfortable, spacious, it’s like travelling in first class and seeing the countries you are passing through.  

The only rail pass I recommend buying is for Switzerland because of the value.   You can travel free on buses in 41 cities, steamers, boats, trains, and visit 400 museums all on the pass.  If you get a family pass, children under 16 travel free. 

I love trains, and Switzerland is a great destination at any time of year. One of my favorite journeys is a combination of the Glacier Express, from St. Moritz to Zermatt, the Bernina Express, from Chur in the north to Lugano in the South , I always chuckle at going from glaciers to palm trees, the Golden Pass line, from Lucerne through Interlaken and on to Montreux, central Switzerland and Lake Geneva, the William Tell Express, experiencing German and the Italian speaking regions, and my absolute favorite – the Chocolate Train.   This is a panoramic roundtrip from Montreux on the Swiss Riviera to Gruyeres, home of the famous Gruyeres cheese and the Nestle chocolate factory.  Of course, you get to sample lots of chocolate.

The mountain top experiences are out of this world.  Everyone should see the Jungfraujoch, the Matterhorn, take the cable car to the summit of Mount Stanserhorn, cable car to Mt. Pilatus, a revolving cable car to Mt. Titlis, and the roundtrip from Murren in the Bernese Oberland to the Schilthorn/Piz Gloria mountain top where you travel on a four segment cable car which forms the longest cable car system in the world.

The scenery is breathtaking, the food fantastic, friendly people, lots of history and culture. Think I will put this on my bucket list.  It will be an easy sell, my husband likes trains.

Maureen Jones is president of All Horizons Travel  at 160 Main Street. Members of her staff are experts in business travel, cruises, and all types of leisure.