European train travel
Nov 27th, 2004, 07:37 PM
#1
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European train travel
Hi,
I am wondering about train travel within Europe. Does the rail service have a website? Should I buy tickets before I leave the U.S. or should I buy them once I get there? Does the Eurostar go everywhere or does it just go between Paris and London?
Thanks
I am wondering about train travel within Europe. Does the rail service have a website? Should I buy tickets before I leave the U.S. or should I buy them once I get there? Does the Eurostar go everywhere or does it just go between Paris and London?
Thanks
Nov 27th, 2004, 08:23 PM
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If you are interested in traveling in Europe by train, I recommend that you read Traveling the Eurail Express by Jay Brunhouse (Pelikan Publishing Company) - you can get the book for $15 from Amazon - it is the definitive guide to European Trains.
On the web, check out www.raileurope.com - the official site for Eurail. You might also want to look at www.ThereArePlaces.com, a website that provides destination guides for the top countries and cities in Europe. Both of these actions will only start you off - I suggest that you buy a quality guidebook that matches your travel tastes and research where to go and what to do. I hope that your trip is great.
On the web, check out www.raileurope.com - the official site for Eurail. You might also want to look at www.ThereArePlaces.com, a website that provides destination guides for the top countries and cities in Europe. Both of these actions will only start you off - I suggest that you buy a quality guidebook that matches your travel tastes and research where to go and what to do. I hope that your trip is great.
Nov 28th, 2004, 04:10 AM
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You can download this free PDF file from Rick Steves that explains all about using trains in Europe:
http://www.ricksteves.com/rail/railpdf.htm
http://www.ricksteves.com/rail/railpdf.htm
Nov 28th, 2004, 04:20 AM
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The above suggestions are great, but once you think you know where you want to go by train, then bookmark the site at the bottom of this post:
It's the most complete and easy to use site I've found. You can enter the names of departure and arrival cities (although you may need to use the European names (Wien instead of Vienna, for example), the date and approximate times and you'll get the exact schedules of all trains at that time. By clicking "details" you can even get all the stops they make and more information.
http://reiseauskunft.bahn.de/bin/query.exe/en
It's the most complete and easy to use site I've found. You can enter the names of departure and arrival cities (although you may need to use the European names (Wien instead of Vienna, for example), the date and approximate times and you'll get the exact schedules of all trains at that time. By clicking "details" you can even get all the stops they make and more information.
http://reiseauskunft.bahn.de/bin/query.exe/en
Nov 28th, 2004, 07:21 AM
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Here is a page that will help you get up to speed on using the trains in Europe:
www.enjoy-europe.com/hte/chap17/rail.htm
Nov 28th, 2004, 11:28 AM
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Try www.raileurope.com for scheduling information.
Buy tickets in the country you are traveling from. It is way easy and I have never had a problem with availability. The ways I know of purchasing tickets in the US are in STA offices, the rail europe website or contacting the ricksteves travel offices. I am sure there are other ways.
Eurostar trains go to more than Paris and London. When you go to the raileurope site, there is a tab on the left that tells you all about eurostar.
Good Luck,
Buy tickets in the country you are traveling from. It is way easy and I have never had a problem with availability. The ways I know of purchasing tickets in the US are in STA offices, the rail europe website or contacting the ricksteves travel offices. I am sure there are other ways.
Eurostar trains go to more than Paris and London. When you go to the raileurope site, there is a tab on the left that tells you all about eurostar.
Good Luck,
Nov 28th, 2004, 11:39 AM
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Eurostar also has a direct service from London Waterloo to Brussels, a direct weekly service to Avignon in the French Alps and a direct daily service to Disneyland Paris.
There are also services on the Eurostar to Paris or Brussels where u can change trains at Lille to anywhere in France by High Speed TGV Trains.
Gp to www.eurostar.com for more in depth details.
There are also services on the Eurostar to Paris or Brussels where u can change trains at Lille to anywhere in France by High Speed TGV Trains.
Gp to www.eurostar.com for more in depth details.
Nov 28th, 2004, 02:25 PM
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For novices with basic questions like yours, along with Brunhouse's book there is a superb free guides that answers all your questions - The European Planning & Rail Guide, free from BETS (800-441-9413) It also details dozens of railpasses, many of which cannot be bought in Europe and for many will be the chaepest option.
Nov 28th, 2004, 04:04 PM
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<<Does the rail service have a website? >>
There is a separate rail company for each country in Europe, and they each have a website. Many countries have extensive information about trains that connect to services originating in their respective countries, and the Germany site is often cited as the best, in this context.
Remember one word to get to the website that has a link to every country's rail web site(s): mercurio.
Searching here on this forum will take you to this thread, among others:
http://www.fodors.com/forums/threads...p;tid=34475870
... and listed there is the "mega-website" - - which in turn directs you to this new replacement for the old mercurio site:
http://www.railfaneurope.net
<<On the web, check out www.raileurope.com - the official site for Eurail. >>
It's the official site for RailEurope, and nothing more. RailEurope is a <i>marketing</i> consortium which (<b>substantially</b> <i>marks up</i> and) sells tickets to trains all over Europe and the (<i>too</i
well-known "rail passes" with the Trademarked name <i>Eurailpass</i> (and many other rail passes as well). They are rarely a good bargain, but you might
want to check your own itinerary at www.railsaver.com - - for two people traveling together, traveling salesman and some other situations (such as people who are ping-ponging all over Europe, illogically, in my opinion), a rail pass is occasionally lower priced
than just buying the tickets you need, point-to-point, one segment at a time.
And the name Eurostar <i>is</i> confusing, as two different national rail services use it. The train that crosses under the English Channel by tunnel connects from London and Ashford to Calais, Paris, Lille and Brussels, and it is named Eurostar. Other connections are shown at
http://www.eurostar.com/dctm/jsp/sub...jsp?page=route
"Trenitalia", the Ferrovie del Stato (national railways) of Italy also use the name Eurostar to refer to their flagship high-speed service that operates between Milan, Venice, Florence and Rome (and maybe limited service to a few other destinations).
Best wishes,
Rex Bickers
Floyds Knobs, Indiana
There is a separate rail company for each country in Europe, and they each have a website. Many countries have extensive information about trains that connect to services originating in their respective countries, and the Germany site is often cited as the best, in this context.
Remember one word to get to the website that has a link to every country's rail web site(s): mercurio.
Searching here on this forum will take you to this thread, among others:
http://www.fodors.com/forums/threads...p;tid=34475870
... and listed there is the "mega-website" - - which in turn directs you to this new replacement for the old mercurio site:
http://www.railfaneurope.net
<<On the web, check out www.raileurope.com - the official site for Eurail. >>
It's the official site for RailEurope, and nothing more. RailEurope is a <i>marketing</i> consortium which (<b>substantially</b> <i>marks up</i> and) sells tickets to trains all over Europe and the (<i>too</i
well-known "rail passes" with the Trademarked name <i>Eurailpass</i> (and many other rail passes as well). They are rarely a good bargain, but you mightwant to check your own itinerary at www.railsaver.com - - for two people traveling together, traveling salesman and some other situations (such as people who are ping-ponging all over Europe, illogically, in my opinion), a rail pass is occasionally lower priced
than just buying the tickets you need, point-to-point, one segment at a time.
And the name Eurostar <i>is</i> confusing, as two different national rail services use it. The train that crosses under the English Channel by tunnel connects from London and Ashford to Calais, Paris, Lille and Brussels, and it is named Eurostar. Other connections are shown at
http://www.eurostar.com/dctm/jsp/sub...jsp?page=route
"Trenitalia", the Ferrovie del Stato (national railways) of Italy also use the name Eurostar to refer to their flagship high-speed service that operates between Milan, Venice, Florence and Rome (and maybe limited service to a few other destinations).
Best wishes,
Rex Bickers
Floyds Knobs, Indiana
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