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-   -   Where to leave your luggage on train while you eat?s (https://www.fodors.com/community/europe/where-to-leave-your-luggage-on-train-while-you-eat-s-111577/)

Jim Mar 11th, 2001 07:50 PM

Where to leave your luggage on train while you eat?s
 
I'm planning on several train trips through Germany and I love to eat in the trains dining car. I haven't done this in quite a while and have been reading about people getting luggage stolen. So where do I leave my suitcase while I eat in the dining car? <BR>Can I bring it with me if it's small? Is there a place to leave it with someone? <BR>What's the drill? Thanks

celia lynn Mar 11th, 2001 08:11 PM

Jim: Each train car has a luggage area at each each end as you enter the car. Shelves, usually three, where everyone stores their luggage. I traveled from London to Vienna, and on to Italy, and not once was there ever a problem. Maybe you'd feel more secure if you bought one of those cable locks and attached your luggage to the shelves. I was in a 1st class car...and never , ever, got any "old style" dining on the train!

Jim Mar 11th, 2001 08:22 PM

Thanks for responding. I neglected to mention I'm traveling in 2nd class.

Ben Haines Mar 12th, 2001 01:28 AM

Fodors <BR> <BR>I travel second class in Austria, Germany and elsewhere. I'm usually in a saloon coach, so leave my bag in the space at the end of the coach. Nobody else remembers whose bag is whose, and for all they know my bag may belong to the fierce-looking German lady in a pork pie hat with feather who is eyeing them suspiciously. I then, five minutes later, walk off to the restaurant car. This has no luggage space, I'm afraid, but does admit all classes. Moreover, if it's a real restaurant car, marked in departure lists with a crossed knife and fork, I get shiny cutlery, a linen napkin, German Rail's delicious goulash soup, a main course with fresh salad, a half bottle of wine, and good coffee. I'd add a cold dessert, but can never quite manage one. <BR> <BR>If I'm in a car with compartments I find a compartment with two or three other travellers, and ask them to keep an eye on my case while I eat. They're pleased that I'll be away, leavng them more space, and always agree. <BR> <BR>Have you heard of luggage stolen in Germany ? Like Ms Lynn, I'm surprised. I watch this forum and Lonely Planet's, and have read no such thing. Whereas in Poland and Romania there are such thieves, and I take other precautions. <BR> <BR>Please write if I can help further. As you say, lunch on a train is special. <BR> <BR>Ben Haines, London <BR> <BR>

Hans H Mar 12th, 2001 05:02 AM

If your suitcase has the size of a carry-on, you can take it into the dining car. Quite a lot of people, especially buisiness travelers, stay for the whole train ride in the dining car and never bother to look for a seat. This depends of course upon the time of the day, i.e. whether there are a lot of people interested in eating in the dining car and you're blocking the space other people are interested in. <BR> <BR>I don't know about a safe option for storing the luggage in a German train and it seems like the perfect opportunity for thieves. But out of some reason I've never understood, it seems to be quite safe to leave the luggage unattended and most people do it. It's the same with me, I would never leave a backpack in a train station for half and hour unattended but I do it in a train without second thoughts. I've never heard any stories about theft and it somehow feels safe to do it. I wouldn't leave something obviously valuable like a laptop lying around or leave a daypack with money, passport etc., but I leave large pieces of luggage and nothing ever happened. Germany isn't a crime-free country and I can't give you a sensible reason why luggage is safe in German trains but somehow it seems to work.


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