If you've been planning a holiday, there's no doubt you've considered how you'll be getting from place to place, especially if you'd like to visit various destinations in multiple countries. But you already know what we're going to tell you. Train travel is the best way to get around Europe. It's just so much more relaxed and a way to experience landscapes you'd never get to otherwise, and that has a value beyond price or time. Just ask our loyal customer Jill Brownbill. She's been travelling with Railbookers for more than 10 years! She and her husband are independent travellers who prefer not to fly. Over the years, they've experienced numerous trips with Railbookers, more recently Vienna and Aix-en Provence City Breaks and our exciting Venice via the Alps itinerary. Follow along as Jill shares what it's really like to travel throughout Europe by train. She even offers up a few helpful tips for those interested in skipping the airport for city centre to city centre train stations.
We find flying by air depressing. From the moment we step into the airport, we can't wait for the journey to be over. Train travel isn't like that. The journey becomes part of the holiday, an adventure in itself!
What has your experience been like planning various train holidays with Railbookers? It is reassuring to book our trips with Railbookers. I speak to one of your brilliant agents, who offers me choices of times, routes, stopovers, hotels (usually four or five star, luxurious, and central), and other great benefits such as local transport tickets. In January 2010, we went to Berlin and got caught in the middle of the worst winter Europe had seen in 30 years! Your agents were with us every step of the way, advising us by text about which train were running, cancelled, re-routed or delayed. We made the last Eurostar out of Brussels with two minutes to spare! Without your expertise, I doubt we would have made it back – at least not for several additional days.
Why do you prefer to travel by train when exploring Europe? We both don't flying, more particularly, we don't like airports. Having to be at the airport two to three hours prior to departure, queuing interminably, getting through security and check-in, and being treated abysmally once onboard. No thanks, not for us. As my husband says, “How many times can you go into Dixons without spending anything?”
We both find travelling by air depressing. From the moment we step into the airport, we can’t wait for the entire journey to be over. Not to mention, flying dumps us miles from our destination, and then it's a taxi ride to get to where we want to be. Train travel isn't like that. The journey becomes part of the holiday, an adventure in itself. We enjoy interacting with locals both on and off the train and arriving in the middle of our chosen city. Trains allows you to appreciate the distance traveled and show you just how interesting Europe is. In the time it would take us to fly out of
Gatwick to Berlin, we could travel by train, check into our hotel and be enjoying a cup of coffee. If you're travelling within Europe, riding the train is a no brainer. We get to decide where we want to go (in our case, we're art tourists) but would rather not organise it all ourselves.
Tell us about your experiences onboard European trains during your trips: All of our experience onboard trains in Europe have been positive, and if it has ever gone wrong it hasn't been at the fault of Railbookers. Typically, the trains are excellent. They operate on time, are spacious, comfortable, and efficient. Austrian night trains (Cologne - Vienna) are great and their two berth en-suite cabins are wonderful. We have travelled to Venice with overnight stays in
Zurich, Lausanne and Lucerne, all of which were incredible with enough time to explore each city before departing for Milan or Paris. Our recent city break to Aix-en Provence via Lille last year was excellence, efficient and speedy. There are always great hotels ready to greet us!
Are there any scenic highlights onboard the trains that stand out? It's lovely leaving Switzerland during the day to see the stunning scenery of the Alps. My personal favourite was during a winter journey to celebrate the New Year. We journeyed through the mountains, which featured frozen waterfalls that glistened in the sunlight only to emerge on the other side to breath-taking views of valleys and lakes.
What do you think other travellers would enjoy about the trips you’ve taken with us? As independent travellers who prefer not to fly, we value your service. It allows us to discuss our individual requirements in detail with one of your agents, choose train times that suit us (e.g. returning from
Vienna a few years ago we arranged a day in Cologne and went to Wuppertal to experience the Schweberbahn, the world’s first suspended, overhead railway, built in 1917.
We’re not train nerds but we’d spotted it whizzing along over a river on one of our trips to Berlin. We love that we get to choose where to stop, for how long, and the hotels we'll be staying at. We don't feel that we're being organised or shepherded around. Your customer service is marvellous. Other travellers will enjoy the convenience, quality and value for money on your itineraries and recommended hotels. We've even stayed in a few where we were amazed they let us in!
Is there anything you wish you'd known before travelling by train in Europe with Railbookers? Railbookers always talks us through our journeys and has always stressed that we should never throw away any of our train tickets until we get home. Excellent advice! Other travellers new to European train travel might like to know that if you miss a connection because your previous train was delayed, and you have your tickets on hand, you'll be transferred to the next available train. You may lose your reserved seat, but you'll get to where you're going. Most likely, in comfort.
Do you have any advice/tips for someone thinking about taking these holidays? Most trains have buffets, but pretty much every station sells convenient snacks that you can stock up on before you board the train. We recommend taking along a good book, especially if you'll be travelling at night. All major stations in Europe have luggage lockers. So, if you're going to be at the station for longer than an hour, use the lockers and liberate yourself from your suitcases.
Overnight trains provide slippers, towels, water and essentials, and they typically offer you welcome drink and light snacks as well. You'll also get a light breakfast and on Austrian trains remember that you need to complete your menu selection quickly! Get your bunks sorted out as soon as possible, they're more comfortable to sit on than the seats in the couchette.
How did you prepare your luggage for these trips? We made sure not to over-pack. Trust me, you don't want to be dragging your luggage on and off trains or having to haul it up into overhead racks. If you're planning an overnight trip, simply pack a small suitcase with some essentials. We take a smaller case each rather than one big one between the both of us. They are easier to maneuver as you're travelling. Expect to do plenty of walking.
Why do you continue travelling with Railbookers after all these years? We trust Railbookers and are amazed at the way we are able to discuss our travel plans. The certainty that an expert is booking our holidays puts us at ease. I have booked European trains in the past but I've never been confident that I've done it right! For example, when planning a trip to Italy a few years ago, your agent said that the journey wouldn't work because of a strike that was happening during our return date. On his advice, we booked a trip to Vienna and Budapest instead. We had a marvelllous, stress-free holiday all thanks to your agent's knowledge and expertise!
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