Interrailing - Europe 2025

KIPAX

KIPAX

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KIPAX Lancashire UK
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So Plan A was to drive to Innsbruck and have day trips out inc Venice. this was cancelled due to Covid then cancelled 2 yrs ago when I got Ill.. Having now retired and got rid of the BMW we are left with the wifes Peugot 207 1.4 which aint going around europe :) I looked into hiring a car.. hiring a camper.. nothign worked (PS I dont fly)

then I discovered Interrail :) https://www.thetrainline.com/passes?countryOfResidence=GB&countryToVisit=interrail-global-pass

I bought two first class train passes that can be used for any 7 days in one month (800 quid) ... This is what we have booked and the pass covers all journeys but you have/can book seats on some legs and that costs anything from 3 to 30 euros but only eurostar forces seat reservations.. But you get food drinks snacks for free on the train :)

Going Early September


Day 1 (Actual hrs on train 5hrs 10 mins)
Accrington to Preston
Preston to London Euston
London St Pancras to Paris

Day 2 (4 hrs 5 mins)
Paris to Zurich (got the double decker upper with window seats)

Day 3 (1 hr 55 mins)
Zurich to Lugano I(arrive early morn leave late next day so plenty of time. beutiful place)

Day 4 (Actual hrs on train 3hrs)
Lugano to Milan ( Time in center of Milan for a shufty)
Milan to Verona (7 day Self catering - Trips to Venice and lake Gada -loads planned)

Day 11 (3 hrs 55 mins) - (5th day of pass)
Verona to Innsbruck (3 days self catering)

Day 14 (7 hrs 37 mins)
Innsbruck to Zurich
Zurich to Paris

Day 15 (Actual hrs on train 5hrs 10 mins) - (7th day of pass)
Paris to London St Pancras
London Euston to Preston
Preston to Accrington

Massive learning curve and did a few things wrong... Joined a facegroup called Interrailing for the older crowd and learnt a lot.. better way to get to switzerland from london (but wife wants to see eifell tower lit up at night) and we should maybe do longer legs and multiple night stopovers .. Presuming we got on with rail travel as i havent been on a train over 20 yrs.. its all set for bigger adevetures in the coming years..


So who else has gone interrail.. i know at least one on here has :) @lindsay

total cost of rail travel, overnight stays, self catering apartments, seat resevations... 15 days.. about 2.1k so far :)

PS Any days with more than one train has a minimum of 2 hrs between .. stretch legs and make sure no time problems...
 
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I just wanted to add that i dont fly too. None of my family do. I did try once but as hard as i flapped my arms it just didnt work!
 
Nice. I read shocked to learn recently that I could still buy an interail pass :)

Been on a couple of train trips but nothing as ambitious as this.

Folkestone to Germany took me a very pleasant 5 hours (similar time to flying for the to end but felt much more luxurious). Sadly, half the time was spent getting to London and then back to Folkestone....
 
A friend and I did the 'original' interrail some 45 years ago, not long after we joined the EEC. Then you bought your pass and it was good for a month on almost any train. The trip was nowhere near as planned as yours, we just wanted to get to as many European countries as we could in 2 weeks. Spent many nights in trains so we could see the destinations in daylight. Met some incredible people, had some amazing times, and saw that Europeans really were just us but speaking funny.
I don't suppose that kind of ticket is available now which is a crying shame.

/Edit just read Jonathan's post about the pass being still available. I thoroughly recommend anyone who is young to do this, it's fun and a great learning experience. If you have youngsters pack them off on a trip, they'll thank you forever.
 
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As @KIPAX says, I did it with my then girlfriend in 1979., so the old one month free travel all over Europe ticket. My dad drove us from Cheltenham to Victoria station where we caught the train to Dover then the ferry, then we were on a French train to Paris accidentally coinciding with a France-Wales rugby match so we were in literally a freight truck with a load of Wales supporters as the train was full. Great craic! We didn't loiter in Paris, we instead caught the sleeper train to Madrid (sleeping in couchettes), and spent several days there including a day trip to Toledo. Then onwards to Algeciras for the ferry to Tangier. We just spent a day there as being rather hippy-ish, we were pestered by drug dealers and it just became uncomfortable. Arriving back in Algeciras, we caught a train to Valencia then onwards to Barcelone for a couple of days. Then a sleeper train to Milan where we stayed a few days, then down to Rome for a few more days, then down to Bari for a ferry to Piraeus then Athens, staying there a few days. Returning from Greece via the ferry, it was up to Florence for a day before onward travel to Venice where we stayed a few days. From Venice we got the train to Vienna for a few days. Then Basle for a couple of days, before a sleeper train via Hamburg to Copenhagen for a couple of days, then finally back to Paris then Calais for the ferry and onwards via London to home.

It's exhausting just writing that, but it was amazing and the memories are still clear, the people we befriended, the dodgy dives we stayed in, the sights sounds and smells. I think you have to be young for that sort of trip, but drawing the high points out of it: Milan, Florence, Venice, Vienna and Athens - I'd happily try to visit those places again (it helps that I've worked in Milan and Vienna in the past though).
 
We’re off to Madeira tomorrow but all that water around it kinda make the train difficult, admittedly the view from a train window should be much better.
 
Thought about it, but wanted more flexibility than a meagre set amount of days.
Undertaken a fair few rail journeys to and in Northern Europe, its considerably cheaper than the UK
Currently the Deutschland-Ticket is 58 Euros a month, valid for all of Germany on any form of transport except ICE and IC trains.
About to work out a route to take in the industrial museums of the Ruhr area from a base in Dortmund.
Last trip was London to Brussels before that London to Utrecht not long after London to Stuttgart which followed London to Essen, you get the idea.
Next trip is London to Alkmaar, pretty much paid for with Eurostar Club Points, always try to travel Standard Premier for the extra comfort

One downside to rail roaming holidays is having to take bags with you during the day.
We try to use the left luggage lockers, money well spent if it saves lugging a bag around

Think of trying the Spirit of Scotland pass £189 for 8 out of fifteen days unlimited travel and that price is before the Senior Railcard 30% discount

Many years ago I did London To Innsbruck by train and ferry, if memory serves it was about seventeen hours from Boulogne.
Had to go through a border check in the middle of the night at Basle, roused from our SNCF Couchette
 
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So the time has finally arrived. Currently on the top deck of a fast TGV from Paris to Zurich.. We amended the original plan to go to innsbruck and changed to Rome as we where top end of Italy. we can go innsbruck when we travel holland, germany then go up there :)

Day 1

Got up at silly oclock and first (well only) slight problem was the the Preston to London Euston was 7.50am instead of 6.57 am . So 50 odd minutes late. Strange that we never once got asked to show our tickets.. First class meant complintary juices, brews and a full english breakfast
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Arrived in time for our connection to Paris as we had made sure there was plenty of time just in case.. Mandatory picture in front of the statue in st pancras international before a pretty quick check in then waiting area.. Once on eurostar we got complimentry drinks again and a light lunch and we eventually arrived in Paris.

Found the metro quite easy and a 10 minute ride to gare du lyon station as our hotel was close by ready for an early train to Zurich in the morning..
After mooch round and a bit of shopping we took a deep breath and headed for another metro to take an half hr ride across Paris so we could see the Eiffel tower lit up at night and the sparkle display on the hr. As soon as the display started. The rain came
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Another packed Metro back towards the hotel and short walk calling into the offy for a couple of cans... Long day shattered. Lets see how today goes :)

PS all pics taken with old samsung s20 mobile phone

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Awesome! Once you're in Europe, trains are fantastic. Although I never understood how Germany got a reputation for punctuality..... :)
 
got to zurich. absoloutly throwing it down... we have 5/6 hrs stopover on way home so will have a ganders then. using interail i can just choose an earlier train and catch that to out next destination.. 3 days in lugano ... looks lovely :)
 
We stayed in Italy about 4 years ago.
Italian trains are fantastic, spotless clean; polite staff and always on time.
What more could you want ?
 
KIPAX said:
got to zurich. absoloutly throwing it down... we have 5/6 hrs stopover on way home so will have a ganders then. using interail i can just choose an earlier train and catch that to out next destination.. 3 days in lugano ... looks lovely :)
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Are you still here in Zurich? Like to meet up in person?
 
TimHughes said:
Are you still here in Zurich? Like to meet up in person?
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We left an hr after arriving as it was raining. We where going to stop a few hours but moved on to lugano instead where we still are until tomorrow. Cracking flags here :)
 
For anybody inspired by this thread.....Interail passes are on 20% discount ATM :) I think it's until Tuesday and you don't have to activate them for a while (maybe a year).

I would totally have bought one, but I just scored some of the £35 tickets to Brussels :) Nice little trip: HS1 to London, Eurostar to Brussels and Deustche Bahn to Cologne for a week round the Christmas markets. £420 for 2 return.

If you do something like this, book the DB tickets direct on their website (there's an English button). Trainline were astronomical for the same seats.
 
So we have had quite an interesting 6 days since paris. zurich where it was pouring down so out couple hrs walk round was cut short and decided to go straight to lugano where we would be stopping for 3 days.. did a lot but the higlhlight was the funicular for some fantatsic view

we are currently in verona northern italy for 6 days and again done a lot but the highlight has to be the arena... supposedly older than any of the rome collsiums... we also went to see juliets balcony etc
 
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