Ten reasons to travel by train in Europe

When you travel by train you are open to very different experiences compared with flying or driving. People get on and off, landscapes and stories unfold, you speed up and slow down, you have time to relax and space to reflect. When you travel by train in Europe, you also get a much greater sense of a country’s geography. You see the Sierra Morena mountains when travelling by train from Madrid to Málaga. Or the Swiss Alps on one of many mountainous rail journeys. You wake up to the Riviera when you take a sleeper train from Paris to Nice. Or you can even take a train to Sicily, as they shunt it on the ferry to get you there. In case you need any more reasons, here are ten more.

1. Start your holiday with headspace

If you’re hoping to get your holiday off to a relaxing start, avoid airports. End of. They sap your energy, they’re cramped and, no matter how zen you try to be, you ultimately feel like you’re part of a cattle market. When you travel by train you just arrive, get on board, find your seat and breathe. And when you choose one of our holidays that’s easily reachable by rail, you step off the train and head straight to the start of your adventure. Actually, when you travel by train, the adventure begins the minute you pull out of your nearest station.

You’ll hardly notice time going by while taking the train to the Alps.

2. Carbon savings

Taking the train in Europe doesn’t just clear the head, it clears the conscience when it comes to your carbon footprint. This isn’t woke, it’s fact. When you take a train from Paris to Barcelona, for example (and you can do so in just 6h 45mins), the carbon emissions are 11.5kg, compared with 141kg if you fly. Go from London to Amsterdam by train, and you’re talking 8.4kg versus 127.2kg*. Do the maths. It’s mega. Plus no taxis to or from the airport and so on. Of course we appreciate that not everyone can get to Europe without flying, but even if you can do one long rail journey within Europe when you get there, you’re making a carbon saving. *Source: Ecopassenger emissions calculator.

3. It’s cheaper than you think

Train tickets are quirky, there’s no getting away from it. Whether you’re taking the Eurostar between England and France, a sleeper train from London to Scotland or traversing Europe by rail, it can be complicated working out how to book cheap train tickets. To get some good bargains, you need to get a little bit geeky and learn about things like booking horizons and split tickets. So much so that we’ve written a more detailed blog on the subject: How to book cheap train tickets.

4. An underrated international network

Some people like to study apps and live maps of all the airplanes flying around the world at one moment in time. But rarely do you see maps of trains that are doing the same thing. We don’t want to get too trainspotty about it, but when you get a rail map of the UK and Europe, it’s quite extraordinary to see just how extensive and geekily gorgeous it all is. We try to give you a rough idea in the following blogs, however, which show you how to combine adventures with train travel in Switzerland, Germany, France and Spain. As well as blogs about our top cycling and walking holidays accessible by train.

The trains in Spain don’t just go mainly through the plain. This one is cutting its way through Catalonia.

5. Train gurus are the best

Train experts used to be teased for being geeky, but here at The Natural Adventure we think they’re gods and goddesses. For example, the authors of Europe by Rail, Nicky Gardner and Susanne Kries are a mine of information in their regularly updated books. They make great gifts for any keen train traveller. And if you love a physical map, you can’t beat these rail maps from the European Rail Timetable. Last but not least, if train travel was a cult then the leader has to be Mark Smith, aka The Man in Seat 61. His website is the go-to for train fans worldwide and it has everything you need to know about how to travel by train in Europe. In comparison with these rail greats, we have a humble but handy body of work in these train blogs.

6. Family travel in Germany

Germany is a family favourite for natural adventures, but made even more so when travelling there by train. This is because young people up to 14 years old always travel free with the national rail operator, Deutsche Bahn (DB), when accompanied by adults. In addition, their digital Deutschlandticket costs only €63 for travel on all services, except the speedy intercity ones. Their rail network is excellent too, and you can travel fairly swiftly between the UK and Germany, using Eurostar via Paris, Lille or Brussels. Travel between London and Cologne, for example, takes just over four hours. Here are all our German holidays that are accessible by train. For more information, see our blog on the Deutschlandticket.

Train travel gets rail-y good along the Rhine in Germany.

7. Eurostar is still a star

Eurostar is a high-speed train service connecting London with Paris, Brussels and Amsterdam via the Channel Tunnel from 35mins. Launched in 1994, it captures all that’s cool about train travel, especially the fact that it goes from one city centre to another, without airport chaos. You can connect quickly from Eurostar into other international high-speed rail networks, such as from Paris to Barcelona, Brussels to Cologne or Paris to Marseille. Read more in our blog, How to book cheap train tickets, and book on either Eurostar or Rail Europe (on the latter you can add any train journey in the UK or Europe into your booking with Eurostar). Once you’ve travelled on Eurostar from the UK to Europe, you’ll never want to fly again.

8. Sleeper trains rock

Sleeper trains are reawakening all over Europe, as demand for low carbon travel grows. Not only do they rock you to sleep, they rock in terms of your carbon footprint and they also can rock your world. Especially when you have that experience of leaving London at sunset and waking up in the wilds of the Scottish Highlands at sunrise. Or stepping off a night train in Nice and taking a morning dip at Opéra Plage. You’ve got to try it once in life because, in short, sleepers are keepers. For more information, see our blog on sleeper trains around Europe.

Sleeper trains are a dreamy way to start your natural adventure.

9. Interrail and Eurail Passes

Another great value and adventurous option is to buy an Interrail Pass (aka Eurail Pass if purchased in the USA) and combine a couple of walking tours over a set period of time. If you have only time to visit one country, then it might be worth considering a One-country pass, which Interrail also sells. Interrailing has gone multi-generational over the last few years too, with both Senior and Youth Passes available, so jump on board, whatever your age. For example, you could buy a Pass that allows you to travel seven days within one month, anywhere in Europe, meaning that you could do a week of walking in Germany, followed by another week of trekking in Switzerland, with time to spare. Watch out in the lead-up to Christmas too, as they often have excellent special offers on passes.

Swiss trains are very swish trains, especially when they take you through landscapes like the Bernese Oberland.

10. Loving the loco luggage rules

One of the many joys of train travel in Europe is, like our holidays, luggage issues are non-existent. Just pack what you like and go. The same thing applies to bringing back souvenirs, which is a particular treat if you’re walking or cycling in a wine region. All in all, we’re saying cheers to choo choos!

We hope that we have convinced you to travel by train in Europe next time you opt for a natural adventure. We’ve gone loco with our train travel inspo, and have many more blogs here on the subject. In addition, we give you details on how to get to all of our holiday destinations on each tour page, and highlight if they are accessible by train. You can also use our search filter to find tours that are reachable by rail, by scrolling down to ‘themes’. Or just follow the high-speed track here. For any more information, don’t hesitate to contact our adventure specialists.