With an Interrail ticket you pay upfront for an all inclusive ticket which allows you to travel unlimited journeys for a set amount of time. There are various tickets you can buy, valid for different times and destinations. Here is a breakdown of the different tickets available, and their respective prices:
Europe is split up into 8 different zones (A-H) and so-
All Zones (1 month) £295 (under 26), £415 (over 26), £207 (Child)
So whether you want to explore one or two countries in depth, or experience a little bit of everything, there is a ticket for you. Here is a list of which countries are in which zone-
Zone A: Republic of Ireland Zone B: Sweden, Norway and Finland Zone C: Germany, Denmark, Austria, Switzerland Zone D: Czech Republic, Slovakia, Hungary, Poland, Croatia Zone E: France, Belgium, Netherlands, Luxembourg Zone F: Spain, Portugal, Morocco Zone G: Italy, Turkey, Greece, Slovenia Zone H: Romania, Bulgaria, Yugoslavia, Macedonia
(more info at www.raileurope.co.uk/inter-rail) I went in the summer of 2003, and decided to go on my own, because I had already been travelling with other people, and I wanted to see if the experience would be different on my own.
When you buy the ticket you have to specify what date the ticket will start from, so a good idea I think is to start it a few days after you arrive at your first destination. I got a cheap flight to Paris and then spent a fews days there before my ticket became valid. Another thing you could do, if you wanted to travel around Spain or Greece for example, would be to buy a cheap package holiday to near where you want to start, and then you can get used to the place, and plan from there. You also get a flight and a weeks accommodation at a low price.
A great thing to pick up before you go is the Thomas Cook European Rail Timetable, which gives you all the train times in nearly every European country. This was my 'bible' during the trip and saves a lot of time waiting around at stations. It can be picked up from any Thomas Cook travcel agent and costs about £12.
Although the interrail ticket covers all lines within the zones you have paid for, for some of the faster trains, there are suppliments to be paid (for example to get from Amsterdam to Berlin I had to pay a suppliment of about £8), and on certain trains (like the TGV in France), to have to book your seat 1 day in advance (this only costs about £1).
Most of the trains in Western Europe I went on were pretty impressive, but the further East you go, the more like British trains they become!
If you want to travel quite a long distance in one day, sometimes it is better to travel at night on a sleeper train. It is cheaper than staying in a hostel or hotel, and you can wake up the next day and be in a whole new place. I took one sleeper train from Berlin to Krakow, and to be honest it was a bit cramped and also I was asked to show my passport at least 4 times during the night, so I didn't get much sleep. It was cheap though.
Interrailing really gives you a chance to see the beauty and diversity of Europe. There are some spectalular lines you can travel on, particularly in Switzerland and Italy, and at the price you pay for the ticket, it is really worth it. The route I took was just a circle, taking in the major cities of Europe, but if I was to go again, I think I would take more time to explore a particular country.
Interrailing is often seen as the territory of Backpackers, but I would recommend it to people of all ages, who want more from a holiday than just sitting on a beach somewhere. And if you don't mind staying in hostels or campsites, it can be done very cheaply.
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Advantages: Surprisingly punctual and clean trains, few delays or problems encountered Disadvantages: Annoying supplements required for Interrailers, erratic station quality
Advantages: Breathtaking scenary, good train system, everyone speaks English if you need it Disadvantages: Locals a little unfriendly to young travellers, quite pricey
fam6 02.10.2001 ·
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Sep 13th, 2004
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