Visit Europe the cheap and easy way with a Eurail Pass
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Rail travel is an excellent option when visiting Europe. The modern trains that are available on international routes are the most advanced in the world and rail travel is often not only cheaper, but faster than travelling by airplane. France's flagship high speed train, the TGV, recently set the world record for the fastest wheeled-train during a test run in which it achieved a speed of 357 mph. Its routes include Paris to London (Eurostar), Paris to Brussels (Thalys), and Paris to Geneva. Germany's Intercity (ICE) trains are also an excellent, but expensive method for fast connections inside Germany.
Once you've decided to travel by train, the next question is, how much does it cost? Enter the Rail Pass. Buying a train pass can be the cheapest alternative if you're planning a lot of railroad travel. Individual train tickets can end up being much more expensive than buying them locally and your itinerary will be less flexible in the event that you change where you want to go after you leave. One of the best things about train travel is having the liberty to choose your destination from one day to the next.
Train passes allow the holder to travel by train within a specific geographical area, for a specific period of time. The best known is the Eurail Youth Pass that allows the holder (under 26 years old) to travel within Europe for an unlimited number of days during a period of up to two months. Country passes, such as the France Rail Pass or the Eastern Europe pass are also popular. These passes allow travelers of any age to travel for 3,4 or more days during a period of one month, within a specific country or group of countries.
In practice, using a rail pass is much more practical than buying an individual train ticket as you don't have to worry about reserving tickets in advance and planning every day of your travel itinerary before you arrive in Europe. The rail pass is validated by the conductor on the first day of travel and from that date its validity period begins and the owner can travel for the specified number of days during the validity period without buying individual tickets or waiting in line. There are some exceptions however; when riding trains that require seat reservations, such as France's TGV trains and Germany's Intercity (ICE) trains, the Rail Pass holder must also purchase a reservation (sometimes called a supplement). The reservation should generally cost only a few euros. But if you're running late and you don't want to wait in line, you can just jump on the train, hope you can find an unreserved seat, and pay the conductor the cost of the supplement when he comes around to stamp your rail pass.
As a general rule of thumb, if you're planning on spending more than three days travelling by train in more than one country, a Rail Pass will probably save you money. The additional benefits of having a flexible schedule means that with a Rail Pass you will see more and different locations than you would otherwise. And that means that your vacation has that much better chance of being an unforgettable one.
Joshua Green has lived in Paris since 1994 and writes about Travel and Tourism.
Category Article Cheap, Eurail, Europe, Visit
