I'm looking to travel through a few Western Europe countries and would like to get some insight into travel options. I will most likely fly into Paris and will just go through 3-4 neighbouring countries (I'm thinking Switzerland, Germany, Netherlands) before heading to the UK. I was initially going to just go with budget airlines but I just stumbled across night trains. Planes would be faster but then would have to factor in travel time to the airport, luggage restrictions and I guess "wasting" exploring times. Not sure if the speed of a flight counters these drawbacks. Has anyone experienced both of these options and could offer some insight?
Western Europe - Budget airlines VS Night trains
Luminary on 14/07/2015 - 14:56
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I've been told that the day scenery are quite nice. I was thinking maybe taking 1 or 2 legs during the day if I decided to go with trains. Thanks for the tip re the European websites. :)
Hey I've taken trains and planes around europe and while trains have the advantage of no luggage restrictions, they're not cheaper than flights, often much more expensive and the time taken to check into flights and collect luggage etc is still exponentially quicker than trains. Also given that you're already in the Schengen area (except the UK), you don't have have to go through border checks so it's actually quite quick. That being said, trains offer a really nice view, but night trains you won't be able to see outside at all. If you're still keen to try out both though, I'd book a train early in the trip and depending on how you find it, book flights/train for the rest of it.
Oh, my friend said the night trains and budget flights were similar in price. Is it risky in terms of price spikes if I wait until I'm there to book flights/trains? I think I'll only have a max of 3 weeks total.
Generally for flights you should book earlier if possible. For trains there is less competition for places, after all they usually can whack on another carriage, but watch out for heavily booked days, usually around weekends and holidays, or festivals.
I actually always bought flights/train tickets at most, a few days in advance and never found the price spiked. Prior to arriving in Europe, I bought all the flights beforehand but by the time I left, i would just buy them a day in advance and the prices were the same to be honest.
If you do a quick search of trains and flight prices, you'll find flights much cheaper than trains, well I did at least
Good to know there wasn't much of a price spike. Might just try search flights/trains in the upcoming days and see what pops up. Cheers.
I've used both and they have their pros and cons. You probably can work them out. But I'll just add that I once had a very nice classy lunch on the Thalys, one of those premium high speed trains, served to my seat. Overnight sleepers are comfy and I got good sleep on those.
Also don't forget to factor in the ground transport to the airport, trains usually take you straight in the centre of the city, and is often the most direct way to get to a smaller town. And watch out for the drip pricing of the budget airlines. The taxes and extra charges often exceed the base fare.
For overnight trains you should also factor into the cost that you are basically paying for your hotel and transport for the night in one. If you fly you still need to pay to sleep somewhere.
Several years ago I took one from Milan to Paris and it fit perfectly. Basically went sightseeing normally in Milan for the day, had dinner, picked up bags I had left with previous nights hotel, got on the train, went to sleep, woke up ate the provided breakfast on the train, got off the train, left my bags with the new hotel, was sightseeing in Paris before lunch. Can be very efficient if the timing is right. Often the cheaper flights seem to be in the middle of the day which ends up eating prime daylight hours of your time in a city.
Try seat61.com for heaps of info and photos of what the sleeping arrangements are like.
Oh yes, I forgot to mention the accommodation savings with the night train. I was thinking of doing something like what you mentioned. And thanks for the link.
Bit off topic, but if 'wasted' time travelling through airports and checking in/out of hotels is a concern, perhaps cruise ship could be an option assuming you can find a compatible itinerary within your budget.
I honeymooned in southern Europe on a cruise ship and had an amazing experience, even more so when comparing stories with friends who flew around the region. Budget wise, it didn't work out to be much more expensive either. Main downside was we had no control over how much time we got to spend in each area (aside from embark/disembark points) and suffering through the indignity of an injection on the bum for sea sickness (worked like a charm tho!).
Thanks for the suggestion. I have a tendency to get sea sick so cruises might not work. :(
for overnight trains factor in the chance of crime… my mate was gassed on a train in italy, and when he came too.. his bag was gone…
they are as uncomfortable as hell, unless u have a bed which i doubt…i was once robbed on a train, the theifs accomplice gave me 4 cans of cider and while talking to me the theif stole my camera… funny thing is it no longer worked, so i got 4 cans of booze and he got nothing…
get a flight and sleep horizontal..unless the airport is in woop woop
All aboard for night train.
Oh, yeah, night train
Night train, night trainWe got amazing prices in Italy by booking 120 days out.
19 euros for Bari to Bologna on a geat train with airline type booked seats.
Local trains are ok for last minute but many of the intercity increase in price.
Also love the saving of leaving from the centre of the city and just walking to hotel.
The train forum on tripadvisor is a great resource
http://www.tripadvisor.com.au/ShowForum-g1-i12483-Train_Trav…
and seat 61 is the guru
http://www.seat61.com/Europe-train-tickets.htm#.VaWvLrWvND0I think this is the key, book well in advance if you're either going by train or plane! Personally, I don't find overnight trains in Western Europe to be good value. If your paying for a bed on a sleeper train the fares are usually quite expensive, for the sake of a good nights rest either take the plane or book a discounted fast train ticket well in advance and it will probably be similar value for a more pleasant experience.
If you're heading from Paris to Switzerland, Germany and Netherlands, depending on which cities you're going to it's unlikely you'll even be travelling far enough to bother with a sleeper train unless you plan to go Paris-Berlin/Munich and work your way back west. Even then it is only $70 to fly Paris-Berlin in an hour and then you can travel small train/coach trips back towards the UK.
Haven't flown but what about open jaw from either barca or rome and train up towards paris and uk via switzerland/south france? Scenery by train is gorgeous. By plane, factor in where you'll be landing plus transport to and from plus waiting times.
If you like looking at scenery, I highly recommend taking the train during the day.
Make sure to book through the train company's European website. If you use their Australian website, you will be paying a lot more.