Win a copy of Platform Europe + an Interrail Pass! (closed)

My absolute favorite slow travel route has to be the Bernina Express through the Swiss Alps, using the local trains instead of the paneromic train. There is something magical about watching the landscape shift from glaciers to palm trees through those train windows which I could open! the fresh mountain air and some crisp clicks are something to cherish.
I’d love to win the pass to finally explore the rugged coastlines of Brittany next!

I even wrote a full article on this tour back in 2022. Switzerland’s Most Breathtaking Train Routes: A Personal Travel Tale.
 

We’re celebrating the release of Platform Europe, the latest book written by our longtime friend Bart Giepmans. Bart is an author, travel journalist, photographer and a passionate advocate for exploring Europe by train.

He is a true champion of slow travel and spends much of the year discovering Europe by rail, embracing historic stations, meaningful encounters and the stories found along the tracks. He wrote and photographed most of the journeys featured in Platform Europe!

😍Win a copy of Bart’s beautiful book AND a FREE Interrail Global Pass (7 days in 1 month)!

Participation is open to all persons 16+ living in Europe. The giveaway ends on 28 April 2026 at 12 pm CET. Five winners will be randomly selected and contacted via the community DM on 28 April 2026. The winners will receive 1x Interrail Global Pass for 7 travel days within 1 month (2nd class) and 1x Platform Europe book. The book will be shipped free of charge.

📄 Read the full Terms & Conditions, here.

How to enter the giveaway

Whether you are an experienced rail traveller or still dreaming about your first trip:

💬 Tell us your favourite slow travel train route – or the train journey that's next on your wishlist – and why.

Share your answer in the comments below to enter the giveaway👇

The route that comes to mind for me is Vienna to Zurich through the Alps. The sleeping car didn’t show - which felt disasterous - but I’ll never forget that joyfully sleepless night marvelling at the Alps whilst the rat of the family slumbered around me.

I vote for the train down (or up) the Rhone valley through the canton of Valais in Switzerland, say connecting Visp up through the Furka Tunnel to Andermatt.  Great scenery, especially in winter!

For me, the post-COVID era was all about rediscovering freedom, and trains were the best way to do it! I was so impressed by how well night trains work in Eastern Europe. My favorite memory is becoming friends with people who had missed their flight and ended up on my night train instead. That’s the magic of rail travel: turning a travel mishap into a great human connection!

I guess I would select Salon-de-Provence to Stockholm, from lavender to cinnamon scents, from typical small town in Provence to big city of 20000 islands 🤗, and all evolving landscapes in between 🤩.

I love the train ride from Edinburgh to Fort William in Scotland! It makes me feel like I’m in a fairytale :) A journey on top of my bucket list is the train ride from Belgrado to Bar in the Balkan area. I’ve heard its spectacular!

My favourite journey is the nighttrain from Milan to Palermo. You almost travel the whole journey at the coastline with a lovely view at the sea

I have lived in vienna for 6 months and loved going by train to the mountains. Especially around innsbruck the train tracks go through the alps with spectacular views of snowy mountains (in winter :))

That would without a doubt be the classic Orient Express route from London to Istanbul. I would love to do that trip someday.

Well I liked the trains through the quiet and cozy villages of France. Had to stop for a coffee and a croissant a couple of times :)

We’re celebrating the release of Platform Europe, the latest book written by our longtime friend Bart Giepmans. Bart is an author, travel journalist, photographer and a passionate advocate for exploring Europe by train.

He is a true champion of slow travel and spends much of the year discovering Europe by rail, embracing historic stations, meaningful encounters and the stories found along the tracks. He wrote and photographed most of the journeys featured in Platform Europe!

😍Win a copy of Bart’s beautiful book AND a FREE Interrail Global Pass (7 days in 1 month)!

Participation is open to all persons 16+ living in Europe. The giveaway ends on 28 April 2026 at 12 pm CET. Five winners will be randomly selected and contacted via the community DM on 28 April 2026. The winners will receive 1x Interrail Global Pass for 7 travel days within 1 month (2nd class) and 1x Platform Europe book. The book will be shipped free of charge.

📄 Read the full Terms & Conditions, here.

How to enter the giveaway

Whether you are an experienced rail traveller or still dreaming about your first trip:

💬 Tell us your favourite slow travel train route – or the train journey that's next on your wishlist – and why.

Share your answer in the comments below to enter the giveaway👇

I would love any train ride though I would definitely love to travel through Italy. I've read so many books and watched so many films with Italy at the forefront and I would love to experience the food and the scenery for my self. I would love to see a couple countries during one trip as well. Maybe I would like to do Switzerland as well as I have family there and it would be another amazing place for scenery and hiking.

Basel to Milano Centrale is simply stunning. Watching the Alps give way to the Italian lakes through the train window made me want to stop at every single station along the way

My Favourite journey so far has been from Dresden to Praha, I loved how it followed the river Elbe, some amazing scenery along the way, I look forward to my summer adventure where I visit Switzerland, a country that has been on my bucket list for a number of years. Traveling by train is just so relaxing, you get to see so many amazing places.

My favorite train ride I’ve ever taken was the Glacier Express in Switzerland. Would love to do it again sometime, maybe in summer. I would also love to take a train ride in Italy or Austria.

My favorite trip I did with Interrail was Belgrade - Bar during the day. Amazing views, no crowded, very slow but it's a great way to sit back, relax and just enjoy this gem of a route.

After some thinking a train ride in Switzerland stood out the most. Loved the lush and green scenery in front of mountains! 

My favorite train journey in Europe is the train des Pignes in southern France running between Nice and Dignes les Bains. It’s a slow and charming ride through mountains, gorges, and small villages. The journey feel timeless and intimate and perfectly captures the spirit of slow travel.

My favourite train route I’ve taken is the one from Basel to Zermatt! The train had lovely big windows, the view was breathtaking and my sister and I where the only ones in our compartment! (The only negative thing was that the only thing in my budget in Zermatt was a pretzel and some discounted food in the grocery store, but what can you do ;)

I’m planning my first Interrail in occasion of my Master’s Degree Dissertation, to celebrate! The trip I’m planning will start from Venice ( I live nearby) and would love to visit some european cities: Vienna, Prague, Frankfurt, Bruxelles, and then the French riviera, to rest and anjoy the see and the sub before before returning back home!

My favourite journey is on the Gotthard Bahn from Visp to Zermatt in Switzerland around Christmas. The Alps draped in Snow and the fabulous valley scenery are a wow and the train staff are so kind. When we stopped at St. Niklaus the entire church tower had been wrapped in a Father Christmas costume which was fantastic. The guard encouraged my grandchildren to get off and have their photo taken in front of the church before re-boarding and setting off again. A really magical experience!

My biggest dream is to take the train all the way from Paris to the top of Scotland and see the whole of UK.

The train journey on my wish list would be multi-day trip from Malaga to Gijon. To see the vast and diverse landscapes of Spain would be an amazing experience!

My favourite route was from Zürich, Switzerland to Bucharest, Romania. Although it was quite long, it’s the first time I had truly slow travelled and taken the time to enjoy the journey and the landscapes. I was also with friends so the hours passed quickly when we had discussions and played games.

My favuorite trip was when I went with my son, the two of us to ITaly with a nighttrain rom Utrecht to Basel. I haven’t slept much but it was so amazing to see him sleeping while I was working and he was so happy and excited to do this trip with his mummy, loved every minute of it!

My answer is pretty mundane but my favourite trainride is between my hometown and the next big city. I’ve done this journey on all times of the day, when it’s super busy on weekends, late at night and early in the morning when people are still sleepy but need to get to work. I’ve seen that landscape mystical with fog, magically white with snow and grey with rain. I’ve even seen a fox once, sleeping right next to the train curled up on a stone.