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

Favorite journey was the night train from Stockholm to northern Sweden in the winter, 

Over the past year, trains have become a special routine for me; they’re how I make my way back home from the northern part of the Netherlands to the south of Italy during uni breaks. I love watching the cows and windmills outside the window. My dream journey would be through Croatia and Slovenia, stopping in places like Zagreb, Rijeka and Lesce-Bled. It just feels like the perfect kind of trip to take with a loved one. 🤍🚆

Hey! My favorite and very first train journey was from Germany to France, thanks to Interrail. I was around 8-9 , and my family and I visited my uncle, who lives in Germany. Then they made a surprise to me and took me to Disneyland by train. I remember only a few things from that holiday, and one of them was how happy and excited I was when I discovered that there was a cafeteria in the train😂. Now I am about to graduate from the medical school, and as my next trip, I really wish to take some time to travel in the Europe and visit some places that I haven’t had the chance to see and have a lot of fun! 

I´d like to travel to Italy from the Netherlands but want to avoid the Ruhr-area (too many delays).

So my stops will be Liege, Luxembourg, Strasbourg, Mulhouse, Basel, Milan, Florence, Arezzo.

Later this year I will take the nighttrain Amsterdam-Vienna, Vienna-Florence and on the way back

Florence-Munich, Munich-Amsterdam. The hotel on wheels where you always have breakfast with

interesting fellow traintravelers.

The best slow route has to be Schmalspurbahnen in Wenigerode, a long ride in a steam locomotive up a mountain where you can stand in between the carts. I’ve never inhaled that much smoke in my life but it felt like traveling back in time. You also learn how in old movies they always run after the train, it is realistic, it is very slow. 

My favourite journey was the Bernina Express, especially alighting at Bernina Diavolezza which felt so remote! Everyone waved as the train trundled away and we were left alone in the mountains..

My wishlist train would be the Flam railway, this scenery looks unparalleled and a really fun ride!

my favourite and recommended for all travellers is a narrow-gauge railways in Bieszczady mountain group southeastern Poland originally used for transporting logs, now carrying tourists.One of the biggest draws to Bieszczady

One train journey on my wishlist is the route from Zurich to Palermo by train, from the Swiss Alps down through Italy, all the way to Sicily. Slow travel by train always feels like the best way to really experience Europe, not just pass through it. 

I wish I could travel more by train in Italy because the country has a great coverage of railways and the landscapes are usually magnificent. My favourite route so far that I’ve had in Italy was Cinque Terre but I have plans for many more in Sicily or Cortina d’Ampezzo region, etc. 

My favourite train trip so far has been the Arctic Circle Train from Stockholm (Sweden) to Narvik (Norway)

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👇

Europe is so big with so many countries and cultures. I’d just love to broaden my horizons. And I’d love to visit Belgrade🇷🇸 and Bar🇲🇪. My son recommended it to me 🥰💪

The train from padova to venice was my favourite short distance trip, entering venice and the countryside along tye way was great!

My favorite train journey is to Cinque Terre near La Spezia in Italy. The train runs right along the coast with stunning sea views and colorful villages. It’s beautiful and I would recommend it to everyone:)

In the seventies I traveled a lot through what was Yugoslavia. I stayed mainly in small towns and villages. Some weeks here, some days there. I experienced the differences between the republics, the different music traditions, the different languages. I couldn't use interrail because I was to old, so I traveled with single tickets, which were very cheap. The last time I traveled around there was in 1988 by car, an aging landrover, with a friend. Also then I was overwhelmed by the friendliness of the people who always offered a place to stay. Some basic Serbo-Croatian (as it was called then) helped a lot. That last year by the way political tension was already palpable.
I really would like to travel around there one more time, especially in the southern countries, although many rail connections do not exist anymore.

My dream travel sround Europe consists in a slow train route trough the north of Italy, visiting the Alps and the wonderful Cities of Milan, Venice and Verona. The route would end in Slovenia. And this is my dream route aroujd Europe by train.

My fav route is the sleeptrain from Budapest to Bukarest, especially when you forget to book a ticket for the sleep cabin (you thought you did, but you only bought a pass for a seat)

I would love to go interrailing with my friends and see as many spots we’ve never seen before. I would like to see the train as an opportunity to reach places where I would usually not go, and let the rails suprise me. I love France, Spain and Italy, but for my next trip I want to go further:)

I would probably go on an Interrail trip through Eastern Europe that gives you constant cultural shifts, affordable travel, and that slightly unpredictable edge that makes it memorable.

Dreaming of experiencing Swiss, Austrian and perhaps German mountain train routes, after my first Interrail trip which is in June.

Also I'd like like to travel by train in the warmer countries like Portugal, Spain, Italy, in Mediterranean in general.

Happy Interrailing for everyone!

That long, exciting Interrail journey from Bavaria to Morocco...
It’s been more than 40 years since then, and I still remember clearly all the young people on the trains, all setting out to discover a part of Europe (or even North Africa). It was then that I fell in love with Europe and its wonderful diversity.
Today I am 65 – and I still have a great desire to discover European cities and landscapes, and to meet people speaking all sorts of languages. Preferably with Interrail, because we all meet on the train.

My favourite so far has been the Montenegro-Serbia line, absolutely stunning ⛰️ Too bad it was a night train, so I didn't see all that much! 

Route Kajaani - Oulu in northern Finland.

Takes you back to the 1970’s...

I’d pick the Bergen Line in Norway. It runs between Oslo and Bergen, crossing the Hardangervidda plateau with vast, almost otherworldly scenery—snowfields, lakes, and endless open space. It’s slow travel at its best: quiet, remote, and all about the landscape changing gradually outside your window.

From Edimburgh to Inverness: purple hills covered in heather, little train stations that looked like little gift boxes, beautiful landscapes that kept changing

Ah it’s hard to pick ! But one of my fav have to be the mythic Olso-Bergen !