Hello everybody!

How are you? I decided to “shout out” my trip, done from 6th of April to the 6th of June – 2023

It was a great experience and maybe it can inspire some route you can do, connections available and maybe I can be helpful sharing few hints.

Short bio: I am 40 y.o. I love to backpack around but I’m getting a bit soft, but still a good walker.
I did this as solo traveler, pretty often I spent 2/3 nights (so, mostly 3 full days) each city, in some cases a bit longer (Istanbul, 6 days, Lofoten Islands, 8 days). I think travel by train make it possible and less stressful, even the itinerary was a bit crowded. Stations are closed to the center, travel is most of the time relaxing, a good way to refill the battery.

Eventually, this trip was planned in weird way. I wanted to visit Istanbul and Scandinavia (easy peasy!).
On the way I was invited also by some friends in Spain, so I added it at the end of the list. Plus, many years ago, I did my Erasmus in Germany and I lived for a while in Poland, so it was natural to stop there, also for logistics before Scandinavia.

Here a quick view:

I must say, travel in the late spring is the best. Sometimes it's rainy, but it has its own charm. And it is not high-peak season, everything is more enjoyable.
Spending a lot of time on the train wasn't at all boring, but if you’re new to it, it is another mindset.
Be prepared for that. A good thermos for the, a couple of books, or maybe a kindle to travel light and be open to little chit chat.

I am not sure if it is fair to make a list of my favorite place, at the end I enjoyed every city I passed through, Europe is beautiful and really it offers some many different architectures, cultures, foods. I just loved it all.

About the pass: I took a 2 months global pass and I used it all, from the first to the last day.
There was a 50% discount...and so I settled for a first-class ticket (around 500 euros).
In my opinion, a great deal, but I know it isn’t cheap. I spent a lot in fees, but considering the full price in country like Norway, Sweden, Denmark, Swiss and so on...The global pass was definitely worthy.
It is less in eastern Europe, but ok. If you decide to travel only there, I think it is a good idea to check full price of the ticket. First class it is just a nice plus in few occasions (for example the lounge in Vienna and, this is important, more option in case trains are full). Maybe it is even more important in high peak season with second class permanently full.
I did not see huge difference between first and second class in Germany, for example, but in Italy, well, you feel the comfort. Unluckily I am from Italy so I took only 2 trains here. If you can throw away 100-200 euros, I recommend it. But doing everything with a second-class ticket is a charm anyway (if you book in advance!).

Remember to download all the national railway app, to avoid the fees of eurorail. OBB is one the most important (it’s used by many countries) but then, it’s up to your itinerary.
In some countries you MUST book at the station (Turkey, Spain, Bulgaria) or even “call” or chat to confirm the booking (Norway).

So, the eurorail isn’t really a great integrated ticketing office (the app is good to have an “idea” of the itinerary”), so you have to inform yourself to avoid high fees and to understand how to book in each country you will visit. Follow the instructions and anyway, the FORUM here is GREAT, this is the main reason I am writing here.

My itinerary - short versions - of the cities where I slept at least 2 nights:

Wien
Bucharest
Sofia
Istanbul
Krakow
Freiburg
Hamburg
Stockholm
Lofoten Islands
Copenhagen
Zurich
Lione
Alicante
Cartagena
Madrid

Of course I had to make some decisions. For example, I did not skip Prague, Budapest or Berlin (just pointing few of many cities on the way) because I think they're overrated or any other random opinions. Only because I already visited them in the past. Just saying, every city deserves at least a couple of days. Sometimes even the smallest one.
Here the list of the trip with "legs", I took in total 8 night train/buses.
I know, it is "cheat" but sometimes...it is also less stressful. Unluckily crossing the border France-Spain seems quite a mess and expensive too, also the closed border of Serbia is a pity, so I just took the easy solution.

Here the complete trip:

Rome -> Bolzano (leg) -> Brennero (leg) -> Wien (stopover 2 nights)
I booked too late and I was not able to catch the direct night train Rome-Wien, I recommend that option, even though it is a nice experience the first class of Eurostar.

Wien-> Bucharest (stopover 2 nights)
Direct Night train. Pretty old and cranky, but nice experience

Bucharest -> Sofia (stopover 4 nights, I had to wait for a seat to Istanbul, but it was a pleasant stop)
Direct connection, pretty long trip

Sofia -> Kapikule (leg) -> Halkali-Istanbul (stopover 6 nights)
Night train
I am not sure this route it is still available, but if it is, you should ask directly at Sofia station to get it and reach Istanbul. There is no other way (at least, not last year)

Way back Istanbul -> Sofia (leg) -> Wien – (stopover 1 night )
Night train + night bus
This is a bit hardcore, to do 2 nights traveling. But there is a problem in the Balkan, Serbia is still close for international trains and in general…connections are not the best. Please check if there are better news today. I didn't want to waste too much time doing the route back passing through Bucharest, so I took a direct night bus (FlixBus) from Sofia to Wien, I spent a night there (I preferred it than Bucharest) and then day after a cozy train to Krakow, crossing beautiful landscape. Doing the other way, it was 1 or 2 days more.

Wien -> Krakow (stopover 3 nights)
Direct connection

Krakow -> Poznan (night train-leg) -> Berlin (leg) -> Freiburg - 2 nights
I was planning to spend few days in Berlin, but last minute I decided to "cut it out" from the plan. I was eager to meet some friends in Freiburg and the go to Scandinavia. Anyway, I definitely suggest a stop in Berlin!

Freiburg -> Hamburg - 2 nights
Direct connection

Hamburg -> Stockholm and Upsala (stopover 3 nights)
Night train connection

Stockholm -> Boden (leg) -> Narvik – (stopover 1 nights)
Night train that cross all Sweden up to the north to Narvik. There you can take a bus to go the Lofoten Island (it is not included in the pass).

Narvik - Lofoten Island - (stopover 8 nights)
This is possible only by bus from north, or reach Bodoe from south and from there take a ferry

Lofoten Island -> Bodoe (ferry) -> Trondheim (leg) -> Oslo (stopover 1 night)
This was the plan but carefully, it is not so easy the Norwegian booking system!
At the end I did not took any of these train. I made some new friends at the Lofoten Island and they were coming from Oslo by car...so I joined them. I leave here anyway the checked itinerary already planned. 

Oslo -> Copenhagen  (stopover 3 nights)
Direct connection

Copenaghen -> Freiburg (leg) -> Zurich (stopover 1 night)

Zurich -> Lione – (stopover 2 nights)
Direct connection

Lione -> Alicante (stopover 3 nights)
Cross the border France-Spain is so painful and with terrible long waits that I took again a direct flixbus to Alicante. Definitely easier and at then I think even cheaper.

Alicante -> Cartagena (stopover 3 nights)
Direct connection

Cartagena -> Madrid (stopover 3 nights)
Direct connection

Madrid -> Barcellona (leg) -> Geneva (leg) -> Zurich - 1 night
Again, to cross France, I decided to took a FlixBus and hurry up to Swiss. I prefer Zurich compared to Geneva, but I guess it is personal)

Zurich – Chiasso (leg) -> Milan (leg) -> Rome

 
And…this is all. I hope all information are still good, at least as reference. If you have any questions, I am here to help, as much as possible!

Enjoy your trip!

Marco