How long does your perfect train ride last?

P
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Hello everyone,

 

I'm new to Interrail. I only took one ride from Cologne to Vienna at night with my school class so far. And one time to Amsterdam for travel. The other times I just drove from work to home...

Now I want to go on my own, and I'm wondering how long is your perfect train ride?

I thought that I would prefer to go 5 maybe 7 hours maximum, when I don't take a night train.  My first idea is Denmark, Sweden and maybe Norway. I'm now playing with the rail planner app and try to choose routes…

What is your experience? What is a comfortable travel time for you?

 

Thanks and best wishes,

Polkadot

11 replies

Mattheas
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My ideal travel time depends on a few factors:

  • The inbound and outbound journey can be as long as needed, so it can include a night train, or anything up to 12 hours. As long as it gets me far away from home. (My longest outbound journey lasted for about 26 hours, from Amsterdam to Madrid with a short stop-over in Paris)
  • When I take a scenic journey, than I take the train ride as a destination, so it can be 6-8 hours.
  • With a stop-over in an interesting destination, the total travel time can be 5-7 hours.
  • Between two destinations without a scenic ride, I aim for 4-5 hours max. or I take a night train (if available)
The best Eurail journey is the slow journey!
P
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Thank you Mattheas!

I don't know yet, if there will be a great view, but interesting what you can tell from your expierence. 

seewulf
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Thank you Mattheas!

I don't know yet, if there will be a great view, but interesting what you can tell from your expierence. 

Depends on the Route Cologne - Interlaken Ost along the Rhine Valley or Dresden - Prague along Elbe are few examples for a scenic Route :) 

I´ am not working for Eurail or Interrail i just share my knowledge here. Please ask in the Community and not via private message as this is the fastest way to get an answer. I prefer English/German/ Czech for my answers. In case of Reservationquestions please share some details like Route, Date, Trainnumber as otherwise we can just provide general advices or answers
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@seawulf The Rhinevalley between Mainz/ Koblenz/ Bonn is really really beautiful, thats true. I used to travel there a lot, when I moved for my first job.😊 

 

Birk Stilund Hansen

6-10 hrs will get me far, and not necessarily bored on a normal day!

Most memorably are my 12-24 hrs. journeys through the continent. While it's a long time and entertainment eventually runs out , there's certainly a thrill of silently rolling by sleeping cities in foreign places, and their awakenings the following day being purely imaginary. After a ride this long you'll always find yourself somewhere entirely different from your starting point, and the adventures  lined up once you disembark is what makes me want to do it again!

 

 

Mattheas
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Most memorably are my 12-24 hrs. journeys through the continent. While it's a long time and entertainment eventually runs out , there's certainly a thrill of silently rolling by sleeping cities in foreign places, and their awakenings the following day being purely imaginary. After a ride this long you'll always find yourself somewhere entirely different from your starting point, and the adventures  lined up once you disembark is what makes me want to do it again!

Yes, I can second that, there's nothing like this feeling. I remember travelling in the Swiss mountains and waking up the next day among the barren landscapes of southern Italy. It makes you excited to explore more! I totally forgot about this perk of night trains 

The best Eurail journey is the slow journey!
P
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6-10 hrs will get me far, and not necessarily bored on a normal day!

Most memorably are my 12-24 hrs. journeys through the continent. While it's a long time and entertainment eventually runs out , there's certainly a thrill of silently rolling by sleeping cities in foreign places, and their awakenings the following day being purely imaginary. After a ride this long you'll always find yourself somewhere entirely different from your starting point, and the adventures  lined up once you disembark is what makes me want to do it again!

 

 

Thats true. The excitment of me drove my friends nuts on the way to Vienna. 😊 But it's really nice to see all the different things and maybe new citys passing by. But I don't plan to go over night (at least at this point).

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You really encouragement me, and I think I will try to do some longer train rides as well. There is a lot of kilometres to go from Rhineland to Denmark and then Sweden and then to Norway and back. 

4
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For me, the most memorable perfect train ride was one that, sadly, is no longer possible.  It was in 1966 and I travelled from Sarajevo to Dubrovnik in what was then Yugoslavia; the line was narrow gauge and it took 14½ hours.

That line was closed some years later and it is no longer possible to get to Dubrovnik by train.  The nearest option nowadays is Sarajevo to Split, and then a 140 mile 3 hour bus ride.  It might be possible to fly, or there is a ferry that runs along the coast, but that takes all day.

If anywhere needs its rail connection reinstated, it’s Dubrovnik!

seewulf
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For me, the most memorable perfect train ride was one that, sadly, is no longer possible.  It was in 1966 and I travelled from Sarajevo to Dubrovnik in what was then Yugoslavia; the line was narrow gauge and it took 14½ hours.

That line was closed some years later and it is no longer possible to get to Dubrovnik by train.  The nearest option nowadays is Sarajevo to Split, and then a 140 mile 3 hour bus ride.  It might be possible to fly, or there is a ferry that runs along the coast, but that takes all day.

If anywhere needs its rail connection reinstated, it’s Dubrovnik!


There is no train from Sarajevo to Split :/ Only from Sarajevo to Capljina the last few kilometers to Ploce Croatia are not longer in service :/

I´ am not working for Eurail or Interrail i just share my knowledge here. Please ask in the Community and not via private message as this is the fastest way to get an answer. I prefer English/German/ Czech for my answers. In case of Reservationquestions please share some details like Route, Date, Trainnumber as otherwise we can just provide general advices or answers
4
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For me, the most memorable perfect train ride was one that, sadly, is no longer possible.  It was in 1966 and I travelled from Sarajevo to Dubrovnik in what was then Yugoslavia; the line was narrow gauge and it took 14½ hours.

That line was closed some years later and it is no longer possible to get to Dubrovnik by train.  The nearest option nowadays is Sarajevo to Split, and then a 140 mile 3 hour bus ride.  It might be possible to fly, or there is a ferry that runs along the coast, but that takes all day.

If anywhere needs its rail connection reinstated, it’s Dubrovnik!


There is no train from Sarajevo to Split :/ Only from Sarajevo to Capljina the last few kilometers to Ploce Croatia are not longer in service :/

Oops!  Silly me.  I mixed Split up with Ploce.  

We went from Dubrovnik by boat up the Adriatic Coast to Split and, If I remember correctly (it was 55 years ago) we got a train from there to Zagreb.   The new line to Ploce was being built at the time of our 1966 visit, so we knew that the narrow gauge line was doomed.  I didn’t know that the whole of the new line was no longer in use though.

It would still mean a 2½ hour bus ride from Capljina, so I still think that Dubrovnik needs a railway connection.       

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