Hi. If I purchase the Global railway pass in Europe which allows me to travel in 21 different countries, how exactly does this work? Will I be able to take the train from one country to the next? Like let's say from Barcelona to Paris? Also, will I be able to travel in one country and see different parts of that country? Why is all of Western Europe included in this deal, but not Great Britain? Also, if I flew into like Ireland, could I take a train from Dublin into Paris or any other country? How does that work when it's an island? If I select the 1 month continuous plan, will that permit me to take the train any day or time I want during that time period? Thanks in advance. Please, for those that have done this before and have experience, please give advice. THanks!
Other - Europe - 4 Answers
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1 :
I won't give you advice about your travel pass. but I will tell you that whenever I travel from country to country here in Europe, I go to a local train station and buy the tickets. You'll have more flexibility this way, and it may be cheaper as well. If you think you're going to see all 21 countries in 3 months (Shengin Treaty only allows Americans 3 months stay) then you're giving yourself 4 days in each country. Remember that you'll be using 1 day just to travel there and you have 3 days per. Better is to either pick specific countries to visit, or expect to spend a lot of time on trains. As to Dublin, I don't think you can actually get a train that leaves the country. I think you'll have to take a bus onto a ferry and then on the mainland you may be able to catch a train. Better is to fly to Dublin--which I do all the time--and then go on to another city. I fly from Dublin to Prague and then get met at the airport and drive home from there. Think about Prague as it is centrally located in Europe, and is a great place to visit anyway. There are too many Americans in the summer for my taste, but it's still a beautiful city. Good luck!
2 :
This was a popular holiday to have when I was a student many years ago. It was called Interail then. There were choices on duration and range, so you could include the UK if you wanted but it was an expensive add on. The way to do it used to be to make as many night journeys as possible so you sleep on the train and arrive in a new place to explore during the day - saves on accommodation. You can travel nationally and trans nationally within the countries covered by your ticket though not necessarily all trains are included. It is a good way to travel. but requires a lot of planning to avoid wasting a lot of time in train stations. By the way, no use using trains in Ireland really. If you are using Dublin for your arrival from US, then take a discount ticket from some airline like Ryan Air (example only, there are others) to the European mainland. If you want to be in Europe for more than 3 months plan to leave the common passport zone such as into UK or maybe over the Straights of Gibraltar to somewhere like Casablanca, then back into Europe so that you get another 3 months. Have a good holiday.
3 :
Interrail and Eurail are two separate passes. Interrail is for European residents while Eurail is for others. The pass is sold by a third party ticket seller; Eurail/Eurorail has no trains.The trains are operated by the various national train companies. The Global pass allows you to use trains in any of the countries that have agreed to be a part of the Eurail contract. The UK has not and therefore, trains in the UK are not included in the pass. Yes, you can use trains within a country or international trains between countries. Some trains (many fast trains, international trains, and night trains) require reservations and an additional supplemental fee when you use a pass. Some ferries are included in your pass. If you have a continuous pass, you can take any eligible train during the month. There is an excellent website that explains train travel in general and passes in particular here: http://www.seat61.com/ . It has a lot more information than there is room for here, including: when it's better to buy individual tickets, how to validate a pass, how to use the pass, how to make reservations when necessary, common mistakes using the pass in various countries, and links to the various national train websites
4 :
You cannot take a train from Dublin to Paris, dear. Ireland is still an island, and unlike the UK, there is no undersea tunnel linking it another land mass. You need to talk to whoever is selling you that ticket and see what services you are entitled to use on it. You could take the ferry from Ireland to France or from Ireland to the UK, and get trains from there.
