Inter railing questions

Frith

Has anyone been inter railing?


Sons and me are going round Europe by train in August but I have a few questions.


Can you really step on any European train for free?


Can you get a free ticket from your local station to the Eurostar?


Is it possible to reserve European trains if you're not paying for them?


Any tips gratefully received.

richardw

Lots of information http://www.seat61.com/InterRail-pass-guide.htm

Btw when you are planning, don't forget there are lots of flights in Europe on Ryanair, easyJet, Vueling etc so if you find you don't want to back where you've just been a one way flight could help.

There also lots of ferries https://www.aferry.to is good, but don't book through them Google the ferry operator's website and book direct.

martindow

The Seat61 link in richardw's gives you the pros and cons.

Iinterrail passes do not cover Eurostar or UK travel and also don't cover seat reservation fees which you will need on many faster trains.

You need to work out an itinerary and price it up to see whether to go for a pass or not. Seat61 has individual pages for each country which will be helpful whatever sorts of tickets you decide on.

peachyprice

Your exit from the UK isn't included so you'll have to pay for a flight or Eurostar.

The majority of trains are included in your pass, some of the Swiss trains are not, and some of the fast inter city ones you have to pay a reservation for, but you can still travel on the same routes for free on slower trains. You also have to pay for a berth if you want a bed on a sleeper service.

If you want the flexibility to go wherever you fancy it's a great idea, I'm sure you can do it cheaper by buying individual tickets, but that that would take away the spontaneity of being able to change your destination on the spur of the moment. More than a few times I turned up at a station and decided somewhere else sounded far more interesting that the place I'd planned!

Frith

Thanks, all. I couldn't work out how to reserve (apparently essential) without paying the full price on some journeys.

In the end I booked and paid for each train, except one in Switzerland that I'll have to buy on the