We’ve come up with suggestions for four classic Inter-Rail journeys. Follow
them faithfully — or, better still, pick a bit of one, a chunk of another,
and piece together your own rail odyssey.
LYONS TO VIENNA
Why? The Alps. Do you need another reason? However, you do need a slap-up feed
to prepare you for all that hiking and yodelling, which is why we start in
the gourmet heartland of Lyons. Fill up with pig’s trotter and foie gras at
Jean-Paul Lacombe’s Léon de Lyon (00 33 4 72 10 11 12), then head east. Skip
the obvious Geneva connection and take the prettier high train via Martigny,
passing Mont Blanc on the way. There’s a small supplement for the
Châtelard-Martigny section.
From Martigny, head to Montreux, where you change onto the narrow-gauge track
up to Zweisimmen: it’s the same route as the Golden Panoramic Express, but
by taking the local train, you get the stunning view back over Lake Geneva
without paying extra. Then it’s down to Interlaken, before another glorious
narrow-gauge route via Alpnachstad to Lucerne.
From here, hotfoot it to Zurich and Innsbruck, then on to Stainach-Irdning for
the local train that rattles through the majestic mountains and lakes of the
Salzkammergut. Then hop on the express to Vienna for a well-deserved
strudel.
Pass required: two zones.
You could do it in ... 49 hours (there are 11 changes en
route)
... but you’ll want to take: five days — time to
appreciate the scenery at a civilised pace. Allow more for city breaks,
gluhwein and yodelling.
STOCKHOLM TO ROME
Why? It’s a tale of 10 cities. From the Gamla Stan to the
Campo de’Fiori, it’s a great way to see the contrasts between Europe’s
restrained north and its riotous south, taking in Stockholm, Copenhagen,
Hamburg, Munich, Innsbruck, Verona, Venice, Bologna, Florence and Rome.
When many of these cities would be worth a week’s exploration in themselves,
is there any point in bundling them all together? Yes, because this trip
isn’t about getting to the heart of any one town, but understanding
something more fundamental about what makes Europe tick. As we’re starting
in Scandinavia, view it as a smorgasbord, a meal of snacks that adds up to
far more than the sum of its parts, the ultimate urbanite’s trip.
Pass required: all zones.
You could do it in ... 25 hours
... but you’ll want to take: as long as you can wangle.
Three weeks is ideal; 10 days could work if you’re quick.
PARIS TO ANDALUSIA
Why? Food, culture, nightlife and beaches, all linked by some
of the most civilised and technically advanced trains on the Continent. From
Gare Montparnasse — a pre-train lunch is called for, at the hearty bistro
L’O à la Bouche (00 33 1 56 54 01 55) — the TGV whisks you to Bordeaux in
three hours. What’s the hurry, though? Surely it’s worth stepping off at
Tours, taking in a Loire chateau or two, before haring down to the Atlantic.
After wine in Bordeaux and cocktails in Biarritz, cross the border to the
wonderful bay of San Sebastian, gothic Burgos and Madrid. Eat, drink and
dance until the small hours; in the morning, the state-of-the-art AVE train
takes you south at more than 180mph in blessed, hangover-friendly hush.
You reach Cordoba in less than two hours, and should spend rather longer than
that wandering around the marvellous Mezquita, Moorish Spain’s crowning
glory.
Where next? East to Granada, or west to Seville and the
unspoilt Costa de la Luz? You’ve got an Inter-Rail pass. Do it all.
Pass required: two zones.
You could do it in ... a day and a half to Cadiz, with a
night clubbing in Madrid
... but you’ll want to take: a week to get there, and
another wandering Andalusia. And another still if you fancy a proper beach
break to top it off.
LONDON TO ISTANBUL — AND BACK
Why? It’s the classic: arguably the most evocative railway
journey of them all. You’d need a book (or three) to properly assess all the
sights, sounds and surprises of the journey: here, the bare facts of the
route will have to suffice. Start by going south. From Waterloo, it’s Paris,
Marseilles and a delightful scenic run along the Côte d’Azur, past Monte
Carlo, into Italy. Follow the coast round to Genoa and Pisa, then cut over
to Florence and across to Ancona.
From here, deck space onthe Superfast ferry to Patras, in Greece, is included
in your Inter-Rail ticket. Take the narrow-gauge line that tracks the coast
from Patras to Corinth — one of the prettiest in the country — then go to
Athens and Thessaloniki, where one train per day heads east to the shores of
the Bosphorus. The train deposits you at Sirkeci station, in the heart of
Istanbul, at the gateway to the Golden Horn. It feels a long way from
Waterloo.
Don’t rush the return leg: after Sofia, Belgrade and
Budapest, loop round through Kosice (in Slovakia) and Zakopane (for a
refreshing Polish hike) before taking in Cracow, Warsaw and Berlin.
Pass required: all zones.
You could do it in ... 38 hours, believe it or not
... but you’ll want to take: a lifetime. Failing that,
three weeks will do.
