Thinking About Train Travel? Expert Tips from the Man in Seat 61
2 min readTrain travel tips and advice from Mark Smith, the Man in Seat 61, to plan and prepare for train travel just about anywhere.
The post Thinking About Train Travel? Expert Tips from the Man in Seat 61 appeared first on JourneyWoman.
Train travel booking tips
Once you’ve decided to give train travel a go, here are some tips to help you make it a regular part of your travel planning routine.
1. Start at home
If you’ve never tried train travel, try something close to home. In 2023, I took a 7-hour Via Rail train from Toronto to Sudbury in Northern Ontario for a travel conference. That same year, I travelled from Quebec City to Toronto, with a stop in Montreal. In 2022, instead of flying from San Francisco to Portland, I took the overnight Coast Starlight train and enjoyed beautiful views of the mountains. Needless to say, trains have become an integral part of my travel.
2. Become familiar with each train operator’s website
Smith says that while it’s best to book on each operator’s website, there are some websites that do everything, such as Trainline.com and Raileurope.com. Both offer seniors discounts as well.
“These websites link to the Spanish, French, Italian, German, Swiss, Austrian, Benelux ticketing systems and can sell tickets across a swathe of western Europe,” Smith says. “But even they don’t connect to the Portuguese, Hungarian, Czech, Finnish, Norwegian, Romanian or Bulgarian systems. For example, the only place you can buy a €21 ticket between Prague and Budapest is either the Hungarian or Czech railways’ website or app.”
Smith is a fan of Switzerland’s train system. “Switzerland has the best network (SBB) in terms of frequency, reliability, integration and connectivity,” he says. “But I’ve a lot of time for the Austrian Railways, ÖBB, who have some superb trains and some of the best connectivity to neighbouring countries because of the way they co-operate with neighbouring operators.”
