How can I acquire cheap rail travel Europe?
Train tickets in Europe can be expensive, but several discount rail passes make rail travel much cheaper. The easiest and cheapest way to travel Europe by rail is to buy an EuRail or an InterRail train pass.
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The EuRail pass
Overview
Trains are a popular way to travel in Europe and most countries have modern, comfortable trains and an efficient, punctual service.
EuRail is the European rail travel pass for those who do not live in Europe.
Versions of this rail pass
Several versions of this rail pass for non-European travellers are available: you can choose to travel in a single country, in two neighbouring countries, in a selected group of countries that border each other, or around Europe on the EuRail Global Pass.
The global pass can be used in 21 different European countries and gives you unlimited train travel in these countries for a chosen time period.
Where to buy passes?
The passes can be bought online before your arrival in Europe.
Holders of the EuRail passes usually get discounted tickets on European ferries and are entitled to other special offers.
The InterRail pass
Overview of the InterRail pass
InterRail is the rail pass for Europeans.
The InterRail area covers 30 countries and the pass is available only for the residents of those countries.
There are several different versions of the InterRail pass, depending on where you want to travel, how long you want to travel and how old you are.
The traditional pass was only meant for so-called “youth travel” but there are now passes for travellers in all age groups.
Global pass
The Global Pass lets you travel around all the 30 countries that belong to the InterRail network.
You can choose from a range of global passes that cover 15 days, 22 days or a month’s worth of rail travel, and there are also passes that let you travel a certain number of days over a specific time period.
InterRail also offers passes that allow for unlimited train travel in a single European country over a period of time
Final word
Unfortunately, the pass cannot be used for travel in the country you are resident in: you can only start your InterRail journey from the border of your home country. Just like the EuRail Europe rail pass, InterRail offers discounted ferry tickets and other benefits for budget travellers.