Flying OneWorld around Europe [credit to QF]

SYD said:
I thought the consensus these days is Eurorail passes are poor value? Like you need to be on a train everyday to get the same value as just booking direct the few trips you actually need?

A bit like buying a “Drinks package” once on board a cruise ship and then realising you need to be permanently pissed for 7 days to get value! (We may have done that once…).

Happy to be corrected!

Probably better if you can get a legit seniors pass?
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I had a Eurail pass a couple of years ago in Switzerland France and Italy - got it at 15% discount sale and first class and I well and truly got my money's worth. I was travelling alone and off peak and for me I like the flexibility of it that you are not bound to a particular time train. Sometimes you want to stay longer and sometimes you don't like somewhere and want to move on
 
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SYD said:
I thought the consensus these days is Eurorail passes are poor value? Like you need to be on a train everyday to get the same value as just booking direct the few trips you actually need?
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It really depends on needs .... the amount of travelling,, where that will be, and how much flexibility is needed. Two stand out countries are UK and Switzerland - some form of rail pass covering those countries can easily pay for itself. Especially if you want some flexibility to deal with variable weather. But anything last minute in (Western) Europe can be expensive. But a well planned journey with individual sectors pre-booked can be a lot cheaper. Eurail pass = travel insurance 🤣

Take the UK this coming Monday, most trains for the 4.5 hr journey from London Glasgow are well over $200 AUD. To Cardiff (2hrs) for $150AUD. The one hour/100km journey to Brighton, $60 AUD. Imagine paying $60 to get from Melbourne to Geelong or Sydney to Wollongong!

Now at the other end of the spectrum, Luxembourg was mentioned up thread. Within the confines of Luxembourg (yes there are places you can go via rail within the small Grand Duchy), a railpass is 100% useless - as public transport is free.
 
dajop said:
It really depends on needs .... the amount of travelling,, where that will be, and how much flexibility is needed. Two stand out countries are UK and Switzerland - some form of rail pass covering those countries can easily pay for itself. Especially if you want some flexibility to deal with variable weather. But anything last minute in (Western) Europe can be expensive. But a well planned journey with individual sectors pre-booked can be a lot cheaper. Eurail pass = travel insurance 🤣

Take the UK this coming Monday, most trains for the 4.5 hr journey from London Glasgow are well over $200 AUD. To Cardiff (2hrs) for $150AUD. The one hour/100km journey to Brighton, $60 AUD. Imagine paying $60 to get from Melbourne to Geelong or Sydney to Wollongong!

Now at the other end of the spectrum, Luxembourg was mentioned up thread. Within the confines of Luxembourg (yes there are places you can go via rail within the small Grand Duchy), a railpass is 100% useless - as public transport is free.
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Yes, the UK can be horrendous but with some planning - still manageable.

Locals can get all sorts of passes and things, so rarely pay rack rate. Some routes usually have an off peak ticket on the day - just wait by the machine until the clock ticks over and a £50 ticket becomes £10 (although, they seem to be less common I’ve found).

Still curious if that “insurance” cost is more than flying plus avoiding the fun of “why fly direct when I can fly via”? Which was the gist of the OP.
 
SYD said:
I thought the consensus these days is Eurorail passes are poor value? Like you need to be on a train everyday to get the same value as just booking direct the few trips you actually need?

Happy to be corrected!

Probably better if you can get a legit seniors pass?
Click to expand...

There are occasional sales offering 15 to 20 per cent off Eurailpasses on the Eurail site.

The extra value of a pass is flexibility, unlike a point-to-point ticket that may only be valid for a particular train.

One or two lengthy journeys rapidly eats up the cost of a pass.

Best value for Eurailpass is in nations with higher fares per kilometre, such as Germany and UK, plus Switzerland. and to some extent Austria. Scandanavia is probably in this category but I've not been there for 20 years.

Pass-unfriendly countries include Spain and France where reservations on most long distance trains are compulsory and supplements high.

I love using a Eurailpass in UK as on the main line operators in first class, you're entitled to free food and drink, including alcohol.
 
SYD said:
I thought the consensus these days is Eurorail passes are poor value? Like you need to be on a train everyday to get the same value as just booking direct the few trips you actually need?

A bit like buying a “Drinks package” once on board a cruise ship and then realising you need to be permanently pissed for 7 days to get value! (We may have done that once…).

Happy to be corrected!

Probably better if you can get a legit seniors pass?
Click to expand...

For my next trip in the Baltics many of the routes it was cheaper to fly than get the train. They’re not particularly noteworthy train journeys so I’ll take the flight.
 
justinbrett said:
I looked at that but rental cars were extortionate I got a couple of €25 flights (stopping over in Riga)
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2 wks in between Tallinn and Vilnius with two (maybe three) cars allows us to zig zag across thee countries.

About €850 with AVIS (not cheap) but Hertz was €2,500!

As AVIS Presidents Club I just need to managed the unwanted “upgrade”.
 
MG1 said:
Thank you @SeatBackForward, @vbroucek, @SYD, @offshore171, @dajop for your responses.

It looks like considering rail travel, for a shorter leg, might be the way to go. I'll compare the pricing and see how close it is to air travel. There will definitely be nice scenery to view and travelling between city centres without the airport security process, would be more relaxing.

I've used LCY and LGW previously but not yet at LHR.

I haven't been to Strasbourg but could add that to the list for consideration.
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If you’ve got the time, why not connect? You’ll get a swag of SCs, and can enjoy a leisurely day of travel.

ClubEurope is actually pretty good… especially the catering. And BA’s fares are often extremely good in the front cabin.

Train may be quicker… but not always. And once you start to hit 5-6 hours on the train… I’d prefer to fly if it’s the same time, even with a connection. And train fares can be expensive for first class. It’s no fun being in standard/2nd class for that long.
 
In the comparison include time and cost to get to/from airport from your accommodation.
In some locations you may find accommodation near the airport or train station.

6hrs in a train [seated] far more tolerable than 3hrs in an aircraft [economy] seat.
 
This thread reminds me of a post I read a while back. The poster had the option of a 1hr direct flight on a budget airline to/from somewhere in central Europe but they would rather spend literally the whole day and spend heaps more flying Iberia via Madrid because they were QF Platinum. Each to their own I guess.
 
Mwenenzi said:
In the comparison include time and cost to get to/from airport from your accommodation.
In some locations you may find accommodation near the airport or train station.

6hrs in a train [seated] far more tolerable than 3hrs in an aircraft [economy] seat.
Click to expand...
Errr… depends on the class! 6 hours on a packed 2nd class (or even first class) carriage compared to being wined and dined for three hours with a guaranteed spare seat beside you?

We did Amsterdam-Paris on eurostar, 1st class but without the food and drink. Wished we’d flown!
 
MEL_Traveller said:
Errr… depends on the class! 6 hours on a packed 2nd class (or even first class) carriage compared to being wined and dined for three hours with a guaranteed spare seat beside you?

We did Amsterdam-Paris on eurostar, 1st class but without the food and drink. Wished we’d flown!
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Yeah, we use trains pretty much only in Switzerland and only in first where you often have a whole carriage to yourself otherwise we drive or fly.
Last trip to Europe LX wanted around $800 in J for the 1hr PRG-ZRH flight but BA had PRG-LHR-ZRH for under $700. Sure it took up a chunk of the day but 2 decent meals on board plus a stack of alcohol and a few hours in the LHR BA F lounge more than made up for it
 

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