From June 30 to July 10, my father and I traveled through Europe by rail. We flew to Frankfrut, and then traveled by rail from Frankfurt to Dreseden, and then to Prague, and Budapest in that order. From Budapest, we returned via Vienna, Innsbruck, Munich, finally arriving in Frankfurt. We then took a short ride to Cologne in back on the new high speed train.
Observations: In general, first class train travel in Europe is much more civized than in the U.S. We never traveled overngiht by train. We travled by day in first class coach seating that was two and two with plenty of leg room, or in traditional compartments that accomodated 6 somewhat uncomfortable when they are full. (I have never been in a completely full first class compartment in Europe, usually there is at most 3 or 4 people in their) We reserved seats before leaving the United States, and were assigned seats and car numbers. I requested window, non smoking for all segments. We received are first choice on all but two trains. Often the first class section was mostly empty, so Dad and I each had a set of two seats to ourselves.
The climate controls on Europe trains were the weak point. On even the newest trains, it was often a bit too warm, and sometimes too smoky in the non-smoking section. (Smoking is not considered a social taboo in Europe) Thus the air quality was usually far from perfect. However, in most cases I enjoyed the train ride.
Foodsevice: The highlight of the trip on many trains. They had table clothes in the diner on the German High Speed trains, the Eurocity trains, and some Intercity trains. On one train I had freshly cooked crepes with hazelnut creme for desert as we rolled through the hills of the Czech republic. On another train, we ate fresh croissants and strong austrian coffee as the train assaulted the steepest grade (2% I think) on the route at speeds of 40 miles an hour. There were numeroush reverse curves, mountain vistas, tunnels, and high stone-arched bridges. Stone castles and monastaries perched atop cliffs added to the splender of our morning cup of coffee in the diner. A strong point of European trains is that the diner is open for the whole trip, and you can go at anytime during the trip assuming that you have time to eat before your stop.
Railfanning: Folks, it dont get any better than this!! You always get surprises in Europe. On Amtrak, you always kind of know what to expect after a few trips. In Europe, I boarded the train in Munich, assuming that it would take the same route that I had ridden a few years ago. Yet, an examination of the on-board timetable told me the train would take an entirely differnt route. What a pleasant surprise, new rails!!
While waiting for 20 minutes in Cologne, I saw 4 trains pass through the station on the platform infront of me. Similar activity was occurring on other platforms. The shear large-scale of rr operations of Europe is stunning, and always fascinating to observe. Numerous times during the trip, I saw two and somethimes three trains departing a station at the same time. Frequently, I saw trains that I knew nothing about, but I still enjoyed the diverstiy of the vistas and operations.
Finally, the last day of the trip, I was invited to ride int the cab of an ICE# train operating from Cologne to Frankfrut. The train is set up so that passengers can observe the engineer operating the train through a glass wall. Since this train was operating over the new high speed line, the crew was familiar with railfans watching the view out the front window as the train rode along at 180 mph. The conductor observed me drooling on the carpet, and invited me in for a look. My dad was also invited. We spent the last 45 minutes of the trip watching the engineer drive the train. He spoke English, and he and another crew member provided another additonal background info on the route. Basicallly, as far as I am concerenned , you are reading the post of a ghost, becuase I must have died and gone to railfan heaven.
In summary, they railroad the way it should be done over there!
Observations: In general, first class train travel in Europe is much more civized than in the U.S. We never traveled overngiht by train. We travled by day in first class coach seating that was two and two with plenty of leg room, or in traditional compartments that accomodated 6 somewhat uncomfortable when they are full. (I have never been in a completely full first class compartment in Europe, usually there is at most 3 or 4 people in their) We reserved seats before leaving the United States, and were assigned seats and car numbers. I requested window, non smoking for all segments. We received are first choice on all but two trains. Often the first class section was mostly empty, so Dad and I each had a set of two seats to ourselves.
The climate controls on Europe trains were the weak point. On even the newest trains, it was often a bit too warm, and sometimes too smoky in the non-smoking section. (Smoking is not considered a social taboo in Europe) Thus the air quality was usually far from perfect. However, in most cases I enjoyed the train ride.
Foodsevice: The highlight of the trip on many trains. They had table clothes in the diner on the German High Speed trains, the Eurocity trains, and some Intercity trains. On one train I had freshly cooked crepes with hazelnut creme for desert as we rolled through the hills of the Czech republic. On another train, we ate fresh croissants and strong austrian coffee as the train assaulted the steepest grade (2% I think) on the route at speeds of 40 miles an hour. There were numeroush reverse curves, mountain vistas, tunnels, and high stone-arched bridges. Stone castles and monastaries perched atop cliffs added to the splender of our morning cup of coffee in the diner. A strong point of European trains is that the diner is open for the whole trip, and you can go at anytime during the trip assuming that you have time to eat before your stop.
Railfanning: Folks, it dont get any better than this!! You always get surprises in Europe. On Amtrak, you always kind of know what to expect after a few trips. In Europe, I boarded the train in Munich, assuming that it would take the same route that I had ridden a few years ago. Yet, an examination of the on-board timetable told me the train would take an entirely differnt route. What a pleasant surprise, new rails!!
While waiting for 20 minutes in Cologne, I saw 4 trains pass through the station on the platform infront of me. Similar activity was occurring on other platforms. The shear large-scale of rr operations of Europe is stunning, and always fascinating to observe. Numerous times during the trip, I saw two and somethimes three trains departing a station at the same time. Frequently, I saw trains that I knew nothing about, but I still enjoyed the diverstiy of the vistas and operations.
Finally, the last day of the trip, I was invited to ride int the cab of an ICE# train operating from Cologne to Frankfrut. The train is set up so that passengers can observe the engineer operating the train through a glass wall. Since this train was operating over the new high speed line, the crew was familiar with railfans watching the view out the front window as the train rode along at 180 mph. The conductor observed me drooling on the carpet, and invited me in for a look. My dad was also invited. We spent the last 45 minutes of the trip watching the engineer drive the train. He spoke English, and he and another crew member provided another additonal background info on the route. Basicallly, as far as I am concerenned , you are reading the post of a ghost, becuase I must have died and gone to railfan heaven.
In summary, they railroad the way it should be done over there!
