Train travel Archives

Taking the train is a strain – Newport to Berlin case

My parents live in Newport in South Wales. I live in Berlin. I am going home for Christmas, and so – on 27th December – I want to return to Berlin. All in one day. By train. If I wanted to do this in a few weeks’ time, it would[Read More…]

09.10.2016 4 comments

Three weeks in Central Asia – a review

I’ve just returned from a three week trip to Central Asia. This blog entry is part review of what I saw and did, and hence partly a suggestion about what to do, and how to do it. Hence the blog entry is rather long. My rationale for going to Central[Read More…]

15.08.2016 0 comments

A rail postcard from Köln

Dear Violeta, It’s only a week or so since I wrote the last postcard to you. That one didn’t receive a response – perhaps you were too busy talking to the rail industry, rather than thinking of passengers’ needs? Anyway, today at Köln Hbf things went spectacularly wrong as happens[Read More…]

20.10.2015 0 comments

A rail postcard from Mannheim

Dear Violeta, Since my postcard from Forst (Lausitz) in December I’ve travelled the length and breadth of Germany by rail (even stopping off to hear you speak at the Schwarkopf Stiftung in Berlin), and today I am sending you a virtual postcard from Mannheim. I have no idea whether Franz[Read More…]

02.02.2015 14 comments

Guides

Cheap rail tickets through Germany

So you want a one-off rail ticket through Germany, and you want it as cheap as possible. You’re doing a journey like Belgium (- Germany -) Austria, or Denmark (- Germany -) Czech Republic, but you’re not going to stop* in Germany. Here’s how to do it. 1. Search for[Read More…]

17.08.2012 7 comments

Guides

5 stops, 13 trains – a little European rail diary

Tomorrow I set off for a journey lasting just over two weeks, mostly for work but with a little holiday in between. The whole trip is by train. Here’s the schedule, and how I booked at at the lowest price possible: Thu 19 Apr – London-Paris Eurostar – £73.00 (€86.37),[Read More…]

18.04.2012 0 comments

Eurostar rebrands – suppose I’ll get used to it

So my favourite rail service – Eurostar – is being rebranded. The old E* logo, in use from the start of the service in the mid-1990s, is to be replaced with a silver 3D logo, dark blue background and a yellow caps sans serif font. There is also an adaption[Read More…]

05.04.2011 0 comments