Written by Until last week, my most recent trip from Paris to Berlin on a direct daytime train was way back in early 2015 with RZD Russian Railways. The train had a Polish restaurant car with a quirky menu featuring caviar, kangaroo steak and South African wines. The journey between the two capital cities was scheduled to […]
Trains no longer arrive at Belgrade’s riverside main station, at the foot of the limestone scarp that gave the white city its name. Today, the yellow stucco facade faces a gleaming new statue, eight storeys high, which dominates the forecourt where refugees, mostly from Syria, camped in the late 2010s. Our flight-free trip from London […]
I travel through Europe by rail in all seasons and all weathers, and my more memorable journeys are often in that slack period between Epiphany (on 6 January) and Easter. Fewer travellers are on the move. Empty trains and plentiful accommodation make a winning combo for those who relish spontaneous travel. And winter weather often […]
You’ve got broadly two options when planning an off-season rail trip in Europe. Hop on a sleeper train and speed as far south as you can in the hope of finding some sunshine, or lean into the oncoming winter. With an October half-term holiday looming, our family decided to embrace the second option, planning a […]
Former monastery, Venice Venice is a place where you want to maximise your time and enjoy its unique atmosphere; a stay at the Hotel Abbazia let me do both last summer. The hotel is a former monastery, home to Carmelite monks in the 15th century, and is just a three-minute walk from Santa Lucia station. […]
The Christmas market doesn’t know what’s hit it. At 8.30 on a mid-November morning Exeter is a whirl of white, a city half-blinded by tumbling flakes. Four market workers, caught out by this overly authentic addition to the festive decor, are busy shovelling the ground in front of the bao stalls and craft gin chalets. […]
Don’t make small talk with strangers. Or talk about the weather. Or even ask people you know how they are… I read these social etiquette tips in a Denmark travel guide – four days into a 10-day trip. I’d already blown it on day one. “Look at that!” I said to the couple opposite me […]
Brussels and Bruges get all the attention, but Antwerp is Belgium’s most dynamic city. Shaped by its Flemish heritage, working port and centuries-old diamond trade, it’s a destination that feels both historic and excitingly modern offering a great mix of art – from Rubens masterpieces to avant-garde galleries – cutting-edge fashion and a buzzy food […]
When the Mediterranean makes its first appearance, it’s through chilly sheets of rain. I spot the not-very-blue waters between the buildings of Marseille as my train from Paris pulls in. By the time we reach Nice the skies are still grey and I’m starting to wonder how far south I’ll have to go before I […]
Street lights strobed through the window, sending shadows sweeping across our faces as our train followed the River Seine through Choisy-le-Roi. Ten minutes earlier, we had pulled out of Paris’s Gare d’Austerlitz. Departing at 9.40pm, the Intercité de Nuit was due on the Spanish border just after 10am, where we would connect to a Barcelona train. It’s […]