France/Italy/Switzerland/Austria and Germany

Staff member: Corey // Trip date: Nov 2006

France

My flight arrived at 0600 into Paris CDG airport, terminal 1. From terminal 1 I had to catch a shuttle bus to the train station which is located at terminal 2. The train station services both the national rail services & the metropolitan RERs. The shuttle bus runs a continuous loop stopping at terminal 1, 2AC, 2E, 2F, Train Station & terminal 2BD. There are a number of different shuttle busses, some running to car parks, terminal 3 etc. the bus to the train station is bus number 1. The journey from terminal 1 to the TGV station took around 15mins once I was on the bus, from the time I landed to the time I arrived at the station took about 1 hour.

Paris - Bordeaux

At the train station I straight away went to get my pass validated, here was a long line up at the ticket counters but I only had to wait about 10mins to get to the front. The person at the counter spoke fairly good English & they did not ask to see my passport or any ID to validate my pass. Tried to validate reservation ticket in yellow validation machine but had a lot of trouble getting machine to recognise the ticket. Tried a few different machines & one finally printed a validation date & time on end of ticket. The airport train station is quite good although the platforms the trains leave from are only shown on the boards 20 mins before train arrival. At the station there are good facilities, the toilets cost €0.50 for use, there are a number of shops for food, drink, books, etc (although most were closed when I was there from 0700 to 0855) & there is a good waiting room with lots of chairs & even a section with a long table & electric wall sockets, for laptops, mobile phones, etc.

Departed Paris CDG at 0855 but the TGV I caught was a bit disappointing as it was a bit older; the interior was a bit dated & no power sockets. The seats were quite comfortable & I looked at second class & that seemed quite comfortable as well. The only real difference between 1st & 2nd class was that 1st class had larger seats & more room. The seat layout in 1st class was 2 seats, aisle, 1 seat & there were forward & back facing seats. I travelled back facing (single seat not facing a forward facing seat) & I felt fine. The train did have a buffet car serving basic snacks, drinks, pre-packaged sandwiches, etc.

I arrived at Bordeaux St Jean station at 1300. The station is quite large & has all major amenities. I stored my bags in a safe storage locker, which to get to you must pass your bags trough a scanner & you have to walk through a scanner. The guard at the locker area spoke almost no English but he managed to get across that I was not allowed to store the laptop, so had to carry it around with me. Once inside you choose a locker, there are various sizes & the larger the locker the more it costs. I chose the smallest size which just fit my travel pack and laptop satchel, it would not have fit a suitcase so would have had to get a larger locker. The locker cost €4.00 and you lock the locker, get a receipt with the locker number & password on it & then wen you return you enter the password put the €4 (in coins) into the machine & it opens the locker. There are change machines with the locker if you only have notes. You can use the locker for up to 72 hours at a time.

Bordeaux centre is about 3Kms from the train station. You can take a bus but there is a direct tram, line C, to the city which is easier & you buy a ticket from a machine which has English instructions. A single use ticket on the train costs €1.30, you can also get a carnet of 10 single use tickets & day passes as well. Waiting room at Bordeaux has lots of seats & there are a few wall sockets around the place.

Bordeaux - Marseille

I departed Bordeaux at 2148 on Lunea overnight train to Marseille. The train had no showers, no buffet car & no power points in cabin. Booked a 4 berth cabin but was in a 6 berth cabin, only had 3 other people in it though. I was in a cabin with 2 middle aged men & an elderly lady. The bed was made up. You also get provided with a bottle of water & a travel kit, containing mints, tissues, moist towelettes, ear plugs & a plastic rubbish bag. I slept well enough on the train. I woke up and got ready an hour before the train was due to arrive, the train staff come around about 15mins before arrival to wake you up (they check where you're disembarking when you board the train).

Marseille - Dijon

Arrived into Marseille at 0530 & I stored my luggage in the luggage lockers. Procedure for lockers was exactly the same as at Bordeaux but they let me store my laptop. I caught a regional train to Cannes, sat in 1st class & it was very comfortable, it had the newest interior so far. Seat layout same as TGV, 2, aisle, 1. Some of the seats facing each other have a table in between & these have a power point under the table. Seats not facing others do not have power points. Went to toilet but 1st class toilets were out of order, so had to go to 2nd class. I got stuck in 2nd class as door to 1st class stopped working, had to sit in 2nd class until next stop. 2nd class layout was 2, aisle, 2 & there were no table or power points. The train was more than half empty at Marseille but a bit fuller by Cannes, although still plenty of seats available. Cannes train station is quite small but so is the town, so it's only about a 5min walk to the beach/marina area which is the main section. No luggage lockers at Cannes station but toilets (free) & a couple of convenience shops.

Tried to catch train back to Marseille at 1430 but train was really full with lots of people in the aisles. I could have stood but didn't want to stand for 2 hours. I decided to catch a train to Antibes so I could get on the next train earlier than Cannes. The train was regional double decker & 1st class was a small segregated section at the front or back of each carriage. I caught the train from Antibes to Marseille, regional service exactly the same as Marseille to Cannes. The train was half empty when I got on at Antibes but full by Marseille. I waited in the waiting room at Marseille for my train to Dijon & it was fairly similar to the waiting room at Bordeaux, including power sockets. I caught the TGV from Marseille to Dijon at 1915. The train had more up to date seating & interior but otherwise was exactly the same as the Paris-Bordeaux TGV.

Dijon - Milan

I caught the Artesia night train from Dijon to Milan at 2320. The departures board showed 2 Artesia night trains (one going to Venice as well), both leaving at the same time from the same platform. The departures board showed 2 train numbers as well but on the platform the board only showed the Venice departure details. I asked the train assistant if it was the same train & he said yes but you must get into your correct allocated cabin because the train splits along the way with half going to Milan & half going to Venice. I was put in a 4 berth cabin but it was actually a 6 berth cabin with the bottom 2 bunks not made up. The bed was not made up, I had to do that myself & this time the linen was a sleeping bag type sheet with 2 blankets. I only had 1 other person in the cabin with me. When you get on the train the train assistant asks for your res ticket & your passport, he then takes both (for the border crossing) & gives you your passport back in the morning when he wakes you up, you do not get your res ticket back. I was only woken up 5mins before we arrived into Milan (although we did arrive 15mins early) but I was the last stop for this service so I had enough time to get sorted & off the train.

Milan - Como

Caught the train from Milan to Como at 0730, it was a regional 2nd class only train. The train was quite basic but neat clean & the interior seemed newer than the TGVs I caught. There were no tables or even a luggage rack, just the rack above the chair. The rack above the chair was big enough for my travel pack & would have been fine for a small suitcase but not for a large suitcase. The seat layout was 2, aisle, 2 & there were some facing seats. The train to Como was not busy; I had 2 seats to myself for the whole trip. This trip is not very scenic until just before Como.
Como S. Giovanni station (where I arrived) is only 10mins walk to the centre of town & the lake but the town is quite small anyway. The other major station in Como is Como Lago station with is on the other side of the town right next to the lake & bus station. Lago station services more regional services (Italy only trains) you can catch trains from Lago Station to Milan but they go into a minor Milan station not Centrale station. I stayed at Hotel Plinus in Como, 2 streets from the lake in the centre of town. The room was very small but was very high quality. Como is the main transport hub for Lake Como & there are ferries to pretty much every other town on the lake.

Como - Monza - Tirano - St. Moritz - Chur

I caught the train from Como to Monza at 0730. The train was exactly the same as the Milan-Como train. The train was mostly empty at Como but really full by Monza, with lots of people standing in the aisle.

I connected with a train from Monza to Tirano leaving at 0830. This was another regional service exactly the same as Como-Monza train but it did have 1st class so the seats were larger, more comfortable & they had power points. There was more room as well as the layout in 1st class was 2, aisle, 1. This trip was very scenic as the train runs right along the east side of Lake Como & then travels east towards the Italian Alps (does not go through alps though). Train not busy at all, half empty the whole way to Tirano.

I arrived into Tirano station at 1045. There is not much at Tirano station as it is quite small, no baggage lockers so I could not go for a wander through the town (I had a 3 hour wait for the Bernina Express). There is a separate station for trains to & from Switzerland but it is right next to the main station, they are essentially the same station just 2 separate buildings. Upon entering the Swiss Tirano station there is a guard that checks your passport at the door. There is a small waiting room in the Tirano Swiss station. There were a few trains that left earlier for St Moritz but they didn't have panoramic carriages. The train guard said I can change trains at St Moritz & get there earlier if I want to. I caught the Bernina Express train to Chur (pronounced Coor) at 1340. The train had panoramic carriages in 1st & 2nd class as well as normal 1st & 2nd class carriages. The train had nice leather seats (no power points) in both 1st & 2nd class. The classes weren't that different although 1st class layout was 2, aisle, 1 & 2nd class was 2, aisle, 2. The aisle in 1st class was really wide so 1st class definitely recommended for disabled clients (although no actual disabled seats or assistancel). There was commentary along the way in German (Swiss German I assume), & English. The train splits at Pontresina, with the front carriages going to St Moritz & the back carriages going onto Chur. The train then gains extra carriages further on at Samedan; these are the Bernina Express carriages for the train starting from St Moritz. I was in the back carriage (number 1) until Samedan when the extra carriages were attached to the back. In the back carriage you can look out the back window & at the back of the carriage you can store luggage, there is even a pull down rack for skis & there are 2 side windows that can be opened, so you can us them for reflection free photos. Drinks & snacks can be bought on board, at the beginning of the trip you need to go to the service area on the train to buy but after Samedan there is a trolley service. The scenery was fantastic, easily the most picturesque journey my entire trip, but there was not much snow around so if people want to see lots of snow I would suggest travel in January.

I arrived into Chur at 1800. Chur is quite a small town & the station is on the edge of the town centre, it only took about 10 mins to walk from the station to the centre of town. There was a lot of work going on around the station, new buildings being built, some road work, etc. There were some tram lines at the station & around the town but I never saw a tram, there were some busses but the town is small enough that you don't really need public transport unless you want to travel further out of the town. Most of the shops in the old town were shut even during the day but in the newer area of town there were more shops open. I stayed at the Minotel Freieck & it was neat & clean (rooms felt more like a B & B).

Churs - Salzburg

I caught the train from Chur to Sagens at 1322. It was a regional service with 1st class. Normal 1st class layout of 2, aisle, 1 with the décor starting to look a little old, clean & comfortable though. No food or drinks service on board.

Arrived Sagens at 1345 & caught train to Salzburg at 1435. Sagens station seems to be a bit of an intersection of train lines, with half the lines on 1 side of the station buildings & the other half on the other side. Train to Salzburg was fantastic, best train so far. There are 2 types of 1st class carriage, one is your normal arrangement of 2, aisle, 1 & the other carriage has cabins with 3 forward & 3 back facing seats. The seats in both carriages are leather. There are also a few cabins that are business class, same size cabins as 1st class but with only 2 seats facing 2 seats. You can travel in the business class cabins with a 1st class Eurail pass but you have to pay €15.00 on the train. Both 1st & Business cabins have self contained adjustable heating/cooling. 1st class cabins only have power points next to the 2 window seats, in business class all seats have their own power point. Train was fairly empty; I had a 1st class cabin all to myself all the way to Salzburg. The train has a drinks & snacks trolley service, 1st class passengers get free newspapers, incl. English prints & there is a restaurant car as well. The trip was very picturesque but not as good as the Bernina Express. I arrived into Salzburg at 1930. The station is a 20 min walk to the centre of town. I stayed at the Minotel Hotel Amadeus & as in Chur it was neat & clean (rooms felt more like a B & B).

Salzburg - Mainz

I left Salzburg for Wels at 1510 & train was exactly the same as the Sagens-Salzburg train. I arrived into Wels at 1612 & departed on the train to Mainz at 1628. The train to Mainz was fairly similar to the 2 pervious Austrian services but a bit older. The seats were fabric, not leather; there were no business class cabins but both 1st class cabins & normal 1st class seating. There were also a couple of smoking cabins. There was a drinks service in at your seats & a restaurant car but this was a bit cheaper than the Austrian trains, both in looks & type of food served (prices for food were fairly similar though). I arrived into Mainz at 2218. The station is about 20 mins walk from the city centre but there are lots of hotels directly opposite the station. Mainz station is large with lots of amenities.

Mainz - Frankfurt airport

I caught the ICE train from Mainz to Frankfurt airport at 0843. The train ride was very quick (15 mins) & the train was very nice & up to date. It had leather seats with part of the carriage being a normal 2, aisle, 1 layout with some seats (but not all) having TVs. There is also another part of the carriage that had some semi-segregated seats, 2 facing 2 then the aisle then a single seat not segregated. I say semi-segregated because they looked like cabins but with no doors & the partitions only came to about head height. I did not have a reservation for this train but the ticket inspector who checked my pass did not ask me to pay the supplement.

At Frankfurt Airport the train arrives at Terminal 1 & if you need to get to Terminal 2 (the smaller of the two) you need to walk for a bit to then catch either a shuttle bus or the Sky Train, this is a small internal mono rail system between the terminals. This was easy enough though because there were lots of baggage trolleys available on the train arrival platform.