Why everyone should go interrailing at least once

I think a lot of people believe interrailing to be this trip for really social, arty, organised people who love to visit museums and sleep in hostels with 18 other people. This is definitely not the case. Interrailing allows for an abundance of opportunities and experiences and is one of the best things you will ever do, no matter who you are or what you like.

Freedom

You literally have the freedom to travel to anywhere in Europe essentially for free with your pass. It doesn't have to take organisation and planning if you don't want it to. When you have seen what you want to see or done what you want to do in one place, you can book a train or ferry and move on. It's that simple.

Opportunities

The list of opportunities is quite literally endless. There are opportunities to see so many incredible places from the canals of Venice or crystal clear waters of Croatia to the ruins and temples of Athens. It is an opportunity to catch up on books you have wanted to read for a while or learn the basics of a language you have always wanted to learn. There is a lot of excess time spent on a train or ferry where you are free to spend your time as you wish. There are also endless opportunities to see new places and do new things, speak to locals and learn about diverse cultures.

Variety

People think that interrailing just involves cities and that is all there is to offer. This is complete lies! You can go to only beaches if you wanted to or a bit of both which I think works best. That is the great thing about interrailing though, if you are really feeling like you want a dip in the ocean but you think it can't be done, it can. You hop on a train and go to a beach near to you or half way across Europe if you like. There are more than 40,000 train stations on the InterRail network. Passes are accepted in 30 countries across Europe and vary in length and flexibility which means just about anywhere is possible. You also don't have to be a train person to go and enjoy interrailing. Yes, the easiest way to get around is by train but passes also allow the use of ferries and buses.

The stories

There is nothing quite like sharing a sleeping cabin on a train with 5 other people in a space about the size of a bathroom. Or trying to figure out your way around a city with just a map. Or even trying to make toast without a toaster or working grill (frying works). The places you see and the people you meet along the way provide an endless supply of amazing stories.

History

If you are in any way, shape or form interested in history, book this right now. From the Berlin wall to Auschwitz to the Colosseum, Europe is absolutely bursting at the seams with historical monuments and museums just waiting to be explored.

The fun

Renting one of these bad boys and driving around Berlin is only one of the many fun things to do around Europe when you're not on too much of a budget. Other things include: renting a jet ski in Greece, dressing up and meeting turtles in the aquarium in Pula, Croatia or going on one of the world's oldest ferris wheels in Vienna.

Food

You get to try food from all aspects of Europe and who doesn't love food. Also the best thing about Europe is that although the local food might be a weird sausage or something, you can always get a pizza or burger down the road. One of the best things again is the ice- cream and Europe has so much of it everywhere. You can get weird and wonderful flavours for the adventurous or you can always guarantee you will get chocolate or vanilla but it will taste ten times better than at home.

However! Always make sure that the person taking your order knows exactly what you want because you can order donuts thinking that you will get lovely fluffy donuts for breakfast and you end up with......

Not ideal at 7am.

Cost

Depending on what you want to do and where you want to go, the prices will vary. If you choose to travel numerous times over the span of a month it will only cost you about €350 which when you think about it is dirt cheap considering what you are signing up for. If you want to fly to Greece from Dublin for a week it will cost you at least €250 return, often more. If you want to travel to Italy for a weekend away, literally for two nights and it would cost you well over €100. Interrailing allows you to travel to four, five even ten places and it will cost you less than €400 which is pretty darn amazing.

There is nothing quite like spending the day at the beach, hopping on a train and waking up the next morning in a busy city with all new things to explore and memories to make. It is one of the best feelings ever to bounce around from completely different cities and watching the scenes go by as you inch closer and closer to your next destination. Decide to do it and I can guarantee it will be one of the best travel experiences of your life.

#Travel #interrailing #Europe #Italy #Greece #Croatia #Austria #Germany #Poland