Travel Europe: For the Budget-Minded - Hotel or Night Train?

Photo of Couchette Courtesy of Wiki Commons

Although your Eurail pass includes discounts on many hotels, one advantage of a Eurail Pass is that you can save on hotel expenses by taking long trips and sleeping on the train. Most European cities that are at least 7 hours apart by rail are connected by night trains.

HOTELS

The good news is, with your Eurail Pass you can get discounted rates in many major European hotels. The bad news is that the discounts almost always apply to the hotels' sky-high standard rates. The final price may still be higher than if you book on line through such services as Expedia and Priceline or find your hotel at your destination. Depending upon the quality of hotel or train accommodations you select, there is no guarantee that train accommodations cost less than hotels. The ultimate value is the quality of rest you get for money spent.

NIGHT TRAIN SLEEPING OPTIONS

SEATS are the cheapest way to travel overnight. These are airline type seats with toilets and sinks at one end of the car. Reservations cost around 13 euros. It's like sleeping on a plane, the amount of rest you get is problematic. Unless you are extremely budget-minded, spend roughly an extra 18 euros and get a couchette so you don't wander around Europe like a zombie.

COUCHETTES are the overwhelming choice of most budget travelers. 2nd class couchettes cost roughly a little over 30 euros. The compartment has two benchlike seats during the day with 3 people sitting on each side. and two  top bunks up near the ceiling. At night, the back of each bench snaps up to become a middle bunk. Couchette cars have toilets and sinks at one end of the couchette car, but no showers. Couchette cars are not gender specific and not available on all trains

SHOWERS: Some night trains offer corridor showers and nearly all large train stations have showers that are inexpensive.