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Longing for a change of scenery? How does all of Europe sound? Get ready to escape your home and find your freedom, with a  10% discount  on Eurail Passes. Travel by rail in comfort and safety, then savor the space at each inspiring stop - Europe just for you!

10% off if you're 60 or over

You can buy a Senior Pass if you are  60 or over  on the date you choose to start your trip (German Rail Pass not included). If you're 59 on your first day of travel, you'll need to order an Adult Pass. The senior discount is available for either 1st class or 2nd class travel.

Planning a family getaway? See if you can make use of our other discounts! Our other available discounts are for:

Travelers 11 or younger can travel for free with a  family discount .

Travelers aged 12 to 27 can enjoy big savings with the  youth discount .

Get more out of your trip

Travel smart and book Europe's top attractions in advance. This way you'll learn all about the culture and history of your destination. So, avoid the queues and get the best prices for tours and tickets. Besides that, when you've bought your Pass, you'll get a nice discount!

Your trip isn't complete without an amazing city tour, for example in Berlin, Paris, and many others. With SANDEMAN's in-depth walking tours, you'll learn all about the sights, the history, and the people of your destination. But that's not all... as a Eurail Pass holder, you get a 20% discount on all tours!

Check out our other discounts!

Youth discount.

Travelers aged 12 to 27 years old on the date you choose to start your trip can travel with a youth discount.

Family discount

Travelers aged 11 or younger on the date you choose to start your trip can travel for free with a family discount.

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Senior fares

If you’re 60 or older, you can enjoy our special offers across all our travel classes

Exclusive prices just for you

If you’re aged 60 or over, we want you to be able to experience the excitement of European travel without breaking the bank. We offer fixed senior fares on all our routes between France, Belgium, the Netherlands, and Germany.

Book your train tickets at senior prices

Standard Fares

Brussels to Paris: €74

Brussels to Amsterdam: €62

Brussels to Cologne: €50

Comfort Fares

Our Comfort fare offers more space and flexibility:

Brussels to Paris: €93

Brussels to Amsterdam: €76

Brussels to Cologne: €59

Premium Fares

Our Premium fare offers luxury and in-seat service:

Brussels to Paris: €113

Brussels to Amsterdam: €91

Brussels to Cologne: €67

Pick the perfect carriage for your needs

When you manage to tear your gaze away from the view, take advantage of the free Wifi and individual electric points in your comfortable seat. Forgot to pack some snacks? Eurostar Café has you covered with a selection of food and drink available for purchase.

Stretch out and enjoy your extra legroom and spacious seat. You can focus on resting in this quiet carriage before arrival or book some attractions using the faster Wifi with increased data.

No matter what time of day you travel in Premium, you’ll have a delicious meal served at your seat. When you’ve finished dining, why not pick from our selection of international newspapers to catch up on the latest news. You’ll also have the advantage of our Eurostar lounges while you wait to board.

Fare Conditions

One-way fare is available in Standard, Comfort or Premium for passengers over 60 years of age on the day of travel. Subject to availability.

For Standard and Comfort fares:

• We get that plans can change, that’s life. That’s why our Standard and Comfort fares are exchangeable without a fee up to 7 days prior to departure, and exchangeable thereafter for a fee of €15.
• Any price difference between the old and new tickets will apply.
• Our senior fares are refundable up to 7 days prior to your departure and non-refundable thereafter.

For Premium fares:

• Sometimes things happen even with the best-laid (premium) plans. That’s why our Premium fares are exchangeable free of charge up to the departure time of your train stated on your ticket.
• Your Premium fare is refundable up until one hour after the departure time of your train stated on your ticket.

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Eurostar fares, fees and conditions

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Senior Train Travel Discounts in Europe

Although most senior travelers associate senior discounts with rail passes, some European countries offer mature travelers discounts on individual tickets. Typically, you will need to purchase some kind of annual membership card to qualify for the senior discount. Requirements vary by country and are subject to change. In some countries, non-European Union seniors are not eligible for discount cards.

If you plan to travel by train on just a few days over a one- or two-month period, you may find that a rail pass will save you money. BritRail and France's SNCF offer senior discounts on certain types of rail passes. Senior discounts also apply to the Eurail Ireland and Eurail Romania Passes.

Do not assume that a rail pass is the cheapest way to go. Depending on the countries you plan to visit, the number of train trips you plan to take, and the senior discount plans available, you may save more by purchasing a senior card and applying its discount to your tickets. It is worth spending some time at your computer to research the best deal.

Terms by Country

Let's take a look at senior train travel discounts by country.

Belgium offers seniors age 65 and older a great senior discount on non-peak train travel . Tickets are just 6.50 Euros each if you travel after 9:01 A.M. on weekdays. You can also get this senior fare on weekends during the school year. Restrictions apply; some "frontier" train stations do not offer the senior fare. This discount is unavailable on August 15, during holiday periods and summer weekends. Proof of age is required.

France gives seniors age 60 and older the opportunity to purchase a Carte Senior+  for 60 Euros. The Carte Senior+ entitles you to discounts of 25 to 50 percent on train travel. You can also change your train ticket for only 5 Euros; the normal change fee is 15 Euros.

Germany offers senior travelers over age 60 a discount on the BahnCard 50 . Seniors pay 255 Euros for the second class BahnCard50, which gives you a 50 percent discount on flexible fare train tickets as well as a 25 percent discount on certain saver fares in the German rail system. Carefully research each leg of your journey to see whether the BahnCard50 is a good option for you. If you are traveling with one or more companions, Germany's Weekend Tickets may be a better bet, depending on your travel dates.

Italy offers the Carta d'Argento ("Silver Card") to senior travelers over age 60. The card costs 30 Euros (free for travelers over 75) and is valid for one year. With the Carta d'Argento, you will save 15 percent on most Italian train tickets and 10 percent on couchette tickets (second-class sleeper berths). You will also be able to participate in the RailEurope system with its 25 percent discount on international travel. You have to show both your ticket and your Carta d'Argento to the conductor. Certain restrictions apply.

Portugal's CP rail system offers seniors age 65 and older discounts on several different types of trains, including regional, interregional and Coimbra Urban trains. The typical discount is 50 percent. Restrictions apply.

Spain's RENFE rail system offers senior travelers 60 and older the Tarjeta Dorada ("Gold Card"). With the Tarjeta Dorada, you will save 25 to 50 percent on train tickets, depending on the type of train, the day of the week you travel and how far in advance you buy your tickets. You can buy your Tarjeta Dorada at a RENFE station for 6 Euros; it will be valid for one year.

The UK's Senior Railcard gives you a one-third discount on a wide variety of standard and first-class tickets. Morning rush hour travel within the London and the South East area does not qualify for the Senior Railcard discount. The Senior Railcard costs £30 and is available to anyone age 60 or over. British train fares are quite high, so it is also worth investigating a BritRail pass if you plan to take several train trips.

Eurostar , which operates the Chunnel trains, no longer advertises a senior fare.

Disclaimer: Some train systems may restrict senior discounts to citizens of European Union communities, even though their websites do not indicate any such restrictions.

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Good to know, great britain, the netherlands, switzerland, thalys trains.

Tickets for Seniors on European Trains

There are no pan-European rules for how Seniors can and can't travel at cheaper prices on European trains. How young you have to be to qualify, how to obtain the saving and the percentage of the typical cost you will save, varies depending on the country in which you will be travelling.

Similar to how policies and rules around travelling with children and with bicycles , there is a lack of consistency to how Seniors can and can't travel at reduced rates on European trains.

Though a somewhat odd aspect of how Seniors can typically obtain train ticket discounts is that the provision of the cheaper rates are always national policies, designed to primarily benefit those are resident in those countries. However, visitors to the countries typically aren't prevented from accessing the same reduced rates, with passports providing the proof of age. Though Seniors can't access discounted rates when visiting Bosnia, Bulgaria and Croatia. There are also no discounted rates available for Seniors, resident or non-resident, when travelling by train in Ireland.

The age limits

The age at which discounts become available for Seniors on European rail tickets when visiting a country ranges from 60 to 67:

• 60 = France, Great Britain, Italy,The Netherlands, Poland, Spain and Turkey
• 62 = Slovakia
• 65 = Austria, Belgium, Czechia, Finland, Germany, Hungary, Portugal, Slovenia, Sweden and Switzerland (women = 64)
• 67 = Denmark and Norway
• 70 = Lithuania So the fact that 'Global' pan-European Eurail and InterRail passes are discounted for those aged 60 and over by around 10%, regardless of which country will be travelled through, can help tip the balance towards those passes being money savers.

No cards/passes required

Discounts or special tickets are available to Seniors, without additional card/passes being required. when taking a train in Belgium, Czechia, Denmark, Finland, Germany, Hungary (free travel E.U. citizens only), Lithuania Norway (only on the more expensive tickets), Poland, Portugal (50% discount), Slovakia, Sweden and Turkey.

Discounts which also need a card/pass

In other countries discounted prices can only be accessed by Seniors with the prior purchase of railcards or passes - this is the situation when taking the train in Austria, France, Great Britain, *Italy, The Netherlands, Slovenia, Spain and Switzerland. *= The CartaFreccia 'card' in Italy doesn't require a purchase.

What to look out for when booking

Though something to watch out for is that some booking services, such as SNCF Connect in France, will offer the ability to select a senior age range when making a booking, but the discount won't then be applied, because the ticket purchaser also needs a railcard.

Also when looking up journeys with a specialist multi-national booking agent , they will often give the option to add an age range prior to looking up any journey, regardless of whether the journey will or won't be occurring in a country which automatically applies to discounts for Seniors.

Though what can be confusing is that these independent ticketing services, which are not managed by the national train operators, then tend not to make it clear that a saving hasn't actually been applied. This can lead to assumptions that the savings for Seniors are more widely available than actually is the case.

The reasons for this discrepancy can be because the journey being looked up can be one on which Seniors don't automatically receive a discount. Another scenario is that the discount is only available at a higher age limit than the default age, used by the booking service in its journey search tool.

Discounts for Seniors aren't automatically applied to Austrian rail tickets .

A Vorteilscard Senior card for those aged 65 and over costs €29 and can be purchased at station ticket counters. It then gives a 50% discount on most Austrian rail tickets.

The Senior Ticket can be used by those aged 65 and over on any Belgian train departing after 09:00 on Monday to Friday and at any time on a weekend or national holidays. It can be used for a single or return journey anywhere in Belgium , on the day it is purchased at a station ticket counter. It costs only €7.20 for travel in 2nd class and €15.30 in 1st class, so you haven't got to go far to save money.

Those aged 65 and over can travel at a 50% reduction for journeys within Czechia , but you may be asked to prove your age when tickets are checked by the train conductor, so travel with your passports, even though you won't be crossing the border.

When booking online with the website of CD , the Czech national rail operator, click on the passengers option on the home page and choose the Adult 65 years and over option.

In Denmark travellers aged 67 and over receive a variable discount depending on the length of the journey and the region in which the journey will be taken. Though having compared prices for the discounted Orange tickets for longer-distance journeys by IC and express trains, the typical discount for these trips seems to be around 12%.

Railcards, which are branded as Carte Avantage by the French national rail operator SNCF, are available for those aged 60 and over for €49. They are valid for a year, but the benefits they offer to the card holders aren't available on any train. For one way journeys you can only access the benefits when travelling on Saturdays and Sundays. For two way journeys (a round trip) you need to be staying overnight on a Saturday and Sunday, or travelling in at least one direction on a Saturday or Sunday.

Travel at those times and the benefits to the card holder are:

• a 30% reduction on tickets for travel by TGV (TGV InOui) and Intercités; in effect these are the standard French long-distance express trains .
• There are also maximum price caps, so on certain journeys by the TGVs, the discount can be more than 30%; The maximum price of journeys of up to 1hr 30mins = €39; up to three hours = €59 and over three hours = €79.
• A 25-50% discount when travelling by regional TER train services in most regions; with Bourgogne-Franche-Comté, Provence Cote d'Azure and Ile de France being the three regions where no discounts apply on the TER trains.
• A 30% discount on the high speed trains from France to Germany (not Thalys); to Italy (not Frecce), Luxembourg, Spain and Switzerland.
• Those discounts also apply to one other person travelling with you, so you can purchase pairs of tickets at the discounted rates.

When booking tickets with the German national rail operator DB's ticket booking service , it is possible to select an age 65 and over as option- and this can then apply a discount, depending on the route and departure time etc.

Seniors aged 60 and over do not automatically receive a discount on rail tickets but Senior Railcards which are valid for one year cost £30. Holders of these cards can obtain a 1/3 off all Standard and First Class tickets at the adult rates, plus a 1/3 off when using Oyster cards in London off-peak.

When travelling long-distance it's possible to book the cheaper Advance tickets online up to 12 weeks ahead of travel to Britain at the Senior Railcard rate, and then purchase the card at the station prior to boarding the first train. The cards require a passport style of photo.

There are no 'rules' around whether rail passes will or won't be money savers, but if a holiday to Britain includes just two long-distance rail journeys, it's likely that a railcard + tickets will enable a discount.

On national rail journeys within Hungary those aged 65 and over who are resident in an E.U. country travel for free, you just need to have your passport with you, which in effect becomes your ticket. However, those aged 65 and over who reside outside the E.U. have to buy tickets at the adult rate.

Becoming a CartaFreccia member

The Italian national rail company, Trenitalia, offers free membership of the CartaFreccia program which enables discounts of up to 50% on the price of 'Base' tickets for journeys by Frecce , Intercity and Intercity Notte trains. The only exceptions are tickets to travel in:

• Executive class on the Frecce trains, Excelsior carriages and private compartments;
• in the Excelsior carriages on the Intercity Notte trains;
• booking a private sleeping compartment for sole use the Intercity Notte trains.

For those aged 60 and over it doesn't cost anything to join the scheme and it is open to non-Italian residents, so it is highly recommended for anyone who meets the age criteria and will be taking one or more long distance train journeys in Italy .

When looking up journeys to book tickets on the Trenitalia website , you can select the Senior price. Though limited numbers of Senior tickets are available per departure and they can sell out more than a month in advance on particularly popular trains. Note that Senior prices are not available when looking up journeys with ItaliaRail .

The Silver Card

The Italian national rail company, Trenitalia, offers a Silver Card for seniors, for those aged 65-74 it costs €30, but there is no charge for those aged over 75 and over. The cards can be purchased / obtained at station ticket desks but have your passport with you, you'll also need to take it with on journeys by Frecce and Intercity trains, which are Trenitalia's express trains .

However, when booking tickets online or at stations for journeys by these express train services, the Silver Card holder can only obtain a discount when booking 'Base tickets' and these are the most expensive type of tickets to travel by these trains. The Silver Cards enable a 15% discount on Base, tickets, so if you will be making a few long-distance journeys, joining the the CartaFreccia program instead will almost certainly be the cheaper option, particularly if you are aged 60-74.

However, the CartaFreccia program doesn't enable a discount on the journeys by the R and RV regional train services . So where the Silver Card can pay off is for these journeys. as they are only sold at a base price. Though with tickets for travel for fairly long-distances by these trains costing less than €30, if you're aged 60 -74, you're going to need to be taking more than seven such journeys for the initial investment in the card to pay off.

The Dutch national rail operator NS offers a somewhat convoluted method of enabling those aged 60 and over to save money on rail travel. It offers ' Keuzedagen ' which enable 7 days of travel public transport across The Netherlands for a total price of €27.50 for travel in 2nd class and €53.70 for travel in 1st class.

However, in order to obtain the Keuzedagen you need(ed) to be in possession of a type of Dutch season ticket named a 'Dal Voordel' which costs €67.20. Among other benefits it offers a 40% discount on journeys at weekends, national holidays and during off-peak hours on Mondays to Fridays. The idea being that if you if you are 60 and over and will be making journeys on 7 days of travel which have a total cost of more than €27.50 / €53.70 with the Dal Voordel card, you can save by using the Keuzedagen instead.

There is also a Flex version of the Dal Voordel card, which costs €5.70 per month, but Keuzedagen cannot be added to these Flex cards.

The Dal Voordel and the Keuzedagen need to be loaded on to a card which opens the ticket gates etc at Dutch stations, known as a OV-chipkaart. These cards, which require a photo, cost €7.50, the Dal Voordel costs €67.20 and then the Keuzedagen have a price of €27.50 / €53.70. So for an expenditure of €102.20 those aged 60 and over have access to 7 days of rail travel to any location in the country, plus the public transport connections to/from the stations. In comparison an InterRail / Eurail pass for seniors valid for travel of 6 days in The Netherlands costs €180, so if you will be travelling solely in The Netherlands , these Keuzedagen are a good deal. Though those Eurail and InterRail passes for The Netherlands also allow for travel in Belgium and Luxembourg, in addition to The Netherlands.

There are currently three main rail operators in Norway :

Vy operates the routes between Oslo and Bergen,and the route between Olso and the Swedish border at Halden. Vy also operates most of Norway's regional train services, including all such services to/from Oslo. Those aged 67 years and older receive a 50% discount on Flexible tickets and 'Single' tickets, but these are the most expensive type of tickets. Though the cheaper Non-Flexible tickets, which are available to all, are often discounted by more than 50%.

SJ NORD operates:

• the day and night trains between Trondheim and both Oslo and Bodø
• the trains between Dombas and Andalsnes
• local and regional trains to/from Trondheim

Seniors aged 67 and over receive a 50% discount on Flexible tickets when travelling in Standard Class and a 25% discount on Flexible tickets for travel in Premium Class.

• Go Ahead Norway operates the trains between Oslo and Stavanger and the local trains to/from Stavanger.

There is seemingly no information regarding the discounts Seniors receive on the Go Ahead Norway website. Journeys for those aged 67 were looked up on the Entur website, the national rail ticket service, and when booking the cheaper non-Flexible tickets, the discount offered was typically 25-35%, but for journeys with Flexible tickets the discount was 50%.

PKP is the operator of the long-distance express trains in Poland and it overs those aged 60 and over a 30% discount on all of its tickets.

Those aged 60 and over can buy Tarjeta Dorada discount card at staffed station desks. It costs only €6 and will typically give a 20% discount on tickets for journeys by the long-distance express trains and 40% off the Media-Distancia trains in Spain .

The national rail operator SJ offers tickets for 'Pensioners' which typically give a 10% discount on journeys by SJ trains and the pensionable age in Sweden is 65. But if you're 65 and over you don't have to be a Swedish resident to obtain this discount, you can select the 'Pensionar' category when booking and then demonstrate your eligible age by showing your passport to the train conductor.

Seniors don't receive a discount on the nationwide network of trains operated by SBB and BLS, but if you will be making multiple journeys, there is an alternative method of saving money. SBB offers what it describes as a subscription for women aged 64 and over and men aged 65 and over. Once purchased they will be added to a Swiss Pass, which can be obtained at stations by showing a passport, you'll also need to have a passport sized photo with you.

The subscriptions cost a flat rate of 260 CHF per month for travel in 2nd class and 430 CHF to travel in 1st class and enable the holders to hop on virtually all trains in Switzerland, including the Swiss mountain railways , in effect they match the travel element of using Swiss Travel Passes However,

• you can only cancel a subscription after a minimum of 6 months
• SBB will automatically take the payment until you proactively unsubscribe.

Therefore the minimum outlay is 1560 CHF for travel in 2nd class and 2580 CHF for travel in 1st Class.

In contrast, the most expensive type of Swiss Travel Pass is the Flex type of pass valid for travel on any 15 days within a 1 month period, and it has a price of CHF 449 in 2nd class and 706 CHF for travel in 1st class.

International trains

More often than not discounted Senior tickets aren't an option on Europe's international express trains, despite Eurail and InterRail passes being available at a cheaper rate for those aged 60 and over.

When traveling on non-specific services such as EC trains or international ICE trains; three scenarios typically apply:

• The discount will be applied to the section of the journey in the country managed by the provider of the ticket (journeys from Czechia and Poland)
• If the appropriate Railcard has been purchased, the discount will apply to the national part of the journey, or the entire journey; this latter scenario applies when traveling on some routes from Germany and France.
• No discount is available: Journeys between countries when this is the situation include: Italy <> Austria Italy <> Switzerland Switzerland <> Austria Eurostar Lyria (unless you have a Senior Carte Avantage card)

Thalys trains are available three international routes:

(1) Paris Nord - Bruxelles Midi/Zuid - Antwerpen Centraal - Rotterdam Centraal - Schiphol Airport - Amsterdam Centraal

(2) Paris Nord - Bruxelles Midi/Zuid - Liege-Guiilemmens - Aachen - Koln/Cologne Hbf - Dusseldorf - Essen - Dortmund

(3) Marne La Valléé - Aeroport CDG - Bruxelles Midi/Zuid - Antwerpen Centraal - Rotterdam Centraal - Schiphol Airport - Amsterdam Centraal

It offers those aged 60 and over a max price policy of Standard:

• Brussels - Paris : €74
• Brussels – Amsterdam : €62
• Brussels – Cologne : €50
• Brussels - Paris : €93
• Brussels – Amsterdam : €76
• Brussels – Cologne : €59
• Brussels - Paris : €113
• Brussels – Amsterdam : €91
• Brussels – Cologne : €67

But the cheapest advance tickets will be money savers compared to these fares.

Simon Harper

I wanted to share my passion for train travel and explain how anyone can take the fantastic journeys I have taken.

This is one of more than 100 train travel guides available on ShowMeTheJourney , which will make it easier to take the train journeys you want or need to make. As always, all images were captured on trips taken by ShowMeTheJourney.

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Saver fare for senior citizens – for everyone over 65.

Back again: Low-priced rail tickets for everyone over 65. Travel within Germany on selected routes from as little as EUR 19.90. Seats in 2nd class can be booked online and in our app. 

• 25% discount with the BahnCard 25 or BahnCard 50  (excluding City-Ticket)
• Children up to 14 years of age travel free of charge in many cases with an accompanying person who is at least 15 years of age
• Cancellable for a fee

Conditions for the super saver fare ticket for senior citizens

What is the ticket called in german.

Sparpreis Senioren

What does the ticket cost?

Depending on availability, a one-way saver fare ticket for senior citizens for 2nd class can cost as little as EUR 19.90.

Where can I book the ticket?

The saver fare ticket for senior citizens can be booked in the regular travel information on our website and in our app DB Navigator. At the DB Travel Centre and agencies, the ticket can be purchased as a digital ticket.

Can I rebook or cancel my ticket?

You can change or cancel your saver fare ticket for senior citizens before the first day of validity. The processing fee is EUR 10. We issue a voucher that is valid for 3 years. It is not possible to cancel a ticket on or after the day of travel. To cancel your saver fare ticket for senior citizens, log in to your My Bahn customer account and go to "My last bookings". You can also use the order search function. Afterwards, you can book your new ticket as you normally would. 

Instant cancellation You can cancel your digital ticket free of charge within a period of 12 hours (720 minutes) after purchase regardless of the specific offer's terms and conditions. You will receive a full refund of what you paid. 

• Further information about instant cancellation Further information about instant cancellation 

What does the age restriction mean?

If you are 65 or older on the first day of travel, you can purchase the saver fare ticket for senior citizens. 

Is the ticket available for 1st class?

The saver fare ticket for senior citizens is currently only available for 2nd class.

Which trains can I use to travel?

If you have a saver fare ticket for senior citizens, you can only travel on the travel connection indicated on the ticket. Saver fare tickets for senior citizens are available for ICE, IC/EC services within Germany. You can use local rail services (e.g. RE, RB, IRE and S-Bahn or non-DB trains) to get to/from a long-distance station if you include them in your booking. You are not restricted to travelling on a specific train when using local rail services. However, your journey must be completed by 10:00 the following day.

Can I also use local transport?

Yes, but you have to book local transport when you buy your ticket. Tickets with local transport are available in a saver fare for senior citizens. However, the offer is not available for local transport connections only.

Do I get a discount on the saver fare ticket for senior citizens if I have a BahnCard?

With the BahnCard 25 and 50 you get a 25% discount. 

• Further information about our BahnCards  Further information about our BahnCards 

Does the price include a City-Ticket?

Passengers who purchase a saver fare can also use the City-Ticket. It is now issued as an add-on to the saver fare, depending on your connection. When booking a saver fare, the City-Ticket will be available separately for a fee depending on the specific departure or destination stop. This is subject to the following conditions:

• The departure or destination stop is in one of the approximately 130 City-Ticket towns and cities
• Your booking includes a journey to or from the long-distance service within the City-Ticket area using local transport

If you indicate in your booking enquiry that you only need DB long-distance trains (e.g. from Cologne Main Station to Berlin Central) and do not require a transfer within the City-Ticket area using local transport, the saver fare ticket will be issued without a City-Ticket.

• Further information on City-Ticket  Further information on City-Ticket 

What happens if my train is cancelled or delayed?

If a delay of at least 20 minutes is expected at the destination, the journey can be continued on the same route, on a different route or at a later time. 

• More information on passenger rights More information on passenger rights

Is a seat reservation included?

A seat reservation is not automatically included in the ticket. However, it can be booked separately. 

How can I make travelling with luggage easier?

For larger luggage, we recommend simply sending it ahead. The luggage will be picked up conveniently at your home. This will make your journey easier – and not just when it comes to boarding or disembarking from the train.  We’ll be happy to provide some advice on the best way to transport your luggage, including how to adjust the transfer time or book a seat near the luggage rack. 

• More info on taking luggage with you More info on taking luggage with you

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Using your Railcard

Use your Railcard as often as you like but be sure to keep it with you when travelling.

• The Railcard discount is valid for journeys except those made within the London and South East during morning rush hour
• Travel off-peak, but check locally to confirm morning peak times as these do differ. This restriction does not apply on public holidays

Your Senior Railcard will save you 1/3 on the cost on the following:

Standard and First Class Anytime tickets (Day, Single or Return)

• Standard and First Class Anytime Day - (Single and Return) tickets must be used on the date shown on your ticket and up to 04:29 the following day.
• Standard and First Class Anytime Single - must be used within 2 days of the date shown on the ticket and up until 04:29 after the last day of validity
• Standard and First Class Anytime Return - your journey out must be made within 5 days and up until 04:29 after the last day of validity, with your return trip being within one calendar month and up until 04:29 after the last day of validity

Standard and First Class Off-Peak and Super Off-Peak (Day, Singles and Return tickets)

These tickets may require you to travel at specific times of day, days of the week or on a specific route. Always be sure to check the details on your ticket before boarding.

Standard and First Class Advance tickets

These tickets need to be booked before your date of travel

Some ticket types offered by individual train companies

Please enquire locally for details

Express Trains to the Airport

This applies to Gatwick Express, Stansted Express and Heathrow Express

Through tickets on RailAir

For travel between Reading and Heathrow Airport

Hop-on, Hop-off Tickets

Discounts are available on PLUSBUS (unlimited bus travel at your origin/destination station on participating operators - visit www.plusbus.info or your local staffed station for further details) and most Rail Rover tickets

Caledonian Sleeper

Discounts available on Club Solo or Classic Solo rooms and seated products

Combined Rail/Sea Journeys

Discounts are available on some rail/sea journeys with Wightlink and Red Funnel Ferries to stations on the Isle of Wight, Hovertravel services to and from Ryde Hoverport, and Stena Line ferries to the Republic of Ireland**

Oyster Cards

Save on the off-peak pay as you go Daily Price Cap and Off-Peak pay as you go single fares when you use your Oyster Card on National Rail, London Underground, Overground and Docklands Light Railway (DLR) services.

Anytime Day Travelcards

When bought as part of your ticket to London from outside London Zones 1-9 (subject to minimum fare of £22.60)

**Discount is only available on tickets as part of a journey from/to a National Rail station or on combined rail/sea journeys from/to Ryde Hoverport.

Minimum Fares and Time Restrictions

Avoid the Rush – Travel Off-Peak

Your Railcard is not valid during the morning peak period when travelling between stations in the London and South East area. Check locally to confirm morning peak times as these do differ. This restriction does not apply on public holidays.

Not every ticket type is available for every journey you may want to make

Make sure you always check before booking. And be sure to read the full terms and conditions for using your Railcard

There are some exceptions...

There are some tickets and fares that the Senior Railcard won't be valid on, so it's always worth checking before you travel.

The Senior Railcard will not apply to the following:

• Season tickets including Travelcard Season tickets. The good news is these tickets have their own savings –  click here for more information on Season Tickets
• Eurostar tickets
• Some Train Company-specific promotional offers
• Tickets for special excursion or Charter trains and some coach/bus links, including RailAir services
• Most London Underground and Docklands Light Railway tickets (unless using Oyster pay as you go)

Read the full terms and conditions for using your Railcard.

Easements on Time Restrictions

Discounts are allowed on trains departing from the stations at the times shown in the table below and are only applied to the ticket types which are normally valid on the train service shown.

Please note that all easements are subject to change, therefore it is recommended that you check with the ticket office staff at your local station before buying or using tickets. The table below was last updated in October 2021.

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Senior Railcard

For everyone aged 60 and over

1/3 off rail travel

What is the Senior Railcard?

The Senior Railcard provides cheaper train travel for anyone over 60 years old. Enjoy 1/3 off Standard and First Class tickets at any time, during off-peak periods and in advance.

How much is a Senior Railcard?

The Senior Railcard costs £30 for one year or ￡70 for three years. But if you buy on the TrainPal app, you can enjoy even better discounts.

Who can buy the Senior Railcard?

Anyone over the age of 60.

How to buy and use a digital Senior Railcard on the TrainPal App?

Download TrainPal App and follow 6 easy steps to enjoy with your Railcard.

Why buy a Senior Railcard on TrainPal?

Simplify your travel.

Get Railcards and tickets in one app. You can manage your train tickets and Railcards in your TrainPal Account. No need to switch between apps or search for your physical Railcard.

Use Without Worries

A digital Railcard can be stored in your TrainPal Account, so you never have to worry about forgetting or losing it. It is protected by a PIN or password, which helps to prevent unauthorised use.

Instant Access

You can purchase a digital Railcard with TrainPal at any time, and it can be used immediately after purchase.

Environmentally Friendly

Digital Railcards eliminate the need for paper-based tickets, which reduces waste and helps to protect the environment.

Get £3 off on your Railcard purchase with TrainPal app!

Frequently asked questions

Q:   what are digital railcards.

A:   Digital Railcards which allow you to purchase discounted tickets for eligible train services. Digital Railcards can be used to save money on tickets. We welcome the use of eligible digital Railcards when you are buying your train tickets with us. These can be applied to your purchase within our booking service. There are a number of digital Railcards that you can use in Great Britain.

Q:   How do I add a Railcard?

A:   Regardless of whether your Railcard was purchased from TrainPal or another platform, you can add it when searching for tickets.

Q:   How do I use a Railcard?

A:   Once you've purchased a Railcard using the TrainPal app, tap "Download" to store your Railcard on your device. After applying your Railcard to a booking, sign in to your account and show your Railcard to the train conductor when asked. If you purchased a Railcard from another platform, carry it with you and show it when asked.

Q:   Can I claim a refund if I don't use my Railcard?

A:   No. Unfortunately, once a railcard has been issued it is non-refundable.

Q:   What happens if I lose my device?

A:   In the unfortunate scenario where you lose your device, you can simply download your digital Railcard to a new device.

Q:   Why has my Railcard been blocked?

Q:   How do I renew my Railcard online?

A:   It's super easy! If your Railcard is expiring in the next 30 Days, or has already expired you will see a button to "Renew" in TrainPal APP. Click on "Renew" and follow the steps, you can renew your Railcard with a couple of clicks. You won't need to type in your ID number or upload your photo again ( except for Two Together Railcard holder want to change the second card holder).

Q:   Am I eligible to renew my Railcard?

A:   Senior/Network/Family Railcards: You can renew your Railcard if the card status is Action or Expired. 16-17 Saver: If you are still 17, you can renew your 16-17 Saver online. Your 16-17 Saver will be valid up until the day before your 18th birthday.However, if you are approaching your 18th birthday, then you may want to consider purchasing the 16-25 Railcard as it may provide you discounts for a longer period. 16-25 Railcard: You can renew your Railcard if the valid date of your current card is before your 26th Birthday. If you are not aged 16-25 currently, you are not eligible to renew 16-25 Railcard. However, you can consider phurchase a 26-30 Railcards. 26-31 Railcard: You can renew your Railcard if the valid date of your current card is before your 31th Birthday. If you are not aged 26-31 currently,you are not eligible to renew 26-30 Railcard. However, you can consider phurchase Two Together, Family or Network Railcards.

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European train tickets

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Train travel UK & Ireland...

Train travel in europe..., train travel in asia..., train travel in africa..., train travel in america..., train travel in australasia, london to paris from £52  paris to venice €29, paris to amsterdam €35  venice to rome €29.90, prague to vienna €14  berlin to prague €19.90.

Cheap train tickets for Europe are here , city centre to city centre, no airport taxes, no baggage fees, no booking fee, infants go free .  You usually print your own ticket.

But you need the right website for the right journey.  It would be lovely if there was one website which sold tickets for all European trains at the cheapest price, but there isn't (to understand why not, read this ).

On this site I'll tell you the best way to buy European train tickets for your specific journeys, as long as you have a credit card & internet access.  Just select the city where your journey starts in the drop-down menu.

Read these tips to understand how train tickets work & whether to book in advance or buy at the station .

How to buy European train tickets

Click on the city where your train journey starts and I'll tell you the best & cheapest way to buy train tickets to cities in neighbouring countries and beyond.  I can't write a page for every possible starting point, so use common sense - for example, if you wanted Sorrento to Groningen, you'd look up Naples to Amsterdam.

Why it matters which website you use

Each European country has its own national train operator with its own ticketing system and its own website.  There are private operators too.  Most operators offer cheap budget-airline-style fares if you book ahead, but you can only buy them from their own website or from an agency directly linked to that ticketing system.

Take Prague to Budapest for example.  My site tells you to book at the Czech Railways (CD's) website as this sells advance-purchase tickets from just €21, international credit cards accepted, no booking fee, you print your own ticket.  You can even choose your seat from a seating plan!

No other website can access these €21 Prague-Budapest fares, but several well-known ticketing sites will sell you a ticket for a whopping €90+ using an almost-obsolete inter-operator system called TCV, a conventional ticket which must be posted to you at extra cost making it over €100, ouch!  And your seat is allocated with little or no choice.  Can you now see why it matters where you buy?

Ticket delivery matters too.  For example, you can book Vienna to Venice at Trenitalia.com, but tickets have to be collected from a self-service machine in Italy, no good if you're starting in Vienna.  Thetrainline.com links to the Austrian Railways system & does e-tickets in either direction, so this is the site I recommend here.

I take all this into account to tell you the cheapest & easiest way to book each specific journey, whether you live in the UK, USA, Australia, Singapore, wherever.

European train travel FAQ

How to buy a special add-on ticket from almost any station in Britain to London International (St Pancras)

Tips for buying train tickets

Do you need to book in advance?  Can you just buy at the station?

If you can get your head around the 3 different concepts of train ticketing explained here, you'll understand how European train ticketing works, and why sometimes you're told to buy at the station but other times to book in advance.

(1)  Local, regional, suburban trains = turn-up-and-go ticketing:

Tickets for local, regional & suburban trains can be bought at the station.  The price is fixed so there's no price advantage in pre-buying.  Reservation is usually not even possible, these trains can never sell out, so again there's no point in pre-buying.  Just buy a ticket at the station, hop on the next train and sit anywhere you like.  Think New York Subway!  Buying online or on your phone saves a few minutes at the ticket office.

Domestic trains wholly within the Netherlands, Belgium & Luxembourg work like this, reservation isn't necessary and in most cases not even possible even for InterCity trains.  You turn up, buy a fixed-price ticket at the station & catch the next train.

(2)  Long-distance trains in France, Italy, Spain, Portugal, Sweden = airline-style ticketing:

At the other extreme, inter-city & high-speed trains in France, Italy, Spain, Portugal & Sweden work like airlines, as do international high-speed trains to/from France including London-Paris Eurostar trains , Paris-Brussels-Amsterdam Eurostar trains , Paris-Germany high-speed trains , Paris-Switzerland TGV Lyria trains , Paris-Milan TGVs , and Paris-Barcelona TGVs .

Fares are dynamic like air fares, cheap if you book in advance, expensive if you buy on the day or at busy times.  For example, Paris to Amsterdam starts at €35 several months in advance (no refunds, no changes to travel plans), but costs €130+ for a fully-flexible ticket if you buy on the day.  The most expensive fares usually allow changes & refunds, the cheapest fares mean no refunds, no changes to travel plans.

Every ticket comes with a reserved seat included, just like flights.  Trains are all-reserved so can sell out, at least in theory, although in practice they seldom do except at very busy periods.  For example, the average load factor on French TGVs is 85%.

The message here is clear:  Pre-book to save money and be sure of a place!!

(3)  Long-distance trains in the UK, Germany, Austria, Switzerland, Denmark & central Europe = traditional train ticketing:

Inter-city trains in the UK, Germany, Austria, Switzerland, Denmark and most of central Europe work the old-school way.  There's a flexible full-price fare with unlimited availability and a fixed price, good for any train that day.  This cannot sell out, you can always turn up, buy a full-price ticket and hop on the next train, sitting in any empty unreserved seat.

However, these full-price flexible tickets are often expensive.  You can buy cheaper advance-purchase fares if you book ahead and commit to a specific train with limited or no refunds or changes to travel plans.  These advance-purchase tickets go by various names:  Advance in the UK, Sparpreis in Germany, Sparschiene in Austria, First Minute in the Czech Republic.  The prices are dynamic with limited availability at each price level.  The price rises as the cheaper tickets are sold and departure approaches.

A seat reservation is optional, usually for a small extra fee, typically €3 to €4.50 per seat.  If you choose not to reserve a seat you sit in any empty unreserved seat, of which there are usually many - for example, the average load factor on German IC & ICE trains is 65%.  But at busy periods you may have to stand if you find all the seats already taken.

For example, from Munich to Vienna you can buy a cheap advance-purchase ticket for €29.90, €39.90, €49.90, €59.90 etc., limited availability at each price level, only good for that specific train, limited or no refunds or changes to travel plans.  Or you can pay €97.75 for a full-price ticket, good for any train, unlimited availability, can never sell out.  Neither type of ticket comes with a reserved seat, you can can get on and sit anywhere you like, or you can pay an extra €4.90 for a seat reservation to be 100% sure of a seat.  I might not bother reserving if I was travelling solo mid-week in February, but I would make a seat reservation if I was travelling on a Friday in July with my family!

The message here is, pre-book to save money if you are happy committing to a specific train, but if you don't mind paying full-whack you can buy on the day as trains cannot sell out.

How far in advance can I book?

The single biggest reason people initially hit a brick wall trying to buy a train ticket is that they try to look too far ahead.

Overseas visitors planning a once-in-a-lifetime trip to Europe try to buy a 50-mile train ticket 11 months ahead and wonder why trains aren't shown and booking doesn't work.  Local people buy train tickets as part of their daily life, to visit Granny, attend a meeting or go shopping.  They plan such trips & buy tickets hours, days or weeks ahead, not many months.  There's no rush, wait till bookings open!

See the booking horizons page for more about when booking opens for different types of European train .

If you need to book accommodation at your destination before train bookings open, no problem, you can hold accommodation risk-free at www.booking.com .  They usually offer free cancellation up to 24 hours before your stay.

One-way or round trip? 

Almost all European fares are single-leg priced, where a round trip is simply two one-ways.  I often find it easier to book one way at a time, rather than book out and back trains at the same time.

There are a handful of exceptions.  Eurostar return fares are significantly cheaper than two one-way fares, so a round trip on Eurostar should always be booked as a return.  The same applies to most journeys in Great Britain, where an Off-Peak one-way can be as little as 10p or £1 less than the equivalent Off-Peak Return.

Can I stop off ?

As a general rule, to go Paris-Amsterdam with a stopover in Brussels, that's two separate tickets, Paris to Brussels & Brussels to Amsterdam.

People say "I want to go from A to C with a stopover at B" often bang their heads against a brick wall trying to book and end up 'confused' while people who think clearly "I want to go from A to B on this date, then B to C on that date" quickly & easily book both tickets.

Cheap advance-purchase tickets are almost always train-specific, for example Paris-Amsterdam for €35.  You cannot stop off with these cheap fares as they are only valid on the specific train you've booked.  If you need to, you can get off short of your destination with these tickets (generally fine in mainland Europe, although not in the UK), but the unused part of your ticket becomes worthless.

On trains with compulsory reservation (for example, almost any longer-distance train in France, Spain or Italy), you cannot stop off even with flexible tickets, as they too are only valid on the train you've booked.

On local trains, and on long distance trains without compulsory reservation, you can often stop off if you have a flexible ticket which allows stopovers.  But check the small print carefully for your specific ticket type &as every rail operator has different rules.   It's often best to play safe & book each leg as a separate journey.

There is one useful exception, where you can pre-programme a stopover into a cheap advance-purchase ticket

When booking a journey to, from, across or within Germany at the German Railways website, int.bahn.de , you can pre-programme a stopover using the useful Stopovers feature.  Just enter a city and a specified number of hours as the length of stay and it'll give you (for example) a Munich to Vienna ticket from €29.90, but with a stopover in Salzburg included.  Or Berlin to Prague with a stopover in Dresden.  Maximum 2 stopovers, within the 2 day period for which tickets are valid.  Worth knowing!

And of course, if you are making a long multi-train journey such as London to Malaga where each train is ticketed separately anyway, you can arrange stopovers simply by booking each leg for whatever date and time you want.

Senior & youth fares

Some countries have their own senior or youth railcard schemes.  You buy the railcard for a fixed fee, it then gives discounts on train journeys within that country for a year.  In some cases such railcards can be bought online (e.g. France's Carte Avantage ), in other cases (Spain's Tarjeta Dorada ) you can only buy them in person when you get there, not online and not from abroad.

However, in the majority of cases a foreign visitor will only be there for a few weeks, not for a whole year, and won't ride enough trains to make such a card worthwhile.  And if you can only buy the railcard when you get there, the day before you want travel when all the cheap advance-purchase fares are sold out, your card might give you a 25% discount off a €100 full-price full-flex fare when you could have booked online from your own home two months ago and bought a €29 cheap advance-purchase fare without a railcard.

As a general rule, you only need consider such a railcard if you are planning to make multiple journeys in that country during the course of a year, unless you can prove it'll save money.  Most holiday travellers can forget this distraction, just buy cheap advance-purchase fares.

Child fares

• Infants under a certain age go free on trains, no ticket required ( Spain is an exception, see here and so is Russia).  You just bring them with you, they sit on your lap or play on the floor, they don't qualify for their own seat although no-one will mind if you plonk them down in a spare seat if there is one.  Children under a certain age travel at a child rate, sometimes a 50% discount, sometimes a special child rate.
• Infant & child age limits vary from country to country, so if you are travelling with children, see the train travel with children & child age limits page for full details and advice.  There are two key pitfalls to watch for when booking children:

Child fare more expensive than adult fare .

This happens when (a) the train operator has created an adult full-price fare and a child full-price fare plus some cheap adult advance-purchase fares, without creating any advance-purchase fares for children, and (b) the website software isn't clever enough to know that an adult advance-purchase fare can be used by a child (just not the other way round, of course!).  For example, I have seen the French Railways website charge €74 cheap rate adult + €114 full-fare child for 1 adult & 1 child from Paris to Barcelona, because the system wasn't clever enough to offer 2 x €74 adult tickets.  The solution is to manually re-run the enquiry with 2 adults selected, or find a better website:  Raileurope.com has better software and handled the same enquiry correctly, offering 2 x €74 adult tickets.  So keep your eyes open and brain engaged!

Some websites apply the wrong child age limits

Most notably, due to technical limitations French Railways-based websites including www.sncf-connect.com apply the French Railways under-4 free, under-12 child fare age limit to any train they book, whatever age limits actually apply.  It's a particular problem when booking Paris-Germany trains as French Railways blindly apply their own age limit, but if you book exactly the same train using the German Railways website int.bahn.de this applies the far more generous German policy of under 6s free, under-15 child rate, under 15s free if accompanied by an adult using a Sparpreis fare .  So if you have kids, use the German Railways website not the French!

On journeys to, from, across or within Germany, kids under 15 usually go free when accompanying their parent, guardian or grandparent using a cheap advance-purchase Sparpreis fare booked at the German Railways (DB) website int.bahn.de .  Paris to Salzburg, Amsterdam to Prague, Brussels to Vienna, Berlin to Zurich, Munich to Copenhagen, it applies to all these and more when booked at int.bahn.de .

On journeys to, from or within Austria, kids under 15 go free when accompanying their parent, guardian or grandparent using a cheap advance-purchase Sparschiene fare booked at the Austrian Railways (ÖBB) website www.oebb.at .  Vienna to Venice, Vienna to Prague, Budapest to Salzburg, Innsbruck to Verona, it applies to all these and more.

Complex journey? Split the booking!

The most important piece of advice, when people find booking systems won't handle (say) Avignon to Pisa all in one go, or won't give a cheap fare for (say) Zurich to Florence, or the Italian Railways website won't book an indirect train to Luzern:  Split the booking!

Some booking systems can only handle direct trains, for example Spain www.renfe.com (other than a limited number of key pre-programmed connections), and Hungary www.mavcsoport.hu .  The Italian railway website www.trenitalia.com can handle changes of train within Italy, and direct trains from Italy, but not journeys with a change of train outside Italy, such as Milan to Luzern with a change at Arth Goldau.  The French system at www.sncf-connect.com can handle a maximum of 2 or 3 changes, but more than that and it won't work.  Very few sites can handle complex multi-leg journeys.

The solution is to break the journey down into bite-size chunks, then book each part of the journey (and if necessary, each individual train) at the relevant operator's website.  It's often helpful to start by finding a suitable end-to-end journey using the German Railways all-Europe online planner at int.bahn.de , as this can happily work out multi-country multi-leg journeys, but not sell tickets.

For example, no train operator website can book you from Amsterdam to Benidorm near Alicante in Spain all in one go.  But www.nsinternational.nl will book Amsterdam-Paris.  The French Railways website www.sncf-connect.com will book Paris-Barcelona and the Spanish Railways website www.renfe.com will book Barcelona-Alicante.  A local ticket from Alicante to Benidorm can then easily be bought on the day at the station, so no need to worry about that.  Some creative thinking is sometimes required!

Check ticket delivery options!

If I'm unfamiliar with a ticket selling website, the first thing I check is ticket delivery.  With trains, not everything is e-ticketed!  For example, Italian railways trenitalia.com will happily sell a ticket from Vienna to Venice, but hard-copy tickets must be collected from a Trenitalia ticket machine at an Italian station, no good if you're starting in Vienna.  The Austrian Railways website oebb.at gives print-your-own tickets for these trains so can be used to book Vienna-Venice trains in either direction.  I take this into account in recommending the right website to use for any particular journey.

Avoid foreign currency conversion fees

If you live in the UK or another European country, get a Curve card for a better exchange rate and to avoid foreign currency transaction fees when buying tickets in a foreign currency, see explanation below .  It also saves on fees & exchange rates when taking cash out of foreign ATMs.

When is it better to book by phone?

If there's a persistent glitch with the online systems, or none of the systems seem to book what you want, pick up the phone!  People forget you can still do this.  See the advice on who to call here .

You may also need to pick up the phone if you have a specific requirement, such as a specific seat or a seat in a specific carriage.  And there are still a few journeys that can't be booked online at all, for example Sofia to Istanbul.

Finally, if you're booking a more complex journey, you may prefer to book all your tickets together by phone, even though you pay a booking fee, rather than have to make multiple bookings on several websites making sure that each of these connects.  See the How to buy tickets by phone page .  Some agencies are better than others for specific routes or countries, because of the system they use.

Have your trip arranged as a package

Booking your own tickets online and putting a trip together yourself is the cheapest option.  But if time, hassle and a lack of the necessary expertise are your main concerns, not cost, you can get a specialist train tour agency to arrange your trip, with train tickets, transfers and hotels arranged for you.  As you're booking a package, not individual tickets, it also gives you greater protection if something affects part of your journey, such as a strike.

Alternatively, to see pre-configured packages from the UK to various destinations, use the journey planner on their website .  First book a one-way outward journey to your destination city on your outward date.  Then change the direction of the arrow and book an inward journey on your return date.  The journey back to the UK can be from a different location if you like, for example if you plan to travel around a bit before your return to the UK.

Booking accommodation when you travel by train

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Cheap train & ferry tickets to Dublin & Ireland from £51.10

For journeys to mainland Europe

Each destination country page gives step-by-step instructions for booking a train journey from the UK to destinations in that European country.

Click the images to buy at Amazon.co.uk

Hotels in europe, b ackpacker hostels.

www.hostelworld.com :  If you're on a tight budget, don't forget about the backpacker hostels.  Hostelworld offers online booking of dorm beds or ultra-cheap private rooms in backpacker hostels in most European cities at rock-bottom prices.

Travel insurance & VPN

Always take out travel insurance.

You should take out travel insurance with at least £1m or preferably £5m medical cover from a reliable insurer.  It should cover trip cancellation and loss of cash & belongings up to a reasonable limit.  These days, check you're covered for covid-19-related issues, and use an insurer whose cover isn't invalidated by well-meant but excessive Foreign Office travel advice against non-essential travel. An annual policy is usually cheapest even for just 2 or 3 trips a year, I have an annual policy with Staysure.co.uk myself.  Don't expect travel insurance to bail you out of every missed connection, see the advice on missed connections here .  Here are some suggested insurers, I get a little commission if you buy through these links, feedback always welcome.

Get an eSIM with mobile data package

Don't rely on WiFi, download an eSIM with a European mobile data package and stay connected.  Most newer mobile phones can download a virtual SIM including iPhone 11 & later, see device compatibility list .  There's no need to buy a physical SIM card!  Maya.net is a reliable eSIM data retailer with a 4.5 out of 5 Trustpilot rating and a range of packages including unlimited data .

Get a Curve card for foreign travel

Most banks give you a poor exchange rate then add a foreign transaction fee on top.  A Curve MasterCard means no foreign transaction fees and gives you the mid-market exchange rate, at least up to a certain limit, £500 per month as I write this.  The money you spend on your Curve card goes straight onto one of your existing debit or credit cards.  And you can get a Curve card for free.

How it works:   1. Download the Curve app for iPhone or Android .  2. Enter your details & they'll send you a Curve MasterCard - they send to the UK and most European addresses.  3. Link your existing credit & debit cards to the app, you can link up to two cards with the free version of Curve, I link my normal debit card and my normal credit card.  4. Now use the Curve MasterCard to buy things online or in person or take cash from ATMs, exactly like a normal MasterCard. Curve does the currency conversion and puts the balance in your own currency onto whichever debit or credit card is currently selected in the Curve app.  You can even change your mind about which card it goes onto, within 14 days of the transaction.

I have a Curve Blue card myself, it means I can buy a coffee on a foreign station on a card without being stung by fees and lousy exchange rates, just by tapping the Curve card on their card reader.  The money goes through Curve to my normal debit card and is taken directly from my account (in fact I have the Curve card set up as payment card on Apple Pay on my iPhone, so can double-click my phone, let it do Face ID then tap the reader with the phone - even easier than getting a card out).  I get a little commission if you sign up to Curve, but I recommend it here because I think it's great.  See details, download the app and get a Curve card , they'll give you £5 cashback through that link.

Get a VPN for safe browsing.  Why you need a VPN

When travelling you may use free public WiFi which is often insecure.  A VPN encrypts your connection so it's always secure, even on unsecured WiFi.  It also means you can select the geographic location of the IP address you browse with, to get around geoblocking which a surprising number of websites apply.  See VPNs & why you need one explained .  ExpressVPN is a best buy with a 4.7 out of 5 Trustpilot ranking which I use myself - I've signed up as an ExpressVPN affiliate, and if you go with expressvpn.com using this link you should see a special deal, 3 months free with an annual subscription.  I also get some commission to help support this site.

Carry an Anker powerbank

Tickets, reservations, hotel bookings and Interrail or Eurail passes are often now held on your mobile phone.  You daren't let it run out of power, and you can't always rely on the phone's internal battery or on being near a power outlet.  I always carry an Anker powerbank which can recharge my phone several times over.  Buy from Amazon.co.uk or Buy from Amazon.com .

Touring cities?  Use hill walking shoes!

One of the best things I've done is swap my normal shoes for hill-walking shoes, in my case from Scarpa.  They're intended for hiking across the Pennines not wandering around Florence, but the support and cushioning for hiking works equally well when you're on your feet all day exploring foreign cities.  My feet used to give out first and limit my day, now the rest of me gives up before they do!

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