inter-railing?

polarbelly

i know this is irellevent but has anyone been inter-railing?

if so how much cash do you need to budget for a month?

any help would be good

thanks

polarbelly

sorry pete,

i put this up on the travel board also but there doesnt seem to be much action there

joey D

If I may venture the following...

Inter Railing is probably one of the most enjoyable and affordable ways of travelling around Europe. This summer has seen a big increase in the amount of students taking to the tracks, in no small part thanks to the introduction of the euro.
Basically Europe is divided into 8 inter rail zones, stretching from the UK to Scandinavia, across to east Turkey and as far west as Portugal. Italy, Greece and the major mediterranean islands are also included. You can choose the amount of zones you wish to visit, and pay accordingly for a rail pass for a certain period of time to travel in and between these zones.
For example, you could pick a 2 zone pass, valid for one month, which costs €274. This could see you travelling throughout France and the Low Countries (1 zone) and Germany / Switzerland / Austria (1 zone). Bear in mind that you will have to commence your inter rail trip from some European city, so perhaps you might get a cheap, one-way charter (for less than €200) to a city like Prague or Madrid, start your journey there, travel around, and return via the channel tunnel and the UK. Or you could simply get a one-way flight from another city back to Dublin, e.g. Berlin.
You can have a 1, 2, 3 or Global Zone pass, with the maximum travel validity of 1 month. The Global Zone pass (€365) allows you to travel throughout the entire Inter Rail network. The shortest period of time for inter railing is a new 12 day pass, which is valid for 1 zone and costs €169. You can also get a 22 day pass (1 zone) for €206.
Think carefully and plan ahead, e.g. a Global Zone pass will involve a lot of train hopping and you'll probably be spending a lot of time in stations. Decide what kind of inter rail trip you want; the style, the pace, your budget, etc. As you might expect, east Europe is still very affordable while France, Holland and Germany can be a bit pricey, depending where you go. The best thing would be to work out a daily budget for your trip, taking everything into account such as food, accommodation, entertainment, etc.
It's also very easy to book accommodation in advance, so make sure you're not stuck in some windswept East European train station late at night. You can book accommodation over the internet or even telephone yourself, take note: an ISIC or IYC card will greatly help for getting discounts.
When you book your Inter Rail tickets (no need for booking far in advance, you're simply issued the pass when you pay in full) you can also pick up the Thomas Cook International Train Timetable, which is an indispensible guide for the whole inter rail thing, and very accurate and user-friendly.
With an Inter Rail pass, there are also further reductions on some European ferry services (e.g. Italy to Greece) and some cultural attractions.
It is an immensely enjoyable way to travel Europe and further details can be obtained from any usit office. Whoops! there's the ad, yes folks, usit now on aston quay can look after all your inter rail needs.
Sorry pete! don't know why i'm even doing this, as I'm leaving at the end of the month. I must be stoopid.

Hope that's some help polarbelly.

manofspeed

Very erudite. Ever think of putting together a travel guide?