CONTENTS to our rail holidays
FRANCE
France, with its easy access by Eurostar, is the obvious starting point for a rail holiday. You can reach all corners of France in one day from London, although you usually have to change trains in Paris and may want to break the journey there. We offer a mixture of rail only, rail-drive and fly-rail to France.
ITALY
Our rail holidays to Italy encompass a choice of single-centre by rail, rail-drive where you take the train to Italy and then use a hire-car to explore, or fly-rail, where you fly to and from Italy and then travel by train in between places. Overnight sleeper services are also offered from Paris to northern Italy and of course, there is the iconic Venice Simplon-Orient-Express with an overnight journey to and from Venice.
SPAIN
Rail travel within Spain is a very practical way of covering the long distances between regions, cities and the north and south coasts of the country. There are highspeed, comfortable trains that serve the major cities from Madrid and in between. Travel to Spain from the UK is possible with a change of trains in Paris. Spain also offers some luxury trains such as the Al Andalus where you sleep on board and tour a region by train. The Transcantabrico offers overnight stays and tours by train in northern Spain.
CENTRAL EUROPE
The countries of central Europe are explored by train in an efficient and practical way. Usually when you visit the central European countries of Germany, Austria, Poland, Czech Republic, Hungary and Slovenia, you want to visit the major cultural cities and capitals and travel between them. Train is the ideal method of transport with excellent services connecting these countries. It is easy to take the train from London to Germany or Zurich and then explore central Europe from there. Alternatively, fly to one of the capitals and take the train in between cities, either flying back or returning all the way back by train.
NORWAY, DENMARK AND SWEDEN
Because of the size and scope of Scandinavia, train travel makes sense and offers you a way to view the scenery effortlessly. There are scenic routes such as the Flam to Myrdal train and the Nordland train, and others offer sleeper services, for example, from Narvik in Norway’ s Arctic Circle to Stockholm. Train travel in Scandinavia is clean, efficient and good value.
SWITZERLAND
Switzerland is a delight to discover by train. You can reach Switzerland very comfortably in one day from London and then explore the mountains, lakes and valleys by train, without the need for a car. Switzerland is renowned for its iconic, scenic trains such as the Glacier Express and the Bernina Express which offer long, leisurely journeys in panoramic carriages through the mountains. Many of the scenic routes are narrow gauge but there are also cogwheel railways that take you high up the mountain sides such as the Gornergratbahn or the Pilatus railway, which is the steepest railway in the world.
To speak to our specialist rail holidays team telephone 01392 441250 or see www. expressionsholidays. co. uk 3