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(Last Updated On: 11/06/2022)

Once you’ve experienced the comfort, convenience, and general marvelous of train travel, it’s a difficult return to life pre-rail. Especially when we’re talking about the Best European train routes in summer. A continent packed with scenic routes, dramatic landscapes, and a surplus of incredible destinations to gawk at.

Train travel is by far the most scenic and comfortable way to get around Europe, and some routes will genuinely blow your mind, especially during Summer!

 

Best European train routes: Train des Pignes, France

Provence is includes in the Best European Train Routes

 

The Eurostar and other train lines introduce more frequent services. And hotels welcome visitors at off-peak rates. There are glorious sunny days when you can have a drink and even a meal outside.

Discover this private railway, that passes the most beautiful regions in France. Provence is famous for its nature and picturesque landscapes, the trip is indeed a good idea, and certainly one of the Best European train routes to take!  On its way, the train passes rivers, bridges, small gorgeous villages like St Andre les Alpes and Entrevaux until its final destination – Digne les Bains – the capital of the Alpes-de-Haute-Provence region.

Route: Nice-Digne les Bains

Duration: 3 hours, 145 km

When to go: spring, summer, fall

 

Dijon to Provence Trains

Paris to Provence Trains

Lyon to Provence Trains

Marseilles to Provence Trains

 

Best European train routes: The West Rhine Railway, Germany

The West Rhine Railway, Germany

 

The Rhine is not only one of Europe’s most beautiful rivers, but it’s also one of the continent’s most important waterways. It flows some 1,320 kilometers from Switzerland all the way to the Netherlands and the North Sea. One of the most appealing sections of this mighty river flows through Germany’s Middle Rhine Valley (Rheintal), an area of outstanding natural beauty. In fact, the stretch of the river extending from Mannheim in the south to Koblenz in the north boasts scenery so spectacular that a large section, referred to as the Rhine Gorge (Rheinschlucht), has been designated a UNESCO World Heritage Site.

Thanks to its many castles and historic towns, this stretch of the Rhine has for centuries influenced artists, authors, and composers, and is certainly one of the Best European train routes during the summer season.

The train travels along the Rhine river and reveals the picturesque sites of Germany. The rocky slopes with vineyards, old castles on top of them – you can get off the train and visit the legendary Lorelei rock in St. Goarshausen, which rises 120 m above the Rhine. A really nice route, while traveling in these beautiful German cities.

Route: Cologne-Bonn-Koblenz-Bingen-Mainz

Duration: 185 km

When to go: summer, fall

 

Cologne to Bonn Trains

Bonn to Koblenz Trains

Koblenz to Bingen Trains

Bingen to Frankfurt Trains

 

 The Rauma Railway, Norway

The Rauma Railway becomes more and more popular among tourists, as it becomes one of the Best European train routes in the spring. A trip on this railway brings you close to the spectacular nature between Andalsnes and Dombas.

The trip between Dombas and Andalsnes is 114 km long and takes 1 hour and 40 minutes. The train passes 32 bridges – including the famous Kylling Bridge, 59 meters above the Rauma river – and passes through 6 tunnels. The train has large windows, allowing you to lean back and enjoy the magnificent scenery. The train also goes past the famous Trollveggen – the Troll wall, Europe’s highest perpendicular mountain wall.

Spring is the best time to start going. The train runs especially slow through beautiful scenery. It stops for pictures at Kylling Bridge and by the Troll wall, a guide will give you information through the speakers, and you will also receive a brochure with information about the highlights of the journey.

Route: Andalsnes-Dombas

Duration: 1.5 hours, 114 km

When to go: Summer

 

 

Bernina Express, Switzerland to Italy

Bernina Express, Switzerland Train route

 

Crossing the Alps in the Bernina Express certainly is one of the Best European train routes to visit Europe! Along the way, the Bernina Express rolls Hollywood-style over the 65-meter-high Landwasser Viaduct, the signature structure of the Rhaetian Railway, and the UNESCO World Heritage site.
Altogether the train passes through 55 tunnels and over 196 bridges on its way from Chur to Tirano. Travelers are treated to marvelous sights during their journey, like the Montebello curve with a view of the Bernina massif, the Morteratsch glacier, the three lakes Lej Pitschen, Lej Nair, and Lago Bianco, the Alp Grum, and the Brusio Circular Viaduct. In summer, the journey can be extended from Tirano to Lugano aboard the Bernina Express Bus.

Route: Chur-Thusis-Tirano-Lugano

Duration: 4 hours, 123 km

When to go: Summer

 

Chur to Thusis Trains

 

Ready to Spring into the Best European train routes? Save A Train can help you, with quick and easy booking with NO hidden fees! What a breeze!

 

 

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