Rail Europe’s websites now offer an easy-to-use Pass Finder function. Type in the name of the country or countries you’re planning to visit and specify the number of days you want to use the train and the number of days you’ll be in each country, and you will be presented with both first- and second-class options. Visit www.raileurope.com (U.S.) or www.raileurope.ca (Canada).
My wife, Rosalie, and I were in Italy in June ’11 and visited the hilltop town of Pitigliano in southern Tuscany.
New, high-speed Allegro trains will begin service between Helsinki, Finland, and St. Petersburg, Russia, on Dec. 12. With a top speed of 140 mph, and combined with faster border procedures, the trains will make the one-way trip in 3½ hours (down from 5½).
A one-way ticket costs €84 (near $114) second class or €134 ($184) first class. Available at travel agencies and train stations in Finland, it cannot be bought online or aboard the train. Visit www.vr.fi/eng.
A commuter rail train in Buenos Aires, Argentina, crashed into a station’s end-of-the-line barrier on Feb. 22, killing more than 40 and injuring 703. The suspected cause was brake failure, and a spokesman for the train workers’ union put the blame on the owners, Trenes de Buenos Aires, for “insufficient maintenance.” Argentina’s rail system is aging and in need of repair.
by Hugh Clark; Tampa, Florida
A highlight of my two-month trip to Spain in February and March ’11 was a day trip from Ronda to Benaojan to see La Cueva de la Pileta, which contains some of the oldest cave paintings found in Europe. Amazingly, the public may view the original prehistoric paintings (not reproductions). I visited the cave in the first week of March. I took the train from Ronda (round trip fare, €5). Guided tours of the cave are about an hour long, cost €8 (near $10.50) and are limited to 25 people. Tours leave hourly from 10 to 1 and 4 to 6.
I have a bit more information regarding a couple of the places mentioned in the article on Tottori Prefecture in Japan (Nov. ’11, pg. 6). I visited the area Nov. 1-7, 2011. Regarding the Uradome Coast boat excursion with the San’in Matsushima Yourun Company (Iwami-gun; phone 0857 73 1212 or e-mail info@yourun1000.com), the small-boat ride described in the article runs only from April to October and lasts 50 minutes, while the large-boat ride runs from March to November and lasts 40 minutes.
During my Italy trip in May ’11 (Nov. ’11, pg. 15), I was set to travel by train from Riva del Garda to Varenna on Sunday, May 22, when I heard the ominous news: Trenitalia was on strike!
The first part of the journey went as planned, by taxi from Riva del Garda to Rovereto, about 27 kilometers away, for €40 (near $55).
Travel is best with a few rough edges. I once suffered through an all-night stint on the blistered, black vinyl floor of a Yugoslavian train in order to wake up in Sofia, Bulgaria. When I stumbled out of that station into a blue, new Bulgarian day, just being off the train made Sofia a thrilling destination.
There are still plenty of people traveling in Europe on the cheap. The one thing they have in common (apart from B.O.) is frugality. If even low-budget pensions and hostels are too expensive for your wallet, you too can sleep for next to nothing.
I would highly recommend the 14-day rail journey aboard Rovos Rail’s Pride of Africa from Cape Town, South Africa, to Dar es Salaam, Tanzania, offered by The Society of International Railway Travelers (Louisville, KY; 800/478-4881)