It’s January, and we are beginning to plan our summer expedition. Karen and me only travel by train – no driving or flying…So, the choice is limited.
The plan, this year, is to go to Istanbul by train. Not on any fancy-dan service; but by using the main scheduled services. Basically, this will take us to Paris, Frankfurt, Vienna, Budapest, Bucharest and then down the Black Sea coast. We’ll have a few days in Turkey and then come back via Greece, the Adriatic, Italy and Switzerland…
Obviously, we will have to get off the train and sample the delights of each of these places. Otherwise we will just be doing miles. Each stop should have a decent restaurant and a lovely hotel for starters, If there’s a museum or old palace to visit, so much the better.
There’s a terrific website with all sorts of practical train information on it, here
http://www.seat61.com/Turkey.htm
The basic deal is to get an adult inter-rail ticket and to buy various up-grades for sleeper and high-speed services. The journey starts quick and gets slower as you near Istanbul. It will be an adventure.
Of course, part of the fun is planning all this and finding out what to see and do and where to eat.