Offering a fascinating combination of quintessential European experiences and romantic travel moments that you can enjoy long after you've left the continent, rail is arguably the most rewarding way to explore Europe.
With the peak summer travel season approaching, now is the perfect time to take a look back at European rail travel trends.
Read on to find out what's new about rail travel in Europe in 2024, from the most popular destinations to why travellers take the train in the first place, and news about new routes and city connections.
Travelers at a European train station. (Photo via Eurail)
Eurail View
To talk about rail trends in Europe, we need to hear from the folks at Eurail, the rail pass that's synonymous with European rail travel and as famous as the tracks themselves. We recently received an update from Eurail on their outlook for 2024.
Firstly, Eurail recorded year-over-year increases in US distributor sales in Q1 2024, indicating a strong US market. While shorter passes remain popular, Eurail also saw a notable shift towards 3-month Eurail passes in Q1 2024. This is as many Americans choose to stay longer in Europe, perhaps responding to a demand for a slower travel pace and a deeper exposure to local culture.
When it comes to popular destinations, Eurail identified two somewhat off the beaten path locations that saw a surge in popularity in Q1 2024: Appenzell in Switzerland and Limoges in France. Combined with previous information that Americans are taking longer trips, this data could suggest an increased interest in exploring lesser known (and less crowded) destinations, which isn't surprising in the current climate of overtourism.
According to Eurail, the top five destinations for travel in the first quarter of 2024 were Switzerland, Germany, Italy, the Netherlands and Austria.
Speaking of Switzerland, 2024 also brings some exciting developments for Eurail travelers, with several routes in the Jungfrau region now fully included in Eurail passes. This news means travelers no longer have to pay extra to explore the naturally beautiful areas of the country outside of Interlaken. Destinations that are now easier to access include Grindelwald, Lauterbrunnen, Wengen, and the mountaintop village of Mürren.
To sum up, Silvia Festa, Senior Business Development Manager at Eurail, said, “Q1 2024 saw positive sales growth for our distributors, especially among U.S. travelers. As demand for more meaningful ways to travel continues to grow, we look forward to welcoming more U.S. travelers to explore Europe with a Eurail Pass.”
Taylor Swift performing as part of her Hellas Tour (Photo credit: Wikimedia Commons/Paolo Villanueva)
Creating a track for an event
Event travel is not just a domestic trend in the US. More and more European travelers are traveling for sports and concerts, and these events are woven into the fabric of European travel culture in 2024. Specifically, some of the most popular events on the global sporting calendar this year will be held on the European continent, from annual events like Wimbledon, the Monaco Grand Prix, the Italian Grand Prix and the Tour de France to special events like the Summer Olympics and the European Football Championships.
Leading rail booking platform Trainline has found that Sports & Event Tourism will see a real boom in 2024, with a recent survey revealing that a staggering 88% of travellers prefer to travel by train to events such as concerts and competitions. The brand is keen to hear about this trend, and has teamed up with Olympic diver Tom Daley to put together a resource of the top European sporting destinations and outdoor experiences you can reach by rail.
Young woman enjoying a trip to Budapest Castle (Photo credit: Spectral-Design/Adobe Stock)
Debut of a new route
New connections will impact Europe's rail landscape in 2024, some of the most notable being:
Belgrade and Budapest are two of Europe's most exciting capital cities, yet they have sorely lacked proper rail connections for some time. A new cross-border rail line linking Subotica in Serbia and Szeged in Hungary will open in 2024, filling a glaring gap in the rail network and making it possible to travel by rail between the two cities.
Meanwhile, trains between the towns of Alba (famous for truffles) and Asti (famous for its local wine) in Italy's Piedmont region are due to run more frequently this summer, making it easier to plan food- and wine-focused rail adventures in this previously underappreciated corner of Italy.
Slovenian Railways has launched a new train service on the other side of northern Italy, connecting Villa Opicina, just outside Trieste in Italy, with Rijeka on the Croatian coast. Along the way, the train will stop in Opatija, a Croatian resort town famous for its luxury hotels and dazzling sunshine. The service will run until September.
Two carriages of the Eurostar train arriving at St. Pancras station in London (Photo by kitmasterbloke / Flickr)
Tunnel vision of the future
Although it's a relatively short transport tunnel connecting the UK and France (32 miles, in case you were wondering), there's been a lot happening this year when it comes to rail services through the Channel Tunnel.
First came the news that several new companies were looking to compete with Eurostar on the cross-Channel route, with both Dutch and Spanish operators vying to enter the fray.
While these startups still have many hurdles to overcome before they can get off the ground, Eurostar, the only train company currently operating between London and the continent, announced aggressive expansion plans earlier this year. Fresh off its wildly successful launch, which will carry more than 18 million passengers between London and the continent in 2023, the company has announced plans to buy up to 50 new trains. High-speed trains will be introduced in the early 2030s, and Eurostar aims to carry 30 million passengers per year.
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