Posts by author hiddeneurope
Taking the Elipsos Hotel Train is not a typical "hotel" experience. Photo © hidden europe
Madrid Chamartín station has little of the appeal or the convenience of the Spanish capital’s main rail hub at Atocha. Located near the city center, Atocha is extravagant and exuberant. The classic art nouveau train shed, now a superb indoor tropical garden, stands cheek by jowl with architect Rafael Moneo’s assertive late-20th century new add-on » Read more
A 1922 advertisement for Thomas Cook's Nile cruise. Photo: Wikipedia
Some 15 million Americans will visit Europe this year, a small part of a flood that helps reinforce Europe’s position as the most buoyant tourist market in the world. Despite economic uncertainties, Europe recorded a 5 percent increase in international tourist visitors in 2011, in some measure benefiting from the declining fortunes of the Middle » Read more
Checking out the daily catch at Quai Gambetta's fish market in Boulogne. Photos © hidden europe
Because the French railway network extended its tentacles only slowly north from Paris to the ports, there was a spell in the mid-19th century when the Channel port of Boulogne remained conspicuously isolated from the rest of France. Brits could get there easily from London, using the new rail routes to the Kent coast and » Read more
Looking out at the world from the Heathrow Express. Photo: ItsRichard
Railways breed euphemisms. We always smile when we hear railway staff at London’s Paddington station refer to “the lawn.” There is nothing green about the lawn, but that’s what they call the concrete concourse where travelers gather, scanning the list of upcoming departures, at the inward end of the platforms. Another old Paddington euphemism, one » Read more
Overnight comfort with City Night Line. Photos © hidden europe magazine
The great majority of our many rail journeys across Europe work perfectly. Most trains really do arrive punctually. But from time to time Europe’s railways do have bad days, particularly when bad weather rolls in and plays havoc with schedules. When winter strikes In three of the last five winters, we have had at least » Read more
Should you get Eurolines coach passes for your trip? Photo: Cityswift - Ireland
Okay, chances are you know quite a bit about the fabulous range of rail passes which are available for exploring Europe. From Eurail and InterRail to BritRail and a great range of locally sold passes within individual countries, those keen to roam the rails are spoilt for choice. But for bus fiends, devotees of road » Read more
A calm winter's sea on the Isle of Sylt. Photo © hidden europe magazine
Christmas and the New Year holidays are largely done and dusted, and this week much of Europe has returned slowly to work. For us, it is the cue for some travels. And, for those in the know, the period from about January 10 to mid-March is one of the best times of the year for » Read more
A Eurolines bus in Minsk, Belarus. Photo: SludgeUlper
Last month, EuroCheapo chief Tom Meyers popped the train versus plane question…. does the savvy traveler fly or take the train around Europe? But it is not a straight either / or choice. Many leisure travelers, and many business types too, realize that long-distance coaches present a credible alternative to air or rail travel on » Read more
The Eurostar terminal at London's St Pancras Station. Photo © hidden europe magazine
Eurostar’s flagship services linking London’s magnificent St Pancras station with Paris and Brussels have been an overwhelming success, transforming London’s relationship with two close continental capitals. So much well-justified praise is heaped on Eurostar’s capital city links that it is easy to overlook that the rail service through the Channel Tunnel is good for more » Read more
London's St Pancras station is a place to linger. Photos © hidden europe
London’s St Pancras station is the grandest terminus in a city that is full of wonderful railway stations. It is a place to linger. For 140 years, this spectacular station has been the jumping-off point for travelers bound for the East Midlands and Yorkshire. Wider horizons Four years ago this week, St Pancras found new » Read more
A Eurolines coach in London. Photo: Sludge G
Okay, most folk at EuroCheapo HQ just love trains. And so do we. Exploring Europe by rail is generally civilized and convenient, but there are occasions when it just makes sense to hop on a bus or a coach. Several coaches each day speed from Riga to Tallinn in less than five hours. Just once » Read more
Tramming it in Sofia, Bulgaria. Photo: Dieter Zimig
Sofia boasts an oddball mix of museums and galleries. Probably not a lot of Cheapos would normally add the National Museum of Military History (92 Cherkovna str.) to their list of “must-see” sights in the Bulgarian capital. The Web site is not calculated to wow the casual surfer, but it does have some splendid promotional » Read more
The Stena Line's £ 39 "Dutch Flyer" ticket is quite a value. Photo: Victor Bayon
Last week, we looked at ferry services that make the short hop over the Strait of Dover, linking the English ports of Dover and Ramsgate with nearby France and Belgium. These are great options if you are based in southeast England, bound for the near-continent and do not fancy the prospect of a longer ferry » Read more
Approaching Calais. Photo: Dave Hamster
Barely 20 miles separate England from France across the Strait of Dover. And though the Channel Tunnel now takes a lot of traffic that might hitherto have gone by sea, there are still plenty of ships anxious to berth in Dover – which remains Europe’s busiest ferry port. This week, we’ll take a look at ferries » Read more
Leipzig's streets and parks are easy to tour by bike. Photo: jennywetz
Susanne Kries and Nicky Gardner take the seasonal pulse in Leipzig: “Berlin with a shade more flair” is how our Leipzig friend describes her home town. This magnificent city, overshadowed in Saxony by Dresden and too close (some say) to Berlin to really pull the crowds, is a place to visit in fall. For hundreds » Read more
"Secret London" and "Secret Venice," two new guidebooks that aim at taking tourists off the beaten track.
From time to time, as we mooch around cities in western Europe we raise a glass to toast Thomas Jonglez – a man who took a decade to realize that a career in the steel trade was decidedly unsexy and in 2003 reinvented himself as a writer and publisher. We first stumbled on Jonglez’ work » Read more
The Seven Sisters cliffs in the South Downs National Park. Photo: Howzy
Britain’s newest national park is also the most accessible from London. Less than 50 miles from the capital, the South Downs National Park takes in impressive downland, a spectacular stretch of cliffed coastline in East Sussex and some breathtakingly beautiful villages. We love this part of England. After the frenetic pace of London, Sussex and » Read more
A stunning sunset over Luxembourg City. laurentlux
Diminutive Luxembourg City is certainly not the smallest capital city in Europe. Indeed, it is a dozen times larger than Vaduz which serves as the pristine, albeit rather sterile, capital of Liechtenstein. Luxembourg City deserves to be much better known, and it is a great spot to stop off and relax for a day or » Read more
Schools out for summer. Photo: satbir
Having a sense of local travel patterns is a smart way of seeing Europe at its best and trimming costs. High school holiday dates are often a key determinant of accommodation costs. And with kids already heading back to school in some parts of Europe, that opens up opportunities for Cheapos looking for bargains. Related: » Read more
The Tammerkoski River in Tampere. Photos ©hidden europe magazine
Sometimes we run across a city that just has a very good feel. Often these are university towns, places that are not in the premier league of tourist destinations, but spots that have a decidedly laid-back and welcoming feel. Szeged in Hungary, Bergamo in Italy, and Lund in Sweden all ooze that distinct welcoming feeling. » Read more
One of the highpoints on the Zürich to Lausanne route at Brünig station. Photo © hidden europe
Last week, we looked at the celebrated Glacier Express rail route, and questioned whether it might just take in one glacier too many (not to mention the 191 tunnels along the route). It’s a long haul from any major Swiss city or airport to either St. Moritz or Zermatt, which are the end points of » Read more
The local train on the Glacier Express route at Oberalp Pass (2035m above sea level). Photo © hidden europe
“The most famous of Switzerland’s railway lines,” burbles the guidebook. Frommer’s Switzerland is given to hyperbole, and particularly where the Glacier Express is concerned. “The route is one of the most spectacular in the world,” the authors advise. Riding the Glacier Express in Switzerland Yes, the 180-mile journey from St. Moritz to Zermatt is a » Read more
A reindeer on the move. Photo:
With the summer solstice this week, Nicky Gardner and Susanne Kries turn their thoughts to axial tilt and other astronomical matters: Now here’s a thought. Europeans heading north to cross the Arctic Circle, anxious to catch the mid-summer midnight sun, have to make longer journeys than their parents did. For the Arctic Circle is slipping » Read more
The Watts Gallery colorfully captures the work of George Frederic Watts. Photo: Nick Garrod.
London has such a galaxy of galleries and such a lively arts scene that it is too easy to overlook the rich world of the arts in the capital’s hinterland. Here are two topical ideas for days out from London for art lovers. Compton: The Watts Gallery This weekend (June 18, 2011) sees the long » Read more
The castle at Savonlinna, a short train ride from the Retretti Art Centre. Photos ©hidden europe
Tucked away on a rocky ridge is a Finnish gem. You have a hint that Retretti is something special when the slow train to Savonlinna pauses there. This is a minor single track railway, and the unstaffed station at Retretti is as small as they come. On the platform stands an oversized sculpture, an apt » Read more
