Europe by train: the 2026 Interrail guide

Crossing Europe by train means linking Paris, Zurich, Milan and Vienna on one ticket, watching the landscape roll past and stepping off in the heart of each city, with no airport and no boarding queue. The Interrail pass is still the best way into all of that.

Between the prices, the hidden reservations and the trains that show up full, a trip can get complicated fast. Here is what actually matters when you plan a route, sorted by what counts.

Interrail or Eurail: what changes in 2026

For years, two names covered the same product: Interrail for European residents, Eurail for travellers from elsewhere. Since 10 September 2026, only one remains. The pass is called Interrail everywhere in the world, and it sells whatever your country of residence.

In your pocket, nothing really changes: the same coverage, roughly thirty countries, the same trains. If you land on an old guide talking about a Eurail Global Pass, read Interrail Global Pass, it is the exact same ticket. Any Eurail pass bought before the switch stays valid.

The pass comes in two shapes. The Global Pass opens the entire European network, ideal for a multi-country route. The One Country Pass is limited to a single country, handy if you want to explore Italy or Germany in depth.

Which pass to pick for your trip

The Global Pass is sold in “travel days” to use over a set period. One travel day is 24 hours, during which you take as many trains as you like. Here are the 2026 fares in adult second class.

First class costs about 30 percent more. Under-28s get a Youth fare at roughly 25 percent off, and travellers aged 60 and over get a Senior fare at roughly 10 percent off. My advice: do not overestimate your pace. Few travellers ride a train every single day, and a “counted days” pass spread over two months often works out cheaper than an unlimited one you never fully use.

Compulsory reservations, the real trap

Here is what many people learn too late: the pass is not always enough. High-speed trains and the night trains of several countries require a paid seat reservation, on top of the pass itself.

The practical lesson: build your route around the “hop on” countries when you can. Germany and Switzerland can be crossed almost without booking, which keeps things flexible. By contrast, a traveller who wants France, Italy and Spain by high-speed train has to add several reservations to the budget, and book early: the pass-holder seat quotas sell out fast in high season.

Three multi-country routes that work

A good Interrail route avoids long dry days of pure travel and alternates big cities with scenery. Three safe bets, depending on how much time you have.

The capitals loop (7 to 10 days)

Paris, Brussels, Amsterdam, Berlin, Prague, Vienna. A smooth run of six capitals across five countries, with frequent trains and few compulsory reservations in the north. It is the ideal first-timer route.

The alpine arc (5 to 7 days)

Zurich, Lucerne, the Gotthard, Milan, then northern Italy. You cross Switzerland and Italy on spectacular lines, some of which deserve a guide of their own (see our scenic train journeys).

The Scandinavian loop (10 to 15 days)

Copenhagen, Stockholm, Oslo, Bergen. Longer distances, night trains that save you time, and the Bergen line among the finest in Europe. Budget more for meals than in the south.

The mistakes that spoil an Interrail trip

• Leaving main-line reservations to the last minute. In July and August, the pass quotas on a Paris to Barcelona TGV or a Rome to Florence Frecciarossa fill up weeks ahead.
• Forgetting to activate the travel day in the app. Every journey must be logged in the mobile pass before you board. A conductor can charge a full-fare ticket if the day is not validated.
• Underrating night trains. They save a hotel night and a travel day, but they also need a reservation. Our dedicated guide breaks down the night trains of Europe.
• Assuming the pass covers everything. Metros, city buses and some private lines stay payable separately.

Keeping pass, tickets and apps offline-ready

A train trip across Europe means a lot of stations, tight connections and last-minute timetable changes. It all runs through your phone: the pass in Rail Planner, the reservations, the city maps, the translation at the ticket window.

The snag is that a multi-country route runs across several networks. Station wifi is patchy, and swapping a SIM card at every border makes no sense when you pass through five countries in a week.

This is where a eSIM for Europe earns its place: one eSIM follows you across the whole continent, with nothing to change at the border. You activate it before you leave and you are connected from the first platform.

One point many people miss: EU roaming does not cover everything. The United Kingdom, Switzerland, the Balkans and Turkey sit outside the “roaming included” zone. A traveller based in the EU who crosses Switzerland by train can be billed at the full international rate. A travel eSIM covering the whole continent settles that in one move.

With Orange, the service used by more than 300 million customers, you get 200+ destinations covered, round-the-clock human support 24/7 and 100 percent refunded if you never use your eSIM.