$6600 v $127: How to travel Europe’s spectacular train routes on the cheap

No other continent is as spider-webbed by train lines as Europe, nor offers such a variety of tourist trains, which meander through splendid landscapes, haul you onto mountain summits, or waft you in luxury between glamorous cities.

But while special tourist trains are the subject of plenty of marketing hype, they’re far from cheap. The Orient-Express takes you from Paris to Venice for $6600, but you can make the same rail journey in a sleeper, with one change in Milan, for about €80 ($127).

The Orient Express from Paris to Venice will set you back $6600 a night.Credit: Dimorestudio

You won’t get the luxe or meals of the Orient-Express, but $6600 will buy you a whole week of very posh hotel rooms and dinners, instead of a single night.

One of Europe’s most popular tourist trains takes you atop the Jungfrau in central Switzerland and costs CHF 119.40 ($194). But if you’re feeling frisky, you can enjoy the most scenic parts of the ride for free.

The all-day return hike from Grindelwald to Kleine Scheidegg takes you beneath the north face of the Eiger amid a panorama of other snowy summits and meadows in which cows clank their bells.

You miss out on Jungfrau summit views but get a far more enjoyable experience of the Alps away from the confines of a train which, from Kleine Scheidegg onwards, anyway runs through a tunnel.

Another thing to consider is a lower-priced alternative. The train ride up Mount Rigi near Lucerne costs CHF 78 ($126), or nothing if you already have a Swiss rail pass. It offers fabulous views without the tourist crowds or distractions – such as a Lindt shop and ice palace – that confront you on the Jungfrau.

You don’t have to take a tourist train at all. Of course, there are places you can’t access on regular trains, such as the summit of Snowdon in Wales or Schafberg in Austria, but regular trains have their compensations.

You’re more likely to encounter locals, and you don’t have to reserve weeks in advance. Trains are less crowded, so you can swap seats as scenery unfurls on either side.

Some regular commuter trains in Switzerland offer stunning views.Credit: iStock

While you miss out on high-mountain scenery, you’ll be gobsmacked by the landscapes on some regular trains at regular low prices. Among the best routes? Lucerne-Interlaken, Salzburg-Munich, Vienne-Trieste, Rome-Nice, and Koblenz-Mainz through Germany’s Rhine gorges.

Lastly, unless tourist-train routes ascend mountains, you can almost certainly replicate them on the regular railways at a fraction of the cost. The only thing you’ll miss out on is a panoramic window.

The Glacier Express, for example, is a popular tourist train that runs between St Moritz and Zermatt across the Swiss Alps and costs a whopping CHF 191 ($310).

Although there’s no direct regular train – you’ll have to change four times – you can make the same journey in a similar amount of time on the public railway using a CHF 52 ($84) Saver Day Pass.

Look beyond the marketing, do your research, and you’ll emerge from your holiday with your wallet less battered, but your experiences just as rewarding.