A couple of summers ago me and three friends went on a three-week-interrail trip in Europe. This was something we had wanted to do for a long time, and we visited eight countries mainly in Eastern and Central Europe. Wherever you’re planning on interrailing, and whether you want to visit many countries or focus on exploring one country better, here are some planning and packing tips that you may find useful!
(Note, however, that these tips are based on personal experience, and since the situation at many European borders has changed since our trip, remember to always check the current travel updates e.g. from your local consulate wherever you’re planning on crossing borders by train!)
1. Committing early might help you stick to the plan
If there are many of you, it can be very challenging to find a time when all of you are free to go on a trip that’s longer than a day or two. Of course, you and your friends’ best plan-of-action depends on your individual situations, but for us, committing early was key. We fixed the departure and return dates in January, about 6 months before the interrail, and agreed to plan our summer jobs around this period of time.
2. Decide if there are absolute must-sees, but leave the schedule flexible
One of the best things about an interrail is not knowing exactly where you’ll end up. We made an approximate plan of which countries to visit, decided on a few places we definitely wanted to see (everyone should have a say), and booked the first two hostels in advance to get started. This way we had the freedom to change our plans along the way. Flexibility in your schedule also leaves room for delays you can’t affect.
Somewhere near Pula
3. If in Europe, get the Rail Planner App
This free app is available for iPhone and Android, and it works offline. It gives you access to maps and schedules for European trains. We used it throughout our trip, and it was very convenient since it didn’t require an internet connection to work.
4. Consider a bed sheet instead of a sleeping bag
Unless you’re planning on sleeping at train stations (we didn’t, since we found very inexpensive hostels), you don’t necessarily need a sleeping bag. Some hostels only provide bed sheets for extra cost, but often they’re included in the price. However, your own bed sheet can still be really useful. It takes less space than a sleeping bag (unless you have a really compact one), and you can also use it as a blanket on a cold night-train, or as a picnic blanket in a park or on the beach.
5. Clothing: good walking shoes, a hat and a scarf
You should choose whatever clothes you’re comfortable in – for me the most useful ones turned out to be those that were light, took up little space and dried up fast after washing. Don’t take too many clothes with you, especially if you’re planning on shopping! A hat and a scarf will protect you from too much sunlight, and you won’t regret bringing really good walking shoes, for example sneakers.
Ljubljana
6. Reclosable plastic bags
Packing some of your clothes tightly into reclosable plastic bags can save you a lot space, since the bags will squeeze out all excess air. At some point on the way we got bored of using our Minigrip bags for this purpose, because it’s not the fastest way to pack, but the bags were still really good for storing our clothes and keeping them dry. These bags are also convenient for storing opened bags of snacks.
7. Find out what currencies you need, and have some cash with you
It can be a little risky to carry a lot of cash, and of course you can also exchange money on the way, but it’s good to have some cash to get you started. Some hostels only accept cash payment, and it’s nice to be able to check-in immediately if you arrive at your hostel at a late hour, instead of going to look for an ATM machine. Just make sure to take good care of your money. You can buy a neck-pouch for this purpose, but a small handbag can be just as convenient.
8. Consider bringing one tablet/laptop besides your phones
We didn’t want to drag our laptops with us, but we brought one tablet for booking hostels, finding information and watching Disney movies on trains. Of course a good smartphone could work just as well, but we found the tablet more convenient and more pleasant to use especially for booking hostels and watching movies, although the train rides often passed quickly talking, eating and staring out the window anyway.
Berlin
9. Make the most of your hiking backpack
It was almost the end of our trip when I found a big pocket on my backpack that I had never noticed before, and thus hadn’t made use of (and I felt like a genius). It’s not a bad idea to get to know your backpack before the trip, find all the hidden properties and get the most use out of it. Also, keep adjusting the fit of your backpack until you find the most comfortable way to carry it – don’t suffer back and shoulder pain for nothing.
10. Keep a travel journal and take photos
If you have the patience to do this, you’ll thank yourself later! I wrote a journal, but I was really lazy at taking photos, so I’m really glad that my friends did. Of course you don’t have to document every single thing, and sometimes it’s better to just enjoy the moment and not take any photos, but nevertheless, some documentation will really take you back to those precious memories.
Links: Where you can find your info depends on where you’re going, but this is where we got started: https://www.vr.fi/cs/vr/fi/interrail
All photos copryright of Aija Holopainen