In which European countries is it cheaper to travel by train than by plane? (2024)

As a rule, traveling in Europe by air is much cheaper than traveling by train, but there are exceptions. Find out on which popular routes a train ticket is much cheaper than a flight

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It is much cheaper to travel by train than by plane: 12 routes

The international non-governmental organization Greenpeace analyzed the cost of train and plane tickets on 112 routes. Prices were compared for travel in the European Union, the UK, Switzerland, and Norway. And despite the fact that in most cases, traveling by train was more expensive than flying, experts identified 23 routes that are much more profitable to travel by train.

However, it is worth noting that only 12 routes were "ideal", because the rest involve quite long journeys due to long or frequent transfers and slow trains.

Prague-Berlin

Due to the lack of a direct rail connection between the two capitals, most people choose to travel by air. However, the publication notes that an airplane ticket is much more expensive than a railroad trip. Moreover, it takes only 4 and a half hours to get from Prague to Berlin by train. Currently, there are 6 trains a day between the countries, and the ticket price starts at 29.90 euros.

Zurich-Vienna

There are 6 direct trains per day on this route, and the trip takes about 8 hours. It is noted that the cost of a train ticket will be about 30% cheaper than a flight.

Zurich-Berlin

There are 5 international trains between the cities daily, one of them is a night train, which greatly simplifies the journey. The fastest train will take you to your destination in 8 and a half hours, and the cost of a train ticket starts from 49.90 euros.

Warsaw-Berlin

There are also 5 direct trains on this route daily. The trip usually takes less than 6 hours. Train ticket prices range from 27.90 to 49.90 euros.

Madrid-Barcelona

This is one of the most popular routes among tourists, and therefore there are many trains running between the cities. The fastest train will take you to your destination in just 2 hours and 40 minutes. The ticket price starts at 14 euros. The final price depends on the time of booking.

Trondheim-Oslo

There are 6 daily direct trains between the cities, one of which is also a night train. The fastest train takes less than 7 hours and the ticket price ranges from 65-70

euros.

Among other most profitable rail routes, which are more affordable than a flight, the study lists: Helsinki-Oulu, Athens-Thessaloniki, Porto-Lisbon, Košice-Prague, and Prague-Budapest.

In which countries is a train ticket much more expensive than an airplane ticket?

Traveling by train is more expensive because, as a rule, several railway companies are involved in international routes. In addition, most trains require separate tickets to make a transfer.

Thus, according to the published report, the most expensive rail connections were recorded in the UK and Spain (about 4 times more expensive than airplane tickets), Belgium (2.6 times), France and Italy (2.5 times). It is noted that on some routes, for example, from Barcelona to London, the cost of train tickets is more than 10 times higher than the cost of plane tickets.

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