How to travel around Europe for free by train-hopping
GifGas is a Belgian photographer in his early twenties who train-hops around Europe, documenting his travels on YouTube and Instagram. For the uninitiated, this involves catching unauthorized rides on freight trains. “One day I found a train that was going from Zeebrugge to Milan. The train went through Switzerland, Germany, and arrived in Italy 13 hours later. I haven’t stopped since that first trip. It’s like a drug,” he says. [vice.com]
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China unveils new bullet train ahead of Winter Olympics
China has launched a customized Fuxing bullet train with the capacity to run at a top speed of 350km/hour. As part of its inaugural journey, the train travelled along the high-speed railway connecting Beijing and Zhangjiakou, the co-host city of the Beijing Winter Olympic Games. The high-speed railway will support passenger services for the 2022 Beijing Olympic and Paralympic Winter Games, which will run from January 21st to March 16th. [traveldailynews.asia]
How Amtrak trains became one retired traveler’s sanctuary during the pandemic
When the pandemic hit Covington, Kentucky, Rita Carol Brooks believed she was going to die. She was 74 years old. She had already struggled with her health over the years. And she was losing her will to live. Brooks had been living in near total isolation for almost eight months when she made the decision to leave town. It seemed the only way to survive. Even before the pandemic, she was becoming a recluse. On the verge of touching a darkness she hoped she would never reach, Brooks bought an eight-day USA Rail Pass across the country. [travelandleisure.com]
Europe is undergoing a sleeper train renaissance
As the last lights of Inverness, Scotland, disappeared into the gloom of night, I was pouring my second glass of Chianti on board the newly refurbished Caledonian Sleeper train. The experience was more akin to a moving hotel than a train. Night trains like the Caledonian Sleeper were once everywhere in Europe. But with the advent of air travel and cheap flights, many iconic sleeper routes were discontinued. Recently, however, a renewed interest in rail travel, particularly sleeper routes, seems to be taking root. [cntraveler.com]
Low-cost, Madrid-Valencia Avlo high-speed service to start in February
Beginning in February, Spanish train operator, Renfe, will begin operating low-cost, high-speed Avlo services between Madrid and Valencia. The Avlo service is Renfe’s new low-cost, high-speed train which will run three daily roundtrips between the cities. with selected services to Cuenca Fernando Zóbel and Requena-Utiel. Tickets are set to go on sale starting under eight bucks with upgrades available. The base fare includes a free cabin suitcase and a handbag. [globalrailwayreview.com]
