To the Furthest Corner of Europe - By Interrail

[whole diary]

[WSW Frome]

Since it is summer and Interrail is a current topic, I will add my experiences of a recent trip to Istanbul. Last year I had planned to do this trip (which can be accomplished in minimum 3-4 days) but it did not happen and this year I originally planned to do it in the Autumn but instead I chose to do it in the current heatwave!

So the route was Frome, Portsmouth, Caen, Paris, Stuttgart, Budapest, Arad, Bucharest, Sofia and Istanbul with a flight back to Bristol. Duration 13 days. I will present it in chapters highlighting the transport matters. There will be few or no photos since I rarely take any.

Start date was Monday 13 July, another hot day when GWR^▸ (Great Western Railway) might have problems! I planned to leave Frome after 1600 by train or by bus to Warminster. This was to allow plenty of time to properly dine at the colourful pub (The Ship and Castle) near the Continental Ferry Port. So first we have one mid-afternoon train cancelled then another bridge strike at Freshford. Whilst I had plenty of time for the ferry, it was best to go earlier on a bus at 1430 with a panic departure from home. At Warminster the chaos was still unfolding, so I carried on to Salisbury as a new bus experience. At Salisbury station, the matter had resolved such that I just missed the PMH^▸ (Portsmouth Harbour station) train which I might have caught. Then a wait of 50 mins for a service to SOU which was also late. The next Portsmouth service was in fact the train I would have caught departing after 1600. So all went well after that. Plenty of spare time even after dining. Boarding was not until 2215 and foot passengers are subject to an airport-style security check. This was surprise news to me and I had a hard time over various pointed items in my baggage. Vehicle passengers do not appear to get the same scrutiny!!

Brittany Ferries excellent as usual and the trip passed smoothly although I may not have slept during the short night in my cabin. Worth noting that the ship docks at 0645 local time and if you want a shower and some sort of breakfast one rises at 0445 UK^▸ (United Kingdom) time. So not quite as glamorous as the brochures portray.

At Ouistreham passengers walk off but then get a short bus ride to the terminal. Only about 30 foot passengers dealt with efficiently by two immigration officials. They “manually” carried out the EES procedure with facial scan and fingerprints. I had given my fingerprints in Denmark recently and they were not taken again.
 
Now various travelogues imply that there is a bus stop for the bus to Caen, adjacent to the terminal. This is not so and it is at least 500m away in the centre of the town near the pharmacy. It was Bastille Day and there were question marks about the bus service, and I HAD to catch the only practical/available train at 08.58. So I did take a taxi (from 2 available!) and it is definitely a fair distance into Caen at EUR53 for the ride. ((Grahame’s use of Newhaven-Dieppe, scores better on this point as Le Gare is but a short walk away.)
 
So I had plenty of time, had a coffee and pastry and joined the busy dmu to Argentan and then a grander emu to Paris Montparnasse. I got my reserved first class seat on the busy second leg in a strange carriage layout. The service was a diverted version due to engineering works! Some 30 min late overall against the revised schedule.

Transit of Paris on the metro to Gare de L’Est. Metro does not accept foreign (or any?) bank cards at the turnstiles. Have to buy the Oyster^▸ (Smartcard system used by passengers on Transport for London services) card equivalent! Very hot day of course. Plenty of food outlets on L’Est but none for a proper meal. Found one nearby of dubious quality.
Next was a TGV^▸ (Train a Grande Vitesse) service at 15.55 to Stuttgart. First class, upper deck, window seat and all fine. Very busy and I had intended to visit the Bistro for a “proper” meal prior to the next overnight stage. Seemed too busy for that. There is now a formal check at the German border which delays the schedule by 15 mins. Apparently, this is intelligence led so not every person or coach is checked. There were casual passport checks at every border except Germany/Austria/Hungary-so much for Schengen.

Stuttgart Station was uninspiring. It is a terminal station and I now understand that a through station is being constructed down below and the project is very delayed. Plenty of snack outlets but I did find a great boxed-salad outlet which was sensible for my needs. So I then boarded the 20.29 sleeper service to Budapest. My coach was Hungarian couchette compartment, but I had paid quite heavily for single occupation. So it was basic with a hard mattress but comfortable enough. They do provide a basic breakfast and arrival in Budapest Keleti (a classic European terminal) was nearly on time. The phone charge point onboard was near the window and I placed my phone on the window ledge. Do not do that as phones drown in the condensation when the a/c is working hard. New phone purchased in Budapest!

I find it remarkable that you can reach Budapest so speedily. Eurostar mid-morning from London is also feasible for this trip. Next chapter soon.

[WSW Frome]

After a 2 night restful stay in a 5* hotel in Budapest - but venturing out in the heat for basic sightseeing.The second leg of this lengthy trip was from Budapest to Arad (Northern Romania) on a daytime service and onward to Bucharest by sleeper.

I walked down the side bay platform at Budapest Keleti at the appointed hour past some tired looking Hungarian coaches seemingly with no a/c. My seat was in the front coach and the train was all second class as advertised. The front coach was very respectable with comfy open plan seating and working a/c. The journey was about 5 hours and I got taken by surprise with the hour time change at the Romanian border with a cursory passport check. So we apparently arrive an hour earlier than I expected!

I had around 2.5 hours before the sleeper service and had scoped out places to eat in the town. However, it seemed to be too hot and too far to contemplate. There is also a huge shopping centre adjacent to the quite modern Arad Station which has food court on the upper floor. A wide choice of various fast foods although the only "western" brand is KFC. There is also a branch of Lidl across the road where one can stock up on travel rations in many familiar brands.

I was back at the station with plenty of time to spare. Changed out my Hungarian funds for Romanian.  I used bureaux de change through this trip since only small amounts of cash were needed and it seems many banks now charge heavily for using ATMs^▸ (Automated Teller Machine, or 'at the moment', depending on context) with a foreign card, noted especially in Hungary. Cards widely accepted everywhere even on public transport which I will describe later.

The sleeper service was provided by one of several "open access" operators in Romania, Astra Trans Carpatic . Unsure if this service would be included in Interrail but I had elected to fully pay for the later stages of this trip. This is because internet ticket purchase (and reservation) is easily available, whereas it appears "reservation only" can only be obtained locally or by booking well in advance through Interrail and waiting for paper documents. The full cost for this leg was £82 and single occupancy. Note that there are several daytime and overnight train options between Budapest and Bucharest but the sleepers probably have an "allocation" for Interrail tickets.

This service is nominally a luxury sleeper service although comparable to the standard UK^▸ (United Kingdom) version. I believe the stock was ex-Danish but may well have been modified internally. The coach was tidy, painted well internally and all very clean. Each pair of compartments has a bathroom pod between. One side has just a basin, the other side a shower, toilet and basin. There is also an adjoining door for family groups. I guess this bathroom pod is the modification and leaves very little floor space to manouvre. The top bunk was also locked down which did not help for space either. I got the basin only side so clearly had not paid for real luxury. No other frills apart from a cup of coffee in the morning and a 1 hour late arrival. This was fine since my hotel was not promising a room early. I walked to the hotel for about 30 minutes which is always a bit bold in a strange city on a hot summer morning. Mr Google helps.

I got to the hotel and there was no room available yet. The manager suggested I come back at 12 and there is a fantastic park just next door here I relaxed and plotted to go on a Communist Era walking tour later in the afternoon. When I did return I was allocated a 3 room suite and just for one night. The original deal was that I might get a room after 10am for EUR30 extra. Instead just good service! The walking tour was great and very informative and I would recommend these tours booked through "Get Your Guide." I was very sceptical about this service since some middle person is clearly making big money but the guides were excellent and the trip reasonably priced. I also had a great dinner with a fantastic English lady also on the walking tour! Bucharest city centre now fully modern and "Western" just like any European City. Chapter 3 later.