10 Routes That Are Faster By Train
in Europe
GoEuro, by Zvonimir Tolj, May 16, 2018
When booking your trip, have you ever wondered about considering train travel as an option? Did you know that there are some routes that can be faster made by train than on a plane?
According to the travel platform GoEuro, train travel can be up to three and a half hours faster than air travel.
“Whilst passengers may be aware that it is greener to travel by train or bus, some people might be surprised to find out that it is also faster than flying. Particularly if you’re traveling for a short break, it can really pay to research the options and check out end-to-end journey times,” established GoEuro’s Founder and CEO, Naren Shaam.
In consequence, and taking into consideration city transit, all airport security procedures and travel times, these are the routes that are faster by train—even on a bus—than boarding an aircraft:
London – Paris
Brussels – Paris
Madrid – Valencia
Paris – Lyon
Marseille – Lyon
Bologna – Rome
London – Manchester
Barcelona – Madrid
Brussels – London
Madrid – Alicante
Tourists with the desire to travel between London and Paris can reduce their journey time by over three hours (3:24) when taking the train instead of a plane. This allows them to enjoy the journey through the Channel Tunnel, which has the world’s longest under-sea section, avoid lengthy security procedures and arrive faster to their final destination.
The train journey from Brussels to Paris saves passengers nearly three hours (2:39), as opposed to flying. Despite the train travel time between both cities is, approximately, 25 minutes above flight time, Thalys, an international high-speed red train that operates in several Europe train stations, offers over 25 and 30 daily departures and arrivals, which is more than scheduled flights from any airline.
Likewise, train travel from Madrid to Valencia; Paris to Lyon; and Bologna to Rome is= 1 hour and 20 minutes faster than onboard an aircraft.
Additionally, other popular European routes such as Barcelona–Madrid, Milan–Rome, and London–Amsterdam are quicker by train, saving up to an average of 50 minutes each.
If you’re not surprised yet, GoEuro included in its research bus travel, highlighting routes that are quicker by bus than on a plane. For example, Amsterdam to Brussels takes around three hours (2:45) by bus, but three and a half hours by flight, saving forty-five minutes.
Also, Amsterdam to Düsseldorf and Brussels to Paris joins the previous bus route, saving an average of 15 minutes each.
At this point, you may be thinking about how fast these trains can be. Well, Europe’s fastest train is in Italy, and it travels at 360 km/h; while the longest domestic high-speed train starts in Madrid, thus covering more than 800 km.
Also, as mentioned previously, it’s guaranteed that trains save more than 100kg of Carbon Dioxide, which is less than what an average aircraft emits.
GoEuro’s research supports tourists planning to travel across Europe, making an emphasis on the most convenient routes in terms of timing.
“With GoEuro it’s easy for travelers to compare all three modes in one search and find the best option to suit their needs, whether that’s based on time, cost or the view out of the window!”
London – Paris
Brussels – Paris
Madrid – Valencia
Paris – Lyon
Marseille – Lyon
Bologna – Rome
London – Manchester
Barcelona – Madrid
Brussels – London
Madrid – Alicante
