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Train schedules are a great help to the traveler — if you take the time to learn to read them. Learn to use the 24-hour clock used in European train timetables. After 12:00 noon, the Europeans keep going — 13:00, 14:00, and so on. To convert to the 12-hour clock, subtract 12 and add p.m. (16:00 is 4 p.m.).
Pre-trip schedule planning is easier than ever on the Internet. For all of Europe, including small towns and international connections, try Deutsch Bahn's Website.
The Thomas Cook European Rail Timetable, listing the complete schedule of all European trains, is available through the Forsyth Travel Library (call 1-800-FORSYTH, $44 postpaid).
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| Train schedules are sign language masterpieces. For example, at 11:55 a.m. on "workdays" a Thalys train leaves the Paris North station, arriving in The Hague at 3:58 p.m. It requires seat reservations, has a dining car, and has us changing trains en route at the Brussels Midi station. The train departing at 11:16 p.m. includes couchette bunks, and arrives at The Hague at 7:09 the next morning with no train change. (Excerpted from the 90-page Eurail timetable booklet, which is included with railpass purchases.) |
You can always find train schedules at any station in Europe. They come in many forms: posters (with departures on yellow, arrivals on white), airport-type departure schedules that flip up and list the next eight or ten departures, handy pocket-sized schedules for popular routes, and computer kiosks (spreading quickly across Europe).
Personnel at the train station information window can confirm your plans. Once aboard, you'll find that many express trains are littered with route programs — well worth deciphering, since they describe everything about that train.
Any schedule includes information on both directions between destinations (Dijon to Paris and Paris to Dijon) and has a section explaining the many exceptions to the rules. An "X" in a box means you'll have to change trains, an "R" in a box means reservations are required for that departure, crossed silverware means a dining car, crossed hammers indicate that the train goes only on workdays (daily except Sundays and holidays), a cross means the train goes only on Sundays and holidays, and a picture of a little bed means the train has sleeping compartments, which come in "couchette" and "sleeper" varieties.
The example on this page shows departure times in the left column and arrival times on the right. Some timetables also include the arrival and departure times for any required train changes.
Find the Deutsche Bahn website at http://bahn.hafas.de/bin/query.exe/en.
1) Start with a Station to Station search (by city, not by address).
2) Required fields: Only the "From" and "To" fields are required before you can click on "Search Connections." Date, Time, Means of Transport, and other fields are all optional.
3) Spelling: Use the local European spelling of town names. (You'll find these in any good map or guidebook of Europe.) Here are some examples:
4) Choosing a station: The Deutsche Bahn system may ask you to re-select a station from a list of options. Keep in mind:
a. If the city is listed again (without station name), re-select that choice.
b. You do not always have to make the right choice. Sometimes the DB will make a correction before providing the schedule. In other cases, the schedule will include a connection by train, bus, or subway from the "wrong" station to the main station.
c. Main stations are often called "central," "terminus," "bahnhof," or "hauptbanhof (hbf)."
d. A very long list probably includes bus stops in the same town. Back up to the query page and type any city "hbf."
5) More detail: At the bottom of the "Connection" schedule, you'll find buttons to access more detail. The first level includes location and times for any change of train. Further links on the Detail page allow you to see major stops along the way.
6) Date of travel: Schedules change seasonally around June 10, Sept. 10, and Dec. 15 (though changes are often small). The DB website posts updates as soon as they are available. Even if your trip is several months in the future, this is still the best planning tool. You can input an earlier date for a fairly accurate idea of the schedule.
7) Footnotes: "Compulsory reservation" means what it says, while "Please reserve" is recommended but optional. "International supplement" notes do not apply with railpasses.
8) Alternate routes: This system shows the most direct and practical routes between two points. To design your own detour, add a "Via" (midpoint) city on the query screen.
9) Coverage: The DB website is the most complete resource for train schedules throughout Europe. If your destination is not covered (and if you spelled it correctly), that's a good sign it doesn't have train service. The European Railway Server will lead you to to each country's railway site. Ferry schedules are also online at www.youra.com/ferry/intlferries.html.
On the Web, as in Europe, you'll use the local spelling of city names.
10) New Query: You might need to use your brower's "back" button to get back to the Query page.
