Got a fear of flying? Concerned about the environmental cost of
aviation? Love trains? Hate plane food? Whatever your reasons for
wanting to skip the flight on your next holiday, you don’t have to rule
out hot foreign destinations to do it. And don’t let a two-day journey
put you off – as long as you’re not just going for a weekend - the
comfort, experience and views of a rail or boat journey can make getting
there one of the highlights of your holiday. Here are some ideas.
Sicily
What’s there? Picture-perfect palazzi and villas, farm stays, rural treasures, national parks and amazing culinary delights.
How to get there: Take the Eurostar
to Paris, where you can change to the Palatino overnight sleeper and
wake up in Rome. Here you’ll catch the InterCity along the coast to
Catania, Syracuse or Palermo. In an even bigger twist to conventional
travel, the train crosses the Straits of Messina aboard a train ferry –
it’s one of the few places in Europe where this still happens.
Travel costs: Eurostar from London to Sicily from £180 return.
Tunisia
What’s there? A sand-fringed Mediterranean coast, lakes teeming with pink flamingos, deep-green forests and gently rolling plains.
How to get there: Allow 48 hours to take the Eurostar
from St Pancras to Marseille, which involves one easy change in Lille.
After staying the night in Marseille you can get a ferry (ferry by name
but cruise boat by nature) and enjoy a Mediterranean journey to Tunisia.
Notable sights en route are fortress-turned-prison Château d'If (it was
the setting for 'The Count of Monte Cristo') as you’re leaving
Marseille and the ruins of Carthage as you arrive into the Bay of Tunis.
Travel costs: Eurostar London-Marseille from £119 return; Marseille-Tunis ferry from £281 (inc. cabin berth).
Greece
What’s there? All-encompassing nightlife, ancient beauty and history-rich landmarks.
How to get there: Another two-nighter. Take the Eurostar
to Paris and the Palatino overnight sleeper to Bologna, where you can
hop on an air-conditioned train to Bari in Italy. Take a few hours to
explore the old town before the best bit: an overnight ferry to Patras
in Greece, where you can take in views of Ithaca and Cephalonia on your
way past. From Patras you can take a connecting bus to Athens.
Travel costs: London to Bari from £180 return, Bari
to Patras by Superfast Ferries from £74 return and bus from Patras to
Athens from £19 return.
Morocco
What’s there? Winding streets of ancient medinas, Roman ruins, dramatically craggy valleys and the hiking-worthy High Atlas mountains.
How to get there: It will take around 48 hours to reach Morocco. The Eurostar
transports you from London St Pancras to Paris, where you’ll change to a
trainhotel to Madrid, with pretty views of picturesque French villages.
By the time you wake the views will have changed to distant snow-capped
mountains, and when you get off the train you’ll have time to explore
Madrid before catching your evening high-speed express train to
Algeciras. Your second night will be spent in Algeciras, before a ferry
takes you to Tangier. If you’re headed for Marrakech then the Express
train completes your journey.
Travel costs: London-Paris from £69 return,
Paris-Madrid from £128 (sleeper), Madrid-Algeciras from £34 return.
Ferry to Tangier from £34 return, train to Marrakech £24 return.
Spain
What’s there? Glittering beaches, turquoise seas, emerald green mountains, bullrings, tasty food and in parts a happening night scene.
How to get there: Spain is a piece of cake to get to without leaving the ground – so much so it’s surprising more people don’t do it. The Eurostar
gets you to Paris where you’ll change to the Elipsos trainhotel
overnight. And the next morning you’ll wake up in Madrid or Barcelona.
If you’re headed for another Spanish destination a connecting train will
have you in Seville, Malaga, Granada, Valencia or Alicante in a matter
of hours - otherwise Ibiza and Majorca are both reachable by ferry.
Travel costs: From £69 return for Eurostar
from London to Paris; from £128 return Paris to Madrid/Barcelona train
(sleeper) or Barcelona including a bed in a 4-berth sleeper for the
night.
Croatia
What’s there? Beautiful scenery, from rocky coves to pine-fringed beaches, bustling nightlife and picturesque ancient Roman ruins.
How to get there: A winning combination of trains and
boats and no planes, but you’ll need to make sure you get your timings
right as the ferry only runs a couple of times a week. First travel from
London to Bari in Italy (Eurostar
to Paris, the overnight sleeper train to Bologna and a fast train on to
Bari) and then sail from Bari to Croatia, where you can depart at your
pick of several destinations including Dubrovnik, Split and Rijeka.
Travel costs: Trains from London to Bari from £180 return, Ferry from Bari to Croatia from £36
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