Rail Europe

Opening of the new Lötschberg tunnel

Only 25 days to go before the new Lötschberg tunnel opens… and opens you new travel horizons!

Literally slicing through the Alps, the34,5km-long new train tunnel will be the quickest way to cross Switzerland from North to South by train, as it allows top speeds of 200Km/h (124 mph)!!!

As of the 9^th of December, it will not only significantly reduce journey times between South Switzerland and the rest of the country (making it easier to reach destinations such as Brig or Zermatt), but also speed up the trips between Italy and Switzerland! Check it out:

	Today	As of 09/12	Time savings
Zürich/Basel - Zermatt	4h 24min	3h 12min	1h 12min
Zürich/Basel - Brig	2h 42min	2h 08min	34 min
Bern - Zermatt	3h 18min	2h 08min	70 min
Bern - Brig	1h 36min	1h 04min	32 min
Milano - Bern	3h 16min	2h 44min	32 min
Milano - Basel	4h 27min	3h 55min	32 min

From 2008, there will be 6 daily services between Basel, Bern and Milano… and by 2009, Switzerland-Italy trips will be even more comfortable and faster with the new Cisalpino tilting trains, allowing an additional reduction of travel time by up to 60 minutes!!!

Tomorrow even more than today, rail will definitely be the best option to discover Switzerland, whose dense and efficient network offer the travellers a cost effective, scenic and comfortable way of travel. Make sure you make the most of it, thanks to the famous Swiss Pass, available from Rail Europe network.

For more information or to purchase your Swiss Pass, consult your Rail Europe travel agent www.raileurope.fr/wheretobuy.

Eurostar sets a new record for the journey between Brussels and London

Rail Europe is delighted to announce that last Thursday, 20th of September, Eurostar, the high-speed train operator that links the UK with the European Continent, achieved the fastest journey time ever between Brussels and London, setting a new record for the journey between the Belgian and British capitals.

It took just 1 hour and 43 minutes to cover the 373 km (232 mile) distance, travelling at 300km/h (186mph) on the UK’s new high-speed line, High Speed 1. It was also the first run from Brussels to arrive at St.Pancras International, Eurostar's new terminal in the heart of London, , which will open on 14th November 2007.

On board the inaugural run were 12 journalists from Australia, Japan, India, South Korea, Hong-Kong, South Africa, Brazil, Argentina & Malaysia, invited by Rail Europe and Eurostar to discover high-speed Europe. This journey closed the week long 2007 Rail Europe Press Trip, which this year focused on the high ! speed trains members of the rail alliance, RailTeam, of which Eurostar is a founder member.

On the 5th of September, Eurostar also broke the record between Paris and London, with a run of just 2 hours and 3 minutes and 39 seconds!) for the 492 km distance, running at speeds of up to 320km/h (200 mph) on the French and British High Speed Lines.

From 14 November, the scheduled non-stop time between St Pancras International and Brussels will be 1 hour and 51 minutes, cutting at least 20 minutes off the current journey time from Waterloo. The time savings between Paris and London will also be at least 20 minutes, and the scheduled non-stop time will be 2 hours 15 minutes. Richard Brown, Chief Executive of Eurostar, said: "Today’s journey puts London and Brussels firmly within the ‘two hour club". Eurostar is quite simply the fastest, most convenient way to travel – avoiding wasted time and money in getting to out-of-town airports, lengthy! check-in times, and baggage reclaim delays.

From 14 November, E urostar will also move to its new London terminal overnight, with services at Waterloo ending the previous evening.

Eurostar tickets are available through Rail Europe’s accredited sales agents in your country.
Just log on to www.raileurope.fr/wheretobuy to find their contact details.

Eurostar is moving. 14th November 2007

Rail Europe is glad to announce that from 24th July, travellers can book their Eurostar tickets to/from Saint Pancras International for their journeys between 14th to 19th November through Rail Europe's accredited sales agents. The sales to/from the other new station, Ebbsfleet International, are also open.

Wednesday, 14th November 2007 will be a big day for Eurostar. It's the day they launch services from / to Saint Pancras International in central London and the day Eurostar starts running on High Speed 1, the UK's first high speed line.

HS1 (High Speed 1)

High Speed 1 is the biggest engineering project in the UK for over 100 years. With 109 km of high speed track (a quarter of it underground), HS1 will allow Eurostar to travel at its full speed of 300 kmh (186 mph) all the way from the centre of London to the Channel tunnel. Thanks to this new high speed line, journey times will be reduced by at least 20 minutes to offer more seamless journeys and trains will be even more punctual.
Journey times from/to Saint Pancras International will be as follows:
Paris: 2h15
Brussels: 1h51
Lille: 1h20

Saint Pancras International

On 14th November, Eurostar moves from Waterloo International Station and launches services from Saint Pancras International in central London. As of this date, all journeys will depart from/arrive to Saint Pancras International and no longer from Waterloo International.

Saint Pancras is a beautiful Victorian station, with red rubber bricks and streaky bacon stone. It is being transformed, setting new standards for a railway station in the XXIst century. Taking inspiration from New York’s Grand Central Terminal, Saint Pancras International will be “Europe’s destination station”.
The modern Saint Pancras has been designed with the customer at its heart, with a world class brasserie, arcade shopping and a daily farmers’ market selling the very best, fresh, British and Continental products. And last but not least, overlooking the platforms will be the longest Champagne Bar of Europe!

To top it off, Saint Pancras International has also the best connectivity of all the central London stations. It has 6 underground lines and is close to 7 mainline operators at Saint Pancras International, King’s Cross and Euston. Travellers can easily reach the north of England, discover the rolling countryside of the Lake District and the jewels of Scotland.

Kent stations

Ebbsfleet International
On 19th November will open a new Kent station, Ebbsfleet International.
Between Ashford and London, conveniently located close to major highways including M25, M20, M2, A2, the Dartford Crossing and Bluewater shopping centre, Ebbsfleet will offer an easy “park and ride” option to many travellers.
High speed domestic services from Ebbsfleet International will begin in 2009, taking travellers to Saint Pancras International in 17 minutes flat at speeds up to 225 kmh / 140 mph. It will become both an international and domestic rail hub with easy access by rail to all of Kent.

Ashford
Eurostar will still run services from Ashford International and its services will complement those offered at Ebbsfleet International.
Services stopping at Ashford International will be timed to suit both Leisure and Business travellers. There will be 3 trains a day to Paris along with the daily direct Eurostar to Disneyland and the weekly Avignon trains during the summer.

For more information about these services or to purchase an Eurostar ticket, please consult your Rail Europe travel agent. List to be found on www.raileurope.fr/wheretobuy

EUROPEAN HIGH SPEED RAIL OPERATORS LAUNCH RAILTEAM

Railteam makes international travel on high-speed trains
to and from Europe easy for travellers

Real alternative to air alliances and to travel by car

By 2010, 25 million international travellers on European
high-speed rail network

Rail Europe, the leading distributor of European Rail Products overseas is glad to advertise that on 2 July 2007, seven European high speed train operators announced the start of Railteam. SNCF (France), SBB (Switzerland), Eurostar (UK, France and Belgium), Deutsche Bahn (Germany), SNCB (Belgium), NS Hispeed (The Netherlands), ÖBB (Austria), and subsidiaries Thalys, Lyria and Alleo offer then to give travellers seamless high-speed train travel across international borders in Western Europe.

The already wide range of products of Rail Europe, with a Western European high speed rail network that links over 45 major urban destinations in Europe via over 4,700km of track, will keep on growing as the network will stretch to 6,000 km by 2010 and will triple in size by 2020. However, despite the size and continuing growth of the high speed rail network, many international travellers remain unaware of the benefits of taking high speed rail.

Easy, faster and seamless journeys.

From today, if for any reason, a traveller misses their connection because of a late running service, Railteam will ensure they can hop on the next train, irrespective of the ticket type they have.

Rail Europe’s offer will gain in quality with the diffusion of multi-lingual information onboard trains and in stations that will ensure international travellers know where, when and how to connect onto other services.

Railteam information points will be installed in the five main hubs (Brussels, Cologne, Lille, Frankfurt and Stuttgart), and in the coming months, at other major stations such as London, Strasbourg, Amsterdam and in the main high-speed train stations in Paris.

To reduce transit times for travellers, Railteam partners will also better coordinate connecting departure and arrival times.

Railteam members are investing 30 million euro in a new distribution system that will allow international travellers to find an attractive combination of prices, make a reservation, pay, and receive their ticket from Rail Europe in one transaction.  The new system will go live in 2009.

Railteam also will seek to introduce new innovations as technologies develop over forthcoming years such as text messaging about timetables and service disruptions.

A greener and mart choice: the choice of the future!

Rail Europe expects that with travel on high-speed trains becoming even easier and smoother, increasing numbers of travellers will opt for environmentally friendly high speed train travel within Europe. It is common knowledge that high speed rail journeys release significantly less carbon dioxide than flying to the same destinations.

Extensive research has also shown that business travellers are willing to travel up to four hours on rail because of the increased productivity versus the airlines, whilst leisure travellers are prepared to enjoy longer journeys of around 6 hours.

By 2010, the Railteam members expect 25 million international travellers to be using their European high-speed rail network.

Guillaume Pepy, Chief Executive Officer of SNCF said: “It is achievable when you consider that Rail is served by city centre terminals. Factor in the transport time,travelling to airports, grinding traffic jams, security delays ans so on, and it’s pretty clear that on travel times alone high-speed rail is, at the very least, a realistic alternative on any journey across the Railteam member states”

“High-speed rail represents the future of sustainable, comfortable travel across Europe.”

Turkey - plans to introduce high-speed rail

Holiday-makers interested in travelling through the Balkans will be pleased to know that Turkey is included in the Rail Europe Balkan Flexipass. Other designations included in the FlexiPass are Greece, Bulgaria, Macedonia, Serbia, Montenegro and Romania.

A brief focus on rail travel in Turkey shows some major changes as the country in the process of adopting high-speed trains and by 2008, Ankara, the capital, will be a mere 3h from Istanbul. This train line is one of the most crowded in the country. Currently, there are express trains, a night train and local trains using the line, and in a country where 12 million people travel between Ankara and Istanbul, this is insufficient. However, with the new high-speed trains, this is about to change.

The new high-speed service is being built in two phases, with the first section due to be completed at the end of this year, between Sincan (near Ankara) to Inönü, 251km apart. The second section between Inönü and Köseköy (158km) will be completed in 2008 as well as the linking lines between Sincan and Ankara and Gebze, near Istanbul. The Ankara-Istanbul high-speed project is the first of future projects. Another project will be to link Ankara to Konya, one of Turkey’s major cities in terms of agriculture and industry. Travel time between Istanbul and Konya is currently over 12 hours and will be reduced to 3 hours and 30 minutes.

For travellers intending to visit the country between now and 2008, when the high-speed trains will be introduced, there is still a number of types of interesting trains running through the country with, among others: Super Express trains serving large cities where travellers can choose between luxury pullman or saloon carriages, as well as restaurant and sleeping carriages on the night services. You can also travel on the fast “Blue Trains between Izmi, Iç Anadolu and Cukurova or on traditional Express or Normal passenger trains.

Rail Europe’s Balkan Flexipass is valid for any 5, 10 or 15 days unlimited travel over a one-month period, in 1st class and costs 160€ for an adult travelling any 5 days/month. Offering a large number of reductions on sea crossings between Greek Islands and between Greece and Italy, on hotel prices and on excursions in different cities, Rail Europe’s Balkan Flexipass is undoubtedly the nicest and most cost effective way to travel in the Balkans.

For more information on the Rail Europe Balkan Flexipass, services, travel information and reservations, please contact your agent www.raileurope.fr/wheretobuy

Spain: Madrid-Saragossa-Barcelona

For Spain’s 50 million visitors, Renfe, the Spanish Railways, reinforced services on the Madrid-Barcelon line. They recently launch ALVIA, a new service on the Madrid-Saragossa-Barcelona line. ALVIA runs 12 brand new train-sets, designed by CAF-Alstom, and cuts the journey time by 15 minutes between Barcelona-Madrid, which takes approximately 4 hours and 15 minutes on the direct service. As well as time savings, there are more frequent connections with six daily connections in each direction and one direct service between the two cities. The latter operates every day of the week except Saturdays.

Each train has 238 seats in air-conditioned carriages, with 82 seats in first class (there is a specially designed space for handicapped travellers) and 156 seats in second class. Each seat has plug-in facilities for listening to music or watching videos which can be hired in the dining carriage. First-class passengers are treated royally with extra privileges and services such as on-board meals and access to the Sala Club in the terminal train stations.

For more information on Rail Europe Passes to Spain or reserving your train seats on Alvia, please contact your agent: www.raileurope.fr/wheretobuy

Spain: AVE high speed trains run at 250km/h

More good news for travellers to Spain! Renfe, the Spanish Railways, who run AVE, the high speed train service announced that trains will circulate at 250km/h on the Madrid, Saragossa and Lleida line, heading northwards from Madrid.

Time savings between Madrid and Saragossa are 19 minutes with journey time now taking 1h40. On the Madrid to Lleida journey, time savings are 28 minutes with the trip now taking only 2h30.

In terms of comfort, the new series of carriages, built by the Talgo-Bombardier consortium, with its 316 seats has several comfort levels for passengers – 6 Tourist Class, 3 Preferential, 2 Club and I Restaurant carriage. Access to the carriages and seating have been adapted to ensure disabled travellers can manoeuvre on board with greater ease. Seats are reclinable and passengers can turn them around so that they can travel in the same direction as the train. Each passenger has its personal audio-video systems in his or her seat which operates via GPS technology and offers a selection of channels for relaxed journeys.
For more information on reserving train seats on the AVE or elsewhere in Spain, please contact your agent: www.raileurope.fr/wheretobuy

Germany: 5th High-speed line opens 28th May

On May 28th, Germany’s 5th high-speed line will commence partial service, cutting the journey time on the Munich-Nuremberg line from 1h27 minutes (via Augsburg) down to 1h by December this year. The new service will be up and running in nice time for the ICE trains operating special football services during the forthcoming 2006 FIFA World Cup. Speeds on the line will be up to 300km per hour. The new line will avoid trains en route from Hamburg or Frankfurt having to reverse in Nuremberg.

When initially started in 1998, the project involved upgrading the existing 82km line from Munich to Ingolstadt and building a new 89km line from Ingolstadt to Nuremberg south. This new route will provide the shortest and fastest connection between the two cities of Munich and Nuremberg.

To all fans intending to attend the 2006 FIFA World Cup, please contact your agent for more information.

ICE Sprinter puts Cologne and Stuttgart less than two hours apart

Germany’s high speed trains criss-cross the country. Business and leisure travellers can enjoy a very attractive transport system connecting major towns and cities and in neighbouring countries. Currently, the ICE (high speed) service links Hamburg across to Osnabruck, with connections to the Netherlands. It then goes down through the Ruhr Valley through Cologne, with trains going on to Belgium and France. ICE trains continue down to Stuttgart, with links to Switzerland and Italy, across to Munich and around to Berlin, to name but the major lines.

As of May of this year, the new ICE Sprinter will link Cologne to Stuttgart in less than two hours and provide additional services to alleviate the peak periods, primarily in the morning and evenings. There is an additional stop-over in Mannheim. Currently, the journey time is 2 hours and 14 minutes by train. The 377 km journey between the two cities, which normally takes 3 hours 40 minutes by car will take 1 hour 57 minutes by train, meaning considerable time savings for all travellers.

First class travellers can relax on the early morning service (dept Cologne 7h29 – arr Stuggart 9h26) and enjoy a complimentary breakfast, avail of the evening meal service on the return leg (dept Stuttgart 18h33 – arr Cologne 20h29) or enjoy snacks and hot or cold drinks outside of these hours. Second class travellers can enjoy their meal at their seats as the trolley car comes through offering meals and drinks or use the self-service machines in each coach. 

For visitors planning to attend this year’s World Cup taking place in June in Germany, this is excellent good news, as all cities where matchs are being played are linked by ICE train services. For more information, please contact your agent.

New high speed train between Rome and Naples now running

Travellers to Italy can now enjoy shorter journey times when planning trips to Italy’s prime destinations. For visitors wishing to include Naples and its attractions (Vesuvio, Pompeii etc) in the Roman leg of their trip, the new high speed service puts Naples a mere hour and twenty seven minutes away.

Work commenced on this line back in 1994 and 90% of the high speed link is completed. Italy’s rich past came once again to the fore as over 23 archaeological sites were discovered during the work phases on the Rome-Naples line which meant rail works progressed alongside exploratory digs. The remaining 20km will be finished by 2008, when the high speed line links are connected in to the neapolitan metropolitan services. This new hub central station, planned at Naples-Afragola, will also be a regional link to stations in the heel and toe of the peninsula.

The overall Italian high speed line will resemble a T, with an west-east link from Turin through to the Adriatic port of Trieste, which will link in to the Slovenian line to Eastern Europe, and on the western side linking in to the French service into Lyon and onwards. Plans to link the port of Genoa to Milan are underway, which will in turn link into Trieste. In this way the principle business and tourist sites in Italy are or will be linked with high speed services, offering travellers major time savings on reaching their destinations and removing the hassle-factor of reaching overcrowded airports.