Interrailing: Traveling Through Europe Beyond the Destination

Introduction

Travelling has increasingly become associated with speed and efficiency, particularly through the growth of air travel and digital tourism culture (Urry & Larsen, 2011). Social media platforms often present travel as a collection of highlights and carefully curated moments, emphasizing destinations rather than the experience of movement itself (MacCannell, 2013). Interrailing offers a different approach. Rather than focusing solely on arrival, it emphasizes the journey: moving gradually through landscapes, crossing borders by train, and experiencing travel at a slower pace.

For me, interrailing represents more than simply taking trains across Europe. It is a way of exploring places, cultures, and perspectives while temporarily stepping outside of everyday routines. The unpredictability of train travel, the changing environments, and the encounters with different people create an experience that feels more immersive than conventional tourism.

What is Interrailing?

Interrailing is a train travel system that allows travellers to move flexibly across multiple European countries using a single rail pass. The Interrail concept was introduced in 1972 and has since become one of the most recognized forms of backpacking and independent travel within Europe (Interrail, 2024). Through the Interrail Pass, travellers gain access to an extensive railway network connecting cities and countries across the continent.

One of the defining characteristics of interrailing is that it changes the relationship between travel and time. Unlike air travel, where movement between destinations is often disconnected from the surrounding environment, train travel makes distance visible and gradual (Urry & Larsen, 2011). Landscapes shift slowly, languages change across borders, and cultural differences become noticeable over time rather than instantly.

Because of this, interrailing is often experienced not only as transportation, but as an important part of the journey itself.

My Previous Experiences with Interrailing

My first interrailing experience took place in 2022, shortly after graduation. The first part of the journey was shared with a close friend as a graduation trip. Together, we travelled from Thessaloniki to Sofia, followed by Graz, Vienna, and finally Frankfurt. After Frankfurt, we went our separate ways. While my friend returned home, I continued travelling alone through Antwerp, Paris, Barcelona, Seville, Sagres, Tossa de Mar, and Lyon before eventually returning to the Netherlands.

This first month-long journey became much more than a vacation. Travelling independently at the age o

f eighteen required constant adaptation, decision-making, and self-management. Beyond discovering different European cultures, I also learned how to navigate uncertainty, responsibility, and solitude while moving continuously between unfamiliar environments.

In 2023, I travelled again, this time with two college friends. Starting from Maastricht, we

moved through Annecy, Nice, Rome, Naples, Dubrovnik, Zagreb, Ljubljana, Budapest, and Prague. Although we originally planned to continue toward Berlin, several unfortunate situations along the journey caused us to return home earlier than expected.

Compared to the first trip, this experience highlighted the importance of group dynamics during long-term travel. Interrailing with multiple people requires compromise, communication, and flexibility, especially when fatigue, stress, or unexpected circumstances arise. It became clear that travelling is shaped not only by destinations, but also by the relationships and interactions between the people sharing the experience.

In 2024, I completed a shorter interrailing trip, beginning in Berlin and continuing through Wrocław, Poprad, Graz, Trieste, and once again Frankfurt before returning home. This time, my boyfriend joined for a period of time. Although shorter in duration, this trip felt more intentional and reflective. By this point, I had developed a clearer understanding of how I personally prefer to travel and what I value within these experiences.

Across these three journeys, I encountered different cultures, environments, and travel dynamics, but I also learned a great deal about myself. Interrailing taught me not only about cultural differences and communication styles, but also about adaptability, independence, and the importance of understanding how different personalities function together in unfamiliar situations.

In many ways, these journeys shaped my understanding of what meaningful travel actually is. Rather than focusing solely on destinations, I increasingly began to value reflection, spontaneity, and the process of movement itself.

Planning for This Summer

This upcoming summer feels different from my previous interrailing experiences. In many ways, it represents a transition between two phases of life. By then, I will have almost completed my bachelor’s degree, moved out of the dorm I lived in for three and a half years, and closed a chapter that has largely defined my early adulthood. During that period, student life became strongly connected to community, independence, and personal development. I spent two and a half years in a sorority, served as treasurer on the board for half a year, and experienced life abroad through exchanges and internships in Dublin and Kingston.

Because of this, the next trip feels less like a typical vacation and more like a reflection on the past few years before transitioning into a new stage focused on graduation internships, professional life, and different responsibilities. It feels like a moment positioned between student life and working life, between familiarity and change.

Although I still plan to travel through interrail, the purpose of the journey is shifting a bit.

Earlier trips were often driven by spontaneity, social experiences, and the excitement of movement itself. This time, I feel more drawn toward reflection and nature. Instead of focusing primarily on cities, nightlife, or fast-paced travel, I want to spend more time outdoors and move through landscapes more intentionally.

The current plan is to travel through the United Kingdom and Ireland, with a particular focus on Scotland and Ireland in its entirety. Alongside travelling by train, I want to incorporate trekking and hiking into the experience. Compared to previous interrailing trips, this introduces a different rhythm: less focused on constantly moving between destinations and more focused on spending time within environments themselves.

This change also reflects a broader shift in what I currently value in travelling. Where earlier trips were strongly connected to discovery and social exploration, this upcoming journey feels more connected to reflection, stillness, and personal reset. Long-distance hiking and train travel both share a similar quality in that they slow down movement and create space for observation. In a period where many aspects of life are changing simultaneously, that slower pace feels increasingly important.

Rather than treating this journey as an ending, I see it more as a transition. It is an opportunity to reflect on the experiences, relationships, and environments that shaped my college years, while also creating space to think about the direction of the next phase of life. Ultimately, this trip feels less about escaping everyday responsibilities and more about consciously moving from one chapter into another. So stay tuned!

References (APA)

Dickinson, J. E., Lumsdon, L., & Robbins, D. (2011). Slow travel: Issues for tourism and climate change. Journal of Sustainable Tourism, 19(3), 281–300.

Interrail. (2024). About Interrail.

MacCannell, D. (2013). The tourist: A new theory of the leisure class. University of California Press.

The Culture Map. (2014). The culture map: Breaking through the invisible boundaries of global business. PublicAffairs.

Urry, J., & Larsen, J. (2011). The tourist gaze 3.0. Sage.