Trains are great – who knew? Well, we did, and that’s why we’re talking about them all the damn time. But think about it: they’re often more affordable with far fewer hidden fees, you can bring more baggage, there’s none of that checking in two hours before business and they’re better for the planet.
They can even cross oceans. Yep, while the UK is an island, trains have been ferrying passengers across the channel into the continent since the ’90s, and with all the new services debuting across Europe, there are more destinations on offer than ever.
A brand-new Which? survey has asked more than 1,000 members to rate their experience of travelling to various European destinations (which are seven hours away or less by train) by rating things such as accommodation, attraction and value for money out of five stars, and the results are in.
According to the survey, Bruges is the best European destination reachable by rail from the UK. The Belgian city has an overall score of 85 percent, and it garnered four stars for its food and drink, accommodation offering, cultural sights and value for money.
Bordeaux claimed second place, and Amsterdam claimed third. Overall, there are seven French entries on the list – makes sense, given it’s the closest – but at least two from Germany, the Netherlands, Belgium and Switzerland, too.
The best European city breaks reachable by train from the UK
- Bruges
- Bordeaux
- Amsterdam
- Avignon
- Rotterdam
- Ghent
- Paris
- Strasbourg
- Cologne
- Lyon
- Brussels
- Lille
- Basel
- Frankfurt
- Marseille
- Geneva
All aboard
Getting to Europe from London is ridiculously easy, and it’s all thanks to our marvellous trains. We have our very own roundup of the best train journeys to Europe from the UK capital, but while we’re on the subject of trains, check out all these exciting sleeper trains you can now catch across the continent.
Did you see that France is selling super-cheap train tickets this month?
Plus: A brand-new high-speed train will soon link two of Spain’s coolest cities.
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