Traveling through Europe by rail has advantages over auto and air travel

Rail travel might not have earned a very good reputation in the U.S., but if you can lug your own suitcases, it is certainly the best way to see Europe.

Travel by rail through Europe is reasonable, convenient and generally on time.

Last fall I took a six-city tour through Italy, Austria and Germany with my friend and her daughter, who was studying in Italy.

None of us wanted to rent a car and drive, and flying between six cities would have been prohibitively expensive because the new no-frills airlines don't fly between smaller cities without routing you through their hub, adding time and expense.

So we each purchased a first-class, three-country Eurail pass for 270 euros (about $424), plus 96 euros (about $150) for seat reservations, including one overnight, and had the time of our lives.

College girls

We began our adventure in Florence, Italy, where we met my friend's daughter. While she attended classes, we toured on foot, seeing everything from the Duomo to the jewelry-shop-laden Ponte Vecchio bridge, and from the Pitti Palace to the Uffizi gallery.

We enjoyed delicious food at both the inexpensive student haunts and the pricier restaurants, which my friend's daughter and some of her fellow students were waiting to try until someone with a more substantial bank balance came to visit.

And best of all, we were able to see it all through the eyes of college girls who had already spent two months in the city and knew its nooks and crannies.

After three days in Florence, we packed our bags and headed for the train station, conveniently located in the center of the city only a few blocks from the Duomo.

The placement of train stations in the centers of European cities was a convenience and a money saver that I hadn't anticipated. Compared to the taxi fare to the cities' airports, the small amount of time and money involved in getting to train stations was a pleasant surprise.

As for the stations themselves, they varied from city to city, but were universally crowded, though extremely organized. Signs announcing trains were constantly updated and you had no excuse for not knowing that your train was leaving. English and many other languages were routinely used in announcements.

And there were always fast-food restaurants where you could get food for the train, and small gift shops selling souvenirs, even in the smallest cities.

No time to tarry

Once your train was announced, it was definitely time to look at your ticket for your car number and start moving toward the train. European trains wait for no one and the doors between cars are not wide enough to pull most luggage through.

We rode in the first-class accommodations, which were quite comfortable. In Italy, most of them were open with four seats centered around a table on one side and two seats facing each other with a table between them on the other side.

In Austria and Germany, the compartments were enclosed with sliding doors opening onto a hallway. Six people could sit in each compartment, three on each side, and there was no table.

In both cases, luggage had to be hefted onto racks above the seats. Let me emphasize that you must handle all of this on your own. There are conductors in the cars, but they don't touch your luggage -- ever.

Rome was our second destination and the ride from Florence was about an hour and a half. We loved the fact that instead of flying over the Italian countryside, we got to ride right through it, without worrying about traffic jams or reading maps in an unfamiliar language.

When we arrived in Rome, we thought we had gathered all our bags when we were leaving, but one was left behind. We noticed this within minutes of leaving the train. My friend hopped back on to retrieve her bag and, to our surprise, the independent baggage porter we hired to take us to the taxi stand ran onto the train with her.

We assumed he was just hoping to help her with the bag to earn a bigger tip, but found out later that homeless people routinely board European trains after passengers disembark, looking for forgotten items that they can claim. One such person was already in our car when my friend ran in to grab her bag. The porter followed her to avert an altercation.

So make sure you have all your belongings before you leave the train. There is no such thing as a lost and found. Scavengers get whatever you forget -- and quickly.

Like Florence, Rome's train station was just a quick taxi ride from our hotel. Our two days in Rome were a wonderful mix of Roman ruins, the Vatican, designer shopping and to-die-for food. Best of all, we could eat however much we wanted because we walked so much.

From train to canal

The city of bridges, Venice, was next on our itinerary and the train from Rome to Venice took half a day. Once again, the lovely landscapes we saw from the windows only enhanced our trip.

Entering Venice via rail was definitely the way to go. The train station is on the edge of the central city. Right in front of it is a dock for the public boats that act as mass transportation in this city of canals. Rail passengers are able to pull their bags to the canal boats that take them close to their hotels.

Anyone who has ever been to Venice will tell you that nothing is convenient in that city. You end up hauling your suitcases up and over many bridges to get to your hotel.

But coming in by train makes the trek much shorter and easier. Parking in the remote garages involves an expensive boat ride that drops you off near the train station, and the airport is much farther away and involves expensive taxis on both land and canal.

Venice was a quick stop for us, but we enjoyed the sites and particularly the lovely glass shops and fascinating glass factories on the island of Murano.

Our most exciting rail trip was the overnight train from Venice to Vienna, Austria -- through the Alps.

Bunk beds

The three of us shared two sleeper compartments, which had a door that opened between them. The quarters were cramped, but the beds were surprisingly comfortable and the motion of the train actually rocked me to sleep.

Each compartment had two beds arranged in bunk style. The passenger in the top bunk was held in with several seat belts that extended from the ceiling to the base of the bed, making it impossible to fall out during a jarring stop. There was also a small sink with water for washing, but not drinking. We were provided with bottled water and a small goody bag of supplies, including soap and toothpaste. The toilet facilities were down the hall at the end of the train car.

A porter saw to our needs, including a continental breakfast, but not to our luggage, of course.

We arrived in Vienna first thing in the morning and spent two days enjoying the sights, including watching the Lipizzaner horses work out at the Spanish Riding School and touring both the Schonbrunn Palace and St. Stephen's Cathedral.

The change from pasta to wiener schnitzel and dumplings was jarring, but so was the overnight switch from Italy's laid-back lifestyle to Austria's Germanic hustle and bustle. We adjusted, however, and drank in the culture.

A quick exit

Our next train hop was, in some ways, our most stressful. It was only an hour's ride to Salzburg, the place where "The Sound of Music" was filmed. Unlike our other trips, Salzburg was a stopover for the train, not a final destination, so we only had a few minutes to get ourselves and our bags off the train before it pulled out again. In that same short stop, people getting on in Salzburg had to get their things onto the train.

We were standing at the door with our luggage lined up when we pulled into Salzburg. One of us got off and we handed all the baggage to her and then hopped off ourselves, making room for others to get on.

Somehow, it all worked and before we knew it, we were standing on the platform with our luggage and the train was pulling away. Schedules are everything in Europe.

I cannot say enough about Salzburg. It was the incredible, surprising jewel of our trip. We wished we had planned to stay longer than one night.

We had reserved places on the "Sound of Music" bus tour and had a wonderful time seeing the surrounding lake country, as well as all of the places where the movie was filmed.

And walking the narrow streets of Salzburg was like stepping back in time. It was the most picturesque place I have seen.

So it was with great reluctance that we boarded the train the next afternoon for our final rail trip to Munich, Germany. This was an uneventful trip, once we managed to fling our bags and ourselves onto the train when it made its short stop in Salzburg.

The mountain scenery throughout Austria was breathtaking. A flight could not begin to compete and would not have allowed for our unforgettable stop in Salzburg.

We enjoyed much of Munich and felt we needed and wanted to see Dachau, the Nazi concentration camp on its outskirts.

Dining at the famous Hofbrauhaus was an amazing experience in and of itself.

When we took a taxi to the Munich Airport on the morning we left for home, the most surprising benefit to traveling by rail hit all of us. The 10-euro taxi ride from the train station to our hotel on our way into the city paled in comparison to the 75-euro fare for the taxi to the airport on our way out of the city.

Imagine the cost if we had been traveling from far-flung airports into city centers in each of those cities we visited. It would have certainly cut into our budgets for sightseeing, dining and shopping -- which is the whole reason for going to Europe in the first place.

If you go

Europe by train

Go: If you are willing to pack light and haul and stow your own baggage

No: If you like to pack heavy and have someone schlep your bags for you

Need to know: Eurail, www.eurail.com; Rail Europe, (800) 438-7245

Eurail: This railway system serves 25 European countries with both hotel (overnight) trains and daylight trains.

Cost: Eurail passes can range from $49 for the Eurail Slovenia Pass, which entitles you to unlimited rail travel in Slovenia only for three days within a one-month period, to $2,089 for an adult who chooses to travel 15 days through up to 20 different countries over a three-month period. Whatever pass you choose, purchase it in the U.S. because not all passes are available in Europe and any pass you purchase there will cost you 20 percent more, plus shipping costs.

Tips:

• Pack light and pack smart. If it is going to be chilly, take thin, lightweight "Under Armour"-style tops and bottoms instead of bulky sweaters that take up room in your suitcase. These can be washed out in your hotel sink and dried overnight.

• Take a soft-sided duffel bag instead of a rectangular hard-sided or semi-hard-sided case. Malleable duffels are easier to stow in tight places.

• Don't forget a small umbrella or "raincoat in a bag." Just because you are on vacation doesn't mean it won't rain.

• Bring an extra duffel and keep it in the bottom of your suitcase to carry purchases when you return to the States.

• Make sure your shoes are broken in and very comfortable. Even the best trip can be ruined by bad shoes.

• Make copies of your passport. Leave one at home with someone who can e-mail it to you, if necessary. Exchange copies with your traveling partners so if one person's luggage or purse is stolen, at least someone has a copy of your papers.

Tour resources:

For Vatican, Colosseum and Heart of Rome tours in Rome: www.angeltoursrome.net. Knowledgeable, native English speakers lead you through these attractions and know how to avoid the lines.

"Sound of Music" tour in Salzburg: www.panoramatours.com. It might sound corny, but this tour was great.