Gratis gids 10 verborgen natuurplekken in Europa. Meld je aan voor onze nieuwsbrief en ontvang inspirerende reistips en routes voor je volgende groene reis.
City Trips by Train: From Berlin to Krakow and Ljubljana
City trips by train? Want to explore Europe in a relaxed and sustainable way? Then an Interrail city trip is a great choice. In this article, I’ll share my travel experiences from a 3-week Interrail itinerary I put together myself, visiting 7 European cities. I’ll also include practical tips for your own Interrail adventure.
The Interrail City Break Route
1. By Train to Berlin
The trip from Arnhem to Berlin takes 5.5 hours
This city is brimming with history, art, and trendy breakfast spots. I had booked all my accommodations in advance. That way, I could be sure my hotel was near the train station. Of course, you don’t have to do this, but it might save you some stress once you’re there. Read more here about traveling to Berlin by train.
Accommodation tip: B&B Hotel Berlin-Mitte.
Breakfast at: Sag mir wo die Blumen sind.
Sights: Brandenburg Gate, Holocaust Memorial, Berlin Wall, Fotografiska, Checkpoint Charlie, and the Berlin Wall.
2. From Berlin to Warsaw
Travel time from Berlin: approx. 5 hours
After two days in Berlin, on to Warsaw. A quiet, charming city with a regal air. The city has a pleasant and friendly atmosphere. They don’t use the euro here—it’s the Polish zloty. Fortunately, you can use your debit card just about everywhere.
Accommodation tip: Motel One Warsaw-Chopin. Dining tip: The Botanist restaurant (vegetarian).
Highlights: Royal Palace, Lazienki Park, Old Town.
3. By Train to Krakow
The trip from Warsaw to Krakow takes 2.5 hours
Krakow is a charming city full of culture and history. It has lovely squares and streets. You can walk to Wawel Castle (on a hill). It has a beautiful cathedral, a castle, and fantastic views. You can also book a tour from Kraków to Auschwitz (by bus with a tour guide).
Accommodation tip: Vinci Apartment, located near the main square. Dining tip: La Grande Mamma.
Things to Do: Visit Wawel Castle, book a tour to Auschwitz.
4. From Krakow to Budapest
Travel time from Krakow: 8.5 hours ( be sure to bring plenty of snacks)
On to Budapest. This trip takes a little longer. Be sure to bring plenty of provisions. There are plenty of shops at the Krakow train station where you can pick up some food. They don’t use the euro in Budapest either. But it’s a beautiful city. You’ll cross the Danube River and find yourself in a lovely wooded area (Gellért Hill). It offers a stunning view of Budapest. Other highlights worth visiting include the Great Synagogue, the Fisherman’s Bastion, the Buda Castle, the Old Jewish Quarter, and the bathhouses. You can easily spend a week here.
The shoes lined up along the edge of the quay are a striking sight, commemorating the Jews who were executed in the city.
Note: To continue my journey, I had to go to a different station than the one I had arrived at. Please pay close attention to this.
Accommodation Tip: Paulay Downtown Apartments
Breakfast: Blueberry Brunch
Discover: the Chain Bridge, Gellért Hill, the Fisherman’s Bastion, the synagogue, the bathhouses, and the shoes on the Danube embankment.
5. By train to Zagreb, Croatia
The trip from Budapest to Zagreb takes about 6 hours
This compact capital city is ideal for a more leisurely pace. It’s smaller than Budapest but just as pleasant if you’ve been traveling for a while. Be sure to visit the National Theater, the Ilica Funicular (the world’s shortest funicular), Zagreb Cathedral, Dolac Market, and St. Mark’s Church. The city isn’t very big, so you can easily book a hotel that’s a little further from the center.
The “Botanical Garden” is really nice: for a €2 admission fee, you can spend a whole day here enjoying a beautiful piece of nature with many different plants, trees, and flowers.
Accommodation tip: Stay outside the city center for a more affordable stay.
Breakfast/lunch at Melt.
Must-sees: Botanical Garden, Zagreb Cathedral, Dolac Market.
6. From Zagreb to Ljubljana by train
It takes less than 2.5 hours to get from Zagreb to Ljubljana
A short train ride (2h 20m) takes you to this surprisingly charming capital of Slovenia. The journey itself is beautiful, by the way. You’ll pass by stunning lakes and breathtaking natural scenery. Ljubljana is also a lot of fun; you can explore the entire city on foot. It’s full of beautiful buildings and squares. Highlights of the city include the Dragon Bridge and Ljubljanski grad, a medieval castle on Castle Hill. You can climb one of its towers for a great view and visit a few museums there.
I also took a guided bus tour from Ljubljana to Lake Bled. My guide told me a lot about Slovenia and its history. It was very interesting and definitely worth doing. We took a small boat to a little island in the middle of the lake. It’s a beautiful Nature reserve and makes you curious about the rest of the country.
Restaurant recommendation: Parenzana Ljubljana. I really enjoyed sitting outside here. A very nice man helped me with the menu and the drink list. By the way, they brew their own beer here!
Accommodation Tip: Penzion Pod Lipo
Dining tip: Stazione Parenzana Ljubljana.
Highlights: Dragon Bridge, Ljubljana Castle, day trip to Lake Bled.
7. From Ljubljana to Vienna
The trip from Ljubljana to Vienna takes about 6 hours
The last stop on my trip. I stayed close to the station, which was convenient for the return trip. I was able to leave my luggage at the hotel all day. The city is quite large and has a lot to offer. Public transportation works very well here. I had a delicious lunch at Café Meierei Volksgarten, right in the middle of a park. Near this park, you’ll also find the Kunsthistorisches Museum. Be sure to check out the Hundertwasserhaus, Belvedere Palace (which houses Gustav Klimt’s *The Kiss*, among other works), the State Opera, and St. Stephen’s Cathedral.
Tips: Museum of Art History, Belvedere Palace, St. Stephen’s Cathedral, Hundertwasser House, State Opera.
Outdoor seating: Café-Meierei Volksgarten.
I traveled back to the Netherlands from Vienna. City trips by train are definitely worth considering. In just three weeks, I visited seven beautiful European cities at a great price. Of course, you can also choose to go away for much longer and plan your own itinerary. Click here for all our train travel tips.
What is Interrail, and how does it work?
Interrail is a pass that lets you travel flexibly by train throughout (almost) all of Europe. For this trip, Merel purchased a 10-day pass valid for 2 months. You can choose from various options, such as:
Download the Interrail app, activate your pass, and add your destinations. Seat reservations are required for some routes. You can book these online, and in some cases, you’ll receive them by mail. So don’t forget to make your reservations in time and keep your ID handy during your trip. Discounts on the above fares are available for young people up to age 27 and seniors age 60 and older.
Note: Interrail does not notify you if train schedules change or if a train is canceled. You’ll need to keep an eye on this yourself. You can also reserve a sleeper berth on night trains. This is handy for the return trip from Vienna. Read more about the night train to Vienna here.
Bonjour, my name is Nathalie. France is my great passion. I take just about every opportunity to travel to France (preferably by train) to highlight undiscovered gems.
Whether cycling, hiking or climbing. I prefer to combine nature and culture so France is the place to be!
In addition to writing and vlogging, I organize (group) trips in cooperation with magazines and travel agencies.
For Nature Travel Lab, I also like to take occasional trips into my own country, the United Kingdom and whatever else comes my way. Will you join me?
Bear Watching in Slovenia: An Evening in the Observation Hut Near Postojna Bear watching in Slovenia might be closer than you think: in the forests near Postojna, just over an hour from Ljubljana. Nathalie joined us in the observation hut one evening. Slovenia is...
Cycling or taking public transportation along the Romantic Road: a road trip through Bavaria without a car Cycling or taking public transportation along the Romantic Road sounds like a contradiction: after all, the word “Strasse” practically screams “car.” Yet this is...
Lübeck & Travemünde: a green city break along the Baltic Sea Sleeping in an old Kellogg’s grain silo, having breakfast without cornflakes the next morning, and a day later searching for kingfishers on a river that once ran right through the Iron Curtain. Our short...
Peloponnese Hiking Tour
A really beautiful six-day hike from Bologna to Florence. Communication with NatureTravelLab and the local agent was excellent. The information packet was waiting for us at the hotel in Bologna, and the app with the route worked great. Luggage transport was well organized every day, and our bags were waiting for us each time we arrived at our new room! We covered more than 1,400 meters of elevation gain, but unfortunately didn’t always get the views we’d hoped for due to cloud cover and some drizzle. Most days had great hiking weather. It was wonderful to walk into Florence on foot and stay there an extra day.
We experienced the Walk of the Gods as a great adventure. Our start in Bologna didn’t go quite as planned because our app wasn’t working yet and we couldn’t find a single sign for Via degli Dei in the square. Fortunately, we were quickly able to join two young hikers from Florence who were also doing the hike. After a wonderful night’s stay at the beautiful Rio Verde agritourism farm, Day 2 went much better with the help of the hiking app. Along the way, we enjoyed stunning views, met some great fellow hikers, and sampled delicious local dishes. Unfortunately, the weather wasn’t always on our side, and we had a day of heavy rain, which made the trail very slippery and required us to be careful. It’s a real treat when, on the last day, you can already see Florence in the distance and walk into this beautiful city a few hours later. Thank you so much for your quick and friendly responses to all our questions.
We enjoyed the trip. We also made some changes to our itinerary, and the email correspondence went very smoothly. We started in Mantera; the next day, our first and only hike was a really beautiful one. The taxi picked us up right on time. Unfortunately, the second day’s route was almost the same when we cycled to Ostuni. The bikes were well-maintained, including panniers and helmets (these were simply included). You could even bring your own water bottle!!! We found the route very scenic and varied. There were charming little villages where we could stop for lunch or coffee. The app worked great. All the hotels ranged from good to excellent, though we didn’t think the hotel in Leuca was worthy of 4 stars. We followed your advice for the two nights we stayed there. We found Leuca a bit underwhelming for a two-day stay. We would have preferred to stay in Gallipoli or Lecce for two days. We took this trip in April and were very lucky with the weather. It’s still a quiet time of year, but we didn’t mind that. We definitely recommend it!!!
Thanks to a great tip from Nature Travel Lab, we had a wonderful week in Italy. Fattoria di Maiano, just outside Florence, was a beautiful and peaceful place. And the suggested road trips were a great guide for exploring the region. We’ll definitely check here for tips for our next vacation, too. Highly recommended!
We spent a divine week in Italy: we walked the Path of the Gods, from Bologna to Florence—about 135 km spread over 6 days of hiking. Challenging distances and climbs, amazing views, nature, and a warm welcome every time we arrived at the agriturismo or albergo/hotel. All of this was perfectly organized by the Italian company Slow Active Tours, entirely in line with Nature Travel Lab’s itinerary proposal: upon arrival in Bologna, an information packet was waiting for us, complete with a hiking map, a booklet, and passports for the stamps. And the hiking app was very practical for along the way! Our luggage was transported every day and was always waiting for us when we arrived at the next location. Communication was smooth and clear. In short, highly recommended, well worth it, and well-organized.
In September, I walked the Cammino Materano. Communicating with Madelon about the booking was a pleasure. To be honest, I was quite nervous because it was my first time doing a multi-day hike—alone and in a region I wasn’t familiar with—but I thoroughly enjoyed it. The hike to Matera was beautiful, and I was able to complete it without any trouble thanks to the clear on-site signage and the routing and advice provided by the GPS app. The rest of the organization was top-notch as well. My luggage always arrived on time at the right destination, and the hotels and B&Bs were of high quality. In addition, the organizers were easy to reach via WhatsApp if I had any questions. Highly recommended!
Slovenia was absolutely amazing. A beautiful country, friendly people, lovely hiking trails, and truly top-notch hotels. The staff at the local organization were also very easy to reach and helpful. The hiking was manageable. As Dutch people, we’re not used to high altitudes, of course, so it was pretty tough at times. But it was also a lot of fun.
We had a wonderful trip. Everything was well organized. Due to an unfortunate fall, I ended up traveling with my luggage for a day, but that was handled well, too. We really liked all the accommodations. Only the Hotel Hebe in St. Piero a Sieve was a little less impressive, but it was still okay.
Looks fantastic! I'm definitely going to book a trip with this company... they're committed to sustainability and personalized advice. Definitely worth it.
Madelon and her team are true experts. Thanks to their years of experience and passion for travel, they manage to surprise us time and time again.
Beautiful hikes, the most picturesque spots—it’s a real treat.
I highly recommend them!
Nature Travel Lab provided us with very helpful and honest assistance!
If you’re looking for travel itineraries, the most beautiful hikes, and destinations, you can find it all here. You’ll find endless inspiration for your next trip. Beautiful cities are interspersed with nature. You’ll find everything you need to know about practical matters. Plus, there are plenty of tips for sustainable travel. That way, you’ll get the most out of your trip.
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Get inspired
Are you looking for the most beautiful hiking and biking routes? Or do you want information about traveling by train or advice for the most beautiful road trips through nature. Get inspired for your next trip in green; ideas for planning your own trip or opting for an organized trip.
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