Travelling flight-free across Europe: trains, night trains and ferries to explore the continent
How to travel flight-free across Europe: real night trains, Interrail and ferries for slow destinations from Sicily to the Balkans.
Giving up flying isn't a penance: it's a different way of measuring distances. Travelling flight-free across Europe, above all by train, means crossing landscapes instead of flying over them, arriving in the city centre rather than at a peripheral terminal, and sharply lowering the carbon footprint of your trip. Here's how to actually get around, with real lines and concrete hubs, not just good intentions.
The starting point is to grasp that the European rail network is already one continuous system. From Italy you reach Paris on the Frecciarossa Milan-Lyon-Paris (running again after the reopening of the Maurienne line), and from there the fan opens out with Thalys-Eurostar to Brussels, Amsterdam, London. For the north and east, the hub is Vienna, from which daytime connections run to Prague, Budapest, Ljubljana.
The night trains
Night trains are the heart of this way of travelling, and in 2026 the map has changed. We've devoted a whole guide to Europe's night trains and slow travel: here it's enough to say that the ÖBB Nightjet network remains solid towards Germany, Belgium, the Netherlands and Italy, with the new "Mini Cabin" carriages (private capsule-berths at a modest price), but it has lost important lines — the Nightjets to Paris and those to La Spezia, gateway to the Cinque Terre, have been discontinued. Filling the gaps is the independent operator European Sleeper, which from 2026 links Brussels to Prague, relaunches Paris-Berlin and, from September, inaugurates Brussels-Zurich-Milan via the Gotthard. On the domestic front, Trenitalia's Intercity Notte remain a comfortable way to head south: Milan and Rome towards Sicily, with the carriages loaded onto the ferry that crosses the Strait of Messina, an experience that's worth the journey.
Italy by train
Once you're on the ground, Italy by train rewards those in no hurry. Eastern Sicily by train, between Catania, Syracuse and the Val di Noto can be explored beautifully without a car, as can Emilia-Romagna along the Via Emilia, where every station is a historic centre. For wine there's the weekend between Langhe and Monferrato by train, from Alba to Barolo and Canelli, while Friuli Venezia Giulia between Cividale, Palmanova and Carnia lends itself to a slow itinerary along the border. Even Basilicata without a car, between Matera, the Murgia and the Lucanian Dolomites is reachable by combining train and bus, and Abruzzo at a slow pace among the villages of the Gran Sasso proves that the mountains are not off-limits for those travelling by rail.
For anyone who wants to move around without single tickets, the Interrail Global Pass is the right tool: a single pass covering most of the European networks, with a number of travel days chosen in advance. It's designed precisely for those who chain together several stops — handy for heading towards central Europe, where less touristy Prague and the Europe in between can be reached by night train. From the Czech hub you easily reach Sedlec, the other Kutná Hora with its Cistercian crypts; from Vienna, a night on the train takes you to Budapest and the türbe of Gül Baba, the northernmost Ottoman mausoleum in Europe.
Where the sea takes over
Where the railway stops, the sea begins. The overnight ferries from the Adriatic ports are the natural hinge towards the Balkans and Greece: from Bari, Brindisi and Ancona you set sail for Igoumenitsa and Patras, and from there an inland bus reaches Epirus and the Vikos gorge, among the deepest in the world. Also from the Adriatic, the ships to Durrës and Vlorë open up Albania: just a few hours by bus and you climb to Berat, the city of a thousand windows. And for Bulgaria, take the train to Sofia and then the regional line towards the Rhodope monasteries around Bachkovo.
Practical advice
A few practical tips. Book the night trains well in advance: berths and cabins sell out, and fares climb. Always check the timetable in force — the network changes every December. For complex itineraries, the site seat61.com remains the most reliable reference for real connections. And factor in the dead time: it's part of the method, not a flaw. Travelling flight-free forces you to slow down, and almost always it's precisely in that slowing down that the journey begins.
Practical guides for Como
Practical info
When is the best time to visit Travelling flight-free across Europe?
The recommended time is April, May, June, September and October, when it is less crowded.
Where is Travelling flight-free across Europe?
Travelling flight-free across Europe is located in Italy.
