A vacation by train is not something we are used to, however, it was quite an adventure to take the train from the Netherlands to Sicily. We will tell you more about the ticket we got, share tips for the train ride, and tell you about the night train from Germany to Italy today.
Interrail pass
The train is an easy way to travel through Europe, it’s definitely not the fastest way, but it’s better for the environment and from our experience we can say you make easy contact with new people. We bought an Interrail pass, which is valid on all trains in Europe. You can buy a pass for 4 travel days in a month or more. We purchased passes, valid for 4 days in 1 month, in January there was a discount, and we paid 160 euros for it. The seat reservations (which are sometimes recommended and sometimes required) and bed reservations on the night train are not included in the price. This pass is ideal when you want to go on vacation by train and don’t want to spend a lot of money on it.
Night train
When you take the night train, one trip will only count as one travel day. Reservations for the night train are required. Be on time as this train is often fully booked. We recommend making a reservation for the beds instead of the seats. The cabin of the beds have a lock on the door, and you’ll have more comfort. There were some pickpockets active when we were on the night train. They are mostly in the seating area since those doors can’t be locked. The seats slid into a bed, so if you’re not with too many people you can make it into a bed.
With the reservation of the beds, you’ll also get some handy travel tools, snacks, water, and even breakfast in the morning. We thought it was worth paying the extra money. During the day, the seating area was cozier, and the view there was better.
Day trains
For the train that rides by day, we recommend to book a seat if you want to make sure you’ll have a seat on the train. Some of the trajectories in Germany, like Cologne (Köln) to Frankfurt, are often crowded. The rest of the trip was okay. Usually not all of the seats are reserved. There is a sign on the side of the seats, from which station until which station they are reserved. So if you did not book any seats, you can figure out which seats you can sit on.
Train on the boat
The most special part of our train ride was the boat to Sicily. They ride the train onto the ferry. You can stay inside the train or go out when the train is on the ferry. On the other side, the train continues its route.
We wrote more articles on our trip to Sicily. For more on the highlights and restaurant recommendations in Rome, Catania and Palermo you can read this on our website.
Nederlands 
English