Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
ated beds, though you're not actually likely to get much sleep since you'll still be awoken
at border crossings to show tickets and passports. Book sleeping-car berths well in ad-
vance at train ticket windows or CFR offices.
POPULAR INTERNATIONAL RAIL JOURNEYS
Most long-haul international rail trips arrive at and depart from Bucharest's main station, Gara de Nord. Travel
times and the approximate cost of a second-class ticket are as follows (accurate at the time of research but subject
to change):
Bucharest-Budapest
(via Arad; 210 lei, 14 hours, two daily)
Bucharest-Belgrade
(via Timişoara; 200 lei, 12 hours, one daily)
Bucharest-Sofia
(180 lei, nine hours, two daily)
Bucharest-Kyiv
(280 lei, 26 hours, one daily)
Bucharest-Chişinău
(200 lei, 13 hours, one daily)
RAIL PASSES
»If you plan on doing a lot of rail travel or combining travel to Romania with neighbour-
ing countries, you might consider an international rail pass. Romania is part of both the
InterRail
(
www.interrailnet.com
)
and
Eurail
(
www.eurail.com
)
networks, and several
passes offered by both include rail travel in Romania.
»Passes typically allow for a number of train travel days within a period of 15 days or a
month. Some passes allow for unlimited travel. InterRail passes are cheaper but can only
be purchased by EU nationals or anyone living in Europe at least six months prior to
travel. Eurail passes are open to anyone. Check the websites for specific details and
prices. Another rail-pass company worth checking is
Rail Europe
(
www.raileurope.com
)
.
»Romanian rail travel is included on InterRail's GlobalPass, which includes 30 European
countries, and the Romanian country pass. Eurail passholders can choose from the Hun-
gary-Romania Pass or the Eurail Balkan Flexipass. This latter option allows for unlimited
train travel in Romania as well as Bulgaria, Greece, Turkey, and much of former
Yugoslavia.
