Eurail tracked ahead in 2023 with a record-smashing year, including a milestone 1.2 million-plus passes sold worldwide and expanding its network with new trains, connections and routes across Europe.
The 2023 global sales of more than 1.2 million Eurail and Interrail passes represented a 25 per cent growth on 2022 figures with 66,000-plus passes sold in Australia alone.
This achievement makes Australia the second-largest market of Eurail Pass users (after the US) and reflects a whopping 148 per cent increase on 2022 sales and 91 per cent growth on 2019 levels.
Aussie travellers aged 12-27 and 28-59 were the top two age groups using a Eurail Pass to explore Europe in 2023, tapping into a growing preference for sustainable transport modes and more immersive, flexible travel experiences.
New night trains and routes added
The company also expanded its borderless network of participating railways and routes late last year, offering more European destinations.
These include new cross-border trains connecting Subotica, Serbia to Szeged, Hungary and Vilnius, Lithuania to Riga, Latvia, respectively, plugging gaps in the network.
The Eurail Pass also now includes the Europe-first new ÖBB Nightjet night trains that act like a capsule hotel linking Brussels and Paris to Berlin and Vienna, Innsbruck and Hamburg along with the resumption of the classic ‘Metropol’ night train from Berlin to Vienna and Budapest along its historical route via Dresden and Prague.
The BOB (aka Berner Oberland Bahn) was also added to the network, taking travellers from Interlaken to Grindelwald and Lauterbrunnen and further to Wengen, Switzerland via the WAB (Wengernalpbahn).
Tracking ahead for 2024
New additions in 2024 include a European Sleeper extension to Prague from 25 March and a brand-new ÖBB Railjet upgrade for the Munich to Italy via Innsbruck route from April.
Eurail B.V. Head of Prospecting Dennis Rijntjes said Eurail will build on last year’s momentum and continue to connect travellers throughout Europe via its extensive network of scenic railway routes, night train services and high-speed and local trains.
“We look forward to once again welcoming our Australian travellers, who we know have a special affinity toward slow travel and travelling at a more leisurely pace and fostering connections with local communities, something that train travel effortlessly facilitates.”
For more info, head to eurail.com and interrail.eu
