by Michael Shaw

One of the best ways to travel during your Vietnam holidays is by train. The line runs from North to South, near to the coast much of the time. If Vietnam is part of a wider trip including its neighbouring countries of Thailand, Cambodia and Laos you may want to plan your starting station accordingly. So, if you’re crossing the border from northern Thailand, you may choose to begin in Hanoi, whereas if you’re coming from Phnom Pehn, in southern Cambodia, you may choose to start in Ho Chi Mihn City (Saigon).

If you’re flying straight to Vietnam it’s up to you, although you should think about flying into Hanoi or Ho Chi Mihn and out of the other, else you’ll have to get all the way back up or down again and you may not want to do the trip twice.

There are many places to see along the railway route in Vietnam. Within a two to three week holiday, the following would be highly recommended:

Hoi An

Hoi An is well known for its tailors. There are hundreds, if not thousands of shops with tailors ready to create whatever you fancy wearing, in a very short space of time. Many of the shops have old English clothing catalogues from which you can select something you’d like, or you can have a go at designing them yourself. You can even pick out the material you’d like used in the garments from the reels and reels of material each shop has ready. You can also have shoes designed and made here.

Aside from the tailors, the architecture is stunning, a juxtaposition of colourful French colonial buildings (many with bakeries inside) and old Vietnamese architecture. Of note is the old bridge and the Old Town is a UNESCO World Heritage site.

Hue

Hue is a beautiful town on the banks of the Perfume River. It has UNESCO World Heritage status. It is possible to have guides take you by motorbike around the various ruins. The river takes its name from the flowers which during Autumn, float down into it, giving it a perfume. As Hue is built on a river, it makes sense to include a boat trip while you are here. There are many boats with colourful carved dragons on the front with guides that will take you along the river, stopping off at pagodas and temples.

Hanoi

Hanoi is Vietnam’s capital city. I thoroughly recommend a trip to see Ho Chi Mihn. Ho Chi Mihn was prime minister and later president of the Democratic Republic of Vietnam, which he formed. His embalmed body lies behind glass in a mausoleum modeled after Lenin’s.

Also popular is the Vietnamese Water Puppetry show. Vietnam’s grassy rice paddies are prone to flooding. The people who worked on the land historically created theatres above the water to entertain bored locals at these times. There’s a theatre in Hanoi which recreates this art for interested tourists. There are many great restaurants in the city to enjoy your evening in.

Featured Image by Marhas1

By Ed Povey
Featured Image: High speed train by Jon Curnow.

The popularity of green travel is increasing each year. For some, though, booking a flight is often seen to be the easier or cheaper choice when planning a trip away. Overland travel doesn’t have to be expensive, however, and some trips by road, rail or sea can be cheaper and even quicker than the same journey by plane. So what can we do to cut down on the costs of flightless travel?

Traveling Overnight

Across the globe, there are a plethora of overnight train, ferry and bus services linking key destinations. The majority of these are comfortable and clean, and offer a level of service similar to many hotels. While overnight services tend to be a little bit more expensive than daytime alternatives, travellers tend to be better off; saving on the cost of a night in a hotel at their destination, and making the journey itself into a more memorable experience.

Using Railcards & Discounts

The majority of overland services offer discounts for children, youths and seniors. Special fares are available on many routes, with special youth and senior fares offering savings of around 30%, and child fares normally saving 50%. Students in possession of valid university ID cards, or International Student Identity Cards (ISIC), may also be able to take advantage of similar savings.

For those planning an extended trip, with multiple journeys, buying a railcard may be a good option. Railcards offer their holder free or discounted travel on a range of routes in a number of countries of regions, some even include ferry travel. Railcards are available in Europe (InterRail for EU citizens, Eurail for US/Canadian citizens), Great Britain (BritRail Pass), Japan (JapanRail Pass), and America (Amtrak USA/California Rail Pass). It’s worth bearing in mind however, that rail passes aren’t always the cheapest option; it is worth adding up the price of each journey to make sure buying a railcard would be worthwhile.

Using Local Services

When travelling by train, most countries offer both premium and local services. Most tourists travel on the premium services, as they tend to get you to your destination faster and more directly than local services. Local services tend to be much cheaper however, offering perfectly comfortable trains, and allowing you to immerse yourself more fully in a country’s culture.

Choosing the Right Time to Book

Booking your tickets in advance is one of the easiest ways to save money on your trip. In Europe, most train tickets are only available to buy 3 months in advance. If you know when you plan to travel, work out when the three month booking window will open, and buy your tickets as soon as possible after that point. If you can’t book that far in advance, watch out for special offers from the operators in the weeks leading up to your trip; you never know what discounts you might find.

Ed Povey is the founder of Grounded Travel, the internet’s leading overland travel directory. The site provides up-to-date descriptions, timetable and fare information for hundreds of overland routes throughout the world. You can follow Ed and Grounded Travel on Twitter and Facebook.

by Emily Sims

The night before I went to Monaco, I began talking myself out of it because I was scared of going alone. Despite my fears, I woke up the next morning determined to get there. I had wanted to leave by nine, so I was astounded when I woke up at 9:30. I really wanted to see the changing of the guard at the palace, which happens every day at 11:55 a.m.  I was in a rush because I wanted to figure out how to take the bus to the gare, I still had to buy a ticket, and I wasn’t sure when a train would leave.

After staring, confused, at a French bus schedule on the street outside my hotel in Nice, I managed to translate it and got to the station for only 1.30 Euro, a nice alternative to the 16E cab ride.  The bus was crowded, but I didn’t mind—I successfully got onto a foreign bus all by myself. Truly, an accomplishment.

I arrived at the station and bought my ticket to Monaco, less than 5 Euro roundtrip. I was surprised to discover that it was an open ticket–there was no leave or return time, I could go and come back whenever I wanted, which was a relief because I never know how long I’ll want to stay somewhere.  I boarded the ter train—it was really quite filthy—and soon arrived at the scrupulously clean Monaco-Monte Carlo train station.

View of Monaco, Harbour and parts of Monte Carlo.

When I left the train, I followed a sign to the tourist office inside the station.  I happened to be walking behind a woman in a green skirt, and as she ended up heading to the same place I was, I’m sure she thought I was stalking her.  We both went to the tourism office for maps, and I heard her ask directions to the changing of the guard–I listened because that was where I wanted to go. . .and then I followed Green Skirt Woman in that direction, so I guess I was stalking her after all, but when she stopped to check her map (or to shake me), I kept going.

Monaco’s palace is at the top of what must be the tallest rock ever. . .I had to walk up an insane amount of winding steps to get to the palace, but it was so worth it when I arrived, ten minutes before the changing of the guard.  There were crowds of people so it was hard to see, but it was still really cool to see the guards moving in their crisp, white uniforms in a centuries-old ritual.

Monaco's palace

I was incredibly happy because I had made it in time to see it, and after that I saw where the line was to tour the palace but it was overflowing with people as every tourist in Monaco was at the palace for the guard change. I decided to walk around for a while, and then come back.  The most hilarious part of the Monaco adventure was discovering that the guards arrived on a bus to the palace, piled out, performed for the crowd, then piled back in to go wherever it is that they go. It’s all a show now.

Monaco's cathedral, burial place of Princess Grace

After the guard change, I wandered around and found the cathedral where I believe Princess Grace was married and where I know she is buried because I saw her tomb.  In a semi-circle surrounding the dais, where the priests and other church officiates are during services, are the graves of Monaco royalty, which I thought was so very odd and yet so. . .right.  Simple tombs for the royalty partially hidden in a church instead of gaudily displayed.  Her grave is marked “Gratia Patria.”

After the cathedral, I headed back to the palace and went inside for a tour. I had a headset that guided me along the beautiful rooms with lots of information I don’t remember, but appreciated at the time.  My favorite rooms were the Galerie de Hercule and the throne room.  I loved the latter because of a gorgeous portrait of the royal family in the corner of the room–Rainier, Albert, Stephanie, Grace and Caroline.  They looked so regal, so royal.  I wish I could have found a print of it, but it was nowhere.

I ate lunch outside of the palace, all alone.

I went into gift shops, walked the tiny streets of old Monaco–the city was just so clean. As police were everywhere, I felt perfectly safe at all times.

A beautiful garden stood next to the Oceanography Museum, whose gift shop I visited.  Around that time I was really worn out and thinking of leaving, but then I saw a little tourist train and decided to go for a ride.  The train took me all around the city, and I got a glimpse of that oh-so-famous Casino.

After the train, I walked back toward the palace, down the long steps and to the train station.

by Mike Holly

Photo by Mike Holly.

View from the train. Photo by Mike Holly.

Photo by Mike Holly.

View from the Yellow Train. Photo by Mike Holly.

Photo by Mike Holly.

The Yellow train is one of Europe’s truly eccentric and quirky railways. It is also known as the Pyrenees metro or the Yellow Canary and has run between Villefranche de Conflent in the foothills of the French Pyrenees up to La Tour du Carol in the Cerdagne since 1910. All in all 63 kms, 19 tunnels, two major bridges and some of the best views you could wish for south of the Alps.

This is more than just a tourist train–it is also a vital lifeline for many of the small hamlets and villages on the Cerdagne. After all, this is snow country and in winter the snow comes by the bucketful.

Your journey starts at Villefranche de Conflent. Usually travelers will overnight at the nearby spa town of Vernet-les- Bains. With its shaded streets and ancient squares, this is a pleasant stop over. Also close by, you have the Monastery of St Martin du Canigou on its rocky outcrop overlooking the valley below (in the novel The Historian, it is the birthplace of Dracula).

Back on the Yellow Train, you have a choice of open or closed carriages, and your journey is soon under way. The train stays below 60 km per hour, but if you are in the open side carriage then this is quite fast enough. The first part of the journey winds through forests and the views are limited. But this is where bears and wolves roam, and soon you will pass the stop for Les Gorges de la Caranca. This is the kind of place where as children you would dare your friends to explore the narrow rocky route with its steep drops and vertigo inducing views. As an adult, I recommend that you stay on the train!

Slowly, the train starts to reach the tree line and you emerge into bright sunlight and the uplands of the Cerdagne.

This is wide open country with the Pyrenees in the background. It is sunny here, in fact so sunny that the French built a large solar oven at Odeillo.  The train now winds over relatively flat countryside with open vistas and eventually will stop at La Tour du Carol. This is effectively a terminus, and there is not much to see or do other than to await the return train back to Villefranche.

Advice for the trip? Unless you are planning an overnight stay, it is unlikely that you will want to get off the train and explore. None of the stations are particularly convenient for towns or villages, so you need to take your own food and water. Don’t forget the camera and an extra sweater.

These are the stations along the way:

• Villefranche de Conflent, 427m, is a  fortress town known for its pink marble bricks.
• Serdinya at 520m has 12th century church to see.
• Olette at 607m is known for its suspended houses overhanging the Tet Valley.
• Thues-les-bains at 747m is Europe’s warmest hot spring with water measured at 80 degrees centigrade.
• Thues-Caranca at 789m. Stop here for the gorge.
• Fontpedrouse at 1050m has more sulphurous baths.
• Planes at 1373m.
• Mount Louis at 1510m. This is a small city with important architecture.
• Bolquere-Eyne at 1592m is the highest railway station in France.
• Font Romeu at 1533m has a 9th century church at Odeillo and of course the solar oven.
• La Tour de Carol is the terminus.

For more information

A Yellow Train video montage

Le Petit Train Jaune

This article was written exclusively for travelated by Mike Holly. Mike lives and works in Northumberland and has enjoyed many happy days exploring the Languedoc and Ariege in Southern France.

The United States Senate has passed legislation that would make it legal for Amtrak passengers to travel with guns.

The guns will need to be declared, checked, and stowed away unloaded in locked cases. This represents a return to the policy that was in place prior to September 2011.

So, if you are planning to travel across the country by train and you want to take your gun with you, now you can!

Source: Associated Press