Re:Slow Travel
by Tijdreiziger on Friday August 19, 2022 @11:41AM
(#32522400)
I just checked -- you can buy a ticket from Munich - Berlin today, for any day you want in December, for € 17,90. Direct ICE train, travel time between 4h30m - 5h20m (depends on the departure time).
Of course, the reliability of Deutsche Bahn is another question.
It's August. I don't want to travel to Berlin in December, I want to travel today or tomorrow.
However if you do want to book stuff months out, advanced purchase tickets are a staple of the airline industry. From Berlin you can get to a host of locations for about €20 each way, including Venice, Milan, Budapest, Madrid etc - far further than a domestic train.
Yeah I know there are some methods, but in my case it's in September, 3 weeks out and for reasons out of my control I could not book in May already. I'm not even taking "spontaneously tomorrow", and last I checked even 1-2 months in advance can still be more like 60 rather than 20 :(
Having just booked a train ticket this morning let me tell you a story.
Munich - Berlin, just shy of 600km, in a country that's supposed to be not completely shit in regards to train infrastructure (I personally disagree, but that's another topic).
It cost me 180 EUR and it's 2 times 4h. Because I need to be there at noon on my arrival day I basically only have the choice of 2 different trains, I really hope there's no problem. Oh, and I had to pay to reserve a seat. I don't remember ever having to stand in a plane.
Just for fun I actually asked for the flight price, which was... 140 EUR. 2 times 1h10 or something. (I know, I know, it's not completely realistic, but the airport is actually closer than the main station for me, probably 1:1 in terms of time to get there). (both prices incl. return, btw).
But the main problem? I don't trust Deutsche Bahn that I will arrive on time. Of course there are no proper overnighters anymore, just some "oh of course you can take a 9h trip in a seat where you will sit uncomfortably".