Train Travel

Travelling to Denmark

The main train operator in Denmark is DSB at www.dsb.dk. For all European train times check out http://bahn.hafas.de.

For ferries UK to Denmark visit www.DFDS.co.uk (Harwich - Esbjerg).

The Danish tourist information can be found at www.dt.dk

You can easily travel to Denmark from the UK without flying either by cruise, ferry or Eurostar. DFDS Seaways sail from Harwich to Esbjerg in Denmark 3 or 4 times a week, with direct train connections to Copenhagen. Or take Eurostar to Brussels for trains on to Denmark.

London to Copenhagen by ferry

As mentioned earlier, DFDS Seaways sail 3 or 4 times a week from Harwich to Esbjerg in Denmark, with connections by InterCity train to Copenhagen. With comfortable cabins, this is an excellent way to reach Denmark. Ships also have restaurants, bars, cinema and shops on board the ship.

London to Copenhagen. Travel from London to Harwich by train, leaving London Liverpool Street at 14:18 and arriving Harwich 1 hour 25 minutes later. Harwich International station is next to the ferry terminal. There are later trains but make sure you allow adequate time to check in and catch your ferry. Check the timetable at www.nationalrail.co.uk.

Leave Harwich for Esbjerg in Denmark aboard DFDS 'Dana Sirena'. DFDS sail from Harwich every Wednesday, Friday & Sunday at 18:00 (sailings are increased in the summer months), arriving in Esbjerg at 13:00 next day. Log on to www.DFDS.co.uk to confirm sailing dates and times. Take a taxi or bus to the railway station. Leave Esbjerg for Copenhagen by InterCity train, departing at 14:55 and arriving in Copenhagen at 18:18. The journey is about 175 miles, right across Denmark. Ensure you check times for your date of travel at http://bahn.hafas.de.

Copenhagen to London. Return from Copenhagen to Esbjerg by modern air-conditioned InterCity train, leaving at 12:30 and arriving Esbjerg at 15:24. Take a bus or taxi to the ferry terminal. Sail from Esbjerg to Harwich aboard DFDS 'Dana Sirena', leaving Esbjerg ferry terminal at 19:00 on Tuesdays, Thursdays & Saturdays, arriving Harwich at 11:30 next day (return sailings are increased in the summer months). Return from Harwich to London by train, departing at 13:06 and arriving London Liverpool Street at 14:33. The train service runs hourly, you can check times at www.nationalrail.co.uk.

The Dana Sirena's facilities include '7 Seas' buffet restaurant, Blue Riband à la carte restaurant, Café Lighthouse, Columbus Lounge, shops, children's play area, and a full range of cabins and suites in Seaways class and DFDS' luxurious Commodore Class with private lounge. All cabins have private shower and toilet.

***Fares - London to Harwich by train costs £24 return or £21.50 one-way. You don't need to book in advance, buy tickets at the station on the day of travel. Alternatively, if you book with DFDS Seaways by phone, they can sell you a London-Harwich train ticket with your ferry ticket for a special price of £10 one-way or £20 return.

Harwich to Esbjerg by ferry starts at about £158 return for two people sharing a 2-bed cabin with private toilet and shower or £147 return for one person with sole use of a cabin. To find out about the different types of cabins log on to www.DFDS.co.uk. DFDS Seaways now has an airline-style pricing system so prices do vary - book early and avoid peak times to get the cheapest fares. Children under 16 travel at reduced fare. People travelling alone are not able to use single occupancy in a 2 bed cabin without paying the whole cabin fare.

Esbjerg to Copenhagen by intercity train costs 297 Kr (£27) one way, 594 Kr (£54) return for adults, or 149 Kr (£14) each way for children and seniors over 65. You can book in advance but it is really not necessary, tickets can be bought at the station on the day. Check fares and timetables at www.dsb.dk (Danish Railways).

Buy tickets. Book the ferry online at www.DFDS.co.uk (no booking fee) or by calling DFDS Seaways on 0870 5 333 000 (£10 booking fee for phone bookings). You can buy your London-Harwich & Esbjerg-Copenhagen train tickets at the station on the day of travel. No reservation is necessary, and there's no price advantage in buying tickets in advance.

To save queuing at the ticket office, buy your London-Harwich ticket online at www.nationalrail.co.uk and the Esbjerg-Copenhagen ticket (with reservation) at www.dsb.dk, the Danish Railways website. This is in Danish, but it's not difficult to work out how to use it if you're familiar with the way such booking systems work. You pay by credit card then print out your own ticket. Copenhagen in Danish is 'Kobenhavn'.

If you prefer you can book by phone. DFDS can add both UK and Esbjerg-Copenhagen tickets to your ferry fare, including making a seat reservation on the Esbjerg-Copenhagen train. Ask DFDS about special cheap train fares from other UK stations to Harwich, too.

London to Copenhagen by train

There are two good options daily: Via Eurostar & the Cologne-Copenhagen sleeper, or via Eurostar and the Brussels-Hamburg sleeper.

London to Copenhagen (via Cologne) Travel from London to Brussels by Eurostar, leaving London at 14:41 arriving in Brussels at 18:03. Leave Brussels for Cologne by high-speed Thalys train, departing at 19:28 arriving Cologne 21:45. Then travel from Cologne to Copenhagen overnight by sleeper train leaving Cologne at 22:39 and arriving in Copenhagen at 09:59 next morning. It has seats, couchettes (4-bunk & 6-bunk compartments) and a modern air-conditioned double-deck sleeping-car with 1- and 2-berth rooms with washbasin.

Copenhagen to London (via Cologne) - For the return trip, travel overnight from Copenhagen to Cologne, leaving Copenhagen at 18:54 and arriving in Cologne at 06:57 next morning. An ICE high-speed train leaves Cologne at 09:14 arriving in Brussels at 11:32. Eurostar leaves Brussels at 12:58 and arrives London at 14:27.

Buy tickets - online. You need to use two separate websites,but booking online is possible.. Do a dry run to check availability and fares on both sites before starting to book. Remember you can't book until 60 days before departure.

Log on to www.nachtzug.de for information on travel times and fares. Don't worry it's initially all in German. Click 'buchung' (booking) then 'fahrkarte' (tickets) then 'anwendung offnen' (open window) and a booking window appears, with an English language option. Book a sleeper or couchette ticket from Cologne (Köln Hbf) to Copenhagen (Koebenhvn H) and back, looking for the cheap 'sparnight' fares.

Now book a connecting London-Cologne journey online at www.eurostar.com. Note that 'Cologne' is shown as 'Koln' One-way fares can be higher than returns, and if so, just buy a return and throw away the return portion after using the outward. Make sure you allow plenty of time for the connection in Cologne, preferably between 1½ & 2 hours when connecting with a sleeper train). Remember that your return departure date from Cologne will be the day after your departure date from Copenhagen.

If you prefer, you can book London-Brussels-Cologne at www.voyages-sncf.com. The English button is a UK flag at the bottom. Select 'Great Britain' as your country then select 'payment online in euros'. Try booking London to Cologne and back (you'll probably see the same fares at the Eurostar site offers you), but if you only see expensive fares, try booking London-Brussels and back, looking for cheap 88 euro (£59) return fare, then click 'add another ticket' and book Brussels-Cologne and back, again looking for a cheap fare. Check return fares for a one-way journey as these can be cheaper. Make sure the trains you book are the ones recommended above, although you can always book an earlier Eurostar out or a later one back if there are no cheap seats left on the recommended connection. If you have trouble with the London-Cologne booking, simply book this part of the journey by phone as shown below.

Buy tickets - by phone. You can book by phone. The recommended UK agencies to book this journey are Deutsche Bahn's UK office on 0870 2 43 53 63 or www.europeanrail.com on 020 7387 0444.

London to Copenhagen (via Hamburg) - The train journey from London takes less than 24 hours, and is daily. Travel from London to Brussels by Eurostar, leaving London Waterloo at 18:11 on Mondays-Fridays. Leave Brussels for Hamburg overnight, departing at 23:41 arriving at Hamburg (Hauptbahnhof) at 06:52 next morning.

Travel from Hamburg to Copenhagen by air conditioned EuroCity train, leaving Hamburg (Hauptbahnhof) at 09:28 and arriving Copenhagen at 13:59. There is an earlier connection available 7 April to 22 October 2006, departing Hamburg at 07:28 and arriving Copenhagen at 11:59. You can check times at http://bahn.hafas.de. An interesting feature of this journey is that your EuroCity train will be shunted onto a ferry for the sea crossing from Puttgarten in Germany to Rodby in Denmark.

Copenhagen to London (via Hamburg). Travel from Copenhagen to Hamburg by air-conditioned EuroCity train leaving Copenhagen at 15:47 and arriving Hamburg (Hauptbahnhof) at 20:15. This train is shunted onto a ferry at Rodby for the sea crossing to Puttgarten, an interesting experience. Then, travel overnight from Hamburg to Brussels leaving Hamburg (Hauptbahnhof) at 22:47 and arriving Brussels at 06:09. Sleepers and couchettes are available. Travel from Brussels to London by Eurostar.

Buy tickets - You can book through a number of UK agencies, such as Deutsche Bahn's UK office on 0870 2 43 53 63 or www.europeanrail.com on 020 7387 0444. Be aware that agencies may well charge a booking fee.

Escorted holidays to Copenhagen and Denmark by train

If you don't feel confident enough to hop on and off trains throughout Europe on your own but still fancy having a go, there is a company who provide organised escorted tours which you may prefer to try. Decide on the countries you want to visit and rough dates and then give them a call on 0845 402 2068 and see what they can do for you.

The Thomas Cook European Timetable

The Thomas Cook European timetable has train, bus and ferry times for every country in Europe, plus currency and climate information. It's essential for any independent traveller. It costs around £11.50 from the bureau de change in any UK branch of Thomas Cook, or you can buy online at www.thomascooktimetables.com.

Recommended guidebooks

Never travel, independently or in a group without a good guidebook. The best guides are the the Lonely Planet or Rough Guide. Both guidebooks have the same excellent level of practical information and cultural and historical background.

Hotels in Austria

A good website to start at for hotels and guesthouses in Vienna and other Austrian cities, both inexpensive ones and upmarket options, is www.venere.com. Alternatively a general search on the internet is also a good idea.

Backpacker hostels

If you're on a very tight budget you may find a room or a bed in a dorm at a backpacker hostel. Take a look at www.hostelbookers.com.

Travel Insurance

Travel insurance isn't a luxury - it's a necessity. Ensure its included in your holiday budget. There are many providers these days so shop around to get the best deal but always make sure you have adequate cover and that it is underwritten by a reliable insurer. Sometimes an annual multi trip is cheaper than separate policies for each trip.

EU health card

UK citizens travelling in Europe should carry a European Health Insurance Card. This replaces the old E111 forms as from January 2006. The EHIC card is available free from www.ehic.org.uk and entitles you to free or reduced rate health care if you become ill or get injured in many European countries, under a reciprocal arrangement with the UK's NHS.