Because time is limited, many of us go to Europe by plane. And once we're there, the first public transport usually recommended is the high-speed train with its extensive network of cities. As someone in love with rail, I'd like to say this plainly: "No other public transport can match the comfort and speed of the train." But when I recently saw train tickets more expensive than even some plane fares, I felt I had to look for alternatives. Looking at the options, apart from trains and planes, the only one left is the bus, which we're very used to.
Of course none of us has enough time to tour Europe by bus all the way, but at a time when renting a car in Europe is so expensive, the bus becomes our first choice for travel between cities. Plus, if we won't return the car to the city where we picked it up, car rental comes with an extra financial burden. On this subject we'll try to tell you about bus travel, which is spreading fast in Europe too, drawing on our own FlixBus experiences.
Travelling Cheaply in Europe by Flixbus
Let's talk briefly about the story of this company, which with its green colour always makes us feel positive and which we like just as much. :)
Founded in 2011 with the motto of transport for young people, FlixBus started carrying passengers within Germany in 2013. Having found the interest and demand it hoped for, FlixBus grew fast over the years and has started carrying passengers in France, Italy, the Netherlands and most recently Scandinavia, in that order. Its spread is, of course, astonishingly fast!
Even though as a country we're used to buses, it has nothing to do with the bus business in Turkey. The reason is that, with reservations and day-by-day operations, it offers thousands of passengers the chance to explore the world cheaply. To cut costs, they've dropped many services that, maybe out of habit, we'd find strange, but that aren't actually essential. What are we talking about? :)
- There's no attendant, my friend! :) Yes, how necessary could an attendant have been anyway!
- There's generally no waiting room either; that is, Flixbus doesn't have an agency.
- It has a set spot in the open car park of the city's central train station, where motor vehicles can enter. It arrives there 15-20 minutes before departure and leaves right on time.
- You can download your ticket to your mobile device or print out the QR code.
- The driver scans the QR code on your ticket and welcomes you on board.
- You load your own luggage.
- And your seat number isn't fixed. You can sit wherever you find a free seat.
- And of course there's no sponge cake :)
Where Can We Travel with Flixbus?
You can see the route options of Flixbus, which has taken over a very large part of Europe, below.
For those who'd rather do Interrail than take the bus, our posts are here!
As a first step, let's learn What is Interrail, and how do you do it?..
And second, How to Plan an Interrail Route? With this step, our route is ready!