In early February, I went on a two-week trip to Europe, on a mission to travel to six countries — including four of them by train. Here are three major mistakes I made along the way, and what you can do to avoid them. While some train rides — like the one from Venice to Rome on the Italian train company Trenitalia — were empty, others were packed. Many European train routes have multiple stops, and passengers simply get on and off the train. At boarding, hundreds of passengers scrambled for a seat, while I struggled to hoist my massive bag up the train.

---

Persons: —, Marielle, Trenitalia Organizations: Service, Union, China Railway, SBB, Swiss, Südtiroler Platz Locations: Switzerland, Germany, Austria, Italy, Europe, Zurich, Rome, Freiburg, Breisgau, Innsbruck, Venice, Thailand, Laos, China, Vientiane, Swiss, Buchs, Southeast Asia, Budapest