Hello, we are a family of 5 traveling to Europe for the first time this summer (June). I have booked train tickets from Paris to Interlaken Switzerland mid-June and I'm nervous as to what we would do if there is a train strike the day of our travel and we cannot get to Interlaken. Should I ditch my train tickets and now purchase airfare from Paris to Switzerland to not stress over the "what if" of a strike on our travel day? France seems so unsettling these days and I'm sure hotels in June would be hard to find if we were to need to spend an extra night or two because we cannot get out? Thanks for any advice!
Posted by
Tresana, Highlands Ranch, CO, USA
23238 posts
First ------ train strikes are often discussed but rarely happen. Personally I would not worry about it. We have frequently traveled in Europe since 72 and only once hit a train strike (in Spain) so we just took the bus that day. It worked. We seldom use advance hotel reservations and have not slept in a train station -- yet! There are lots of hotel rooms and I am sure you will not have problems if you need to extend a day or two.
Posted by
Bend, OR
726 posts
There’s a lot of “what if’s” to travel right now and it’s almost a guarantee that not everything will go as planned. That being said, if you worry too much about it, you’re not going to enjoy your trip. Just be prepared to go with the flow, hiccups are part of traveling. Have a great trip!
Posted by
17 posts
We are in Paris & have been zapped by train strikes in both the UK & in France. Trust us, it has made our trip not the most pleasant. So many plans were made & they ended up being cancelled. Having to think about alternatives has really stressed us out.
The next scheduled strike is March 28. Again, another day to change our plans...
Our biggest concern is being to make it to CDG later in the week to go back to the USA. Although we have Metro Voyage cards & Eurail passes, we will try to get a taxi to go CDG just to make sure we get there.
--Debbie
Posted by
Paris
6876 posts
June is in a long time: there might be strikes then, but probably not the continuation of the current strikes. Also, air traffic is not immune from strikes either, so switching to flying does not solve your problem. Personally I would not change plans yet; I would ask myself the question again in mid-May perhaps.