photo: MarkyBon
Could a European train be your next mobile office? According to Jim Baker of MuniWireless, the EU wants to raise the percentage of passenger rail travel from 6% to 10% by the end of 2010. As part of this initiative, many railways are adding or improving Wi-Fi in an effort to attract travelers away from cars and airplanes. This is good news for working nomads in Europe. Imagine uploading files or voice chatting with a client while the beautiful European countryside rolls by…
This comprehensive report tells you which European trains offer Wi-Fi, whether or not it’s free, and what sort of user experience you can expect.
Eurostar
photo: SimonDoggett
On-board Wi-Fi: NO
Cost: FREE for first class
Eurostar connects London to Paris and Brussels. This high-speed train runs via the Channel Tunnel and is managed by a consortium of French railways (SNCF), Belgian railways (SNCB) & Eurostar UK Ltd. London to Paris by Eurostar is 495 km or 307 miles, and takes just over 2 hours.
Sadly, Eurostar does not yet offer on-board Wi-Fi. However, you can access the internet from all five major train stations. If you’re a Business Premier traveller or Eurostar carte blanche holder, it won’t cost you anything. For other passengers, the rate varies from station to station.
The happy exception is St Pancras Station, where a free wireless network covers the entire area, including the Eurostar departure lounge and the Business Premier lounge. Check out Daniele Beccari’s photos of the Eurostar lounge.
Once on board the Eurostar, you can at least charge your laptop and do some offline work, as each seat has its own power socket.
Thalys
photo: thms.nl
On-board Wi-Fi: YES
Cost: FREE for first class
Thalys connects Paris to Brussels, Amsterdam, Antwerp, Rotterdam, Cologne, Liège and Aachen. Wi-Fi is free for Comfort 1 passengers. In Comfort 2, you’ll pay 6.50 euros for 60 minutes or 13 euros for your whole journey. You can log on and pay on board, or buy a card in the bar car.
Passenger experiences with Thalys Wi-Fi have not been stellar. Alex Papanastassiou wonders if Thalys is trying to revolutionize the web by severely limiting connectivity. Glen had to resort to an Amex charge-back when Thalys refused to refund him promptly for the Wi-Fi he paid for and never received. Jonathan Marks complains of the painfully slow internet and points out that the booking system doesn’t allow you to choose a seat with a power socket.
According to The Man in Seat Sixty-One, every Thalys seat has 2-pin, 220v power sockets. Since this doesn’t match up with Jonathan’s experience, I had to do a little more research. Turns out that some carriages may be fitted with power while others are not, according to b-europe.com:
“The Thalys carriages are fitted with power outlets in carriage 2/12/22 and 3/13/23 . Carriages 1/11/21 do not have power outlets.”
Bottom line: until Thalys improves their Wi-Fi service, don’t count on doing a lot of work online, and take an extra laptop battery just in case.
East Coast
On-board Wi-Fi: YES
Cost: FREE
East Coast connects London with Leeds, York, Newcastle, Edinburgh, and Glasgow. Wi-fi is free on all East Coast trains in both standard and first class, in all East Coast First Class Lounges and throughout York Station. The technology combines broadband satellite and multiple mobile data connections to ensure continuous service along the entire East Coast route, even in tunnels. Jaunted.com editor JetSetCD says:
“Next to all chairs is a working outlet, and we were thrilled to find a free WiFi network that worked well on both our laptop and iPhones. All that needs to be done for access is signing up with your email address on the start page and accepting the terms and conditions, like any other network.”
Virgin Trains
On-board Wi-Fi: YES
Cost: FREE for first class
photo: markhillary
Virgin Trains connects London with cities and towns up and down the country. The railway offers free wi-fi to first class passengers, but not to standard class passengers. You’ll have to create a T-Mobile account. You can pay as you go or sign up for various package options, ranging in price from £5/hour or £20/month.
Iarnród Éireann (Irish Rail)
On-board Wi-Fi: YES
Cost: €1 to €1.50 per hour
Iarnród Éireann is Ireland’s nationwide rail network. Wi-Fi trials are now underway on selected Dublin-Cork Intercity services.
ICE
On-board Wi-Fi: YES
Cost: about €8 per hour
The ICE (Intercity-Express) operates between several major cities in Germany, France, Italy, Switzerland, Austria, Denmark, Belgium, and the Netherlands. When booking, you can specify an aisle or window seat, face-to-face seating or row seating, or a seat with a fixed table. All seats have power sockets. You can also request seating in areas with a high cell phone reception, or in a silent car.
photo: Birger Hoppe
You can access T-Mobile Wi-Fi in all DB Lounges and on all trains which feature the HotSpot logo on the following routes:
- Dortmund – Düsseldorf – Cologne (also via Hagen and Wuppertal) Cologne – Frankfurt am Main Airport Frankfurt am Main – Stuttgart – Munich Frankfurt am Main – Hanover – Hamburg
Wi-Fi is free in the first class lounges of certain stations.
Jean Pierre Wenzel offers the following tip:
“At least on the Ulm—Stuttgart leg of the route, a UMTS USB stick and a prepaid data plan (such as the ones offered by blau.de or fonic.de) are a good, much cheaper alternative to the T-Mobile WiFi solution.”
Arriva
On-board Wi-Fi: YES
Cost: FREE in first class
Arriva offers paid and free Wi-Fi service to all passengers traveling across Denmark. In a comment at jaunted.com, KimG says:
“The access is not always super. On DSB trains, there is only Wifi between Copenhagen and Århus, but it is free in the 1st class – and way overpriced on 2nd class, but the access is decent. It even works in the tunnel between Zeeland and Funen.”
SJ Trains
On-board Wi-Fi: YES
Cost: FREE in first class
SJ Trains in Sweden serves 80,000 Wi-Fi users per month. The Wi-Fi is free in first class, but standard class passengers pay by the hour. You can do Copenhagen-Stockholm in just over 5 hours, Gothenburg-Stockholm in 3 hours, and Malmö-Stockholm in about 4 and a half hours. Travel and History says:
“The Eurail supplement was high for this train at 17 Euros extra for first class, but the perks include comfortable seats, fruit and coffee, and WiFi. Obviously I was most excited about the WiFi but had some initial trouble logging on since the system is a bit wordy …. and in Swedish. Turns out your first class ticket might have the DIN code (Access code) on the ticket OR you may need to get a “Kupong” from the conductor in which case your log in must be for “Kupong” and not for the other categories. Thanks to the superb conductor help here on SJ rail we were quickly off and running on the WiFi which seems to have a bit of lag but is otherwise impressive.”
There is also a SJ lounge in Stockholm and Göteborg with Wi-Fi.
Top tip for using Wi-Fi railways in Europe
photo: Jasmic
When you’re traveling on railways that only offer free Wi-Fi to first class, go ahead and swing for first class. It’ll be more cost-effective than paying for the Wi-Fi separately. Plus, you’ll enjoy a more comfortable mobile office…and sometimes, free cappuccinos & treats!
If you’ve used the Wi-Fi on a European train, or if you know a railway I’ve missed, please share your experience in the comments.
I want to help you find your calm center and experience travel with courage, curiosity and compassion.
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