Thomas Cook timetables

Okay, so you have read the Rick Steves guidebook and the Rough Guide to wherever it is you want to go in Europe. You have decided to see the wildflowers in one village and a museum in another and to go wine tasting someplace else, but you have no idea how to get to them all. The answer is the “European Rail Timetable” by Thomas Cook.

It gives you information on both international and local trains in 40 countries, with a nice map for each so you can see if that little village you want to go to is on a rail line. It tells you if a train has first-class cars or only second class and if it runs only on certain days of the week, etc. It includes a list of scenic rail routes.

It also has names, addresses and phone numbers of ship operators (including ferry companies) for all the major bodies of water.

I never plan a trip without using this wonderful book, and we never leave home without it. It is printed on newsprint and is lightweight and easy to carry. We last carried it in October ’09 traveling in France, after using it in 2007 for Germany, Austria, Poland, etc.

You can buy the winter 2009/ 2010 edition from the publisher in the UK (phone +44 733 416477, www.thomascookpublishing.com) for £19.29 (near $30), with shipping, or from Amazon.com for $21.78, with shipping.

The February 2010 edition with the summer international supplement is out now. The March 2010 timetable has an expanded summer international supplement, and the April and May 2010 timetable will have a full version of the summer international supplement along with their annual Cruise Trains & Rail Holidays feature.

How can anyone plan a trip without this little book? They also publish an “Overseas Timetable” for Australia, the Trans-Siberian Railway, Asia and all other non-European countries. If you love trains like we do, this is a “must have.”

SUSAN WEBB

Silver Springs, NV