The Complete Guide To: Euro Routes

All Aboard The Orient Express?

The historic train from Paris to Istanbul provided, perhaps, the most alluring of all pan-European journeys. But even though this evocative express is now much less ambitious in scope, 21st-century Europe is full of possibilities for other transcontinental opportunities. Some of these Euro routes are based on geography or transport, others on history, musical journeys or industrial and religious endeavour. Whether you want to drive, walk or cycle, Europe has an international route for you - ranging from the symbolic bridge across the Rhine at Strasbourg (connecting France with Germany, and featuring pan-European poetry) to Euro-highways and bike routes measuring 5,000km or more.

Let's Start On Two Feet

Europe's first non-warring travellers were pilgrims. The continent's best-known walking trail, the Camino de Santiago ("Way of St James"), originated in the 9th century, when rumours began to circulate that the bones of St James the Apostle had been found in Santiago de Compostela in Galicia, north-west Spain. Today, most travellers now embark on this challenging walk for non-religious motives but the feeling of stepping back from everyday life remains.

Various routes lead across France, converging on the western Pyrenees; many people start their journeys at the small and pretty town of St-Jean-Pied-de-Port on the French side of the range. From here, the path traverses the mountains and then continues through Spain for around 800km along a network of pilgrimage routes taken by the faithful for centuries. The trail is signalled by a yellow scallop shell or arrow. It leads through Navarre, Aragon, Rioja, León and Asturias, regions rich in architecture, art and legend. Allow four to six weeks of steady hiking; the truly devout aim to arrive in time for the saint's feast-day on 25 July.

The best airport for St-Jean-Pied-de-Port is Biarritz, from where there are train connections to the starting point. It is served by Ryanair (0871 246 0000; www.ryanair.com) from Stansted, as is the finishing point, Santiago. The Confraternity of St James (020-7928 9988; www.csj.org.uk) provides comprehensive information and advice, as does the English-language section of the Camino de Santiago site: www.caminosantiago.com. The Spanish tourist office in London is on 020-7486 8077; www.tourspain.co.uk.

A Pilgrimage Trail From Britain?

In 990, Sigeric the Serious, the Archbishop of Canterbury, set off for Italy to be consecrated by Pope John XV. He kept a diary listing the 79 stages of his journey along the Via Francigena, which corresponded to the shortest route between Kent and the Vatican City. His itinerary connected medieval England to Rome; it was later extended to the Apulian harbours of Bari and Brindisi, from which travellers embarked for Jerusalem (today, the ferries go no further than Greece).

Several different courses across the Alps and Apennines were used over the centuries, depending on the weather, wars and the popularity of shrines to be visited en route. The basic route was followed by tens of thousands of pilgrims, and soon became an important trading path from Rome to the north of Europe; the Lombardy region paid for its defence and maintenance. While not so well known or developed as the Camino de Santiago, the Via Francigena has recently been signposted and efforts are being made to publicise it. Romano Prodi, Italy's new prime minister, included its revival among his electoral promises, so expect investment. See www.francigena-international.org.

E-Numbers - Can They Be Good For You?

Yes, if they appear on road signs and maps, and keep you on the right track across Europe. The European Agreement on Main International Traffic Arteries, which lays down the enormously complicated recipe for the continent's road network, recently celebrated its 30th birthday. Yet motorists who drive only in Britain and Ireland are likely to be ignorant of them. Plenty of E-routes run through the UK, for example the E15 from Inverness to Dover (and onward to Paris, Barcelona and Algeciras at the southern tip of Spain), but they are never marked on signs and rarely appear on maps.

A network of European roads first emerged in the Sixties and Seventies, with the prime route - the E5 - implausibly starting at the Elephant & Castle in south London and ending in Sultanahmet Square in Istanbul. But in 1975, the United Nations Economic Commission for Europe (www.unece.org) came up with a new and different network. The commission copied the numbering principles of the US freeway system, with a grid of superhighways running north-south (ending in 5) and west-east (ending in 0).

Accordingly, the north-south E05 starts in Greenock on the Clyde, en route to Southampton. It then uses the (no-longer-functioning) ferry link to Le Havre, and picks up again for the journey via Paris, Bordeaux, San Sebastian and Madrid to Algeciras. The west-east E20, meanwhile, begins life at Shannon in south-west Ireland and visits Dublin, Liverpool, Bradford, Leeds and Hull on its way to Esbjerg (again, following the route of a former ferry connection), Copenhagen, Gothenburg, Stockholm and Tallinn, ending in the Russian city of St Petersburg.

Why Haven't I Seen Any E-Routes?

Signs for the European routes began to appear in the Eighties but the road to any kind of standardisation has proved very long and winding. A few countries - Belgium, Denmark, Norway and Sweden - feature the European signs ahead of their own national systems. But most of the the larger western European countries, including France, Germany, Italy and Spain, give more prominence to their own numbering schemes. The British Isles ignores them completely. And poor Andorra, Iceland and Malta haven't got a single E-route between them.

Which Is The Most Beautiful E-Route?

The E65, covering some superb scenery in its 3,860km meander from Malmo in Sweden, via central and eastern Europe, to Chania in Crete. A particularly attractive stretch is along the Adriatic coast of Croatia, more accessible from the UK than ever this summer thanks to air links on Adria (020-7734 4630; www.adria-airways.com), British Airways (0870 850 9850; www.ba.com), easyJet (0905 821 0905; www.easyjet.com) and Wizz Air (00 48 22 351 9499; www.wizzair.com). To explore the road and its many attractions, you could rent a car for a week in Split, in August, for £162 for a week through Holiday Autos (0870 400 4468; www.holidayautos.co.uk).

Another contender is the E25, a relatively short superhighway that begins at the North Sea port of Hook of Holland and continues via Luxembourg and Geneva to the Mediterranean in Genoa. With the help of ferries, it proceeds south to Corsica, Sardinia and Palermo in Sicily. You can reach the start on Stena Line (08705 70 70 70; www.stenaline.co.uk) from Harwich, and return from the finishing point to Stansted on Ryanair. One of the highlights of the 1,545km run is the Autoroute Blanche in Alpine France, which provides superb views of Mont Blanc and Montjoie.

Can I Cycle Across Europe?

Yes, but to extend your life expectancy you should avoid the superhighways. Steer, instead, for the 1,357km Donauradwanderweg, or Danube Cycle Trail through central Europe. It begins at the Bavarian town of Donaueschingen, where the Breg and Brigach rivers meet to form the start of the Danube. From Donaueschingen, the Danube wends its way through Sigmaringen, home to the spectacular riverside castle of the same name. The first city is Ulm, birthplace of Albert Einstein and the site of Europe's tallest cathedral spire.

On the long path to Vienna, Melk Abbey is unmissable (00 43 27 52 555 225; www.stiftmelk.at; open daily from 9am-5pm; admission €7 (£5). The church-cum-fortress is a wonderful example of the baroque period and offers great views of the town and the river from its imposing hilltop position.

If you prefer your cycling accompanied by wild coast rather than tranquil riverbanks, consider the North Sea Cycle Route: a well-signposted trail encompassing 6,000km and eight countries. The path is being developed with considerable EU funding, aiming to boosting rural communities and public health. Given the weather in northern Europe in winter, attempts at an unbroken circuit are advisable only from spring to autumn. For maps, information on destinations and a rider's forum, see www.northsea-cycle.com.

What Was The First Euro-Railway?

In an early example of European transport co-operation, the Rheinische Eisenbahn in Germany was invited by Belgian State Railways to build a line from Cologne to the Belgian border as part of a Cologne-Liège-Antwerp route. Trains started running in October 1843, making this the first international railway line. More romantically, Wagons-Lits began international sleeping car services in the 1870s and started the pan-European Orient Express in 1883. At that stage, it didn't run all the way from Paris to Istanbul (or Constantinople, as Turkey's largest city was then known); passengers went by rail to Romania, where they took a ferry across the Danube, another train to Varna and, finally, a ship across the Black Sea. The route still exists in diminished form: the early-evening train from Paris to Vienna is still called the Orient Express. The Venice Simplon-Orient-Express (0845 077 2222; www.orient-express.com) is a separate enterprise, specialising in operating luxurious trains to cities such as Venice and Prague.

* Are Cheap Flights Replacing Euro-Trains?

No. While some longer-distance rail routes have suffered, and a few holiday routes have been withdrawn or curtailed, there are also new routes such as the Go Snow ski train from Brussels to Innsbruck, with basic facilities (it uses commuter rail stock) and prices intended to compete with the low-cost airlines: see www.sncb.be.

Train ticket prices have also been made more flexible, just as with the low-cost airlines, with the lowest fares available to those who book in advance on the internet. The websites of the French (www.voyages-sncf.com) and German (www.bahn.de) national rail enterprises are good places to find cheap international trains.

The high-speed network in Europe continues to grow, with a large number of projects in the pipeline for the next 15 years. The most prominent is the new high-speed Est européenne line running east from Paris, which opens in June 2007. It will nearly halve many existing international journey times from the French capital: Frankfurtin under four hours, and Zurich only 4 hours 30 minutes away.

Once the final phase of the Channel Tunnel link comes into service in autumn 2007, times from London to Paris and Brussels should also be reduced. And a proposal has been made to reintroduce the Venice-Moscow sleeping car after a gap of six years. At 2,935km, this could be Europe's longest scheduled through service.

I Prefer To Drift Across Europe

Mediterranean and Baltic cruises enable travellers to tick off several countries within a few days. Numerous companies, including Thomson Cruises (0870 550 2562; www.thomson.co.uk), MSC Cruises (0870 850 4883; www.msccruises.co.uk) and P&O Cruises (0845 678 00 14; www.pocruises.com) offer pan-European options.

Easily forgotten, Europe's rivers also offer multiple possibilities for multi-country cruising. A trip down the Rhine from Basel provides opportunities to stop off in France, Germany and the Netherlands, sailing past vineyards, craggy castles and steep cliffs.

The Danube passes through nine countries as it meanders from Germany towards the Black Sea. In under six hours, you can see three of them, on the DDSG Blue Danube (00 43 1 58 88 00; www.ddsg-blue-danube.at) trip downstream from Vienna to Budapest, which also passes through the Slovakian capital. The service leaves at 9am daily, and the one-way fare for the non-stop trip is €79 (£56). A highlight is to see the river as it squeezes through the Carpathian Basin to form the Danube Bend, swerving sharply south shortly before reaching Budapest.

Stelios, founder of easyCruise (0906 292 9000; www.easycruise.com), will this summer offer two low-cost holidays in European waters: the established route along the French and Italian Riviera will be joined on 11 August by a new service, mainly on Belgian and Dutch rivers and canals linking Brussels and Amsterdam via Antwerp and Rotterdam. You pick and choose the stretches of the itinerary you want to cover, with a minimum stay of two nights; prices for the river cruise start at under £7 per person per night.

Enough Transport - What About Higher Ideals?

Numerous "cultural routes" exist across Europe, underpinned by history, architecture or the arts. Mozart's 250th birthday has given extra emphasis to his route, which links more than 150 places where the composer worked or studied. Mozart spent almost a third of his life travelling (he visited London and Canterbury in 1764 and 1765), and the trail covers nine countries in addition to his native Austria. The website www.mozartways.com gives details of the concert halls where his works were first performed (one notable survivor is the Estates Theatre in Prague) and Mozart-related events.

Long before the 18th century, the Vikings dominated northern Europe; reaching as far south as the Byzantine Empire, where they served as the Varangian Guard. Their influence was felt in architecture, boat design and weapons development. The Viking Heritage trail (www.hgo.se/viking) aims to improve knowledge of their peaceful legacy and to connect Viking sites around the Baltic and North Seas.

The Baltic also gave rise to the Hanseatic League, a trading organisation between German cities that developed into a vast network of almost 200 towns. At its peak in the 14th century, it included cities as diverse as Novgorod (south-east of St Petersburg) and Amsterdam. Merchants would meet up once a year to discuss common concerns. Attempts are now being made to promote tourism and stage joint cultural events; see www.hanse.org. Further south, several Mediterranean countries have joined forces to create the Routes of the Olive Tree. It was launched this summer to celebrate the lifestyles, landscapes and cuisine of the olive tree and its oil. The website www.olivetreeroute.gr may make you long to lie in the shade of an olive tree. In contrast, the European Route of Industrial Heritage (en.erih.net, still under development) celebrates the continent's non-agricultural past. Focusing on Germany, the Netherlands and the UK, it provides lots of ideas for exploring monuments from the days when Europe led the world in mining, textile, energy and steel production.

The European Institute of Cultural Routes (www.culture-routes.lu) acts as a co-ordination centre for various routes across Europe. Its website provides links to a host of routes, ranging from Vauban architecture to a gardens and parks trail. One work in progress is the European Route of Jewish Heritage, seeking to enlighten travellers about the history of Jewish communities "from Dublin to Ankara and from Helsinki to Malta" and the role they have played in the building of Europe.

GO WITH THE FLOW: INTERNATIONAL LAKES

Bodensee, Schwäbisches Meer or Lac de Constance? Lake Geneva (right) or Lac Léman? Unsurprisingly, stretches of water have frequently formed natural frontiers, dividing populations sufficiently for a sense of separateness to develop. The Rhine widens into a 65km-long lake where Germany, Austria and Switzerland meet, forming a natural border and a popular holiday resort.

A boat trip is the ideal way to visit all three countries on Lake Constance in an afternoon; Bodensee-Schiffsbetriebe (www.bsb-online.com), which has offices in Konstanz, Friedrichshafen and Lindau, offers regular passenger-services and summer excursions.

The Rhône, like the Rhine, has its source in Switzerland. Its international lake is Lake Geneva; the northern shores belong to Switzerland; the southern slopes to France. Two companies, the Companie Générale de Navigation (www.cgn.ch) and Mouettes Genevoises Navigation (00 41 22 732 29 44), sail from Geneva's quai du Mont-Blanc.

Further east, the deep waters of Lake Ohrid is shared by Macedonia and Albania; and the larger of the two Prespa Lakes is divided between the same two countries, plus Greece. Cross-country visits are more complicated here because of strict border controls. The best way to access Albania from the Macedonian side of Lake Ohrid is by car, at the Tushemisht or Kafasan crossings (patience and about £15 for a permit to enter Albania should get you through).

Additional research by Debbie Chisholm and Andy Sharman

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