This category covers transport other than flights, but local “commute” type travel does not qualify. For 2025 this was mostly about trains, trams and buses. I used a lot of them!
But first, the other transport modes. I used the Subway again when I was in Glasgow. It is unique, so always worth a mention. Other cities have underground railways, but not like this! Trust me…
In Köln I used the U-Bahn, so that makes two underground systems. I have a feeling I used the Berlin one too, but my memory is not what it used to be! Overground I used trams in Warsaw, Bonn, Dresden, Basel, Utrecht and Gdańsk as well as in Köln.
I used the city buses a lot when I visited Dublin. Great value! Then of course I have to give a special mention to the bike I rented in Maastricht. I loved it.
As for long distance trains, I travelled from Basel to Geneva on the Swiss system, with two changes of train along the way.
I used the Dutch railway to get myself from Utrecht to Maastricht. Then I took Arriva and Deutsche Bahn (again with two changes along the way) between Maastricht and Düsseldorf Airport. I covered the length of Poland by train, in three segments with overnight stops along the way – Kraków to Warsaw, Warsaw to Malbork, and then Malbork to Gdańsk.
My intercity bus experiences were mostly within Scotland – Flixbus to Aberdeen and Citylink to all kinds of places – Dundee, Glasgow, Ayr. In Scotland bus travel is free for folks my age, although I lose my card quite frequently and end up paying! I used a Flixbus between Dresden and Berlin. My Scottish bus pass does not work in Germany, so why…
As for less mundane transport experiences, that would include the Drachenfelsbahn in Königswinter (across the Rhein from Bonn) and the Schwebebahn Dresden in Dresden, on the east bank of the Elbe in the Loschwitz suburb.
The Drachenfelsbahn is a historic electric cog railway car and the Schwebebahn Dresden is a unique 100-year-old suspended monorail system which ascends to an observation deck for valley views.
After all is said and done, the most memorable has to be my train journey between Chișinău and Iași in an ancient Soviet-style sleeper compartment.
It is not unique, but it is pretty damned special.
ⓒ iain taylor, 2026
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