One year on the rails: Delphine's Paris-Indonesia train experience

Written by Sophie Renassia

Published on September 22, 2024, modified on April 29, 2025

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A year on the rails

In this episode, Tolt welcomes Delphine, a travel enthusiast who, with her partner Arnaud, completed a train journey from Paris to Indonesia!

From the studio at Le Passage, she shares their unique experience, from the preparation to the unforgettable adventures they had across Europe and Asia, including the discovery of new cultures and splendid landscapes.

Episod program

• Her relationship with the train (2 or 3 times a week!): “It's a means of transport that relaxes me quite a bit, unlike flying.”
• Her motivations behind the crazy project to travel from Paris to Indonesia by train: from his taste for travel during his humanitarian missions while studying, to his ecological convictions. “We realized that the idea of travel was not incompatible with ecology. That's when the project was born.”
• The preparation for this extraordinary trip.
• The highlights of the trip, from the Central Asian landscapes to the mountains of Tajikistan (where tourism is rare), the Mongolian steppes and unforgettable encounters with local people.
• The logistical challenges, from managing visas to booking trains in the various countries, not to mention the unexpected (such as Arnaud's accident in Indonesia or the trap of volunteering on the island of Niass).
• Delphine's assessment: the impact this trip has had on her life, her thoughts on sustainable travel and her future plans!
• And many more nuggets you can discover by clicking here 👇

“We realized that traveling far away was not incompatible with ecology."

“72 hours by train is practically a roommate!”

“What seemed like a world by plane, ended up being 14 days by train.”

Delphine and Arnaud's assessment

Their itinerary in detail

• Paris-Vienna by night train.
• Vienna-Budapest then Budapest-Bucharest by night train (with magnificent scenery, including the sunset as we crossed the countryside!)
• Bucharest-Turkey by night bus (no trains available).
• Crossing Central Asia: from Turkey to Georgia, then on to Tajikistan via Russia. One of the longest legs of the trip: a 72-hour journey to Dushanbe!
• Southeast Asia: finally, down to Indonesia via Vietnam, Cambodia and Thailand.
• Return by train through Mongolia and Russia (on board the Trans-Siberian Railway).

Their tips

• Reservations: for journeys like Bucharest-Istanbul, it's often necessary to book on the spot (whereas for others, like Budapest-Bucharest, you can book online).
• Budget: Delphine and Arnaud had an overall budget of 15,000 euros each for the year. They learned to adjust their spending along the way, especially after discovering a budget management application used by other travelers!
• Health and insurance: their experiences in Turin (a 12-day bout of tourista) and Indonesia (local care and major medical interventions following a surfing injury and infection) show just how important it is to have good travel insurance!

With this testimonial, Delphine proves once again that train travel is much more than just a mode of transport. It's an invitation to rethink the way we discover the world. Even to the other side of the globe...

To find out more about this trip and discover other practical tips, visit Delphine and Arnaud's Instagram account @1_an_sur_rails, as well as their Polarstep, where they share details of their itinerary, journey prices and their tips for eco-responsible travel!

To make sure you don't miss a single episode and get inspired by our guests, don't hesitate to subscribe to the podcast on your favorite listening platforms. Thanks to our partner SNCF Connect, the reference app for trains and sustainable mobility, which accompanies over 15 million users on their journeys in France and Europe!