3 Essential Items For Your Interrailing Trip

I’ve just been interrailing and, honestly? I had the time of my life. Yes, a lot of that was to do with the company and the spectacular locations we visited, each of which restored my faith in humanity in various ways. But it’s also because of how well prepared I was. 

Don’t worry, this article isn’t going to be me tooting my own horn about how perfectly prepared I was, or how great my trip was. It’s actually going to focus on three select items that were critical to my trip’s success. 

50 Litre Backpack

If you’re planning on going interrailing, then you’re already aware that you’ll need a backpack. But let me save you a couple of hours of deliberation and decision-making fatigue and just tell you that you’ll need a 50 litre backpack.

Yes, there’s a chance that 40 litres might do the job, but the morning of every travel day will likely escalate into a battle with the zip, during which you’ll need to use all of your might to move it a few centimeters closer to being shut. 

With a 50 litre backpack, you’ll have enough space for clothes, toiletries, a spare pair of shoes, and electronics, as well as a drink and some snacks while you’re travelling. More liters doesn’t necessarily mean a bigger price tag, either. I bought mine online for the grand sum of £30.

Camera

Sure, we all have cameras on our phones. But honestly, I’m sick  of using my phone for literally everything, just because it’s convenient. That’s one reason I went and bought an actual digital camera in 2026. 

Taking photos on it just feels better. Between feeling the real mechanism of the zoom to the tactile ‘click’ of each shot, I quickly realised that taking photos on my phone never felt this good. But the photos I took also looked better – and not just technically. 

Yes, the colours are richer and the resolution higher, but the composition was also flat out superior, as if I was upping my game because I was using the camera. Having a specific tool – in this case, a camera – for a specific job, made me use the tool more deliberately, and take more care when setting up shots. Since returning home, I’ve filled a couple of Snapfish photo books with all of the photos I took on our trip, and each photo really pops. 

Kindle

While we’re on the topic of having a specific tool for a specific job, here’s another perfect example. Sure, you can argue that a book does the job just as well, or that you prefer the experience of reading a real book and turning those pages. That’s all well and good, but this is an article about interrailing. If I asked you to either pack a Kindle or a 1000 page book which is roughly the size and weight of a small brick, I think I know what your answer would probably be. 

Sure, you probably aren’t reading The Way of Kings like I was, but bringing a Kindle with you is endlessly more practical. If you finish your book mid-trip, then you can instantly start reading another on your Kindle, whereas if you’re reading a real book, then you’ll have to find another English language version of a book  you want, which becomes even more difficult if you’re reading a series. 

Conclusion

So, that just about does it. If you bring these three items with you on your interrailing, you’ll have enough space for all of your things, be able to capture memories in better photos, and entertain yourself away from your phone during those long train journeys.