Best time to buy train tickets

GoEuro is another reseller and I don't know what their prices are. I do know that all these tickets can be bought direct from the railway companies' own websites, and those will be the guaranteed best prices, as they run the trains.

Familiarize your self with how tickets are sold, like airline tickets, 3 to 6 months in advance, basically nonrefundable or changeable, except with a fee and paying the price difference. You must travel on the train the ticket is for. That is to get steep discounts, and the earlier you buy, the lower the price.
Berlin to Prague to Munich to Zurich can all be bought at www.bahn.com, the German Railway.
Zurich to Milan/Florence to Venice can be bought at www.trenitalia.com, the Italian Railway. You might also find that Prague to Munich is cheaper at Ceske Drahy, the Czech Railway, www.cd.cz.
German and Italian tickets are priced in Euro, Czech tickets in Koruna.
PS. Fly from Venice to Brussels. 3 flights a day on Brussels Airlines for 78 Euro.

I've never heard of this GoEuro. Have you done research to find their track record and look at complaints?

Is there a reason you don't want to buy the tickets from the people selling them and running the trains?

Check whether GoEuro sells Berlin to Prague at EUR 19,90 and Milan to Venice at EUR 24,90 (or even EUR 9,90 if you take the early afternoon train). These are the prices of discounted tickets for an at random date in March bought directly from the relevant railway company.

What’s sorely lacking is a table showing when tickets are released by train system. For Italy’s national system it’s 120 days, for Germany about 90-93 days. Discounted tickets may sell out in days.

At second thoughts: use the train planner of the Bahn to see how the route Munich-Venice-Milan-Zurich-Brussels works out. Munich to Venice has a good rail connection (direct or with a connection in Verona) and in clear weather magnificent views when crossing the Dolomites.

Yes, Venice to Brussels is a very long trip by train and I would fly.

The German train tickets actually tend to go on sale 6 months ahead (program started a year ago). Ticket prices will only go up from the rates you see now. You can see the full fares on the same screen when you search through DB or Trenitalia.

Slower regional trains (which you won't use between these big cities) and trips wholly within Switzerland don't tend to offer advance discounts.

We suggest staying in Luzern or the Lauterbrunnen area to be closer to the Alps, not Zurich. And Florence has better sightseeing than Milan.

If you don't fly from Venice to Brussels, then DB suggest that the fastest routes (12.5 to 14.5 hours) are either via France or would cross Austria on the way to Germany. I would choose the route via Austria, which is back through Munich. The French trains are best reserved ahead, especially with a rail pass, and also require changing stations in Paris by Metro or taxi.

A more logical semi-circle all by train would be Berlin -> Prague -> Munich -> Venice -> Milan or Florence or ? -> Luzern-> Brussels (flight out). The fastest trains from Venice to Luzern take under 6 hours.

If you're under 28 on the day of activating a Eurail pass, you can get the Global pass Youth rate for 5 days of travel within a month in 2nd class, currently at $311 with the discount offer. Or a Select pass covering 6 travel days in 4 countries costs the same and you can pay separately for the bit from the German border to Brussels (about $20). Single adults 28+ will pay more, both because their pass only comes in 1st class and without a group-travel discount. Many Swiss mountain lifts offer 25-50% discounts with a Eurail brand pass (do not require using a counted travel day). The pass is quite flexible to use in the countries where you're likely to travel (not France).

Good info from Laura. Also, have you checked out: "RS Home page > Travel Tips > Transportation > Trains & Rail Passes" ? Lots of good information there also.