First Trip to Europe! Trains, Hotels, etc.

If you are not on a "glamorous budget," then why are you looking at a railpass? A pass is a luxury item where you pay for total flexibility and first class. Savvy, budget minded travelers buy point to point tickets online in advance. Read this advice from the train guru - the man in seat 61:

http://www.seat61.com/Railpass-and-Eurail-pass-guide.htm#Should%20you%20buy%20a%20railpass%20or%20pay-as-you-go

The Eurail Global Pass covers 28 countries and comes in either flexi or consecutive-day versions. Most other passes, such as the Eurail Select Pass covering 2 - 4 countries, are always flexi passes, spreading travel over a one- or two-month window (two in this case). The next term of importance is Saver pass, which is the 15% discount you get for two adults traveling together. However, that only works when you buy the same number of travel days for both of you, since it will be printed all on one pass document. If you buy a pass that covers your whole trip and your cousin buys a smaller one, then you don't get the 15% discount.

If you focus on just the time that you're together, you can get a Eurail Select Pass for 6 travel days in Benelux, Germany, and Switzerland for $383 per person in 1st class, which is cheaper than full-fare 2nd-class tickets and may also compare well to discounted tickets if you were to purchase them all now. The pass gives you 25% off many Swiss mountain lifts (sometimes up to 50%) and 25% off trains running Interlaken-Lauterbrunnen and further in that valley. From Amsterdam to Brussels, I would avoid the Thalys train, which needs a $19 or $31 seat reservation, and take local trains, instead. This assumes that you would travel to Switzerland via Germany, not via France. (The 3-country pass without France would work on a Thalys to Paris but not on a connecting TGV from France to Switzerland.)

If you have a day left over on the pass (I don't know how many trips you're making in Switzerland), then you can take the pass for two people and use it as far as the German border on your way to Prague. Once your cousin leaves, you'll probably be better off with buying tickets point-to-point, instead of another 3-country pass for Czech-Austria-Italy, which would cost $449 in 1st class. The longest route, Vienna to Venice, would offer the most advance-purchase discount, or you could also find cheap flights available. Paris to Amsterdam by Thalys is another good candidate either for an advance discount ticket or for using a leftover day of your original pass (with $30 or $45 seat reservation fee).

As Emily suggests, look into point-to-point tickets. I found that national trains often have some kind of advance purchase point-to-point tickets that are discounted from the usual price.

While you will not be able to take advantage of OBB's Einfach-Raus tickets (2 or more travelers), we found that they were bargains that didn't even need advance purchase. Point is to check the national system websites for discounted fares.

Nordic national trails commonly have advance purchase prices. The Norwegain NBR.no system has "minipris" tickets with heavier discounts the earlier you buy them and sell out close to the day of departure. The Finnish VR.fi system also has advanced purchase discounted fares (but we found the Pensioner pricing better than the advance purchase prices). Point being, to check the national train websites as Rail Europe tries to sell you First Class passes.

It sounds like flexibility is a priority for you, even though you have a general route plan. Hotel-wise, www.booking.com will show you what's currently available at a wide range of properties (you can choose B&Bs or hotels) and at what price. There's also the old-fashioned method of calling individual properties listed in your guidebook; they easily could have had a cancellation. See more budget tips at https://www.ricksteves.com/travel-tips/sleeping-eating.

If you haven't booked flights yet, consider flying into Amsterdam and flying back from Paris. Or start in Paris, then Brussels, Amsterdam, Frankfurt, Nurnberg, Switzerland, Roma, Venezia, Vienna, Prague, and fly out from Prague. Less backtracking saves money. You can get very cheap airfares within Europe.

You can set up an alert system with booking.com for last minute deals, or just check their website. They have all types of accommodations from hostels to apartments and villas. You can also locate potential choices on a map and read reviews from recent guests. Even as a research tool, it's a very good option.

Hi,

There are certain advantages in getting the adv discount tickets. Some very good savings. I've used a couple of these myself but sparingly; keep in mind whether you consider the savings are worth it. You lock yourself in to a specific departure on a specific date, thereby sacrificing flexibility for savings. Depending upon your itinerary it can done but how often do you want to do this with all the long distance tickets locked in, where if you lose the whole ticket, miss your departure or should you change your mind as to what date on departing from a place, you won't get any credit for the discount ticket already purchased. You need to buy a new ticket at the normal price.

There are second class rail passes. Deciding on which is the key. You don't need a Global Pass. The pass comes in handy if you take a night train, esp at your age, you'll see your contemporaries doing just that. I'm talking about the cheapest way to go. I still take a night train at least once on every trip. Based on your main itinerary above, I would ger a regional Pass with two countries with Germany as one of them. Use that in combination with some discount tickets if you're willing to sacrifice the flexibility option.

If you buy a railpass you'll be in first class. But if you buy individual tickets, you can buy second class, and there's no reason to pay more for first. Nothing about your age disqualifies you (though you may be too old for some student-type discounts). Second class is perfectly comfortable, and as RS says it travels at exactly the same speed and arrives at the same time as first class!

I guess you've got your transatlantic flights lined up, but you probably could have saved time and money by flying home from Rome or Paris instead of backtracking to Amsterdam. It's called open-jaw, or multi-city on airline websites and search engines, and usually costs little or no more than round-trip. I hope you're planning to spend some time in Paris instead of just using it as a way-station back to Amsterdam.

Have a great trip!

Fred is correct that adults can get 2nd-class passes for just one or two countries. For instance, a 2-country Select Saver Pass for Germany and Switzerland would cover most of the portion of your trip when you're traveling together and starts at $253 per person for 5 days of travel in 2nd class. Same coverage/discounts in Switzerland. Both of my price quotes assume booking by April 29, while the extra-day special is in effect.

Hi,

I have used Passes of both classes, most recently the 2nd class Pass for 10 days/2months Austria-Germany, fits my purposes fine. The advantage to having a 1st class Pass is when you hop on without getting a reservation; you do that in 1st class esp when you want to avoid the locals. Rush hour is bad in 1st class, ie, expect it to be crowded, other than that you can pop on any seat unreserved or unoccupied.