I have an itinerary for a trip. Would appreciate opinions and advice!

Taking a train from Lyon to Amsterdam and Amsterdam to Berlin is not out of the question. These are both 6 hour journeys city center to city center. If you fly, for LYS to AMS, figure leave for the airport 3 hours before flight time, 2 hours in the air, 1 hour from touchdown to central Amsterdam. Similar estimate for AMS to TXL.

I'd rethink every transition using Sam's logic.

Sam, I was considering the train. I know you can book tickets on raileurope but it seems expensive. What about loco2? Or better yet, where do you usually purchase train tickets when you're in Europe?

Dylan: I have not been to Amsterdam in several decades, so I don't feel qualified to address the merits of going there or not. However, given that you identify yourself as a history buff with a recent emphasis on WWII, I would recommend that you forego Amsterdam and spread those days among Berlin and Krakow. At a minimum, give yourself an additional day in Krakow. Auschwitz is about 90 minutes or so from Krakow and even a "quick" visit would take at least 3-4 hours; so, figuring the transportation back and forth and both portions of Auschwitz (Auschwitz I and Auschwitz II-Birkenau), the evolution will take most of a day. Krakow's Schindler Factory (of Schindler's List fame) is a very good museum and the Jewish quarter (Kazimierz) is interesting as well. Anyway, good luck with your travels.

I use www.capitainetrain.com to buy French tickets, and I see they now also sell DB tickets. Check prices on the national sites, but my experience is they are exactly the same as the Prems fares at www.en.voyages-sncf.com and Sparpreis fares at www.bahn.com. Do not use Raileurope, they don't show the best deals.
The 8:30 departure from Lyon is the fastest and does not require a station change in Paris. It goes direct to Brussels and change to the Thalys there. DB has several direct ICE trains to Berlin from A'dam.

I think Amsterdam and Berlin are both rushed. You really have at most a day and a half in each location. If I were a history buff, I'd add a day to Amsterdam and make sure to see the Anne Frank house (buy your tickets in advance to avoid waiting in line for hours; read the diary right before the trip, if you haven't already). Then fly to Krakow and spend 2 or 3 nights there. Maybe remove a day from Paris, since you've already been there. Skip Berlin for this trip.

If you've never been to Amsterdam, I recommend going! It's a really cool city. Since you're interested in World War II, you might want to check out the Jewish Historical Museum and the Dutch Resistance Museum, both of which have areas focused on the war. And of course the Anne Frank House.

The Resistance and Deportation Museum in Lyon is fascinating, too. It's unfortunate that a lot of info is in French only, but there is a good audio/interactive tour-they loan you a tablet and headphones. Very moving, it's located in the very building the Gestapo took over and used. Very worthwhile.
Lyon is a wonderful city, enjoy!

Charlene,
I think your're right. Amsterdam seems like it will work well. Cutting out Berlin also saves money and allows me to spend more time in Amsterdam and Krakow. I can also get a train for around a hundred euro from Lyon to Amsterdam. Krakow is also a very cheap place to visit correct? I've been researching hotels and you can get a good one for well under $100.

Dylan R.

Imo i think you're trying to fit it too much and short changing all of your places. note that i havent been to Berlin, yet, but I'm thinking 3 days for me. I can see visiting Lyon and Paris for just a day or so to visit friends, but its a lot of $$$ to just visit.

ALso, I'm thinking the path needs to be something like London > Amsterdam > Berlin > Krakow > Lyon > Paris > London. but of course it will depend on if the trains/airlines will co operate with times/days/cost. Of course yours will work too.

Happy trails.

Ray,
I think I'm going to cut out Berlin and save it for another time. I've never been to Lyon so I will definitely be doing some sightseeing. It's visit a friend/see the city and its sites.

You can get a very good hotel in Krakow for around $100, a good one for lots less. Check booking.com to compare prices.

Krakow is beautiful. Visit the Jewish Ghetto and the old Schindler factory while you are there. The first bus to Auschwitz-Birkenau leaves at about 8:30 in the morning from near the central train station.

If you're going to do Anne Frank in Amsterdam, you might as well take the 20 minute train ride to Haarlem and see the Corrie Ten Boom house as well! Read Anne's Diary and also The Hiding Place before you go. Corrie is the coin flip to Anne, and seeing and crawling into the hiding place in the wall, and seeing how close this house was to police and danger... it's powerful.

Dylan -- Just a word of caution-- if you overdo the WWII stuff you could become seriously depressed. Be sure to set aside time for fun, too.

ALERT Yesterday the OP posted a new thread in which he says

I've posted quite a few times about a ten day travel plan I have. Originally I had a plan to the south of France. Then I changed it to Amsterdam and Krakow to visit WWII sites then to Paris for a few days to see a friend. However, after weighing my options and calculating costs this isn't realistic. . . . . . I've decided to go with my original idea and go to the South of France