Important travel information needed

I can't help you much, except to give the following advice. You need to remove your full name and your email from the forum or you will soon find your incoming mail full of spam.

People can either post on here or send you a private message. One should never post emails or full names on open forums like this.

thank you!

• If you're considering the overnight train from Milan to Paris, look at buying it now. Both the night train and the daytime train the next day will be expensive, this route is NOT covered by most railpasses, and it often is cheaper to fly.

• See www.skyscanner.com for flights. Also plan to fly back to Italy, such as from Amsterdam to Milan, Florence, or Pisa. (Pisa-Modena takes 3 hours by train and 2 connections, but it also may have the cheapest flights.)

• Your friend should know that Paris-Utrecht train tickets (on Thalys) have various advance discount offers and she should book that ticket now for both of you.

• Tickets within Netherlands and Italy are relatively cheap and easy to buy there in train stations.

Since you want to be in Paris, not Milan, can you fly to Paris, not Milan? Looks like it will cost you to get there from Milan.

Alternatively, are your friends flexible? You could visit your second friend first, go by rail or air to Paris, then fly home from Amsterdam.

Solo train compartments are wicked expensive. So are Eurail passes, a bad value for the itinerary you have outlined. I hope it is not too late for you to rethink some of these logistical details!

I already bought my ticket round trip to Milan because I had plans originally to go around Europe with someone. So now I have to do that. I figured an overnight train would be a good experience!

Well it will be an experience.
Since you will be alone I think you should count on sharing the compartment. Bring yr own food and drink too.

Do you think it will be safe? Thank you so much!! I really appreciate it!

Given the logistics of getting from Milan to Paris and the cost involved you might want to check with your airline and see what it would cost to change the ticket... sometimes it might balance out. Otherwise, have a wonderful adventure:)

Safe? I think so, comfortable, maybe not.

Have you thought about flying from Milan to Paris? Flights aren't that expensive. Check out Easyjet.

I am short, compact areas are fine with me haha. Thank you all. I would rather spend the money on a train so I get to see things instead of being in the air!

If you plan to take overnight trains, it will be dark for most or all of your journey. You won't see much that way.

Overnight trains are not typically restful - at least for me - as other posters noted, you will most likely be sharing a compartment unless you are willing to pay quite a bit. There are quite a few stops and starts throughout the night and people get on and off the train at all hours - maybe even your compartment mates. If it were me, I would go straight to the airport and catch the relatively short flight to Paris. Flights within Europe are quite inexpensive and often cheaper than taking a train.

That's not what I meant by comfortable.. lol .. I meant they can put anyone in with you.. can work out great.. or can suck.. And shared bathroom down the aisle ... nasty by morning.. no shower.. and noise and stopping and bumping.

You may enjoy it as an experience.. but don't count on it being a sightseeing thing.. really don't..

Do however come back and let us know.. so many people forget to come back and let us know..

Brianna,

Your proposed route is a bit convoluted, but as you already have your air tickets you'll have to work with what you have. I assume you have return tickets in/out of Milan / MXP?

A few thoughts regarding your questions......

• Would you recommend staying in Milan one night to relax or just taking the overnight train?

YES, I would suggest staying in Milan one night. Although you're flying from the east coast, jet lag could still be an issue and you could really be tired by the time the night train departs. In the same situation, I'd probably use a departure the next morning from Milano Porta Garibaldi at 06:00, arriving Paris Gare de Lyon at 13:26 (time 7H:26M, direct via high speed TGV, reservations compulsory).

• After we stay 3 days, we will journey to Utrecht together.

As your friend lives in Utrecht, she will undoubtedly be very familiar with the train system. I'd probably use one of the trains that only has one change, as opposed to others with two or three changes, such as a departure from Paris at 08:25, arriving Utrecht Centraal at 12:01 (one change at Rotterdam).

• After all of this I wanted to take the cheapest train whether I switch or overnight from Amsterdam or Utrecht, whatever is cheapest to Italy.

Travel by train from Amsterdam to Modena is going to be an arduous journey and an ordeal that won't be pleasant. Even some of the night trains will be about a 20 hour journey with about SIX changes (some in the wee hours of the morning, so you wouldn't be getting much sleep). Also, the train journey may cost about as much as travelling by air.

I'd suggest using a budget flight on that route. One possibility is EasyJet, which has three flights daily from AMS to MXP (Terminal 2). The flight is 1H:40M (plus all the usual airport hassles). The prices at the moment are not exactly in the "budget" category, but they will likely continue to increase as the flight fills so it would be prudent to BOOK SOON. There may be other airlines operating on that route, but I didn't check.

If you book with EasyJet, be sure to read their "Terms & Conditions" carefully, especially related to luggage rules. If your checked bag will be over their allowable limit, it's cheaper to pay for the next weight tier at the time of booking, rather than at the gate. Also, they only allow ONE carry-on item per passenger. That doesn't mean "one plus a personal item such as a purse", it means ONE ONLY of the approved size (no weight limits). As I recall, you can print your boarding pass at home up to a month prior to the flight (DON'T forget to pack it if you do print at home!).

If you decide to use EasyJet, once you arrive at MXP T2, take the Malpensa Shuttle (Bus) to Milano Centrale (about 50M) and then train from there to Modena (~1H:40M via Freccia trains and slightly longer if using other types of trains).

If you haven't used the trains or other public transit in Italy before, there are some potentially expensive "caveats" to be aware of. If you need more information, post another note.

Good luck!

Thank you all so much! I booked my hotel in the Milan center for one night and then will take the overnight train at 11pm the next day and will have one female roommate. From there I am still trying to figure everything out. Thank you all very much!