I plan on flying into Dublin early March. I will spend a night or two in Dublin. I will then use Eurail to get around I was thinking of going to Galway for a few days. Ill take any suggestions for Ireland any other areas, I just want it be realistic and easy to get back to the Dublin airport using Eurail without backtracking. Id spend up to 7 days in Ireland with a good plan. Ill then fly using aer lingus to Amsterdam where Ill stay for a couple days, Ive read two days is probably enough. Id like to then visit Brussels, Germany, Spain, Portugal. Fly home from Lisbon. The thing is Im not crazy about France but however I really want to go to Spain and Portugal. Using the Eurail is this a realistic idea.
I feel most of you are going to tell me that Im trying to do much in to little amount of time. I do understand that some of these countries you can spend weeks in without seeing everything. Im just trying to get the most out of the trip and see what every country has to offer sounds typical Im sure. I want to get a Eurail pass that will allow me to travel to and from these countries, obviously the Global Pass is what I would need. I would make it 28 days but it would run into Easter and Id like to be out of Europe to avoid that rush, at the most I could probably do 25 days or so. Sorry for such a long post, any suggestions are appreciated.
Posted by
Boston, MA, United States
1806 posts
You're talking 6 or 7 countries in 21 to 25 days. While train travel can sometimes be convenient because most stations are right in the center of a city, you may look into using a budget European airline (i.e. Ryanair) to fly the longer distances and skip spending hours on the train traveling through an area you aren't interested in (France). Some budget airlines fly into/out of secondary airports - so check the distance you might have to travel to get from the secondary airport to your destination city.
On some of the long train legs, they may offer overnight trains to save daytime hours for sightseeing, but you may not have the most comfortable night's sleep (even if you have a bunk in a sleeper car).
Ireland does not have a very extensive rail system (unless you are just visiting bigger cities like Galway and Dublin). So if you are trying to get way out into the countryside, you'll take more buses or you'll want to rent a car.
Pigeon-holing yourself into a train pass sometimes is not always the best idea or most cost-efficient means of transport with a limited timeframe for your trip. You may also want to compare the costs of purchasing a combination of some point-to-point rail tickets for countries that are very close to each other, bus fares (to cover more remote areas that might not have rail service) and discount airlines for the very long distances (Dublin to Amsterdam, Germany to Spain).
Posted by
Vicenza, Italy
319 posts
21 days for most of europe is pushing it. Ireland is really better done slowly by car. But a couple days in dublin would be fun. I think you can get a low cost flight from frankfurt or munich to spain. It would be quicker and maybe less $ than the train. mainland europe will be way easier to do than ireland. I would honestly skip ireland and focus on mainland
Posted by
OP
Washington, NJ, USA
4 posts
Thank you both. I have been contemplating Ireland since I started planning. Maybe if I was just stay in Dublin for a few nights just to get the experience it would be cheaper and more realistic? I would love to see a little more of Ireland but maybe I should just bag it all together. After a little more research I can fly from Germany to Spain for a great price. My biggest concern is a rail pass or not. The peace of mind it would give me would be worth it in my opinion but there is other options.
Posted by
OP
Washington, NJ, USA
4 posts
Im also wondering if there is a book or guide that lists hostels in various European countries? Something that has there address and possibly a little information would be awesome.
Posted by
Vernon, Canada
32212 posts
Tim,
With only 21 days for travel, I'd probably plan on spending less time in Ireland if possible, as you'll need the time to visit the various cities that you want to see in Europe, and you'll also have to allow for travel times. Ideally, about four days in Dublin would be good.
You mentioned "Germany, Spain, Portugal", but provided little information on what cities you want to see in each of those countries? A bit of further information would be helpful.
While Brussels is certainly a good place to visit, you might also consider Bruges.
"obviously the Global Pass is what I would need"
You'll need to determine which cities you're visiting and in which order, before you can accurately determine which (if any) Railpass will be best. Once you have somewhat of an Itinerary, enter the information into www.railsaver.com and the site will "suggest" the best combination of Rail pass and/or P-P tickets. It's not perfect but provides a fairly good idea.
In reply to your question about Hostels, you might check www.hostelworld.com or the Hostelling International website for listings of Hostels in various cities in Europe.
Good luck with your planning!