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Looking for countryside recommendations

Posted by on

Hello wonderful fellow travelers!

I am currently backpacking my way through Europe (solo 20 something female) and I am looking for a little help. Toward the end of my trip, I have a one week period of flexible travel in between my visits to prague and Belgium. Prague and Belgium cannot be changed, but I am looking for recommendations on places to visit in between. I would like to break up my trip with some beautiful scenery/countryside, like mountains or a lake. I have a eurrail pass, so I can afford to be flexible. Im thinking in the general area of Germany, austria, Switzerland, or france, but not opposed to traveling a bit out of the way for something really phenomenal. At that time in my trip, I will have already visited Paris, the Berner oberland, Munich, Salzburg, and vienna, so I don't want to return to those places.

My apologies for brevity and any grammar or spelling mistakes, as I am typing on my phone in a hostel. Thank you for all of your help!

Posted by
6778 posts

"I would like to break up my trip with some beautiful scenery/countryside..."

Harz Mountains, Goslar, Wernigerode:
http://www.uncommon-travel-germany.com/harz.html

Middle Rhine Valley:
Rhine Castle trail
Oberwesel
Bacharach
St. Goar (Rheinfels Castle)

Mosel Valley:
Cochem
Bernkastel
Bullay/Zell area

These suggestions won't require a whole lot of extensive train travel as they are sort of in between Prague and Belgium. Trains follow the riverbank on their way through these river valleys for the most part and deliver you to most of the little wine towns on the way. For a few of the Mosel towns, where the river is especially windy, you'll connect with an additional bus ride. Or you can stay in a train town and bike along the river to those places.

Rooms aren't cheap everywhere. But you can find official DJH hostels and small B&B's with reasonable prices. How about a single room ("Einzelzimmer" or EZ for short) with breakfast in Cochem at the Zum Fröhlichen Weinberg for less than €25? ("Bavaria Ben" has this review w/photos from several years ago.)

Posted by
868 posts

I would like to break up my trip with some beautiful
scenery/countryside, like mountains or a lake.

Saxon/Bohemian Switzerland, probably the most picturesque mountains of Central Europe, are less than two hours to the north of Prague, on the direct train route to Dresden. You can easily spend a full week there and hike every day, or take the paddle steamer (or train) to Königstein fortress, Pillnitz castle, Meissen or Dresden for example.

Here is a nice blog post about it:
http://jackandjilltravel.com/saxon-switzerland-dresden/

And a website with a few hundred hikes:
https://translate.google.com/translate?hl=de&sl=de&tl=en&u=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.wandern-saechsische-schweiz.de%2Fwordpress%2F

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