One month, 5 countries in July

Posted by andib (CA) on 03/25/26 11:17 PM

Hello all - I have 'finalized' our itinerary for a big July trip but I'm wondering if I'm over-traveling and would like your thoughts. We tend to travel slowly-ish and I think this plan will be a lot of train travel, but that's ok because we will cover a lot of ground. Like many people here, I'm also confused about a Eurail Pass and Swiss Passes. We want to start in Belgium, mostly to visit Bruges, and then we'll end in Nice to meet up with our French friends. Plane tickets purchased (so start & end can't change)! Here is my itinerary & questions:

CA to Brussels - 2 nights
Bruges - 3 nights with a day trip to Ghent
Bacaharach, Germany (Rhine Valley)- 3 nights (Rhine cruise, castles, bob sled in St Goar)
Bern - 3 nights (river float, walk around)
Murren/Muerren - 4 nights
Varenna/Lake Como - 3 nights
Nice - 8 nights

Trains: For a Eurail Pass, that's 8 travel days plus maybe a 2-3 more to cruise around the Berner-Oberland area and maybe one more in the Nice area. If the math works out (using int.bahn.de, it looks like $405 total + some seat reservations I haven't quite figured out yet), the Flex Pass makes the most sense, right ($569 for 2nd class - is 1st class worth it ($747)?)? Or should I just buy individual tickets and then a separate Swiss Pass for Bern/Muerren?

Murren stay: this area confuses me, I need to dive deeper into research, but ideas on how to spend our time (lighter walks (sneakers, not hiking boots), great views, food!) would be super helpful.

Thank you in advance for your tips! Andi

Posted by Jean

Idaho, USA

03/25/26 11:34 PM

9505 posts

Hi, what exactly is your goal for this trip? It feels like you want to check off five countries on a list, and you’re missing some stellar places, actually many stellar places in the process. If you’re just wanting input on train questions, I won’t delve into the itinerary. Either way, enjoy your time in Europe!

Posted by ChinaLake67

NorthCarolina

03/26/26 12:13 AM

1263 posts

Brussels is so underwhelming - I'd take the train straight from the Brussels airport to Bruges. If you want Belgium, I'd do Bruges, Antwerp, Ghent. What is the plan here as many of these places seem random. Bern is also underwhelming to me compared to other places in Switzerland like Lucerne which is so amazing & the Alps.

You aren't interested in more of Italy like Venice, Florence, Rome? I guess I'm trying to figure out your plan other than to see your friends in France? What are your interests?

Posted by andib OP

03/26/26 12:29 AM

9 posts

Thanks. I suppose I chose these places because we haven't been to Belgium, Germany or Switzerland. I know we're just scratching the surface of those but we've been to Italy and France a good amount. We really want to see Bruges and the end of the trip was Nice, so I just kind of plotted south from Belgium. Interests include absorbing the culture, walking/getting to know the town a bit, food and wine (or beer!). I hear you on Brussels, I was told that by a co-worker, so I'll consider that.

Posted by acraven

Washington DC

03/26/26 02:01 AM

30439 posts

I spent two weeks in Brussels last year. It's a good destination for people who like art museums and a great destination for people who like Art Nouveau architecture. It's a large city (fortunately with excellent public transportation), so I can see why many people don't find it all warm and fuzzy and prefer places like Bruges and Ghent, but I'd be happy to return. I don't need to return to Bruges, but I often feel one trip is enough for places of that size, if I've allowed enough days on my first visit.

Posted by Russ

Paradise

03/26/26 02:55 AM

8045 posts

Your post is VAGUE about your ticketing.

How many days are you buying the pass for? And is that $569 for ONE, or TWO persons?

These are your journeys. I am not familiar with your routes, and not sure if each part of your trip is covered in Switzerland, but I count 6, not 8. What am I missing?

1) Brussels > Bruges (day trip to Gent: just buy cheap local tickets. Don't waste a Eurailpass day.)

2) Bruges > Bacharach

3) Bacharach > Bern

4) Bern > Mürren

5) Mürren > Varenna

6) Varenna > Nice

"WE" = 2 Adults? Youth (>27)?

"...plus maybe a 2-3 more to cruise around the Berner-Oberland area..."

It wouldn't be my choice to buy extra days if I don't have specific plans - unless those extra days are a bargain.

It sounds to me like you should be considering a 5-day pass plus one p2p pre-purchased ticket for whichever journey is the cheapest of your 6 journeys. Then compare that to the cost of the 6 p2p tickets.

Or if you just want to round up a little, maybe look at the 7-day pass. But rounding up to 10 doesn't sound right.

Eurail's sale runs out on the 31st, I believe.

Also, there's no bobsled in St Goar. You'll need to cross the river (use the all-day ferry crossing) to St Goarshausen and catch a bus from there - or do some hiking to get there. From BACHARACH, you will have to use the trains some - if only to reach St. Goar, just 10 minutes away. But these short train rides are cheap and should be purchased on the spot - don't waste a railpass day to travel 10 minutes! Saving those RP days for the big trips is a good rule of thumb.