Short get away itinerary

I say go for it! You're right though...besides the Grand Platz, there isn't a whole lot to see (my humble opinion of course!)...it is worth an hour of your time but I wouldn't go out of your way unless it's high on your priority list. Your plan to go to Bruges for part of the day is a good one. Again, it is lovely and quaint, but a day there is plenty, especially if you're not going to invest in a canal cruise or other more expensive activities. You may kick yourself for not spending more time in Amsterdam though! Brussels and Bruges are lovely but Amsterdam is a young, lively city that has a ton to offer - I have been there many times and can't get enough. My niece, who is your age, just did a 6 month study program there and didn't want to come home! You might want to consider trying to give yourself more time there...have fun!

Sienna, I'm not familiar with Megabus, but I wonder what fares you are seeing for the Eurostar. I see that right now a fare from London to Brussels near the end of September is about 98 euro and takes a little over two hours. You need to book as far as possible in advance to get the low fare on Eurostar (I think it's 90 days?) but this would save a lot of travel time for you. Is Megabus much less?

Sienna, since you're looking so far in advance you can get really cheap fares on Eurostar as long as you're willing to commit to a date and time. If you purchase when they first become available for your date, the student price for one-way London to Brussels is as low as 39 Euro. I'm not sure how far ahead they become available but I think it's 4 months, maybe longer. Someone else on here will know for sure. It sure would beat the bus for time, and maybe cost too (at least for that part of the trip). You would probably still have to do bus from Amsterdam back to London. Or you could check skyscanner.com and see what cheap flights might be there from Amsterdam to London.

With so little time, you might consider flying to Amsterdam and back, skipping Belgium for now. You'll find plenty to see and do in Amsterdam for the time you have, and you'll minimize travel time. Skyscanner.com shows a $129 round-trip fare between Gatwick and Amsterdam on British Airways for a weekend next May. Each flight a little more than an hour, though you have to add the time and cost of getting to and from airports (minimal for Amsterdam). Might be a better value than 21 hours on the road!

Megabus is a SUPER low fare bus that operates in several countries now. I took it for the first time between Sacramento and San Francisco here in California and paid about $15. The fares are as low as 1 US$ for the first few people to book a bus. After that it can be anywhere from $10 - $50 for a trip that is a similar length to the one Sienna is looking to take. Depends on how soon you book! It's a great deal. Nice buses and lots of routes.

Regarding planning all your short trips, great idea for getting low advance-purchase fares, but consider that you may meet other students and want to change your plans.

I liked Brussels a lot, but not as much as Brugge or Gent.

Hi all,

Thank you for your recommendations on transport but I think I'd rather save on it! I like bus rides and the seats sound like they'd be comfortable for someone my size (really petite)

Megabus offers around $20 one way to Brussels and I really doubt any other fare can beat that.

I'm going for the trip with the mindset that I'd be back in future, so I'm not particularly bothered by travelling time. This trip is a lot more of deciding which part of Europe suits me and less of "I am going to for every single experience"

However, taking the Eurostar for a one way trip sounds like a pretty good deal, so I might consider that!

The reason why I am going to both Brussels and Amsterdam is because Megabus stops over at Brussels on the way to Amsterdam.

So it's London - Brussels - Amsterdam.

Going to both places will save me another 8h or 10h (during a separate trip) and allow me to split up the long bus ride by resting and sightseeing.

Thank you for all the feeeback!

Also, I've heard it is possible to cycle from Amsterdam to Germany? Or did I remember wrongly?

IS it a reasonable ride and do I need a passport?

I'd love to know if there are any other easy cross-border rides in Europe!

Hi,

For bus transportation look at berlinlinienbus.de. They have connections between Amsterdam and Germany. For the border crossing between Holland and Germany, it's best to have the Passport with you.

The easiest border crossing I have seen is someplace not in your itinerary, where one just walks across or bikes across the bridge as if it were all in one city but it is not. This crossing is from Germany into Poland in Frankfurt an der Oder, (nice town), cross the Oder bridge, you're in the Polish town...no Passport check or personnel whatsoever.

I've heard it is possible to cycle from Amsterdam to Germany? Is it a reasonable ride

It is certainly possible; the Netherlands is certainly honeycombed with cycle paths adjacent to many roads.

Is 122 km each way (75 miles) reasonable for you? The closest place in Germany to Amsterdam is just past Arnhem at Emmerich, just about 122 km in a straight line. It would be more as I haven't factored in cycle paths and junctions, detours, etc. I'm sure that by going to the Dutch cycling organizations they could give you that fine detail if 250km return appeals.

Sienna, although you don't say in your profile where you are from I will assume North American? If so, and coming from London, you should always have your passport. Germany Netherlands is a Schengen crossing but you never know when you will be asked for it.

I personally think you have way too much planned for the amount of travel time you are willing to devote to a bus. If you are still set on sitting on a bus for the whole day then I would just get to Brussels, spend one night and then get to Amsterdam. Bruges is better than Brussels in my opinion but it will take more time to get there and more time to get from there to Amsterdam. Once in Amsterdam I would look into flying back to London. I know you want to save money but sometimes it is better to spend a bit more so that you can have more time actually enjoying the sites, culture, and everything. The scenery from the bus can get boring since it can travel through some of the least attractive areas. I would check that flight back to London using Skyscanner and you may be surprised how cheap flights can be in Europe. I lived in England for one year during school and was on a tight budget too. I found flying usually was the best way to explore more of Europe during my long weekends.