train in Europe

Even though you don't yet have a firm plan, it's safe to say that Germany, Austria, and Switzerland are all widely accessible by train. So don't worry too much about how you're going to get around, but focus first on choosing destinations in a logical path. If you worked your way by train to Vienna or Berlin, you could pretty cheaply fly to either Paris or England; see www.skyscanner.com to search fares. If you end up looking at a 4-country Eurail Select pass, you'd have to reserve early for any train to Paris (e.g., book it at the same time you buy the pass). There are also 1- and 2-country passes for any combination of your destinations, some of which offer cheaper 2nd class options for people of any age.

Hostels are also widely available in Germany, Austria, and Switzerland; see the hostel info links at http://www.ricksteves.com/travel-tips/trip-planning/favorite-links. If you're choosing B&Bs from Rick's guidebooks, I believe they are honestly described and would confidently choose from the cheapest listings. September is really not low season, so booking ahead can help secure cheaper options in the big cities.

If you do want to check train schedules, use the Bahn (German rail) website, which has schedules for all of Europe, and prices for trains that start or end in Germany. Here's Rick's tutorial on how to use it: http://www.ricksteves.com/plan/tips/db_tips.htm

If you're looking to save money, in addition to rail passes, you can book advance tickets at a substantial discount for many journeys. These tickets will be non-exchangeable and non-refundable (or have significant restrictions on these actions), but the savings can be huge. As an example, when my mother and I went from Berlin to Dresden and back, it was €38 each way per person full fare, €19 for one person advance purchase, and €29 for two people advance purchase. So, on that one round-trip we saved €94!

The cheapest way from Paris to London is the bus, which goes on the ferry. However, if you then need to get to Manchester from London, the total trip will take a long time and may not, in the end, be cheaper than a flight.

When searching for flights, be sure to investigate alternate airports (it may be cheaper to fly into Liverpool instead of Manchester, for instance). On the other hand, be careful of using airports you don't want (Frankfurt Hahn, or HHN, is quite far both from the city of Frankfurt and the "real" Frankfurt airport, or FRA).

For reasonable accommodations, in addition to Rick's listings, you can try Eurocheapo http://www.eurocheapo.com, HostelWorld http://www.hostelworld.com/, or Hostelbookers http://www.hostelbookers.com/. The latter two do not just have hostels, but also other cheaper lodgings, and in each case their reviews can be useful. If a hotel has too high a price listed via their web booking, try e-mailing them directly. I just booked hotels in Switzerland, and in EVERY case by e-mailing I was able to get rooms that did not show on-line, better rates, or both.

If you want specific accommodation recommendations, you need to specify a price in local currency (euros or Swiss francs); "cheap" or "not too expensive" means different things to each person. In addition, you will need to specify what you're looking for. Is shared bathroom OK? How about no elevator? Etc.

My wife and I are pushing 70 and we often stay in hostels, That said, a room in a 2-star hotel can cost nearly the same as a private room in a hostel.

Another good hostel site is hostelz.com. It has unbiased reviews. I agree that eurocheapo.com is a good site.

The sooner you settle on an itinerary the better chance you will have of booking advance point-to-point discount fare train tickets. They will be cheaper than rail passes. There is a limited number of those for each departure time and date. The longer you wait the higher the price.