germany/salzburg/belgium transportation help

Posted by melissa (cleveland) on 07/20/15 05:34 PM

The hub and I will be traveling this fall to Germany/Salzburg/Belgium and are looking for travel recommendations (ie train, bus, routes, costs, etc) and buying passes (and which one - due to multiple countries). Lodging is already booked. Itinerary is:

Fly into Munich and head directly to Salzburg (2 nights)
Salzburg to Munich (2 nights)
Munich to Bachrach (3 nights) - maybe a boat trip to St Goar or other areas. Maybe some kind of castle viewing.
Bachrach to Brugges (3 nights)
Brugges to Brussels (2 nights)
Depart Brussels

Thanks!

Posted by Laura

Rick Steves' Europe

07/20/15 05:57 PM

16895 posts

Train is the way to go. You can cover the majority of this trip with just a German Rail Pass, such as $195 per person for 5 travel days within a month (includes one side trip from Bacharach). It covers any train between Munich and Salzburg and also covers you into Belgium as far as Brussels on selected train and bus departures operated by German rail. Buy Brussels-Bruges and return tickets there in the station, not more than $20 each way per person.

Other German ticket options described on the same link include Lander Tickets that cover regional (not faster) trains with a region such as Bavaria and (usable on some of your shorter travel days) and advance-purchase discounts for longer-distance tickets.

How to Look Up Train Schedules and Routes Online gives you the DB train schedule link and tips for using it. The same link also sells tickets that touch Germany.

Posted by Jenny

Colorado

07/20/15 06:29 PM

67 posts

Trains ARE the way to go. We did a similar trip as yours and found that point to point tickets were cheaper. I have never used a pass so I have no idea if they are more convenient since my journey was very convenient. We traveled from Brussels to Munich in one day and had thought we might break up the trip with the boat ride. We are glad we didn't. We saw as much from the train, although we would have gotten more pictures from the boat. If you have the time and like slow boats, it's the way for you to go. We saw all the same castles and there a lot of them. What we did do was make a train stop in Braubach and walked up to Marksburg Castle. It was our first castle so we thoroughly enjoyed it. There were no buses going up to the castle when we visited so we left our bags at the tourist office and hiked up. It was fun and we felt adventurous. We got back on the train several hours later and headed on to Munich.

Jenny

Posted by Russ

Paradise

07/20/15 07:28 PM

7072 posts

A nice trip to some of my favorite places. Trains are indeed the way to go. The pass option Laura outlines will cost $390 for two. But it's not necessarily the way to go. Maybe just some tickets...

MUC - Salzburg, €28 (Länder Ticket)
Salzburg - Munich, €28 (Länder Ticket)
Munich - Bacharach, €49 - €100 (DB saver fare)
Bacharach - Bruges, €78 (DB saver fare)
Bruges - Brussels, €14 x 2 = €28 (standard ticket)

All that works bout to about €210 - €260 or ($225 - $280 at current rates) for two. So you'll see some substantial savings this way.
An additional day trip from Bacharach on a Länder Ticket costs €28 or less. I agree with Jenny on Marksburg. She picked a good one for her first experience.

The saver fares need to be pre-booked. The other tickets can be bought as you go in Germany and Belgium.

A pass is helpful if you need flexibility of travel date/time - the two DB saver fares are not flexible meaning you must travel on the dates at the times you schedule when you book. It looks like your itinerary is very firm, however, and that sticking with a saver fare ticket won't be a problem. Buy them well in advance for the best prices - which will rise as tickets sell.

If you do a cruise, don't get on the boat in Bacharach, or you'll be on for only 40 minutes. Take the train south to Bingen to board and cruise north to St. Goar to see the best part - takes about 1.5 hours.