A week in Amsterdam, Brussels & Brugge (first trip)

You may have reasons to fly in and out of Frankfurt but none of your activities seem to be there. At the very least, you could enter Europe there and fly home from Amsterdam or Brussels. But in such a short tiny time frame, forget about Germany entirely since you're only spending time (and money) there riding on trains.

Thanks for your response. My final destination is different, hence it can't be a open jaw...we did a 2 week german trip last time around...this time we want to concentrate on these places...I understand there is lot of train journey back and forth... Thanks Sundar

I have been to Bruges 2 times, once for 2 nights, the second time for 5 nights. There really is a decent amount of things to do in Bruges; Groening Musuem, Memling Museum, Gruuthuse (SIC)house, Der Halve Mann Brewery just to name a few. With all the day tripping you are doing on the way to Bruges (Antwerp) and the next day to Ghent, and the final 3rd day going to Brussels, you won't have time to enjoy Bruges. With your travel logistics, I just do not think you have enough time to do this itinerary. I think you can get away with 2 full sight seeing days in Amsterdam, but 3 is better! Some say Bruges can be done in a day; having been there 2 times, I am not sure how that is possible. Bruges needs 2 full nights just to fully take in Bruges for all that it is worth. Ghent would be a long day tripping day, if you want to take in a taste of what Ghent is worth; we found our 3 nights there perfect.

Depending on who you are flying with, you can make "open Jaw" work in reverse, and sometimes even two flights that cover 4 cities. You may want to see what possibilities you can come up with.

If you have not already bought airline tickets yet, buy them into Amsterdam and out of Brussels. Even if it "costs more" (and it may not), you will save money not having to get to and from Frankfurt. But even more important, on such a short trip just don't have time to take such a detour from Frankfurt. To find these flights, use the "multi city" option (not one way or round trip) on Kayak, Expedia, etc. When you say "my final destination is different, therefore it can't be open jaw," I'm not sure what you mean. But if you mean (for instance) you would have to fly Seattle to Amsterdam and return Brussels to Chicago, look at the price as a multi city itinerary before assuming you can't do it. If your flights are already purchased, and the change fees are too high, and you don't mind being on the move almost every single day, your itinerary is fine. As you can tell from my sarcastic tone, to me this would not be a trip, but a torture test. Your memories of it will be a blur, and to paraphrase the famous movie, "If it's day 6, this must be Brussels" will be the only way you'll know where you are.

VK, Have you already bought your air tickets? Given the places you want to visit, it would make much more sense to book return flights to AMS / Schipol. With such a very short Itinerary, maximizing your touring time would be prudent. Also, have you allocated time for your flight days? You'll generally arrive in Europe the day AFTER you depart and your last day will be spent on the flight home. You'll also be jet lagged for the first few days, so probably won't get as much touring done as expected. As this is your first trip to Europe, it would also be a good idea to read Europe Through The Back Door prior to your trip (in addition to the country or city Guidebooks). Good luck with your planning!

My wife and I did a similar trip a few years ago. With a tight budget we chose to stay in a little hotel in Zandvoort en Zee (Amare Hotel, as I remember). Zandvoort en Zee is a seaside resort town that is a quick 15 minute train ride outside of Amsterdam, and very close to Harlem. It was nice at the end of a day in Amsterdam to escape the crowds and go walk on the beach, and so close by. We caught the train to Brugge from Harlem. I congratulate you for choosing to go to Brugge. Incredible place.

VK It is a shame to spend so much time on the train in a 7 day trip; I assume the Frankfurt arrival/departure is "fixed". Are you taking the ICE Frankfurt to Amsterdam? It's about a 4 hour trip, so you'd have a half day in Amsterdam your first day (if Jetlag doesn't get the best of you). Haarlem is very pleasant, but I'd suggest you stay in Amsterdam rather than forcing 2 more train trips in 7 days. If you take an early train from Amsterdam to Brugge (I didn't look at schedules), you could have most of Day 4, Day 5 and until noon on Day 6 in Bruggeif you go straight from Brugge to Frankfurt. You could stay in Brugge until 12:59 the day before your flight and take the train at that time arriving Frankfurt at 17:41 with just one stoptotal duration of 4:42 h. There are later trains, but these involve 3-4 changes and would end your trip on a sour note.
Get bicycles in Brugge.

All, I very much appreciate all your response. After hearing from this forum, we are rethinking our itinerary. This trip was part of my much longer trip back home (India). Hence the stop in Frankfurt. We have done couple of trips prior to this and each time stopped over in either Frankfurt or London (checked luggage's in locker) and used backpacks as RS recommends. We thought we will do the same for this trip, but given the cost and the short time frame (a week), we are reconsidering it. Appreciate all your response(s)
Sundar