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Eurlines vs. Rail Europe vs. budget airlines

Posted by (Chicago, IL, USA) on

Hi all,

I'll be studying abroad in England for spring 2010 from January-July. During this time, I plan to take weekend trips and use my spring break to travel around continental Europe. I'm not completely set on where I'd like to go, but my list probably includes:

Paris
Bordeaux
Barcelona
Madrid
Venice
Rome
Florence
Munich and/or Frankfurt
Prague
Brussels
Amsterdam

I know that this list is long/scattered, but I really haven't planned much yet. However, I am looking for advice on what form of transportation to take.

I looked on www.eurolines.co.uk which is 119 British Pounds/175 Euros for the 15 day pass for Youth (I think I choose the fare that's on my first day of travel).

Then, I looked on raileurope.com which has a 15 day Global Pass for $400 (~270 Euros). I also looked at RyanAir and found that flights could be as cheap as ~$15 Euros.

What do you suggest for the amount of traveling I plan on doing? Should I just buy point-to-point tickets or should I go by bus? Is bus much slower than the other two?

Thanks for all your help!
Sherry

Posted by
1014 posts

My theory is that the further you have to go, consider flying more. Ryanair is really cheap, as is Easyjet, and other puddle jumpers. The problem with flying the budget airlines is the limited weight allowances and and some have really early take offs. Also, they take off and land at out of the way airports and you have to pay more to get to town. Florence is a great example. You actually land in Pisa and had to either bus or train to Florence. Paris is the same. You land at an airport that is a 2 hr bus ride into town, if flying Ryanair. So, just be careful where you take off and land and compare total costs of flying vs. bus vs train. Sometimes on Eurolines, you can get a super saver fare really cheap. Just buy in advance.

To answer slow question. By the time you figure your time to get to airport and fly to Paris and then get get to Paris, you could have taken the bus or the train. Train can be cheap also, if booked 90 or so days out. You will have to plan ahead to save money.

Posted by
36 posts

Thanks for your advice. With the Eurolines pass or the Eurorail one, do I still need to buy tickets or does it cover any travel I do by bus or rail within the time frame I choose?

Also, are they for consecutive travel days or can I travel on any 15 days that I choose?

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