Rheindahlen base and visiting other 'hot" spots

Switzerland is too far away, unless they can take 3-5 days. More feasible weekend trips would include Aachen, Koln, Maastricht, Brussels, Amsterdam... well, all of Belgium and the Netherlands. Rheindahlen also isn't too far from the Rhine gorge and Mosel valley.

Thank you very much! I will pass this information along to her. I believe they would like to do 6 separate 1 day trips and try to utilize as much of the day as possible.

I do know they want to visit 1 spot in Switerland, even if it's just to say - I went to Switerland. Do you have a 1 stop spot that might fit that description, even if it's just for a day trip.

Thanks much :-)

The closest piece of Switzerland to Rheindahlen, which is still pretty far away, is Basel. Checking the Deutsche Bahn website, it looks like that's a 5 and half hour trip in one direction. You can't see the Alps from Basel, if that's why she wants to go to Switzerland. That would involve probably another hour or two train ride further south.

Thank you Tom! I am gathering all this information for them and it is all very overwhelming ... sooo much information just on the trains alone.

They are 19, so being up 24 hours, is not a big deal to them. Hopefully they will be able to utilize some night trains.

Thank you again!!

I saw your other thread (I didn't realize at first that you had two threads going). A little word about the Berner Oberland- although it is wonderful, it is far from the be-all, do-all of Alpine experiences (despite what many on this website believe), and it definately isn't the easiest region to reach. On DB, it looks like a one-leg trip runs anywhere from 7 to 12 hours. And another thing to remember is that Alpine weather can change rapidly. I would hate to travel 12 hours by rail to the most expensive corner of Europe and to see nothing but cloud cover for a few hours before getting right back on a train for 12 more hours. If they really want to do this, they should give themselves 2-3 days at a MINIMUM to allow for bad weather. Maybe save this excursion for the end of their trip when they can take more time? I can't stress this enough, I would NOT recommend this for a single day visit.

Thank you Tom. I will advise them not to travel to Switerland if that is the case.

I am curious because I have one of your train maps and it it shows from Koln (assuming that is where they would get on the Eurail) to Zurich is 5 hours? Is that not correct or are we talking about an entirely different area in Switzerland?

Thanks again!!