Transportation question on GAS tour

GAS tours may be posted already; several 2020 tours are-I've signed up for Greece in April, 2020. For the GAS tour a few years ago, we started with several days in Amsterdam and then took the train from Centraal Station to Trier. It was a beautiful ride, especially along the river with one very easily managed train change. It was easy, restful and fun, and yes, we had to figure it out on our own. However, signing up for a tour entitles you to a 50% discount for an in person or over the phone appointment (30 minutes, I think?) to talk with one of the travel gurus in the office for advice on how to arrange such transportation and/or any other questions you might have.

Thanks Andi. I double checked before posting and no 2020 rates for GAS. I did see other tours posted though. Thanks for the suggestion about the Amsterdam train. May have to check that out. We have taken a tour before, so I do know about the consulting. They were somewhat helpful, but I actually find more detailed info on the forum. Thanks again!

I think the directions may come with your initial lodging information but so many of us have done this tour we can walk you thru it from anywhere you land.

Andi did Amsterdam, I did Paris, lol! I did about a week ahead in Paris and took the train to Trier. It was so easy. I took the TGV (fast train) to Saarbrucken and then took a local train to Trier. It was maybe 3.5 hours altogether? I'd have to go back and look.

If you have the time, I'd add at least one night ahead of the tour if not 2 in Trier. I thought this was a very cool town with lots of sights and there is really no time to see things once the tour starts. You have a walking tour the 1st full day then leave for lunch on the way to Burg Eltz, arriving back to Trier in time for dinner.

If you have LOTS of time then add in Paris...or Amsterdam, hahaha. Plus an extra day or 2 in Vienna at the end!

Yes, the travel documents have detailed instructions on getting to your first hotel by train from the suggested international airports.

I went on the GAS tour a few years ago and it is very easy to get from the Frankfurt Airport to Trier. You will receive instructions from the RS office once you may your final payment. You do not have to buy train tickets in advance. Upon arriving in the Frankfurt airport and after going to get your luggage you will then need to go to the ticket office and buy two sets of tickets each. You will have to take two trains to get to Trier. Once you arrive in Trier, you will then take a cab to the hotel. The man at the ticket office explained it to me and told me where to go to get the first train. Once I took the first train, I did have to ask someone where to go to get the second train.

Should you have any questions after getting your tour packet, you can then call the RS office with any additonal questions you may have.

It is a great tour, happy travels.

This is a wonderful tour. One of my favorites. We flew into Frankfurt and then took the train to St Goar (there was one train change on the way. We stayed 3 nights in St Goar and took the local cruise line up the Rhine River to Assmanshausen and then down river to Koblenz. Then took the train to Trier the day the tour started. It was a great way to get over jet lag.

There is some good information about trains on the Rick Steves website or you can look at the Deutsche Bahn (www.bahn.com) which is the train system in Germany. It is easy to navigate. We bought a rail pass for Germany and Austria because we traveled before and after the tour. We purchased it in May when there was a special where we got 5 days of travel for the price of 4.

Thanks everyone! Wonderful advice. You definitely have us thinking about additional pre-tour days.

jd,

In my experience, the RS tour department always includes instructions on how to get to the city where the tour begins. On that particular tour, that's very easy. Use the Bahn.de website to determine rail solutions from Frankfurt Flughafen to Trier. Note that there are two rail stations at FRA, and you may be using either of them depending on which train you choose. There are also a few direct buses from the airport with a travel time of 3H:30M (no changes required).

There are English-speaking agents at the ticket counter at the airport rail station that can help explain what you need to do.

Some directions do come with the tour packet, but you can easily buy tickets once you get to Frankfurt (the train station is attached to the airport just follow the signs) using a machine or the help desk and get whichever ones will get you there fastest. You'll have to change trains in either Meinz or Koblenz. It was pretty straight forward, especially since you are already familiar with how European trains work. Once we got to Trier we grabbed a cab to the hotel instead if hoofing it.

We were on the GAS tour last year. Directions were "general." I think it was suggested flying into Frankfurt, and then train to Trier. I did extensive research on the forum for people who had done the tour previously, and so we chose not to train directly to Trier, especially since we live on the west coast. Those on our tour who went directly to Trier from Frankfurt faced a lengthy trip, arriving mid afternoon.
We had previously been on a Danube river cruise, and remembered towns along the banks looked quaint and inviting. So we chose to stay two nights in Bacharach, about an hour away from the Frankfurt airport.. We were thankful for that time to sight-see and acclimate to the time change.
We bought our tickets to Bacharach, from the manned ticket office at the Frankfurt airport and even bought our tickets from Bacharach to Trier because I had read there was no attendant at the station in Bacharach.

Carol, I checked out Barcharach on the internet. What a cool town! I would love to stay there. Thanks so much for the advice. Janine

I stayed in Bacharach last May for 3 nights and it was so much fun. You can do a river cruise and see some real castles. Also biking and hiking, it's beautiful!

ferrin, Thanks for your comments. Questions on Bacharach - What hotel did you stay at and were you pleased with your choice? Also, I have read where several people took the river cruise. Did you book it ahead of time or when you got there. If ahead of time, how did you find it? Please, everyone else feel free to chime in! Thanks!