Travel between European Countries

Your best option between Paris, Brussels and Amsterdam would be an advanced purchase ticket on the premium high speed Thalys service. I believe you can buy tickets up to 90 days before your travel date. The earlier you buy, the cheaper the price. If you plan on any side trips from Brussels or Amstedam within the countries of Belgium and the Netherlands, simply buy your tickets at the station as you leave. No advantage in pre-purchasing, and trains run very frequently. Because domestic rail is usually pretty cheap in this area of Europe, don't even think about using any 3rd party rail pass for this segment of your trip. (Most of us consider rail passes to be travel dinosaurs anyway, up there with traveler's checks and steamer trunks).

I was going to start by saying you were doing too much in too little time. But then I did what you see below and if you spent two full days in each city and spent one day traveling between them then sure, I guess it works. Based on 10 weeks you would even have 11 extra days to use to make the trip more fulfilling where it was interesting to you. Okay, go for it! As for the trains, where there are high speed trains that's one thing but a lot of these trains are going to take quite some time. If saving $150 between cities is worth the time on the train then use the train, otherwise look at the cheapy European carriers like Ryan, Wizz, etc and do some train and some plane. My rule is that the plane must save me 3 hours to compensate for the check in and hassle of the plane. But that becomes true on some legs. Prague to Budapest for instance is 9 hours by train or (wild guess) maybe 3 by plane. I didn't check your order for logic I just assumed you did. 1 Leave the US 2 Arrive Amsterdam 5 Amsterdam to Brussels 8 Brussels to Paris 11 Paris to Prague 14 Prague to Budapest 17 Budapest to Vienna 20 Vienna to Salzburg 23 Salzburg to Zurich 26 Zurich to Bern 29 Bern to Milan 32 Milan to Venice 35 Venice to Florence 38 Florence to Monaco 41 Monaco to Marseille 44 Marseille to Barcelona 47 Barcelona to Valencia 50 Valencia to Madrid 53 Madrid to Seville 56 Seville to Lisbon
59 Lisbon home

Sara, I've done a similar trip over two months, and have a few thoughts to offer.... > I'd suggest reducing the number of locations you visited to "slow down" the trip somewhat. Packing up and moving every couple of days gets to be a "pain" after awhile. A two night stop only allows about a day and a half which doesn't allow time to see much. > Unless there's something specific you want to see in Zürich and Bern, I'd substitute Lucerne instead. > Where are you planning to visit in the "Swiss Alps"? > I'd skip Milan unless you want to see the Last Supper, Duomo or whatever. > Rather than stay in Monaco, you might consider staying in Nice. It's an easy Bus ride from there to Monaco (fare €1 each way as I recall), and Nice is a beautiful city and has some interesting sights and a great "old town" section. > Unless there's something specific you want to see in Marseille, I'd use the time elsewhere. Until you have a definite list of cities, it's difficult to suggest specific accommodations or Railpass, P-P tickets or budget air on the routes you'll need. You might check your local Library to find copies of Rick's books for each city you'll be visiting. There are good suggestions for low cost hotels which will likely be about the same price for a private double room in a Hostel. You might also have a look at the HI Hostels website, as they have properties in the places you'll be going to (sometimes more than one in each city). Having a membership will provide slightly cheaper prices and preferred booking over non-members. I found that they're usually clean, well run and somewhat consistent from one property to the next. Many provide breakfast in the cost of the room. Staying in Dorm rooms will be even cheaper. Good luck with your planning!

train, train, train. i would get a eurorail pass and go crazy. i did 23 nights from amsterdam to budapest including brugge, zell, rothenburg, munich, fussen, vienna, and prague. yeah alot of two nighters but you are on vacation. i have done two weeks twice in spain. first, madrid, barcelona, granada, and toledo. last, san sebastian, bilbao, barcelona (football v madrid), cordoba, sevilla, and ronda. i have spent about three weeks in paris over 3 or 4 trips. give it at least a week. the provence and south of france including monaco are awesome as well. italy. well thats another story which needs weeks. with 8 to 10 weeks you are good. i have only ever used the train, bus and underground in my trips and have been fine though sometimes limited. i am jealous. have fun, be safe. jeff

Hi, The hostels I can recommend are in Vienna and Paris, Wombats in Vienna on Mariahilferstrasse across from Westbahnhof (west train station) and Vintage Hostel ca 15 mins from Gare du Nord train station in Paris, en route to Montmarte. Keep in mind that getting a private room in a hostel is expensive compared to staying in a dorm room. You can get a double in a small hotel or Pension sometimes more cheaply than a private room in the hostel where you pay per bed. Even if you have ten weeks to do this grand tour, I would not suggest getting the Global Pass unless you're under 26. If the goal is cut down on expenses, then be prepared to sacrifice comfort. It's all a matter of priorites on what you're willing to tolerate/cope and put up with. Since you have ten weeks, I would include at least two night trains, say Paris-Budapest or Prague, or Vienna to Venice. I would suggest dropping a couple of places in Spain and Switzerland.