6 Weeks Western Europe

[naldridge]

My husband and I (aged 23 and 24, respectively) have started to plan our 6-week trip to western Europe and I was hoping to get some feedback on our tentative itinerary. He has only been to Paris, and I've never been to Europe at all, so we will need all the help we can get!

We are planning to arrive in Barcelona in mid-September (around the 8th) from south Florida (West Palm Beach or Miami) and leave from Venice around Oct. 18. Since this will be our first trip to Europe, we'd like to see many of the bigger points of interest (knowing, of course, that we can always go back) but not feel too rushed. We've planned each city with an extra night, knowing that we will need time for travel.

We will likely be traveling by rail only, using the Eurail 5 Country Benelux/France/Germany/Italy/Switzerland 8 Day 2nd Class Youth Select Pass ($457) + Tickets (123.00) = $580.00

Does this look okay so far? Are there any places where our time should be adjusted? Anything we should replace? We have no set-in-stone plans in any of the cities, so we are simply planning by the books we have read and information we've seen online. Any real experience opinions would be appreciated!

Barcelona - 4 nights
Should we take an overnight train from Barcelona to Paris? It will be a long trip but I don't want to miss any great scenery by traveling in the dark.

Paris - 4 nights
- Stay at St. Christopher's?

Bruges - 3 nights
Too long?

Brussels - 2 nights

Amsterdam - 3 nights
Too long?

Munich - 4 nights
This will put us in Munich Sept. 24-27, which is the middle of Oktoberfest.
- Stay at The Tent?

Innsbruck - 0-1 night
Originally, we thought about Innsbruck simply to break up the Munich-Gimmelwald trip but it looks beautiful. Is it worth stopping at and/or spending the night? Should we plan an overnight train from Munich, spend the day in Innsbruck and then do a night train to Gimmelwald?

Gimmelwald
- Stay at the Mountain Hostel
Staying at the Mountain Hostel is really the only thing we have planned to do here. We're not into extreme sports but would like to sled/snowshoe or something. Can we do this here?

Cinque Terre - 2 nights
- Hike 1 day

Florence - 2 nights
- Morning trip to Pisa

Rome - 4 nights

Bologna - 2 nights

Venice - 4 nights

We are planning to fly out of Venice, but would it be easier to fly out of Rome, instead? We are not paying for our plane tickets, so price isn't a huge issue.

I also have a quick question about hostels - on hostelworld.com, it says that "prices are per person per night" and then they list a variety of room types. For example, on the St. Christopher's site, it says that a 10-Bed Mixed Dorm is E29 but a Double Bed Private Shared Bathroom is E42. When I scroll over the Double Bed option it says "Private room with 1 double bed, sleeps 2 people. If you wish to book this room for 1 person, you must pay for the equivalent of 2 people." So...are you paying per person even in those types of rooms? Would a single person pay E84? Or E42? Would it be E42 for each of us or for both of us (since we'd share the bed)? The website seems to have conflicting information.

Thanks so much!
Nicole

[Eagle]

naldridge,

Welcome to the Boards! I have a few comments on your proposed Itinerary.

Although your husband has been to Paris, I'd highly recommend pre-reading the Guidebook Europe Through The Back Door before you get too far in your planning. It will provide a lot of information to help you travel well in Europe, especially rail skills.

In planning your time, keep in mind that you'll arrive in Europe the day after you departed.

The Railpass is a good idea for longer journeys but one important thing to remember is that the pass does not cover reservation fees which are compulsory on some trains (usually the high speed trains such as the TGV in France). You'll have to pay those separately. Be sure to budget for those.

A few thought on each of your destinations....

> Barcelona - it's good that you're allowing 4 days, as you'll probably need a few days to get over jet jag. As you want to see the scenery along the way, I'd probably still choose a day train. The trip is about 9.5 hours via fast trains. There's a train departing Barcelona Sants at 08:11, arriving Paris Lyon at 17:49 (2 changes - times subject to change).

> Paris - 4 nights is good, but plan your touring well. You might consider a two-day Paris Museum Pass, as that will at least help to avoid the queues for tickets. Keep in mind that the time limit starts running on the Pass as soon as you activate it, so try and tour as many places as possible once you fill in the starting date.

> Bruges - IMO, 3 nights is good.

> Brussels - 2 nights is good, but you could probably get by with one if necessary.

> Amsterdam - 3 nights sounds about right (hopefully herrbert will have some comments).

> Munich - 4 nights is good, but plan your touring carefully as there's lots to see in that area. Were you planning to visit the Castles at Fussen or Dachau when in that area? I've never stayed in "The Tent" so can't offer any comments on that.

> Innsbruck - I'd suggest at least one night there on the way to Gimmelwald. You won't need an "overnight" train as the trip from Munich is only a few hours. For the trip to Gimmelwald, the train I'd probably choose departs Innsbruck at 07:54, arriving Interlaken Ost at 13:28 (2 changes, reservations compulsory for some legs, time subject to change). From Interlaken Ost, you can transfer to the small Berner Oberland train, the Post Bus and finally the Cable Cars to reach Gimmelwald.

> Gimmelwald - you'll enjoy the Mountain Hostel! However, I'm not sure you'll be able to do any sledding or snowshoeing at that time of year. It's difficult to predict the weather, but I've been there in Sept. / Oct. and the weather was beautiful and sunny. If you're not into "extreme sports" (I'm assuming Paragliding would be out of the question?), hiking and just enjoying the ambience are good pastimes.

> Cinque Terre - which of the villages are you planning to stay in? The travel times from Interlaken Ost will depend on which train you choose, so plan carefully for the shortest journey. The shortest travel time from Interlaken Ost to Monterosso departs at 08:01, arriving at 15:02 (3 changes, reservations compulsory for some legs, times subject to change).

> Italy - after the C.T. you might consider Rome for the next stop. There are several direct trains from La Spezia to Rome (about 4 hours). After Rome, go to Florence, Bologna and finally Venice.

Regarding your last question on Hostels, normally Dorm rooms are priced "per person" (assuming one in a bed), while double rooms are often priced per room. If one person is staying in a double room, they would normally pay the same rate as two people in that room.

In addition to Hostel World, you might have a look at www.hihostels.com/dba/continent-Europe-EU.en.htm. These are a "chain" of Hostels, and the inexpensive membership provides not only cheaper rates for members, but also preferred booking. I've found that their facilities are fairly consistent between properties.

Good luck with your planning!

[naldridge]

Thank you!

I have Europe Through the Back Door on hold at the libary but as soon as it is available, I plan on reading in word-for-word!

With the Railpasses, will we need to know exactly which train we will be taking (day, high speed, etc.) before we buy our passes? Or will the only difference be in the reservation fee?

Could we take a day trip from Bruges to Brussels to avoid the time we will spend checking into/out of hostels? Or is Brussels worth a full night of its own?

In Munich, we will probably go to Dachau but I doubt we will venture off to the castles. We want to see at least a day of Oktoberfest so we want to be nearby but we're not big drinkers so I don't want to be stuck somewhere that is going to get crazy at night. The Tent is just a big circus tent but prices during Oktoberfest are ridiculous, and it is one of the cheaper (but still decent-looking) hostels we've seen. Is there anywhere else you'd recommend?

I'm not worried about the Mountain Hostel, as I think it will be a great break from doing cities. We like to hike and the trails look beautiful, but I'd be okay just sitting around and gearing up for the 2nd half of the trip.

I haven't made any plans for where to stay in Cinque Terre. We want to hike (with the pass of course) but that's about all the research I've done so far. Is there anywhere you'd suggest?

Thanks for the advice about doing Rome next - that does seem to make the most sense.

And for the HI card, would we need to buy 2? Or would one of us having one give us the preferred rates and availability?

Thank you so much for your help, this site has been an enormous help with all of the planning and tips!

[herrbert]

Mar 16, 2010 0:31:22 GMT -5 Eagle said:

> Innsbruck - I'd suggest at least one night there on the way to Gimmelwald. You won't need an "overnight" train as the trip from Munich is only a few hours. For the trip to Gimmelwald, the train I'd probably choose departs Innsbruck at 07:54, arriving Interlaken Ost at 13:28 (2 changes, reservations compulsory for some legs, time subject to change). From Interlaken Ost, you can transfer to the small Berner Oberland train, the Post Bus and finally the Cable Cars to reach Gimmelwald.

If you like hiking, and nice views, you can take the cablecar up the Hafelekar from the center of Innsbruck. From there you have a nice view over the city, and the Inn Valley. You can also make a hike from there. Another option in this area would be Imst, which is also well connected, and you also have the possibility to make some nice hikes. (up the Rosengartenschlucht to Hoch Imst) and venture out into the mountains either by foot, or cablecar.

[naldridge]

Thank you both!

We booked our flights (Atlanta to Barcelona on Sept. 14, Venice to Atlanta on Oct. 27) so now we just need to nail down our itinerary.

If we end up doing the the Youth Select Pass, we will probably skip Austria, as it is another country we'd have to add and thus, a considerable price increase. We have also discovered the EuroChocolate Festival will be happening while we are in Italy, so we will probably spend a few days in Perugia for that (and likely skip Bologna).

Any opinions Brussels? Could we stay in Bruges and just make Brussels a day trip?

Also, I got ahead of myself in my first post and mentioned an overnight train from Munich to Austria. Obviously, I was crazy just beginning to figure out Europe but I meant Amsterdam to Munich. Would that be worthy of an overnight train?

Could anyone recommend anywhere to stay in Cinque Terre? I'm not even sure what area would be best, our only plans there are to hike. It looks like we will be there during the rainy season though, so we will probably need a back-up plan.

Thanks so much to both of you for your help!