You will only need a reservation if the specific train requires one or if there’s some event (Rock concert, football match, etc.) that means the trains will be particularly crowded. I don’t think you’ll have any ski resort issues with your itinerary, but if your trains in the alps run to major ski resorts I’d reserve for weekends, especially Fridays and Sundays. If the train requires a reservation it will have a gray square with an “R” in a circle in “products” column on bahn.de Here’s the link to the english page: http://reiseauskunft…

oh I did not know that last thing (with the R in it).

Thanks so much! I am a little worried because it looks like a lot of attractions may be closed. A may travel date may have been smarter….But the main reason for March is I turn 27 at the end of March, so will not get the youth rate at that time…well that and I am guessing hostels are more, etc….

What to do, what to do!! haha

oops it should say I turn 26. Its quite a difference in price…

Most attractions are open year round. What are you finding that looks like it’s closed in March? It’s possible that hours, prices, etc. aren’t set yet for 2010 so don’t show up on the website, but it’s really unlikely that anything in the major cities you’ve mentioned will be completely closed.

Oh ok fewf I am not sure, I just thought I read that lots are closed for mainenance and what not. I forget where I saw that. But some things are forsure closed…Like my boyfriend really wants to see Eagles Nest near Munich, but that is only open in May. Although I am thinking it’s because of road conditions. Good to know then!

In addition to Hitler’s Eagles Nest being closed in March, you might expect closure of lifts and luge rides in and near the Alps. On the other hand, the salt mines should be open near Salzburg, and you might be able to catch tulips and orchids on display at Keukenhof near Amsterdam in March. Hopefully you’ve arranged to avoid Easter crowds in Rome, unless you’re interested in the people watching.

Yes, we are leaving a week before Easter. When do the Easter crowds start coming? a week or 2 before easter?? It is really late in 2011 (april 24 or something like that)…we plan on leaving Paris around April 20.

So you’re leaving in late March and you will have most of April? If Easter is that late in April, you’ll manage through few crowds most anywhere. I would say Easter crowds start moving in about a week before Easter.

If you’re not entirely planned just yet, have you considered stopping in Hallstatt, Austria? It’s a nice little place situated on a lake between Salzburg and Vienna. Perhaps a bit out of your way, but you can go to Prague from either Salzburg or Vienna, and Hallstatt is located 1.5 hours from either direction. Anyhow, Hallstatt is cool because you take a boat across the lake (like a short 20 minute ride…maybe?) from the rail station to Hallstatt. The town is small but very pretty and pretty quiet. Nice restaurants and hotels, some hiking in the area, a neat little museum under a sporting goods store in the town center, of course, the lake and picturesque views! Grocery, bakery, and post too! There’s also a lift that takes you to a salt mine. My point is, check out Hallstatt if you can. Spend the night. If you email the TI, you can get current boat schedules and plan your trip from train travel to and from accordingly.

Ok, wait. I just realized that you don’t plan to go until 2011. I think you’ll be changing out your trip locations quite a few times between now and then. Buy a notepad made of real paper, and use an actual writing utensil to jot down your travel thoughts and your “way out there” preliminary plans. You’ll find yourself within a workable and logical itinerary sometime within the next year.

I think it is not uncommon in the alps that hotels and inns in the smaller towns close for a month or so between seasons, when the weather is not particularly good, and they know they can expect few guests. We recently stayed at a very nice hotel in Sils-Maria (Switzerland) that closed for over a month starting October 12, so we had to plan our schedule around that. And I know many cablecars and lifts close for a period in the fall, and again in the spring, for maintenance. In Luzern, in May, the cogwheel railway we really wanted to ride had just reopened for the season.

I don’t think it is an unsurmountable barrier, but it is something you should be aware of and plan accordingly.