All great ities that you have chosen. Maybe throw in some smaller cities along the way (Brugges, Versaille, Pompeii, Florence/Pisa, boat trip to Capri and Blue Grotto from Sorrento) and you’ll have a nice trip

I also like your choices for cities, but you’ve got far too many of them. 11 major cities scattered over a fair chunk of Western Europe is way too much for 17 days — especially if that counts your flights to/from Orlando which means you’d only have 14 1/2 days in Europe. You should cut your list in half for starters and then — 6 or 7 would be workable for 17 days but still kind of a stretch for 14 1/2. You could easily spend 4 days each in London, Paris and Rome — add flights between them and you’ve pretty much filled up your trip.

Yeah, you’re trying to see too much in the time you have. I’d especially consider cutting some of those one-day stops. Your plan also presents some logistical issues, mainly Venice to Gimmelwald. It’s a long, complicated train trip requiring several train changes and will result in losing most of a day to travel. Hold off on buying a railpass until you finalize your itinerary; a pass won’t be the best deal for your Brussels-London & London-Paris journeys, and if you cut a couple of cities a cheaper pass might make more sense.

Well we’re flying from Orlando on the 17th and arriving in Amsterdam in the 18th midday and our flight is either Sunday the 4th or Monday the 5th from Amsterdam and I believe our flight is at night…

I understand about the 4 days in the major cities but honestly I would prefer to get a taste of them and then move on unless I absolutely fall in love with the place ( which is why we’re getting the unlimited pass ) It’s our first trip to Europe. It probably won’t be our last but when we go back ( or move there haha ) we want to be able to have experienced a lot so we know what we want to focus on the next time. I’m only willing to cut out so much but

Also the way I’m hoping ( crosses fingers ) to schedule things is less full day trips but mini stops along the way. Amsterdam to Brussels would be either in the early morning to just stop at the Grand Place and pick up some chocolate then off to England before the day is over or from amsterdam to brussels midday just to get a taste of the city and stay the night and then early the next morning off to London.

But this advice is exactly what I’m hoping to get from you guys. Especially the logistical issues. I moved switched about Gimmelwald and Lucerne ( and if I decide it’s too much I can even cut out gimmelwald completely ) but if it’s not hard trip from Lucerne and it’s not impossible to get to Amsterdam from there fairly easily I might keep it. Does switching it around help at all? What else do you see that seems too hard.

How much of a discount do you get for the EuroStar for having a pass? I was under the impression it was a decent discount.

Thanks =)

You’re still looking at six hours to seven hours from Venice to Lucerne. If I were you I’d consider dropping one or more of these: Nice, Lucerne, or Gimmelwald. They all make for long trips to/from the other cities you want to see and the time you’re allotting to them doesn’t really make it worthwhile.

You’re still looking at six hours to seven hours from Venice to Lucerne. If I were you I’d consider dropping one or more of these: Nice, Lucerne, or Gimmelwald. They all make for long trips to/from the other cities you want to see and the time you’re allotting to them doesn’t really make it worthwhile.

The Eurostar discount with the railpass is only a good deal if you have an adult pass and you’re traveling on a day when you can’t take advantage of leisure fares or other specials. Passholder youth fare is almost exactly the same as regular youth fare. Check fares for the dates you want to travel at www.eurostar.com

You will not even get “a taste” of these cities in the day or less that you’re actually there. You stand a fair chance of not ever even seeing a European — only the other tourists gawking at the Eiffel tower. Trust me, you’ll have a far more enjoyable trip and you will experiencing a lot more different things about Europe with a less hectic itinerary. You will only experience being an American tourist and have a lot of blurry pictures for your scrap book with this itinerary.

I assume from your answers that you don’t care about saving money, but I don’t think a consecutive day global pass is even the best buy for this wild itinerary. You’re only visiting four countries, so why not a 4 or 5 country select? IMO, a consecutive day global pass is almost always a significant waste of money.

Didn’t notice your short time frame. I mean you can still do the trip, but you will be hustling. Paris for example might include seeing the Eiffel tower but skipping waiting in line to go to the top. Go to Notre Dame, but skip waiting in line to go to the top. Maybe go to one of the smaller impressionist museums instead of trying to see the Louvre in an hour. I would personally skip museums and instead try to soak up as much of the living atmosphere as possible. In Brussels skip the many muuseums and instead hang out on a cafe in the main square – enjoy a beer and some mussels and frites. Have you bought your tickets? If not I’d get a multiple city ticket that lets you fly into Amstderdam and depart Rome. I would also personally leave London for another trip and stay on the continent instead

I would take out a few cities and do : amsterdam-brussel-paris-rome-florence(1dax)-venice(1 day)-switzerland (would consider just staying longer in italy). I think that would be very doable with enough time in every city. Would not get a train pass at all, since Amsterdam-brussel-paris has a TGV that’s not covered by the pass (or it cost extra). And then paris-rome is a night train which is also not covered (takes 15 hours). If you are able to, I would book the trains in advance. Also you should consider taking a plane from your last city to return to amsterdam (can find some for arround/under 100$) , could save you some hours depending how far from amsterdam you will end up being.

Don’t forget to calculate the time to get to/from the train station, hotel, places you want to see. It’s my first time backpacking/trains in europe so can’t really give advice but everywhere Ive read people have always said that they wish they had planned less on their first trips. There’s no way you could get bored/regret spending 3 days in Rome.

Are there any ( just as great… ) cities in Switzerland you can suggest that would be easier to get to from Venice. I’d really hate to miss out on Switzerland. Like I said in the title. It’s just a rough draft so I’m willing to change. We’re young and willing to hussle to get to see what we want to see, but if it seems completely impossible let us know! We have plenty of time to get back to Amsterdam from Lucerne but it says there are 2 train changes and I’d rather find a place that easier to get to from Venice and back to Amsterdam with similar sights as Lucerne. Or even if there is a city in between that would make a day trip and an easier train ride.

Also Sorrento… I’m in love. It’s probably one of the places I want to see the most. But ( maybe I’m misunderstanding ) it’s a 9 hour trip to Venice from there and no night trains! Would it be ridiculous to take the night train from Paris to Rome then straight from Rome to Sorrento and then just go back to Rome on my way up to Venice? I know there is a ton to see in Rome but I’d rather spread my 5 days out in Italy the best I can.

And how can you assume that I don’t want to save money? I posted in this forum to get help.. I didn’t realize by saying I wanted to see as much as possible and not knowing much about the eurail pass ( and assuming it was my best option ) meant that I wanted to throw away money and be a tourist. Although I want to experience the city as a local.. I’d still like to see the “touristy” things and I think I can create a balance between both.

Brussels is just a day trip. There’s really not much I want to see there but I want to pick up some chocolate and maybe spend a few hours there to visit grand place and eat some Belgian Waffles & Mussels and Frites. Then hop on the early train to go to London. In sorrento spend the first day just exploring the town, maybe taking a trip to pompei, then the second day devote to the grottos ( if the weather is good ) and then early next morning head to Rome. Spend two nights and in the morning of the 3rd day hop on a train to Venice & spend the day there and hopefully take a night train to somewhere in the Alps.

I actually won the flight so Amsterdam is the only option unfortunately or we would fly out of a different city. I’d prefer not to book the trains in advance to be able to keep in flexible, unless there isn’t a charge to cancel ( which I highly doubt ) except for a few of the trains, like out of amsterdam. But if I shouldn’t get a train pass, should I seriously just book all my trains individually? That seems like so much work and honestly I’d rather spend the little bit of extra money ( I mean we did save it on the plane tickets ) to keep my trip atleast a little bit less stressful.

Thanks again guys!

Just what are you looking for in Switzerland? To most, it is the mountains. Luzern is a wonderful place to visit, but it is not in the mountains, and you would have to take a possibly long and expensive day trip to get to a mountain. Somewhere in the Bernese Oberland, like Lauterbrunnen or one of the mountain villages, is what most people think of when they think of Switzerland. From Venice, I think the Dolomites, or even Austria (Innsbruck, for example) would give you some nice mountain scenery, and be a shorter trip.

Agreed. Bolzano/Bozen is a really nice smallish city, and is a fascinating mixture of German and Italian cultures. Whenever you walk into a building the proprietor says “Buongiorno, Guten Tag” letting you know that you can answer in either language and be understood. The archaeology museum there is absolutely amazing (and home of the famous “Ice Man” who was found in the nearby glaciers in the 90s), there is a really nice hostel near the train station…etc. And best of all you can totally day trip up into the mountains. If you are going to be in Venice, I’d recommend going here instead of all the way up into Switzerland.

Sorry to hijack this thread but I am also having a conflict with getting from Gimmelwald, to Venice… How long of a trip can I expect this to take and does anyone know how to do it? Seems like a complicated network of trains! I considered stopping in Milan, but nothing I really want to see there. Would it be easier for me to go to Cinque Terre, from Gimmelwald then head to Venice from Cinque Terre? Thank You!

Well honestly, getting from Gimmelwald to Venice isn’t that bad, as these things go… I’ve had legs with waaaaaay more connections It should take about 6 hours which is kind of a pain, but assuming you left by 1 PM you’d still get to Venice in time for dinner

I haven’t looked it up on bahn.de yet, but I’m assuming if it says there are a lot of connections it is including the cable car + bus/train back into Interlaken. But really from Interlaken you probably change in Spiez and then in Milan and that should be it.

D-bahn says Gimmelwald to Venice is at least 5 changes and seven hours and forty minutes. Feicht, are you a fellow archaeology geek?

Hmm… I just punched the date into db.de/en and it says if you leave Interlaken by 8AM, you can get to Venice in about 6.5 hours with only a couple switches (in Spiez and Brig)… but true, that isn’t including getting from Gimmelwald to Interlaken, which can take about an hour too, depending.

Anyway yeah I am an archaeology geek… why do you ask?

I’ve looked at the dolomites and they don’t seem that exciting. It’s not exactly that I’m looking to camp, or hike or anything like that, just breath taking views and my boyfriend has never seen snow so he’s stuck on trying to get to see it ( It’s at the bottom of my list personally, it’s an extra big jacket that I have to pack for one day ) Part of the reason I wanted to stay in Lucerne was the cable car ride to my pliatus.

Well does anyone have any experience with the bernina express? I was thinking about just doing that through switzerland before heading back up to Amsterdam and possibly just staying at one of the cities along the route or chur.

This is probably a stupid question but it says that regular trains do this route as well… I don’t get it.. why pay extra for the bernina express and not be able to get on and off? Or is it the same route, different tracks with different scenery?

Which do you think is a better option? A night in Lucerne or somewhere along the bernina express.

I know I don’t NEED the unlimited travel rail pass but if I’m going to pay for a 5 country pass for 6 nights ( and personally I think I’ll be using more than 6 days train travel ) and it’s less than a 100 more for just the unlimited 15 day pass, why wouldn’t I just get that one?

Also if I use the eurorail pass for a night train or a tgv with the discount, does it count as one of my days?

I’m an archaeologist, Kayling is another archaeology geek, so that makes at least three of us around here.

I think you’re confusing this. Night trains and the TGV are covered by your railpass. You are not just getting a discount on these trains. You will use a day of your railpass as your ticket. In addition to the ticket, all overnight trains and many premier trains like the TGV require a reservation. Reservations are not covered by the railpass. You’ll have to pay 4 or 5 euros in addition to a using day of your railpass to take a TGV. Required reservations on overnight trains are generally about 20 or 30 euros for a berth in a 6 berth couchette although the cheapest reservation on some of the hotel trains is 70 euros.

A rail day is a calendar day — midnight to midnight. However, a special exception called “the 7:00 PM rule” means that most overnight trains only take 1 day of the pass.

I’m not familiar with the Bernina express, but I think the issue is that it’s a premier train and includes what’s basically a guided tour on the PA system. The extra surcharge includes the required reservation.

Hey that’s pretty awesome Augustin I’m still an undergrad but am hoping to go to postgrad for it