14 days from Frankfurt to Paris by train

Old Jul 23rd, 2017, 03:46 PM
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14 days from Frankfurt to Paris by train

My husband and I are planning a 2-week trip in the beginning of October. We will be flying in to Frankfurt and out of Paris. We have booked the last 4 nights in Paris (st. germain) and are considering exploring possibly Belgium, Luxembourg and Eastern France en route...

What is worth skipping and must see? We would prefer to travel by train.
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Old Jul 23rd, 2017, 05:18 PM
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You could train from Frankfurt down to the Mosel valley (e.g. Cochem), down to Trier, over to Luxembourg (the country) from there, maybe stop in a pretty town like Vianden, on to Luxembourg city, to Belgium, and down to Paris. Click on my name and you an read my 2013 trip report (Belgium and Luxembourg) along with pictures. I've also been to Cochem but not to Trier.

From Trier to Luxembourg, you'd probably use buses, but you can take trains most of the rest of the way. I though the Luxembourg countryside, with its rolling hills, was beautiful. I wasn't quite as impressed with Luxembourg City, which is more interesting than charming. There are plenty of threads here about Belgium ("who loves Bruges? Who hates it?" is a common debate topic). I loved Bruges despite it being touristy, enjoyed a brief (rainy day) visit to Ghent, enjoyed the town of Leuven outside of Brussels, didn't really care much for Antwerp (which others love).

On a different trip, I visited Alsace in France on the German border; maybe you could work that into this trip too, but it's a bit of a detour I think with Belgium also. Probably doable. Very pretty area. I stayed in Colmar, a town I really loved.

But mostly the answer to your question is: "Depends who you ask."
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Old Jul 23rd, 2017, 07:21 PM
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Hi stepha213,

I just spent 2 nights in Aachen this past June, and I loved it, wished I'd planned more time there. It's a lovely city with small, meandering alleys and lots of cafe-lined squares. It also has a lot of history to it, as it was the seat of the Holy Roman Empire for almost 1,000 years.

Have fun as you plan!

s
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Old Jul 25th, 2017, 11:27 AM
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Thanks for the reccomendations and info! I think we will soend some time in Alsace for sure and have been told to visit Bruges! I'll check out Aachen too. Thanks again!
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Old Jul 25th, 2017, 11:48 AM
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Investigate a Germany-Benelux railpass if taking many trains -covers Belgium, Luxembourg and Netherlands as well as Germany- I'd say Amsterdam could be really cool too and some day trips from it to lovely regional towns.


I like andrew's suggestions - swandav's too.

Maybe

Frankfurt - Mosel/Rhine/ Trier day trip/ Luxembourg/ Aachen/ Amsterdam/ Bruges/Paris?

Anyway for lots on trains check www.ricksteves.com; www.budgeteuropetravel.com (online European Planning & Rail Guide has rail trip suggestions in those countries); www.seat61.com.
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Old Jul 25th, 2017, 12:41 PM
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http://www.fodors.com/community/euro...m#last-comment

Not everyone likes Bruges - most do but not all! That said to me Bruges is the prettiest old-world city north of the Alps but in high tourist season it can be very crowded but October should be just dandy - weather may not -prepare for cool wet but not cold weather in northern Europe - very variable however -layering is great -sun pops out temps soar maybe to low 60s - clouds and rain down to low 40s or so.
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Old Jul 25th, 2017, 07:48 PM
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Yes, well, I'm one who didn't like Bruges. I was there in February, so I thought I would miss the overcrowding, but I still found it impossible to walk on the sidewalks due to the crowds. The buildings are pretty, and the streets are interesting ... but not notably/amazingly so. Maybe my problem is that I live in Germany, and I can get to & see a LOT of towns & cities with gorgeous architecture & enthralling alleys. Like Aachen. Aachen was, to me, what Bruges was supposed to be.

That's my experience.

s
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Old Jul 26th, 2017, 01:49 PM
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Aachen was not bombed enough. It is still a reference in urban war fare however. US troops did a very good job.
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Old Jul 27th, 2017, 06:29 AM
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> as it was the seat of the Holy Roman Empire for almost 1,000 years.

Please don't take offence, but the Holy Roman Empire didn't have a seat at all. The emperor had to meander around the empire und stay in a multitude of imperial palaces (Kaiserpfalzen). There were, however, three constitutional cities: Frankfurt as the place of election, Aachen as the place of coronation and Nürnberg as the place of the first Diet of a newly-appointed emperor.
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Old Jul 27th, 2017, 06:30 AM
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And I thought Trier was also a seat of the Holy Roman Empire?

I have no idea and obviously that was wrong.
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Old Jul 27th, 2017, 07:23 AM
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> And I thought Trier was also a seat of the Holy Roman Empire?

It was a seat of the ("original") Roman Empire (more specifically, the seat of the Praetorian prefecture of Gaul) under the name Treveris (hence its French name Trèves) from the death of Constantine the Great till 407, when it was moved to Arles (Arelate).
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Old Jul 27th, 2017, 07:54 AM
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interesting -thanks - They called the Porta Negra in Trier -the old Roman Gate -the gateway to the eastern part of the Roman Empire.
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Old Jul 27th, 2017, 08:17 PM
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Ah, thanks sla019, for the correction & clarification! I extrapolated from what little I know of Charlemagne (who made Aachen the center of his rule and who spent significant time there) and from all the coronations.

No, never offended when corrections are fact-based and presented without negative language!

Yes, Trier was the capital of 1 of the 4 Roman Praefectura. My notes from my visit there last June:

"Trier was originally settled by the Celtic Treveri tribe. The Romans made Trier, or Augusta Treverorum, the capital of one of the 4 divisions of the Roman Empire in the 4th Century."

My notes say that the 4th Century was the Golden Era for Trier ... so sad that it all disappeared within 100 years when the Romans left.

s
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