First Post, Lots of Questions

Old Sep 27th, 2016, 09:45 AM
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First Post, Lots of Questions

Hey everyone i am brad (in case you didnt know that by my username haha). im happy to be here and have a load of questions. first the basic concept...

i will be traveling to europe alone for 3 weeks in december to get away from the US and explore. i have an idea of where i would like to go and the only real major questions i have are about transportation and lodging.

as of now i am just trying to bring this list down to maybe 11 cities but this is what i have for now... London is where im landing from the US and leaving to go back. the cities i would like to go to are Dublin, Oslo, Stockholm, Copenhagen, Amsterdam, Paris, Berlin, Prague, Budapest, Venice, Monte Carlo, Paris, and anywhere in Switzerland.

i was planning on taking the eurorail for almost all of my trip. as of now the only places i would be flying to are london to dublin and dublin to oslo. i planned to start using the train in oslo and taking the journey from there.

the only thing i know i want to do for sure is a glider flight around the swiss alps. so my first question is can anyone direct me to a place that would be able to take me up for a flight? as a pilot i think this would be a great way to see the alps.

with all that being said. my main question is of those cities, which (10-12 places) are good picks for a 28 year old guy who wants to explore new areas but also still wants to go out and drink and have a good time each night? how should i go about setting up lodging in each place? is there a website that i could essentially book, or at least plan, all my train tickets before i ever leave so i can plan each day out?

i know its a lot but this is the first time i am reaching out for some help because as of now i know how im getting to europe and that i want to buy a eurorail pass to help me get from place to place. other than those 2 things im a little lost haha. any and all help is greatly appreciated. feel free to let me know the cities you think would be most fun to visit. not really into museums but im not opposed to history and seeing some of the cool historical sights.
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Old Sep 27th, 2016, 10:00 AM
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In 3 weeks, you don't want to try to visit 10-12 places. It will be very expensive, and you will waste a lot of your time just getting from place to place. It would be a tour of the inside of train and train stations. Also, being there in Dec means it will get light late and get dark early, so you have less sightseeing time in the outdoors. I don't know where you are from, so don't know how much the cold weather will deter you. In addition to using trains, you will want to take some flights.

Your first task is to cut cities from your plan. Remember that it takes 4 nights somewhere to get 3 days of sightseeing time. So with three weeks - how many nights do you have on the ground in Europe? - you want not more than 5 or 6 cities.

Is budget an issue? If it is, you will want to cut the Scandinavian countries - expensive and very dark and cols in December - that cuts Oslo, Stockholm and Copenhagen. Monte Carlo is easy - eliminate it. There is really nothing to see/do there except stare at the very wealthy and they won't be bringing their yachts in during Dec. Also, be aware that Switzerland is the most expensive country in Europe.
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Old Sep 27th, 2016, 10:03 AM
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Two words: Thorn Tree. That's the Lonely Planet forum and there are far more people trying to work up insane tour schedules like yours who hang out there than here.

As for your trip plans: you need to check a map and train schedules because your plan kinda sucks. Just for starters: Oslo to Stockholm is a nearly 5 hour train ride on the fastest line available, it's over 7.5 if you don't get the fastest one. Stockholm to Copenhagen is nearly 9 hours.

This means you're setting yourself up for a boatload of travel time and far less time to actually do things other than sit on a public conveyance and catch up on your reading or computer games. We'll not go over the issue of trying to hit nearly every country (13 cities plus whatever in Swissville) in Western Europe (other than those not sited on peninsulas extending to the Mediterranean) in three weeks.
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Old Sep 27th, 2016, 10:07 AM
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You could start browsing in this site: https://www.ricksteves.com/travel-tips/trip-planning to see what is involved in traveling solo, number of destinationas, etc.
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Old Sep 27th, 2016, 10:14 AM
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Welcome to Fodors. apart from the short days, the cold, the wet and shear distances this could be a good plan.

It depends on what you want but I suggest you need to cut back a fair bit on the shear range of what you want to see and I also suggest an open jaw flight so you come back from a different airport than you land at.

Gliding by the alps. You, of course need the weather to fly, turbulance close to the Alps is certainly "interesting". Is it the best way to see the Alps. Probably not, I'd fly over it in a nice warm aircraft but each to their own.

However, if I were going to do this, I'd look at this link http://www.dolomites.org/en/activity...-dolomites.asp

Planning, well for detail trains you need bahn.de (set it to English with the little flag) and seat61.com to explain what is happening. For more general planning you'll also find rome2rio is not bad and skyscanner for flights. Hotel rooms use tripadvisor and bookings.com, hostels I don't know.

If I was doing this I'd focus at something like London Dublin, Copenhagen, Amsterdam, Paris, Berlin, Prague, Budapest, Venice,

note I've cut out the second visit to Paris. Oslo (no one there), Stokholm because it is out on a limb. Monte Carlo, because if you are asking us these details you will find MC a drag. Finally you have 8 cities here for 20 days, more than enough.
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Old Sep 27th, 2016, 10:16 AM
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I understand that is a lot of stops which is why I want to cut it shorter. I am not trying to sightsee every place in each city I go to as well. I only plan to spend 1 day maybe 2 in some places. Enough for me to see the city a little and then move on the next day. I'm from the US and money isn't a huge problem and neither is travel. I'm a pilot so I'm used to sitting and looking out windows. I will have 20 days in all in Europe. Cold doesn't bother me and like I said I'm not trying to sightsee. I'm more trying to get out have fun and meet people from around the world. A day or 2 in each city is ok with me considering I don't really care to do the touristy stuff.
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Old Sep 27th, 2016, 10:17 AM
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I think the cities list is confusing people. I'm not trying to go in that order and I didn't mean to put Paris twice. Sorry for the confusion.
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Old Sep 27th, 2016, 10:21 AM
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shear or sheer?
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Old Sep 27th, 2016, 10:51 AM
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Michael,which part of "burglEr" didn't you get

Brad. Ok, I guess you know London is the big city in Europe with a bunch of centres. While a fair few of the others are tiny.

Fun people then keep London, Amsterdam, Dublin and Berlin in the pot. Good drinking and vibes. Budapest offers you similar but mainly in spas. Venice is fascinating but not really party town. Copenhagen in the right places can be a hoot, generally west of the main station or south across the river where the true alternative culture hangs out.

Really Oslo, MC are tiny and mainly very little happens.

The last time there was a party in Switzerland it hit the news.
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Old Sep 27th, 2016, 11:02 AM
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I think if meeting people is one of your goals, hostels might be a good place to look (even though you said money isn't a big deal). This was 10 years ago when I was on a post-grad backpacking trip, but I met some really outstanding people in hostels. We did more of the daytime sightseeing, nighttime buy a bottle of wine to share kind of thing but it was great.

I've seen ads (never done any) for quasi-tour/quasi-pub crawls in different cities so you could look into something that like. Those half day/one-day tours in general can be a way to meet others and hang out later, depending on the group dynamic.

I think the Lonely Planet forum mentioned earlier would be a good source of recommendations for possible meet-ups or good hostels (ie with a lively atmosphere and good amenities, not the dingy ones).
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Old Sep 27th, 2016, 11:11 AM
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I've done 'insane' trip like these and loved it. I did 15 cities (in the US) under one month.

So don't necessarily focus only on trains, speed is also of the essence with such a plan.

For trains, take TGV's (fast rains) : advantage : they go from center of city to center of city.
As a rule these fast trains are usually excluded from Eurorail passes or such (pay attention some of these passes are actually more expensive than taking tickets on the fly). Book 3 to 4 months in advance to get best prices.
Sites : Thalys, DBrail, SNCF, Eurostar or/and capitainetrain (which changed name btw).

Flights can be very unexpensive : lots of low cost exist, such as Ryanair, easyjet, vueling, eurowings, wizzair, etc. Look at kayak.combut always book direct with the airline.

Hotels or hostels : for short stays, hotels.com or booking.com can give you very good discounts and you don't spend 32 days calling 154 hotels.

Enjoy your trip...
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Old Sep 27th, 2016, 11:34 AM
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You want to take a glider in the Alps . . . in December?

Not bloody likely.



Your title says 'Lot of questions' -- well you got a LOT of responses and seem to have an answer for every one of them.

You want to meet people -- you won't w/ just a day or 1.5 days in each city.

You say you don't want to do touristy things (whatever that means) -- well that is a good thing 'cuz you wont have time for any.

>> was planning on taking the eurorail for almost all of my trip.)
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Old Sep 27th, 2016, 11:51 AM
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is there a website that i could essentially book, or at least plan, all my train tickets before i ever leave so i can plan each day out?>

for answers to all things train check www.seat61.com; www.budgeteuropetravel.com (check their free online European Planning & Rail Guide for lots of rail itineraries) and www.ricksteves.com. With that many places to go by train look at some kind of railpass which in most countries lets you hop on virtually any train anytime.
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Old Sep 27th, 2016, 01:11 PM
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One full day in any location equals two nights. You don't have enough nights to do 1 or 2 days in 11 locations.

I would cut out Copenhagen , Olso and Stockholm.. they are the farthest out and will take the most time to get to and from ..
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Old Sep 27th, 2016, 01:39 PM
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>

Amsterdam . . .

. . . in the pot!

Bilbo will be here all week folks! Two shows a night.
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Old Sep 27th, 2016, 01:40 PM
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Hi I agree with all the responses suggesting that you cut out the northern countries and MC.. You will be so exhausted from trains and a different country every day or two that you will not really get to know any place or country. London is your starting point, maybe chunnel to France, Normandy if you are into US history, maybe pick up a little tour for that area. Paris, train to Germany...Xmas markets/if you are into that, but they will be up and running in December, Nuremburg/Wurtzburg/Rothenburg. It will be quite cold and wet during this time. End in Amsterdam...much to see there too. Maybe Germany to Switzerland/ expensive/ Swiss Rail tickets. Get books that others suggested, esp Rick Steves/fodors. Sue
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Old Sep 27th, 2016, 02:23 PM
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Even moving FAST, you have too many places listed for your amount of time.
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Old Sep 27th, 2016, 02:33 PM
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Three weeks = three countries. Slow down and learn about what you are seeing and experiencing. There's always next time; yes there is.
Your first mistake is right at the start. If you are coming from North America (just a wild guess) then it will be more efficient and possibly cheaper, in total, to fly into one city and home from another. But you must use a multi-destination search function on any of the many airline and travel-agent websites.
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Old Sep 27th, 2016, 02:48 PM
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Again I am just asking for advice on what places to cut out. I appreciate all the responses. The 21 days is how many I'll have on soil in Europe. I don't mind being on a train. Again I'm a pilot so the view is fine with me. Some people don't need to explore an entire city to get anything out of it. And as for Switzerland I know it's not a big party area but as a pilot I think a glider In the alps is a great reason to stop there. Keep the comments coming. I really do appreciate it even if some people think it's a bit crazy.
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Old Sep 27th, 2016, 04:33 PM
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You say "Some people don't need to explore an entire city to get anything out of it." Believe me, there is no chance you will explore an entire city - ok, maybe if you choose a small city and spend your whole three weeks there.
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