Drive: Paris to Well and Amsterdam
 

Good day all!

For those of you so inclined I would welcome thoughts and advice on the following:

Number older son is attending a semester abroad in the small village of Well in the Netherlands. His dad, brother and I are in the beginning stages of planning a 5 day trip to visit him over the Thanksgiving holiday.

Since this is our family's first trip to this region of Europe, naturally we'd like to drink in all we can. I know that we could spend the entire time in Amsterdam but I just cannot imagine being so close to Paris and not visit. Here is our proposed itinerary.

Tues/Wed- Fly Boston to Paris and arrive early Wed. morning. Despite jet lag we'll enjoy Paris for the day, early dinner somewhere fabulous and unpretentious and retire at a charming TBD accommodation for a good night sleep.

Thursday/ Thanksgiving- Son will join us from Well, locatedabout 2 hours south of Amsterdam, either by train or air Thursday after his classes. Thanksgiving dinner will be in Paris with no worries about the absence of turkey....always preferred duck.

Friday- we will spend exploring Paris.

Saturday- early morning rent a car and drive to Well (should be 3 1/2ish hour drive?) with a few stops on the way....maybe Metz for lunch and light sightseeing. Arrive in Well early evening and spend the night in the town.

Sunday- drive to Amsterdam early morning and explore city. Stay in Amsterdam that night

Monday- Depart for Boston.

I know it's a lot but who knows if/when we'll ever get the opportunity again? Thanks in advance for any advice forthcoming.

A bit rushed but doable. I would not bother with a car whatsoever and train rather than drive. The drive Paris - Amsterdam is dull and boring. Pack light

Thanks, for the quick reply. Regarding the drive, we'll be headed 2 hours south of Amsterdam to Well near the German border. Is Metz and the countryside along the way not worth seeing? We'd save a lot of time by taking the train but thought we'd miss some of the experience.

If that is Well just south of Kerkwijk, next to Ammerzeden, east of Heusden and just west of highway A2 (E25) then the drive from Paris, according to www.viamichelin.com, is 6 hours, and according to Google maps only four and a half hours.

If, however, it is the Well on the German border, on highway N270 just south of the (German) Weeze airport, it would be less than five hours.

Well, which Well is it?

Assuming, because it is more "south of Amsterdam", it is 5325 Wells near Heusden, he can take the train from Heusden, and be in Paris 3:26 hours later. Look them up at http://plannerint.b-rail.be/bin/quer...ld=IA&L=profi&

Good idea to take a multi-city plane ticket into Paris and home from Amsterdam. Not so sure that renting a car in Paris and dropping it off in Amsterdam is a good idea. Cross-border one-way drop-off charge could be prohibitive, and why drive into Amsterdam?

Instead, do it all by train - from Paris to Antwerpen, trains go via Brussels, both fascinating cities, spend a few hours here or there, then take the train from Antwerpen to Heusden near Wells (f that's the Wells we're talking about).

Then train to Amsterdam (goes via Antwerpen). It lands you smack in town where you want to be and where cars are a bother.

Just saw your second post - the reference to the German border makes it the Well near Venlo and Geldern then? From both these towns, roughly equidistant from Wells, you can train it to Paris and it takes a good four and a half hours or more from Venlo and 5 hours or more from Geldern.

Your son will have to get the benefit of local knowledge to find which train stations are best to use and how to get to them from Well.

Some Venlo trains also go via Brussels, and some Geldern trains via Cologne - great places to break the journey.

So you still don't need that car that could be a huge expense and a hindrance at the end.

Use http://plannerint.b-rail.be/bin/quer...ld=IA&L=profi&

Yes, it is the Wells near Venlo. Thank you very much for that imput. It's so helpful! I believe that my son's school said that the best train route to Paris is to take the bus from Well to Venlo, train to Venray and Venray to Paris but I did not have the estimated time. Also Ryan Air flys out of Weeze which is 9 miles from Well and Eindhoven which is 32 miles from Well. I'll investigate those as well as I hear the prices can be less that the train. I will put the car idea to bed. It would be a treat to see Antwerpen or Brussels. Fun to contemplate!