Fodor's Travel Talk Forums - Dublin to Paris to Lausanne to Amsterdam

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Dublin to Paris to Lausanne to Amsterdam

Author: chris Date: 01/07/2003, 06:00 pm Message: I need some help w/ my itinerary from you seasoned travelers. Off to Europe next mo and I'd like to know if this sounds reasonable, hectic, absurd, etc. Also would love advice as to what's the most efficient way to travel to each country. Any tips or hints would be most appreciated. I will also peruse the past posts to find hotel accomodations but if you could reply w/ recommendations that would be great too! Arrive in Dublin on 2/13 at 1115. I think we'll stay there for two days, leaving on the 15th for Paris. What is the best way to get to Paris from Dublin? We'll stay in Paris for four days, then go to Lausanne via the high speed train called "TGV". Stay in Lausanne until 2/23 then to Amsterdam. What's the best way to get to Amsterdam? We'll stay there until 2/25 then it's back to Dublin for our flight that leaves 2/26 at 1130.

Ryanair and Aerlingus both fly to Paris. Ryanair is much cheaper but you arrive in Beauvais and then have an approx 1 1/2hr bus trip to Paris (at an extra cost). Aerlingus flies direct to CDG. I take Ryanair all the time but Aerlingus would be faster and less hassle if cost is no issue.

Chris, I once did a 12 day tour of europe that included four countries. It was nice, but if I had to do it over again, I would have spent less time traveling and more time in fewer cities. Although I love Amsterdam, you might want to cut this out of your itinerary because of the hassles of getting from there back to Dublin. Besides, Amsterdam in Feb. is bone chilling cold and dreary. Hope this helps. (If you do go to Amsterdam, eat lots of pea soup, that will ward off the cold.)

I am doing a similar trip in September. Right now I am debating whether or not to fly from Dublin to Paris, for one schedule configuration, or to fly to Munich for another configuration. By all means fly to Paris if you are skipping England completely. Otherwise you will spend a high percentage of your time traveling. The train to Lausanne leaves Paris from Gare de Lyon. I usually have taken the on one that leaves Paris about 7:45 and arrives in Lausanne about 4 hours later. After the train crosses the border near Frasne it becomes a Swiss train and the G falls out of TGV. It is a pleasant ride, and if you have never ridden a TGV, you will know why it is so named. I find I need to focus on the landscape about half a mile distant to keep it from going by as a blur. When you pass another train you can feel a definite change in air pressure. I have had a love/hate relationship with Paris over the years. I don't think 4 or even 6 days is enough to see Paris and some of the surrounding attractions like Fontainebleau and Versailles. Even in the winter these places are interersting. Of course interest in Paris is a function of one's own personal tastes. I like music, particularly some !! operas. The Opera Bastille puts on great productions and if one the operas on my "like list" is being staged, then I want to see it. Music at some the churches, particularly Ste. Chapelle is a real treat. The acoustics are highly resonant and I am sure that was the kind of conditions the composers in the era of Mozart and Vivaldi planned on. The Louvre is of course the problematical place. Many people feel like they have to wander through it all. Why? You will never remember most of it. I suggest preparing for your visit with a scouting report like a football coach. Then pickout a few definite objectives and limit your first visit to those. That was what I did, and then fell into the trap of getting "museum happy". That is when the eyes glaze over and all the painting look alike and the victim wanders aimlessly from gallery to gallery in a time warp. So for the Louvre, my advice is plan the route and limit and limit the time. Musee d'Orsay is different. It is a fabulous collection of art from a restricted period. Either you will like it or you will not. If you like what is there, you will think you are in heaven. The Rodin Museum is also in that category. I thought it moving. However, I was there in September; January or February could easily put a different face on the visit. I am not sure I would enjoy Rodin while I was shivering. I agree with the writer above who suggested chopping the schedule. Let Paris unfold, if you like it. But consider seeing less more slowly so you can really take it in. The attractions are of that nature.

Again, why the fascination with Amsterdam? Is it the museums or the underbelly of this unique and very liberal city that attracts Americans?

Easyjet flies from Geneva to Amsterdam. If you book NOW at www.easyjet.com you'll pay CHF 50 for the early morning flight or CHF 95 for the evening flight.