kerouac

Considering international drop off charges for rental cars (maybe that could be a new project for the EU after forbidding the roaming charges for mobile phones a few years ago as well as a lot of ATM fees), I would also encourage you to consider moving about by train. And I love to drive but only when I am returning to my starting point (at least the same country). So think about train trips for all of the short destinations and maybe a car rental in France (including in and out of Switzerland) or Italy if you are going to cover a lot of kilometers.

Jean

The OP is leasing a car... which I think works better for this trip (6 weeks) than using trains. But I can also imagine some instances when it might make sense to park the car for a couple of days and take the train into a city for a short stay. At this point, the OP's plans are general and somewhat vague. Depending on the final itinerary, a car can be both freeing and constraining when it comes to getting around.

In Covid times, I would probably opt for the flexibility that a car provides. Maybe things will be more stable in a few months, but it's highly likely that travelers will still need backup plans (and backup plans for the backup plans) through much of 2022. Having a car for the entire 6 weeks means only picking it up in one location and dropping it in another. Everything in between is fungible.

MsNelly

Good point about Leiden, but actually we won’t have our car yet. After our stay there we will be getting the car when we leave for Bruges. While I do like train travel I like the options we have with our own car. The price for that is dealing with wrong turns, pay tolls along with not always the best directions from our navigation. We have survived it before but it’s been 4 years since we have traveled. Hopefully we still have the stamina to navigate all of this. Also we kind of like a somewhat open schedule. On that note we are considering train travel from Italy to Budapest for the start of the Giro d’Italia. Any input on that?

Hambagahle

You really need to park the car somewhere on arrival in Switzerland and then take the trains. Most of our cities have pedestrian only centres. In the mountains there are a lot of places where you are not allowed to drive - indeed in some cases there are no roads! Plus our traffic laws are different than in the countries around us (signage is too) and fines are high and can be tied to your income in some cases.

Jean

Keep an eye on the Giro and don't book anything for Budapest yet. Covid cases are surging in both countries, and I wouldn't be surprised if the stages in Hungary are cancelled again. (They were cancelled in the delayed 2020 race, so this year is an attempt at a re-do.) Maybe things will improve dramatically in the next couple of weeks, but organizers will hit a hard decision deadline soon. A couple of international pro races set for early 2022 have already been cancelled.

MsNelly

Switzerland is only a possibility at this point, but should we decide to go would definitely park the car if we were to be in a large city.It really depends on what route we choose coming from France.

Budapest is a city we haven’t ever traveled to before. With the Giro being there thought it might be a good opportunity. I do realize all plans at this point are iffy. I think that part of the trip will be something we decide after we arrive in Italy. But for now if anyone has any recommendations for Budapest I would be interested in hearing from you.

bilboburgler

Budapest is very easy to walk around or use the Trams (or even the tiny underground) that a car would seem wrong. But really if you are just going city to city I'd use the train and just hire locally when you need to.

thursdaysd

Budapest is one of my favorite cities (although it was a bit over-touristed the last time I was there). You certainly don't need a car there, and I would imagine wouldn't want one, either. Get a transport pass, and do be careful not to try to get on the metro without a ticket or pass.

For my reports on Budapest go here: https://mytimetotravel.wordpress.com/?s=budapest

MsNelly

Not planning on traveling by car to Budapest, have already researched train route. Venice to Vienna then to Budapest. I guess it’s a bit confusing since I’m titled Europe by auto?! Sorry. Looking forward to reading your report on Budapest. I think I’m just making all kinds of different plans not knowing what is really going to work. Never too much information please keep it coming!

thursdaysd

Are you taking the night train to Vienna? It might be faster, but some of the scenery on that route should be good. Although maybe not as good as Venice to Innsbruck.

Do you know about this site? https://www.seat61.com/international...enice-Budapest

kerouac

I loved Budapest, too -- much more that the highly touted Prague.

MsNelly

Yes I am familiar with seat 61. I think I would rather travel by day to enjoy the scenery. The trains looked to be nice.

Jean

Unless you will have dropped the car by then, you'll want to research parking for the time you're in Hungary... something both safe and affordable.

Hambagahle

MsNelly - Towns and cities in Switzerland aren't the only places you have to park the car. Some of the loveliest mountain villages in the country are only accessible by public transport.

Levendowski

We went to Belgium from Amsterdam 2 weeks ago. There was no any issue on covid tests or anything..

MsNelly

Thank you for sharing your experience. How were you traveling by train or car?