europe iternary-focus on germany
 

Hello I plan to spend a month in Europe next summer (late July-August) and I would like to hear the opinions of those who have traveled more than me. I plan to fly into Paris and stay there for a few days, then take a train to Cologne, and take a few days going down the Rhine (Trier, Heildberg, Worms are places I would like to go). I have relatives in the Black Forest, so I want to spend a week there, then take a week going down the romantic road and ending up in Munich (I also have relatives there). From Munich I would like to do a whirlwind tour of Venice, Florence and Rome, taking about a week. From Rome up to Dresden, then Berlin, then to Frankfurt, and then home-taking about a week. This would take a little over a month. I have been looking into getting a Eurail youth pass for a month.
Any suggestions?

Niether Trier, Heidelberg or Worms is on the Rhine.

sorry I meant general area, not strictly following the rhine. For example, day trip from mainz to trier etc.

Any chance you can travel early summer rather than late? I'll bet that would be much better for weather and crowds.

unforunately late summer is the only time i can go. And I would rather go at this time then not go at all.

Although using a railpass sounds like a good idea since you are going to be doing a lot of traveling I suggest you check out www.railpass.com to make sure which pass, if at all, is the best one for you to use.
The trip/itinerary is easily doable by rail. You might consider taking along a copy of the Thomas Cook Timetable in case your plans change along the way (if you do buy a pass try to get it from an agency that will throw in a copy of the Timetable for free). Having one is a lot more convenient than going to the rail station to check on schedules. Just a thought and enjoy your trip.
Be aware that if you are going to travel by train from Rome to Dresden it will be a long trip..from Rome to Munich alone by rail takes about 8 hours although you could also do that portion overnight and travel on to Dresden the next day. Enjoy.

Buying a railpass locks in the amount of oney you will spend on train travel, and thus provides with you a feeling that you have to keep moving to justify what you spend. The purpose of trains is to help you see Europe - - you don't go to Europe TO ride the trains.

See where you are more, move around less.

Best wishes,

Rex

Consider a daytrip to Alsace when you are in the Black Forest.

I second Rex's last line (and the Best wishes).

Sounds like a nice time except for that Italy sojurn - just too hot and crowded at that time of year to enjoy those places, IMO. Instead, you might look into spending some time in the German, Swiss, or Austrian Alps or even in the Italian Dolomites.

Your travel distances within Germany aren't all that long that a railpass is necessary. Check into the daypass options instead; read up on the "Länder Tickets" and the "Schönes Wochenende Ticket"

http://www.bahn.de/pv/int_guest/offe...national.shtml

...and consider just getting point-to-point tickets for Italy if you do go there.

Seems to me that you are moving around too much as Rex indicated.

You will have a better trip (and actually remember it) if you trim down the travel and enjoy the area you select. Being young, you do not have to see it all on one trip.

I still remember meeting people in Europe when I was stationed there in the Army. They were on these "see Europe in 3 weeks" trips and most could not really tell you where they had been the day before or where they were headed.

Slow down! Refine your focus and go. Plus, one week on the Romantic Road is too long there.

Wasn't there a movie or a book called,

"If It's Tuesday, This Must Be Belgium"?

I think just a week to see Venice, Florence, Rome would be a waste of your time and money. Subtracting travel time, you just wouldn't have enough time in each city to make that leg of the trip worth the effort.

I think everyone is missing the age of "Urlaub".

Do you think there's anybody who spent a month in Europe "traveling too much" with a Eurail pass that regrets it?

Go, Urlaub, and have a blast!

Personally, I would rent a car for the Black Forest portion - I love driving through there! Plus, I like to be able to stop whenever something catches my eye. But, I haven't travelled by train extensively so I'm sure there are perks to that too. I think that if it were me, depending on how far south your relatives are, I would base myself with my relatives and just take trips out to Koln, Heidelberg, Worms, Basel, Colmar, Strasbourg, Freiburg etc. The distance isn't really that far and you'll save on hotels. After your visit, you could start at the end of the Romantic Road in Fussen and work your way up through Dinkelsbuhl, Rothenburg, Wuerzburg then up/over to Berlin and then down, hitting Dresden, Bamberg, Nurnberg, Munich. Although I wouldn't do it because I'm exhausted already I say "Go to Italy & have fun", head back to Frankfurt fly home (if you're not flying from here, don't go and don't feel bad about it because compared to everyplace else you've just seen it pales!). Instead of Italy, I would take trips from Munich though, Salzburg, Berchtesgaden, etc. So many places, so little time!