Whiteswan14

Hi, me and a friend are going interrailing in July and were wondering if anyone could give us some advice on our itinerary, most specifically on how to get from Rijeka to Venice. Our itinerary is as follows:
2nd July - Fly to Berlin (the flight is booked)
4th - Berlin to Prague
7th - Prague to Budapest
10th - Budapest to Vienna
13th - Vienna to Ljublijana
14th - Bus from Ljublijana to Lake Bled
16th - Bus back to Ljublijana
17th - Ljublijana to Rijeka and then ferry to Cres
19th - Ferry back to Rijeka
20th - Bus from Rijeka to Venice? (using the getbybus company?)
22nd - Venice to Zell am See
24th - Zell am See to Munich
27th - Munich to Nuremburg
29th - Nuremburg to Amsterdam
1st August - Fly home

Any advice would be greatly appreciated, so thank you in advance.

FuryFluffy

You have too many destinations in a short period of time. Have you actually looked at the train/bus time between those cities? After deducing the transportation time, jet-lag time and and hotel check-in time, you don't have much left in each city. You get like, 1 day for Berlin, 0.5 day for Ljublijana, 1 day for Venice etc.
You won't see much of a city in 1 day.

PalenQ

Well just about the train/bus part - booking early at national rail web sites can yield nice discounts - for lots of info on trains check www.seat61.com - great info on discounted tickets; www.budgeteuropetravel.com and www.ricksteves.com.

Venice to Zell -there is an overnight train Venice to Salzburg you may want to check into. Though it may get to Salzburg rather early in a.m.

michelhuebeli

Do you have specific reasons for the plan as you outline it? Do you know for sure just what you wish to see in the short time you allocated to these cities, and how much time you need to see those targets?

If you refine your plan as follows, you get a better handle on just how much time you have in each city. As you study the websites and guidebooks, reconcile what it is you wish to see in those cities with the plan, and make changes accordingly.

I started the refinement, to show you what I mean.

It shows that, in Berlin, you have only one jetlagged half-day on arrival plus one half-day; surely that's not enough for Berlin!?!

In Prag you have two-and-a-half days; enough for what you plan on seeing there?

and so it goes if you continue in this vein:

07/03 arr Berlin AM, sleep in Berlin
07/04 part of the day in Berlin, late train to Prague (17:04/21:27 or 19:01/23:27), sleep in Prague
07/05 + 06 + morning of 07 in Prag, afternoon train (14:52/22:20 or 15:52/22.35) to Budapest, sleep in Buda or in Pest

suze

I think you need to research & add in the transportation time between every time you move place to place, to see how this plan will work in reality on the ground.

ira

Hi W,

Much, too much traveling.

I did something like this in my early twenties. All I can remember is a group of people standing around me trying to decide if I was drunk or stoned.

I was exhausted.

Choose you top 5 priorities. You'll enjoy it a lot more.

Europe will still be there when you next wish to go.

PalenQ

Less can indeed sometimes be more - more or less!

StCirq

My head is spinning just reading this. You're going to spend a huge amount of money to see...nothing.

PalenQ

2nd July - Fly to Berlin (the flight is booked)
4th - Berlin to Prague>

For example you have about one day after landing day in Berlin -yet of all the towns on your list Berlin requires amongst the more -big town - many sights. Too late to adjust but you'll just get into some place and soon be leaving.

Packing up and unpacking and finding hotel takes time

<20th - Bus from Rijeka to Venice? (using the getbybus company?)
22nd - Venice to Zell am See>

About a day in Venice -yes enough to see what Venice is all about but little time to ferret out its quieter areas that are in many ways neater than the elbow-elbow areas you will see.

Rijeka -can take a city bus or cab to Trieste for direct trains to Venice -hourly about.