DeeHpTH

I am in the beginning phase of starting my plans to go to Europe this summer. I have been to Europe twice before so I am planning to go to some places I have been next year. I need help in making sure that the cities I plan to go to are realitic in my time frame. I plan to fly into London spend time there, then travel to Brussels, Amsterdam , Copenhagen, Berlin, and maybe Stockholm. I would like to visit all these places in a 2 1/2 to 3 week time frame, at the end of June to middle of July. I don't have any tickets yets so I really mean that I am in the beginning phase of my plans. I also need help figureing out the logistics of my plans. I plan to travel by train from place to place, but I don't know how long the train ride will be from Amsterdam to Copenhagen or if it would be better to fly. Any help is greatly appreciated.

Mimar

Let's see. 3 weeks is 21 days. 5 cities in that time is 4 days each, so 3 days per city plus one day to travel to the next city. That's not very long for a city like London. But if you've been there before maybe you're just hitting a few sights you missed.

Where are you coming from? If you're arriving after a long overnight flight, you'll probably want an extra day or so in London to get over jet lag.

You could fly into London and out of, say, Amsterdam. Open jaws tickets save time and money otherwise spent backtracking.

One scenario: after London, you could take the Eurostar train to Brussels, then train on to Berlin, then Copenhagen. Fly back to Amsterdam and fly home from there. Look at the German train site www.bahn.de/i/view/GBR/en/index.shtml to get an idea of train journey times.

DeeHpTH

I am coming from the West coast so it would be a very long flight. I am trying to figure out if I had to fly or could take a train to Copenhagen. I might just drop Copenhagen and Stockholm because they seem a little more out of the way compared to the rest of my plans. I have been to London before so I plan on visiting a friend and seeing a few things that I didn't see last time.

I have a question, how does the eurlrail pass work? Are there just limitations on how long the pass is and many places you can go in that time frame or just a limit on the time frame?

Thanks for the open jaw suggestion, I had forgotten about that option. It opens the door to endless possibilities.

Does anyone have any good book recommendation, not Rick Steves because I have leaned during my travels that he doesn't always have the best ideas. I need information on like good hostels and best way to see a city in a few days.

DeeHpTH

I have been looking at the Frommers or somthing Plant books are they any good?

greg

Each guidebook has target audiences as well as strengths. I think it is too simplistic to categorize books as good or bad. Some are more relevant for certain destinations for certain audiences. Experienced travelers don't care for Rick Steves's categorizaton on what is worth seeing. On the other hand, undifferentiated comprehensive list of attractions makes head spin for new travelers. Experienced travelers only needs to be told "there is a bus" to certain destinations. For beginners, Rick Steves's step by step instruction is a godsend.

Tentek

Frankly, I think Fodors books are well written for some of the popular European destinations. I used to use Rick Steves' books for Paris and Italy trips and although I was pleased with some of the tips in terms of preparing for the trip, I agree that his perspective is somewhat biased towards the vendors that he favors.

It really depends on your travel style: Lonely Planet for backpackers, Frommers for family and moderate budget travelers, Fodors is a bit of step up in terms of accommodations and hotels suggested.

Each country guide is unique because of the writers contributing to it. I was pleased with my Fodors Gold Switzerland guide while on the ground in Switzerland, although I found it a bit lacking while I was preparing for the trip because it did not have the conversational tone of Rick Steves' books.

DeeHpTH

What I have done to figure out what books I like is gone to the library and picked out about 4 different brands of the same book and see what style I like. It has helped me out so much because I was going to buy some Lonely Planet books, but I don't like the way they are layed out, and the blue colors of the words are distracting to me.

As far as my trip planning is going I have made huge strides towards getting an itinerary. My plan is
5 days in London, Train to Brussels
3 days in Brussels, Train to Amsterdam
6 days in Amsterdam, Train to Berlin
6 days in Berlin, Flight to Stockholm
4 days in Stockholm, Flight to Frankfurt to visit friends.

I am working on finding hostels, but checking out a book about the best hostels. Does anyone know if I would need a trail pass or should I buy point to point tickets? Also was is the best airline to go from Berlin to Stockholm and Stockholm to Frankfurt?
Thanks

Tentek

Your updated itinerary looks more doable. Out of the places you have listed, I have been to London, Brussels, Amsterdam, and Stockholm. As for hostels, London has some great YHA hostels, one near St. Paul Cathedral looked very clean. We didn't stay there but popped into it to check it out for future visits to London. We loved the location. There are also dormitories through London school of economics and other schools that might be available depending on when your trip is. There was a thread about those opportunities somewhere.

http://www.lsevacations.co.uk/

Stockholm is very expensive for accommodations and food. It is a beautiful city and June/July is probably the best time to visit due to long days and hopefully nice weather.

DeeHpTH

I think Stockholm is the city I am most worried about because it is so expensive and kind of out of the way from the rest of the cities I plan to visit, but I want to go so bad for some reason. How long are the days, I heard there is only 3 or 4 hours of darkness?

Do you know if any other of the cities I plan to go to have the university dorms like London?
While in London I will be staying with a friend, but thanks for the dorm info I would love to try it one day.