Please suggest itinerary for our trip in Europe by train
 

My husband and I are planning to spend the Easter in Europe and we have 11 days to do with it. Our priliminary itinerary is to start from Paris (spend 2 days)and then travel down to Avignon, Marseille, Cannes, Nice, Monaco, then up to Geneva and end in Frankfurt. Do you think it's a nice route and is it feasible by rail? How many days should we spend in each of the cities? Or which other cities we should cover and leave which one out? And how many days of the Eurail Select Pass should we buy? Your suggestion is highly appreciated!! Thank you all in advance!!

That sounds like a lot of traveling to me. I did Europe by train with my sister a few years back. We did Florence, Rome, Munich, Amsterdam, and then Frankfurt in just under two weeks. It was a lot of traveling. If I go again, I am going to pick two or three places that I'd really like to see and spend a few days at each. Personally, I'd recommed Rome (because it has so much history and culture (and the best ice cream on earth)) or Munich (its very tourish friendly and pretty). If you try and do too many cities in a small amount of time, you'll spend most of you trip in route and not really experience any one city. Also, I'd definitly skip Frankfurt. It just looked like any other industrial city.

Two days (only) - - at the start of a trip - - is a good way to NOT see Paris. Personally, I would drop the foray into Germany, unless there is some compelling reason to include it. In fact, I might drop Geneva too - - but flying home from there (seeing Annecy or Talloires instead) seems okay.

Best wishes,

Rex

Oh, and chjeck out your itienrary on www.railsaver.com - - I think that a "rail pass" will NOT save you one penny; in fact it will likely cost you more to go with a rail pass than simply buying the tickets as you need them.

Alternatively, you might enjoy a car from Avignon onward - - you CAN return a French car IN France at the Geneva airport since the car rental offices are "a-straddle" the border there.

Best wishes,

Rex

Actually, we want to visit France and spend longer time there and just spend 2-3 days in Germany (Frankfurt and other towns/cities nearyby). Since the railway network is working so extensively and therefore we think we could visit the mentioned cities without hiccups. Am I right? Is it still worth buying the railpass? Please advice.

Eight cities in 11 days. You aren't planning on really seeing any of these places right? Sorry, YeungRita, but if you're really looking for someone to say "what a great plan" I doubt you will have any look here. Most seasoned travelers know better than to even think of trying this.

<<we think we could visit the mentioned cities without hiccups>>

Do you mean get off the train and have not quite enough time for a hiccup in each? I actually figured that you planned NOT to actually STAY in each of these (thus why bother?) - - even with just stopping for a few hours in Marseilles and/or Cannes - - my advice is the same: end in the area of France aroung Geneva.

And no, I do not think that a rail pass will do anything for you - - even if you DO go all the way to Frankfurt - - except for remove more money from your pocket than you would spend on the individual tickets. But railsaver.com is the way to verify my hunch. Or prove me wrong.

Hm...seems that it's unwise to follow our priliminary itenerary. So if we just confine our trip to France, where should we visit in 10 days besides Paris which is a must? We love small charming/characteristic towns. And should we buy a French railway pass instead?

<<And should we buy a French railway pass instead?>>

The answer remains the same. Only if you want to spend more money than buying just the tickets you need.

But you have to check your own itinerary. I have directed to the right tool: www.railsaver.com

Rita -

Your revised itinerary looks more reasonable now. After Paris, take the TGV to Avignon (buying the usually very cheap PREM ticket) then rent a car from there to allow you maximum flexibility to see the cities you mentioned plus the countryside and small towns and villages.

-Kevin

Thanks for the advice. But we don't drive and so we have to take the train. As suggested by buying the ticket point to point, how much does it cost from Nice to Frankfurt(1st and 2nd class respectivley)?

<<As suggested by buying the ticket point to point, how much does it cost from Nice to Frankfurt(1st and 2nd class respectivley)?>>

This question can be readily answered at www.railsaver.com

If you have only 11 days and want to see something of Germany, you could consider flying to Frankfurt and spending 5 or 6 days in Germany (I wouldn't stay in Frankfurt) and then train to Paris for 5 or 6 days with a day trip or two. Without a car, you are better off in cities. With this itinerary, you need only take the train from some location in Germany to Paris and there is no need for a rail pass. You can fly home from Paris.

Hi Rita,

> where should we visit in 10 days besides Paris which is a must? <

How about 4 days in Paris, train to Beaune via Dijon for 3 days, return to Paris.

You could stay in either Dijon or Beaune.

You could take the TGV from Paris to Nice or Avignon.

Train schedules and tickets are at
http://www.voyages-sncf.com/dynamic

If you buy your tickets online 60 days in advance you will be able to get deeply discounted fares.

A railpass will cost you more than PtoP tickets.

Enjoy your visit.

((I))

If you'd really like to go to the south of France, perhaps you could start in Paris, then down to Nice, where you could base yourself and use public transportation (train or bus) to other areas along the coast, then back up to Paris.

Alternatively, what about Paris to Annecy to Strassbourg, and back to Paris? Then you get the smaller city feel along with the German city feel without going outside France?

Rex, I've checked with the railsaver website and it seems that buying a railpass is cost saving than buying ptp. How come it's contradicted to what you said? Please advise.

<<How come it's contradicted to what you said?>>

Ther can be a couple of reasons:

Two people traveling together are a better deal on some kinds of rail passes, whereas one person traveling alone would not be cost-advantageous.

And it just depends on the routes. The ptp advantage is very, very frequent when the route is one country alone, or when it involves Italy (because ptp tickets can be purchased at very good prices in Italy). I am less certain when the routes involves Germany - - that's I say, you just have to do the comparison - - I'm sorry if I implied that I <i><b>knew</b></i> that ptp would be cheaper than <i><b>any</b></i> pass.

And last of all, even railsaver.com can over-estimate the true cost of ptp in France if you are able to take advantage of PREM fares - - search here on this forum to find info about these discounted fares.

I don't think anyone was ever ill-served by at least checking www.railsaver.com - - it at least forces you to think about what train travel is it that you really want/need.

Oh, by the way - - did you check the box &quot;only if it saves me money&quot;? If you didn't, then railsaver will calculate a rail pass for you even if it is more expensive than ptp.

Yes, did you check the box &quot;only if it saves me money&quot;?

((I))

Saving money is not the only criteria with railpasses, there are many other benefits - it's not always the bottom line. Yes you can buy discounted French and Italian tickets if you want to lock yourself into times and exact trains far in advance, avoiding blackout periods. For flexibility the pass provides is something some travelers want. And for you itinerary i think the EurailSaver will also save money, especially since it is first class and you may compare it to second class pt-pt fares - first class has many benefits.