Hi!

I'm planning my first trip to Europe in June.

Do you have any suggestions as to the best option for transportation between these cities (price, view, travel time, etc...)? I prefer to take train (night train. or day train - if the view is spectacular), or if need to...plane.

here is what I have planned so far:

Stockholm - Amsterdam
Amsterdam - Berlin
Berlin - Prague
Prague - Vienna
Vienna - Lucerne
Lucerne - Milan
Milan - Venice
Venice - Florence
Florence - Rome

Appreciate your help.

Thanks!

Cant help with the first half, but Milan - Venice - Florence - Rome the best way is using the train.

That is quite the itinerary, I hope you have a month+ to cover all that!

except for Stockholm to Amsterdam which you may want to fly because it is so long the rest are best by train because they are relatively short and trains are so frequent and fast. and with all those train trips check out the Eurail Select pass where you can chose the countries in which you want your railpass to be valid and then be cheaper than the so-called Global Railpass which also could be viable if you are doing all that in a short 15-day time frame or so (from amsterdam on) - other the Select Pass is a flexipass where you can use one unlimited travel day whenever you want over a 2-month period - a day not - a day three days later, etc.

Overnight trains would run between Amsterdam and Berlin and Berlin and Prague and you could take the train from Stockholm to Copenhagen and pick up an overnight train from there to Amsterdam as well and on a flexipass overnight trains count only one travel day if you board the overnight train after 7pm - always the case it seems - you travel free 7pm to midnight and your pass is valid the whole next day - like overnight train to Berlin then you could use the pass the whole next day on Berlin's S-Bahn trains that are very useful for tourists or take the S-Bahn out to Potsdam and its fabulous palaces and parks, etc.

Anyway for loads of great info on European trains and passes check out these fantastic sites - www.budgeteuropetravel.com; www.seat61.com; www.ricksteves.com. For schedules I always use www.bahn.de - the German Railway website that has schedules for every European train it seems and to me is the easiest to use - check the link to it on www.budgeteuropetravel.com's home page as that home page also gives you several useful tips on using the Bahn's English schedule part - which the link takes you to - tips that may not be apparent at first encounter.

Oh and a Saver Pass like in Eurail Select Saverpass is simply a pass with 2 to 5 names on it and p.p. about 20% cheaper than a solo one-person pass.

If you can rearrange your trip and land in Amsterdam (often cheaper IME than flying to Stockholm) then you could take a night train from there to Copenhagen, to me the nicest of all Scandinavian cities and then from Stockholm go via Malmo and take an overnight train to Berlin and continue from there. Just a thought.

@jamikins:
Thank you. Yes, I will have a month+ to spend during this trip.

@PalenQ:
Unfortunately I have to land in Stockholm as my schengen visa was issued by Swedish Embassy (long story). I have recently checked with several people, most of whom told me that it "should" be OK to land or depart from other Schengen's countries. However, they did also mention that the Immigration/custom check at the airport might question me and there is a chance that they will not give me a permition to enter their country if the visa was not issued by their Embassy / Consulate. Being my first trip to Europe, I do not want to encounter any problems at the beginning of my trip there

I would LOVE to visit Copenhagen, it was on my earlier list (together with Paris). I have been playing around with a few different itineraries, however it seems like the one that I posted earlier is what I could possibly do within my time frame.

Thank you so much for your information on the transport options. I will check out the web-links.

Oh by the way, I got the flight ticket to Amsterdam or Stockholm at the same price. Not too expensive as it is a special promotion deal.....
Thanks!

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For the train between Milan - Venice - Florence - Rome, do I have to purchase a seperate tickets for this sector or if they also included in the the Eurail pass?

though all those Italian trains are covered by a railpass you do in Italy have to buy the mandatory seat reservation so you have to buy at a ticket window a 10 euro seat reservation fee and the pass pays the train fare itself. I have never ever had any problems buying those seat reservations with my passes in years of railing around Italy.

Thanks again! Now I will do a few more research and finalize my transportation part of my trip plan...

I'll be back with a few more questions, i'm sure

Without knowing you nationality it's impossible to say if you will have trouble with Immigration (Customs is just looking at your luggage and nothing to do with your entry to the country - unless you are carrying contraband.)

As for your itinerary - you have a LOT of major destinations listed - and since many of these train trips will take a significant time - you will be rushed rater than relaxed - there's no way I could do those 10 destinations in only 30 days.

Thank you for your comments and advise. I am planning to reduce my travelling time by taking the plane whenever possible. If I have to take the train, i am thinking to take the overnight train for the longer destinations. I will certainly take the day train for the not so long trip of Lucerne - Milan where i heard has the best view on offer.

even with all train trip (from amsterdam onwards), i will still have at least 2.5 - 3.5 days (ouside of the travelling time)in each cities to enjoy. I might skip staying in Milan (originally i planned to stay just one night to break the trip)and get the train to Venice as soon I arrive in Milan from Lucerne. My focus for Italy is Venice, Florence and Rome.

I know it is not ideal, but I want to have the "taste" before going back again next year for the real/full "bite". This trip to Europe is my first but certainly not gonna be my last time to the continent