What is the fastest and best way to travel across Europe
 

My family and I (party of 5 adults) will be travelling to Europe for 20 days in late November, and we'd love some help maximizing our time in each city.. We are hoping to see all the main tourist/historical attractions. We would greatly appreciate if you could guide us through our journey, places not to miss and quaint restaurants etc. We are very open to everything. We will spend three nights in each city, exception are Paris 5 nights, and 2nights in Toulouse. At this point, our itinerary is set, as we've purchased airtickets from US to Frankfurt and from Barcelona to US. However, we have yet to book train tickets from Frankfurt to Amsterdam, from Amsterdam to Brussels, from Brussels to Paris and from Paris to Toulouse; your advice on train bookings across Europe is so much welcome as this is our first ultimate trip in the region. We are planning to rent a car and drive from Toulouse to Barcelona, but if you could advise us on that as well that would be awesome.

Here's our grand European Tour itinerary:

Day 1 - Arrive in Frankfurt at 8am from the USA
Day 2-3- Frankfurt
Day 4 - Frankfurt to Amsterdam
Day 5-6 - Amsterdam
Day 7 - Amsterdam to Brussels
Day 8-9 Brussels
Day 10 Brussels to Paris
Day 11-14 Paris
Day 15 - Paris to Toulouse
Day 16 - Toulouse
Day 17 - Toulouse to Barcelona
Day 18-19 - Barcelona
Day 20 - Barcelona to US departure 9:30am
Thank you so much in advance for any guidance/suggestions.

If you want to start booking tickets months before your actual travel and then not want to change nor refund them you can score deep discounted train tickets from these sites:

Amsterdam to Brussels and Brussels to Paris www.thalys.com - from 29 euros or 39 euros on up - walk up fare is about $200!

Frankfurt to Amsterdam www.bahn.de/en - German Railways

Paris to Toulouse www.voyages-sncf.com or www.capitainetrain.com - same trains same fares but latter is easier for most to actually get to work.

Toulouse to Barcelona is a longish drive so not much time for stopping and renting a car in France and returning it in Spain can mean a very steep drop-off charge for not returning car in the same country you picked it up in.

So consider taking the train to Barcelona, where you will not even want to have a car. Again the two French sites have sweet discounts. For lots of great info on European trains I always spotlight these IMO superb sources: www.seat61.com (now considered to be the guru of discounted online fares); www.budgeteuropetravel.com and www.ricksteves.com.

You would have trouble fitting six people and bags into an ordinary car - you'need two or rent a mini-van at often a much higher price. By train from Toulouse you'd go over to Perpignan and pick up the new trans-Pyrenees high-speed rail line to Barcelona - by far the fastest if not the closest way distance wise.

I see no reason to drive Toulouse to Barcelona if you are going straight thru - driving will take probably much much longer and you see the same type of scenery out of the train windows as from a car - relax - bring some vino on board the train and food (no restrictions on that) lay back and have a great train trip rather than long tiring car day.

Why Toulouse? Why 2 days in Frankfurt?

"Fastest" way to travel across Europe? I'm not sure that it is even worth making the trip if speed is the principal criterium.

Take a day off Frankfurt and add it to Amsterdam.

Do not rent a car, you will need a big vehicle, and will incur one way drop off fees, assuming they will allow a one way in a big car. Late November is probably not a good time to be driving to Barcelona from France in any case.

While in Frankfurt plan to spend at least one day (and overnight in a small town if possible) exploring the Rhine River Valley. Travel one way on the river via local train and the other via the ferry. Plenty of castles and small towns to see.

<<principal criterium>>

That's criterion, no? A critterium would be a place for housing small animals. ;-)

The itinerary above is odd. Cities are not equal and yet (other than Paris) you've allotted equal time to Frankfurt (an air hub but not even a gateway to other interesting places like Munich is), Amsterdam (nice, but small), Brussels (EU capital and . . . ), and Barcelona (excellent city far larger than the others).

As for what not to miss - who knows? Your interests are not stated. And there are plenty of resources available to figure out your top 5 lists (10 for Paris, maybe) so you can get a jump on this.

I think some of the posters should ask their questions on the Guiness website, those who want to know, the best, the fastest, the prettiest, and most important.

For a "first ultimate" trip, some of the places you have chosen are not usually considered the most interesting.
Gretchen asked good questions. I do not dislike Frankfurt (I lived there for three years), but when I am spending lots of money to see Europe, it would not be Frankfurt when there are so many other, IMHO, more beautiful places. One day in Brussels would also be enough. Consider Bruges, Ghent, Antwerp and other places in the Netherlands.

Do also consider that late November may be cold with very short days and early darkness.

Take the train from Toulouse to Barcelona, or skip Toulouse, fly from Paris to Seville or Malaga or Madrid, Spain for a few days. Then train to Barcelona.

The fastest way would be to fly.

Take 2 days off Frankfurt and add to anyplace else except Brussels. Take one of your Brussels days and move it to Bruges.

Get tickets for high speed trains - I think will be faster than you can drive and IMHO the only flight that makes sense is Paris to Barcelona (I would bag Toulouse as well). Look at bahn.de now to see what the train times are and how many tgv there are on the routes that you want. (IMHO city center to city center by train - as long as it's now the milk train - will be faster than dealing with multiple airports and the more frequent delays due to fog or other bad weather.

Be aware that days will be quite short, sights won't be open extended hours as they are in the summer, it will be chilly and probably quite rainy - so make sure you have proper clothing, including a sturdy folding umbrella and 2 pairs of waterproofed comfy broken in walking shoes (when one gets wet in a really bad rain you can't put on again the next day - will still be damp.)

I'm sorry Lifelover but your itinerary is not set until the experts here say it is set. Please take a seat.

Toulouse is one of the very nicest cities in France - it is a large university town - an unGodly number of old churches - really nice place that makes a nice foil for tourist meccas like Amsterdam, Paris and Barcelona - keep Toulouse for something diffeent - and I suppose OP has friends there.

Nice way to break up Paris - Barcelona by land - you will at least see France en route - flying you see tarmacs and airports and just three heavily touristed cities.

Leave Toulouse in - great choice IMO. If you can go to nearby Carcassonne, one of europe's finest ramparted fortified medieval-looking cities (Ersatz though as it was rebuilt from rubble in the late 1800s - one reason it is so so neat - like walking into medieval Europe - take a short train ride there from Toulouse.

All - Thank you so very much for your guidance, insights and suggestions, we will definitely adjust our trip to your finest suggestions and will post our experience upon our return. Gratefully yours...

fast and Europe do notcompute ☺ ☺

For a 20-day "first ultimate trip" I'd pick only four of the usual suspects based on your interests and ease of transport between cities. Travel will still eat up the better part of three or four days, leaving you an average of 4 days per city:

London
Paris
Amsterdam
Something in Italy (Venice or Rome)
Berlin
Something in Spain (Madrid or Barcelona)
Something in Eastern Europe (maybe Prague)

SS

<i>suze on Jul 30, 14 at 4:48pm
The fastest way would be to fly.</i>

Yes. Charter a private jet and make limo arrangements in each city. Schedule doormen at each hotel so you don't waste time opening the doors. Eat by room service.

Isn't there a TV reality thing like this?

Seriously, this isn't a tour of Europe. This is a mad dash.

Drop Brussels, a big city that many don't care much for and put in Bruges, a lovely old-world romantic type place that everyone loves.

https://www.google.com/search?q=brug...w=1455&bih=977

Images of lovely Bruges - take a train Amsterdam to Rotterdam, change to IC trains to Bruges - from Bruges you have two routes to Paris - via Brussels and Thalys trains or from Bruges to Lille, France for TGVs to Paris - about exactly the same time 2.5 hours. Perhaps spend the 3-4 hours most only need in Brussels to see its few major things and go onto Paris that night. That would be enough of Brussels for most (though Brussels does have its pluses just overall not a very dreamy but rather dreary IME huge city.