Euro Trip 08-09

Hi guys,

Me and my cousin are looking to do a 'Euro Trip' over the festive period leaving on the 26 December 08 and returning in mid January 09.

We are leaving Newcastle, UK (our hometown)via boat and our round trip is at the moment planned out like this:

Amsterdam
Berlin
Krakow (for visiting the Auschwitz)
Prague
Vienna
Venice
Rome
Bern
Paris
Amsterdam.

We are looking to be away for around 16-17 days. If there are any places you would recommend/not recommend or any general tips for our travels please leave a reply.

Remember - See the world. You only get one chance...

You'll spend most of a day travelling:

• between amsterdam and berlin
• between berlin and krokow
• between vienna and venice
• between venice and rome
• between rome and bern
• between bern and paris

In practice, "most of a day" means that you'll be tired when arriving, and places will often close within an hour or two, so that day will be effectively "lost" for doing much of anything. The other distances will still take half a day.
This all means that you'll be spending seven out of your seventeen days purely travelling from place to place, leaving you ten days to see nine cities.
All of those cities deserve at least two days to see, most (Amsterdam, Berlin, Prague, Vienna, Rome, Paris) really need a minimum of four days to even start to get a good feel for them.

In other words, I'd cut at least half your itinerary, and ideally two thirds of it. The way you've set it up now, the trip would be absolutely exhausting, and you won't get more than fleeting impressions of most places you'll rush through. Europe is right there, barely a stone's throw away from your doorstep, and isn't going away anytime soon. Plenty of time to return again and again and see the places you missed this time around.

[ Edit: Edited on Oct 4, 2008, at 12:11 PM by Sander ]

Quoting Sander

You'll spend most of a day travelling:

• between amsterdam and berlin
• between berlin and krokow
• between vienna and venice
• between venice and rome
• between rome and bern
• between bern and paris

In practice, "most of a day" means that you'll be tired when arriving, and places will often close within an hour or two, so that day will be effectively "lost" for doing much of anything. The other distances will still take half a day.
This all means that you'll be spending seven out of your seventeen days purely travelling from place to place, leaving you ten days to see nine cities.
All of those cities deserve at least two days to see, most (Amsterdam, Berlin, Prague, Vienna, Rome, Paris) really need a minimum of four days to even start to get a good feel for them.

In other words, I'd cut at least half your itinerary, and ideally two thirds of it. The way you've set it up now, the trip would be absolutely exhausting, and you won't get more than fleeting impressions of most places you'll rush through. Europe is right there, barely a stone's throw away from your doorstep, and isn't going away anytime soon. Plenty of time to return again and again and see the places you missed this time around.

Thanks Sander. We are planning on doing a lot of our travelling over-night. We're planning on spending two days in Amsterdam, Prague, Rome and Paris.

So the exhaustion part of it might not take its toll as much as we'll be sleeping as we travel a lot of the time.

Is there any places you could recommend going?

Thanks

You really should rethink your plans and cut out at least half of those places. you wont see anywhere in that time as you will be wizzing through so what would be the point of going there? you will be exhausted and you will get home and all your memories will be of buses or trains. I would stick to Amsterdam, Berlin, Prague, the visit to Auswitch and possibly Paris if I just had 16 days, and even that would be pushing it. I really think you will regret it if you stick to your original plan. Travel is supposed to be about discovering new things and enjoying yourself, where is the enjoyment in racing round europe like a race? Slow down and actually see the places you are going to and you will enjoy them far more. Have fun!!!!!!!

As you say in your post "SEE THE WORLD"!!!!!!!!!!!!! don't just run through it.

Yep I would go with the general view that you should travel less, see more. These cities aren't going anywhere, so you can always go back another time.

Alternatively, you can usually get tickets for trains in Europe for the same price, regardless of when you book, so if you get there and decide you want to travel to fewer countries when you get there, you can do so.

Have a lovely time anyway.

Tom

I do totally understand what you are saying. We are getting 2 nights in the cities we really want to see and a day and night in the other cities we would like to see. This is how the itinerary looks so far.....

Saturday 27 December 2008

17.00 - Depart Newcastle for Amsterdam. DFDS Seaways

Sunday 28 December 2008

09.00 - Arrive in Amsterdam

O.N Stay

Monday 29 December 2008

06.57 - Depart Amsterdam for Berlin.

07.32 - Transfer at Amersfoort.

07.41 - Depart Amersfoort for Berlin.

13.21 - Arrive in Berlin.

O.N Stay

Tuesday 30 December 2008

08.46 - Depart Berlin for Prague.

11.18 - Arrive in Prague.

O.N Stay

Wednesday 31 December 2008

O.N Stay in Prague.

Thursday 1 January 2009

10.06 - Depart Prague for Krakow (Reservation Needed)

15.56 - Transfer at Katowice

16.15 - Depart Katowice for Krakow

17.55 - Arrive in Krakow

O.N Stay

Friday 2 January 2009

Train every 45 mins to Auschwitz

22.25 - Depart Krakow for Vienna.(Sleeper Train)

Saturday 3 January 2009

06.03 - Arrive in Vienna

O.N Stay

Sunday 4 January 2009

06.30 - Depart Vienna for Venice. (Reservation Needed)

13.30 - Arrive in Venice.

O.N Stay

Monday 5 January 2009

O.N Stay in Venice.

Tuesday 6 January 2009

08.43 - Depart Venice for Rome. (Reservation Needed)

13.08 - Arrive in Rome.

O.N Stay

Wednesday 7 January 2009

O.N Stay in Rome

Thursday 8 January 2009

06.30 - Depart Rome for Bern. (Reservation Needed)

11.00 - Transfer at Milan

11.20 - Depart Milan for Bern

14.23 - Arrive in Bern

O.N Stay

Friday 9 January 2009

08.17 - Depart Bern for Paris (Reservation Needed)

13.03 - Arrive in Paris

13.39 - Depart Paris for Versailles

13.52 - Arrive in Versailles

17.18 - Depart Versailles for Paris

17.31 - Arrive in Paris

O.N Stay

Saturday 10 January 2009

O.N Stay in Paris

Sunday 11 January 2009

07.55 - Depart Paris for Brussels (Reservation Needed)

09.17 - Arrive in Brussels

O.N Stay

Monday 12 January 2009

07.15 - Depart Brussels for Amsterdam

10.06 - Arrive in Amsterdam

O.N Stay

Tuesday 13 January 2009

17.30 - Depart Amsterdam

Wednesday 14 January 2009

09.00 - Arrive in Newcastle.

PLACES WE VISIT IN ORDER:

AMSTERDAM (O.N STAY)

BERLIN (O.N STAY)

PRAGUE (2 NIGHTS) New Yrs Eve

KRAKOW (AUSCHWITZ) (O.N STAY)

VIENNA (O.N Stay)

VENICE (O.N STAY)

ROME (2 NIGHTS)

BERNE (O.N STAY)

PARIS (2 NIGHTS)

VERSAILLES (4 HRS)

BRUSSELS (O.N STAY)

AMSTERDAM (O.N STAY)

Do you honestly think that is too much? Comments welcome

Wow..thats many cities to cover within 17 days. So how did your trip go??

Im also curieus if it all really worked. You had to be extremely tired from all that travelling.
Did you see all those places or did you just skipped some of the travellist?