Epic Eurotrip

Hey,

I'm going on an Eurotrip in September for 30 days. I'm looking for the experienced Eurotrippers out here to look at my itinerary and critique it.
I've outlined the cities that I really want to go to, and I've tried to give myself ample time in each city.

The mode of transportation is Eurail. Departure date is September 18th.

Here is my itinerary.

Amsterdam - 3 days 2 nights
Munich - 3 days 2 nights
Interlaken - 3 days 3 nights
Venice - 4 days 3 nights
Rome - 3 days 3 nights
Nice -2 days 3 nights
Barcelona - 5 days 4 nights
Paris - 4 days 3 nights
London - 3 days 3 nights

I know there's an excellent backpackers thread in this section too. I've read up on ricksteves, let's go Europe, and Europe for dummies on planning advice. I've tried to avoid making it rushed. Any comments and suggestions is highly welcomed.

well if you are in Munich oktoberfest is a MUST...i will be there from sept 20 - 23 and the festival runs from the 19th of sept - oct 4th i think?!?

Not exactly epic but a nice 30 day trip.
Make sure you take into account the travel days. It does take up a good part of the day.
Plan a route that is somewhat circular so you don't backtrasck. that is a waste of time.
You missed Florence, and that is a mistake. I would shave a day from Venice, Barcelona, Paris and Interlaken to do Florence and a bit of Tuscany (Greve in Chianti perhaps) and an extra day in Rome to see the Amalfi Coast.
Nice, while nice, is kinda off the path and if you missed it, you would not feel it.
I have never done hostels so I cannot provide any guidance but I sure have seen lots of young people with backpacks that seemed to be having a blast.
Ahh yes, Knickerbockers Excellent Adventure.
I will be over in Italy around the same time and when sitting at a sidewalk cafe, drinking some wine and nibbling on some cheese, I will wonder if the kid strolling by with the backpack is Knickerbocker

I would shave off one or two days off Venice, two off Barcelona, and maybe add them to Paris and/or London. Those two cities need quite some time to enjoy, especially if you are into the museums and such.

Bring a student card, if you have one, because you'll get good rates on museums in Europe.

Munich, you should go for Oktoberfest. krazynuck, I believe, is right about the dates, that's how it was about this year - one of my peers hopped back to Germany for the weekend.

Keep in mind, that aside from the cities themselves, there are possible half-day trips you can take to near by places that are must see (i.e. Paris and Versailles, Barcelona and Tibi-Tabo [if you want to see an amusement park...])

I tended to pick my hostels from hostelworld.com and hostelbookers.com. But I only booked with hostelbookers because they have no fee added for using their services.

Consider petecoach's suggestion on seeing a bit of Tuscany. It is a must if you are going to Italy!

Everything looks good except for:

Interlaken - 3 days 3 nights

You can do that in 1 day. Explore the area. Grindelwald is right next door. Bern, 40 min away by train, can be done in 1 day. Fribourg can be seen in 4 hours. Schwarzsee is breathtaking. Murten is an undiscovered treasure.

And if you're using rail, you'll waste a lot of time on the train (as mentioned), unless you travel overnight. The rails in Italy are unreliable.

Originally Posted by krazynuck

well if you are in Munich oktoberfest is a MUST...i will be there from sept 20 - 23 and the festival runs from the 19th of sept - oct 4th i think?!?

Awesome. I, too, will be there.

I'd shave 2 days off Venice and Barcelona and add them to the bigger cities on your itinerary. Other than that, looks good!

Originally Posted by knickerbocker

Hey,

I'm going on an Eurotrip in September for 30 days. I'm looking for the experienced Eurotrippers out here to look at my itinerary and critique it.
I've outlined the cities that I really want to go to, and I've tried to give myself ample time in each city.

The mode of transportation is Eurail. Departure date is September 18th.

Here is my itinerary.

Amsterdam - 3 days 2 nights
Munich - 3 days 2 nights
Interlaken - 3 days 3 nights
Venice - 4 days 3 nights
Rome - 3 days 3 nights
Nice -2 days 3 nights
Barcelona - 5 days 4 nights
Paris - 4 days 3 nights
London - 3 days 3 nights

I know there's an excellent backpackers thread in this section too. I've read up on ricksteves, let's go Europe, and Europe for dummies on planning advice. I've tried to avoid making it rushed. Any comments and suggestions is highly welcomed.

Big big BIG BIG mistake giving Venice 4 days, 3 nights. Give it 2 days, 3 nights (Maximum). I spent 14hrs covering Venice in one full day the first time I went, and a few years later spent two days in quiet quarters of the city (it's very small), finding smaller basilicas and points of interest. You'll love it there but will despise it if you stay more than 2 days because of the crowds (literally, it's an american city).

Add the spare days to Rome, you will NOT be disappointed. One day I'm going to plan a 3 week trip just for Rome. I recently spent a week there covering almost the entire city (split it into 4 quadrants) and it was still not enough. The saying is that even a month cannot cover what you will see in Rome, it is a legendary city and one that I will remember for the rest of my life.

You're also spending too much time in Barcelona, it's not that large either. I would spend a max. of 3 days there and add 1 or 2 extra days to Paris, beautiful city. Why aren't you hitting Vienna? Salzburg? Prague? You would love Prague. Not to mention Budapest.

Damn I wish I had a month

Happy travels!

Originally Posted by Aristophanes

Everything looks good except for:

Interlaken - 3 days 3 nights

You can do that in 1 day. Explore the area. Grindelwald is right next door. Bern, 40 min away by train, can be done in 1 day. Fribourg can be seen in 4 hours. Schwarzsee is breathtaking. Murten is an undiscovered treasure.



Awesome. I, too, will be there.

Bern is beautiful and charming and Einsteinhaus is in the city. I'd stay at Gimmelwald, Murren or Lauterbrunnen, rather than at Interlaken. The view is so much nicer from the mountains. There's a lot of hiking/ physical activities/extreme sports people can do so 3 days sounds about right. I spent 4 days there and wished I could stay longer. What a magnificent place.

As others have mentioned, reduce the time in Venice and spend more time in Rome (totally awesome place). I'd take out Barcelona because it's kinda out of the way of every place else. It seems you are trying to get to the highlight of Europe. Don't rush it. It's not worth it.

Originally Posted by b166er1337

I'd take out Barcelona because it's kinda out of the way of every place else.

While Barcelona might be out of the way, it's perfect if OP wants to maximize the use of overnight trains to save money on accomodation and less travel time during the day. Nice - Barcelona and Barcelona - Paris are actually quite popular overnight train routes so make sure you book about 2 days in advance.

Yeah, sleeping in Gimmelwald is better than Interlaken but it's just a pain to get to Gimmelwald. The mountain hostel though as incredible views so it's probably worth it.

Originally Posted by Pete_Coach

I will be over in Italy around the same time and when sitting at a sidewalk cafe, drinking some wine and nibbling on some cheese, I will wonder if the kid strolling by with the backpack is Knickerbocker

Oooh, and I bet Knickerbocker will wonder if that pretentious old guy drinking some wine and nibbling on some cheese is Pete_Coach.

Originally Posted by heymikey

Oooh, and I bet Knickerbocker will wonder if that pretentious old guy drinking some wine and nibbling on some cheese is Pete_Coach.

Naww, there are to many pretentious old guys sitting at every cafe to single me out. That and soccer are the National pastimes in Italy

Oh, and I resemble that remark of pretentiousness

Originally Posted by heymikey

Yeah, sleeping in Gimmelwald is better than Interlaken but it's just a pain to get to Gimmelwald. The mountain hostel though as incredible views so it's probably worth it.

Mountain Hostel is one of my favorite hostels of all time. The view, the ambience, and the price can't be beat!

Originally Posted by Pete_Coach

Naww, there are to many pretentious old guys sitting at every cafe to single me out. That and soccer are the National pastimes in Italy

Oh, and I resemble that remark of pretentiousness

Pete, I hope you realize I was just kidding. Everyone here values your contribution to this forum.

Venice is my favorite city after Paris. I've been twice for only 1 day. It's expensive to stay on the island. Definitely 2 night max. Florence is on the way and is worth at least a day. Go to the Red Garter pub and Space. Good times.

Oktoberfest is in September, hopefully, you don't miss it. If not find a beerhall and or chill in a beer garden.

I agree shave off a day in Interlaken and Venice, go to Florence (don't bother with Pisa) and even though Barcelona is an amazing place (hot wimmins), I would take off 1 day there and add it to Paris. You could spend a whole day in the Louvre, Musee D'Orsay and Notre Dame. London is fine.

Wait, you're already in Paris for 4 days. You could take a half day and go to Versailles, you can take an RER (like Go) train there included if you get a transit pass. Definitely get a 3 day transit pass.

I'd say Versailles deserves a full day. I was there from 9am-4pm, visited the four main buildings (main palace, Grand Trianon, Petit Trianon, & Hameau) and still barely got to explore the gardens. The timing didn't work for me but try to go there when they turn the fountains on so you can pretend to be French royalty without the nasty guillotine part.