Eurail Passes are famous as a way to save money while exploring Europe, but they are also confusing and often misunderstood. They are still an amazing money-saving tool for certain types of travelers, and not a wise idea for most others. Before Europe introduced dynamic rail pricing (like airfares, where the price varies depending on when you buy it), a Eurail Pass was an easy way to save money since all tickets had fixed prices that were generally fairly expensive. These days most travelers can save far more money just by buying their train tickets at least a few weeks in advance.
That said, Eurail Passes are still great for longer trips and especially for people who like to make plans as they go. Dynamic rail pricing made advanced tickets much cheaper, but it also made last-minute tickets MUCH more expensive. Below we will discuss Eurail Passes and whether they are a good idea for your trip or not.
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Note: This article was written in 2012 and has been continuously updated since then, so all information is current as of April, 2024.
Eurail 2024 changes: New countries and a mobile version
This actually changed in 2019 and 2020, but it’s still a big deal and not many people were shopping for Eurail passes in the last couple of years. Eurail Passes now include England, Scotland, Wales, Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, and Macedonia.
Aside from that it’s just the normal fact that they have updated the timetables as of December 2023 and have a few promotions going on, but those usually don’t happen over the busy summer season.
Eurail passes are now available in a mobile version
Until very recently, Eurail Passes were only available in paper form and they were quite confusing at first. You’d get a pass with a series of empty boxes on it and you’d need to enter your trip before you’d use your pass each day and then have the first conductor verify it. If you lost your ticket (and this was not uncommon), it was a whole ordeal to attempt to get a replacement.
Again in 2024 Eurail offers a fully mobile version that is delivered instantly to your mobile device with no delivery fee. And if you somehow lose your phone, you can resume using your Pass on your replacement with no extra headache. This is MUCH more convenient in every way and as long as you can keep track of your phone you’ll always have your train pass handy.
If your trip will be 2 weeks or less, a Eurail Pass probably won't be worth it
About half of the questions I get in the lengthy comment thread of this article are from people planning a trip of 3 or 4 stops in two weeks or less. The good news for those travelers is that they can get fairly cheap train tickets in advance online if they have their dates planned, and a Eurail Pass won’t help at all.
Eurail Passes are ideal for travelers on longer trips, and especially those who don’t want to plan all of their destinations and dates far in advance. If you have your itinerary pretty much planned out and you don’t require much flexibility, you’ll be far better off just locking in your dates and buying your train tickets as early as you can. Again, they can be surprisingly cheap if you buy 2 to 4 months out.
If you are age 27 or younger, a Eurail Pass is probably worth it
Those 28 years old or over must buy the 1st Class version of any Eurail Pass, which is 50% more expensive, and the added comfort isn’t a big deal to most people. But travelers age 12 to 27 can buy the 2nd Class versions at the lowest prices, and the seats are comfortable enough for virtually everyone.
With this in mind, if you are lucky enough to still be 27 or younger, you should seriously think about getting a Eurail Global Pass Youth, partly because the sense of freedom instantly gets more expensive at age 28. The age cutoff was 25 until recently, so this change is a great deal for anyone who will be 26 or 27 at the start of their trip.
You aren’t guaranteed to save money by buying a Youth Eurail Pass, but chances are good that you WILL save money and you’ll definitely save a lot of hassle as well. Especially now that Eurail Passes come in a mobile form, it’s even that much more convenient to just hop aboard any train that is about to leave the station and not worry about buying or even having a ticket. Especially for young people, it can be really fun and exhilarating to literally just walk into a train station with your backpack and look at the departure board and then decide where to go at that moment.
If you are age 60 or over, a Eurail Pass could also be great value
Another fairly recent change is that anyone who is 60 years or older at the start of the use of a Eurail Pass now gets 10% off the normal adult fare. That new discount is going to make this a great value for many travelers who might have been on the fence about buying a full-price pass before.
>>>Check prices on Eurail Passes
If you are planning on traveling in 1st Class anyway, a Eurail Pass is probably worth it
Most 2nd Class trains provide similar comfort and legroom to Business Class airline seats, or at least close enough, so for most people it’s not worth the added expense for 1st Class. However, if you are rich or elderly or fear contact with strangers, a 1st Class Eurail Pass is probably worth it no matter what.
Not only do you get much more comfort and legroom in 1st Class, with only 3 seats across instead of 4, but there is another advantage to 1st Class on European trains. Since it’s mostly business travelers and wealthy people traveling in 1st Class, the carriages are almost always mostly empty except in the mornings and late afternoons between large cities. In 2nd Class the only available seats might be two seats in an 8-seat cabin with all the other seats taken up by a loud family or a group of rowdy friends. In 1st Class you are all but guaranteed a peaceful ride, and usually plenty of empty seats from which to choose.
A hidden Eurail Pass benefit: Making extra stops on travel days for free
A one-way ticket between Paris and Amsterdam in 2nd Class on the high-speed Thalys service takes 3 hours 19 minutes, and costs €47 if you buy way in advance up to €188 if you buy at the last minute. A Eurail Pass can be helpful on this route for almost anyone because you often have to book two months in advance to get a fare under €90 or so. Even better though is the fact that the train stops in Brussels and Antwerp along the way, and both of those are really interesting cities that are perfect for a stop of 2 to 4 hours.
Brussels in particular is one I recommend a short stop in because the small historic center around what they called the Grand Place is amazing and gorgeous, while the rest of the city is rather boring by European standards. With a Eurail Pass you can jump off the train in Brussels and explore the city center for a few hours (luggage storage is cheap and easy) and maybe have lunch, and then hop on a later train to complete your journey to Amsterdam. There are opportunities like this on many if not most trips between larger cities, and if you buy the point-to-point tickets you have to stay on the train you booked.
Another example is the high-speed train between Barcelona and Madrid, which takes about 2.5 to 3 hours in each direction. There are some interesting cities in between, but in this case you could take a morning train from Barcelona to Madrid and then check into your accommodation, and then hop on another train from Madrid to Toledo, which takes about 30 minutes and costs €14 each way. Toledo is a historic and fascinating town, but it’s also pretty small and you can explore the main sights in an afternoon. With a Flexi Eurail Pass where you buy a certain number of travel days, you can save more money by adding on these sorts of nearby stops on travel days.
If you'll be touring major cities within ONE country, a single-country pass might be perfect, and Second Class passes are available for all ages
Until 2019 you could buy a Eurail “Select” or “Regional” Pass, which would allow you to buy a cheaper pass that only covered between two and five specific countries. As of April 2024, those have been eliminated and also lowered the prices of the Global Passes by around 20%.
Single-country passes are still available and they MIGHT be good value for you, but it depends on which country and how much traveling you’ll be doing. If you plan on going all over a larger country such as Germany, France, or Spain, and especially if you like to make plans as you go, a Single-country pass for one of those might be your best deal. On the other hand, smaller countries (such as the Netherlands) or countries where train tickets are already fairly cheap (such as Italy) might be harder to get value out of. Long story short, for single-country passes you really need to check fares of the places you plan on going and see how they add up compared to the pass.
>>>Check prices for Single Country Passes
Eurostar (between London and Paris or Brussels or Amsterdam) tickets are now included for Eurail Pass holders for a €30 reservation fee
The European rail system is confusing at first, so it’s worth pointing out that the Eurostar trains between London and Paris or Brussels are a totally different system and the prices are more like air tickets. In other words, they start out cheap 6 months in advance and prices go up as the travel date approaches. Since you can now use your Eurail Pass within Great Britain, it’s now the best way to get around England and Scotland by train.
Our recent tests show that Eurostar fares one-way from London to Paris can be as low as €49 if you book about 3 months out, or as expensive as €214 for the same seat if you wait until the day of travel to buy. Round-trip/return tickets can be even cheaper if there is a promotion running.
>>>Check Eurostar prices
If you are on a really low budget, a Eurail Pass isn't a good idea
Here’s the thing. As we’ll discuss below, there are many potential benefits to Eurail Passes, and they will often save you money, but they do cost a lot and they only really save you money when traveling in the more expensive countries.
So let’s say you have a flight to Rome and then US$2,000 to last you a month after you arrive. Buying a Eurail Pass before you go would help you see a lot in that month, but you’d practically need to sleep in parks for your funds to last the whole time. You’d be better off moving slowly in the southern countries, or just in Italy itself, as a way to have the best holiday on your budget. You might also be tempted to use a Eurail Pass mostly on night trains so you can save the cost of a hotel or hostel, but those aren’t ideal for most of us.
The cheapest way to get around Europe by rail is to buy all train tickets online at least a couple months in advance. The fares are low, but they are non-refundable and non-changeable. See how far in advance you should buy train tickets to get those attractive fares.
If more than a little of your travel will be in eastern Europe, a Eurail Pass isn't a good idea
While eastern Europe (Poland, Czechia, Hungary, Ukraine, Croatia, Slovakia, Slovenia, Serbia etc), is where you’ll find almost all of the continent’s best travel bargains, its rail infrastructure continues to lag way behind. A few years ago many of the countries in that area were added to the Eurail Zone (except for Bulgaria for some reason), but even then the trains are still very slow. Worse still, in some areas the trains are much slower than buses, so you really have to research each leg individually.
The good news is that the trains operating in this region, and the buses that operate alongside and/or where trains aren’t running, are quite cheap. So if any significant part of your trip will be into this region, a rail pass doesn’t make sense.
Basic types of Eurail Passes
Long gone are the days of the simple options, replaced by specialized passes that are meant to appeal to different styles. It should be pretty easy to figure out which is best for you, and then keep going down the page to decide if it’s worth it at all.
Eurail Global Pass – 4,5, or 7 days within 1 month or 10 days within 2 months
Until recently the minimum number of travel days with 10 days within 2 months, but now you can buy as few as 4 days within 1 month for about €200 to €250 (for first class). This can actually be an interesting strategy if you are planning many shorter and cheaper trips (like within Italy or Eastern Europe), and also 4 or 5 longer trips such as Berlin to Amsterdam. This way you can buy only 4 or 5 travel days and only use them for your most expensive travel days, and just pay as you go or buy cheap advance tickets for your other journeys.
Eurail Global Pass – 15 to 90 consecutive days
This variation allows for unlimited travel on the system for between 15 and 90 total days. They are really only a good idea for people who are certain they are going to travel very often, with much of it being in the north of Europe. The problem with them is that if you really try to get your money’s worth, you will probably ruin your trip by spending too much time on trains in general. On the other hand, if you will be in Europe for 2 or 3 months and plan on traveling around a lot, you can get a LOT of use out of a longer pass. The 3-month pass is around €900 so it’s literally about €10 per day. Imagine going back and forth between Berlin and Munich or Barcelona and Madrid for €10 per day!
One Country Pass
Obviously these are for travel within one country only. Again, they can be great deals if you plan on extensively moving around one particular country.
Where to buy your Eurail Pass
Eurail Passes are cheapest and easiest to buy online, primarily from two main sources which offer all the same products at the exact same prices:
This is a reliable company based in the Netherlands but with fulfillment offices in the US and Ireland. Price of Travel is a partner with this company, and if you use the links of this site we earn a small commission to help keep this site online. Eurail.com is usually cheaper than RailEurope (discussed below) by the way.
They were founded in the 1930s and are based in New York, but owned primarily by the French and Swiss rail companies. They offer free shipping (2 to 3 business days) on all orders of US$399 or more, although now that a mobile version is available, this is meaningless. Price of Travel is a partner with this company, and if you use the links of this site we earn a small commission to help keep this site online.
Reservations on European trains for rail pass holders
For most of the fastest trains between major cities you’ll need to reserve a seat even with a rail pass. It can usually be done just before you leave and the cost is usually around €5. Here’s a full list of which European trains require reservations and which don’t.
Reservations are required on all intercity (longer distance) trains in or involving France, Spain, Switzerland, and Italy. For most trains in Germany, Austria, Netherlands, Belgium, and most of eastern Europe, you can usually find trains that don’t require seat reservations. Often, if you don’t leave until after 9:30am or so, you can ride on any train with no seat reservation, but you have to research each leg to be sure.
How to determine which trains require seat reservations, and also get schedules
You can click on the link just above this section for a list of countries and their seat-reservation policies, but in some cases it’s actually a bit more complicated than that. For example, you can generally ride without a seat reservation on fast ICE (Inter City Express) trains in Germany if you depart after 09:30 in the morning. They do this to free up seats for business travelers who pay full fare, and they don’t mind filling up seats with rail pass holders on trains leaving a bit later.
The best way to be sure about this is to download the RailEurope smartphone app (iPhone and Android). It’s a free app and you can download it and use it even if you buy from Eurail.com or don’t buy a rail pass at all. Amazingly enough, it has the entire European rail schedule built into it so you don’t even need to be online to use it. You just enter a departure city and destination city and it will show you all of the trains and connections going between the two. When you click on a specific train or combination of trains it will show you whether a seat reservation is needed for that particular departure. I’ve used this app literally hundreds or perhaps thousands of times to do my own research and help people find answers, and I’ve noticed that it’s accurate at least 99% of the time. Once in a blue moon you’ll enter two cities and it will show, say, a 20-hour journey when you are pretty sure it should be under 10 hours. Usually it’s actually correct, but I’ve seen a couple times where it missed something.
Night trains in Europe are making a comeback
I’ve been traveling around Europe since the 1980s and I’ve been updating this article since 2012 and one thing that was certain was the night trains (or sleeper trains) were going out of fashion. The main reasons were that high-speed trains grew in coverage so routes that used to take 10 or 12 hours could now be done in 4 or 5 hours, at least in countries like Germany, France, Spain, and Italy. As a result, almost everyone preferred to even depart at 6 PM if they could get to their destination city at 10 PM instead of the next morning.
Fast forward to 2024 and night trains are not only expanding service, but they are very trendy. Some of it is nostalgia for the older way of getting around, but most of it is for environmental purposes combined with European hatred for the “low cost airline” experience with RyanAir and Easy Jet etc.
Personally I’m still not a fan of night trains because I find it difficult to sleep on them since they often get decoupled at interim stations in the middle of the night and then coupled onto other trains coming from other places, and I can’t sleep through any of that. But still, they are worth looking into and they are fun to try at least once.
A bit of warning that they tend not to be cheap and even if you have a Eurail Pass you’ll almost certainly want to book a sleeping cabin with a bunk or couchette, and that will come at an extra fee. On the other hand, if you are the sort of person who can sleep sitting upright in a normal seat, then that won’t cost any extra on most overnight trains.
Factors to consider when thinking about any Eurail Pass
Assuming you know which Eurail Saver Pass option is the best one for your type of trip by now, we’ll go over the main factors that should help you decide whether it’s the best idea for you.
Eurail Passes are best for standard ‘medium length’ journeys
In almost all of Europe, the major cities tend to be between 4 and 8 hours apart by train, and these journeys are perfect for Eurail Passes. For example, from Vienna to Munich it takes about 5 hours on the train, and it’s scenic and relaxing. Flying between those cities would take about the same amount of time once you factor in airport transportation and security lines, and it’s far less pleasant.
However, if you are determined to travel between Rome and Paris, it’s about a 14-hour journey that will almost certainly be overnight. In this case, a cheap plane ticket is probably better, although taking shorter hops on the train is even better, so spend a day or two in Milan or Lyon on the way instead.
And of course, if you prefer to stop in various small towns between the big ones, then a Eurail Pass won’t pay off, except for the traditional kind for unlimited travel in a given period.
Eurail Passes are better value in northern Europe, France, and Spain, and poor value in Italy
Once you do a bit of research you’ll quickly learn that train tickets (and almost everything else) are much more expensive in Germany, Netherlands, Denmark, Sweden, Norway, and Finland than they are in Greece, Italy, Portugal, and Spain. With this in mind, the regional passes can make sense if you are spending time in the south, but the Global Passes almost certainly won’t. Train tickets in Spain used to be fairly cheap, but in recent years they’ve added new high-speed trains between the major cities, and these are quite expensive.
Unlike most other countries, Italy really subsidizes its train tickets so they are quite reasonable even on travel day, and very cheap if you buy a month or more in advance. For example, you can go between Rome and Florence for around €49 if you buy on travel day, and as little as €19 if you buy well in advance. In most other countries, fares are double or triple that much for similar rides.
So consider your planned itinerary. If more than half of it is in the Mediterranean countries then look into a Regional Pass or just buy tickets as you go, because they tend to be pretty cheap. But if you are planning on spending at least half your time in Paris and places to the north of it, then a Eurail Pass is probably a money saver because those tickets are expensive.
Trains are almost always better than planes
Flying sucks, even in Europe
Until you’ve experienced the joy of traveling around Europe by train you might be tempted to “maximize” your time by flying low-cost airlines between each city. This would be a mistake. In order to get truly cheap airfares you have to purchase long in advance, buying non-refundable tickets. You might also have to commit to flights in the very early morning or in the late evening, because cheap tickets on convenient flights sell out quickly.
And again, most European airports are around an hour outside of the city. They are often on the main train lines, which helps, but still you have to deal with the madness of security and also try to get there at least two hours early. From one city center to any other city center it’s about 5 hours minimum, even if they are close, and those are pretty miserable hours.
Train travel is a positive experience
While it’s true that you do have to reserve a seat on many long-distance trains these days, you can usually do it just before it leaves, or the night before to be safe. And with many trains you can literally just hop on board as it’s pulling out of the station.
Not only are all the seats comfortable on trains, but you also have an interesting view most of the time. Better still, trains deposit you in the heart of every city, which is usually the neighborhood with the cheapest hotels and food. It’s a wonderful feeling to step off a relaxing train ride, buy a hot dog or sandwich at a local shop, and then be in your hotel room only about 10 minutes later.
Eurail Passes are better than train tickets alone
As someone who enjoys the process of crunching numbers and looking for value, I have to also mention that I’d buy a Eurail Pass even if it seemed like it would cost a bit more than the individual tickets. With a pass you get an extra element of freedom that is worth a lot more than you might expect until you’ve used one.
If you fly, you absolutely have to lock in your exact schedule weeks or months in advance, and if you buy train tickets individually you will be spending hours in queues and then waiting around. You can buy European train tickets in advance, though the convenience comes along with an extra fee. But with a Eurail Pass, on most routes you can just hop on any train you feel like.
Let’s say you are heading from Amsterdam to Hamburg tomorrow morning. The 09:00 train you planned for might seem a bit ambitious after a long night out, so you can instead opt for the 10:00 or 11:00 train. As long as you walk into Centraal Station 10 or so minutes before departure, you are on. If you are flying you can’t change your ticket, and if you are buying train tickets as you go you have to be in line at the international desk at the train station at least 30 minutes early, and even then you might miss it if they are busy.
Freedom and getting to feel like a big shot
Bill Gates doesn’t worry about the cost of plane tickets or train tickets. He just goes where he wants, when he wants. When you have a Eurail Pass, you get a taste of this yourself, and even if you don’t end up doing any new spontaneous legs within your trip, it’s a great feeling.
Let’s say you are staying at a hostel in Brussels, and two groups of new friends suggest that you go along with them to their next stops. One group is going to Bruges, which is a short and cheap journey, so you can join them by buying individual tickets (unless you have the unlimited pass, making it free). Then you restart your trip from Bruges, on to your next destination. The other group is headed to Berlin on a night train, which is long and expensive, but with a Eurail Pass you don’t even have to think about the cost. On you go, just like a rich person.
Buying a Eurail Pass is great for those who might run out of money
We all know people who keep meticulous track of every penny they spend, and who are always putting money away for a rainy day. And we all know people who can take a US$100 “entertainment fund” and burn through almost all of it in just a few hours. For the first type of person, a Eurail Pass can help you keep track of expenses, but it’s really the second type of person these are best for.
It’s sad to hear about people who have big plans to see their dream destinations, but they run out of money for transportation halfway into the trip, so they have to just stay put until they fly home. It happens. Locking in your major transportation costs before you leave home, and probably saving money in the process, is a wise move for anyone who isn’t as disciplined as they’d like with their money.
>>>Check prices on Eurail Passes
Bottom line: If you want to keep travel costs down, your choices will usually be a Eurail Pass or buying tickets at least a month or more early
In the last few years, almost every long-distance train ride in Europe has switched to a pricing system similar to low-cost airlines. In other words, tickets go on sale 2 to 6 months ahead of time at very low prices, and they keep getting more expensive as the train fills up and the date approaches. For most trips where a rail pass is possible, this is how things stack up:
Cheapest possible way: Buy advanced (non-refundable, non-changeable) train tickets at least 30 days in advance
Next cheapest way: Buy a Eurail Pass and make seat reservations as you go, usually only a day or less in advance.
Most expensive way: Buy train tickets as you go, or less than a week in advance.
Thinking about it this way should make the choice a bit easier. If you are the type who likes to plan each day and travel segment long before you even leave home, then buy tickets online for the best prices. This can be the best strategy for most shorter trips (10 days or less) because you simply don’t have enough time to change many things as you go anyway.
Buying a Eurail Pass won’t be quite as cheap, but you are buying a LOT of flexibility with the extra money. If you dream of making up your plans as you go, or even making up your plans just a few days in advance, this is almost always your best bet.
But if you wait too long, and just show up looking to buy train tickets as you go, they are going to cost a fortune. As recently as only a few years ago all seats would be the same price on many rail systems, so you could always just wing it. When each country computerized its rail systems so they can sell advanced tickets cheaper, they also had to keep track of seat reservations, so the whole pricing structure had changed to favor advanced ticket buyers and rail pass holders over those who’d prefer to just hop on any train as it is leaving the station.
Have a rail pass or itinerary question of your own?
It wasn’t planned but scores of people began asking me rail pass and itinerary questions at the bottom of this article and a few others. I’m happy to keep answering them and now I’m trying to organize them better as well so they are easier for other people to find.
If you have a question about specific types of European rail passes, please ask it in the comments below.
But if you have a question more about a European itinerary or other non-rail-pass questions, please click over to the European itineraries Q & A article and ask in the comments of that one.
Hi Roger,
I just found your site and I’m SOO glad I did! So much helpful information and I really love how helpful you are to everyone. I’d like to ask for your help with my trip if you would =)
My GF and I are traveling through Europe for 2.5 months this year (July 1st – Sept 16th) and I’ve been having a hard time nailing down how to get around. Like everyone we drooled over how cheap flights are in advance but in the end we just don’t want to be locked to a set itinerary. I just found out about the Global EuroPass which is what I was searching on google which brought me to your page. But after reading that it doesn’t include London, Paris or Amsterdam (not sure if you meant that it doesn’t include them at all, or just the “Point to Points” that you listed… ie, specifically from London to Paris) I’m not sure what to do now.
Here’s a rough idea of what we wanted to do:
Dublin – Land here, stay a few days
London – 3 days
Spain – 1.5 weeks
Switzerland – 4 days (Interlaken only)
Italy – 1.5 weeks (skipping Venice, so Rome/Florence
Croatia – 1 week Dubrovnik/Split
Greece – 2 weeks, maybe longer if we can’t leave 😉
Paris – 3 days
Amsterdam/Netherlands – 1 week
Norway (Or Prague) – 4 days
Dublin – few days to catch flight home
So my BIG can’t miss is running with the bulls, so we only have a few days to get to Pamplona. This means the first week or so of our trip has to be planned a head of time which isn’t a bad thing because we can get cheap tickets from Dub-London and then Lon-Madrid right now. Once we check off running with the bulls we are open ended for the rest of the trip, kind of. We know we plan to take a ferry from Italy to Croatia so we can just make our way there through the south of France, swing up to Interlaken for a couple days then down through Italy, ferry to Dubrovnik, bus to Split then take a flight to Athens? Or Ferry? If we plan to take a flight, then we have to buy it ahead of time and that means that we have to make it to Split by a certain time.
After Greece we planned on taking a flight to Paris, then train to Amsterdam fly to Norway for 4 days then fly back to Dublin. Norway is kind of MY dream, and I know it’s an expensive detour, but I really want to see the Fjords! In the end I think we might try to go to Prague instead. So after reading your info above I was thinking that a Regional Pass for Spain/Switz/Italy and a month pass for France would be better?? If we skip Norway we would go to Prague right after Greece. I read that we could bus from Athens to Sofia, Bulgaria then take a train from there to Prague. Could we then train over to Amsterdam then back to Paris and then Dublin to fly home?? We were originally thinking of doing the 2 month continuous pass but they’re really expensive, could we do all of this on the 15 day in 2 month pass since we’re flying the first part of the trip and would only be traveling by train for 2 actual months?
Sorry if this is a ton to ask, so confused on all of this. My GF appreciate any help you can give. Thanks so much!
Art,
Thank you for the nice words, and I’ll be happy to help. Here we go, in order…
The Eurail Global Pass is valid on almost every train on the continent, but not in the UK (which has its own system). Starting from London and going to Paris or Brussels or Amsterdam (transferring in Brussels), the only train is the Eurostar through the Channel Tunnel, which isn’t part of any other system. However, starting from Paris or Brussels or Amsterdam, a Eurail Pass will work to go anywhere else (except the UK). So it’s really just the UK and going through the tunnel that aren’t part of Eurail.
One thing about Dublin and Ireland, I’m one of many people who finds Dublin itself to be overrated. It’s nice enough and has some interesting sights, but really the magic of Ireland is everywhere else. The countryside and the small towns and even the other cities like Galway and Kilarney are the memorable and unique things about the country, so allow time for some of that on the way in or on the way out.
Even though Venice is expensive, I find it amazing and I’d recommend at least considering a 1-day stay there. You’ll never forget it, and one day is actually enough to see the main things.
You might have good reasons for allocating the days as you are proposing, but just so you know, London and Paris are each maybe 10 times the size of Amsterdam, and both filled with great sights and such. So 3 days in London, 3 days in Paris, and 7 days in Amsterdam is an unusual mix. You can see most of the other interesting things in the Netherlands as a day trip from Amsterdam, by the way. You can do an all-day bus tour that goes to Rotterdam, Delft, the flower market, Haarlem, and another stop or two. So you might consider staying a bit longer in London and/or Paris if you can.
Norway or Prague is an unusual choice, and Prague is the obvious answer for most travelers. It’s fantastic and reasonably priced, where Norway is insanely expensive and you really have to get to the coast for it to be interesting (from what I’ve heard. I’m planning on a week or so there as my first visit this coming September).
From Croatia to Athens I think you’ll want to fly in the end. I don’t know about ferries on that route, and if they do exist then they’d take a full day. My guess is that you could still get a relatively cheap flight only a few days out, as long as you are willing to fly at 7am or 9pm. You’ll have plenty of time to figure out the best way to do that.
Your plan for the Regional Pass and perhaps also a France Pass sounds like a good one. I’d have to know more specifics about exactly where you’d go within those areas to know if it would save you money or not, but one thing for sure is that a rail pass allows you to be far more spontaneous. These days, in most of Europe, you have to buy train tickets at least a week if not longer in advance to get cheap fares, so you have to lock everything in at least that long in advance. With a rail pass you will still need seat reservations on most trains, but you can almost always get those just before the train leaves. I prefer to get them the day before, so I can walk into the train station and right onto the train rather than stressing about getting in a slow-moving ticket queue and risking having to go later. So those rail passes buy a lot of peace of mind, in addition to usually saving money and allowing you to make plans at the last minute.
I haven’t taken the bus from Athens to Sofia, and I’ll bet it’s long and slow (although the only cheap way). Unfortunately, the trains in that part of Europe are still slow, unpredictable, and sometimes of poor quality. In other words, you’ll want to take a bus all the way to Belgrade, and from there the trains going north are reliable and worthwhile. The good news about those buses is that they are cheap and pretty comfortable, plus they go many times each day.
From Prague to Amsterdam and Paris is obviously possible on a train, but flying is probably cheaper, at least from Prague to Amsterdam. Hopefully you’ll have plenty of time to figure those final details out while you are on the road.
And yes, a 15 Days in 2 Months Global Pass might also be a great option, especially with the discount of 2 traveling together. One really nice thing about doing it that way is that you are free to pay for shorter and cheaper train trips (or bus trips) during those 2 months, and you can only use the pass on what you figure will be your 15 most expensive trips. Like, Prague to Amsterdam would take all day, or over 12 hours on a night train, and cost a lot if you buy it only the day before. But with a pass, you can just go without worrying about it (although you would need to pay about €20 for a bunk on a night train, even with the pass).
Hopefully this helps, and as always, feel free to follow up if I missed something or if you have other questions. -Roger
Roger,
Thanks for the reply and all the helpful info!! I totally understand about Dublin and we had already planned to not really stay in that city, I just listed it since we’re flying into and out of there. I will look up those cities you listed and definitely visit them. I also wanted to try and make it to the Isle of Man…. is it worth the visit or is it just more of the same?
My GF and I don’t really have the burning desire for London or Paris (we want to go back when we’re older and wealthier to do it right), we just put them on our list because we just felt we couldn’t go to Europe without at least seeing them. The Amsterdam time frame was all my GF’s doing, haha, because she heard the Netherlands is so beautiful. Again, I just listed Amsterdam but meant we’d be traveling around the Netherlands. Never the less we have taken yours, and others, advice and knocked down the Netherlands to 3 days.
We also decided to buy a flight from Croatia to Greece ahead of time and make that an anchor point… meaning that no matter what, if our plans change in the moment, we have to be in Split by X-date to catch that flight. I’ve given up on my dream of Norway on this trip but that’s ok, there’s always next time. And we’ve also added Berlin on the way from Prague to Amsterdam along with using the time cut out of the Netherlands to explore southern Spain and possibly Portugal earlier in the trip.
Based on everything you’ve posted/comments and adding up the major train rides we expect to take, we’ve decided on the 10 day/2 month pass and figure we’ll buy the small, cheap tickets along the way. I 9 for sure travel days so I’m still on the fence between the 10 and the 15 travel day pass, but the 15 day is $300 per person. So I still think that the 10 day would be our best bet.
Thanks again for your help, and if you reply, please add your booking link for the rail pass so we can make sure you get credit for our passed!!
**Oh, almost forgot…. is the pass insurance worth the money? So if my pass gets lost or stolen they can’t just cancel it and issue me a new one? I have to pay for a completely new pass?? That just seems ridiculous, especially with today’s technology.
Art R.,
It’s my pleasure to help, and I’ll answer the questions in order…
I have yet to visit the Isle of Man myself, and it feels like a secondary destination based on what I’ve heard. If you have something specific to see there you’ll probably like it, but if not, I think you can find more interesting places that are easier to reach.
As for the pass insurance, I never get anything like that, partly because they typically have a very high profit margin (meaning that almost no one needs it). Unfortunately, the passes are still low tech, and if you lose it, you are out of luck. Believe it or not, all the train tickets in Europe are still on paper or cardboard, and if someone else finds it, they can use it. Just keep it in a safe place with your passport, which is obviously even more important not to lose.
I appreciate you asking about the booking links. Please click through any of them in the main body of the article above and I should get credit (unless you’ve already visited raileurope.com and have a cookie set). Those links are all through raileurope.com and raileurope-world.com, and they are all the exact same prices as Eurail.com or anywhere else. Those clicks definitely help make this whole thing worthwhile so I can help people trying to decide. Thanks again, and let me know if you have any other questions. -Roger
Hi Roger, I am going on a trip this summer from Amsterdam to Brussels to Munich then Rome. from what i can tell the 4 country select pass with 5 travel days works the best more me. This would allow me to use three travel days on going from city to city, and still have two travel days left over for day trips out of Munich or Rome for example. Does this sound like the cheapest and least stressful way of going about this?
Will,
Yes, that sounds like a really good plan. Those 3 individual train tickets would be quite expensive if bought on their own, and using the other two days for day trips also sounds like a good use of a pass. I’m guessing that you are thinking of a day trip to Salzburg from Munich, and that will be a great one. And from Rome you can obviously do Naples and/or Pompei, which will also work well. You’ll need seat reservations on at least a few of those, but you should be able to get them almost at the last minute, and they only cost around €5 each. -Roger
Hi Rodger,
I have a question about the Eurail Pass. My fiancee and I are travelling through Europe at the beginning of April for three weeks on our honeymoon. As I have read a number of threads about how sometimes it is of benefit and perhaps not other times depending on the lengths of journeys so I thought I’d ask you. We will be landing in Paris and travelling to the south of France, through Italy, Switzerland and Austria on our way to the Czech Republic and will fly out of Munich. We will be stopping a number of times along the way and not just in major cities. As far as I can tell the longest journey will be around 5 1/2 hours from Prague to Munich. This may be a little ambitious over 3 weeks so we may cut out Germany, which will mean that we’ll land in Rome and travel up to Czech Republic then back to France via Austria and Switzerland. We are on staff travel so flights haven’t been booked yet as they don’t need to be but those costs aren’t of concern (it also narrows down where can land and leave from. Those points are fixed.) We don’t want to fly around Europe we’re happy with the train as we’d like to see the scenery on the way. I read that a 5 country pass doesn’t cover France so we’d be looking at the global pass on a 15% discount as there’s two of us. We will be booking accommodation on the way as we like to keep it spontaneous, I think that’s more fun! I guess my overall question is do you think it’s worth it as we’ll be getting the train fairly often on several smaller journeys (I guess up to around 4-5 hours). You’re website is awesome by the way and thanks for your help in advance 🙂
Brigette,
Thank you for the kind words about the website, and congratulations on your upcoming wedding (or honeymoon at least). 🙂
I’d have to see a more detailed itinerary in order to be certain, but it does sound like a Global Eurail Pass is probably ideal for you. It’s unfortunate that France no longer participates in the Select Pass. Still, a Global Pass with the discount for two traveling together is probably going to be a good investment, and traveling 1st Class is pretty glorious (it’s easier to splurge all at once rather than one ticket at a time).
So in the parts of Europe you are visiting, particularly in France and Switzerland, the individual train tickets are very expensive, especially if you buy them shortly before you want to leave. So in order to keep prices even close to reasonable, you’d have to reserve at least a few days, if not a few weeks in advance. If you decided all your trips before you even got to Europe, you could buy the tickets in advance and it would probably be your cheapest possible choice. But it sounds like you don’t want to do that, and I don’t blame you at all.
In other words, a Global Eurail Pass is the best way to be able to spontaneously drift around Europe without worrying about same-day tickets that can be as high as €120 in 2nd Class. The only possible complication for you is that you’ll need to pay for seat reservations on most of your trips. Those are mostly around €5 each, but on some of France’s high-speed trains they are more like €30 or €40, and they even have a limit to the number of rail-pass holders they allow at those prices. Still, those high-speed trains with expensive seat reservations are far more expensive when bought as you go, so the rail pass is still a big help.
And since it sounds like you’d be getting a 1st Class pass, you’ll have few problems getting seat reservations even on the same day on most trains. Better still, the worst case scenario (unless it’s a special holiday) is that First Class on the 9am train is sold out, so you have to book on the 10am train instead. It would be very unlikely that you couldn’t go on the day you wanted to go in 1st Class, even if you buy on the same day.
That freedom to be able to go anywhere you want on any given day without worrying about the cost is fabulous. Even if you don’t end up adding too many spontaneous trips, it’s just great to know that you can do it with no worries.
Your choices would be a 3-week Continuous Global Pass or a 10 Days in 2 Months version, which is a bit cheaper and probably sufficient. It might be nice to get the extra flexibility of the continuous version, but you probably don’t want to take more than 10 trips in those 21 days anyway. On the other hand, the continuous version allows you to use it on day trips, and those could also be expensive if bought individually on the same day. -Roger
Roger,
I am traveling solo and going on my first backpacking trip in Europe coming from the US. I definitely want to travel more for quality than quantity. So I have chosen to spend 3 months (June to September) in Greece, Italy, and Spain. Maybe a month in each. Maybe. I want to also have the freedom to possibly travel into another country if I felt like it? Let me know if you need mor details. I would like to visit major cities in each country but am also traveling on a budget. What type of pass would you recommend to give me freedom while saving me money? Thank you so much for your time and advice !!
Aubrey,
I think I know what you mean about the freedom thing. One excellent thing about rail passes is that they allow you to go almost anywhere on very short notice without worrying about the extremely high train tickets on short notice. But in your case, a Global Pass wouldn’t make much sense, at least as long as you are planning on just those 3 countries.
As you may know, there is basically no train service in Greece at the moment. And even when there was, the vast majority of travelers were mostly interested in Athens and the islands, so ferries are the way to go for budget travelers. They are pretty cheap, so you shouldn’t have a problem getting around Greece for a month.
Now in Italy, the individual train tickets are also fairly cheap, partly because most of the popular tourist cities are only 2 or 3 hours apart at most. So if you’ll mainly be going around the north, the trains can be cheap if you buy the tickets at least a few days in advance. I believe the tickets for journeys down south in Italy are inexpensive as well, though the distances are longer.
In Spain the high-speed trains that connect the major cities are very expensive on short notice, and still pretty expensive in advance. However, you have inexpensive bus service all over the country, which might be fine for a month-long stay.
So one strategy would be to just buy train tickets in those two countries at least a few days in advance, and also mix in some buses or even flights for longer distances. Or, you could get a Eurail Italy-Spain Pass to cover at least part of it. For example, you could get a 10 Days within 2 months Youth Pass for US$479 for Italy and Spain (this also gives you a discount on a ferry from one to the other, which is much cheaper than trains across France). With those 10 days you could save the pass for only longer and more expensive trips (probably in Spain), and just pay cash for shorter trips in between. To use the pass you’ll have to pay a bit to reserve a seat on most of those trains, but that will still be way cheaper than paying for each ticket as you go. And it also gives you the most flexibility.
And by the way, if you are considering other countries to possibly add on, then Portugal is worthwhile, and getting around it is pretty cheap. Morocco is another fascinating option, which is a short ferry ride away from Spain, and getting around is cheap there as well. Both of those countries are also great value for budget travelers just in general. Let me know if you have any other questions about any of this. -Roger
Hey Roger,
What is the best way to do London, Paris and Amsterdam in 21 days. Could I fit in any other cities? Anything in Germany, Switzerland or Italy. Willing to go anywhere really. Unsure about the global rail pass being worth it or sticking to individual tickets. Wanting to see as much as possible. Thanks
Taylor,
In 21 days you’ll have plenty of time to visit other cities if you wish. Assuming this is your first trip to this region, I’d recommend minimums of 4 nights in London, 4 nights in Paris, and 3 nights in Amsterdam. You could stay longer in each city and incorporate a few day trips, and you’d have a wonderful time without getting bored. But you could also fit in as many as 3 other cities without feeling rushed. I’ll be happy to make more detailed suggestions if you tell me more about what interests you and if your budget would begin to get tight if you added in some train rides.
With those extra days your two main choices would be to explore a bit of Germany plus a city close by (like Prague or Salzburg), or fly down to Italy (on a cheap flight from Paris) and do Rome, Florence, and Venice. Have a look at these two articles that I wrote to help people decide:
France and Italy itinerary suggestions
Germany itinerary suggestions
If you choose Germany you could hit Berlin, Munich, and one other on the list (including Prague or Salzburg). I’ll provide more details depending on which way you are leaning. But it’s unlikely that a rail pass would be good value for you either way. And it could help to know what time of the year this trip would be in as well. -Roger
We are leaving very soon in mid March. Our plans are wide open as to where we go. As to what we want to experience, I’m sure everything will be great so that is open as well. Trying to stay as open and as flexible as possible. With London, Paris, and Amsterdam at the top of the list what would make sense to fly in and out of? Fly into London and out of Paris? Into London and out of Rome? We are just keeping everything open so if we want to change a plan or two on the spot we are able to. Thanks again
Taylor,
It can depend on where you are starting from when figuring out which flights are your best bet for coming and going. And interestingly, I just updated the pricing information for inbound Europe flights by city yesterday (it’ll be online on Monday). Most likely, you will be best off if you book a round-trip ticket in and out of London, and then fly (or perhaps take a train) from your last destination back to London on the day of (or day before) your flight home. For example, fly to London, take the Eurostar train to Paris, then the Thalys train to Amsterdam, then fly to Rome, take a train to Florence, another train to Venice, and fly back to London from Venice (or another nearby airport) on a low-cost airline back to London, and then home.
Or you could start out the same way, but from Amsterdam you could take a train to Berlin, a train to Prague, another train to Munich, and then fly back to London for your flight home.
In many parts of the world you can get two one-way tickets that are about the same price as one round-trip, but if you are starting in the US or Canada, the round-trips are almost always much cheaper. Still, it would be worth checking fares for a flight from home to London and then another flight from Rome to home or from Munich to home. Let me know if you have any other questions. -Roger
It looks like flying into London and out of Rome might be the best bet. Flights are about the same and we would save on trains back to Paris or London. Would we be able to take trains down to Italy and see some of Germany or would there not be enough time?
Thanks for the help
Taylor,
The train from Amsterdam all the way down into Italy would be quite expensive and take an entire day. You’ll really be better off if you save it for another trip. Three weeks is plenty of time for the 3 main cities and a decent tour of Italy, but trying to also add in Germany would mean spending every other day on a train. -Roger
*Trains from Amsterdam through Germany
Hey Roger,
You are the fountain of info. Thanks so much for this site. I have spent most of the morning reading your articles and think I may have an itinerary. I just request help in smoothing it out and any hidden or missed details I should be aware of. So we’re a couple over 25 so eurail pass has to be first class I’ve read but what pass should we purchase for our stay?
We are considering one way flights in different destinations vs round trip right now bc our airport has the worst pricing for flying out to Europe right now. We would definitely have to do a domestic to another airport and then fly international.
We’re considering a May visit but heard to look out for bank holidays due to crowds. When would you suggest a visit in May? Also we would love to visit London, France, and Germany if that’s doable over a course of a week stay?
I’m thinking land in Germany and make our way by rail to London. Any help you can provide would be awesome. Thanks btw and this would be a first visit for us, we may have another couple with us but not confirmed yet.
Elise,
Always glad to hear that this information is helpful. In order to help you make a decision about which Eurail Pass to buy, or which trips might be better or cheaper by air, I’d need to have at least an approximate idea of your itinerary. Although if you are really only planning a one-week trip involving 3 countries, then there is no rail pass that would be good value.
As for when to go in May, it would depend on exactly which places you were going. There are 3-day weekends for various European countries, but you’d probably not notice them yourself, and all the attractions will be open every day. The only thing like this that dramatically effects the travel scene is that many Europeans take all of July or August off, so those months can be really tricky. So generally speaking, the earlier you go in May, the less crowded it will be, but of course it’s likely to be a bit cooler earlier in the month as well. Anytime in May is ideal for Europe, so just go when it’s cheapest or most convenient for you.
Are we really talking about a 7-day visit? Especially if this is your first visit there, I really think that’s a perfect amount of time to visit London and Paris, and that’s it. If you tried to include anywhere else in France, or anywhere in Germany, it would mean spending close to half your time just going from one place to another rather than sightseeing. So if you have more time I can make some suggestions for Germany, but if not I’d really just focus on London and Paris. That’s also more affordable because you could book a relatively inexpensive round-trip on the Eurostar from London to Paris and back again. Once you start adding in other places, it gets more complicated and more expensive, of course.
I hope this helps, and let me know if you can add more days or if you are hell bent on seeing more than those two cities, and I’ll try again. -Roger
Hi Roger
I have read and read through your comments while taking notes for myself. Your kindness of sharing but caring to help others has given me the courage to pose my questions. I am a frazzled us citizen looking to give my husband (both over 25) a quick but memorable anniversary getaway. We’ve never been to Europe and our goal is to get as much done/seen since our funds are becoming more limited with expenses. I hope you do respond and help, I would truly appreciate it.
Our time frame is 12 days, starting from Norway, Oslo. We are hoping to see London, Paris, nice, Venice, Bern, and a recommended spot in Germany.(not sure where yet)
I leave our travel plans to your expertise. We are flying in to Oslo but would take the eurail for all else if it applies.
1 do we need visas?
2 is this a doable iteniary?
3 any recommended spots?
4 would having luggage be easy traveling like this?( should we bring checked bag for souvenirs)
5 what is your suggested time of year to go on this schedule?
Please help me, I am going nuts trying to figure travel plans out between sites and forums. Thanks
Lily
Lily,
I’ll be happy to help. My first thought is that you’ve chosen a group of the most expensive cities in the world so far, so it will be hard to keep the budget low. My second thought is that with only 12 days, you already have too many stops on your itinerary. For the most part, a day traveling from one destination to another is not a sightseeing day, so with 7 stops planned, that means 6 travel days (not including the travel days coming and going to Europe). And 6 travel days out of 12 total days is too many to really get the most out of the trip.
Oslo is also an unusual choice for a short trip because the city itself isn’t much of a tourist destination in addition to being insanely expensive. Most people stay in Oslo for only a day or so on their way to Bergen and the fjords out west and up north. But Oslo does have some cheap incoming flights so at least it can be an affordable entry point to Europe. I’ll answer your questions, and then a couple comments.
1. Assuming your are American or Canadian or Australian or from another such country, you don’t need any visas, just a passport that is valid for at least 6 months beyond your return flight.
2. It’s physically possible to do your itinerary, but it would be very expensive and you’d be far more frazzled when you returned than when you left.
3. I can recommend some spots, but first I’m going to recommend you focus on no more than 4 total stops if you are limited to 12 days.
4. Especially if you want to move quickly, it’s helpful to have a bag with wheels and/or a backpack. You’ll be doing a LOT of walking no matter what, so having bags that are portable is important.
5. For Oslo, May through September is the entire travel season, and July and August are the best months. For most other places on your list you could go anywhere from April through October. July and August will be the most expensive and crowded months, so I’d think about May or September for a nice balance of decent weather, smaller crowds, and lower prices.
So please think about it, and if you would consider slimming the list down to 4 places or so, I think it would be wise. Also, is Oslo locked in as a stop? If you don’t have a good reason for going there (not including a cheap incoming flight) then I think you’d be better off skipping Scandinavia altogether. I’ll be happy to help whatever you decide, so feel free to respond when you are ready. -Roger
Thank you so much for taking the time to respond. It means so much especially to receive help from someone who’s familiar with travel. I truly have no idea which 4 stops to choose most because we are open. To explain, you are completely right about Norway. It was a cheaper flight in but there’s a deal to Lon round trip $799 right now but leaves in mid to late march.
If that is a great choice you’d recommend then we can definitely jump on this deal and head over in march.
Our most interested areas are London, Paris, Nice and Venice. We only want to go to Bern for the Norte dame and my hubs would love to see Germany but I have no idea where to say. Out of those we are not attached to any, except London since it’s our flight path but I definitely would take a 4 stop iteninary of your suggestion. Honestly I am sorry to sound needy but I know nothing about Europe beyond its history and watching Anthony bourdain so anywhere you say go, we’ll do. Lol!
I know we intend to bring just a carryon and backpack. We also are more off the beaten path tourists, we like picturesque and tranquil with city mixed in only when necessary.
I guess in short my goal is truly to see the highlights for now with the intent to return next time for more detailed journey, I hope you understand. I font mean to ramble but want to give as much info to assist.
Roger, we just want to land and explore, take lots of pics, eat and that’s it. Haha! We have no desire to see major attractions or tours. We’d rather find streets or alternate areas to get views without crowds for photos. (E.g.) take pics of Big Ben or Eiffel Tower and be on our way.
So 4 stops is up to whatever you think will work for us and our desire to do lots fast but have fun at same time. Again, we can come in to London round trip for $799 if you think it’s a great deal but will have to travel in March which is close.
Lily,
I’m happy to hear that you aren’t locked into Norway, and London is actually the perfect place to start a quick adventure like this.
As for flights to London, I’m not sure where you are seeing these deals (and it’s not really important), but airfares in April might be just as cheap, if not cheaper, because prices tend to be lowest about 11 weeks out for international flights. Also, the weather in April (or May) would be better than in March, and you might save more money on getting around once you get there because prices for most things are cheapest if you buy at least a month in advance.
Bern is not one of the more popular tourist cities in Switzerland, and I think it would take a minimum of 3 days in Germany to really get any feel for the place at all, so I think those are both left for future trips.
So I think London, Paris, and Venice are fantastic choices for this trip. Nice is really an interesting place, but it’s still quite chilly there in March so you’d really only get a partial look at the Côte d’Azur culture. At least hotels are pretty cheap that time of year. So Nice could be a good stop if you think you’d enjoy visiting a beach city in the off season, or you could substitute Rome, which will be warmer and all the attractions will be open, yet not nearly as crowded as they are in summer.
Either way, fly to London and spend 3 or 4 days there. Then take the Eurostar train to Paris (book as soon as possible for the lowest fare).
Spend 3 or 4 nights in Paris, it really does live up to the hype.
If you are going to Nice next, you’d take a train, and buy the tickets as early as possible from the official French rail site. You really only want to spend 1 or 2 nights in Venice, so you could spend 3 nights in Nice if you like, then take the train to Venice (buy early from the official Italian rail site).
The thing about Venice is that it’s spectacular, but also very compact, and also amazingly crowded pretty much every day of the year. So I recommend a visit of only about 24 hours, and to also spend a bit more and stay on the main Venice island itself rather than on the mainland. As long as you stay on the main island, you can really enjoy the evening and the following morning before the day-trip crowds flood back into the city around 10am. Hotels there are expensive, even in March or April, but the city is unforgettable and worth a little splurge to get the most out of it in a short time.
From Venice you’d want to book a cheap flight back to London for your return. You can choose from Venice Marco Polo Airport or Treviso Airport, which is only a bit farther away, for a flight into London. One thing to be careful of though is that the cheapest flight back into London will probably be into one of London’s lesser airports (rather than Heathrow, where your main flight probably would land). So if you fly into one of the other airports (Gatwick, Luton, or Stansted), you have to allow time to get to Heathrow if you do it on the same day.
If you wanted to substitute Rome for Nice, you’d fly there from Paris, which would only cost around US$100 each if booked early, and your total transportation costs would probably be lower because those train tickets aren’t cheap. You could spend 3 nights in Rome and then take the train to Venice where you’d stay 1 or 2 days before flying back to London and then home. Rome is really an amazing place (FAR more dramatic than Nice), although it’s kind of hectic as well. Doing that you’d actually be hitting 4 of the 5 great European cities that I recommend people visit as soon as they can.
Again, feel free to ask more questions if you have them. -Roger
This this is an amazing schedule. Thank you thank you soon much! I will do as you say exactly and definitely do Rome for sure. If it’s not too much of a bother to ask questions but should I consider April or May instead? I just haven’t seen this kind of pricing since last year when I started looking in oct for flights. I literally squealed when I saw your response, haha I’m so excited now bc I feel more assured in my planning with your help. Also should I book one way instead of looking at one whole trip by flight? I’m just having trouble understanding the flight situation bc I thought for immigration you had to go through the same airport you arrive from. Is this true? Thank you solo much and I’m going to look at rails now. Do you suggest any discounts or tips to save on the trains/Eurostar for us? Will we by ticket to ticket or get a rail pass? You are awesome, thanks again. I will wait for your answers before I jump to booking.
Liz (or Lily),
When trying to decide when to go to Europe, there is never an easy answer. If you go in March it will still be cold almost everywhere, but hotels will be cheaper and crowds will be thinner everywhere you go. In April it gets a bit warmer, a bit more crowded, and a bit more expensive (for hotels, pretty much everything else is the same price all year). In May it starts getting warm enough to feel like summer, but crowds are growing and hotels are also a bit more expensive. So you sacrifice one for the other, the later you go.
Personally, I think I’d go in May if it’s a first trip. Almost all of Europe is a very indoor place in the cold months, and starting in May you get the sidewalk cafes setting up and so many more long strolls that are enjoyable. You also get more daylight hours, of course, and that can make a big difference. But if April flights are much cheaper than May flights, I’d go in April.
Assuming you are starting in the US or Canada, then round-trip flights to Europe will be much cheaper than buying one-way. That’s not true in other parts of the world, but to Europe you will almost certainly be best off just finding the cheapest round-trip into London, and flying back there one-way from Venice just before your departing flight leaves.
The Immigration situation in Europe can be complicated, but you won’t need to worry about any of that for your trip. You can fly into any airport and out of any other, as long as you do it within 90 days (or 6 months for the UK). Still, the best deals are almost always into and out of the same airport, although you might find the best deal is into London-Heathrow and out of London-Gatwick, or vice-versa.
You won’t want a Eurail Pass for a trip like this. For the Eurostar, just read the info on that page I linked to and click on the “check Eurostar fares” link there, which will take you to a site that offers the best prices. As you’ll read on that Eurostar page, the earlier you buy, the cheaper it will be.
For the other train trips you can also save by booking as far in advance as possible, but for those make sure you are booking on the official rail site for one of the countries you are traveling in. To save you the trouble, this is the site for France tickets, and this is the site for Italian tickets. -Roger
Sorry my phone autocorrect, darn it but I also wanted to ask about have a great day trip to Monaco, I saw you mentioned it before and was wondering if it’s included for us to do as we’ll.
And our limited expenses is on flights forgot to say that, we just don’t want to spend it all to fly and miss the experiences. Will coach be okay or should we be particular of our airline to Europe?
Lily,
Well, Monaco is an easy and enjoyable day trip from Nice, but it’s far from everywhere else you are going. So if you go to Rome you’d be better off saving it for your next trip. Honestly, Monaco is a beautiful little place (especially the harbor), but you can see it all in a few hours, and there aren’t many things to do there except go in one of the casinos or the aquarium.
For long-haul flights like across the Atlantic to Europe, I generally just go for the cheapest airline and/or the shortest trip. You can often save a bit of money by taking KLM and changing planes in Amsterdam, or AirFrance changing planes in Paris, or a few others, but if the price is similar for a non-stop, or even for one that changes in Ireland on the way, those are better choices.
Fortunately, all airlines fly bigger planes on the trans-Atlantic routes, so your seat will be pretty comfortable and the meals are included. But the planes that fly within Europe are the same flying buses they use all over the world, where leg room is minimal and nothing is free (except luggage if it’s part of a long-haul ticket). In other words, they are all about the same. You might find the cheapest ticket on Turkish Airlines (which is quite nice) but it means flying all the way to Istanbul to change planes, so the journey is a long one. -Roger
Roger,
You have been a tremendous help, an answer to my cries. I am so grateful for your time and I will start off looking at flights now and rail passes. I hope I have not been too much if a bother and if I may have further questions or need more help, would it be ok to comment again?
Also I’m looking on the Eurostar site now and wondering if the train leaves from heathrow or do we have to go to another train station? I put in Lon he’s throw to Paris but it says no schedule available but in Lon to Paris, it pulls up prices. I wasn’t sure if this is a different location. Also sorry for my many questions. I am curious if Lon of Paris pass is worth a purchase since it’s a 10% discount on rail site. Thank youuuuuu!
Lily,
After a few decades of European travel and studying it when I’m not there, I am happy to be able to help people like this, so ask any questions you might have in future comments.
The Eurostar train leaves London from a station called St. Pancras, which is attached to another station called Kings Cross, and both are near the tourist center of the city so you’ll just take the tube there (and you have to check in at least 30 minutes before departure). In Paris the Eurostar uses a station called Gare du Nord, which is also centrally located. Those are the only stations involved, so any London to Paris train trip will be between those stations.
As for the London Pass and Paris Pass, you earlier mentioned “We have no desire to see major attractions or tours,” which is a bit unusual, but if it’s true then those passes are the opposite of what you want. Each of those passes bundles the most popular tours with most of the popular attractions at one price, and they are great for many people, but probably not you. -Roger
Hi Roger,
Was hoping you could give me information/links for the Nice/Barcelona night train for travel in August 2014. I cannot find anything online with regard to this sector.
Thankw
Anna,
Hmmm…it looks like they no longer offer a night train on this route. That’s a shame because I took it myself only a few years ago. Evidently you have to change trains in Montpellier on the way, which would be in the very early morning, so it doesn’t really work. When I did it, you had to change trains in Figueres (near the border with France) and then the train went all the way to Nice. So sorry about that, and I’ll have to research this more and hope they restore this service. -Roger
Hi Roger,
Thanks for all the helpful info. I’ve read a lot but still don’t feel like I know whether to choose a regional pass or just go ticket by ticket. My itinerary:
Fly to Dublin.
Fly from Dublin to Amsterdam.
Amsterdam for 3 days then train to Copenhagen
Copenhagen to Berlin (train)
Berlin to Paris (train)
Paris to Rome. Train?
I’m planning to travel for a month and a half. It seems like buying a 6day 4 country pass would give me a chance to take some nice train trips in comfort relatively stress free, but will I save any money? I’m 26 and planning to leave in less than a month so I don’t have much time to book trains in advance. Also I’m a working jazz musician and I’m pretty sure I’ll end up staying longer certain places if I find somewhere to play. So I want some flexibility. Thanks for your help!
-Brett
Brett,
This is a tricky one, just as you’ve discovered yourself. Those shorter 4-country passes carry a pretty high per-journey price, so they are hard to recommend. However, your plan includes some rather expensive journeys if purchased individually with short notice, so it could work out. With your understandable desire for flexibility on such a long stay, buying tickets in advance doesn’t seem wise.
If you are staying for 6 weeks then maybe you’d get an 8-day Select Pass, which brings the per-ride cost down a bit? But then it’s hard to work out which countries you’d choose for the 4.
Considering everything you have in mind, I think you might be best off just paying as you go, trying to buy train tickets as early as possible. Even buying a few days before departure should bring the price down, especially if you are able to take an off-peak train. In other words, the 9am train from Berlin to Paris might be expensive, but the 1pm train would cost less because fewer people want to leave that late.
You can also check airfares for each trip when you are ready to buy, as you might actually find some cheaper fares in the off season when you’ll be there, especially for weird flight times (early morning, late evenings).
Lastly, you can consider buses for whenever trains and planes seem to expensive. Go to eurolines.com and you’ll find cheap bus fares, especially this time of year. The buses are usually slower than trains, but still pretty comfortable and typically much cheaper at the last minute. Best of luck with whatever you decide, and I hope you line up some gigs over here. There are busy jazz clubs in most of northern Europe as well as the larger cities in the south. -Roger
Hi Roger,
I LOVE your site and I’m learning so much from reading everything here. My husband and I will be living at Kings College, Hamstead in London for a month this summer. He’ll be teaching during the week but we’ll have three long weekends free, including all day Friday. Potentially, we could travel on Thursday nights, even. We’re not typical tourists. We don’t really want to do all the touristy things. We prefer to soak up the atmosphere, enjoy the local culture, eat some great local food, and perhaps see a key landmark or two in each city. For example, and I know this is going to sound crazy to others and perhaps to you, in Paris we have more an image of ourselves sitting in a cafe’ drinking coffee and eating croissants, walking along the Seine, and enjoying the view of the Eiffel Tower at night while eating a fabulous meal. Running all over the city trying to see and do everything is unappealing to us. Given this, do you have any advice on traveling to and from these locations which we are considering for our weekends?
Paris
Barcelona
Munich and Salzburg
Vienna and Budapest
Edinburgh
Also, I will have a great deal of free time while my husband is teaching during the week and I have in mind to do a number of day trips on my own. I’m thinking I should get a Britrail pass but I don’t know where to begin as far as considering what to buy.
Any advice is greatly appreciated!!!
Love you site.
Amy
Amy,
Thank you for the kind words, and I’m always happy to hear that this information is helpful.
As for your summer weekends, those all look like great trips, although I’d tend to concentrate on just one city each, because 3 days is a perfect weekend break, but spending half a day in the middle going to another city will really reduce the relaxation time that you say you prefer. And I totally agree with you that eating and chilling out in different cities and different neighborhoods is a huge part of the charm of traveling.
That said, I think Paris and Edinburgh are perfect from London, but the others would involve flying (for a weekend trip), and that means you spend half a day getting to the airport (Heathrow flights won’t be cheap so you’ll fly out of one of the others) and getting there. Also, there are plenty of places you might go in Britain with a long weekend. Edinburgh is wonderful, but you could also visit Bath/Bristol or Cornwall or Manchester/Liverpool or York/Yorkshire Dales just to name a few.
For Paris you’ll want to take the Eurostar, and those tickets go on sale 6 months in advance. The sooner you buy them, the cheaper they are, and there are sometimes promotions for round-trips, although maybe not for summer travel.
For Edinburgh the trains from London take about 4 to 5 hours and they are fairly cheap if you buy them well in advance. I’m seeing £27.80 each way for advance tickets, but if you wait until close to the departure date, it will be much more, and flying actually make more sense.
As for you, I really doubt a Britrail Pass would be good value. Those things are priced so high that they make sense only for someone wanting to cris-cross Britain in a short time. Generally, the key to cheap train travel in Britain is to book at least a few days in advance, and sometimes longer. Thetrainline.com is my favorite site for rail fares there. You’ll see a wide range of prices, and often there will still be a couple of cheap trains only a few days out, while the most popular ones only have really expensive tickets left. Also, you might be able to qualify for one of the “railcard” passes there, which qualify you for a discount if you are a student or senior or several other categories (including those who just buy a yearly card).
Hopefully this helps, and feel free to ask any other questions you might have. -Roger
Hi Roger,
Your site is a great travel resource. I was hoping for some specific advice on the 3 month trip my wife (Both older than 25) and I have planned this summer.
Based on my initial research I was expecting a 3-month global pass to cost around US1200, however it now looks closer to US2000. Prices have either gone up or I looked at the wrong price initially. What is your experience about how much this pass should cost? I have looked on both Eurail and RailEurope.
Our itinerary is flexible and is looking as follows:
28 June to 1 July: Arrive Frankfurt (River Rhine i.e. Oberwesel/Koblenz)
1 July to 23 July: France (Paris-Dijon-Lyon-Bordeaux-Tolouse-Motpellier-Nice)
23 July to 12 Aug: Italy (San Remo-Genoa-Pisa-Florence-Tuscany-Rome)
12 Aug to 20 Aug: Greece (Fly to Athens-Greek Islands i.e. Santorini, Rhodes)
20 Aug to 26 Aug: Croatia (Unsure of transport from Greece to Croatia. Dubrovnik-Split-Pula-Rovinj)
26 Aug to 3 Sep: Italy (Ferry from Croatia to Venice, Milan, Lake Como)
3 Sep to 12 Sep: Switzerland (Lucern-Interlaken-Zurich)
12 Sep to 19 Sep: Austria (Innsbruck-Salzburg-Vienna)
19 Sep to 27 Sep: Germany (Munich-Bamberg-Dresden-Berlin)
We are planning to do Spain/Morocco under a separate trip.
It would be great if you could let me know if you agree the 3 month options is the best, or whether there is some other creative alternative we should go for? Or any other recommendations.
Also I have tried to research the validity of the global pass on local metro trains in the major cities, but find it difficult as they all have different names and rules. Generally, will the global pass cover local metro travel?
Many Thanks
Shaun
Shaun,
Last question first, a Global Pass generally does NOT cover local metro travel, but it does cover many suburban rail systems. So for example in Germany most cities have a U-Bahn (local metro) and an S-Bahn (suburban rail) system, and all the rail passes cover the S-Bahn but not the U-Bahn. The good news is that you can literally get an all-day local metro pass for around €5 per day in most of the places you are going, so it won’t change things much either way.
Onto the rest, I actually think you could do this cheaper without a 3-month Global Pass (and by the way, the prices haven’t changed much lately, so you were either looking at something else, or maybe you were looking at the winter sale. And RailEurope and Eurail.com have basically the same prices on everything.) However, cobbling together cheaper ways of doing this is going to take some effort, and it will be more of a pain while you are actually on the trip. One great thing about those Global Passes (especially the continuous ones) is that you can just go anywhere as often as you want, and the most you’ll pay is the €5 or so for a seat reservation. Even if it’s not the cheapest way, it is the most enjoyable, even better because you go in 1st Class.
Obviously you wouldn’t be using a rail pass in Greece, and after you fly to Croatia, you won’t find the trains there useful either. They only go north from Split, and they are slower than buses, so you’ll probably want to avoid them anyway.
Trains in France are quite expensive though, so a pass can really come in handy, but France makes it difficult because they only participate in the Global Pass and some 2-country regional passes. I think your best bet would be to get a 10-Days in 2 months France-Italy Pass, which in 2nd Class for 2 people traveling together will cost US$532 each. It looks like you’ll have at least 10 travel days in that first 6-week time in France and Italy, and that pass will not only save you money, but it will allow more flexibility. You can save money on individual train tickets in France and Italy, but only when you buy non-refundable tickets at least a few weeks, if not a couple months, in advance. With a pass, you only need to deal with seat reservations, and you can usually get those the day before or even on the day, although in some cases you might have to take a slightly earlier or later train if you wait until the last minute.
Then, that period starting after the ferry from Croatia, you’ll mostly be going shorter distances. Those tickets will all be cheapest if you buy them online in advance from the official rail sites for each country (rather than raileurope). As long as you get at least a few discounts by buying those in advance, I think your total for the whole trip will be much less than US$2,000.
Hopefully this helps, and let me know if you have any other questions. -Roger