anonymous
Traveller
2469 comments
Posted 15 years ago
Hi,
My husband and I are planning to do a backpack tour round Europe and we're trying to cover as many countries possible :P This is the draft itinerary so far:
Krakow - Prague - Ljubljana - Budapest - Vienna - (flight) Athens - Santorini - Venice (via ferry from Patras) - Florence - Cinque Terre - Nice/Monaco - Barcelona - Sevilla (if possible) - Lisbon
My question is this. We're planning to get the 10 days in 22 days travel as we will most likely spend a couple days in each place and we would like to maximise the railpass. Which block of places do you think is best to use the pass (incl Greece - Venice so we can use the ferry) and which places would be easier for us to just get an individual ticket? And do you think we're being too ambitious? We're planning to do this itinerary in 1 1/2 months.
Any advice is much appreciated! Thanks!
Peter
Traveller
9337 comments
Hi ... :)
if you want to use individual tickets on your route, do it in Eastern Europe as there train tickets are much cheaper than in Western Europe like Italy, France or Spain.
lets count the days:
[b]1[/b] Krakow - Prague
[b]2[/b] Prague - Ljubljana
[b]3[/b] Ljubljana - Budapest
[b]4[/b] Budapest - Vienna
*flight*
[b]X[/b] Athens - Santorini - Patras: here you can save travel days and use buses. they are not to expensive and in Greece often faster and more frequent than trains !!
[b]5[/b] ferry Patras to Italy (fill in the arrival day of the overnight ferry in your ticket. as you either need the departure or arrival day of the ferry as travel day. and with the arrival day you can use it as well for you travel to Florence) - up to Florence
[b]X[/b] Florence - Cinque Terre [u]https://rail.cc/blog/cinque-terre/[/u] - use a normal train ticket for EUR 9 per person
[b]6[/b] Cinque Terre - Nice/Monaco
[b]7[/b] Nice - Barcelona (use regional trains which travel at the same speed like the trains with supplements!): you have a good sea view!
[b]8[/b] Barcelona - Sevilla
[b]9+10[/b] Sevilla - Lisbon: you will need 2 travel days because of the rail connections. it is possible to travel via Madrid and have there a stay. from Madrid to Lisbon use the travel day 10 or use a bus for the same fare: [u]https://rail.cc/en/interrail/madrid-to-lisbon[/u]
that\'s it !! :)
really cheap to cross nearly the whole Europe ... ;)
and if you want to support the railcc project, buy your tickets at [ux]https://rail.shop/interrail[/ux] ... have a sunny tour, Peter :)
anonymous
Traveller
2469 comments
Wow thanks Peter! That was really helpful! :D Unfortunately for me, I'd have to do that itinerary in 22 days to make it work but no worries, I will look into the dates and play around with the options. Thanks for all your tips! Will definitely support railcc once I confirm the dates with the hubby! Cheers!
BTW, do you know what is the best way to travel from Athens - Santorini?
Peter
Traveller
9337 comments
okay... then your way to Santorini ... :)
the ferries start in [b]Piraeus[/b].
[b]from Athens main station[/b]: if you arrive in Athens by rail, use Metro Line 1 ( www.isap.gr/eng/index.asp - EUR 0,80 - one-way) which terminates directly at the port at Piraeus.
the ferries to the Cyclades (to which Santorini belongs) are just ahead of the metro station.
[b]from the Athens International Airport[/b]: there are direct airport express buses (www.oasa.gr/index.asp?lang=en) which are available 24 hours between the port of Piraeus and the Athens International Airport. you will need something about 90 minutes one-way - tickets are EUR 4.
ferry Piraeus-Santorini (Cyclades):
there are different ferry companies available. just check it for details and compare the different fares.
Hellenic Seaways - www.hellenicseaways.gr
Blue Star Ferries - www.bluestarferries.com
ANEK Ferries - www.anek.gr
NEL Ferries - www.nel.gr
G.A. Ferries - www.gaferries.gr
Peter :)
anonymous
Traveller
2469 comments
Thanks Peter. Am now looking at accommodation (hostels/double room). Any good suggestions/favourites in the following towns?
Ljubljana
Athens
Florence
Nice
Cinque Terre
Sevilla
BTW, can I also ask if the Pireaus port in Athens/Train Station is safe to stay the night if we wanted to do that as we'll probably take the first ferry out the next day and just wondering if that is an option (rather than paying for a night's accommodation)?
Peter
Traveller
9337 comments
so lets start with my personal suggestions, where I already stayed at least for one night:
[b]Ljubljana[/b]: Zeppelin Hostel
[b]Athens[/b]: Athens Backpackers
[b]Florence[/b]: Arthostel
[b]Nice[/b]: Villa Saint Exupery
[b]Cinque Terre[/b]: La Dolce Vita Apartment
[b]Sevilla[/b]: Oasis Backpackers Hostel
all are clean, good prices for these cities and close to the important places. :)
about the station of Pireaus at night: I didn't stayed there over night, I always stayed somewhere in Athens - as the Greece have long nights, you easily find a place to stay... :)
anonymous
Traveller
2469 comments
Thank you! I think we're almost set! :)
Anyway, just had another quick question. I've been looking on the train planner and trying to find trains without supplements. Some of them have a note saying 'subject to compulsory reservation'. How do I go about doing the reservation?
Thanks for your help! You've been great!
Flo
Traveller
10724 comments
[u]https://rail.cc/de/interrail-zugreservierung[/u]