ShirkHorse
Traveller
7 comments
Posted 13 years ago
I plan to spend a few days in Delft (Netherlands), then go east to Berlin, then south to Switzerland (this will be my only non-city destination; I want to see sights like the Aletsch Glacier, and generally mountains and lakes etc), then south again to Florence, then west along the French Riviera to Barcelona, then through France and back home (I live in England).
I have a few questions. Even if you're just able to answer one of them, I would be very grateful.
How does this sound as a travel route for 1 month? I plan to spend 5 or 6 days in each place, so I have time to see each of them in detail.
Do Interrail trains go to Delft? Or would I need to get a separate train?
Any tips for hostels in any of these places (excluding Delft; I already have accommodation sorted there)? And what's the earliest they can be booked?
Any tips for somewhere to stay in Switzerland that is close to the Aletsch Glacer and Champsec.
Any tips for cheap but reasonable quality food in any of these places?
Roughly, how much do you think it would cost for the whole trip?
Flo
Traveller
10724 comments
Hi!
- General info on how to InterRail: :arr: [u]https://rail.cc/en/first-interrail-tour/f3303[/u]
- One month is plenty of time for your route. You will be able to include some other places as well if you want to - with the flexibility of the One Month Global Pass you can change your route while travelling.
- Delft is perfectly served by trains of NS (Dutch railways) - which you can use with your InterRail pass
- In Berlin I can recommend the Wombats hostel - great place, rooftop terrace,... :)
- In Barcelona, Sant Jordi Hostels are quite good, they have several hostels there
- Aletsch Glacier: Accessible from the North (via Interlaken and Jungfraubahn, see [u]https://rail.cc/en/jungfraujoch/f1841[/u]), rather expensive as you will have to pay for the whole trip from/to Interlaken or from the South, what I would recommend. There are several cable cars from the Rhone Valley to the mountain range adjacent to Aletsch Glacier. You will have to pay extra for the cable car of course, but also for the railway in this part of the Rhone Valley, but not as much as for the railways in the Interlaken area. It is the route of the Glacier Express which I would recommend you anyway. ;) :arr: [u]https://rail.cc/en/glacier-express/f1750[/u]
So, think about looking for accomodation in Mörel, Betten or Fiesch. In Brig, not very far away there might be a youth hostel which could be a (little) cheaper alternative.
- The other place, Champsec, has no direct railway connection, the closest you can get is Le Chable, the terminus of the Martigny - Le Chable line. Operated by TMR, you should get 50% discount with your InterRail ticket. From Le Chable to Champsec there should be a PostAuto bus service.
- Route proposal for Switzerland: From Berlin, you could take the direct night train to Basel or Zürich :arr: [u]https://rail.cc/en/berlin-basel-zurich-night-train/f3755[/u] The direct way to Champsec would then be via Bern and Lausanne to Martigny. After Champsec continue through the Rhone Valley to Brig, where you leave the tracks of state railways SBB and change to the route of Glacier Express, operated by MGB (I posted the link for Glacier Express before) to get to Aletsch Glacier. Continue the route of Glacier Express via Andermatt, Disentis, Reichenau, Filisur and Samedan to Pontresina. There is a nice youth hostel just at the station, as well as some campsites in the area. From Pontresina you could make a day trip to St Moritz (but it isnt that interesting), then continue via the route of Bernina Express :arr: [u]https://rail.cc/en/bernina-express/f1749[/u] to Italy
For one month in this part of Europe I'd calculate with ~35€ per day, depending on what kind of accomodation you prefer (hostel, campsite) plus 400€ for the InterRail pass and roughly 75€ for additional reservations etc (including the reduced tickets for travelling with MGB and TMR).
I hope I could help you for the beginning - dont hesitate to ask if you have further questions. And if you want to support the work we do here at the website and forum, please buy your official InterRail ticket via [ux]https://rail.shop/interrail[/ux] . Thank you. :)
Flo 8)
ShirkHorse
Traveller
7 comments
That was a highly epic reply, thanks so much! I'll let you know if I have any other questions :)
Flo
Traveller
10724 comments
Yeah, no problem. :)
Just to add: For Switzerland, calculate a little more as a daily average: ~40-50€