ClaireMcC
Traveller
1 comments
Posted 13 years ago
Hello there, I have been researching a lot lately about interrailing. I am hoping to go in summer 2012 with my boyfriend, my best friend and her boyfriend. None of us have done any travelling before but I have read loads of guides and forum threads, lonely planet books etc, however I would love peoples views and opinions of our draft itinerary.
We are planning on going for around 3 weeks, flying from Belfast to Amsterdam then after a few days from here we will start our interrail 10 days in 22 tickets to : Paris - Nice - Pisa - Rome - Venice - Vienna - Prague - Munich - Berlin and back to Amsterdam again for our return home. Does this seem like too much?? We would be making as much use of the night trains as possible to save on accommodation costs but also to gain distance as we try to sleep :os Ideally I would like at least 2 or 3 full days in most of the locations and then travel the last night (over night) to our next destination but im not sure how likely or possible this would be?
I planned this on google maps and Munich seems a bit out of the way, should I cut this out as we're going to Berlin? Or cut Berlin out as we're going to Munich?? If it does seem like a lot are there any others I should take out?
Sorry for all the questions, any help is greatly appreciated :D
And just thought id add that we are all in our early 20's so it will mostly be a party trip but of course with a few sight seeing thrown in too :P
Flo
Traveller
10724 comments
Hej!
Your route looks just fine for a 10in22 IR pass.
Some info regarding your route, potential reservations, night trains:
- Amsterdam - Paris: Do not use the Thalys, as it requires a hefty surcharge, instead use the more relaxed alternative connections :arr: [u]https://rail.cc/en/train/amsterdam-to-paris[/u]
- Paris - Nice: During the day with TGV (6€ reservation), up to 320 km/h...but also possible with Lunéa night train :arr: [u]https://rail.cc/en/train/paris-to-nice[/u]
- Nice - Pisa - Roma: Take care not to take ES City/Frecciabianca connections on this route (in Italy) as they require a 10€ reservation. Instead go by regional trains or IC trains which do not require a reservation (but it's recommended at 3€). It is a very scenic route almost all the way! :) :arr: [u]https://rail.cc/en/train/nice-to-rome[/u]
- Roma - Venezia: Either by fast 10€ AV/Frecciargento trains which run hourly, or by slower IC trains which do not run as frequently as the AV trains; also possible overnight, however with an early arrival in Venezia :arr: [u]https://rail.cc/en/train/rome-to-venice[/u]
- Venezia - Wien: Perfect for the night train :arr: [u]https://rail.cc/en/train/venice-to-vienna[/u]
- Wien - Praha: Frequent connections throughout the day...overnight connection possible but again not the most comfortable option - just ask for details. ;) :arr: [u]https://rail.cc/en/train/vienna-to-prague[/u]
- Praha - München: :arr: [u]https://rail.cc/en/train/prague-to-munich[/u]
- München - Berlin: Perfect for an overnight train :arr: [u]https://rail.cc/en/train/munich-to-berlin[/u]
- Berlin - Amsterdam: Frequent direct connections, also possible overnight :arr: [u]https://rail.cc/en/train/berlin-to-amsterdam[/u]
You could fit in München another way:
Venezia - night train to München :arr: [u]https://rail.cc/en/night-train/venice-munich-cnl-40236/36[/u] - Railjet train to Wien and then proceed to Praha - Berlin
In principle it's a quite simple route, however you have to be careful as you will need some reservations. As a group of 4 this can sometimes be hard, especially in peak summer. So, I'd recommend to get your first reservations at home already (eg for the Lille - Paris TGV on leg1 and the Paris - Nice TGV or Lunéa on leg2). You can normally get these on the internet as described here :arr: [u]https://rail.cc/en/interrail-train-reservation/tgv-sncf/42[/u]
All other reservations (Roma - Venezia - Wien/München...) you can buy on the way. Just ask if you have questions, troubles... :)
And it'd be great if you'd buy your tickets via our online shop :arr: [u]https://rail.cc/en/interrail-global-pass[/u] to support the work on railcc. Thank you. :)
Flo 8)
ClaireMcC
Traveller
1 comments
Thank you so much for your reply, thats really helpful!
Im very excited about it now! Next summer seems too far away though haha, I like your idea of rerouting to fit Munich in, I think its unfair to try and choose between Munich and Berlin as im sure they're both very different in their own way. So hopefully we can do both now :)
Has anyone any other tips for us or any must do's in any of our chosen locations?
andrewtrain
Traveller
20 comments
Hi there,
I'd like to make a suggestion: if you want to cut Munchen, from Praha you could go to Kracow (there is also a night train, and the city is really beautiful) and then go to to berlin (but there is no night train from there).
Another thing: if your travelling in night trains you should try to get beds on a sleeper, because travelling seated is horrible, you won't sleep and it is super uncomfortable, the money you save isn't worthed believe me ... xo
Hope you enjoy your trip,
ANDREW :D