Europe - Rail Travel Itinerary 2011

I went on a 10-day trip to London with my sister during my sabbatical leave in 2011. Since I didn’t want to be away from the 2 young ones for too long, hence the short length of the trip.

We traveled mainly by rail from city to city armed with a 5-day Eurail Pass. I personally love train rides. Train routes are usually more scenic than coach routes along highways. The rides also allow for an appreciation of the scenery which a short-haul flight does not permit.

Our itinerary looked packed to the brim. It’s just us trying to squeeze the most value out of our Eurail Pass. After all, on the 5-days (Days 3 to 7) we utilised our pass, we had unlimited rides on the train. Hence, we did not managed any in-depth travel at any one city. We spent most time in London (2 days) and that was due to a missed travel connection.

Within each city itself, we explored the places mostly on foot. It was real good exercise for us clocking a few kilometres a day. Lodging-wise, we went for budget private en-suite rooms in hostels or hotels.

Thanks to the long daylight hours in summer, we had extended hours to sight-see, and with this, we had just about ample time to have a quick feel of the essence of each city.

Here’s our itinerary below. Hope to give you some ideas in planning yours!

Image made with Google My Map

Our itinerary in summary:

Day 1:

Our flight reached London ahead of its estimated arrival time in early evening. What happened next was a great lesson in how not to plan our future trips. We allowed for 2.5 hours to clear immigrations and get to Victoria Coach Station. Thereafter we had planned to take an overnight coach to Paris.

What we did not foresee was the long walk from arrival gate to immigration counters and the long queues there. By the time we cleared customs and rushed to the bus berth, to our horror, the last bus to Victoria Coach Station had left. Important lesson here: Allow generous time between transfers to avoid the unforeseen. London Heathrow Airport is one of the busiest in the world, the queues are expected to be long. Do factor in buffer time for connections.

Lots of hair-pulling the next hour as we considered what to do next. Eventually we decided to stay for the night in London. We chose a hotel near Paddington Station and made our way there, travelling close to midnight via the Tube to City. An unforgettable trip on an almost empty Tube train that still gives me the creeps thinking about it. We knew it wasn’t the safest thing to do there.

Thankfully the area around Paddington Station was still alive at that hour. Some pubs were still open and handful of pedestrians on the streets. Our hotel is not far from the Station so we were soon safe and sound in our room.

Overnight: Crown Hyde Park Hotel (London)

Day 2:

A day of sight-seeing in London before our over-night bus ride to Paris. We visited Big Ben, Westminster Abbey, Tower Bridge and Harrods.

Overnight: Coach from London to Paris.

Day 3:

We did not have time to do much in Paris but managed to visit a Farmer’s Market. Bought some lovely cherry tomatoes and grapes.

Then we left Paris for Bern via Lausanne. The the first leg from Paris Gare Lyon to Lausanne was on a high speed train rail. We paid an additional €16 for seat reservation. The ride was not only comfortable; it was the only one we took that served a free meal!

Mid afternoon sight-seeing in Bern, one of my favourite destination in this trip. We visited Zytglogge (Clock Tower) and Einstein House (Einsteinhaus).

Overnight: Bern Backpackers Hotel Glocke (Bern)

Day 4:

Morning walk around the Old Town of Bern, which includes Bundeshaus (Federal Buiding) and Bundesplatz (Federal Square).

Thereafter, we took a train to Interlaken. But before that, we joined the locals for a game of their traditional Easter Egg Smashing.

We left our luggage in the lockers at Interlaken Ost Station before we headed up to Jungfraujoch. Our Eurorail pass can be used for the rail trip up too.

Train from Interlaken and Jungfraujoch.

Known as ‘top of Europe’, Jungfraujoch stands 3,454 metres above sea level.

Overnight: Backpackers Villa Sonnenhof (Interlaken)

Day 5:

The Golden Pass Line is one of the most scenic train routes in Switzerland. It starts from Montreux to Zweisimmen before reaching Interlaken. The last stop is Lucern. Our ride on the Golden Cross Panoramic Train was from Interlaken to Lucern. Seat reservation is recommended for window seats due to popularity but our train cabin was not filled.

At Lucern, we had a few good hours to visit the Chapel Bridge, Nadelwehr Luzern and Altes Luzerner Rathaus.

Thereafter we headed to Basel for a walk to Basel Munster and Rathaus.

Our last stop of the day was Strasbourg. It was Easter period. Many of the pastries and chocolate shops were selling Easter bunnies and Easter eggs themed creations.

Overnight: Le Grand Hotel (Strasbourg)

Day 6:

We spent our morning in Strasbourg, had ample time to visit Strasbourg Cathedral and Place Kléber.

Thereafter it was afternoon train to Luxembourg.

Most of the sights in Luxembourg City are within walking distance – Grand Ducal Palace, Cathédrale Notre-Dame, Place de la Constitution, Gëlle Fra (Monument of Remembrance) and Adolphe Bridge, Place Guillaume II.

Overnight: Best Western Hotel (Luxembourg)

Day 7:

Luxembourg City morning walk and we visited Luxembourg Post Office. I have a little habit of sending postcards home from where I’m visiting. Then it was a train ride from Luxembourg to Brussels.

We initially had reservations about visiting Brussels due to the city’s petty crime rate. But in the end, we were glad we did. We visited the UNECSO World Heritage listed La Grand-Place Grand Place, which was crowded with visitors. Also visited Manneken Pis (the peeing boy statue), St Michael and St Gudula Cathedral. Tried some local French fries (it actually originates from Belgium) and waffles.

Overnight: Overnight coach from Brussels to London

Day 8:

Our trip coincided with the Royal Wedding of the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge so there was heightened security in the capital city. I made an embarassing blunder while trying to deposit my luggage at Paddington Station. When asked whether I had any electrical items in my luggage, I said nope. I totally forgot about the trusty travel cooker I brought along. The security scan showed otherwise. So I had to open my bag for search and re-scan after re-scan before I finally realised the culprit. Talk about goldfish memory.