hi folks ! 

if i wanted to go from basel  / bern to Barcelona.  

i see through Lyon to marseille to Barcelona.  or to paris then down.   any other way ?

i was originally trying to do genoa or nice to barcelona but it’s a little long. yeah ?

Yeah don't go to Paris if you can for this journey... you'll already take the exact railway a bit later

The fastest itinerary is via Geneva and Lyon yes. There used to be a direct train between Lyon and Barcelona (it should come back this summer...) but for now you have to change in Montpellier.

On the other hand you can go via Milan and Ventimiglia to Nice and the French Riviera in a day. You are able to stop in Genoa for a few hours if you wish. As an example : Basel 06:28/Bern 07:34 - easy connections in Milan and Ventimiglia - Nice 16:11. 11€ + 3€

You stop for a night in Nice, Cannes, Antibes,... The next day (or 2) French Riviera - Marseille - Montpellier and either direct TGV (27€) or via Portbou (10€ or reservation-free) to Barcelona. As an example : Nice 06:25 - Marseille - Narbonne (10€) - Portbou - Barcelona 17:04

Or : 13:25 Nice - Marseille - Nîmes-Pont du Gard - Barcelona 21:25 = 27€ 

08:25 Nice - Marseille - Nîmes - Barcelona 16:34 = 27 + 10€

As before the TGV to Barcelona (27€) would need to be booked early, what is your travel date ?

re Travel date. I am open. to when to go Barcelona.  yall had mentioned the weekend of 17-21 is holiday…..

thank you !  

my full route after amsterdam is either : over to Berlin

then Basel / Bern,   then some route to Barcelona via Italy or France. 

the number of hours traveling scares me. 

but a bit more frustrating is going to Almansa to see friends, and having to go back through Barcelona. to get to Paris.  got any ideas??

finally bought pass !

cant buy a seat reservation for either 1033 or 1432   barcelona city to paris france  on monday may 29.  maybe try another site besides eurail ?

im so sorry. i had to click the tiny button  USD  us dollars. 

to make it selectable. 

do i really have to print reservations ? 

Print-at-home tickets

• Most reservation tickets are only valid when they are printed on paper and can often not be shown on a mobile device. Please read the conditions of use on the ticket when you receive it.

To answer your questions :

Usually it’s no problem to show your reservation on the phone. Only for night trains it is advised to print them as they take it from you and give it back you the next morning at your destinatiom

Great news for the Barcelona - Paris TGV ! I just had a look and wow… 222€ one-way…

For the Amsterdam - Spain journey : how many days do you have on hand ? This is an important piece of info. Berlin is quite out of the way so it could be skipped (but I agree that it’s a great city).

You can also enter Spain via the Atlantic side but it is a lot longer and completely out of your way. To see a different route into Spain : as you’ll already take the high-speed railway on your way to Paris, take the coastal route via Portbou.

• Avignon Centre - Portbou 09:31 - 13:47
• Portbou - Barcelona-Sants 14:35 - 17:10

If you let me know how many days you have, I’ll suggest stops along the way

separately Mallorca via ferry w Railpass ? 

we are so torn on Berlin. 

itinerary 1.   amsterdam leave 12th to Berlin until 16th.   be in Barcelona by 22 (flexible)

itinerary 2.   amsterdam leave 12th.  forget Berlin.  be in Barcelona by (flexible)

#2 would want maybe Turin (maybe not Milan)  and maybe Basel. 

# 1 no need for any more Germany if do Berlin. 

just dont want to over travel and not relax.  already doing paris 4, brussels 2, amsterdam 3.days. 

You are going to Mallorca afterwards ? There are multiple ferrys from Barcelona, most overnight. I don’t think you get a discount with the pass.

I’d say your itinerary depends on how many pass days you did buy.

• 12th May : long travel day Amsterdam Centraal - Berlin Gesundbrunnen 07:00 - 13:41 / 09:10 - 15:31 / 11:00 - 17:31 (doesn’t stop at the central station that day) 3€ seat reservation => recommended
• Berlin 12th - 16th May (3 full days which is perfect to me)
• long travel day Berlin Hbf - Basel SBB (or Bern) on 16th May before the rush : 07:26 - 14:55 (every 2 hours) 3€ seat reservation =>  recommended
• 2-3 nights in Basel or Bern (1h by train between the two). For 3 nights a day trip to Lake Thun and Brienz → boat rides included in Eurail
• 18th May (or better on 19th) : Bern - Milan - Turin about 5h30 11€ + 10€ seat reservations OR only 10€ by changing in Domodossola
• Turin 2 nights
• 20th May : Turin - Chambéry 07:36 - 10:15 30€ seat reservation (unfortunately...), I’d buy this one ASAP. Then Chambéry - Valence - Avignon Centre 11:22 - 14:49 (reservation-free)
• Avignon 1-2 nights
• Avignon - Portbou - Barcelona 08:33 - 15:40 / 11:32 - 18:40

Or skip Berlin and travel via the French Riviera (Nice) from Turin instead

Let me know

wow.  is the travel longer / harder to do marseille?

Avignon - Marseille would be an extra 1h20-1h30 : 1-2 trains per hour.

If you were to stay in Marseille or along the French Riviera, I’d take this extremely scenic journey through the Alps (you don’t have to pay any seat reservations) :

• Torino Porta Nuova - Cuneo 13:25 - 14:36
• Cuneo - Ventimiglia 14:41 - 17:21
• Ventimglia - Nice 17:46 - 18:40, Cannes 19:23 or Grasse 19:53

The next day go to Marseille and/or Avignon

For planning I use a mix of bahn.de, Google Maps (and my knowledge a bit too).

is that Bernina ?  I am lost on where that route is starting. Is it in Milan?

also do you do planning for others ?

No this is not the Bernina Railway. The above route starts in Turin (Torino) to France.

If you’d like to take the Bernina Railway (which is absolutely stunning !), here is an itinerary :

• Basel/Bern 2 nights
• Basel/Bern - Zurich - Chur for the most direct option or via Lucerne - Pfäffikon SZ for the most scenic option
• Chur 1 night
• Chur - Tirano direct Bernina Express (but on the first reservation-free coaches) or using regional trains via St. Moritz
• Tirano - Milan hourly regional train
• Milan or Turin 2 nights
• Milan/Turin - Ventimiglia - Nice (either fast route or the scenic option via Cuneo)
• Nice (or Cannes, Antibes, Grasse) 1 night
• Nice - Marseille - Nîmes - Barcelona fast route (37€ seat reservations) OR Nice - Marseille - Avignon
• Avignon 1 night
• Avignon - Portbou - Barcelona

The number of nights could vary whether you go to Berlin or not

What do you mean by planning for others ? This is not my job, I simply love trains and I quite like helping others :)

your love for trains comes across so beautifully !  thank you !!!!!

i wondered if i could hand over my account to someone and come back to it w an itinerary. 

one slip up (by me)  from these great itinerary's could mean a slightly tough outcome.  

: ))

would you say this differently, please ? 

• Chur - Tirano direct Bernina Express (but on the first reservation-free coaches) or using regional trains via St. Moritz

we are on scared side. 

and might settle for this:   (but still consider Bernina)

12th .amsterdam to munich  2 days

14th munich to basel  2 days

16th basel to Marseille  2 days 

18th Marseille to barcelona 

(open to one more day on one of these or two more elsewhere)

((interested if this is a safe bet as it runs into the watch out for holiday people weekend))

im sorry its so boring.  but it is less stops.  we have a 7day pass.  we need one for barcelona to paris. 

and…… wouldn't mind 2 days for barcelona to almansa, leaving 0. 

i am going to miss not seeing Italy though. really enjoyed trains there btw. Trenatalia !!!

pushing off tomorrow midday w nothing booked passed amsterdam !!!

Between Chur and Tirano you have either choice :

- direct Bernina Express train : 19 CHF seat reservation for the panorama coaches (sold out weeks in advance) or there are a few reservation-free standard coaches at the front.

- hourly reservation-free regional trains on the same railway (same carriages)

Unfortunately Almansa is not well deserved by train, either you arrive in a nearby high-speed train station or you might have to wait a few hours in Alicante.

You now have 4 pass days left, okay. Your itinerary is fine but I expect Marseille - Barcelona to be impossible on the high-speed train on 18th May (but along the coast should be doable). If you want to include the Bernina Railway here you go :

- 12th Amsterdam - Munich

- 14th Munich - Basel advance tickets for that leg

- 16th Basel - Chur - Tirano - Milan/Turin (long travel day but quite scenic)

- 18th Milan/Turin - Ventimiglia - Nice - Marseille (either scenic or faster route)

- 19 or 20th Marseille - Barcelona by regional trains

Let me know which option you prefer. You have 5 travel days but Munich - Basel is quite cheap if you buy an advance ticket : 40-50€ for the 7 am departures. Check and buy on bahn.de

For Basel - Milan (Turin), as an example :

- IC3 Basel SBB - Chur 08:33 - 10:52

- IR Chur - Samedan 10:58 - 12:45

- R Samedan - Pontresina 12:48 - 12:57

- R Pontresina - Alp Grüm 13:04 - 13:42

- stop in Alp Grüm for a while to admire the scenery

- Bernina Express Alp Grüm - Tirano 14:18 - 15:31

- R Tirano - Milan 16:08 - 18:40

Don't worry about the tight connections, it's Switzerland

You then have dinner in Milan and could continue (or not) to Turin

- 21:02 - 22:00 OR

- 22:10 - 23:10

Both require a 10€ seat reservation (because high-speed train) on tickets.oebb.at but there should be availability last-minute

Here is a good connection to Marseille from Turin :

- RE Turin - Cuneo 13:25 - 14:36

- R Cuneo - Ventimiglia 14:41 - 17:21

- TER Ventimiglia - Nice 17:46 - 18:41

- TER Nice - Marseille 19:25 - 22:13

thank you so much !!!

“”Your itinerary is fine but I expect Marseille - Barcelona to be impossible on the high-speed train on 18th May (but along the coast should be doable””. 

12th .amsterdam to munich  2 days

14th munich to basel  2 days

16th basel to Marseille  2 days 

18th Marseille to barcelona 

for marseille to barcelona.

what’s alternative ?  high speed alternatives ? 18+ hours ?

this holiday weekend is scary !  

High-speed trains are the problem but regional trains will run and you can board at any time. As reservations are not possible for anyone, simply show early and you'll get seats.

Here is the fast but expensive option :

- TER Marseille - Nîmes Pont du Gard 16:23 - 17:37 reservation-free

- TGV Nîmes Pont du Gard - Barcelona Sants 17:48 - 21:25 27€ book ASAP

Or here are reservation-free itineraries :

- Marseille 06:55 - Avignon - Narbonne - Portbou - Barcelona 15:40

- Marseille 09:39 - Avignon - Portbou - Barcelona 18:40

- Marseille 12:22 - Narbonne - Portbou (1h18 break) - Barcelona 21:40

You can mix those itineraries and stop along the way if you'd like. Use bahn.de for planning

Let me know

i think i might just go amsterdam to barcelona.  it makes me so sad to say.  

but.  

can i guarantee i’ll make the Nimes to Barc Sants. 

no. 

can i afford 27 extra to lose.  

no. 

after starting amsterdam  above itinerary 

8,5,6 hours    do i want another 9 hr trip IF 

i can’t get a marseille to Barc ?  

no  that’s 8,5,6, and Then 8-10hrs !!

please help   too much train !!?

can't do it.  no reservations. for above. 

NOW 

looking at Bern for 3 nights. 

SAYS RESERVATIONS RECOMENDED . 

IF I BOOKING HOTEL IN BERN. should i reserve these seats ? 

leaving may 12 friday. at 11pm to frankfurt to bern. 

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