Plane vs. Train

Trying to decide between planes vs trains. I'll be mainly traveling through 3 countries, so I'd probably do the 3 country Eurorail pass. It ends up being around 250 euro for under 25 folks I believe.

Planes w/ ryanair and easyjet are super cheap too though - except they charge an extra 20-25 euro for a checked bag!

I'm starting my trip w/ a friend in northern Spain, then expecting to visit Barcelona. Then I go to Italy for two weeks, up to Germany to visit a friend, back to Italy, and then hopefully I head to England, Ireland, and then back to Spain to catch my flight home.

Any advice on what you guys think would be cheaper/preferable?

ALSO - should I even harbor the hope of a backpacker's backpack for a 2 month trip passing as a carry on bag? Has anyone managed this before? I know discount airlines can be pretty obnoxious about that stuff, but if I could stick to carry on luggage, I could fly super cheap.

Thanks for the advice.

-Meg Reply to this

Cheap airlines normally sell airfares by the sector, so you should look at a one way flight to Spain and then another one way flight from Germany or Italy back to the UK.

I like the suggestion of boating between Spain and Italy, that would be a lovely way to journey between the two countries.

It would be possible to get away with carry on baggage for your flight, but only if you pack minimum clothes (only 1 or 2 changes) and you decide to purchase more once items once you reach the continent. Reply to this

Those check in bag charges seem a bit steep. I generally avoid them, by not having any check in luggage. Consider travelling very light, and buying bathroom liquids in small amounts, so you can take them on the plane. Plane travel in Europe is such a good option, with the bargains you can get if you buy the tickets a bit in advance. Consider also though, how much it costs to get from city centers to airports. That can be anything from a couple of Euros to 15 Euros by public transport.

Trains: These are also great value. I would buy separate tickets rather than get a Euro rail ticket, because if you buy in advance you can also get great prices. And, there is the option to travel long distances overnight and save on accomodation costs. You save even more if you are willing to sleep in a seat, rather than paying more to be in a sleeper compartment.

If I was in your position, and provided you can buy the train tickets online in advance from where you are, I would use a combination of both plane and train travel to get the best deals. You can check the cost of transport from airports to city centres on airport sites on the internet.

ALSO - should I even harbor the hope of a backpacker's backpack for a 2 month trip passing as a carry on bag? Has anyone managed this before?

You absolutely can, if you want. I dont ever have more than 10KG with me, no matter how long the trip is. Usually, I have less than 7KG even. I love books which can sometimes weigh more than the clothes I bring, so they can bring my bag up to above 7KG. It would mean you will have to hand wash clothes, because you would never have enough to fill a washing machine, and the cost of washing a very small amount of clothes in a washing machine would be high.

I am from Ireland, and live in Munich, Germany, so if you have any questions about costs etc for those places, post them here. 😊
Or if you want me to help you make your luggage lighter, post here what you intend to take along with what types of activities you intend to do, and I will critique your luggage list. 😊

Mel Reply to this

Wow guys, thank you so so much.

So I ditched the idea of a backpacker's backpack, and instead am using a small carry on. Just got to Spain. I'm hoping between my smaller day backpack and carry on luggage, I might be able to avoid some of those pesky checked luggage fees.

Apparently ryan air won't let you do a personal item (small backpack) plus cabin luggage like most do, so that might be tricky though.

Sounds like eurorail is out, but trains themselves are still a solid option.

Truthfully, I am in Spain now at my friends place and am only now making plans about how to get to point A to point B! I feel silly I didn't plan sooner - I'm sure flights would have been cheaper had I booked earlier.

On a side note, how do you folks feel about Morocco...considering it!

Just started a blog if you are interested:
http://megwandersabroad.wordpress.com/

Thanks again for the tips. Reply to this