The wonderful aspect regarding vacations in the EU is that visitors can see dozens of countries. A single Schengen Visa granted by one EU member state is good enough for travel across a big part of Europe. Visitors can move from one country to another without having to apply for entry or be hassled at borders.
But then this creates another problem. Which countries to visit and which ones to skip? A "grand tour" of the EU and all its member states would take months, and only backpackers do it these days. For most other visitors, there is a choice to be made to stick to a few chosen countries using a specific mode of travel by rail, coach or air.
A popular travel plan has travelers setting off from London and heading off to Belgium on the first leg of the tour. From Brussels, visitors head for France, Switzerland and then Italy. After that, the tour again heads into France and then back across the English Channel to London. This was just a sample tour restricted to a small part of Western Europe.
When faced with the full complement of 27 nations, the itinerary gets very complex. How does one decide from amongst nations like Germany, Greece, Spain, Portugal, Poland, Bulgaria and a whole lot of other nations in Eastern Europe? A lot of people end up visiting only a single city and enjoying it in full, or use European rail maps as an itinerary.
Those traveling to multiple destinations on low cost airlines or by rail need to keep the trips between cities short and easy. For instance, let's look at a four city trip to Amsterdam, Brussels, Paris and London. The high speed Eurostar Chunnel trip through the tunnel under the English Channel limits travel to and from London to less than 2 hours.
Travel between Brussels and Amsterdam takes less than 3 hours. Each leg of the journey is short and each destination can be explored at leisure in a weekend. Those who have more time can throw in a few more legs and visit some more countries. This is so much better than spending 6-8 hours traveling between destinations that are far apart.
If the visitor has 10 or 14 days, themed trips might be more enjoyable. Explore the Rhine Valley or enjoy a summer holiday on the French Riviera. Take a wine tour in Burgundy or Tuscany, or a winter holiday in the Swiss Alps. Ultimately, vacations in the EU can be adjusted according to the visitor's budget and time, and it will still work out just fine.
But then this creates another problem. Which countries to visit and which ones to skip? A "grand tour" of the EU and all its member states would take months, and only backpackers do it these days. For most other visitors, there is a choice to be made to stick to a few chosen countries using a specific mode of travel by rail, coach or air.
A popular travel plan has travelers setting off from London and heading off to Belgium on the first leg of the tour. From Brussels, visitors head for France, Switzerland and then Italy. After that, the tour again heads into France and then back across the English Channel to London. This was just a sample tour restricted to a small part of Western Europe.
When faced with the full complement of 27 nations, the itinerary gets very complex. How does one decide from amongst nations like Germany, Greece, Spain, Portugal, Poland, Bulgaria and a whole lot of other nations in Eastern Europe? A lot of people end up visiting only a single city and enjoying it in full, or use European rail maps as an itinerary.
Those traveling to multiple destinations on low cost airlines or by rail need to keep the trips between cities short and easy. For instance, let's look at a four city trip to Amsterdam, Brussels, Paris and London. The high speed Eurostar Chunnel trip through the tunnel under the English Channel limits travel to and from London to less than 2 hours.
Travel between Brussels and Amsterdam takes less than 3 hours. Each leg of the journey is short and each destination can be explored at leisure in a weekend. Those who have more time can throw in a few more legs and visit some more countries. This is so much better than spending 6-8 hours traveling between destinations that are far apart.
If the visitor has 10 or 14 days, themed trips might be more enjoyable. Explore the Rhine Valley or enjoy a summer holiday on the French Riviera. Take a wine tour in Burgundy or Tuscany, or a winter holiday in the Swiss Alps. Ultimately, vacations in the EU can be adjusted according to the visitor's budget and time, and it will still work out just fine.
