You can get around Europe so easy; much easier than you can you can the United States. You can hop on a train or bus or drive and get to multiple countries within a few hours! On our 3.5 week trip that started in Paris and ended in Rome, we rode two buses, two trains and took two domestic flights, so there isn’t a one-size-fits-all answer to which transportation option is best!
Traveling between destinations can be a source of stress within your trip. But don’t let it rain on your parade! Traveling in multiple forms of transportation is a great experience!
Transportation can be super cheap in Europe. However, sometimes you sacrifice price for convenience and time. For example, trains are faster, but buses are cheaper. What are YOUR priorities on the trip?
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Getting Around by bus
Bus tickets are your cheapest option for getting around Europe. My recommendation for bus travel is FlixBus. Free Wifi and power outlets are available to occupy your time.
- Look for an overnight bus to get back the lost time of traveling by bus.
Getting around by train
Jump on a train! Getting around by train is easy and convenient in Europe. Train travel is more expensive than bus travel, but it can cut your travel time in half at times!
Use RailEurope or Omio to book your train tickets!
Domestic flights in Europe
Depending on your route in Europe, a flight may be necessary. Luckily, domestic flights in Europe are quite affordable; typically much less than within the US. You can easily jump on a plane and fly from from major cities for less than $100. The most common airlines I’ve flown domestically in Europe are EasyJet, KLM and Lufthansa. However, there are a lot of options!
Start with Google Flights or Skyscanner to compare prices!
Rent a car
Many people are a little intimidated by the idea of renting a car and driving it in an unknown country. However, we have now utilized this option on MULTIPLE international trips, and it definitely has its perks!
Click here to learn more about renting cars internationally!
Weighing your options
When planning for your transportation, just weigh your options. Look into travel time and pricing. There is always a best way to get from point A to point B based upon your priorities!
- For comparing all your travel options, use Rome2rio! I use it for every trip I plan in Europe! It will lay out all the travel options, the travel time for each option and an approximated cost of each form of travel!
- This gives you a better idea on the perfect form of transportation!
A time and money-saving nugget
An overnight bus or train is a great option to save time and money. If your priority is to REALLY save money, overnight buses can be your friend. A bus ride from Paris to Amsterdam is 10 hours. But you can leave at 10pm and arrive at 6am for $40. This will give you all day in both destinations, plus it takes away the need for accommodations that night. Downfall, you are sacrificing a comfortable nights sleep. But we’ve all done it before!
If you want all the luxury of saving a night of accommodations and the extra travel time, consider an overnight train. The price will be a little more, but you have the convenience of a bed!
Navigating your city
The majority of European cities are easily navigated by foot and metros. Do some research on your particular city, then download an offline version of the city on Google Maps for navigating on foot and an offline version of their metro system to access without wifi! This is a lifesaver when exploring a new city!
Transportation Recap!
This article is focused on getting around Europe. However, many of the tips can be applied to choosing transportation for any international travel! For example, on our trip to Costa Rica our options were to navigate the country by bus or by car (no train and flights weren’t necessary). Once looking at the places we wanted to go and the bus schedule, it was clear that renting a car would be our best option!
Visit the resource homepage for other articles to help plan your next trip!