Trains from Barcelona to Paris?

Trains in Europe: Paris, Barcelona, Brussels...in between?

• Hello- I'm flying into Paris (CDG) in mid-December. What is the best way to travel by train to places like Paris, Brussels, Barcelona, and maybe Switzerland? I've seen ads for Euro-star, but don't know if it it the best for me. I for sure have a hotel in Paris Dec 10th-20th, then Brussels 21st-24th. Then I am free to travel wherever from the 25th through January 8th. Please give me any recommendations where to stop in cities along the way. I prefer to stay in hostels as I am a college student on a budget. Thanks! **Any good place to go for Christmas?

• Answer:

  Hi, there's a great book - rail travel in Europe, its entirely geared towards people on a budget and it was a life saver for us when we traveled in Europe! To get into the center of Paris from the airport you need to take the metro - its really simple to use, if you can use the London underground you can use this! i would recommend the Paris visite card. its about 20 euros for a 5 day pass in zones 1 2 and 3 (the only ones you'll need if you don't plan on venturing right out into the suburbs) its really simple to use and saved us a fortune. I would also recommend an inter rail pass there are a variety of different options depending on how long you're going for - you can get one here: www.interrail.net but it will save you an absolute fortune. train travel in Paris is absolutely extortionate. you can get a train from Paris to narbonne and then you change there for Barcelona. i think that will cost you somewhere in the region of 150/200 euros without an interrail pass, with a pass it will cost about 3 for a seat reservation. if you have a pass just walk into the local train station (i would recommend a few days in advance of the date you want to travel they have limited numbers of interrail pass seats) and they will give you times. you can get absolutely anywhere by train in Europe. its fast efficient you meet great people and it works out pretty cheap as well. its also much nicer than any other means of traveling - you can see and get up to walk around! the book i recommended will also advise you of scenic routes you can take. it also has great lists of hostels - if you want my recommendations i can give you names and numbers of places we stayed and found good, just give me a message. Places to go? Europe is amazing, you could travel it for years and still find more places you want to go! try Italy? its fantastic - the foods amazing, the people are lovely and there's loads of interesting things to do... its also very budget friendly. i don't know what yours is ours was about 60EUR a day for 2 of us and that was fine... hostels are pretty cheap but accommodation will still be the most expensive part of your expenses so try to get the cheapest you can! Prague in the Czech republic would be lovely for Christmas or in the winter period, they have Christmas markets and a lovely atmosphere, lots of snow! Its a little touristy but there are a lot of cheap places to eat if you wander off the beaten track! Hope this helps, have a great time!