backpacking... help

Ok, thanks #10. I do have some start off questions. We are flying into Dublin... and planning to stay there for a few days but we are wondering what transports to take to the next cities (not sure where yet) and what transport to take to get to the uk and then to belgium. I read that public transport is expensive and doesn't have direct routes. I have looked at eurail and we are not sure that would be our best option since we wont have a set itinerary from city to city.

So I guess we can take this a step at a time and figure out transport and places to stay see in dublin and cities around there worth stopping through.

Please help me with eurail... I dont know exactly how it works and if its worth getting. For the amount of countries we plan to go to it is suggested to get the global youth pass with 10 or 15 days in 2 months. Does that sound like a smart idea? Please let me know anyone who has traveled around on eurail. Thanks

The decision about whether buying a Eurrail pass or buying individual tickets comes up here a lot. It is a hard question to answer because it depends so much on how you travel and to where. I think that Rick Steves' site and the seat61 site have a lot of good, general info on rail travel that will help you. Other guide books like the Lonely Planet guides and Let's Go guides have a lot of good general info. I won't repeat it all here since it is much better explained already in those places. If there is something specific you want to know, please ask, but it is difficult to respond to something like "help me with eurail."

As you probably know, England is not part of the Eurrail system. You say you are going to Dublin then on to your "next cities." Are you going to England from Ireland or on to the Continent? There is ferry service from Ireland to France, that might be an option. I think it is part of Eurrail, but you should check.

I think the best first step is to find out where you want to go. I don't mean you have to choose the places to visit in detail, just a route to follow. That will determine your choice of transport. Generally, the trains are the best bet no matter how you choose to pay for them. There are a lot of cheap airlines in Europe now that make that a good option, too.

I'm not trying to put you off. I'm just trying to find the best way to get you useful information.