• Home bound flight: We book a promotion fare from Emirates pricing at RM2243 return/pax
• The Interflight:

After we decided the duration of stay and dates on each city, we decided to travel to each city via Flight. European flight is very cheap! Lagi murah dari Air Asia. Sama macam Air Asia, kena rajin check harga owh and kena beli luggage jugak ye. We choose Easy Jet, remember only ONE piece of hand carry is allowed. The space in the flight was wider that what we have in Asia region.

Kitorang pilih EasyJet sebab murah dan reliable. Beli baggage 40kg for each flight. Sila cautious dengan berat bag masing-masing.

We bought 4 one-way flight in total – Paris to Geneva, Geneva to Nice, Nice to Venice and Rome to Paris. Total here is Euro178 or RM 784. Please dear friends be noted that Paris and Rome have 2 different airports! Please make sure you are going to the right one.

• Train

The only train journey we have is from Venice to Rome. It cost us Euro29. They have a face to face seat arrangement. So any party of 4 will automatically get this seat.

• Car

We drove in Switzerland. Train are very expensive. We did check the tickets on sale but it is still too expensive on our travel date. Besides, I think driving is Swiss is the best option, it gives you flexibility. We rented a Volkswagen Golf from Europcar that costs us RM753 for 3 days – that’s Rm188 per pax. Way cheaper than train.

 

To drive in Europe you have to be 25 years old and above (if younger, surcharge applies) and a valid international driving license. Since I am not exactly 25 at the time, CB and Dila have been selected as the designated driver.

•  Metro/Bus

In Paris, we bought the metro pass that cost Euro 53 for 4 days. Expensive, yes. Should have bought a normal ticket instead. We board the rail from airport to Gare Du Nord and travel from there.

 

In Nice, we move around by tram, tickets are sold at the station itself. From Nice to Monaco, we board a public bus.

 

In Geneva, we use the tram lines – free if you stay at Bakcpackers Hostel.

 

In Rome, we use the metro system to move around and busses. We bought a Rome Day pass that cost us 8 Euro.

 

In Venice, we use a day pass that entitled us to board the Vaporetto all day long.

• Paris: Best Western, Monte Marte Sacre-Coeur.

• Geneva: City Hostel Geneva

Double private room costs CHF92 per room per night. Shared bathroom and other facilities, free parking. Near the tram station and few shops. Small space but clean and comfortable.

• Interlaken: Alplodge Hostel, Interlaken

A family room with ensuite bathroom ( 1 Double bed and 1 bunk bed). Cost us CHF360 for 2 nights). A charming hotel by the Aare River. CB nak sangat hotel ni sampai berangan before pergi okay. In the town center. Free parking. Spacious, clean, comes with a balcony with river view.

• Nice: Hotel De Verdun

Double room cost us Euro236 for 3 nights, comes with breakfast. Near tram station and just beside the La Fayette Gallerie. Owner is a charming Muslim man. Comfortable, clean and good space.

• Venice: Residenza Ca’ Dario

Double room costs us Euro85 per room per night. Not easy to find as it involves travelling through mini corridor and canals. Shared bathroom. Clean, comfortable and quiet.

•  Rome: Domus Domas Rome.

Family room consist of 1 double bed and bunk bed with ensuite bathroom. Free light breakfast. Cost us Euro240 for 2 nights. 50m from the Metro station and there is a halal fried chicken restaurant across the hotel.

• Orly: Orly Grans Hotel Senia

A family room with double bed, bunk beds and ensuite bathroom. Free airport transfer. It costs us Euro115 per night. The room are spacious, clean and comfortable.

•  Passport – valid for 6 months, NO VISA REQUIRED.
• International driving license – RM150 per year, must renew Malaysian driving license as well. Bring white background photo and photocopy of IC.

We brought food from Malaysia that consists of Bihun segera, nasi goreng Brahim, kurma daging Brahim, milo and nescafe 3-in-1 and some chocolates. 

Food was not an issue in Europe. You have to be attentive to the menus and price of course – scam story in Venice later. Halal food was easy to find. Otherwise, we ate some vegan or seafood pasta at restaurant. We estimate a rate of CHF15 or Euro10 per day.

Check the weather prior to arrival. For me, the coldest spot is Paris and Swiss. We bought some spring jackets and gloves for these. For Switzerland, we bought long johns and some wind breaker or winter jacket for Jungfrau. We bought minimum clothes as I do laundry while in Europe – tips coming up. We bought cardigans as we can layer and wear it multiple times.

We travel with 2 40L backpack, 2 cabin size trolleys and 2 huge 30kg cargo bags. The cargo bags are full of food that is. Our clothes are packed inside the backpack – details in Tips section.

Excursion tickets are bought online except for the Eiffel Tower. This would be the best option. If we pre-book our tickets, there is a chance of cutting queues which is significant while you are visiting Colloseum and Vatican – save 2 hours of queue!!!

• Paris

We intended to buy our 1^st Floor Eiffel tower ticket online. Unfortunately, the quota for online sales have sold out. We have no choice except to line up early in the morning (read: 6.30 a.m) in the freezing cold weather to but tickets. Please buy online and save your self and extra sleep hours.

For Lourve, we bought it on site to get a discount for Youth. Owh yes, if you are 26 and below, you are entitled for free entrance on Friday, just bring your passport. So, go on Friday! Eiffel tickets are also on discount for those aged 25 and below. In this case, Im the only person entitled for this.  CB, Dila dengan Su buat muka tak puas hati sebab tiket Nadia lagi murah hahahaha.

Cost Euro14.5 and Euro9 (for Youth) 

•  Swiss

The most expensive excursion in my life – so far. We choose to went up to Jungfrau. This excursion includes entry ticket and the rail you take from Interlaken to the Top of Europe. We took the Good Morning Ticket which gives us a discounted rate of CHF135 – kalau convert hampir RM600. Mengigil tangan masing2 masa nak bayar.

During Summer period May-Sept, they have some sledging, skiing up there. We bought this tickets at the Interlaken Ost station. To save more money, we take the train from Lauterbrunnen which is the 3^rd station from Interlaken Ost – we drove there.

•   Rome

We bought these online as per other bloggers’ experience. Cut queues when it is legal, why not?! Breeze through the Colloseum check point. The Vatican City entrance is by far the worst – these bloggers don’t exaggerate. The queue for buying tickets extend around the Vatican walls. For pre-book tickets, you just have to go straight to the main entrance. No queue at all. Tikets for Colloseum+The Forum and Vatican is Euro 14 and 16.