ASK JOAN:Your travel questions answered
Could you please advise on rail trips across Switzerland and Austria. I would like an organised trip with everything taken care of, it is a holiday I always dreamed of doing My husband and myself are in our 70s and quite active. I would like to do this trip in May or September. – SH Dublin
I know of two rail tours that will fit the bill exactly for your trip. They begin in London’s St Pancras Station on the Eurostar. You may have to spend a night in London depending on the train times.
The first is the Tyrolean All-Inclusive, which will be seven days exploring the Austrian landscape, mountain towns and villages. Places like Maryhofen, Kufstein, the Brixen Valley and Kitzbuhel. The tour will be based in Hofgarten and there will be some free time to explore the pretty town and area.
The price from £845pps(about €980) includes all rail travel, seven nights hotel accommodation with breakfast and dinner, four lunches and a trip on the nostalgic Zillertal Railway and some other excursions.
The other tour is a little more exciting as it travels through some of the most spectacular scenery in Switzerland – the Jungfrau Express. The tour begins in London and over seven days visits Interlaken, Lake Thun and the Bernese Oberland. There is a trip on the Jungfrau Railway up the north face of the Eiger to the highest railway station in Europe, at 3,454 metres.
The cost from £1,075 (about €1,244) includes rail travel, hotels with breakfast, dinner on four evenings and free time to explore with a half-price travel card. Both trips are available from May to September and can be booked on railholidays.com, tel: 0044 1904 734 939.
I would like to go to Lourdes for two days and then go on somewhere else for about four days. Could you suggest a tour,
or are there any organised trips doing something like that? Perhaps you could suggest one, and if so, when is the best time to get a bit of
sunshine? – UM, Dublin
Tours to Lourdes are generally only to Lourdes with some side- trips or excursions to other places, not really what you are looking for.
However, I can suggest that you fly to Biarritz, where you can take the train; it is about two hours to Lourdes, see timetables on voyages.sncf.com.
You can find accommodation and details of what is on in Lourdes on Lourdes-infotourisme.com. Biarritz is a lovely, lively place for a holiday, the beach is right in town and there is a good selection of hotels and accommodation.
The town is very pretty, with great coastal scenery, walks and a fun place to watch surfers riding the waves.It is also a good hub for exploring the Basque country by bus and train.
Other places near Biarritz worth considering are Bayonne and St Jean de Luz. Both are easily accessible by bus or train, less than an hour away.
Any time from June to September would be a good time to visit, though August is peak season and very busy. See tourisme.biarritz.frfor accommodation and events. Ryanair has services from Dublin to Biarritz.
We are trying to arrange a family holiday in the south of Spain during the autumn mid-term school break for up to 25 people. To confirm
accommodation we need to know the flights are available. The Aer Lingus website indicates that there are no flights between Dublin and Malaga after October 26th. – PJC Dublin
I checked with Aer Lingus and they will have flights to Malaga in October and November. However, the details are not loaded into the system yet, which means you will have to check every day until they are. Be ready to move as soon as they appear as that week is a busy one. If your group is more than 25 you can make a booking through Aer Lingus Groups Department on tel: 0818365007
Send your queries to jscales@irishtimes.com
