Trains, Planes, and Trains to Nuremberg

It’s the time of year for the International Toy Fair in Nuremberg Germany and time to arrange those travel plans. In southeastern Pennsylvania we have plenty of airport options from Dulles, BWI, Philly, and Newark. And you can drive and long term park, take the train, or grab a ride. All the combinations make the decision harder because there usually isn’t a clear winner in cost and convenience.

On the other side of the “pond” there are similar choices; Munich, Frankfurt, car rental or train? A car rental allows for a nice stay at a Fremdenzimmer for low cost and breakfast inclusive, but comes with commutes to a train station every day and winter driving in unfamiliar territory. Ground transportation by train limits the lodging choices but comes with comfort (for the most part) and convenience.

At the Gate in Philly
At the gate in Philly, at least it’s not snowing.

I decided to take Amtrak from Lancaster PA to 30th street station in Philly and then SEPTA to the airport. A direct flight from Philly to Frankfurt and then Deutsche Bahn (DB) to Nuremberg followed by local trains to Erlangen.

This year, the weatherman threw in a wrinkle with dire predictions of snow the day before departure. First my flight was cancelled and I was moved to a route that went Philly to Charlotte to Frankfurt arriving on the same day. Then my Amtrak train to Philly was cancelled which left me no way to get to the airport. Before I could look for new transportation to Philly, my second flight was cancelled on the Philly to Charlotte route. All the time spent planning out the connections and details just right, completely fell apart. Guess I shouldn’t have chosen that discount saver DB ticket that required me to travel a specific train on a specific day – cancelled!

So lets just try the same trip as before, but two days later on each end…and keep the fingers crossed.