The Dutch Flyer

Sometimes there are some tricks and interesting major city transfers available. But, the problem is; how to know about them. One of my key advisors is www.seat61.com and for this trip, which is a circuit, a trip called the Dutch Flyer was recommended. We travelled from the heart of London to the heart of Amsterdam via a rail-ship-rail connection that was so stream-lined that it shocked my over-prepared nature!

We literally caught the underground line (Hammersmith & City), connected via a very short platform hop at Liverpool St to a train departing at 7.02 pm for Ipswitch that dropped us at a station called Manningtree (aka: the middle of nowhere) where we changed platforms to a nice sprinter train that put us at the Harwich International Terminal. It was quick and streamlined - happily we travel with backpacks so it wasn't really an issue moving between all the trains.

Once we got onto the ship we were amazed. I had booked a Comfort Class cabin and it was better than most of our hotel rooms (including those of the Novotel). The mini-bar was free, however, we skipped the dinner as Teagan needed to sleep and only hit the restaurants for breakfast.

Disembarkation was trouble free and again we had to use connecting trains (sprinter plus intercity) as we entered Amsterdam Central at 10.00am.

All of this was for around GBP200 (2 adults and one child). If anyone is contemplating the route, I would recommend familiarising yourself with the route. Even though it all connects up and works seamlessly, it could be disconcerting at Manningtree if you are not sure what you are up to (as Teagan was surprised that we were "nowhere").





















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Location:Europaboulevard,Amsterdam,The Netherlands