Getting from Brussels to Stuttgart

Q: I am traveling to Europe next April and need to book a flight from Brussels, Belgium, to Stuttgart, Germany. What is the least-expensive and best way to do this? My tour ends in Brussels, and I will be flying back to Seattle from Stuttgart, but will visit friends for three days before returning home.

— Mary, Mill Creek

A: The easiest way could be to take a train. It takes about five or six hours to go between Brussels and Stuttgart by rail. That's close to the time it would take you to fly, given the airport security/check-in time, plus you'll see a lot more by train. Your friends in Brussels could buy you a ticket, or you could research rail travel at www.raileurope.com or check the Web site of the German railway, www.bahn.de/international/view/en/index.shtml. (One thing to be aware of when booking a train or other travel in Europe: Dates are listed as day/month/year, while in the U.S. it's month/day/year.)

If you want to fly, you could check out tickets on Lufthansa (the German carrier) or other airlines. A good way to search for airlines that offer Brussels-Stuttgart service is through www.cheaptickets.com, although it doesn't include Europe's many small budget airlines. I'm not aware of Brussels-Stuttgart flights on a budget carrier; Belgium's own Brussels Airlines doesn't fly that route, nor do major European budget airlines such as EasyJet and Ryanair.

— Kristin Jackson / Seattle Times

Got a travel question? Submit it at www.seattletimes.com/travel (look for "Ask Travel"). We answer as many as we can, but can't answer all due to the volume of submissions.