Herea a thought..................
How are the fares to the CRUISE SHIPS NOW?????????????????????
One MIGHT wanna try THAT ROUTE if it doesn’t BREAK THE BANK!!!!!!!
Checked the cruise ship route. Need to get to England. QE2 leaves end of April which is great, getting to England right now difficult at best. Understand rate on QE2 $1500 (third hand info.).
I don't think there is regular passenger ship service anymore.
You may be able to get a ride on a cargo ship. Some people do that, for example, if they want to take their own motorcycle.
It's really not an viable option, though.
You'd have to book in advance, and the trip itself is 10 days long.
If you had to get back the only option is to fly from Southern Europe. The short notice tickets are very expensive and getting there is expensive as well.
Frankfurt to Rome with the train is probably close to $400 one-way, 2nd class, and about a 16 hour ride, I'd say.