OT: Europe Trip

[Aaron It Out]

Sorry for the OT thread in the middle of the season, but didn't see a dedicated thread and hoping some of you can help me out.

I'm trying to plan a trip to Europe this summer but I've never been, so hoping some of you have some experience that could give me some ideas. We're flying out to Stockholm for a wedding, but won't be staying there for more than the weekend. This will give us about 1.5-2 weeks until we come back.

Our options are pretty open, but we can't agree on staying in one place or trying to travel through and see a few different cities. The ideal trip to me would be flying into Hamburg and traveling through Amsterdam, Brussels, and ending up in Paris. That might be too much traveling though, and not enough time in each city/country to get a good experience. Thing is that most of those trips are only 1-2 hours except for Hamburg to Amsterdam so maybe it wouldn't be too bad? Other concern is the cost but other than getting a train pass I don't see how it would be much different than staying in one place.

Other options are going to Dublin with another group from the wedding, heading to Spain and checking out Madrid and Barcelona and anything in between, or going to Italy and spending time in Rome. No matter what probably going to AirBnb wherever we can, and hoping to avoid renting cars if possible. Is the Eurail worth it considering you can customize how many countries you want to travel through? Looking briefly and it looks like you still have to pay fees to reserve seats, so not sure which way you come out ahead.

[MickeyDavis]

It's been awhile since I was over there. I liked Ireland/Dublin. Didn't like Rome. Others who have been to Europe more recently can give you better opinions on logistics. It's always tough trying to decide how many places to go. Quality vs. quantity. Traveling around from country to country is pretty easy. Or at least it used to be

[thomchatt3rton]

Ryanair is a great option for travel- especially if you're pressed for time.

https://www.ryanair.com/us/en/

It's a no-frills and thus ultra, ultra cheap airline.

Just remember that if you book a flight to, say, Milan, you're not actually flying into Milan, you're flying into a po-dunk airport outside Milan. But there are obviously trains, shuttles, etc to get you to your actual destination city.
Same goes for your departure city- it won't actually be the main airport of the city you're flying from. But, man it's cheap.

If time's a factor, then flying is definitely something you should think about. I just ran a flight on their website from Paris to Barcelona and back in the middle of June- the flight Paris to BAR was $46, the flight back 1 week later was $26.

Barcelona, IMO, is a must. Beautiful, historical, youthful, vibrant and fun city. The Spanish know how to live. One of my favorite places ever.

You don't want to miss Paris either (though summer- depending when you're going- isn't the high time for Paris, traditionally).

If I ever went back to Italy, I'd go somewhere coastal. I went to Milan, Venice, Florence and Rome (all very short stays) and I feel like I could've enjoyed myself more if I'd gone somewhere else.

Nice, in the south of France was really cool. I'd love to go back their and visit more of the mediterranean south of France and then into some of the Basque country in between France and Spain.

[M-C-G]

Sorry for the OT thread in the middle of the season, but didn't see a dedicated thread and hoping some of you can help me out.

I'm trying to plan a trip to Europe this summer but I've never been, so hoping some of you have some experience that could give me some ideas. We're flying out to Stockholm for a wedding, but won't be staying there for more than the weekend. This will give us about 1.5-2 weeks until we come back.

Our options are pretty open, but we can't agree on staying in one place or trying to travel through and see a few different cities. The ideal trip to me would be flying into Hamburg and traveling through Amsterdam, Brussels, and ending up in Paris. That might be too much traveling though, and not enough time in each city/country to get a good experience. Thing is that most of those trips are only 1-2 hours except for Hamburg to Amsterdam so maybe it wouldn't be too bad? Other concern is the cost but other than getting a train pass I don't see how it would be much different than staying in one place.

Other options are going to Dublin with another group from the wedding, heading to Spain and checking out Madrid and Barcelona and anything in between, or going to Italy and spending time in Rome. No matter what probably going to AirBnb wherever we can, and hoping to avoid renting cars if possible. Is the Eurail worth it considering you can customize how many countries you want to travel through? Looking briefly and it looks like you still have to pay fees to reserve seats, so not sure which way you come out ahead.

I lived in Brussels for 6 months and used the weeekends to travel by train a lot (Brussels is like two hours from everything by train), I will put some thoughts together and could make some suggestions. My one question would be there are two types of travelers (in my experience) the people that like to see it, do it and move on to the next thing and people that like to linger, and thoroughly enjoy the details. I noticed this while traveling with a friend in Barcelona. We went to a museum together and I made it through the entire thing, went back to find him and he was on like the second exhibit reading everything about each object.

So if your style is see it, do it, next or take your time, I'd give you two different answers.


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[Treebeard]

Take a look at Rick Steves.com - He covers a lot of the usual touristy stuff, but he's more of a fan of the "everyday" Europe experience.
https://www.ricksteves.com/

At first he comes across as kind of a dry stick, but he's got some humor; and the advice is pretty common sense.

[HaroldinGMinor]

Just watch it on the trains:

Watch on YouTube

[machu46]

My girlfriend seconds the Ryan Air suggestion. She's been basically everywhere in Europe and is currently living in England. I'm planning to fly out there for my first time and hopefully check out England and Spain or something.


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[pack15412]

This documentary should give you some good tips.

Watch on YouTube

[pack15412]

Just watch it on the trains:

Watch on YouTube

Beat me to it!

[thomchatt3rton]

My girlfriend seconds the Ryan Air suggestion. She's been basically everywhere in Europe and is currently living in England. I'm planning to fly out there for my first time and hopefully check out England and Spain or something.


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Yeah. It's cheaper than a train ticket often. Especially a high-speed train ticket.

[Aaron It Out]

Ryanair is a great option for travel- especially if you're pressed for time.

https://www.ryanair.com/us/en/

It's a no-frills and thus ultra, ultra cheap airline.

Just remember that if you book a flight to, say, Milan, you're not actually flying into Milan, you're flying into a po-dunk airport outside Milan. But there are obviously trains, shuttles, etc to get you to your actual destination city.
Same goes for your departure city- it won't actually be the main airport of the city you're flying from. But, man it's cheap.

If time's a factor, then flying is definitely something you should think about. I just ran a flight on their website from Paris to Barcelona and back in the middle of June- the flight Paris to BAR was $46, the flight back 1 week later was $26.

Barcelona, IMO, is a must. Beautiful, historical, youthful, vibrant and fun city. The Spanish know how to live. One of my favorite places ever.

You don't want to miss Paris either (though summer- depending when you're going- isn't the high time for Paris, traditionally).

If I ever went back to Italy, I'd go somewhere coastal. I went to Milan, Venice, Florence and Rome (all very short stays) and I feel like I could've enjoyed myself more if I'd gone somewhere else.

Nice, in the south of France was really cool. I'd love to go back their and visit more of the mediterranean south of France and then into some of the Basque country in between France and Spain.

Thanks, this was a really great post. Some really great suggestions that kind of solidified a feeling to want to explore more of the Mediterranean and Spain. We were also thinking of staying more away from Madrid and staying along the coast. Very solid advice and also thanks for the Ryan Air suggestion. You gave us a lot to think about.

[Aaron It Out]

Sorry for the OT thread in the middle of the season, but didn't see a dedicated thread and hoping some of you can help me out.

I'm trying to plan a trip to Europe this summer but I've never been, so hoping some of you have some experience that could give me some ideas. We're flying out to Stockholm for a wedding, but won't be staying there for more than the weekend. This will give us about 1.5-2 weeks until we come back.

Our options are pretty open, but we can't agree on staying in one place or trying to travel through and see a few different cities. The ideal trip to me would be flying into Hamburg and traveling through Amsterdam, Brussels, and ending up in Paris. That might be too much traveling though, and not enough time in each city/country to get a good experience. Thing is that most of those trips are only 1-2 hours except for Hamburg to Amsterdam so maybe it wouldn't be too bad? Other concern is the cost but other than getting a train pass I don't see how it would be much different than staying in one place.

Other options are going to Dublin with another group from the wedding, heading to Spain and checking out Madrid and Barcelona and anything in between, or going to Italy and spending time in Rome. No matter what probably going to AirBnb wherever we can, and hoping to avoid renting cars if possible. Is the Eurail worth it considering you can customize how many countries you want to travel through? Looking briefly and it looks like you still have to pay fees to reserve seats, so not sure which way you come out ahead.

I lived in Brussels for 6 months and used the weeekends to travel by train a lot (Brussels is like two hours from everything by train), I will put some thoughts together and could make some suggestions. My one question would be there are two types of travelers (in my experience) the people that like to see it, do it and move on to the next thing and people that like to linger, and thoroughly enjoy the details. I noticed this while traveling with a friend in Barcelona. We went to a museum together and I made it through the entire thing, went back to find him and he was on like the second exhibit reading everything about each object.

So if your style is see it, do it, next or take your time, I'd give you two different answers.


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Also a great post, thank you. Of the two types you described I'd say we're more of the "see it, do it, and move on" type of people. I can appreciate a Museum but I would be you in that situation, and not your friend.

[M-C-G]

Sorry for the OT thread in the middle of the season, but didn't see a dedicated thread and hoping some of you can help me out.

I'm trying to plan a trip to Europe this summer but I've never been, so hoping some of you have some experience that could give me some ideas. We're flying out to Stockholm for a wedding, but won't be staying there for more than the weekend. This will give us about 1.5-2 weeks until we come back.

Our options are pretty open, but we can't agree on staying in one place or trying to travel through and see a few different cities. The ideal trip to me would be flying into Hamburg and traveling through Amsterdam, Brussels, and ending up in Paris. That might be too much traveling though, and not enough time in each city/country to get a good experience. Thing is that most of those trips are only 1-2 hours except for Hamburg to Amsterdam so maybe it wouldn't be too bad? Other concern is the cost but other than getting a train pass I don't see how it would be much different than staying in one place.

Other options are going to Dublin with another group from the wedding, heading to Spain and checking out Madrid and Barcelona and anything in between, or going to Italy and spending time in Rome. No matter what probably going to AirBnb wherever we can, and hoping to avoid renting cars if possible. Is the Eurail worth it considering you can customize how many countries you want to travel through? Looking briefly and it looks like you still have to pay fees to reserve seats, so not sure which way you come out ahead.

I lived in Brussels for 6 months and used the weeekends to travel by train a lot (Brussels is like two hours from everything by train), I will put some thoughts together and could make some suggestions. My one question would be there are two types of travelers (in my experience) the people that like to see it, do it and move on to the next thing and people that like to linger, and thoroughly enjoy the details. I noticed this while traveling with a friend in Barcelona. We went to a museum together and I made it through the entire thing, went back to find him and he was on like the second exhibit reading everything about each object.

So if your style is see it, do it, next or take your time, I'd give you two different answers.


Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk

Also a great post, thank you. Of the two types you described I'd say we're more of the "see it, do it, and move on" type of people. I can appreciate a Museum but I would be you in that situation, and not your friend.

Ok, I'd personally say do 2-3 nights max at any single location then, probably 2. I'd also take the train because you get to see so much of the country. You could start in Amsterdam, train to Brussels, train to London, maybe fly to Barcelona, Paris, etc.

One thing to keep in mind, while each city is completely it's own thing, cities in the same country will begin to blend together. This was especially true for me in Germany. So that is why I suggested very different cities to keep mixing it up.

One place to consider is a place like Interlokken in Switzerland. They have something they call canyoning which is a once in a life time experience. YouTube it if you enjoy adventure, it was awesome.

Most of these cities have a Red Bus tour. I strongly recommend taking that (it is like a couple of Euros) and you get to see the highlights of each city. Then you can select which things interest you the most. It was a really helpful way of avoiding dud tourist attractions

I will put some thought into this tomorrow and either post or pm you some notes. I personally love Brussels, so will probably be a bit biased toward it.


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[vegaspacker]

Bratislava is beautiful this time of year?!?!

[MilHammer]

Depending on where you go, I also really recommend using Rome2Rio. It's a website that essentially compiles all the available transportation options (w prices). It's not particularly great for flights, although it's good for getting a rough estimate. However, it is hands down the best option for finding bus and trains to smaller tourist destinations within a country or for busing/training short distances between cities (1h-4h). For example, when I went to Romania, I used it to find the best busing options between Bucharest and various castles/villages in Transylvania and also used it to bus from Bucharest to Sofia, Bulgaria. The website does a great job of listing local bus agencies, so you're also not getting ripped off by lines that cater to tourists.

Since your window for traveling is pretty short I second using an airline like Ryan Air for trips between countries since Eurorail isnt as cheap as its made out to be (more than Ryan Air in most cases) and it can be pretty time intensive. Training is great for in country travel, I'd only recommend it for travel across Europe if you have time. Its a lot more conducive for trips that last around a month+.

In regards to your question on where to go/how long to stay, it really depends on what type of experience you want and how many opportunities you think you'll have to do a similar trip. A few years ago when I was living in Europe, I was doing trips to capitals every weekend. In retrospect though, I would recommend against it. The best experiences I had were when I could stay in one city for around 2 weeks. You get to relax, explore the city at your own pace and not feel like you're obligated to shuttle between touristy destinations. If there's a city/destination you and your SO are super interested in, I totally recommend that option. If you wanna bounce around, Id say you can do most cities in 3-4 days if you're productive each day.

Lastly, here are some cities that I recommend. A lot are not as popular, but are rising quickly in popularity. Lisbon, Ljubljana, Budapest, Dubrovnik, Salzburg, Sevilla, Brussels, Hamburg, Belgrade.

My #1 recommendation is Ljubljana, Slovenia. You get a mix of Balkan, Germanic and Mediterranean culture in a beautiful little country that is nestled between Croatia, Hungary/Austria and Italy. It's a 2 hour train ride from Venice, and every destination in the country is a 2-3 train ride away. If you go South, you get pristine Mediterranean coastline that rivals Italy/Croatia and if you go north you're basically in Hungary and you have green rolling mountains and castles. Also an overnight train ride away from Croatia, Serbia, etc so its very easy to do a Balkans trip.

If you're feeling adventurous and can ignore all the news, I also recommend Istanbul. It is the best city in the world imo. PM me if you have any other questions and good luck!

[Aaron It Out]

I lived in Brussels for 6 months and used the weeekends to travel by train a lot (Brussels is like two hours from everything by train), I will put some thoughts together and could make some suggestions. My one question would be there are two types of travelers (in my experience) the people that like to see it, do it and move on to the next thing and people that like to linger, and thoroughly enjoy the details. I noticed this while traveling with a friend in Barcelona. We went to a museum together and I made it through the entire thing, went back to find him and he was on like the second exhibit reading everything about each object.

So if your style is see it, do it, next or take your time, I'd give you two different answers.


Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk

Also a great post, thank you. Of the two types you described I'd say we're more of the "see it, do it, and move on" type of people. I can appreciate a Museum but I would be you in that situation, and not your friend.

Ok, I'd personally say do 2-3 nights max at any single location then, probably 2. I'd also take the train because you get to see so much of the country. You could start in Amsterdam, train to Brussels, train to London, maybe fly to Barcelona, Paris, etc.

One thing to keep in mind, while each city is completely it's own thing, cities in the same country will begin to blend together. This was especially true for me in Germany. So that is why I suggested very different cities to keep mixing it up.

One place to consider is a place like Interlokken in Switzerland. They have something they call canyoning which is a once in a life time experience. YouTube it if you enjoy adventure, it was awesome.

Most of these cities have a Red Bus tour. I strongly recommend taking that (it is like a couple of Euros) and you get to see the highlights of each city. Then you can select which things interest you the most. It was a really helpful way of avoiding dud tourist attractions

I will put some thought into this tomorrow and either post or pm you some notes. I personally love Brussels, so will probably be a bit biased toward it.


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We are going in the middle of August. After reading some posts here I'm starting to get the idea that we should go from Stockholm -> Brussels, then fly from Brussels to Barcelona 4-5 days later. We can get our Amsterdam time in during those few days. We'd have about 5-7 days left once we got to Barcelona. Wouldn't mind skipping Germany and Paris as we can always do that later. Canyoning looks **** awesome. Might have to fit a trip out to Interlokken just to try that out. Thanks again, look forward to hearing what else you might have to say.

[Aaron It Out]

Depending on where you go, I also really recommend using Rome2Rio. It's a website that essentially compiles all the available transportation options (w prices). It's not particularly great for flights, although it's good for getting a rough estimate. However, it is hands down the best option for finding bus and trains to smaller tourist destinations within a country or for busing/training short distances between cities (1h-4h). For example, when I went to Romania, I used it to find the best busing options between Bucharest and various castles/villages in Transylvania and also used it to bus from Bucharest to Sofia, Bulgaria. The website does a great job of listing local bus agencies, so you're also not getting ripped off by lines that cater to tourists.

Since your window for traveling is pretty short I second using an airline like Ryan Air for trips between countries since Eurorail isnt as cheap as its made out to be (more than Ryan Air in most cases) and it can be pretty time intensive. Training is great for in country travel, I'd only recommend it for travel across Europe if you have time. Its a lot more conducive for trips that last around a month+.

In regards to your question on where to go/how long to stay, it really depends on what type of experience you want and how many opportunities you think you'll have to do a similar trip. A few years ago when I was living in Europe, I was doing trips to capitals every weekend. In retrospect though, I would recommend against it. The best experiences I had were when I could stay in one city for around 2 weeks. You get to relax, explore the city at your own pace and not feel like you're obligated to shuttle between touristy destinations. If there's a city/destination you and your SO are super interested in, I totally recommend that option. If you wanna bounce around, Id say you can do most cities in 3-4 days if you're productive each day.

Lastly, here are some cities that I recommend. A lot are not as popular, but are rising quickly in popularity. Lisbon, Ljubljana, Budapest, Dubrovnik, Salzburg, Sevilla, Brussels, Hamburg, Belgrade.

My #1 recommendation is Ljubljana, Slovenia. You get a mix of Balkan, Germanic and Mediterranean culture in a beautiful little country that is nestled between Croatia, Hungary/Austria and Italy. It's a 2 hour train ride from Venice, and every destination in the country is a 2-3 train ride away. If you go South, you get pristine Mediterranean coastline that rivals Italy/Croatia and if you go north you're basically in Hungary and you have green rolling mountains and castles. Also an overnight train ride away from Croatia, Serbia, etc so its very easy to do a Balkans trip.

If you're feeling adventurous and can ignore all the news, I also recommend Istanbul. It is the best city in the world imo. PM me if you have any other questions and good luck!

Thanks for all of that. Now I'm questioning whether I want to skip Germany since we were likely going to go to Hamburg. Again this not likely to be our last Europe trip so I wouldn't mind skipping Germany and a lot of France since we can plan other trips around some of those bigger destinations. I would love to be able to nest in a city for 2-3 weeks at least to get a really good feel for their culture, but given the nature of this trip where we already know we have to travel between a couple countries, I think we are better off hopping around a few different places.

[Nightfall]

If you decide to come to Hamburg, shoot me a message and I can give you all the information you need. If am here in August you are also invited for beer. I also know Denmark well and Belgium, especially regarding food and craft beer.

[drew881]

I would mix in cities with things to do in the country. 10 years ago I did a big Europe city trip and everything just blended in. Too many city squares, museums, bars, etc. We did Reykjavik (look up the Iceland Air stopover if you want to spend a couple days in Iceland on the way over (Amazing), Copenhagen (yuck+expensive as hell), Berlin (amazing), Prague, Bratislava, Budapest, Zagreb, and Ljubljana (amazing). But overall, it was just too much.

I would recommend going somewhere that allows you to see some cities, but also get out and do stuff outdoors. Ljubljana would be great for that. Places like Istria in Croatia and Trieste in Italy are small and picturesque, right on the water, and the mountains are close by too. Venice is right near this area as well. You could easily do Venice (fly in and spend 1 day max), see the Mediterranean, go to Slovenia, which has everything (mountains, wine, Balkan meats).

Lake Bled outside of Ljubljana


Slovenia/Venice is also right near the Dolomites, which is one of the most amazing mountain ranges in Europe. There are tons of great walking trails, hiking and climbing if you are into that. I spent 5 days in Cortina, Italy this summer hiking and it was fantastic. Plus its on the way to Germany, where you could continue north and see Bavaria, Munich (4 hours from Dolomites). It looks like Switzerland, but with the prices of Italy. There is really cool WWI history here too, if you like that sort of thing







I forget how much time you have, but I would fly into Venice, see it for a day, do the Slovenia stuff, go to the Dolomites for 3 days, go to Munich, Prague or Berlin, and fly from Berlin. You'd probably need to rent a car (warning, for Italy you need to have an INTL drivers license to rent a car which is super easy to get in the US beforehand), but you'll save time not waiting for trains, not waiting for busses, and in the annoying cities like Venice, you would just go visit it first before picking up the car.

[Ad Hoc]

I think it depends on who you go with, what type of person you are and your budget. Mid August most people head to the beaches in Southern Europe. If you going with wife/gf a trip to Santorini is a must as well as Venice. If you go with a bunch of dudes then Ibiza or Mykonos. If you want to see museums etc then London, Paris, Rome if you want to see picturesque cities then Prague, Budapest, eastern Europe in general, if you want beaches then Spain or Greece etc