Planning a trip to Europe...

You didn't read careful enough what I wrote: the hotel is brand new, opened just 10 days ago, so I don't think there are stains from previous occupants.
I said, we probably have to stucco because not everything might be ready yet...and it was a joke - thus the smiley at the end. Do we have to spell out everything for you?

Europe!



Europe!



Europe!



Folks, I'm getting excited now. Appreciate all the great advice. Now on to some more specifics for you:

I've always wanted to travel to Europe. Even as a little kid, the place just seemed, I don't know, WAY more interesting than the town in Texas I grew up in; it had history, culture, differences.... everything's the same here in America, or at least it seems that way when you're a kid.

I was always huge into military history - loved reading about Napoleon and the Duke of Marlborough and Ceasar, about Vikings and Picts and hordes of the Mussel-man bearing down on a town. So - outside of some mildly interesting Revolutionary war and rather bloody Civil war stuff here in the states - Europe always seemed to be where it's at for me. I never had much of a chance to go when I was younger; coming from a family of rather limited means, we took most of our vacations to see family in other states, and always drove. 'See America!,' my dad would say. Well, I've seen it.

I recently got a promotion and raise at work and have dedicated a big portion of it to taking this trip. Brass tacks:

- Two weeks is the longest I can reasonably be away from my job. Also, we have a couple of cats at home, and I would feel pretty bad leaving them longer than that - we have people who will look in on them every day, but they'll still be pissed that we're gone, and I don't really want to board them.

It seems from what people say here that this is only enough time to really see three cities or so. I know from some past trips we've taken that it's a real mistake to hop around too much - I don't want to spend all my time traveling instead of experiencing stuff! That being the case, it's hard to know what to do - hard to know which cities to visit.

Top cities I'm interested in: Paris, Rome, London, Amsterdam, Venice, Barcelona, Berlin/Frankfurt. And those are just the big ones! I'm sure there are an infinite number of smaller cities that we could spend a week in each and really enjoy.

2nd tier: Brussels, Munich, anywhere in Scandinavia, Prague, many other cities in England, Dublin and Ireland in general.

We do have a bit of an ongoing argument over this one, as my wife is far more interested in Italy-Spain-France, and I'm more interested in England-Germany-Denmark. It looks like we'll be hitting Paris no matter what; suggesting going to Europe without going to Paris gets me funny looks from our friends.

I'm really interested in hearing about other smaller towns around some of these large cities, that we could stay in at a lesser rate - or even just for an interesting or good experience. I like small towns as much as big cities. I also think it would probably be great to hit the beach for a day or two right in the middle of the trip; relaxing days where nothing is planned but laying about.

- I've been thinking about it, and yaknow what? I don't want to ******* drive while I'm on vacation! I don't even LIKE driving, why would I pay a lot of money to do it? So, it's going to be the train and planes and walking for us.

Some of you may laugh, but I've never been on a train of consequence before. I'm not even sure how comfortable or expensive it is to travel on one or how long they take. Is the food onboard worth eating? Is a sleeper car worth taking, if we're headed from one country to another? Are they generally safe and considered a good deal? Will my wife have problems with her low-grade motion sickness?

We like to walk but can't see doing a 'hiking' tour of anywhere. Not enough time to accomplish that. I'm big on public transit within cities tho; other than Paris and London, what other cities have a metro that's worth anything?

We'd also consider doing a day on a barge down-river or taking a ship across a channel or some **** like that, if it were affordable. Dunno if it is.

In other travel-related stuff, does anyone have any experience with EasyJet? I have heard from some folks that it's the way to go when hopping from city to city in Europe.

We'll pack light, but not likely light enough for me. I can get by with a single backpack, no problemo - I never bring more than a backpack, anywhere, period. My wife usually has a small rolling piece of luggage that she carries, carry-on size, and that's it. This is helpful for the small hotel rooms we've stayed in over the years and makes rushing to a plane a hell of a lot easier.

- What we want to do: Eat! Eat! Eat! Food is the first thing that comes to my mind. We love to cook and try new things and the opportunity to sample some authentic cooking in other countries is pretty exciting to me.

One question: I'm allergic to shellfish, and I need to be careful not to eat anything that's gonna make me puff up and die while traveling. Are menus in English at all? Is this a common allergy abroad, or am I going to get funny looks?

And drinking! Did I mention drinking? I love beer and wine, I would love the opportunity to sample some fine beers in each country. I love Belgian beers. We have a great tradition going here on the west coast here in America, I'd love to go over there and sample some beers that I could then ship back home to my friends. Or go to some breweries and suck straight from the tap!

Also, see sights! Though I'm not as big into typical touristy crap. Eiffel tower, sure, great. But, the small, 300-year old building where someone famous lived? Awesome! I like seeing how people actually live today in ways that aren't all that far removed from long ago. Here in America you can only see so much of that, I'm hoping for a richer experience in Europe.

- Budget: now we're really down to brass tacks.

I'd hope that, including airfare, we could do two weeks abroad for: Seven thousand dollars. It's hard to know how realistic that is. I understand that there's a real tendency to go over once you arrive; I mean, who goes on vacation to scrimp and save?

We went to Hawaii a few years back, during a time in which we had FAR less money than today, and I felt pressure towards the end to stop spending so much money on stuff. In retrospect, it was foolish. We should have spent that extra $300 that I saved, we wouldn't even notice it now. I want to have a good time and really experience what the place has to offer. We don't need a luxury hotel or the finest food, just fun and some souvenirs.

- Language. How much do we need to know to get around? I know probably a thousand words of french, three hundred German and practically no Italian. I speak Mexico Spanish, poorly and reluctantly. I'm given to believe that it's not hard to find English speakers, but I don't want to offend people by assuming that this is the case. Is it hard to order a coffee in a plaza in Rome? To get dinner in Paris? How much effort should I put into boning up on my language skills before I go? I'm totally willing to do so.

More later; have to get back to work now. Thanks for your input everyone, I'm going to think about what everyone has had to say and try and come up with a few sample itineraries.

Cycloptichorn

Paris is a good choice; don't miss the Musee d'Orsay, one of my favorites. Learn to use the Metro; it's the best way to see most of Paris that fast and efficient.

Otherwise, search the internet for the highlight sites of Paris. The Eiffel Tower can be rather crowded, and can take hours to go upside, but you can also get a very good view of Paris from the top of the Arch de Triomph.

Germany is also a good choice; Berlin has many good museums and restaurants, and the train system there is very good. Hitler's bunker is no longer there, but the Wall Museum and the museum at Checkpoint Charlie are very good. Unfortunately, Checkpoint Charlie looks like it was built last week; everything looks new. The Holocaust Memorial is something to see.

London used to be one of my favorite destinations, because they have some of the best museums in the world (*British Museum is one of the best in the world), both Tates, and the National Gallery will keep you busy for more than a day. The theater district is about the most expansive in offerings, and London is a great walking city with easy access to the Underground.

Good luck!

Paris eh.

I'd do that on a separate trip, but given your specs ...

I'd fly to Amsterdam, spend 3 or 4 days there, then travel through Belgium to Paris (total of 5 days, travel + Paris time), then travel to Prague (another 5 days, travel + Prague time), then up to Berlin and finally take the train back to Amsterdam.

I picked out one segment to do some initial pricing.

You can currently get a room in a 4* hotel in Berlin for less than$63 US/night.
The train from Berlin to Amsterdam takes 12 - 13 hours and costs 49 Euros/person.
http://www.nshispeed.nl/en/international-train-timetable
The train goes right into Schiphol airport, so you could fly out directly if you timed it well.

Prague is supremely affordable (I price it out frequently ).

Paris seems expensive to me, but I don't know what it's like at the edges of the city.

The Dutch are insanely multilingual and wonderfully proud of it. Germans usually seem quite happy to speak English to you.



If Paris wasn't on the "must" list, I'd go Amsterdam to Berlin to Prague to Bratislava (gotta say hey to Dagmaraka), then go by boat
http://www.viennadirect.com/travel/river.php
to Vienna (crazy famous for its food and coffee) before going back to Amsterdam. Or maybe .... since we're in Bratislava already, might as well try to connect with Nimh in Budapest.

Personally, I wouldn't fly easyjet but look for alternative airlines, if a flight is the choice.
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Well, I just can offer a free full board including excursions and transits here ... something, some other A2K'ers know already

so you agree that you're going to have at least two trips to Europe - negotiate which one happens first (maybe have the southern Europe lover have the bigger say in planning the northern Europe trip and vice versa?)

All good suggestions. Amsterdam also has the van Gogh museum, the canal cruise, Anne Frank house, and Kukenhoff (sp).

I've been to Prague about four times, and always enjoy visiting there. The astrological clock is one of the main attractions of the old square, but walking the surrounding area is also an enjoyable experience with their markets, cafes, and theaters. The Charles Bridge is a must.

I've not noticed Nimh posting on a2k, but still think about him living in Budapest. Budapest has several key attractions including the old train station converted into a market, and the pedestrian street in front with many good places to have a meal and/or drink.

BTW, take up Walter on his offer; he'll show you places most tourist will miss that are memorable, enjoyable, and fascinating. He drove me to the bay of Hamburg where all the ships pass through, and they play the national anthem of the country of origin every time it passes by. They have a special pedestrian platform to observe the transit of the ships. Also, in Hamburg, they have one of the best Maritime Museums I have ever visited. You can spend the whole day there, and not see everything. I really enjoyed spending three days with McT, Fiona, Walter, and Ulla last year in November.

I miss Nimh and wish he would come back. But, I don't think he'd want to meet me, at all. He was always so dispassionate about our politics and I was always the exact opposite; I'm afraid that my poor behavior here at times contributed to the environment that caused him to stop posting here. At least, if I recall correctly, he made some comments to that effect some years ago. I feel bad about it.

Cycloptichorn

Smiles for Cyclo and Wife.

I have to back up and say I agree with Spendius on cycling as another way around. I'm no cyclist, but lots of people cycle in europe. A friend cycled in France (she goes on cycling trips with a group of friends) and batches of people cycle their way through Tuscany. Well, far as I know, bicycles are all over the place.

As anyone here would guess, food is a big part of my adventure just about anywhere. I'd probably die of ingested cheese if I ever got to France.

Lots of people here can tell you what to see that's near Paris, and I can go on endlessly about what is near Rome. Train rides from there aren't very long. Even Rome to Siena isn't very long, though it included a short transfer at Chiusi (to a small cute train). Chiusi itself is an old Etruscan town, but we didn't stop to go through it. Siena is for me a favorite place on earth.

Oh, I used the metro in Rome all the time - it's extensive. I would usually take the metro to where I wanted to go first and then walk back. Tended to walk (I counted at one point) at least five miles on any given day. Sometimes ten. Take comfortable shoes (obvious).

Me, I wouldn't do three big cities in what is left of two weeks. To me that's too crazy. One big one, max two, one small one, or some small towns. Even in one city, given you like the place, it's hard to ever see enough. Just the buildings can be overwhelmingly interesting.

Amsterdam? Haven't been, but I can imagine going there and staying within the surroundings the whole time, using it as a base, even as a base to places you might think are far. Things are not far, compared to Texas, and transportation is generally fantastic.



PS. I've never eaten on a train there, though I have at train stations at, say, 6. a.m. The trains are reasonably fast.

Paris is expensive, no question about it - the food more so than your hotel,
so you might not make it to any other destination ....just kidding, but be prepared that food in general is more expensive in Europe and the Dollar to Euro is right now $ 1.22 - another backlash.

I'd suggest London first and then Amsterdam (I am going there next week) is a funky place and very lovely, you can get cheap accommodations and cheap food. Then you head to Paris and since it's the end of your trip you can see how much money you have left and where you can dine and sleep. I think I would not cramp in more than these 3 cities for starters....

Anyway, once you've settled on the cities you want to visit, then we can tell you more precisely what to see and where to stay and where to eat.

Maps - my favorites are the big ones (that used to run around $9.00, by now they'd be much more) that were of an entire country with many of its small towns in fairly tiny print. Maybe once you decide on which country or area you are going to visit you might want one of those. After that, I like individual city maps (train stations again), and those can be pretty complex or not very. Hotels, etc., often have basic city maps. (You can get the larger city maps here in US too, granted you know already where you are going)

Just read that, sounds good to me.

I still miss him too. As I remember then, he was getting all devoted to blogging - but I suppose the rest of us drove him around the bend.

Oh, I'll handle all that electronically. Physical media is so gauche.

Cycloptichorn

Next week is coming soon - I'm excited for you.

It never entered my head Cal that a newish hotel open for business would need the walls decorating. Having been informed it was a joke with the smiley, something I wouldn't dream of doing as it assumes the readers are in the junior school, it made much more sense it being in Amsterdam, the vice capital of western Europe, or sleaze capital might be a better word, that it was the detritus of the previous customers that was intended to make us smile. Or the thought of it.

Girl loves her maps..

Cyclo - you deserve a good smack!

A proper map, a real MAP, should be the start of your planning.

Buy a map of Europe - put it on a wall somewhere. See where places are in relation to each other. Yes - I know you can do this electronically - but having a hard copy, at least at the start, really helps. I use google maps and Via Michelin, for point to point information and detail. I think you become quite blinkered if you don't have a broad overview to start.

Prague - Bethie - I'll be there in October. C'mon over!

I've never been before. The map I have on my wall at present is of the city of Prague - trying to orient myself a bit - in an attempt to overcome my spectacular loss of sense of direction on the northern hemisphere. Once I'm there, even with a map, I'm disoriented. The sun's in an odd (i.e., not southern hemisphere) position; the cars go the wrong way. I don't know how you people manage to stay upright. Fortunately, I mostly travel with someone who's not so confused.

Easyjet = OK - but watch your luggage weight - and you'll pay extra for everything. Read all the conditions carefully. Check mainstream airline fares against the total for Easyjet. Check which airports they use. You don't save time or money if you then have a 90 minute bus trip to where you want to be. Same (but more so) for Ryanair. I haven't used any others.

Trains - I love trains. I did the Eurail thing - the traveller without a clue - that place sounds interesting , lets go- when I was younger. It's nothing like the bargain now that it was then. Now, if you know where you're going, point to point fares are much cheaper in total, especially if you can book early. Motion sickness on overnight trains - I haven't experienced it yet - I'll let you know after my Vienna to Florence trip in October.

Keep reading and asking questions.

It's great to see so many responses here. I joined Abuzz originally because of the great travel threads. Not many of those travellers moved to A2K.

Haha, I just can't see the use of carrying around several paper maps when my one lil' electronic device has all the maps I could want in there, for every city or small town I could ever want, at a touch of a button. And I can put in extensive notes, itineraries, read reviews of hotels and restaurants... it's all linked right up. Much more efficient. And I'm going to be carrying the electronics anyway...

If there's one thing I'm good at, it's finding my way around. I don't get lost very often. I don't have an eidetic memory (my older brother does) but it's pretty close. I can generally see the map in my head and look at the streets and figure out where I am by comparing the angles of the street intersections to the angles on a map. We'll see how well that works out when I'm in a city that was built more than a hundred years ago, tho!

Actually this brings up a good point: my wife and I use Sprint and it's sure as sunshine that our phones aren't going to work in Europe. Anyone have any experience with phone rentals? How the heck do you get them back when you're done, if you leave from a different city you start in?

Cycloptichorn