Hi fellow ozbargainers,
We are planning a first time Europe tour for our fifth anniversary in May. The countries I have in mind are
• England (will be buying return ticket from Sydney to London)- 2 nights
• France (Paris and Nice)- 4 nights
• Switzerland- 2 nights
• Italy (Florence, Rome and Venice)- 4 nights
• Germany (Berlin)- 1-2 nights
• Netherlands (Amsterdam)- 1-2 nights
• Iceland (2 nights)
• London
Our plan is to land in London, take a train to Paris and fly to Nice. From Nice fly to Switzerland and Then from Switzerland fly to Venice. I am thinking doing a road trip from Venice to Rome stopping in between. From Rome fly to Germany and then to Amsterdam fly to Iceland from Amsterdam and then back to London and finally back to Sydney
However, I was planning to squeeze Greece in between for 2-3 nights and I can’t figure out how to go about it. I looked up flight tickets for above mentioned cities and not counting Greece its coming out be around A$900-$1000 per person.
Please help me figure out if this is good way to travel around and should I reduce number of days spent on cities. Is there any way I can do Greece as well? Any sort of advise is appreciated. Thanks in advance.
Help Me Plan First Time 3 Weeks Europe Tour
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Thanks for the advise mate, which ones do you reckon I should get rid of, apart from Iceland and Switzerland.
You probably need to spend some time looking at Maps and working out a bit more of a logical path. If you can, fly into one to city and out of another rather than backtracking.
In Europe it's usually easier and cheaper to take the train rather than fly anyway. I'd only fly if the train journey is going to be 6 hours plus.
I would also scrap the car hire plan in Italy too if you are only wanting to visit those major 3 cities - they have restrictions zones in the historical centre parts and you'll be fined if you enter.
For 3 weeks and a first time in Europe to hit some main sites maybe the following as an absolute minimum time in each place…
London - 3 nights (there is lots to see and you may be jetlagged)
Eurostar/Bus to Paris - a couple of hours
Paris - 2/3 nights
Train to Switzerland/Austria/Bavaria alps area (possibility of a night train to save time)
Alps area - 3/4 nights
Train to Italy
Venice - 2 nights
Florence - 2 nights
Rome - 3 nights
This gives you about 5 nights to play with so you can extend your stays, add a destination (random flight somewhere if you want) or schedule in some day trips. There is lots to see and experience so just enjoy it without rushing.
@dahax77: Thanks for the info, what do you recon about this, I am thinking of doing 23-25 days now.
London- 3 nights
Iceland- 3 nights ( fly from London)
Amsterdam- 2 Night (Fly from Iceland)
Munich ( 3 night) (fly from Amsterdam)
Zurich ( 3 nights) (take train from Munich)
Italy( 4 nights, i know not enough but will do for me, will take train from Venice-Florence-Rome)
Paris- 2 nights( fly to Sydney from here)
Thank you
@eastwood27: The thing to keep in mind is that you will lose the day you travel. By the time you pack, get to the airport, fly, get to the new accomodation and book in. So drop a day between cities then revise your timetable. Particularly your time in Italy will, largely, be spent getting between cities. I would drop Venice and just do Florence and Rome. You need to work out what you want to do and look at pre purchasing some of the museum visits. Things like the Uffizi in Florence, the Vatican museums, the Louvre. Do some research and plan your day. We used the hop on/hop off in Rome, which takes you to the main attractions, but you need to push your way on as it can be crowded.
Try to avoid eating anywhere near an attraction, particularly in Italy. Carry a water bottle with you wherever you travel.I would recommend the Carte de Musee for Paris and, at least, 3 days. You don’t need to eat at restaurants as, between the Boulangeries and supermarkets, you can create a good meal. However, looking at the Prix Fixe can be reasonable value. In Paris accomodation is best near trains. We prefer around the Les Halles area as the trains mesh and you can walk to many of the major museums from there.
Personally, I would drop London and concentrate on Europe.
@eastwood27: It's better than the original plan, just maybe keep looking at the order to find the best logical path between places. For example Paris and Amsterdam are only 3 hours apart via train so maybe visit them together? Google Flights and the Seat 61 train page are the best tools to piece it all together I find.
Also any particular reason for Zurich? I've never been but to me Switzerland is about the alpine scenery, maybe google the Jungfrau region….
Or you could also consider Austria instead since it's directly between Munich and Italy - it's also much cheaper than Switzerland.
@dahax77: No particular reason for Zurich? Planning to see Swiss Alps, so Zurich is just a stop. I am planning on hiring a car from Zurich to Swiss Alps and do some sight seeing in between.
@eastwood27: 3 nights in Iceland isn't much, I know it looks small but some of the things you might want to see will be several hours away by car.
I'd possibly skip Zurich,it's a nice city but not especially exciting, Switzerland is beautiful so you might find more value going to somewhere like Lucerne or one of the other valley towns.
@Nebargains: Planning that now, will definitely skip Zurich and see some other parts as advised on this thread.
@eastwood27: Don't stay 3 nights in Zurich: Zurich - Train to - Lucerne - train to Locarno/Lugano - Train to Venice.
Locarno is smaller than Lugano. When are you going, visiting places is very seasonal.
E.G. Locarno is dead in winter, but incredible in summer.@cameldownunder: Thanks OP, That's great idea. Was planning to hire a car in Zurich and move around Switzerland for sightseeing.
What are you talking about? The train is usually about five times the price of flying. What information are you basing that claim on?
@MrMcHairyHead: If you get a Eurail pass then using the train can be, roughly, the same price as flying. When you fly you also need to take into account the getting to and from the airport. If you go for the cheapie airlines there is always the risk they will fold before you get a chance to fly. Also the train is a much nicer way to travel. I’ve done quite a bit of train travel in Europe and my first instance is checkout the train then look at the flight. Look up “the man in seat 61”.
https://www.seat61.com/@MrMcHairyHead: If you book ahead most trains are much cheaper - by the time you add luggage, transport to the airport etc.
I'm heading to Europe in December and to generalise
Trains - 15-40 euro
Flights with luggage - 50 - 100 euroYou don't really need a Rail Pass unless you want to pay more for the convenience of changing plans and booking last minute.
When I first went to Europe Ryanair etc was dirt cheap, but I think prices have crept up.
@dahax77: I think your train price might be a tad underdone if you are going TGV or travelling in Switzerland. That is where the rail passes do come into their own.
@try2bhelpful: I should have clarified that booking ahead is months rather than weeks but the majority of rail routes in Europe are under 40 euros if you book in advance - including TGV. Switzerland is more expensive I totally agree but that is just Switzerland in general. Rail Passes are all about flexibility and making things easy but damn they are expensive and you often still need to pay surcharges.
@dahax77: Maybe, but when I’ve looked at booking the individual rail prices can be much higher than 40 euros, even if you book months in advance. The other thing is some Rail travel involves multiple sectors between countries which makes the rail pass easier. However, using the man in seat 61 site gives you good options. With out last trip we did rail as much as we could but, for some reason, I couldn’t fathom, the train between Paris and Madrid had an overnight stop in Barcelona and the trip from Barcelona to Madrid was more expensive than flying. When we’ve used rail passes it was, roughly, $100 per day, plus seat booking fees. Some inter country travel and scenic trains in Switzerland make you book the seat. Also, I am talking first class rail here rather than second class. Some of us have standards :).
@MrMcHairyHead: Yeah, Eurail pass looks expensive. However ticket from one stop to another doesn't look that expensive. Some flights in May are as cheap as $34.
@eastwood27: @eastwood27
Lots of low cost airlines in Europe, just like tiger/jetstar they charge lots $ for luggage on top. Some Ryanair flights only allow a handbag size bag for free as they don't even have overhead bins for luggage (to save weight) so everything has to be checked.
I wouldn't pay extra for priority boarding as usually 90% of the plane has paid for priority boarding!Book them as soon as you book your outbound flight as they may be $34 (or even less as lots start €19 including taxes one way) but basically they sell 10 seats at that, then 10 at €35, then 10 at €55 and by the time it's half full they're €200 and the week before tickets could be €600+.
@eastwood27: When you're travelling, try to do it during the late night.
If you're talented enough you can force yourself to sleep. That way you save yourself a day in travelling, and hundreds of dollars in hotel fees. I did this travelling in Asia, I slept on buses, trains, planes, and locked my suitcase at the 24/7 Self-Serve Station. Even if I used it for a couple hours, it gave me time to do a bit of wondering, grab some brekky, and check-in to a Hostel. Then just double-back to get the belongings to drop off in Hostel.I too would recommend giving a 1-day transition period between each cities. Basically I am saying that your 3 weeks travel is actually much smaller than it appears. If you wanted these sights, you would've needed to be a bit more meticulous with your itinerary and on top of that stretch out the travel to 5 weeks time. Personally, I think its worth it if you can afford the time/money.
Everyone I've spoken to about there euro trip said they did not have enough time in Italy,
Leave italy out and do it as a seperate tripI tend to agree on that. There are so many great places in Italy. Florence, Venice, Rome, Cinque Terra, Lake Como, Sienna, Sorrento, Pompeii, etc.
Agreed. On my euro trip I spent just over 2 weeks in Italy and I felt like I had covered it sufficiently and was keen to move on.
Although you could see quite a lot of Venice in a day. I spent 3 nights there and enjoyed looking around at a relaxed pace.
England and France would be enough. Plenty to see between London and Paris, plus maybe a few small excursions out of town.
Agreed. I did a similar number of stops a few years ago, but we did it over 6 weeks - and that was still pretty hectic.
You've been watching too much Amazing Race. :) England, France, Germany and Italy should all have a week or more.
it could be all for the insta pics as well.
can photoshop it as well, if it meant that. Its really an ignorance. Have no idea
Four nights in Florence, Rome AND Venice?
You need at least 3,4,2 for those cities. Pick one and do one properly.
It sounds like you’re trying to come back and be able to say you went to these places, but with these times you won’t see anything.
Min number of nights for a first visit to these cities I would recommend:
London - 4 nights
Paris - 4 nights
Nice - 2 nights (I’ve never been, I would consider 2 but research and maybe stay more)
Switzerland (I’m assuming Zurich ?) 2-3 nights
Florence - 3 nights, 4-5 if you want to do day trips to Pisa, Siena, Bologna
Rome - 4-5 nights
Venice - 2-3 nights
Berlin - 2-4 nights (so many museums if you’re that way inclined. Could stay for 7 nights!)
Amsterdam - 2 nights
Iceland:
*just Reykjavik? 2 nights
*visiting any other park of Iceland - 2-3 nightsIts not about that, had no idea that Italy deserved more than 4 days. Will try to plan accordingly. I can do without Germany and Amsterdam.
I am thinking doing a road trip from Venice to Rome stopping in between
FYI trains in Italy are super fast and reliable. Venice to Florence is 2 hours and Florence to Rome is about 1 hr 20. Italian drivers are entertaining, but very different to here. I would strongly suggest the trains.
yeah i've done the high speed trains as well. book them yourself. IIRC they release tickets 3 months ahead of schedule so book right away for cheapest price.
book hotels near the main train stations as well.
These are vast countries. Italy alone deserves months
You know what, why not YouTube the destination to see if it's your/wife liking for recommended visiting spots.
We always do that when we go for overseas vacation.
Dave is right on the money.You don't appear to have factored in the time travelling in to you equation.Also think about flying out of somewhere other than London. Why go back there just to fly out? Fly into London and back home from Rome or something.
That's nice advice, compared to other cities London appeared to be cheaper to fly out of. However, I could return back from any of those cities. The flights looked between 1-2 hours from each cities, however I hadnt factored the time in airport. Thanks.
Zurich to venice is about 7 hours on the train (with an hour stop in Milan if you choose to add one), or about (conservatively) 1 hour to the airport, 2 hours early, 2 hour flight, 1 hour hassle at the airport, 1 hour into Venice = 7 hours. Trains are so much easier.
Use Rome2Rio to compare actual times from city centre to city centre.
Thanks mate, will look into Rome2Rio
@eastwood27: Also - if you really are keen on doing as much as possible I would suggest looking into tours. You’ll definitely pay more but transport and accom will be sorted for you. They all provide either bus or walking tours through the cities too. Just be sure to pick one that provides free time in each city so you can do what you want rather than just be herded around.
And you get to go on the Bernina Express with some planning! One of our better life memories.
It's not just the airport time. Packing up your stuff, checking out, transport to airport, airport security, flight, luggage, transport to new accommodation, checking in etc. Every transit is a time killer.
why not fly into london and fly out of athens (or wherever your last destination is?). organise a multi-city itinerary on your main flights. don't waste time going back up to london. it may also cost you more than the fare difference on your main itinerary.
but overall it seems you are cramming in too much in too little time ie. entire countries in just 2 nights.
sounds like you're excited about countries but with little idea of what you want to see and do.
so my advice is to cut a lot out of that based on many of those countries being much better scenery wise way outside of cities rather than city 2-3 night visits. as a presumably young couple i figure you want some city sightseeing and some beach time.
london - i think a quick walk around the main sights in a day is enough
paris - same deal, see the tower and any museums and you're done
switzerland - skip it, zurich isn't brilliant and this country is more about spending time in the mountains and valleys
italy - florence is nice, rome has important sights but otherwise a big and dirty city and venice is amazing but always crowded. if you want to drive between venice and rome it will be just highways, the train is fairly long as it is - take that instead
berlin - skip it, not that great
amsterdam - a day to walk around
iceland - 2 nights? skip it altogether. nowhere near enough.
greece - i think is really pushing it. you'd be better off skipping this and doing it another time and flying out of milan or something after you're done in italyremember flights across europe can be at least a few hours and there's transit to airport and time through customs/immigration which adds to your transit time = less time for sightseeing.
i've done a carry-on hotspotting trip of europe with budget carriers like ryanair and it's exhausting. 6am flights (wake up 4am) then fly out at night, sleep, wake up, sightsee, fly out etc.
i would put barcelona in there and even remove nice altogether
i would replace berlin with munich and go to the alps with a train
i would never miss budapest. ever.
i would add prague in there somewhere and take something else out.Appreciate the detailed information. Thank you. Friend of mine did 24 hours in Iceland although not much but you could squeeze your time there, so was factoring Iceland into the equation. The main hindrance I am facing about Iceland being travel time to there.
Great idea about Munich as we love more of a sightseeing. Thank you once again.If you go to Munich you could have a look at a day trip to Zugspitze on the train, scenery there is lovely and you could probably do that instead of Switzerland.
Also, Berlin is great, it's not great to look at but for all the history there, it is an awesome place.
For Iceland, it depends on what you want to see. 24 hours is only enough to walk around Reykjavik and a trip to the Blue Lagoon. I did a rushed drive around the entire island in 7 days, where most recommend 10 days for that. Still saw most of the main sites and it is by far the most beautiful country I've ever seen. Followed this with 2 weeks in Italy split over Rome, Cinque Terre, Florence and driving around the Tuscan region.
Check out flights from France return.
Usually cheaper than London.just did, found cheaper. Thanks
Yeah, London is known for it's high airport taxes and fees.
YOu can just go toLondon and return from Paris (or vice versa)
no need to wait time, depending on your itinerary. Time is not something you have especially if you are doing some many places!
Don’t buy a return ticket, buy a multi city ticket and fly out of your last destination. UK has high departure tax and you will be adding extra flight/hotel travel time returning to London.
Also I think you are trying to do too many things to enjoy it. At this pace you will be constantly travelling. I’d save Iceland Greece for the next trip.
Airports around the world are pretty dull, and the cheap flights are always early in the morning ruining the night before because you’ve got to get up super early. Public transport is great in Europe I’d use ferry trains and bus.
I’d take advantage of a euro rail pass or flix bus or mega bus or D.B. Bahn. You get to see so much more using these forms of transport over planes.
You could spend months in each of these countries and not see everything, unless you just want to take photos for Instagram.Something like this would be good
Au-london
London 4 nights
Eurostar to Amsterdam
Amsterdam 2 nights
Train to Paris
Paris 3 nights
Train to nice
Hire car for Rivera
St tropez Cannes Antibes nice Monaco Santa Margherita ligure 4 nights
Return car to nice
Fly to Berlin 3 nights
Berlin -australiahttps://www.seat61.com/Paris-to-Nice-by-TGV-train.htm
https://www.rome2rio.com/Thanks Mate. Really appreciate it.
I think you should make a list of what you want too see most in Europe and then work out an itinerary.
My first trip to Europe I went to England and Paris almost 3 weeks.In England I went to art galleries and museums, cathedrals, tower, abbey road, Stonehenge and Windsor castle and took in two shows, pub crawl.
In Paris art galleries, Montmartre, Eiffel Tower,Notre dame, other tourist sites, night views, eating food.I did the things that interested me.
In subsequent trips I went to other places in Europe that interested me….
As others have mentioned look into train travel for getting around Europe.
Key benefits over plane travel:
* Don't worry about security restrictions
* Get to the station 15 minutes before rather than hours before
* Train stations are usually in the city centre, while airport could be an hour away by train, and the airport train usually has a very high fare
* Luggage always free and unlimited
* Get up and stretch your legs
* Scenery
* Easy transfer to public transport to get to your accommodationSeat61 is a god-like website for information about train travel: https://www.seat61.com/
Thanks mate.
Just be mindful overnight trains are are not always safe…. my mate was gassed and robbed whilst asleep
And train Paris to nice is 5hr so no slower than plane really
Tip for Milan train station… The sign board doesn't show the platform number for your train until about 10 minutes before departure, very annoying but how they do it.
I wouldn’t rely on the board being correct either. They are prone to changing the platform, on a whim, as the train pulls in.
also consider night sleeper trains for long distance.
You're trying to do way too many destinations in that space of time. You'll feel rushed and exhausted. Remove some destinations and save them for next time.
Better ask your boss for more time!
Contiki tours go for 3 weeks as everyone just gets drunk and maybe sees a couple of churches. Your itenirary seems a bit like one. Do you want to just see stuff and take a selfie or experience a place?
I admit I haven’t been to Zurich but have you looked at Interlaken? We love going there and the trip up to Schilthorn is terrific. Another option is Zermatt and do the two day travel pass there. Trains, gondolas and magnificent scenery.
Just looked it up. Thanks for the info. Is exactly what I needed, definitely spending more time in Switzerland. I am thinking about not going Germany and London this time.
Allow plenty of coin. Switzerland is expensive!
Very true but we found by staying at AirBnB, or places with their own kitchenette, you could get food to heat up from the supermarket which make it much cheaper. They have some nice premade soups and we got some decent pesto sauce to put on pasta. Switzerland is not a culinary highlight but the scenery is gorgeous. As I mentioned in another post doing Lucerne (Mt Pilates) train to Interlaken (Schilthorn via Trummelbach falls) and train to Zermatt (2 day travel pass) you pack a great trio of places in Switzerland with a lot of mountain views and some great train travel. Not a cheap option but one you’ll remember for a long time and great photos.
Best plan I even made was NO PLAN.
Just arrive in the city of choice when and for as long as you like.
May is perfect for this in Europe as its very quiet everywhere.Frankly though you will see nothing with this agenda other than airports and train stations.
Trim your planned stops by half and stay twice as longThe trip is too hectic as it is.
What are your main goals / experiences that you want to achieve on this trip? Is it culinary, scenery, sights, major cities, museums, historical? The narrow it down from there.
Thanks mate. Our main goal being scenery and sight seeing. Cities are secondary. For cities I am thinking a day in Paris and between 4-5 days in Italy.
The thing with Europe is a big chunk of the sightseeing is in the cities. It has such a long history that the cities are drastically different to anywhere else in the world. Paris in a day is like doing Sydney in 2 hours. 5 days in Italy isn't too bad at getting a glimpse and getting a taste of Italian culture and food.
What you have to be careful of doing "scenery" is that many daytrip destinations are really meant for locals doing weekend trips. You can end up using a lot of commuting time to visit sights that aren't necessarily great by world standards. Not everything is Switzerland level of spectacular. Like spending 2 days in Sydney and going to the Blue Mountains for the 2nd day… I reckon not worth it for most people.
Although Europe is compact compared to Australia you still have to assume every travel day as a lost day. Would you do Sydney Melbourne, Brisbane in 4 nights and expect to get a feel for the cities? Packing suitcases, finding out how to get to airports, lining up through security is all very tiring.
Also may is quite early. Certainly not guaranteed to be warm. Paris and London probably still quite cold and wet.
Depends what you want to go for? Big museums? Sitting at a rustic Cafe having a cappuccino? Beach? Physical sports?
In may I'd be sticking to south if France (Provence, Nice, Monaco) and then heading into Italy (cinque tera, Rome, florence, pompeii, positano). Or alternatively, the other coast of France (Biarritz) and then into Spain (San Sebastian, Barcelona).
You can fly in one port and out another easily. They are all usuualy thd same price except London is often 100more as it's further. Big ports are London, Paris, Barcelona, Milan, Rome).
In 3 weeks you should aim for maybe 5 destinations max. Think about hiring a car for some of it. You get to see more smaller places.
Thanks mate. We are planning to hire car in Switzerland, Italy and Iceland. However from some advise here its bad idea to do so in Italy. We are going to trim this trip down a bit. I can let go of London so it can be like Iceland-Amsterdam-Munich-Swiss Alps- Italy and last destination being Paris. Am I Still going overboard or it's ok? Thanks again
I’d skip Iceland and do it on another trip, it’s halfway to America. I’d dump Switzerland and go to Austria instead and spend a couple more days in Germany. I’d also definitely go to Barcelona. My preference would be London a couple of days, Eurostar to a couple of days in Paris, TGV down to Barca, then hire a car and drive across the bottom of France. For 3 days, to Monaco/Nice. I’d then drive up to Lake Como, dump the car in Milan, train to Florence and Rome, Plane to Vienna, couple of days, hire a car drive to Munich a day or two, then blast up to Berlin, a couple of days, then an ICE to Amsterdam, plane back to London.
Not to sound disrespectful, but it appears you haven’t travelled much.
You will always lose at least a day every time you change cities.
You need to pack/unpack at both accomodations, check out/in, get your bearings, and not to mention train to airports/check in/flight itself/collect luggage.
Give each city a minimum of 3 nights
I would disagree, especially if taking the train. Only thing is you must get up early.
Leave Zurich 9am, be in Lucerne 10 am, check in and out of hotel by 11 am, and you have most of the day
Leave lucerne by 9, be in Locarno by 11, check in and out being a tourist by 12.
Do not waste any time in Zurich. And you’ll need more time in London.
I have holidayed in Europe every year for the last 20 yrs.
As everyone has said your original proposal was way too busy . Go for the maximum length possible so you can get a feel for the places you are visiting Consider a cosmos type tourwhich will get you started and give you hints and confidence, and then go off on your own for the last 3 weeks or so .
On a travel day between cities , count it as a bonus if you have some spare time. Train travel is amazing and not for sleeping,,, you miss too much . Switzerland is Fantastic ( check parity of the dollar with Swiss franc and it’s usually not too expensive. )
Travel light, you can buy more if you need it..Don’t have too too much hanging off you. You’ll leave something behind
Consider the amount of extra clothes you may need for Iceland (haven’t been there though), but would do it another time.Elsewhere a cosy wool scarf and a windbreaker and lightweight umbrella (each) is enough warm clothing to take. Comfortable walking shoes and sandals are a must .
Always collect a hotel card from wherever you are staying ( even if you can remember the name, the locals probably won’t understand your accent when you get lost.)I also prefer a mud map from the hotel too so you are spatially aware and minimize data use.
Recommend wearing a valuables pouch too
When all else fails study a lonely planet for when you are on your own . Use the local TI (tourist information ) centers You learn a lot and they often also book accom. for you A general plan for each place saves wasting time and let’s you enjoy the surrounds rather than having your head in a device frantically accessing your next stop. Nowadays we manage with hotel WiFi only saves bothering with SIM cards and constantly answering texts.
Remember hiring a car is a very time consuming exercise drop off and pick up are notoriously SLOW and once out of the airports not often not centrally located . you will pay a higher rate for an automatic and driving even with a GPS can be stressful.Make sure you have a manual license As another trick is that the car you ordered will not be available.
For first timers Nice is not that spectacular, Berlin was memorable! The train between Nice area to Cinque terre to Rome is stunning.
Printing out a couple of currency conversions just before you leave will help prevent any nasty C Card surprises when you return. Keep your receipts and take 3 different cards if you can/ or get familiar with travel money cards.
Personally I spend a lot of time researching accom on line and have it booked before we leave and absolutely never go thro an Australian travel agent accom options are far too expensive …unless you want something extra special
Several cities have free guided tours in the season
Don’t forget the afternoon siesta culture out of the big cities, especially in Italy and France. Shops & TI may be closed and all comes alive again after 4 pm (It doesn’t get dark until after 9 pm ) markets close at 12- 1 pm
Depending when you are able to travel , chase the temperature eg start in Rome in June and head north or vice versa and AVOID traveling in August when the whole of Europe is on holiday and it is very hot and stifling in the long lines.
Eat where locals eat.
Enjoy,!Thank you for taking out time and sharing the information. Will take everything under consideration. Greatly appreciated.
May I suggest…
5th anniversary England
6th anniversary France
7th anniversary Switzerland
8th anniversary Italy
9th anniversary Germany
10th anniversary Netherlands
11th anniversary IcelandHave a wonderful life and many European holidays 😀
Wonderful 😆
Also from Venice you could take an affordable cruise to and around the Greek isles.
I'll never forget the view of Venice 'from above' at sunrise from my balcony on the cruise ship as we returned.
Edit: found my old video - so now you don't have to go 😂Thanks for sharing. Makes me wanna go more though. 😆
I think Venice has banned big cruisers.
Reading the comments so many people talk about packing/unpacking at each destination…. People unpack at a hotel?
I've always essentially lived out of the suitcase and "repacking" at the end of the stay is usually just putting chargers and toiletries in the suitcase, double checking I haven't left anything behind etc. 15-20 mins to repack.
Suggestions of factoring in an hour to two to pack and unpack at each destination is ludicrous.
Its mostly wasted time to check-in, check-out at the reception. Risk in encountering issues at the new hotel. Transport time/cost in doing the move.
I'm in Berlin currently on a 3 week Europe trip I can send u our itinerary if u like just pm me
I would recommend 4-5 night minimum in big cities such as London, Paris, Berlin, Rome, Amsterdam. Even longer… there is so much to do and see in these cities.
A bit less time in places such as Venice, Florence, Nice, etc.
Destinations such as Iceland - you can make an entire trip out of it. You need at least 6-7 days here to make it worthwhile - and if it’s in the summer, you can rent out a car and drive around. See some cool stuff. Iceland is expensive…
For your first big eurotrip, you don’t want to be spending 40-50% of your leave on transport or adjusting to jet lag, or waiting to check into hostels / hotels / commuting inbetween airports. It’s just a huge waste of time. Like everyone else said, cut down the number of places you want to visit. Focus on a certain part of Europe. Do it well. Then come back again and do a different part.
If you do it as you initially planned, you will want to see every single place again - since you can’t possible do and see enough things in such a short space of time to be satisfied.
Talk to any close friends who have already been to Europe and get their opinions of the places they've been. Hopefully they have similar taste to you.
Paris is an awful, run down city and there are many people there who don't care for tourists and are rude. There are some interesting attractions though. One night in that city is plenty.
Amsterdam and the Netherlands on the other hand is amazing. So clean and friendly. There are nice places you can travel out to if you're staying longer than a couple days.
You didn't mention Belgium… but Bruges and Ghent are such nice towns and in the area you're thinking.
It's probably not worth flying so far out of your way to Berlin. Especially if what you're mostly after is a German experience. There are lots of great German cities and towns that will take less time to travel to. Berlin's greatest attractions are it's war history and nightclubs, which isn't to everyone's taste.
May is really far out… but maybe you can find a special event in a European city that you're really interested in and make it part of your trip. I flew to Glasgow to see The Prodigy, which was way out but totally worth it.
I would wait and do Amsterdam and Belgium as a pair later on. We did that last trip and it is all easy by train. You can tie it back to Paris easily as well.
London - spend more nights here if you like to explore outside London. Anyway, 2 nights not even enough unless you just want to take some selfies :)
Paris is fine and beautiful. Parisian don't care with tourist, same with Sydney sider. Stay near the river. Avoid Gare du nord (transit is fine). Friend of mine stay near that area and he said it is like third world country. Transport is great like London.
Amsterdam is interesting, awesome and compact (CBD area). Open boat cruise is a must-do experience.
Berlin is big city. If it is a must, 2 nights is enough. IMO, it is better to visit Prague and Vienna (I had wonderful times here) then go down to Venice, Florence, Rome (well, I don't think you have enough time. Choose one of them)
Vienna is gorgeous.
Good list, but as other have said, seems bit rushed. Of that list I'd prob drop Greece and Venice (interesting to see once but overrated tbh. You can see it's 500 years past its prime. ). Perhaps go to Assisi instead. Keep Rome, that's great. (I'd also skip Florence if you aren't so set on it.) and if you think you'll really like Iceland, I'd add another few days to Iceland. And add an extra day to everything else.
Switzerland: the Alps are amazing, their cities boring in comparison (also more expensive than rest of Europe other than Iceland). Don't waste time in Swiss cities. Expensive and not so interesting.
Edit: noticed your happy to skip Amsterdam, so skip it.Thanks for the advise. Greece was just about pushing it but would be dropping it now. You spoke my mind, I was thinking of adding a day to Iceland. Switzerland for me is more about scenery and sightseeing, not interested in their cities anyway.
also drop iceland…ppl only go there to do the road trip around ring road- takes about 2 weeks.
My friend works for this company and I did one of their tours to Spain, France and italy last year. The company is called Touropa and they have heaps of tours all around europe. i did a quick search for you in May and they have 5 tours which travel through italy, switzerland, france, london, netherlands and germany. they have greece and iceland but you have to do it separately from these tours.
the tours are a little rushed but it was super cheap and took in all the sites i wanted to see. Next time ill probably spend a whole month just in italy, but to see all the destinations in a short time i recommend these guys.
check them out: https://www.touropa.com.au/en/tour-explorer/destiny/IT,DE,GB…Way too much mate
i have been to iceland- ring road - takes about 2 weeks to experience it. 2 days you can only experience the city which isnt that exciting
Way too much. I've done a fair bit of overseas traveling and the general sweet spot I've found is 3 days per city (can do more for big ones e.g. London, Rome, Paris).
I'd cull your list down to something like this. May even pay to drop Nice and spend an extra day in Rome and London.
• England (London) 3 nights
• France (Paris) 3 nights
• France (Nice) 2 nights
• Italy (Venice)- 2 nights
• Italy (Florence)- 3 nights
• Italy (Rome)- 3 nights
• Germany (Berlin)- 3 nights
• Netherlands (Amsterdam)- 2 nights
• England (London) 1 night
- 1
- 2
You're trying to pack in way too much mate - I'd take out 2-3 destinations minimum. You'll spend half the trip lining up/on transport/checking in and out and will end up exhausted without really getting to experience anything.