Routes through Europe/Trip Ideas

[Hondaracer]

Wife and I are starting to plan our trip to Europe, kind of a late honey moon. Planning on 3 weeks there and really dont have any sort of concrete plan as of yet. Both of us have been multiple times and have done a good chunk of western europe as well as scandinavia, however we arent opposed to going back to some places. We love France and are debating spending a decent chunk of the time just going to smaller towns and eating/drinking our way though.

So far we've dabbled in somthing like

Lisbon - Barceonla - France Misc. - Amsterdam

and

London - Amsterdam - Germany - Croatia

we like a mix of cities and smaller towns/beaches when we travel and i dont paticularly like to fly in between destinations and would rather train or drive, however sometimes it's shitty to waste a day just travelling between spots..

Anyone have any itineraries they could share?

Last trip we did South of france - Pisa - Cinque Terre - Florence - Interlaken - Paris, and had an amazing time, but spent perhaps a little too much time travelling in between destinations

[6793026]

Skip Barcelona, I love it there but if this is your honey moon / 3 weeks / something different, jump right to Eastern Europe.

I would fly to Paris just to kick it off; the reason why I would go there is because of it being a great 1st direct flight location. Last thing I want is YVR - London - X location. That's a lot of lay over just to get to your 1st spot.

Germany was ok, I've been there 3 times. My next bucket list would be Prague, Budapest, Croatia if I was to step into Eastern Europe.

[Hondaracer]

yea we havent really done much of the east, wife has been to Croatia but thats about as far as we've been.. could be a good tip there actually.. prague/warsaw etc.

Problem with the east again is that you are dealing with such large areas it takes a long time to get around

[CivicBlues]

Berlin - Prague - Vienna - Slovenia - Croatia - Montenegro

Thank me later

[bcedhk]

for young couples, i'd say, berlin, vienna, budapest and amsterdam. They offer a good mix of culture, architecture and culinary cuisine. I would either put amsterdam as your first leg or last leg of the trip

[Zedbra]

Originally Posted by CivicBlues

Berlin - Prague - Vienna - Slovenia - Croatia - Montenegro

Thank me later

This is a good selection. Or, you can get a flight straight into Venice, ferry over to Croatia, and then work your way up. I went to Slovenia and Croatia a few years ago and looked into taking the train from Munich down to Slovenia - you lose a day and the price was more expensive than a flight. I didn't want a layover in Europe, so I chose YVR-Toronto-Venice. Venice is worth the trip - take a personal taxi, even though it will set you back $200 Euros, it is worth it.

Slovenia is gorgeous, inexpensive, and everyone speaks English. Croatia is pretty, but much more dirty than Slovenia, and they aren't always willing to speak English with you in smaller towns. Vienna has some of the best museums in Europe.

[CivicBlues]

Don't forget Greece as well. Island Hopping down there is idyllic and I highly recommend. Easy on the wallet too. Different type of holiday though than a typical City Hopping eurotrip.

[Hondaracer]

That original itinerary you suggested CB, all via trains? Or any flights in there?

We’ve taken the TGV and Switzerland’s bullet train but places like Greece (on a map at least) seem so far away from other destinations that it seems like you burn up a day at least getting to and leaving from these outlying destinations

To add to this: The last few times to europe we've generally flown in and out of the same airport, lots of people including rick steves etc. always recommend flying into one destination and out of another, which would help greatly for this trip.. However, the price seems almost prohibitive when i look, one way flights seem like they are just as expensive as a round trip coming into and leaving a destination..

[CivicBlues]

You can train all the way from Berlin to Zagreb, though it might be faster to take a bus after Vienna into Slovenia. I may be out of date though. You will need buses once you are in Croatia - Montenegro.

As for the Greece suggestion, you will likely need a separate trip for this if you intend to go to Central Europe first(or if you have tons of time). Fly in to Athens or one of the islands using a budget carrier like Easjyet, then fly out of another island. Flying is cheap and quick in Europe if you do that. Taking the ferry between the islands is part of the enjoyment of the trip though.

[CivicBlues]

btw, i'm doing a quick Euro trip myself in a couple months. Malta - Sicily - Naples/Amalfi Coast. I'll let you know how that turns out

[Hondaracer]

ive stumbled across a few different itineraries that lay out a similar route suggest above through the east, I kind of like Zedbras idea of starting in Venice, as i've never been but Wife loves it, and who knows, could be under water in 10 years lol..

From Venice, maybe hit the top of Croatia, Slovenia, then up to Prague and Germany, the trains arent too bad and at least one option of an 8 hour overnight train...

So many options uhg... wife really wants to just take it easy and chill through France but i dont really feel like we're at that stage yet where i want to just take a relaxing trip and chill, still want to knock cities off the list

[TOS'd]

Don't mean to hijack, but anyone been to Portugal? Trying to decide between Porto and Lisbon for 5 nights or any other suggestions in Spain? I will be coming from Madrid.

[twitchyzero]

Venice is a bit of a dump tbh
I understand the desire to see it though

[CivicBlues]

Most major cities and over-touristed towns and in Europe are though. A lot of times you feel like you're in a theme park. Especially now with the rise of Chinese tourism. And coming from Canada, many of these cities are dirty and inefficient. Venice is no exception. But you have to see it, it's absolutely unique in the world.

Once you get through seeing them and got cities out of your system I highly recommend taking it "easy" and seeking out the less trodden parts of Europe.

[CivicBlues]

Originally Posted by TOS'd

Don't mean to hijack, but anyone been to Portugal? Trying to decide between Porto and Lisbon for 5 nights or any other suggestions in Spain? I will be coming from Madrid.

I hear Porto is nice and some prefer it over Lisbon. I've only ever seen Lisbon though and I thought it was cool.

Checked out the Algarve for some dramatic beaches and yellow limestone cliffs.

In Spain are you also going to Andalucia?

[Hondaracer]

Originally Posted by CivicBlues

Most major cities and over-touristed towns and in Europe are though. A lot of times you feel like you're in a theme park. Especially now with the rise of Chinese tourism. And coming from Canada, many of these cities are dirty and inefficient. Venice is no exception. But you have to see it, it's absolutely unique in the world.

Once you get through seeing them and got cities out of your system I highly recommend taking it "easy" and seeking out the less trodden parts of Europe.

Yea we both love France and plan to spend a good amount of time in smaller cities and coastal towns in the next few years

Once we get a taste of some of the smaller towns along the riviera both of us are seriously considering moving there for periods of the year or doing long term house swaps etc.

[Hondaracer]

with a bit of research kind of looking at the route Berlin - Prague - Vienna - Budapest - Amsterdam?

trains between them are all relatively quick and feel like could spend days evenly spread out then have an extra day or so in Amsterdam before flying home

[TOS'd]

Originally Posted by CivicBlues

I hear Porto is nice and some prefer it over Lisbon. I've only ever seen Lisbon though and I thought it was cool.

Checked out the Algarve for some dramatic beaches and yellow limestone cliffs.

In Spain are you also going to Andalucia?

Only thing confirmed is Madrid for 3-4 days, and then I'll have another 4-5 days that is undecided right now. I'm heading to London after, so it would probably make sense to stay on around the Spain/Portugal/France regions vs. going to Eastern Europe(can save for a future trip).

I was looking at Malaga, Seville, or Gibraltar as well, for the 4-5 days free.

[twitchyzero]

Toledo and Seville?

[TOS'd]

Originally Posted by twitchyzero

Toledo and Seville?

Any particular reasons why?

[CivicBlues]

2 days Seville, 2 days Granada, 1 day Cordoba.

Because Flamenco/Alcazar, Alhambra, Mezquita respectively.

Haven't been to Gibraltar but I hear it's a waste of time.

Toledo is a daytrip from Madrid. Also check out Segovia for their Castle and Aqueduct

[Hondaracer]

So flights booked, leaving YVR on May 6th to Budapest, then fly out of Amsterdam 27th

Going to be Budapest - Vienna - Prague - Berlin - Amsterdam

All connections done by train, Probably check out The Wachau Valley and Bratislava from Vienna, then leave 2 days for Vienna and carry on.

Day trips from Vienna and Budapest seem a bit underwhelming so i think we're just gonna chill and focus on the city mostly. There is a very well rated wine and dinner tour in budapest we are probably going to check out, 3 wineries and dinner in a tour group

Any other suggestions or must see's if anyones been out that way...

[donk.]

skip Europe and do Asia

[pastarocket]

Originally Posted by Hondaracer

yea we havent really done much of the east, wife has been to Croatia but thats about as far as we've been.. could be a good tip there actually.. prague/warsaw etc.

Problem with the east again is that you are dealing with such large areas it takes a long time to get around

Eastern Europe has many beautiful tourist destinations.

-went on a two week land tour from Vienna, Austria to Prague, Budapest (Hungary), and Croatia.

If you and your wife are going for a good cultural experience with good, affordable dining, I would definitely recommend Prague. Wenceslas Square in Prague has beautiful Baroque style churches, street musicians, and galleries full of beautiful (and really expensive) Bohemian crystal.

The food in Prague, compared to your popular western European tourist destinations like Paris and London is more affordable and delicious.

For example, I ordered a plate of wiener schnitzel for FIVE bucks CAD. -food is cheap in the local restaurants.

One tip about dining in Prague. Avoid the American fast food chains like Burger King. I wanted a whopper and small fries. Unfortunately, BK in Prague does not give Euros back in change but accepts Euros in payment.

I was hungry, and in a rush to join my tour bus, so I ordered the Whopper and small fries and drink from BK in Prague. The cost came to 12 bucks.

The cashier gave me back change in the useless Czech currency.

If you are looking for a snack, I would stick to the local restaurants and fast food chains. -affordable Czech burgers for two bucks CAD.

Budapest, Hungary is a beautiful city too. -can definitely be a romantic place for your honeymoon if you take a riverboat tour at night along the Danube River. -took tonnes of pictures of the Hungarian parliament building during the day and especially the night.

Why take a Danube river boat tour at night? First, you and your wife can have a buffet dinner on the river boat, followed by taking pictures of the spectacular lights along the bridge and the Hungarian Parliament building.

You can see huge flocks of doves fly over the Hungarian Parliament building at night when you take a ride on a boat on the Danube River. It is such a magical sight to see those birds fly over that building at night with street lights lighting up the Danube.

The riverboat tours along the Danube also include your choice of alcohol: beer or champagne. -good to have some booze to keep you and your spouse warm as it can get pretty cold on the riverboat along the Danube river.

As for Croatia, this country is a good place for enjoying the scenery of its national parks. If you and your wife like to go hiking, I highly recommend the Plitvice Lakes National Park in Croatia. You will see sixteen lakes inside the park which have calcium deposits in the lakebeds to create different colours of water: teal blue, emerald, and grey water.

The waterfalls inside Plitvice Lakes national park are also beautiful. You can also board small boats to tour some of the lakes. The hiking trails are not steep, and are easy hikes.

[CivicBlues]

Originally Posted by pastarocket

One tip about dining in Prague. Avoid the American fast food chains like Burger King. I wanted a whopper and small fries. Unfortunately, BK in Prague does not give Euros back in change but accepts Euros in payment.

Dude, that applies to like every other country in the world. Including America.

The cashier gave me back change in the useless Czech currency.

Useless of course, except in Czechia. How did you manage to only spend Euros? Were you in the country for like 2 hours?

Everything else you said is