3 weeks. The Fall. Europe. Now where to go?

[HeatherFL]

I've been to Europe. SO has not. We want to go this Fall because our summer schedule is already full. I really would like to do Italy and Greece. HOWEVER, I absolutely love Ireland, Belgium and the Netherlands. I really want SO to visit Amsterdam. So you Europe experts out there can you recommend some itineraries for three weeks in Europe if we'd like to do:

Amsterdam/Holland
Italy
Greece
Belgium (I know we only need a few days here)
Maybe a few days in London
and maybe Spain or Ireland... It is just sooo hard to decide!

Mind you Italy and Amsterdam are the two main Must Dos. Greece is way up there too. Otherwise, I'm open to other options.

Part of me wants to stay in Brussels and just take trains because that's what I usually do, but it's a hike to Italy... Another part wants to fly into Italy spend a week and half there then fly into Amsterdam and take trains everywhere else... We're not light packers and SO would probably do better on planes than trains. We could stay in Brussels and pack overnight bags to go into Amsterdam via train for a few days...or vice-versa (a couple hours on a train, okay...overnight not so sure he'll be up for that.) So many options! HELP!

Thanks in advance!

Heather

[jnettie]

DH and I did four weeks last summer beginning in London, working our way through France to Italy, then up to the Czech Republic stopping in Vienna on the way.

What worked really well for us was keeping it fluid. We had a general path with dates that we'd get to major cities. Reservations in London, Paris, Avignon, Pompei, and Prague. Then, we just kinda rode the trains and went where we wanted to next.

I say, get a big rail map and plot things out. I think if you start in Amsterdam you can easily work your way down to Greece in a logical manner. Personally, I'd avoid London right about now, not because London isn't fun, which it is, but because the dollar is just so week against the pound that it's waaaaaaaaaaaay too expensive.

I have about a million links that I should post for dicount airlines within Europe, hotels, and rail stuff if you need it.

Anyway, have fun!

[tlew12778]

It really depends on how much of Italy you want to see. Also, how much of Greece do you want to see? The main problem with Greece is that it's totally detached from the rest of mainlaind W. Europe so just getting there is a PITB. You HAVE to fly (bc I doubt you want to waste 12+ hours on a boat from Italy to Greece).

Anyway, hitting all the countries on your list, I would split it up like this:
Amsterdam/Holland - 2 days
Italy - Rome? 4 days, Florence? 3 days, Tuscan countryside? another 4 days, Venice? 2 days
Greece - Island hopping? or just Athens? 7 days for island hopping to 3 islands, 2 days for just Athens
Belgium (I know we only need a few days here) - 2 days, 1 in Bruges, 1 in Brussels
London - 4 days
Spain - Where? Barcelona? Madrid? Seville? 3 days in either of the first 2 cities, 2 if you really want to rush it
Ireland... never been so I can't comment on this, but I think you need a lot of time here if you want to go to small villages

Also, take into consideration that most of the islands in Greece start shutting down around October.

I would fly into London bc that will probably be the cheapest. If you want to save time you can get an open-jaw ticket and fly into London then out of whatever your last city is. Skycanner.net is a great site for checking all the low fare airlines. I would take the train if the ride is less than 5 hours, otherwise I would fly.

[keska]

There are tons of great places in Central Europe if you want to go from the Netherlands south. Personally, I preferred the Croatian coast over Italy but that's just me. Lots of people enjoy Vienna but I think Prague and Budapest are both more interesting. I had a good time in Slovakia too, though Bratislava is considerably smaller. You can take cheap flights within Europe. I took a train from Prague to Bratislava and then flew to Dubrovnik.

[HeatherFL]

Thanks for the these tips!

Okay, we spoke about this and we're going to end in Mallorca, Spain. This has to do with friends/family being there and some other stuff we want to see/do.

We're not too picky about cities, but think we may hold off on Italy and just go there for two/three weeks on another vacation so we can do Greece too (I want to see Athens, but concentrate more on the islands).

Since cost isn't too much of an issue (though it sucks the dollar is so weak in London & other parts of Europe <sigh> ) I like the idea jnettie posted to keep things fluid.

I think we'll probably start in Amsterdam and take trains to places ending up in Spain. I'm not a huge fan of Paris, but maybe a day passing through would be fun for SO to see/do a few things. He doesn't have a big desire to go there and I don't have a big desire to go back. But he may like it...you never know.

If anyone wants to share other websites and links that would be great, thanks!

Heather

[jnettie]

Listen to tlew! I believe she is responsable for giving me a million good ideas over at the WC as I planned our trip last year!

Prague, by the way, is awesome! One of my favorite cities. And cheep. I'm still talking about the giant beer that I got for $1!

[tlew12778]

Awww. Thanks :). I think the idea to leave out Italy and do Italy and Greece in one trip is a really good one. You could fly into Milan, travel down the boot bytrain, then take the boat over to Greece. Geographically it just makes a lot more sense.

[jnettie]

I copied this from my old journal on WC. Here's all my Europe travel links. It's over a year old now, so I don't know if all the links work anymore.

I highly suggest Guest House Lida (http://www.sweb.cz/lidagh/) if you do go to Prague (don't know if that's anywhere in your plans). It is a beautiful B&B, private rooms with full baths, great breakfast, and the husband and wife who run it are extremely nice and helpful. You just have to email for reservations. It's kinda like staying at a good friend's house.


Rick Steve's Website! (http://www.ricksteves.com/)

Low cost airlines:
http://ryanair.com
http://EasyJet.com - In and out of London
http://virgin.com
http://airberlin.com
http://basiqair.com
http://crossair.com
http://Sterlingticket.com
http://volaraweb.com - Not in English...not sure what language!
http://Buzzway.com
http://flybmi.com

Train:
http://www.railsaver.com - Helped me soooooo much!
http://www.raileurope.com/us/

Places to Stay:
http://laserre.parishotels.it/main_en.htm?source=
mije youth hostle (http://www.mije.com/versanglais/indexenglishindiv.htm) - kinda steap for a hostle...JMO
http://www.eurcheapo.com/paris/lis...on/dumarais.asp
http://www.france.com/hotels/hotel.cfm?hotel_id=564
http://www.tripadvisor.com/Hotel_Review-g187147-d269333-Reviews-Hotel_Therese-Paris_Ile_de_France.html
Avignon Tourism Board (http://www.ot-avignon.fr/index2.htm)
Backpacking on a Budget (http://www.backpackeurope.com/)
Cheap-uk-hotels (http://www.cheap-uk-hotels.co.uk/) - I like this one!
venere.com (http://www.venere.com/site/index.php?ref=22509) - This one's also great for all of Europe!

Getting Around:
http://www.mapquest.co.uk/

Things to Do
Festival d'Avignon (http://www.festival-avignon.com/fr/index.php3)
Verona Opera Festival (https://shop.cosi.it/tol4arena/cosi.asp?LANG=EN)
The Globe Theater (http://www.shakespeares-globe.org/)

[tlew12778]

Volareweb.it or.com... it's Italian. The above link is incorrect (spelling). There is also myair.com now. But skyscanner.net will check all the lowcost airlines at once for you. There is also whichbudget.com if you want to check who flies which route.

[jnettie]

Whoops!

DH and I took Easy Jet from Prague to London. We got in a fight with one of the workers. They are small, so the same lady who checked us in also took our tickets as we boarded. Well, it was at that moment she decided to yell at us because our bags were too big to carry on. :rolleyes: DH was pissed because she didn't say anything to us when we were checking in! So, here we are, pulling stuff out of our backpacks so the breakable stuff would be safe, rearanging stuff sacks. But, right before we boarded, DH asks for her name...so she wouldn't do something to our bags! I mean, she was so nasty to us when it was clearly her fault! I mean, she saw all our bags already and NOW our packs are too big. :mad:

[bellabonga]

I live in Germany near the border to the Netherlands and so I´ve been to most places in Holland. I´m not a big fan of Amsterdam though and rather dislike the city. It has every downside of the Netherlands. There are too many drug addicts and some really aggressive beggars. From my experience you should watch your belongings when you´re there. And you should not go into the streets where the prostitutes sit naked as window displays. If you accidentally enter one of those streets, you should turn around and leave as they can get quite aggressive too. And beware of the streets with the porn displays outside. There was lots of animal pornography which is legal in the Netherlands. I´m not prude but it made me cry and I nearly vomited. :mad: So these are the reasons why I dislike Amsterdam. But it has very interesting second hand shops and flea markets. And the Rijksmuseum is very famous which it´s "Nightwatch" by Rembrandt.
I love the rest of the Netherlands and would advise you to make a trip to Alkmaar while you´re in Amsterdam. Alkmaar is quite close to Amsterdam and yet it´s totally different. It´s a very cute, clean and nice little town and rather typical for the Netherlands. There are many shops with very unique things, narrow lanes and old buildings. On friday they have their cheese market which Alkmaar is famous for. But even if you are not there on a friday, Alkmaar is always worth a visit. :)

I´ve only been twice to Mallorca but I´m a real fan of Ibiza. It has a beautiful old town and harbour. If you have the possibility of a day trip to Ibiza, go for it! Or if you are into clubbing you should go for some days since Ibiza has some of the most famous clubs of Europe.

Have fun in Europe! We´ll go to Florida instead during the fall! ;)

[HeatherFL]

Thank you all again!

I am so sad to hear of your experiences in Amsterdam, bellabonga. I have had nothing but positive times there and even went through the Red Light District with no issues. I also encountered no beggars whatsoever. I guess maybe I was lucky, but I really loved it there. HOWEVER, I will certainly look into Alkmaar! Any suggestions are always appreciated and I love to go to places that aren't the usual. :)

[bellabonga]

Maybe they have done something against these things I mentioned in the meantime. I haven´t been to Amsterdam for a couple of years since some 18yo wrecked our car while being drugged and I had to get surgery afterwards because of the crash. That was the point when I´ve really had it with Amsterdam. ;) But Alkmaar is really lovely. :)

[L&D Nurse]

Have you ever thought of doing a tour? DH and I did a 11-day European bus tour with Contiki (www.contiki.com) a few years ago and it is a great way to cover a lot of ground and see the highlights of a particular region.