First trip to Europe

If the air travel is not bundled with the cruise price, why not extend the days before (3 days in Rome) and more days at the end, whether you choose Amsterdam or London? You might want to look at guidebooks that concentrate on each of these cities.

Agreed - I wouldnt go all the way to London for 1 day (I assume you arent counting travel days here). I would stay in Amsterdam, assuming thats where your cruise ends and fly home from there. Unless you extend the time by at least several days to make it worth the while.

If the flights are set in stone, and you want to spend time in Amsterdam then you need to find a flight from Amsterdam to London - it will need to be early in the morning to give you any time at all both city.
If you can change your flight home then consider staying in Amsterdam and flying home from there.
Alternatively skip Amsterdam and go straight on to London post cruise.

Public transport in Amsterdam is easy to use, but for the most part you can get around on foot. You can buy either an IAmsterdam card which also offers entrance to some museums etc, or buy a 24, or 48 hour card at the GVB office opposite the station.
There are regular trains from Amsterdam out to Schiphol for your flight.

you will have next to no time in any of the 3 cities whichever option you choose. I'd try to add a couple more days for Rome -- at least since your first day will be pretty much lost to jet lag and just getting to the hotel/acclimating.

And 1 or 2 days in London is almost (but not quite) in 'why bother' territory. If your flights are set (and you are flying out of London) then head straight to London after the cruise.

Best would be to add 3 or 4 days at the end -spend two full days in Amsterdam and 4-ish days in London. Remember, you final day doesn't 'count'. You'll be packing, checking out, traveling to the airport (at least an hour), and 3 hours for check in/security.

I am afraid the flights are set in stone. We had to use air miles to even be able to take this trip and it took a village to get the ones that we got. Our cruise ends in Amsterdam on a Saturday morning. Our plan currently is to see as much as we can in Amsterdam on that day, spend the night and head to London as early as possible the next morning. We could not fly out of Amsterdam and use our miles so we opted to spend two days in London and fly out of there.

It depends on the time of year. If we are talking spring or summer then you could happily spend 2 to 3 days in Amsterdam.

I know many Americans have never been on a train or used public transport and there really is nothing to fear and plenty to enjoy on Northern Europe public transport. Unfortunatly every one is a little different. In Amsterdam you buy a strip of tickets in newsagents before you get on the tram. Generally Amsterdam has a small centre so you can walk around most of it though Paris and London you will need to use it or take taxis everywhere

Oh -- meant to add.What is your actual budget? "Mid-range" could mean anything . . . .

Well, lets see, what do I mean by mid range...
We are used booking 4/5 star hotels on vacation. I have been told that that 4/5 star is extremely pricy in Europe but I am picky also soooo where does that leave me?? I would like to stay below $500 a night and am hoping to find something (probably with a little work) closer to $300 but will go up in price (max $500) for comfort.

My first bit of advice for first-time travelers is that you get a guidebook or two which includes information on whichever cities you will be visiting. There will be recommendations for hotels in most guidebooks.

Be assured that hotels in Europe are every bit the equal of hotels in the States. I think you'll find a plethora of comfortable, elegant hotels at $300.

When you've tentatively decided on which hotels you'll choose, check with TripAdvisor to get the unbiased comments of other travelers who've stayed at those hotels.

I like the Bloomsbury area of London. Easy access to Tube for Heathrow, British Museum right there, pubs, restaurants. From there you can walk to St Paul's, Covent garden, Trafalgar Sq,etc..

Stayed here:

http://www.theetoncollection.co.uk/content.aspx?pageID=410

That is a pretty generous budget and I wouldn't call $300-$500 'mid range'. I suppose some would consider $300 sort of the top of 'mid range', but I've never spent close to than much for a nice hotel. It sounds like you more want a bit higher scale place.

That is about £200 - £300 / €220 - €360. Rates will run a bit higher in London on average, but still well w/i your budget range. Star level unfortunately won't tell you the quality of a hotel. In Europe, stars generally indicate what amenities are offered, not the quality of the place.

Mrs Bilbo tells me that 5 stars don't exist so we tend to stay in 3 or 4.
As Janisj says stars are more to do with numbers of rooms and lifts than any inherent qulity. What you will find is a few odd things for instance a king size bed in US is a king size extra in Europe while a queen in US is a king in europe. It is just how it is. Ice machines are generally not available in corridors and staff are well paid (you might give a tip to a man who carries your bags all the way to your room but not a lot) read some of the threads on "tipping" on this site

Thank you so much! Great advice already!
So glad to hear that we should be able to find a nice hotel in the $300 range.
We leave on May 1, arrive in Rome early morning May 2nd. I know it will take us time on the 2nd to get to our hotel and due to jet lag I am sure it will be an early evening. On the 3rd we will have the entire day to site see and on May 4th we plan to do an all day excursion with the cruise that will end with us at the ship.

The ship docks in Amsterdam early May 12th and we will have a whole day to spend there. I am aware that this is little time to explore but we are thankful to at least get a taste of the city.

We are hoping to get some form of transportation out of Amsterdam to London as early as possible on Sunday May 13th. That will give us most of Sunday and all of Monday to see what sites we can and our flight departs on Tuesday the 15th of May.

This trip for us, is kind of a snapshot of some of the parts of Europe we have always wanted to see. We hope to one day come back and explore each of them in more depth. In case we never have that chance at least we know we were there!

Thanks in advance for any and all advice you can give us!!!!!!

Tu, May 1: dep home
We, May 2: arr Rome
Th, May 3: Rome
Fr, May 4: Cruise excursion; transfer to ship in afternoon
May 5-11: cruise
Sa, May 12: arr Amsterdam
Su, May 13: fly to London
Mo, May 14: London
Tu, May 15: fly home

What is included in the cruise excursion you plan to take before you board the cruise? With only 1.5 days in Rome, I don't want to suggest things to do that will be covered by your excursion. With little more than a day in each place, you need to concentrate on your most particular desires.

What have you"always wanted to see" in Rome, Amsterdam, and London? We can't help you pick what to do without knowing your interests. I am about your age, but i would bet I am not interested in exactly te sae things as your group. Do you love/hate shopping? history? museums? churches? art? photography? sitting in cafes? walking? fine dining? You get the idea. We can suggest the best way to fit the pieces together, but it would help to know which are the best pieces for you.

For Amsterdam I'd recommend the Moevenpick. It's right at the cruise terminal so just walk off the ship and drop your baggage.
It's modern and comfortable.

It's only about a 10 minute walk to Damrak, the main street of Amsterdam. Or take the hotel's free shuttle to the train station... it's at the top of Damrak. You'll take a train from there to the airport too.

You can see what kind of a deal you can get on the Moevenpick site... we paid 200 euros for a junior suite 4 years ago. Or check betterbidding.com and the Netherlands forum at Trip Advisor and the thread "Booking a 4 star...", you can often get the Moevenpick or other 4-5 star hotel for 100 bucks a night depending on your dates.

Have fun!

Fodor's Friends! I am back to thank you all once again for your fabulous advice. I have 75 days to wait for a trip that I have dreamed of since I was 13 years old! I am SO aware that we have so little time in each of these fabulous cities but I am just so thankful to at least get a snapshot.

Our trip is as follows:
TUESDAY May 1 depart home
WEDNESDAY May 2 arrive in Rome check into Suite Valadier (close to the Spanish Steps) we are on our own on this day and plan to try to make it to the Colliseum, Trevi fountain and all thing other than Vatican City until we drop from jet lag
THURSDAY May 3 we have booked a private 6 hour walking tour that ends at the Vatican.
FRIDAY May 4 We have a car taking us to the port of Civitavecchia
SATURDAY May 5 Cruising
SUNDAY May 6 Gibraltar UK 2:30pm-10:00pm have not decided on excursion SUGGESTIONS?
MONDAY May 7 Cruising
TUESDAY May 8 LaCoruna Spain 10 am -7 pm considering going into Santiago SUGGESTIONS?
WEDNESDAY May 9 Cruising
THURSDAY May 10 LaHavre, France 8am -10pm We are taking the train into Paris and are being met by a private guide for an 8 hour walking tour of Paris
FRIDAY May 11 Dover England 7am - 3pm SUGGESTIONS?
SATURDAY May 12 Amsterdam at 5am Check into Radisson Blu and ??????
SUNDAY May 13 Eurostar to London checking into the Marriott County, London The only plans for this day is a Bateaux London Elite dinner cruise
MONDAY May 14 Private walking tour of London for 8 hours
TUESDAY May 15 trip home

I have upped my time on the elliptical to get ready and plan on sleeping for a week when we get home

Just a couple of quick comments:

1) Dover Castle will take up the full time you have in Dover. It opens at 10:00 and you'll have to rush to take it all in if you have to be back on board before 3PM

2) I would not take the dinner cruise. Have a great dinner in one of the many many fabulous London restaurants - don't take a spendy boat dinner cruise w/ average (at best) food.

BTW- It is the Marriott County Hall

Thank you so much for the reply. We are meeting with our co-travelers for dinner tomorrow to add and delete. I will tell them of your suggestions. ANY MORE?? I was leery of the dinner cruise knowing that the food on a cruise like this is usually less than average but thought that the lights of London might be something I wouldn't want to miss. Can you recommend a fab restaurant near Marriott Count HALL??

You can always take a boat trip . . there is everything from water taxis to cruises. A boat trip is fine--but if it was me I'd take a night time boat cruise in Paris (not a dinner cruise though) and do the Eye in London. The Eye is right outside your hotel.

There is also a pier right next to the Eye. Instead of a cruise, you can just walk along the south bank from your hotel.

We are leaving most of the planning to our tour guides as our time is soooo limited. I am so sad that we will not have time for museums (especially in Paris) Can you tell me of any tourist hot spots that are really not worth seeing. I am a lover of architecture, my friend is a shopper (but I will not let her spend too much time shopping as our time is limited.) We are meeting with a travel agent to discuss what we want to take in in each city. I of course want to SEE all the touristy things I have only seen pictures of i.e. I will go and SEE the Eiffel Tower but I won't spend the time going to the top of it. Can you tell me of any tourist hot spots that are really not worth seeing. I really love to hear what you all think...I hope you understand what I am trying to say :/

You may want to check with your Ams hotel as to what they can offer to set up for you ahead of time...we loved the canal boat tour and there are many, even one with hop on and off stops. Do you want to see the Anne Frank house (for which you need reservations ahead ) or Rembrandts house, or see a performance at the Concertgebouwe ( I know I blew that spelling ) There are many options. Plus if the weather is fine, it is a blast just to sit out at a cafe and have a beer and bar food and people watch,

In London, again it is what intrigues you the most...we had spent a week in London before our last trip, which was actually just a layover to overcome jetlag, get a good night s sleep, and spend a day seeing a few sights before an overnight flight elsewhere. We squeezed a lot into that short visit because we focused only on a few things. We visited a fun little Museum...I'm thinking it was Thomas Soames' museum.. After checking into our hotel (it was a Marriott nearby that I'd used points for, and they let us in early) That evening we took a London Walks pub walk which was delightful, and had dinner after that. The next day we did the

Hmmm.. Knocked me off mid thought...

Tate Modern, as we enjoy modern art, and had lunch in their wonderful restaurant with stupendus view of London and the Thames.

Do check out London Walks as we used them on both trips and they do a lovely job.

Since this is your first trip to London, you really might enjoy the hop on and off bus, if only because you can tick off a lot of "must sees" by doing so. We also thought the Beefeaters's tour of The Tower of London was worth taking. Check London's Visit London website to get an idea of what you want to do.

You won't see everything, but if you plan well, you wlll be rewarded with great memories.

"We are meeting with a travel agent to discuss what we want to take in in each city"

Not entirely sure I understand this bit. Maybe a TA can help you book hotels and such, but IME they seldom have expertise about local sightseeing.

Ha! Never mind my London riff. I think you will be well served with your private tours of London, and you do seem to have picked a fine focus for those days. I've not known anyone who has been disappointed when they have gone with a primary interest and had local help in planning for it!

And in any case, it was Sir John Soane's Museum. Hmmmm, must be watching too much Masterpiece Theatre....

I would skip the meeting with the travel agent. You're getting better information here than any travel agent can likely provide.