Help with 9 day Europe trip
Nov 13th, 2015, 07:46 AM
#1
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Help with 9 day Europe trip
Hello! I am a college student from NC and I will be studying abroad in Toledo, Spain from January to June 2016. I would like to do some independent travelling before my semester starts. My dates are January 8-17th. I have never been to Europe before and would like to pick a region and maybe about 4-5 cities to do some exploring. I would really like to do some in-depth exploring the cities that I do choose, so I understand that I will have to cut down on travel time to make the most of my experiences. I am open to any and all suggestions. I would like to know which region/country would be easiest to navigate in January, with cold weather and few hours of daylight. I have begun my research but am overwhelmed by all of the great sights to see all over Europe. If anyone could recommend places for a novice female traveler in Europe in January, I would really appreciate it.
Nov 13th, 2015, 08:17 AM
#2
Are you planning to travel in Spain during your semester? If so, you might want to visit Portugal. If you have a lot of luggage you might fly into Madrid, drop off your luggage in Toledo, and take the night train to Lisbon.
With nine days you don't have much time - Lisbon and the the area around it can easily take a week.
With nine days you don't have much time - Lisbon and the the area around it can easily take a week.
Nov 13th, 2015, 08:39 AM
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I plan on doing Spain and Portugal during the semester. And I was thinking of doing exactly what you said about flying into Madrid and dropping my luggage off before I travel elsewhere. So aside from Spain and Portugal, any suggestions on where I can spend a good 9 days exploring? I am up for anything, big cities, small towns, outdoor activities etc. I am just worried about the weather. And another question, would it be wiser to dedicate an entire trip to skiing in the alps versus having it as just a stop in the trip?
Nov 13th, 2015, 08:50 AM
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Well for skiing in the Alps many resorts/hotels want you to stay for a week - so if you are going to do that it would take al of our time.
As for weather - anyplace north of the Alps will be real winter and cold and snow are perfectly possible. southern Italy/Sicily are likely to be somewhat warmer - but northern Italy - even as far south as Rome can be quite chilly and snow is possible, although not likely.
So if you want moderate temps your choices are quite limited: Malta might be another possibility - but not on my top 10.
And of the major cities could easily take up your time with a day trip or two - but then you would need to deal with winter weather.
As for weather - anyplace north of the Alps will be real winter and cold and snow are perfectly possible. southern Italy/Sicily are likely to be somewhat warmer - but northern Italy - even as far south as Rome can be quite chilly and snow is possible, although not likely.
So if you want moderate temps your choices are quite limited: Malta might be another possibility - but not on my top 10.
And of the major cities could easily take up your time with a day trip or two - but then you would need to deal with winter weather.
Nov 13th, 2015, 09:15 AM
#5
Morocco? But if you want snow, and budget is a consideration, consider France or Austria rather than Switzerland. Possibly Innsbruck, that's a nice town, and you might add Vienna. But it will be chilly.
