rtwin80days

Hi all,

We are getting married in late Jan 2016 (yayy!) and intend to take a 2-week honeymoon in end Jan - early Feb.

We are both in early 30s, vegetarians, teetotallers. We haven’t been together for long but have found a soul-mate in each other. Because we constantly wish if only we could have met earlier and the entire courtship period and next couple of years are going to be a compressed version of things going very fast and because my dear fiancé gets hardly 3 weeks annual leave, we wish to make the most of this vacation together.

I have travelled a bit in Europe (Paris, Frankfurt, Berlin, Amsterdam, Vienna, Salzburg, Venice, Florence, Rome, Perugia, Amalfi, Madrid, Segovia, Seville, Cordoba, Granada, Barcelona). I love Europe, especially Italy and I love travelling. My dear fiancé hasn’t travelled much in life in general and hasn’t been to Europe (except staying in London for work for few months), but he is very excited about travelling.

I love nature, culture, history & art, food, landscapes, immersing in local culture, taking long walks in the city centre, cooking classes, cycling, etc. He is not much into museums and art but loves nature, beach, lakes, playing guitar, Spanish music, long walks, food, hiking, skiing, etc.

Coming to the point, we are open to any destination(s) within Europe as long as it is romantic. Ideally if I could avoid going to places I have already visited, that would be nice. Else given a choice I'd keep going back to Italy year after year!! I want the vacation to be super romantic but also it is his first trip to Europe. Based on the weather in Feb and romantic nature of the trip, could the helpful posters here suggest some itinerary or highlight romantic places to include?

Thanks a lot for your patience in reading my post.

rtwin80days

Hi all,

I wished to tag Switzerland, Austria, Germany, Belgium, Czech Reoublic, Portugal, etc as well but there is a limit for the no of tags per post (for good reasons I know). FYI please.

Cheers.

Robert2533

Portugal will work in late January. Try the Algarve and Lisbon.

inspiredexplorer

Late Jan - early Feb can be a tough time of year for some of your shared outdoor interest, although it is a great time for your fiance's interest in skiing. Is spending time at a ski resort something you'd be interested in during your honeymoon? You would get the great alpine scenery if you did.

Winter in Europe is usually a good bet for spending time in the larger cities since outdoor pursuits in the country are more limited, and you've been to many though your fiance hasn't. I completely understand wanting to experience some new places as well, but maybe look at the places you've already been and see which ones you'd most like to return to.

A couple of ideas:

-start in Venice (your trip times with Carnivale in 2016, could make things more expensive but would be very interesting and Venice in winter seems very Romantic - then head to a ski resort for some mountain landscapes and outdoor activity. From Venice, there are plenty of Italian resorts to look into, but also the Austrian resorts of Innsbruck and Kitzbuhel, plus the Swiss (St Moritz, Zermatt etc) and French (Chamonix, Courchevel, etc) . If you go towards Austria, Kitzbuhel is quite close to Munich, which you haven't been to. Or from Innsbruck, head to Vienna and/or Budapest which you haven't been to. Going towards Switzerland/France you may want to plan time en route stopping in Milan or Turin, which you also haven't been to.

-If you aren't interested in skiing, an urban combination of Prague, Vienna and Budapest gets you to two cities you haven't been to. 2 weeks gives you about 4 nights per city, and can add nights as each city interests you (or maybe add a bit of time in Bratislava). Whether or not this trip is romantic is subject to opinion: I think it could be quite lovely, but would need right frame of mind if you run into rainy, wet cold conditions (although, you'll need that regardless)

-Portugal: you haven't been, and it seems to check a lot of the boxes you share with your partner. Could easily account for two weeks between Lisbon and Porto with some daytrips to places like Sintra. You could also add on some of Spain and cut a bit of Portugal if you wanted to revisit some Spanish cities (and check your fiance's Spanish music interest) and were looking for better weather. Maybe look at revisiting Seville and spend some time in Andalusia, then drive or bus to the Algarve area, and then finish up in Lisbon.

I'm sure others will chime in with more ideas!!

pariswat

I found Sicily quite romantic - the walk at Agrigento, 'valley of the temple' is fabulous, a lot of locals take pics in their gowns there.

Greece.. Egypt (albeit not Europe, ok, but good weather).

nytraveler

At that time of year the best weather - NOT beach weather, there is none in europe then - will be southern Spain, possibly Malta and Sicily.

Have been only to the former and did find it quite romantic, unique culture to explore and a number of cities and towns to visit. You can certainly do a lot of walking and hiking - although there will likely be skiing in the mountains.

Note that Madrid is on a high plateau in the middle of the country and has a real winter.

If your idea of romantic is a chalet with fireplace in the snow and you lie winter sports I would have a look at the German or Austrian Alps for a tone of cute places. (Switz is the classic but is VERY expensive, esp the ski resorts in high season.)

travelerjan

NOT a good time to see Greece for 1st Time ... the 2 coldest months, lots of rain ... Greece is all about sunshine and swims in blue waters ... save it for another holiday. I would hate for you to sample Greece in January and then think, what's all the fuss about??

For a winter choice in Europe, unless you ski, I would favor cosmopolitan cities where there's lots to do indoors, for maybe 2 weeks, and then for the other 2 weeks --- escape to Barbados, or Antigua or some such; these are the months those places were BORN for... why not experience them at their best??

BTW, it always helps people give better advice if u indicate where u are from; not all contributors here are from N America .. I only know that you are because u say "vacation" instead of holiday.

rtwin80days

Robert2533, I would check out Portugal especially the two places you mentioned, in detail. When I was visiting Spain few years back, I had thought of going to Portugal as well, but somehow it had not excited me enough and I had felt better to dedicate more time to Spain at that time.

inspiredexplorer, what a thoughtful response! Paris and Amalfi instantly come to my mind when you mention maybe I could revisit a place. Not sure how the weather would be there at the time. I do want to include couple of iconic European cities as it is my fiancé's first Europe trip, but I was hoping to focus on smaller charming towns / villages. From my travels in Europe, Paris and Venice have come across as incredibly romantic cities, and I have also found smaller towns in Salzkammergut region like St Gilgen, Fuschl, etc and the ones like San Gimignano, Montepulciano, etc in Tuscany and Ravello, etc in Amalfi being extremely charming and romantic as well. Given I love Italy so much, I wouldn't mind dividing the time between Tuscany and Amalfi, but honestly, I want the honeymoon to be a unique experience, and I dread walking around being reminded of what I did there the last time. I am going to check with him about incorporating skiing in the Alps and see what he wishes for. But won't it be peak season, and hence quite crowded and pricey for that reason? Maybe southern Spain (pueblos blancos) could be shortlisted, I always wanted to go there but had no time for it in the first trip. Anyone who has gone to pueblos blancos, is it a romantic set of villages?

pariswat, maybe I am not well informed but I thought public transport is not that well developed in Sicily and one has to depend on driving a car and that driving in Italy is quite stressful. Not sure if that would be a good idea. What do you think? And how would the weather in Greece be in Jan end / early Feb? Travelerjan points out it might be a bad time to go there.

nytraveler, let me read up on Malta, somehow never struck me!

travelerjan, in all probability, we shall be flying in from India after the wedding, and flying out to New York after the honeymoon. Considering the possibility of we being too overwhelmed after a long wedding week in India, we are thinking of flying to New York first, dumping our luggage in the apartment, getting to just SLEEP for couple of days, and then fly to Europe.

mariha2912

I wouldn't say that Greece is only about the sea and the sun, there are some very scenic cities, towns and mountain resorts to enjoy on winter and it is a nice change to see some of the attractions without the millions of summer visitors. The problem is that while winter resorts are extremely busy with Greek visitors on weekends of fall and during the weeks around Christmas and New Year, on the other hand end of January/early February is the worst time ever to visit as the stream of visitors dies off significaly and usually the weather takes a turn for the worst. I am talking for scenic, charming villages or small towns here say Arachova or Kalavryta or Metsovo villages and the like.
Larger scenic places with a large permanent population such as say Nafplio, Koroni, Methoni, Rhodes, Chania, even better Ioannina, Thessaloniki, Athens will be fine.
An other problem is that some of those destinations are easy to reach and explore using public transport, then walking, but for some of them a car would come very handy.

bilboburgler

My thoughts

Veggies are still an odd concept in Spain (yes I know there are exceptions but no).

Given that warm weather is only going to be in the Canaries from the countries you mentioned you might look at these islands (note they are also Spanish)

City holidays; well given the weather I'd look at Paris and possibly Barcelona but in January all a bit too chilly

Snow; think about having a skiing holiday, both France and Italy have great resorts, if you don't want to ski down hill you can also do cross country, sitting by warm fires etc

As a European I tend to holiday in Egypt or Morocco just because both countries are cooler in the winter so only 24C. If you are worried about any nonsense focus on Marrakesh (my preference) or Luxor.

sandralist

I had a wonderful time in Sicily in January. Everybody's idea of romance is different, but the long history of Sicily and its beautiful food and wine and volcanoes make it romantic for me! It would be best if you rented a car.

You can do fine in Sicily as a vegetarian in January. Lots of delicious foods like cauliflower pasta, couscous, stuffed eggplant, salads made with oranges and nuts. Delicious pastries made with eggs and cheese.

I think you should avoid northern Africa until things are more peaceful there.

Portugal is also a nice place to consider. And cheaper than Sicily.

pariswat

Same as Sandra

We had a car in Sicily (we always have cars in holidays, except in Asia). I don't remember driving being that difficult except once in a very small village - so don't rent a big car, there is a reason why locals drive Fiat Pandas...
I was a young driver at the time (second holiday with my fiancée, and we just celebrated 22 years of wedding).
Have a good vacation !

rtwin80days

mariha2912, I guess then our timing is the worst timing when it comes to Greece. No sun and weather taking the worst. sigh. But you have thrown light on lot of towns otherwise remaining obscure from popular Greece attractions list. Saving for later.

Bilboburgler, yes, few years back, we (a group of 5 friends) were starving in Spain, until we hit Granada and we ate those falafels and mezze like we hadn't seen food in ages Checking out the Canaries now!

sandralist, your description of food is certainly piquing my interest. Sicily is one of the shortlists as of now. So is Portugal.

pariswat, lovely to hear about the history you share with your wife! Cheers!


I have started to feel maybe I am force-fitting Europe in a Jan/Feb vacation, just because I love Europe. Should I be considering other options, especially closer to India or to NY? Just a thought!

robbyfine

We spent our honeymoon (it was January as well) in Maldives. Weather was ideal! Daytime temperature stayed around 27 degrees Celsius and sea temperature remained at a welcoming 28 degrees Celsius. Everything was organized by http://thesevenagency.com/destination/maldives . The Maldives is a dream island. It fulfilled our secret wish of being marooned on an exotic island. There is simply no flaw to this paradise. Everything is natural here.

Sassafrass

For the romantic Europe you describe, I would postpone the honeymoon until May or choose a different place.

The Amalfi Coast could be dreary in Jan, no ferries running, not nice enough to sit out on a terrace enjoying the stunning views, etc. The last time I was near there, in Naples, in winter, it wasn't freezing, but was not comfortable either. In Bergamo, near Milan in Jan, it was freezing, not good freezing either, spitting, wet snow and blowing.

Of course, you could concentrate on cities with museums and be indoors most of the time, but is that the Europe you want your fiance to experience?

So, if you do not want to, or cannot postpone the honeymoon, consider changing your whole approach. Robbyfine suggested the Maldives. You might also consider Hawaii or someplace in the Caribbean or central or South America (just be carefull of it being too hot there).

rtwin80days

Hi All,

Maybe I got very disheartened with Jan/Feb + Europe being a force-fit. Sorry for the late reply.

I have had discussions with my fiancé and we have given up the idea of the European Honeymoon. Sigh. We are thinking of picking someplace closer to India or US where weather would be conducive, we can get fabulous resorts for 500-1000$ a night range, lot of spa options, etc. We are thinking SE Asia (Pool villas in private island resorts in Sumba, Bali, Phuket islands, etc) or then something similar in Mexico / Costa Rica / Puerto Rico. I shall post my queries after we do our home-work on that.

As of today, some developments are on the anvil for the possibility of a last minute one-week break possible in Europe in second half of November 2015. My fiancé is traveling to London for work for 3 weeks starting end-Oct, and we are suddenly starry-eyed about the possibility of a short break in Europe next month. If I can join him in London, I shall have a week in London to roam around while he works, a weekend trip (Where? Ideas please.), a week to possibly take day-trips or short trips from London myself while he works, and the much-yearned one-week break somewhere in Europe. To be precise, it would be more like 8 nights and 8 days. We shall be free Friday evening onwards to travel, and have to come back the following weekend by anytime Saturday night max to catch our flights back home next day Sunday.

I would be very grateful to go through your ideas on a one-week break from London for us, considering:

1. Our travel and interest profiles as per original post (most imp - I have travelled a bit in Europe and he has not, it is his first visit and I want it to be amazing!). I would prefer not to repeat places I have already been to, unless it is Paris if Paris would be a great show-opener for him when it comes to Europe.

2. Given we can't fulfil the European Honeymoon idea, atleast some tinge of romantic places in this one-week break would be a consolation.

3. Considering we shall fly back from London, we have to come back to London again after the break.

bilboburgler

On your own I might stay in London the whole time, but you could do say a day out to Salisbury or Winchester to see the cathedral and the small city (either is good) and relatively easy to get to by train, alt you could look at Brighton for the kookie shopping and alt life style. Oxford or Cambridge offer you ancient university towns and also easy to visit, for me Oxford offers more indoors if the weather goes bad.

Weekend, well Paris by train is the obvious but you could fly to Amsterdam (a bit more open to business culturally but maybe not so romantic)

For a week after, could look at the one you didn't do at the weekend, or shop in Berlin or maybe Barcelona for the architecture, or you could put together a Seville/Cordoba/Granada trip and of course the old stallwarts of Venice and one of Siena/Florence/Rome is easy to do from London's multiple airports, but if using cheepo airlines get booking seats soon as prices are designed to rise as you get closer to hit the business traveller.

rtwin80days

Hi bilboburgler,

Yes, I do intend to spend most of my solo time in London as it is my first visit there and there is so much to do! I might go to York or Oxford, or then some other towns like you mentioned. I'd play it by ear depending on how my London days are going.

Just 1.5 days for Paris considering my fiancé being a first-timer would be barely enough. So probably better to push Paris to the 8N/8D trip, or then saving it for a full-blown trip later, rather than a weekend trip.

I have been to all places mentioned by you (Berlin, Barcelona, Seville, Cordoba, Granada, Venice, Siena, Florence, Rome) and not keen to repeat in this trip.

At this juncture, I want to give lesser priority to where I can get cheapest flight / train tickets to, and just try to make it a memorable trip for my fiancé, and me too.

I think my original post above and the title had a different objective, hence posted http://www.fodors.com/community/euro...don-please.cfm to elicit the correct responses.

brotherleelove2004

If you're going to be in India it might be a better idea weather-wise as well as for convenience if you focus your honeymoon plans on something closer to India in the Pacific. Think about Thailand, the Cook Islands, Fiji, Bali, Australia, New Zealand, etc. From any one of these destinations you can easily fly back to the States.

rtwin80days

@brotherleelove2004, yes, as I mentioned above, we are considering some of the smaller private islands around Bali, Phuket, Sumba that have single resorts featuring spread out villas with private pool, etc.