You haven't factored in travel time. How long will it take you to get from Reykjavik to Glasgow - are there non stop flights?

London to Paris is a good half day; about 5 hours hotel to hotel.

If you keep going with the travel time you will have used most of your extra 5 days.

Other than the UK portion you're only visiting cities. Are you at all interested in smaller towns or cities near the ones you've chosen? For instance, Potsdam is about an hour from Berlin and could be a good day trip if you had more time in Berlin. You could also visit Dresden on the way to Prague.

If you're not all that interested in Vienna you should drop it from the itinerary and fly home from Budapest.

Iceland should be a trip by itself and you might want to consider seeing more of the country on a longer trip.

You should write down all the sights you want to see in each city and have that determine the number of days you stay there. Warning - the more more you read about each place the longer you'll want to stay!

Your itinerary looks good overall. 4 days each in Prague and Budapest will give a good feel to those cities. 5 days in Paris is good although 5 years would not be enough for me.

<< I want enough variety to quench the wanderlust >>

I don't believe it's possible to quench wanderlust!!

Hey MisterBeh;

Welcome to Fodors.

It seems clear to me that you have factored in travel time; quite familiar with long train trips and budgeting your time. Factoring in time is not a big issue on a 6 week 7/8 stop itinerary anyway.

I like the pan-European mix you have planned. Some day I will do the Iceland stopover on one of my trips for some real variety. Of the cities you mention, I have spent time in them all (except Reykjavik) and Amsterdam is my least favourite. it is not as raunchy or exciting as you may think. Unless you intend to partake of the red light district, you can walk around it and do your window shopping in a couple of hours any night. Now I am going to tell you to ignore my preferences entirely.

You are about to get advice coming from every direction; telling you to drop this city, add one you haven't mention as even having an interest in, spend more time here, etc.. There is a tendency for people to want you to do what they have done, and to go to their favourite places, but that won't make them your favourite places.

From the way you describe your reasons for visiting some of the cities mentioned; "figured its a must", "don't really know why", I think might want to spend a little more time researching your choices and see if they really fit your interests. You don't want to go somewhere because you think you should, or because someone says it is a must.

Do some more sniffing around and decide where you want to be and where you think you will find some connection to your reasons for traveling. That will also help you decide whether you want to spend 3 or 5, or 7 days in any particular place.

I figured some travel time in but not exactly. The idea was to see where people would add or take away from then adjust from there. For example Reykjavik to Glasgow is a 2hr. non stop flight. Which seems like a non-issue to me... Amsterdam to Berlin is the longest with about 6 hours on the train, which will end up eating an entire day.

I'm not that interested in the smaller cities. At least not on my first trip. I enjoy metropolises in general and figured that experiencing those first would be more enjoyable. But I will check out Dresden since you mentioned it being on the way to Prague.

I will probably drop Vienna from the itinerary. Flying from Budapest is about the same price.

As far as Iceland goes, I just really want to spend some time there. My flight would have a layover there. Plus it is cheaper to go from St. Louis, to Reykjavik, stop, then go to Glasgow- about $500. Don't know why but it is. So Reykjavik is pretty much a must. The question is how much time do I devote to Iceland.

Also I should probably explain that I don't plan on staying at hotels. I'll stay in hostels or couch surf. And site seeing isn't a huge priority, but I would like to see the more memorable stuff. When I've traveled the city itself is what is interesting to me not necessarily the monuments or museums.

Thank you Aramis.

I do need to do more research. I've only skimmed the surface of some of these cities. And some places make the trip for me- Iceland, U.K., Paris, Eastern Europe. But that seems like too little for a 6 week trip.

But Maybe Icleand, U.K., Paris/Amsterdam, Prague/Budapest... Extend the stay in Iceland to five days, Do ten days between Paris and Amsterdam (more in Paris), split ten days equally between Budapest and Prague, and add a few days on to the U.K. stay, maybe include Ireland.

Just a thought...

I don't see any mention of a budget - or of what time of year you are looking at.

That info would help people give you specific advice.

Some cities- Prague and Budapest are less expensive, while London is probably the most expensive (especially for lodging). But without knowing what specifically you want to see it's hard to make recos - but IMHO you could add a day to any of your cities and still have plenty to do.

For me personally, I would cut Iceland.

You could go from London to Paris and then Amsterdam, or go to Amsterdam first and then Paris -- either way, it's a long way from Amsterdam or Paris to Prague. I would either plan to fly to Prague or break up the train ride by staying a night or two someplace such as Wurzburg or Nuremberg.

nytraveler, the goal is to travel as cheap as possible. So I will couch surf, and stay in hostels- which I enjoy. My departure will occur in May.

Thanks for the suggestions Tom18. Originally I had planed to stop in Berlin. But I really don't have a reason besides for the fact it would break up the time between Amsterdam and Prague. I'll check out Nuremberg and Wurzburg.

Don't forget to factor in travel time to and from the airports/train stations, waiting time, getting to your hotel etc...each time you move it will take about half a day, even I'd it's just a 2 hour flight.

Instead of a 6 hour train ride check out budget airlines like easyjet.com or Ryanair.com - just beware of extra fees and charges. Www.whichbudget.com is a good site to see cheap flights. Also beware of the airport these airlines fly into, some are really far away from the city they say they fly to.

You may want to go to the thorntree forum - there are more couch surfers etc.

Interesting question and thread. Your plan seems pretty good and excellent to make use of the stopover in Reykjavik. Iceland is on my list of places to see and so whether you add more days there depends on your more detailed research about how you get to see the landscape. As a city too it will be interesting - its small and expensive but to me sounds fascinating.

I'm a huge fan of Glasgow so it is good that you intend a leisurely journey to London. Don't spend too little time in London though - as you are intersted in metropolises London deserves more than 4 days I think.

You are right that Paris is a must and it will be a good contrast to London.

I guess the choice then is whether you try to fit in a southern european city and take out one of your existing choices. I've been to all of the cities on your list and enjoyed them all. They are all northern european - albeit a mix of west and east. I think that if you are interested in cities as metropolises then fitting in a southern european one would be good.

For me itwould be Barcelona - have been there a few times now and have always enjoyed it immensely. Its location on the coast adds a very different feel to it and its relationship to Madrid makes for an interesting contrast from the other cities on your list which are the biggest cities in each country.

That said I loved Amsterdam, which has a unique feel to it and will contrast nicely with other places.

For me Berlin is a must given its history and the contrast between eas and west Berlin and how that is breaking down as time passes. Given your interests I think it probably merits more of your time. It is a far less walkable city than Amsterdam or Paris and has far greater differences between its neighbourhoods I think.

Prague is indeed beautiful and very atmospheric. For me Budapest was pretty much like Prague but not as commercially developed - this was a few years ago though now. I loved Vienna though and it has a fascinating history as a city. I think though that if you are happy to fly out of Budapest I would cut down the days there a little and try hard to fit Barcelona in. I do recognise though that doesn't easily fit in to your otherwise logical route.

Sounds like it will be a great experience - hope you will do a trip report.

May is peak time in Amsterdam, so if you are planning on hostels there you will need to book soon.
The red light district is a very small area, and will take maybe an hour if you spend a long time there. It is sordid and nasty, though the area is historic. I don't see the attraction of it personally - looking at trafficked women living in poor conditions doing a terrible job. I amd quite sure most people would not visit the RLD in their own town or city as a tourist destination.
That said there is plenty of other things to do in Amsterdam. Whether coffeeshops will still be on the tourist list is at the moment uncertain, until the new government makes up it's mind about this.
Do try and see more of the Netherlands than Amsterdam alone if you can. The country is so much more than, and so very different to, Amsterdam.

Personally, I would take out Berlin in favor of Munich. So you do Prague, Munich, Vienna, Budapest. If you do find you have an extra day you could easily squeeze in Salzburg. Although after 6 weeks you are going to be tired!


If you really really want to drop Vienna, maybe keep Berlin then take out Vienna and put in Munich. Not that I'm pushing Munich.

Opps. I hate that you can't edit...

My plan included flying easyjet for about E45 from Amsterdam to Prague.

I'm with Lucy, you missed Bavaria. I am a huge Bavaria-file and I love to go to Munich and the Alpine (Ludwig castle) area South of Munich. Salzburg is in that area too and is one of the highlights on my list. I would keep Vienna in the list. It is an amazing city and IMHO a notch above Berlin or Budapest. Sounds like a super trip. I'll join you on that one anytime.

I know it is not good to try to conquor the continent in a single visit but (just to confuse things) you do realize that you won't be all that far from Venice, Florence and Rome?

Eliminate Berlin. Go to Bavaria!

Vienna has great buildings. That is about it.

Forget the Red Light area of Amsterdam unless you are a customer. Pretty boring just to walk around. Not worth putting on your itinerary.

I would remove (or greatly reduce) Prague which is totally overrated. Budapest is nice, however. I am completely allergic to Vienna.

We did not find the RLD sordid or nasty, and the women are not trafficed, please inform yourself before you say such things. They get medical , dental and have set hours , they are not forced, it is legal, and they are not naked . It is a very small area, and if the streets are crowded you can literally walk by and not notice the windows , they are darkly lit, often with pink or red lights, so if walking in middle of street and people are all around you , they don't really stand out. I had to point the first few out to my bf as he didn't even notice them ( busy trying not to get hit by bikes in Amsterdam, they are scary) The whole walk through would take less then an hour, I think we did it in maybe 20 minutes( cause it was raining , as it always seems to be when I go to Amsterdam, lol ) . Personally Amsterdam is a 3 day visit for me, but I am not into visiting gardens etc which in May will likely be quite spectacular if you enjoy that sort of thing.

Personally I would eliminate Berlin , for no reason other then you have no real reason to go..

Traveldawg, didn't you find the cake shops in Vienna? It's worth a trip just for the desserts, not to mention the palaces and the Lippizzaner horses. Now that is astonishing, and I'm not even an animal lover. I liked Vienna a lot.

I did the Iceland stopover last summer on my way to Europe. They do have good prices and let you stop over in Iceland for as long as you wish for no extra charge. It sounds like that is why you are doing it. Plus it is a really different atmosphere from the rest of Europe. I just did 2 nights/days and spent one in Reykjavik and on the second did the Golden Circle Tour. There certainly seemed to be plenty to do if you wanted to spend four days. You say you plan to stay in hostels or couch surf. Check out the possibilities of that in Iceland though, because hotels (and food) are considerably more expensive than in most of the rest of Europe.

Your Iceland, UK, Paris, Amsterdam plans all look fine. You could add a few days to Paris certainly and if you feel you want to see a little of someplace other than the cities themselves both Paris and A'dam have plenty of day trip options you can decide on once you get there.

The time you have allotted for this portion of your trip is only a little more than half your six weeks. And Prague/Budapest a little more than one more week. If you tacked on a full day in each of them that still leaves you with well over a week extra. You don't sound set on Germany/Austria, and they are somewhat 'similar' to Prague/Budapest - at least in the sense that they, and your entire trip, is Northern Europe. I think to get a nice 'overview' and to make a stab at curing your wanderlust, you should take that extra time and do someplace in southern Europe. With easyjet and other intra European flights cheaper than long train trips you could easily add in Italy or Spain for no extra money. And Italy and Spain are both cheaper to BE in than any of the places you are going. Well, Budapest is pretty cheap (and I can recommend this B&B which was really cheap four years ago when I was there, I think the prices have gone up, it was 25€ then - http://www.tripadvisor.com/Hotel_Review-g274887-d1144649-Reviews-BudaBaB-Budapest.html)

Here's my trip report from Iceland if you are interested (with link to photos - http://www.fodors.com/community/europe/iceland-the-classic-two-day-stopover-trip.cfm

Hi there,

Germany has a lot more to offer than Bavaria, thus definitely keep Berlin on your list. You should not miss out on Germany's capital city. From there you can easily travel to Dresden by train. You can book the tickets on www.bahn.com. There journey is only 2 hrs.
Dresden has a rich history and many historical sites thus there is plenty to see in 3 or 4 days, such as the famous Frauenkirche, Old Masters Gallery, Opera House or the Green Vault. If you are interested in visiting the Green Vault I suggest you book your tickets online since it is quite difficult to get them. Here is a link: http://www.skd.museum/en/museums-institutions/residenzschloss/gruenes-gewoelbe/index.html

You could also explore the scenic areas near Dresden such as Saxon Switzerland. It is a beautiful national park with interesting sandstone formations. It is a very popular spot for hiking and rock climbing. It is close to Dresden and you could either take the famous steam boat or train. Here is another link: http://www.saechsische-schweiz.de/start/click.system?navid=65.

After your visit to Dresden you could carry on to Prague, again it is a short journey by train.

I hope that helps.

Don't know if you've categorized your specific interests in terms of once you actually GET to places but my thoughts are:

you could obviously use Icelandic and stopover for however long in Iceland

Berlin v s. Munich: BOTH IMO have plenty to see and do and a lot depends on what your interests are; whereas Munich has some great museums and even a big schloss, Berlin has even more of that.

If you wanted you could as suggested stop off in Dresden on the way to Prague but some might say that Dresden would be mainly for art work; Prague (the older part of the city) looks positively medieval when you take away the cars and trams.

Personally, I would cram as much as possible in; a lot of people will say you need to see things "in depth" and I agree that is a consideration but your "depth" may not be the same as others and after all, people go to Europe just to see a bunch of Christmas markets...that is not depth but to each their own and enjoy your trip.

Agreed with others who've said don't drop Berlin. If you want to hostel Berlin has a huge range of high quality affordable hostels, great attractions, great nightlife,low prices for a Western capital and a laid back atmosphere that is a joy to be in. If you're a fan of metropolises then Berlin is a good choice. All in all I think your plan works. I wouldn't change it other than to use your extra 5 days to allow you to stay longer in places you're enjoying.

Add time on after Vienna for Salzburg and Munich

Looking at your planned itinerary -- and given your preference for cities, I'd add more time to places you are already going. Particularly London, which though expensive, has much to see. And most museums there are free.

And with extra time, you can do daytrips from your city bases. For example, from Glasgow, daytrip to Edinburgh. From London, take the bus (Oxford Tube or X90) to the city of Oxford. Practically all of the Netherlands is easily reachable from Amsterdam.

You really need to do more research (guidebooks, Internet) to get a better idea of what you want to see, both which cities and which sights in those cities.

I would cut out those places you are not interested in and know nothing about. From your description this applies to Berlin first of all. There is no such thing as "must" and "need". Europe has at least a hundred thousand worthwhile destinations, no one can visit them all, let alone in one trip. Pick those you yourself "want" to see.