cd

I am just beginning to think about planning our own trip to Europe instead of doing a tour. We are retired so can go anytime. What is the best month for prices (air and hotel) to Praque, Budapest and Berlin? We would get an open jaw. I want to consider weather also.
Thanks for any help.

J62

In my experience Jan/Feb are the best months for low prices, both for hotel & air fare.

I've enjoyed my trips to Prague & Berlin in January just as much as when I've been there in spring/summer. It can be cold, yes, but if you dress properly it's nice to visit when there are no crowds.

CarolA

I would consider "shoulder season" I like May and September. No they aren't as cheap as Jan/Feb but the days are longer, the weather is generally nicer and crowds are manageable. Prices are cheaper then in the summer.

cd

Thank you both. I was thinking Sept (big wimp when it comes to Jan/Feb)might be cheaper than the summer. We would plan to train travel between the cities. Could you tell me which trains to consider point to point? I would also like to have hotels/inns close to the station. If there are area's you could recommend, I will search them and appreciate it so much!

J62

You can check www.bahn.de for train schedules. There are likely trains between these cities every 1-2 hrs all day long, so you can just pick the schedule that works best for you. Dresden is 1/2 way between Prague and Berlin and well worth a stop. A day or 2 is great, but even 1/2 day is good if that's all you can spare to see the main sights.

I wouldn't stay near the train station in either Berlin or Prague - getting to a more central location is easy by taxi. You'll be best off starting a separate thread for "hotel recommendations in Berlin" etc to get info on that question.

cd

J62, thanks so much for the Dresden suggestion, being retired we have more time than money so we could add days. I will check into those train schedules and do a search on hotels, thanks for suggesting to not stay near the station in Berlin or Praque, exacting the kind of info I needed!

Gardyloo

The old distinction about "shoulder seasons" (May/September) is pretty much vanishing in terms of airfares. But it very much depends on your destination, choice of airline, and where you're traveling from.

Personally, I'd choose October for your destinations.

Bowsprit

Early November can offer some deals too. Although the days are getting shorter the weather is more moderate than much less expensive February.

wally34949

My mom (early 80's) went to Greece in September. Air fares were not the cheapest but the kids are back in school and she had the islands almost to herself and her boyfriend. Restaurants were happy to see them and they found good deals. Weather was excellent.

laurie_ann

You can also use internet tools to scope out expected airfares and to alert you as to new specials. For example on www.kayak.com there is a calendar feature on the airfare search page. Just put in your origin and destination and a calendar pops up on the right showing airfares that other recent searches have found for that destination for various dates (the current month pops up but you can also then select there to change the calendar to other months). You can also subscribe to get alerts when a new fare shows up for your route. For example https://www.kayak.com/k/profile/alerts. I believe expedia, orbitz and perhaps others also have similar features.

cd

Once again, thank you. Still working on it and thinking of Oct for Venice instead of Prague.