jamiecsp80

janisj

OK a few points . . .

• December is in just a few days and you haven't booked anything yet? The Christmas Holidays is a very popular time to travel and you may not be able to find hotels within your budget. (I assume you have booked your flights - right?)

• A EuRail Pass will be of almost no value for you

• If the entire trip is 16 days home to home yu will only have 13.5 days at most free to see/do things. Then you use another half day every time you move and with the extremely short days. So you definitely do not have enough time for five cities.

So . . . If the flights are booked in to CDG and home from London I'd stick to Paris and London and maybe a couple of days in one of the other cities. >>I also am trying to figure out the cheapest ways to get from one destination to another<<. Booking at the last minute like this, many of the cheapest train and air fares will be sold out. Another reason you should limit jumping around.

Something like Paris - fly to Liverpool, train to London, fly home. OR - Paris, train to Bruges, train to London, fly home.

>>I am open to suggestions of places to see and do in each destination as well<<

You need some guidebooks ASAP. London alone has scores of 'must see' sights. Same with Paris.

BDKR

Hi,

"I am open to suggestions of places to see and do in each destination as well"

What kind of stuff do you(and your kid) like to see and do? How old is the kid? Boy or girl(If I don't offend by asking this)?

A 10 year old boy may be totally thrilled to see the HMS Belfast "battleship" in London, except if he's not interested in this stuff(you know him, we don't). A 3 year old boy is too young to visit the ship(it may not be aven allowed). A 7 year old girl may be thrilled to see the doll's houses in the V&A museum, except if she hates girly stuff and loves dinosaurs in which case you'd better take her to the Natural History museum, just across the V&A.

"I have narrowed it down to flying to Paris and back from London airport"

If you haven't booked the tickets yet, it would make more sense to fly in to Amsterdam and home from London(or Manchester in case you finish in Liverpool).

Amsterdam - Brugge - Paris - London - (Liverpool)

If you fly to Paris: Paris - Amsterdam - Brugge - London

"Any suggestions as to which one I should get rid of?"

Liverpool is the outlier and the least interesting place among these cities. Should you change your mind while in London, you could still take a daytrip to Liverpool (2 hours by train from London).

"I also am trying to figure out the cheapest ways to get from one destination to another."

You should look for the best way instead of the cheapest way. For example the cheapest way from Paris to London is by bus, which takes 8 hours, by train it takes only 2 hours.

The best way to travel between these cities is by train. The Eurail Pass(shortest is 5 days) doesn't make sense for only 3-4 trips.

For the best advice on trains and how to book tickets see www.seat61.com

JessicaBr

Hi,
Oh my, you still need to book? cheapest fares are long gone for this time of year. But if you are still able to find a deal for arrival Paris and departure Londen you need to check out how these places are connected for fast travelling. You do not have many days, so my suggestion would be a few days in Paris - Thalys to Amsterdam for a few days and then Thalys/Eurostar to London. All 3 big cities have many things to see.
Have fun!

Carolmom