Planning a trip leaving Sept 14th until the 30th (15 days). I Don't really know where to go or the best route. I know I want to see Spain (Madrid & Barcelona), German (Munich & Berlin), and Prague. However, I am not sure how many days is suggested for each city, where to go in between Spain and Germany, and the best means of transportation. Can anyone please give me some pointers, directions, tips, and any other exciting fun things to do. I am 27-single male looking for fun, history, culture and an experience! I'm excited, but really have no clue on where to start...even as to where to fly into and where to leave from..I'm coming from New York City. Thanks in advance!!

For suggestions on how long in each city I think Rick Steves' books are very helpful for a first time visit. You should be able to get the basic Europe book for all the places you want to visit.

in essence you have 13 days. i would suggest spain OR munich, berlin, prague.

3 countries and 5 cities is too many for only 15 days imo. I think Munich, Berlin and Prague make sense together. Or just go to Spain.

I have a personal 5 day minimum per city rule, but that is a very personal choice.

I like to travel only by train (not have to rent a car, especially solo).

To get an idea about airfare go to a general site like Expedia and just put in your dates and various airport combinations and see what comes up. Don't necessary buy from Expedia just use it as a research tools. Pay attention to flight times, connections, number of transfers, overall journey time start to finish, etc. not only just the price.

Agree that is way to much territory for so little time. You wold spend half you vacation on lanes of trains getting rom one place to another.

Do either spain or Germay/Czech republic - and ralize you will still be only hitting some highlights of each.

If going by train i always refer a few good sources for novice travelers:
www.ricksteves.com has lots on trains, buses and cheap flights to mix in. www.budgeteuropetravel.com site has lots on trains, railpasses, sample itineraries for each country - they also have a good European Planning & Rail guide free (call 800-441-9413) with a chapter on each country's train system, rail maps, etc. - perfect primer to understand Europe's fab rail system. And best source of all i've found - Fodorites who collectively are an absolutely amazing resource on anything you ask. So just ask.

I'll buck the trend here and say with 15 days you have time to experience the cultures of at least two countries. If you spend a week in Spain, split between Madrid and Barcelona, and then fly on a budget airline to Germany, you could spend a week in Munich and Berlin.

For budget airlines in Europe, check www.whichbudget.com.

Try to fly to the first city you visit and home from the last one. This is called an open jaw flight and should not be more expensive than flying round trip to a single city. To find such fares, search for multiple destinations on the websites such as www.kayak.com.

You could use ryanair or easyjet to fly from city to city. They have really cheap flights (if you book ahead, sometimes as low as one euro (+ tax and fees which will equal about $15). These airlines both have websites and serve many European cities. We used RyanAir from Edinburgh to Dublin and back - really easy!

yes but these flights can be hard to get so book early - and thus lose your flexibility. Plus there are charges for baggage and you may end up in Beauvais and then bus to Paris, etc; plus getting to airports like in London can cost more than the flight. But they can be cheap.

I'm partial to the train and seeing the lay of the land in between - perhaps i'm old-fashioned and it's also the green way to go as planes are heavy polluters.

Go green, go train! Save the planet...blah blah blah

Think I would skip Spain this trip.
Munich, Berlin, Prague would be good.
Try to fly open jaws, into one place and
out of another, to save time and take the train between and for any daytrips.
Rick Steves is a good basic start for
help. I saw a quote that I now try to remember when traveling-Europe is an
unending journey. So it is best not to
try to see it all in one trip.