2 WEEK EUROPE ITINERARY
 

Hey!

My friends and I are planning to travel to Europe for the first time. I have read reviews regarding choosing just 3 places to maximize the time and effort to better experience the trip. and so I have asked each friend for the most important place for them and came up with our inidividual choices which include: PARIS, ITALY and BARCELONA.
I am travelling from Singapore and I don't know which place to go first to make the trip smooth sailing.
or should I say, time-efficient.

Any suggestions?
thanks in advance!

Your friend should choose 1 place in Italy, it is a whole country.

Fly into one city and out of another. I would check prices and times to see what works best.

Oh, in italy we would like to visit, venice and rome.
I am more concerned about if it is okay to have paris as the first stop then itsly then barcelona. In the map, it looks as if paris is the center. Transit wise, i was wondering if this is a better route.

You start out saying no more than 3 and then immediately name 4. Paris, Rome, Venice and Barcelona.

How much time will you have not including your arrival day and departure day, in which to visit the places you choose?

Oops, now notice you say 2 weeks.

If that includes your arrival/departure days, that leaves 12 days to spend. If you subtract 3 days to move 3 times between places that leaves only 9 days in total to spend in the places.

You will spend 5 out of 14 days 'in transit' which is 35% of your total time more or less lost.

Without knowing how long the trip is no one can really give you good advice.

It really doesn't make a difference which order you do three cities since you would need to fly between them and all would be close to the same flight times.

For instance your could fly in to Paris, then fly to Barcelona, fly to Rome, fly home or you could do it in any order. Maybe decide based on which city pair gets you the best open jaw airfare.

I am more concerned about if it is okay to have paris as the first stop then itsly then barcelona. In the map, it looks as if paris is the center. Transit wise, i was wondering if this is a better route.>

Chose Barcelona or Paris or Italy - 2 of them - 3 is too much. I'd say first-timers will be best doing at most Paris-Venice-Florence-Rome - there is an overnight train between Paris and Venice to save daytime travel time and a cost of a night in a hotel. (www.thello.com for details)-other good train sites -www.seat61.com; www.budgeteuropetravel.com and www.ricksteves.com.

Land in Paris
4 days
night train to Venice
3 nights
train to Florence 3 nights
train to Rome 4 nights
Fly home from Rome

You could do Paris, Barcelona and say Rome if you want to fly between each - trains take all day Paris to Barcelona and 2 days Barcelona to Italy.

but not time enough for Venice and Florence and Rome and Barcelona.

I would go to Barcelona first and take a train to Paris, take a train to Venice, take a train to Rome. Or I would go to Rome first and take the trains in an opposite way, with Barcelona for the last.

>>take a train to Venice<<

A train between Paris and Venice seldom makes sense.

Thanks for your responses.

I'm checking out options whether to include london on my list and scratch out barcelona.
I dunno which itinerary wpuld match well with regards to transit. But based on your suggestions, i am quite comfused whther to Fly or take trains in between transit from paris -> venice -> barcelona

Planes between all three of those cities.

If you substitute London for Barcelona that would simplify things.

Fly into London. Spend 4 or 5 nights.
Train to Paris Spend 4 nights
Fly to Venice Spend 2-3 nights
Train to Rome Spend 3-4 nights
Fly home from Rome

I use Rome2rio website to see how travel works on a map. It also provides travel alternatives but is not the most reliable on prices. You can at least see quite quickly whether you are back tracking or not.
If possible, fly into one city and out another.
With cities mentioned, fly between most of them except London to Paris, or Rome to Venice.
I would consider London, Paris, Barcelona for 2 weeks. Italy can take a lifetime to see and one can easily spend two weeks between Rome, Venice (and if you are interested) Florence.
If back considering the first question, Paris, Barcelona then 'italy'.

How big are your luggages? Are shopping for things to take home? It can be a problem now if you want to take a plane but you carry more than a little luggage. The ticket is more expensive and you have to check everything. Then you wait for it when you land.

I like the train because for me it is simpler. I don't have to take time to go to the airport and wait before the plane take-off. It is easy to get to the airport in Barcelona but it is not easy to use the airports in Paris. For Venice the airport is far away. If it is bad weather comes sometimes the plane doesn't fly. The train doesn't stop if the weather is bad. I like the train because I like to read and look at the window. The train rides are not so long between Barcelona and Paris and Paris and Venice. It is very long if you try to go from Barcelona to Italy.

I don't know if you want to take a night train to sleep on the way. If you are young, it is not a problem usually. It is fun. But if you are older, you might not like it.

<A train between Paris and Venice seldom makes sense.>

Really? We did an overnight train Venice (thru Milan) to Paris and it made sense to us at the time.

<A train between Paris and Venice seldom makes sense.>

probably talking about daytime train as it takes all day but the Thello overnight service makes total sense - I have taken it a few times- save daytime travel time and cost of a hotel - www.thello.com for fares and schedules.

we're in our late twenties so sleeping in trains is ok with us.
planning to travel light too. of course, would love to see as much cities as we can but given the time constraints and transit times, i think it would be great to just go with paris, barcelona then italy.

also, i'm planning to go for the 1st and 2nd week of may, 2017.
perhaps, weather should be nice?

Avoid Venice, way nicer cities in Italy than it.

Weather could be nice, or not. No telling.

I would never avoid Venice, one of the most beautiful places on earth, IMO.

We just spent a full week in Venice over Christmas and New Years and loved it. I think it is a magical city.

You can see our pics here:

https://flickr.com/photos/[email protected]

"Avoid Venice, way nicer cities in Italy than it."

Maybe you were there in July and didn't get off the main drag. Venice is magical if you do it right.

Every place in Italy is the most beautiful place on earth. :)

Venice even with crowds is the most sublimely beautiful city in the world IMO - take a boat ride down the Grand Canal- the most beautiful 'street' in Europe-IMO

@jamikins : your photos are amazing!
i'd love to tour venice too.
what is your European itinerary?

Thanks prexypants!

We live in London so are lucky enough to be able to spend a lot of time travelling. We like to settle in one spot for a good amount of time so we spent 8 full days just in Venice.

I always laugh when I see people writing, 'avoid X' or 'X is magical' as if it were a statement of fact rather than just an opinion.

The assumption of course is that everyone will see a place the same way you do. That's either very arrogant or very silly.

Some will like anywhere and some will not. That you liked it or did not like it is not enough to have it make sense to suggest whether the OP will like it or not unless you know the OP and his tastes very well indeed.


Stick to 'I didn't like Venice' or 'I did like Venice'. Those are just opinions and do not try to suggest whether someone else might like it or not.

Notice how PalenQ makes it clear that what he is saying ends with IMO.

Everyone's post is just their opinion. IMO should always be understood. Maybe that is why you omit from your own posts. Or maybe you haven't been posting here long enough to figure it out.

I think it is pretty obvious that everyone is stating their opinion. I stated that 'I think it is magical' so adding IMO seems a bit redundant. Wouldn't it be pretty silly to assume someone's statement isn't their opinion?

dogeared: You've jumped in enthusiastically in the last couple of weeks -- and that's great. But I might not be lecturing on how the rest of us should post, and who we should model after. >)

OK a 2-week trip including: Paris, Venice, Rome, and Barcelona. That will give you about 3 days in each city once you subtract the half-day to move place to place.

Everyone's post is just their opinion. IMO should always be understood. Maybe that is why you omit from your own posts. Or maybe you haven't been posting here long enough to figure it out.>

Agree about everything being an opinion - I use IMO to make sure that I realize it is subjective but probably it is redundant. IMO.

ok ladies and gents, i think this isn't a place to counter each other's opinion.
no judgment. to each his own.

i do appreciate all the info that i have been getting so far, and would appreciate more if you could share bits and pieces of places. as a first time traveler, i'd like to know which areas in paris , for example, is most accessible to, given that i am also looking for a place to stay in various cities.

cheers!

Which area of Paris is most accessible to what? The whole city is accessible. It has one of the most fabulous transportation systems in the world and is at the same time an extraordinarily walkable city. I don't understand the question.

Well guys, it matters if you make it clear whether something you write is a fact or an opinion since people confuse the two often enough when making decisions. Making it clear which you are writing reduces the confusion.

I'm sure you all believe you know the difference between the two but if you think everyone who reads what you write in a forum knows when you write as if something is a fact, that it is really only an opinion, I think you are giving them too much credit.

If you don't think the fact vs. opinion question is confusing to people, have a read here: http://www.philosophersmag.com/index...on-distinction

I'm just saying, make it clear for them which is which when you can. IMO is not redundant PalenQ, it makes it clear that it is an opinion you are expressing.

There are a lot of people who will believe something they hear or read whether it is true or not, simply because someone told them it was so. Think about recent elections for example. LOL

Are you going to want to go dancing at night or do any clubbing? In May, most of these cities will have plenty of street life and cafes to enjoy in the evenings (Venice being a bit of an exception), but if you specificially want to go dancing or enjoy live music, some parts of these cities are definitely better than others.

Apart from that, for Venice in May, anywhere you stay in the city will be fine for everything except if you stay in the vicinity of San Marco, you will be in the MOST crowded/touristy area of the city, so that is tough. I would avoid that area.

For Rome, every part of the city is fine. Whether you come by air or train your arrival in the city is most likely to be the central station of Rome Termini, and it makes sense to take a taxi to your hotel from there unless you book a hotel within a 5 minute walk of the station (and it's not the prettiest part of town).

There is no reason to stay near a train station in Barcelona. More important is that you read up enough to know which neighborhoods are safe at night and which are affordable for you. The city has excellent public transportation.

Paris has several different train stations that you might end up using depending on where you are coming from and going to after Paris. So first figure out where Paris will be in the order of your itinerary, and how you will be arriving to the city and leaving it.

thanks @frencharmoire! really appreciate the input :)

as a group of girls, we'd love to stay in a safer neighborhood. I have read about all these riots going on in paris, it's no joke. :)

yes, we'd love to try dancing too, would love to meet new people and stuff.
a travel is a travel when you try to experience the locality of the place :)

For nightlife I don't think it matters where you stay in Venice, but for Rome consider placing yourselves in Trastevere or Testaccio. Both will add a few footsteps or tram rides to your daily sightseeing agendas, however, so if you prefer to prioritize sightseeing, then look around Campo de'Fiori for a place to stay.

Venice is absolutely safe (just try not to fall into a canal) but Rome is a big city and there can be ne'er-do-wells mixed in among the dancers and drinkers at a club. So mind your valuable and do not let anyone buy you drinks. Be stingy with how much information you give to friendly strangers about where you're staying, etc. It's a good idea to read up clubs in guidebooks and online. There's lots of information aimed at young travelers, worth reading. Zillions of young women travel, go dancing & have a great time in Rome, and no bad reports. But always pays to know the lay of the land.

Central Paris is not affected by social unrest at the periphery. I am not sure where young people hang out these days in Paris, whic is more "trendy" conscious than some other places, so the most-fun spots keep moving. Public transportation is great however, you should probably pick a place to stay based on great reviews and your budget. You can read up online the latest about clubs and live music.

As for Barcelona, personally I would not want to stay right in the Barri Gotic or near Las Ramblas if I was planning on late nights. There is loads of info online about the different neighborhoods of Barcelona, which also a great public transportation system but -- important -- the metro has a well-deserved reputation for pickpockets, night and day, so be alert when you use it. Don't be afraid of using it, just be very careful about securing your valuables, especially getting on and off carriages and moving through the stations.

Have a nice time. These pointers about security shouldn't make you fearful, just wanted to make sure to pass them along, and no doubt you are already wise on these kinds of things.

"I have read about all these riots going on in paris, it's no joke."

Riots in the US happen in the inner city. Riots in Paris happen in the outer suburbs. Stop worrying.

<i'd like to know which areas in paris, for example, is most accessible to>

In Paris the neighborhoods are arranged by arrondissement numbers. They spiral like a snail in a circle out from the center. I think 4, 5, 6 are the best for a first visit as being central to the most things that most people are interested in seeing. You can tell which arrondissement a place is by the last two digits of the postal code (a trick i learned here on Fodor's).