Neotraveler6

Hello All,

I am planning to book a trip to Paris and Rome and it is (so far) for three days in each location. Is this enough time in each? This is my first time to Europe and I don't want to be rushed. While in Rome I also wanted to take the train to Venice, can I do a one day trip in Venice? Should I increase this trip to 8 days?

Neotraveler6

JeanneB

I would increase it to 8 days and do one or the other (France or Italy)...but not both. Unless you have some reason to know you'll never go back!

Believe me. All of us, when planning our first trip, went through the kitchen-sink routine of trying to throw in too much. You'll have a much nicer trip by concentrating on one area. I could easily spend 8 days in Paris...in fact, we did! On our first trip.

Michel_Paris

When I'm planning a trip with multiple cities, I like to block out my time.

So, if I;m going to Paris first, I know first day I'll land, celar customs, get into city,check in, and it will be after lunch. And, I may be bit jet lagged. So I probably have half a day.

If I were going to Rome, I know I'll need to get to airport early, then flying time, luggage, get into city, and check into my hotel. Lose another half day. When I leave Rome to come home, need to get to airport early....etc.

Put this into your schedule and see if this leaves enough time to do what you want.

If you really want to see both you can do it, but realize it will be a compromise when compared to visiting only one city

Neotraveler6

Thank you JeanneB and Michel Paris. It sounds so do able on paper but when I start to think about the travel time ect. I really need to think this through a bit more. I can say that I will not be getting back to Europe for a long time and find it so hard to choose between Paris or Rome :0(

Neotraveler

ellenem

I would increase it to 8 days--or more. While I wouldn't want to split the time between the two cities, I think you can do it.

Since it is your first time to Europe, I expect you are traveling from some distance. You may be jet lagged on your arrival day so you may not accomplish much. Also keep in mind that most of the day you travel from Paris to Rome will be eaten up with checking out of the hotel, traveling to the airport, checking in for your flight and waiting at the airport, the flight, getting out of the next airport, traveling to your hotel, checking into the hotel--so that deletes that day from your vacation time. Similarly your departure day will be all about leaving your hotel and getting to the airport for a noon-ish flight. Even with 8 days, you may end up with 2.5-3 quality days in each city.

I would not take a daytrip from Rome to Venice. It's 4.5 hours each way, just for the train ride, never mind getting to the station and waiting for the train. Your schedule is too short to waste such time.

You might choose to combine Paris and Venice instead of Paris and Rome. There are economical flight between Paris and Venice.

Nikki

My daughter and I took a trip for eight nights to Paris and Rome, spending three nights in Paris, then five nights in Rome (I'm not counting the night we spent on the plane from Boston).

We had a great time. I like combining two cities in different countries for the contrast in language, culture, food. Check flights between Paris and Rome on www.whichbudget.com. And fly open jaw, which means you would fly to Paris and then home from Rome so you don't have to backtrack. The cost is not usually very different from flying round trip to one city.

Gretchen

Not near enough time for either city. Rome is very spread out (to me). And there is a LOT of distance between them. Not a chance of a day trip from either of them, let alone to Venice! I would go to Paris for the whole time (personally) and have a truly memorable trip.

TPAYT

I totally agree with Gretchen. Not enough time, as Rome is very spread out. And all that time flying.

Our first trip to Paris was 4 days after a cruise. It was not nearly enough and we've been back 4 more times for up to 2 weeks at a time. On a similar trip, we spent 2 days in Rome and found it far more difficult to get around. Paris is alot easier to navigate for a first-timer.

Everyone's idea of travel is different, but my advise is to pick Paris or Rome and really enjoy it.

Should you choose to go to both, have a plan of attack so you don't wander needlessly.

Neotraveler6

Thank you all for the great advice! This really helped. We were trying to go with another group that has limited time to travel so we are going to extend our trip before theirs and after theirs making it 5 or 6 days in Paris and 5 or 6 days in Rome, 10/12 days total.

We will make sure to have a plan of attack ( Thanks TPAYT ) so we do not have lots of down time.

Do I need to know both languages? or do a number of people speak English?

Thinking of going last week of september to first week of October, the temperatures should be around the 60's from what I have read. Will it be too cold?

Neotraveler6

JeanneB

Chances are you'll find very comfy temperatures. We were there last year in mid-September. It was hot, day and night. It's very unlikely to be cold.

You will be able to find english speakers. But it's polite to learn some basics for each location. Always greet them in their language before proceeding in english. Even if spoken poorly, they appreciate the effort. There are online resources for "tourist phrases", some even providing audio for you to hear the pronunciation.