SuchAnAmerican

My husband and I are planning a 45 day trip to Europe in September 2013, I know that’s 2 years away, but I like to plan things and we are uber excited!! I have never been to Europe, my husband went in high school. We are both in our early 30’s and this is the big one since our son (who is 16 months old now, will be 3 at the time) will dictate the vacations for the next 16 years! BTW, our son will not be going with us, it will just be my husband & I. We do not have a set budget yet, but considering this is a go big or go home type of thing we have 2 years to save up more money if need be.

So far, I have us going to:

Rome – 5 days – Rent car
Drive to Assisi – 2 days
Drive to Pisa – 2 days
Fly to Barcelona – 7 days
Fly to Paris – 7 days
Train to London – 7 Days
Train & Ferry to Dublin – 7 days – Rent car in Dublin
Drive to Cork/Blarney – 4 days

In Rome, which car rental agencies are more reliable than others? Would it be best to rent the car at the end of our time in Rome or at the beginning? Same with renting a car in Dublin.
Is 7 days in Barcelona too many when we have so much more we want to see in Paris, London & Ireland? There are only 4 things, as of right now that we really want to see & do.
Which is better to stay in Cork or Blarney? I would love to see some Highland Cattle, are they even in Ireland? Or would we have to go to Scotland? If in Ireland, are they north or near Cork?
In regards to souvenirs and gifts for people back home, can we ship items? If we ship them, can we do it ourselves? Or do we need to ship them from the place we bought them? How difficult is it? Do we still need to declare the items to customs?

Any and all helpful info/tips for a fun & memorable vacation would be greatly appreciated!

-Meagan

aimeekm

That sounds like great fun, I'm envious of your 45 days!

Two things that stand out to me.
- 7 days in Barcelona is too much IMO. I spent 3 days there and it was 1 day too many for me. But many people love Barcelona, so you'll surely get differing opinions.
- I haven't yet been to Ireland, but it is high on my to do list. I think that 7 days in Dublin might be too much. Why don't you take the 11 days you have devoted to Ireland and drive around the island?
- Car rental, definitely rent on your way out of a city. Best pricing is usually found on consolidator websites, AutoEurope, Kemwel, EconomyCarRental.

charnees

Don't get a car until you leave Rome!!!! You can't drive in many parts of Rome without a permit, and traffic and parking are impossible. Even if you are used to urban driving in the US, you do not want a car in the cities.

If I were you I would not take precious time to go to Pisa on this trip. Try to see more around Assisi and environs, for a good feel for non-city Italy. Orvieto is near there, and if you look at a map you will see lots of other nice towns to visit. Look in a guide book for info on Umbria, the region where Assisi is. If you want to fly to Barcelona, go on north to Florence and fly from there, but do not drive into Florence. more restricted driving zones there. Turn your car in at the airport.

Rome is more deserving of 7 days than Barcelona. Rome actually needs a month, but of course that is not practical.

oopsy

I'll differ with aimeekm on Barcelona. We spent 9 days on our first trip and it was not too much (and I spent 13 on my second). It might help to know what the 4 things are you want to see there, as well as what you want to see in other places (i.e., what are you generally interested in).

I agree that 7 days is perhaps too much in Dublin. And agree that you should always rent the car on the way out of a city (Rome and Dublin).

spaarne

For newbie drivers I suggest reading http://tinyurl.com/3bc2ax before you set out. Driving in Europe is a bit different than it is in the USA.

I went from London to Dublin via Cardiff and Cork by train, ferry (Fishguard-Rosslare), and bus. There is a very good train from Cork to Dublin, unless you want to meander about.

I think you will find life easier in Italy if you take the trains. The ZTL areas can break your bank if you happen to drive into one. On the autostrade Italian drivers are notorious tailgaters.

kybourbon

You need to start in Ireland for weather purposes and then head south.

I would be tempted to take the overnight ferry between Barcelona and Italy.

mamcalice

I don't like to be one of those pulling you back and forth about Barcelona but I would skip it entirely or spend a couple of days there and the rest somewhere else in Spain. We love Andalucia and Madrid. Rome, Paris and London are all worth 7 days, the other cities, not so much.

Lexma90

A lot of us are envious of your 45 days! You seem to be primarily focusing on cities. Especially with your amount of time, I would take some time from the budgeted for the cities, get a rental car, and visit smaller towns. For example, rural Tuscany or the Loire Valley.

I really enjoyed Barcelona, but even so I would spend 4 days there and then use those other days for a rural location.

StCirq

What a cool trip! I would cut back on the days in Barcelona and spread the rest out over Andalucia. And I'd stay away from just big cities and plan to tour the gorgeous countryside in all those countries. A week each in London and Paris is really good.Agree with starting in Ireland and heading south.

janisj

Unless you have friends there or something, 7 days is a really excessive amount of time for Dublin. Allocate the same number of days there as for places like London and Paris? -- not reasonable IMO.

You need more than 4 days to explore the west/southwest of Ireland--so maybe 3 or 4 days in Dublin and a week in the countryside

egnolive

A few comments on the Ireland portion.

Only rent a car in Dublin if you are planning to immediately drive out of Dublin. You don't need or want a car in the city.

Not sure if you are planning 7 days to see Dublin [which is too much time in my opinion] or are planning to drive elsewhere. I love Dublin, but the best part of Ireland is the small towns and areas outside of the cities. For this reason, I'm also not sure why you want to spend 4 days in Cork or Blarney.

If your entire time in Ireland is 11 days, you should have time to explore the southwest.

If I were you, I would explore the forums here for each of the areas you are hoping to travel to and get some ideas of what you want to see. Lots of your time is in big cities, but maybe that is what you like.

BTW, very envious of your time off to travel!

SuchAnAmerican

Thank you all so much for your ideas and suggestions! I am glad I am not the only one to think 7 days in Barcelona would be too much! I didn't think to start in Ireland because of weather & head south. We are not only going to stay in the cities of London, Paris and Dublin, we do plan on doing side trips. This is a lot to think about now and to rearrange things. Good thing I have started the planning process so early! Thanks again everyone. I will keep you all updated on the changes I make.

hazel1

I'm still a bit stunned that parents would leave a 3 yr-old child for 45 days for a vacation... Even if left in the care of loving grandparents or whomever, that's a long time, but that's just IMO.

Lexma90

Really, it's none of my business, but I can understand parents making such a decision. We were never able to take that much time off from our jobs, but when our kids were young, we did leave them with the grandparents while we took grownup trips (to Europe). The grandparents were so very happy to have the extra time with their grandkids, and our kids enjoyed it very much too. I viewed it as an extra benefit (to our kids) of our having that grownup time.

In fact, we scheduled a trip to Europe when our DS was around 3 years old, and realized months later (but before the trip) that we'd scheduled it OVER the date of our son's 3rd birthday. Him being only 3, he didn't really notice which day was which, so we told him that his birthday was the Saturday that we returned, and held his birthday party that day. We've come clean since then, but at the time, he didn't know the difference.

hazel1

Lexma90, you're right it's none of my business either, but I still think 6+ weeks is a long time for a small child to be separated from his parents. We've taken vacations without the kids as well, but in the two week range, and while one (8 y.o.) loved the time with his grandparents, the other (4 y.o)had a much harder time of it.

iris1745

You can do all the places you want to visit. If it were me I would make a few changes that may have already been mentioned. Instead of 7 days in Barcelonia, stay only 3 or 4. Add these days to Tuscany. Much to see. Second only 3 or 4 days in Dublin and a week in the countryside as janisj suggested. We have only done trips up to 3 1/2 weeks, but I like your itinerary. Use this site to review flights between cities and of course there are many more good sites. www.kayak.com Richard

nytraveler

I would think 7 days way too much for Barcelona. I;ve been twice - and could see it and a little of the country in 3 days.

7 days is definitely too much for Dublin. I am a city person and I love Dublin - but a good part of the reason to go to Ireland is the countryside. I wold do 3 or 4 days in dublin (and see everything) then rent a car and explore.

Also - a car in Rome is madness. I;m a native New Yorker - and have been known to scare cab drivers - but I will drive in Rome onto to and fro the car rental office. there is NO PLACE to park in the city and paying for car rental plus $40 per day parking makes no sense at all. Rome should be explored on foot - or, if exhausted, grab a cab - which are cheap and plentiful.

michele_d

Agree with doing this trip from north to south definitely. Consider staying in apts for the longer stretches. It's great to have your own space to come back to at the end of the day, and eating out for 45 days will get old really quick IMO. Shopping in local markets and making meals at 'home' will save you money and let you become a temporary local.

And two years is not too much time to plan this trip. Planning is half the fun...learning about places, finding out what is where and what interests you. You'll have a great time.

janisj

"<i>Lexma90, you're right it's none of my business either, but I still think 6+ weeks is a long time for a small child to be separated from his parents.</i>"

The first part of that statement is accurate -- the 2nd part shows you don't believe the first part.

Do you have something to contribute to the topic/itinerary . . .

spaarne

Kids associate with kids. We left our 4 yo daughter with the parents of her kindergarten friend in Germany while we drove off to Istanbul and points in between for a month. The main problem was getting her to speak English again when we returned to California.