5 day stay - ideas of best place to visit in December
 

Hi -

My boyfriend and I are going to Europe in either December or January. We have a hotel perk where we can basically stay at one hotel for free for 5 nights. We are trying to choose a fun new destination - we have both been to Europe before and have seen Paris, London, parts of Germany, Amsterdam, Stockholm, and Iceland before. We are not opposed to returning to a city we have been before, but would ideally like to explore a new area that has plenty to do to fill up 5 days - keeping in mind the time of year that it is. We will be traveling before/after in the Germany area for family if that has any impact on ideas. Would love to hear others' recommendations on great cities to visit..!

Take a cheap flight to Lisbon where days are mild even in December.

Just as an example - I'll fly this November from the EuroAirport Freiburg im Breisgau to Lisbon and back for USD90 with easyJet. Plenty of other low-cost solutions I should think.

how about Italy - say fly to Rome- take train to Venice (3.5 hrs about) and then either day train or overnight train to Munich - 5 days ain't much - maybe spend the whole time in Rome - night train from there also to Munich.

For lots on trains and night trains check www.budgeteuropetravel.com; www.ricksteves.com and www.seat61.com.

Honestly the options are endless: though Dec/Jan mean you probably want a city base with ample indoor attractions, you've got cities like Seville, Barcelona, Malaga, Rome, Florence, Copenhagen, Vienna, Prague, Krakow, Budapest, Strasbourg, and the list goes on all a quick train or flight away to your family in Germany.

Of the other places you've been, did you have a favorite and why? Are you into modern art, Baroque architecture, Christmas markets, churches and cathedrals, opera...? Having a sense of what you're looking for will help.

Also some places are particularly charming in the lead up to Christmas, so one might recommend some places over others if you're going in December, and vice versa for January.

We've been to both Rome and Venice in this time frame and would definitely return to them again at this time of year. We spent 5 days in Venice (and returned for a week in the spring a couple years later) and 8 days in Rome. Definitely stick to the large cities though.

Where in Germany will you have to end up? If not having been to Berlin or Munich or other areas consider them for that short time.

There are no such thigs as 'best places' in Europe.
You are the only one to be able to define what is best for you.
Buy yourself a paperguide or read trip reports or play darts on a map of Europe.
I can think of dozens of palces to go - that would look like a boring list, is all.