5 weeks Central Europe in May/June - suggestions welcome
We've decided on short notice to go to Central Europe next month (we're between houses until late June - figure if we have to pay to stay somewhere it may as well be part of traveling!)
Long list of possible destinations include - Prague (fly in/out of here; pick up rental car) - Cesky Krumlov - Brno (our nephew went to a semester of university there and recommends it) - Krakow (Auschwitz) - Budapest - Bratislava - Zagreb - Vienna - Salzburg - Munich - Nuremburg We are committed to a rental car not the train - it's essential for my husband's bad back and we're used to dealing with a car/parking in cities. I'm assuming 5 nights each in Prague, Budapest and Vienna......looking at the above list it's city-centric so will want to add maybe 5 days in a country location (where we could do day trips -- we don't mind long day trips). Suggestions? I'm also wondering if we can play it a bit by ear or if we need to have apartments or hotels booked in advance in the major destinations - have had a quick look on booking.com/airbnb and there is decent availability now - any thoughts on that? (our dates are roughly May 8 - June 14) Heading off to buy guidebooks! TIA for any suggestions |
There is no problem playing it by ear.
|
I've have stayed a few days in Telc in the Moravian part of the Czech Republic. Beautiful village and a nice region for day-tripping, such as to Slavonice.
|
Thanks Dogeared.
tonfromleiden - Wow! What a beautiful village - thanks! |
Yes, ain't it cute? We had a cosy apartment on the square.
Not too far from Brno you'll find the palaces of Slavkov and Bucovice. In the same region Kromeriz is also a surprise. Try to fit in Olomouc when going from Brno to Krakow. Beautiful city centre with two large and lively squares. |
Your timing allows you to benefit with respect to lodging, as most European schools are still in session until the end of June. Living in Austria and with our daughter attending an international school, we take advantage of the last two weeks of June for our family holiday. :)
With five weeks, perhaps take a little time to choose a few places from which to "base," enjoying day outings as inspired. There is no harm in finding lodging now that offers "more," like barbecues or sunny terraces or having other particular features (like laundry); with five weeks of travel, hotel rooms will get old quickly. Plan an extra 20% for driving times. This part of Europe has lots of road construction going on, especially on the autobahns that were once behind the Iron Curtain. Also plan to carry relevant cash, as your proposed travels will require vignettes, and many WC's require change. Please don't think of driving in the cities. Many on your list have pedestrian-only zones; there are trams to consider; and, frankly, it's unnecessary. Here in Vienna we only use our car on weekends when we leave the city; and when we travel to Prague or Bratislava or Budapest, or really, any city, the first thing we do is tuck the car into known garages. I hope this is helpful. |
fourfortravel - thank you so much for your advice. With respect to cities - we are used to having a car and arriving and dumping it in the nearest parking lot to our accommodation. Then it's foot power!
Just booked our flights - got a good deal from Toronto to Prague with a stopover in Amsterdam for 4 nights on our return home. Very excited now! |
Elizabeth_S
Your choice of a rent a car is a perfect option. As a private guide I am driving quite a lot and you will have ABSOLUTELY no problems in driving around all the cities in your list. Also no problems in Český Krumlov, Kroměříž or any other small towns. I will never agree with fourfortravel on problems of driving a car in Vienna. I've been there tons of times since 1995 and sometimes I go there from Budapest a few times a week. ALWAYS takes not more than 10 minutes to find a parking place, even downtown. Also having a car in Vienna you can easily get to the Schönbrunn Palace or the Donauturm observation deck for excellent views of the city (clear sky is a must of course). Public transportation is not so cheap to say the least in some cities, so the car (even with the parking fees inclusive) saves you a lot of money and you have the most important thing at your disposal: FREEDOM of Movement, anytime, anywhere:)) Same thing applies for Budapest. You can leave your car at the heroes square free parking even for the whole day and explore the city from there. On weekends parking is free here, so you can park whenever you want, just watch the No Stopping or No parking Signs. In Bratislava there a few shopping centers not far from downtown. You can park your car in one of them (some even have free hours). Just check the Googles Maps. I know, I know, pollution, greener environment, etc, but sometimes you simply want a little comfort if you know what I mean. :)) |
Oh, almost forgot.
I would definitely skip Zagreb and go to Ljubljana instead. Also would recommend to visit the little towns on the Czech-Slovakian border, like Lednice, Valtice, Mikulov, the parts of the “The Lednice-Valtice Cultural Landscape “ There is a chance you’ll probably like them more than the over-hyped Český Krumlov”. |
We went to Prague and Vienna almost two years ago. Was already posting but didn't finish--and see that another poster also mentioned southern Moravia as a destination. It's just off the freeway between Prague and Vienna--so hardly a detour in time. Mikulov is a nicer, more historic town than Breclav. There is a long Jewish history in the area (one of the most most famous rabbis of the 1500s was from there), and I would have liked to stay longer to see the Jewish baths. There are also wineries in the area. My favorite place was Lednice. It is a phenomenal palace, but the grounds are really incredible.
Not sure if you have gotten any of your lodgings, but you may want to get them in Vienna earlier as it was more expensive and especially on weekends, things can fill up. We were a party of three and mostly preferred apartments. We found a lot more of them and small B&Bs for Czech on booking.com than on the other main travel sites. Since you will have a car, the Klosterneuberg Abbey just outside Vienna (45 min?) is really nice. |
I think it would be difficult to appreciate all the places you list in the time you have. Five weeks will go very fast! I think trying to prioritize your wish list would serve you well. JMO.
|
I agree about going to Ljubljana instead of Zagreb. But if you do visit Zagreb, consider going two hours south to the beautiful Plitvice Lakes National Park - well worth the detour!
|
The Plitvice Lakes National Park is glorious, but ... you would probably want an overnight if you go there. And if you go someplace that far from you starting point, you might want to take advantage of all the time and money you spend getting there to actually see / explore the area, and a trip to Croatia / Slovenia / Mostar / Sarajevo / Kotor can easily take a full month just for the highlights....
Definitely worth considering! But IMO, worth thinking through in advance.... |
We were very comfortable in this Budapest apartment for 9 nights last Fall; the hosts are wonderful: https://www.airbnb.com/rooms/3516693
If you make it to Belgrade, I also highly recommend this apartment – we were there for 5 nights last Fall. We took advantage of the two full baths to really spread out. If this apartment is booked, there is a mirror apartment next door. Again, really lovely hosts: https://www.airbnb.com/rooms/10045904 For Vienna, we stayed about two blocks outside the inner city in 2015 and returned for a second stay in 2016: https://www.airbnb.com/rooms/793518 Since you mention your husband’s back condition, one thing I will say about airb&b’s especially in Europe is that often the mattresses are much more flimsy than what you’d typically find in hotels. Lastly, you don't mention Sarajevo, but if you have any interest in the former Yugoslavia, seriously consider going there. |
I wasn't crazy about Cesky Krumlov--stayed two or three nights, could have been a one-night stop. But I liked Telc, Jindřichův Hradec and some other towns in southern Bohemia. We had a car as well and toured that area 3 or 4 years ago. Very relaxing. I also thought Prague was terrific.
LOVED Poland (Krakow and Warsaw) and definitely want to return. |
I didn't love Cesky Krumlov, either - and I also had three nights. I had planned to use it as a base for other cities, but it turned out to be not so central to where I wanted to go. I kind of wished I'd stayed only a night. I did day stops in Telc and Jindřichův Hradec, too and liked them both.
|
Ahhhh Andrew, do you realize what you said?
"I kind of wished I'd stayed only a night." Then why didn't you? I never stay anywhere longer than I want to and try to also never stay anywhere for less time than I want to. It's called winging it. Any hotel will let you check-in and check-out when you please. I know that's a radical thought for some people but trust me it's true. I often find a hotel and when asked at check-in, 'how long will you be staying for?', I reply, 'I don't know. Why don't you book us in for a week and if we decide to leave before that, I'll let you know the evening before.' There is no law that says you must decide up-front how long you will stay anywhere. |
When Elizabeth_S asks about 'playing it by ear', I take that to mean they do not want to pre-plan everything and prefer to be flexible depending on what they find of interest as they go.
From my perspective, anyone that stays longer than they want to in a place has the wrong idea of how to travel. Okszi mentions how a car gives you 'freedom of movement, anytime, anywhere.' The same applies to hotels if you have the right mindset. Nothing is making you have to stay somewhere if you don't want to. You just check-out. |
Thanks for all the great ideas! Off to check out the apartment listings.
Re the list of destinations - as mentioned that was the "long list" - to be whittled down! Have now booked a car - not permitted to enter Serbia so Belgrade is off the list. Re Zagreb - if we go there we *might* continue on to Plitvice as we have not seen it. We spent a month in Croatia a few years ago and loved it but it was February/March and Plitvice was ice covered. If we play it by ear as we're considering we might do a sprint down from Budapest and then back up to Vienna. Have now booked a lovely apartment in Prague for the first 5 nights....and an airport hotel for the last night. As advised above I'm considering having hard dates for Vienna to ensure suitable accommodation but otherwise leaving things open for now. Thank you all for your help! |
So I have the first couple of weeks scoped out -
Day 1 - arrive Prague - apartment in Old Town Day 2 - Prague Day 3 - Prague Day 4 - Prague Day 5 - Prague Day 6 - drive to hotel near Auschwitz Day 7 - visit Auschwitz Day 8 - drive to Krakow Day 9 - Krakow Day 10 - Krakow Day 11 - drive to Budapest Day 12 - Budapest Day 13 - Budapest Day 14 - Budapest Day 15 - Budapest At this point we have are exactly half way through our nights before we return to Prague to fly to Amsterdam. Next I am leaning towards backtracking a bit back into Czech Republic and spending some time in a rural area setting as we've had pretty much all cities up until now - perhaps as many as 6 nights. From that base we'll do day trips. (looking at Telc area). I know we'll want 4-5 nights in Vienna and then up to Prague via Munich (possibly staying there but have been there) and stopping in Nuremberg (definite). Still pondering itinerary - haven't booked past Auschwitz and still may not (other than Vienna)...... comments appreciated. |
Should be great!
You might want to add a day to Krakow, but of course, that depends on your interests and preferences. While there, do consider trying to see the <i>Lady with an Ermine</i> -- she is quite special. |
Thanks kja! I think you're right about Krakow as I look at it - so much to see.
It's so helpful to draft this out - I just had another thought that we should keep that middle section open (i.e. Telc) and go south to Zagrab/Plitvice at that point depending upon the best imminent weather. We don't mind longer driving days (everything is a long driving day in Canada!) so that's an interesting hole to keep for now. |
The Plitvice Lakes are stunning, but you might want to defer seeing them until you can give Croatia and Slovenia a bit more time. Just a thought! There are sooooo many wonderful places to see -- it can be quite a challenge to choose, can't it?
|
Out of curiosity, why more nights in Budapest than Krakow? Not saying that is a bad choice, just wondering what your thinking was there. I guess Budapest is a lot bigger. Do you have plans to see more things there? Of the three, I liked Prague and Krakow the best, just in terms of charm.
Even if I'm not fixed on my dates, I like to book places I can cancel - booking.com is great for this - or at least figure out where I would stay if I were going for sure. So I'd pick two or three places in each town you haven't booked yet, in places you might visit, and at least have them at the ready to check when you are ready to commit; hope at least one choice is still available. June might be a nice time to drive through Moravia and southern Bohemia and see the towns. I did that in September 2012 and the area felt a bit sleepy, like it was more of a summer destination. Some nice towns though, as mentioned above. Cesky Krumlov is one of them, just way overhyped. Are you visiting Rothenburg ob der Tauber near Nuremberg? (Maybe you've visited before?) It's a very touristy little old town, but it was lovely. There's a reason it is popular. |
Andrew - because we're spending 2 nights near Auschwitz it is kind of like 5 nights in Krakow?
I agree about booking.com cancellable --- actually am holding reservations now in a couple of places. |
I have stayed in a couple of these apartments in Budapest and highly recommend them. (Very comfortable beds!)
http://budapestvacationrentals.com/S...n_Rentals.html I wrote about the first one: "The owners are clearly captivated by Budapest. Between the info on their website, and the collection of notes in the apartment, it’s hard to think of a question they haven’t anticipated. And the apartment showed the same loving attention to detail, from the spa bag with extra towels to the food in the fridge, from free calls to the US to the addictive Nespresso machine, it was truly a home away from home." I am another not overly impressed by Ceske Krumlov, and was glad I elected to stay in Ceske Budejovice and day trip, which allowed me to visit a second castle. |
Oh, I didn't get that you had two nights near Auschwitz. That makes more sense.
|
Our itinerary continues to evolve......due to availability in Vienna I want to book there so this is what I'm now thinking - I've added a night to Budapest (have two sets of friends of friends we're planning to see) and have now abandoned going into Germany (Munich/Nuremberg) which reduces our geography nicely
Day 1 - arrive Prague - apartment in Old Town Day 2 - Prague Day 3 - Prague Day 4 - Prague Day 5 - Prague Day 6 - drive to hotel near Auschwitz Day 7 - visit Auschwitz (have booked private tour) Day 8 - drive to Krakow Day 9 - Krakow Day 10 - Krakow (Salt mine day trip?) Day 11 - drive to Budapest (have booked apartment in 7th) Day 12 - Budapest Day 13 - Budapest Day 14 - Budapest Day 15 - Budapest Day 16 - Budapest Day 17 - Drive to Plitvice Lakes Day 18 - Plitvice Lakes Day 19 - Drive to Zagreb Day 20 - Zagreb Day 21 - Drive to Vienna Day 22 - Vienna Day 23 - Vienna Day 24 - Vienna Day 25 - Vienna Day 26 - Vienna Day 27 - Vienna Day 28 - Telc area/daytrips Day 29 - Telc area Day 30 - Telc area Day 31 - Prague airport Day 32 - AMS Day 33 - AMS Day 34 - AMS Day 35 - AMS Day 36 - return to YYZ We have spent quite a bit of time elsewhere in Croatia (3+ weeks in Rovinj/Split/Dubrovnik/etc) but the weather was too cool then for Plitvice. I like the idea of a break from cities and this itinerary has two. Would appreciate comments! TIA |
What about this area in Vienna? Walking distance to major sites?
https://www.airbnb.ca/rooms/6407411?...-06&s=_f-QrjQl |
Hi, Elizabeth--A big ring around Vienna is not enough to go on. Please share major cross streets if not the address.
I know it says you'll get the actual address after you book, but try emailing and asking for it. |
Well, it's clear it's outside the Ringstrasse to the east. Not my preference. Also ask how far to the nearest metro station - in distance, not time.
|
I like this location but it's just recently been listed with no reviews. Also no elevator (although I don't yet know what floor). Have emailed the "owner" for more info
https://www.airbnb.ca/rooms/18073297 |
No reviews? No way.
|
I've never used AirBnB (partly because I like to make last-minute changes to my schedule, and many AirBnB places have cancellation fees). But I have looked at them more than once. One thing that struck me is how useless may of the reviews seem. They are ALMOST COMPLETELY positive: how nice the host was (great - but...who cares?), only the good stuff about the place. These reviews seem very much at odds with reviews I read elsewhere (that seem more realistic).
I've heard anecdotes from people using AirBnB. Mostly they are good but SOME have been weird/negative experiences. But I have *NEVER* seen those types of reviews on AirBnB. This makes me fear they are filtering out the more critical/negative reviews. Even the best places occasionally get dinged by SOMEONE! As for me: last (only) time in Vienna, I stayed far from the ring (a 10 minute S-bahn ride in so easy) because I got a great deal on at Renaissance (Marriot) on Priceline. Honestly, it wasn't a big deal in Vienna where the trains are very fast and efficient. (I tried the same sort of thing in Budapest but it didn't work out as well.) |
Actually, I tend to agree about the AirBnB reviews. I think they are so positive because the "guests" are also reviewed by the "hosts". After realizing the damage that AirBnB can do to rental markets and objecting to the idea of turning residential buildings and neighborhoods into informal hotels, I have pretty much given up on the whole idea.
|
I have to say that it DOES make a difference to me how nice the host is whether you are staying in a hotel or a B&B. We have used airb&b successfully several times in the US and Europe; we will only book a place with almost perfect scores and lots of them. The reviews of the guest and the host are blinded until both complete them, or until a deadline passes, so there is not much incentive for the guest to post a glowing review when the property does not deserve it.
|
The AirBnB #6407411 is a decent location, highly residential, and as it goes in nearly all of Vienna, safe, including at night. Based on the reviews the flat is located at the Sechskrügelgasse Straßenbahn Line 0 (tram), meaning you are one connection from the U3 and to points around the city. You're not really within walking distance to anything but Stadtpark; Stephansdom is a little more than a kilometer from the flat, for reference.
At the U3 connection to Tram 0 (Wien Mitte) there is a major chain grocery store, particularly helpful if you plan to prepare meals in the flat. The neighborhood does not have a wealth of non-Austrian restaurants; I have a couple of friends who live in that area who grouse about this point. I wouldn't expect too much English to be spoken at the neighborhood bakery or Gasthof, either. I hope this is helpful. |
"so there is not much incentive for the guest to post a glowing review when the property does not deserve it."
There is an incentive to at least not post bad reviews, since future hosts can read your reviews. |
Thanks for all the help.
The apartment above is 300 metres from Rochusmarkt. I've now booked this one (cancellable) on booking.com - across from the Opera - at twice the price of the other one. http://www.abieshomes.com/homes/opera.html I am leaning towards the Opera one -- due to my husband's bad back I try to find accommodation as close as possible to sightseeing - I don't like to add walking to walk/sightsee (if you know what I mean). And I am open to a splurge in Vienna for the right place. Comments are appreciated. Thanks |
Looks nice, have you checked for an elevator? Maybe AC?
Last time I went to Vienna I stayed at the Opera Suites just across from the Opera and liked the location. |
All times are GMT -8. The time now is 09:32 AM. |