mia22

Hi Fodorites,
Please help me fix my itinerary for our honeymoon next year. We have a little over a month, and we plan to cover 7 countries (it's our 'let's go to Europe now before kids and life get in the way" type of trip, so please bear with us). So here are the major details:

Who we are: newlyweds, in our 30s. fairly athletic, we love to walk around, we love art and history and food, not so much into beaches and our idea of night life is to sit at a bar and have a drink and watch people. We both like photography too, so lush landscapes and beautiful architecture are very much welcome.

When we're going: End of April to End of May 2014

itiinerary:

Day 1: Fly into Amsterdam
Day 2: Amsterdam
Day 3: Amsterdam
Day 4: Amsterdam to Prague (fly)
Day 5: Prague
Day 6: Prague
Day 7: Prague to Vienna (train)
Day 8: Vienna
Day 9: Vienna to Venice (sleeper train)
Day 10: Venice
Day 11: Venice
Day 12: Venice to Florence (train)
Day 12: Florence
Day 13: Florence to Rome (train)
Day 14: Rome
Day 15: Rome
Day 16: Rome
Day 17: Rome to Paris (fly)
Day 18: Paris
Day 19: Paris
Day 20: Paris
Day 21: Paris
Day 22: Paris to London (train)
Day 23: London
Day 24: London
Day 25: London
Day 26: London
Day 27: London
Day 28: London to Edinburgh (train)
Day 29: Edinburgh
Day 30: Edinburgh to Ireland (either Belfast or Dublin, via train/ferry)
Day 31: Ireland
Day 32: Ireland
Day 33: Ireland
Day 34: Ireland
Day 35: Ireland
Day 36: Fly home

I've been to Paris and Italy while my fiance has not, and we've both been to Ireland twice, as his sister lives there).

I know the itinerary looks somewhat busy, but believe me that's already the watered down version haha, originally we wanted to spend time in Berlin, and Budapest, but we decided to focus on countries we really REALLY want to see. I know we can't explore the countries as thoroughly as we'd like, so we'll settle for "a taste of." Any inputs though? We can add 2 or 3 days max, but hopefully no more than that. Thanks Fodorites!

alanRow

One full day for Edinburgh - hardly worth it. Find at least 2 other days from your schedule.

It makes more sense to fly to Ireland

cymraeg

Agree with alanRow. The same could be said for Vienna and Florence. I'd knock a day off Amsterdam and possibly (dare I say it?!) London.

jamikins

I agree but I would dump Vienna and add the days to Edinburgh. I found Vienna underwhelming and you only have one full day planned...

sparkchaser

Be sure to plan for four days after your vacation to recover.

mia22

Thank you for your replies, everyone.

So Amsterdam is okay for 1 full day but Edinburgh is not? Ok got it. Will knock off a day from Amsterdam and add to Edinburgh.

London is actually the main thing on our trip, so we'd rather actually add a day or so if we can. Haha.

I'm not too keen on Vienna either and only put it to "break" the Prague to Venice train trip. We'd like to limit our plane rides out of budget also. But I will consider that option if it's really much better.

cymraeg

Well.....it's all so subjective. I love Vienna. I'd have dropped Amsterdam altogether but if that's where you're flying into......

mamcalice

I would skip Vienna entirely and add a day to Florence. Since London is your main interest, I would consider putting it early in your trip - starting in the UK and ending in Rome. My first trip to Europe was 6 weeks, 8 countries. We saved the best (Paria) for last and by the time we got there, we had pretty much had it so I don't remember Paris on that trip at all. Your trip will be tiring as it is so London will be best appreciated early.

Mimar

Look at skyscanner.net and/or whichbudget.com for cheap flights between European cities. Such flights can be cheaper than the train -- as long as you pack light. But you may not save much time, what with getting out to the airport, allowing time before the flight, then getting back into town.

If you're arriving in Europe after a long, overnight flight, you'll be jet-lagged and sleepy for day or two. Allow enough days for that at your first stop.

PalenQ

So Amsterdam is okay for 1 full day but Edinburgh is not? Ok got it. Will knock off a day from Amsterdam and add to Edinburgh.>

I disagree with that - Amsterdam has a whole lot more to see and do than Edinburgh, which has enough for two full days - one day in Amsterdam means only hitting the tip of the iceberg.

I'd take a day off London and put it in Edinburgh but not slight Amsterdam.

PalenQ

with but 4 train rides on The Continent forget about railpasses but do try to score discounted tickets - some as cheap as 9 euros - for the Italian portion from www.trenitalia.com - but they are sold in limited numbers and generally are not changeable unless upgrading to full fare perhaps and are non-refundable so be sure - also as they are sold in limited numbers you have to book weeks ahead of time to secure but you can save a ton.

Ditto for the Prague to Vienna train (buses remain a vialbe alternative here) and Vienna to Venice - book that one at www.oebb.com - Austrian Railways site - Prague to Vienna on Czech Railways site.

For loads of great info on European trains and overnight trains check out www.seat61.com - good advice on online discounted tickets; www.ricksteves.com and www.budgeteuropetravel.com. Trains rarely sell out so can always book once in a city for the outward trip but you can save a tidy sum usually by foregoing flexibility and booking really early! The early bird doth get the proverbial worm here as train travel is now ticketed like airlines - the person sitting next to you may pay a lot more or less than you do!

carolyn

I, too, liked Vienna and think it deserves more than a day. Everyone is different, of course, but Amsterdam didn't do much for me.

michele_d

Don't discount taking flights between cities. You can find some great prices on these flights. Check out this website and compare to trains and then decide.

http://www.low-cost-airline-guide.com/

WildHoney

Why dont you fly into Ireland first and have the comforts of family as you get over jet lag. Then do Scotland, London and take the Eurostar into Paris( 2 1/2 hrs). You love art, but left only one day for Florence? I would dump Amsterdam and try to have a minimum of 2 days anywhere you go. It looks like 1/3 of your trip are travel days. Because you are young, do the things that would be harder to do as an older person e.g., i have a friend who now has a neuromuscular disease and is trying to do Venice before she just cant. The walking cities can be taxing as you age especially if your health status changes.

StCirq

It's all so subjective. I hate Vienna and love Amsterdam. You need to do some research on each city to see if there seems to be a "fit" for you, and even then, you won't know until you arrive.

msteacher

I loved Amsterdam and cared less for Vienna, however with this itinerary, it may make sense for you to drop Amsterdam and fly directly to Prague ( the furthest distance on your trip). Then take the days you allotted to AMS and give them to Florence, Vienna, and Edinburgh, since your time in those cities is so short.

Keep in mind that each time you move cities you will lose most of a day to travel and logistics. If you can eliminate one or two more stops, I think you will have a much more enjoyable pace. With 5 or 6 days in each city, you might even have time for some day trips, which would get you outside the city centers so you could enjoy some of the natural beauty that is also part of Europe's charm. Wishing you a wonderful honeymoon!

PalenQ

some love Amsterdam and loathe kind of Vienna and others think exactly the opposite - but I think overall more folks would like Amsterdam more simply because like Venice it is physically out of the most gorgeous cities on the planet - just being there makes a great feeling for most, but not all. Do whatever can tighten your itinerary and whatever one fits best.

mia22

Hi everyone! Thank you so very much for your responses.

I've considered everything you said and switched some places around, added days to some, deleted some places here and there.

Wildhoney, I wish we could fly directly into Ireland like you suggested, but where I come from (Asia), it's easier and less expensive to fly into either Amsterdam, London or Rome. My home base actually flies directly to London but I figured we'd save the "best" for last, best being that London was our original dream destination.

Anyhow, here's the new plan. We'd start in Italy, going up, taking trains most of the way, and just 1 flight.

Day 1 Fly into Rome
Day 2 Rome
Day 3 Rome
Day 4 Rome
Day 5 Rome
Day 6 Rome to Florence via train (3 hours)
Day 7 Florence
Day 8 Florence
Day 9 Florence to Venice via train (3 hours)
Day 10 Venice
Day 11 Venice
Day 11 Venice to Paris via train (sleeper train)
Day 12 Paris
Day 13 Paris
Day 14 Paris
Day 15 Paris
Day 16 Paris
Day 17 Paris to London via train (2 hours)
Day 18 London
Day 19 London
Day 20 London
Day 21 London
Day 22 London
Day 23 London to Edinburgh via train (5 hours)
Day 24 Edinburgh
Day 25 Edinburgh
Day 26 Edinburgh to Ireland via airplane
Day 27 Ireland
Day 28 Ireland
Day 29 Ireland
Day 30 Ireland
Day 31 Ireland
Day 32 Fly home


I took out Prague, Amsterdam and Vienna and added more days to Rome (figured we need more days on our first leg) and Paris. We're thinking of adding more days to either Venice, Florence, Edinburgh or Ireland with family but basically this is our route.

Does this make more sense?

janisj

That is a lovely plan mia22. Not overly rushed at all. One other option would be to take the sleeper train from London to Edinburgh. That would give you an extra full day in London and arrival in Edinburgh first thing in the morning. The scenery between London and Edinburgh is OK but not terrific (except for a short bit between Newcastle and Edinburgh) so you wouldn't miss anything much traveling overnight.

You might also think about a small group day tour out of Edinburgh using Rabbies or Timberbush - to see some of the glorious Scottish countryside.

http://www.rabbies.com/edinburgh_tour_departures.asp
http://www.timberbush-tours.co.uk/ou...rom-edinburgh/

msteacher

I really like your new plan. Wish I could tag along with you! Have a great trip.