So what is the ideal Budget for a 13 day visit from Rome to Paris for 2 adults n 2 children 5 & 8 years old; on economy, medium semi and fully luxurious trip.

1. Arrival in Rome.

* Room reserved with Breakfast for 6 days-->(Paid).
* lunch n dinner on self catering basis---->(To be Paid) $-----???
* exploring the visible parts of the city----->

2.Rome to Orlean on cheapest available option.

Orleans
* Room reserved with breakfast for 5/6 days---> (Paid).
* Lunch & Dinner on self catering basis--->(To be Paid) $-----???
* Exploring the visible parts of the city n surrounding on best available option-----Cost.....$???

3 going to Paris for 2 days stay
*Room... $----???
*Food...---$???
*Disney Ticket--->$??? travel to disney land--->$----??
*Paris exploration---> ----$???
*Departure
Total:------US$ (Excluding stay n breakfast cost for 11 days in Rome n Orleans)
.

So, I haven't seen this asked. The $ that you're talking about in your budget. Is this US dollars? Canadian dollars? Aussie dollars? or another?

Dear Casperjj
I have mentioned US $.
Pl check my last post.

Ok. We were posting at the same time so I didn't see your last post.

<<*Disney Ticket--->$???>>

I'm curious to know why there are question marks after Disney Tickets. The price is on their website.

I don't understand staying 5 days in Orleans and only 2 in Paris. Is that 2 days and 1 night? Or 2 nights and 3 days? In either case, 1 day will not be in Paris but Disney. The 2nd day will be traveling to the airport unless you have a late night flight.

5 nights in Orleans - I must have missed some reason for that - but if just a tourist it is an extremely poor option - even if you have a car and use it as a base for touring the castles of the Loire Valley.

I have lived in Orleans off and on for several years and though it is a bustling modern city it is a complete dud for tourists - you will be pulling your hair out after the first day, seeing the town's only major sight - it's wedding cake Gothic cathedral.

Much of Orleans was bombed by the Allies during the German Occupation because it was a rail hub of the town in WW@ and IMO not so briliantly rebuilt.

Unless visiting family cancel that hotel and do own in say Amboise where you can easily take public transportation to several great chateaus and be in a nice city not Orleans, a commercial hub that it totally dead after the stores close. I love Orleans but you are IMO making a big big mistakes.

Tours is a similar but much nicer big city that is very close to several great chateaus by train or mini-bus tours like those thru ACCO-DISPO (Not sure Orleans offers many of these and Orleans much longer and more expensive to get from it to the famous chateaus than Amboise or Tours.

Trains to Paris from Orleans cost about 20-25 euros each way I think - the main station in Orleans is Les-Aubrais - coming from Paris many trains do not go into the dead-en Orleans terminal in the town center but only stop in Les Aubrais 2 kms out- a navette or shuttle train scoots between the intown station and Les Aubrais.

For lots of great train info for your itinerary check these superb IMO sources: www.budgeteuropetravel.com; www.seat61.com and www.ricksteves.com.

Sorry. Just a few more questions.

You mention eating on a 'self catering' basis. Do you have a room in which you can prepare meals so you'll be shopping in a grocery store or does this mean something different?

You also mention visiting "visible parts of the city" in Rome and Orleans. Do you plan on just viewing from the outside or do you wish to enter tourist locations? If so, which ones because its impossible to know the cost if we don't know where you plan to visit? Ditto re 'paris exploration". Not sure what this means.

Tickets for Disneyland was mentioned earlier. Around $350 for one day.

Haven't 4ead all the pos5s, so maybe this has been discuused, but if you need someone to make hotel reservations for you, maybe it would be best to contact a travel agency?

* we have a room in which we can prepare meals.
* non ticketed areas mostly; with certain unavoidable exceptions

Why Orleans! Why? Big mistake unless family, etc.

Daud - we've already provided budget/medium costings at some length above.

Luxury? - the sky's the limit.

non-ticketed areas at Disney stop at the gate.

Daud,
Is this trip for next month, March, 2015, or for 2016? If 2016, you have plenty of time to research, etc.

If next month, have you already paid for airfare tickets? If you do not already have tickets, or you can change them, I suggest you put this trip off for awhile until you can do the trip more the way you want, rather than skimping so much, seeing only the outside of things, etc. As it is, your trip sounds like it will not be enjoyable for anyone.

If you are stuck with the airfare already, I will make a hard recommendation. Go only to Rome and Paris. Rent an apartment in each place. Settle in and enjoy those two places. There are many things to do in each.

Save Disney for a few years. It is terribly expensive. Your three year old will not know or remember much anyway. Don't talk about it anymore and find something else fun to do, even just a carousel ride or a zoo, or some great playground.

I would seriously consider skipping Disney. With the $400 you'd save you could afford to cancel the Orleans hotel and stay in Paris. Your five year old isn't going to remember Disney in a few years. Tell her she can go to a different beautiful carousel every day (http://untappedcities.com/2013/01/24...sels-of-paris/).

Get her some books about Paris (http://www.wsj.com/articles/SB100014...12481411822056) and then take her to the places. If she doesn't already know about Madeline get that book. Get her a Madeline doll and take it with you all over Paris. Those are memories she will probably have a lot longer and for a fraction of the cost.

Post a new thread and title it "Need ideas for things to do with 5 and 8 year old children in Paris" You'll get lots of ideas.

Daud, do you live in the US? If so, skip Disneyland in Europe. I understand that you want to please your 5 year old but why not wait and do Disneyland when your 3 year old will remember and appreciate it? It will cost your $450 for tickets and transportation not to mention food, souvenirs, etc.

I would instead suggest Rome for a week and Paris for a week and stay in an apartment. That way you can save money by shopping and cooking and not having so many transportation expenses.

I think your 5 year old might be excited by being on the top of the Eiffel Tower for her birthday -- at night the lights twinkle all over the tower for about 5 minutes on the hour. You could spend time at a playground earlier, take her for a boat ride on the Seine, have a special picnic, etc.

If you are set on Disney, I would still recommend an apartment in Paris for a week and skipping Orleans.

Really agree you should rethink Disney - that $550 or so (entries plus transport and Disney price food) could get you a whole lot more things to see and do in Paris.

And must admit I just don;t get Orleans at all. If you have some very specific reason to go there fine - but all I hear is that it's cheap. I've been to France many times - not just Paris but many other areas - and have been just fine without seeing Orleans - there are many places I would put ahead = especially Paris.

The idea of the Madeline books and doll is fabulous. Get it now. Read the books to her, and take her to those places in Paris. Take pictures of her in those places. Now, that will be some memories? I have promised my GD to take her someday to see the Seine where the boy who is called a "bad hat" falls in, and the cemetery with all the interesting tomb stones, and the park where I took her Mom and let her sail boats when she was a little girl. Nothing like Paris!

Daud, if you simplify this whole trip, you can have a wonderful, wonderful experience.

My cousins lives in Orleans that's why i thought to spend 5 days there. I was thinking of stopping at Orleans on my way to Paris from Rome and spend 5 days there and then go to Paris for 2 nights.
I m unable to decide on the cheapest way to get to Orleans from Rome. The websites of Eurorails etc are showing exorbitant ticket prices. Can any one tell me How much is the train ticket from Rome to Orleans and from Orleans to Paris? or is there another viable and cheaper alternative??

My cousins lives in Orleans that's why i thought to spend 5 days there. I was thinking of stopping at Orleans on my way to Paris from Rome and spend 5 days there and then go to Paris for 2 nights.
I m unable to decide on the cheapest way to get to Orleans from Rome. The websites of Eurorails etc are showing exorbitant ticket prices. Can any one tell me How much is the train ticket from Rome to Orleans and from Orleans to Paris? or is there another viable and cheaper alternative??

Why not meet have your cousin meet you in Paris?

Have you in fact asked your cousin about this plan? surely s/he can help you with some of these details, though in fact the answers are within your reach if you use the links we have provided you with.

IMO it would be madness to get a train all the way from Rome to Paris; on 31.3.15 you can fly from Rome to Paris [Orly] for as little as €27 on easyjet.