We are taking a quick 3- or 4-night getaway this spring and are thinking about Amsterdam, Dublin, Glasgow, or Edinburgh. We will be flying out of London. Looking for recommendations from people who have been to all 4 cities. Not really looking for particulars (like restaurants or hotels), but just why you think we should do one opposed to another. Why do you like the city? Why don't you?<BR><BR>Thanks!

I've not been to Dublin but I know the other three. If you can tell us what you like, it will much easier to advise which is most likely to be to your liking.

We just like hanging out in a city - eating, drinking, people watching, interesting architecture, museums, shopping, walking around etc. ...<BR><BR>Really just want to know what people like and dislike about each place and then we can decide from what we read/hear.

I should also add - we might want to take a day trip outside of the city one of the days (i.e., going to see the flower fields in Holland or the coast in Ireland). <BR><BR>Thanks!

I have been to all four cities- in the case of Glasgow and Edinburgh more then once! They all have different qualities and ambience. All four have excellent art galleries and museums, good shops and within easy reach of scenic areas. They all have good restaurants and bars and all are easy to walk around with lively night life. Sorry that doesn't really help! If you wanted to spend 3-4 days away from London, you COULD manage Glasgow and Edinburgh as they are less than an hour's distance by train!

Edinburgh would be my choice for a return trip - I've been to all four places. For a daytrip, take one of the all day van tours out to the Highlands. Or you could hop on the train and go to St. Andrews for the day. <BR><BR>Dublin really only had enough to keep my interest for a day or two. The Irish coast is more than a day trip, if you want to see something like the Cliffs of Moher.

I would choose either Edinburgh or Amsterdam. Depends a little on precisely when - I'd be tempted to hit A'dam on April 30 (Queen's Day) because it's a major blast; on the other hand the same day (night) is the Beltane Fire Festival on the Calton Hill in Edinburgh. So you can choose a boozy national street party and flea market or a pagan fertility bash. Orange hair or blue faces, you pick.<BR><BR>Check out http://www.whatsonwhen.com to see what else (besides your trip) might be going on in any of these cities on your chosen dates.

Of the 4, I enjoyed Edinburgh most. It was probably the drama of Edinburgh Castle . . . all of the things you mention that you are seeking can certainly be had in all four cities, and again I preferred the pubs in Edinburgh, people watching along Princes Street and Rose Street, walking the Royal Mile, touring Holyrood House. Although, if you like Rembrandt or Van Gogh you might like Amsterdam.<BR><BR>Glasgow and Dublin take a little more &quot;work&quot; to enjoy than Amsterdam or Edinburgh. FOR ME (ALERT!!! PURELY SUBJECTIVE STATEMENT TO FOLLOW). . . Dublin and Glasgow do not have quite the same visual appeal as Ams. or Edin. (I can already feel the rumble of displeasure which will erupt on me over that comment . . . even though I tried not to offend.)

of the three for a quick trip I would choose Amsterdam. You have at the bery least two days to se the town and in the spring you must visit Keukenhoff garden, although other side trips work too! I love Edinburgh, but for a short trip I think Amsterdam is easier. Have a grand time. <BR>

I think of the three I know i'd go with Edinburgh.<BR>Glasgow has good restuarantss (probably better than Edinburgh), but the pubs, whist interesting in the Confucian sense, are not so quirky. There are plenty of opportunities for people watching, and they will behave in a more anthropologically interesting fashion, but it's a much more closed in and indoors type of city (could be all that rain?) It has interesting architecture, but not as much or as varied as Edinburgh. Edinburgh is the museums capital of Britain, outside London, Glasgow has better shopping, but Edinburgh is much more doable on foot.<BR><BR>Amsterdam has good museums and art galleries and good cafes, but my interest ceases there, I fear.<BR>

All -<BR><BR>Thanks for your posts - I've got it narrowed down to Amsterdam and Edinburgh at this point. Still not sure exactly when we are going, but mid-late April seems most likely.<BR> <BR>To those who favor Edinburgh - in your opinion, would it be better to save Scotland for a longer trip as opposed to doing just a weekend in Edinburgh?

It almost sounds as though you are asking if there's more to see in Scotland than in the Netherlands.<BR><BR>PERSONNALLY . . . <BR><BR>If it's a matter of 3-4 nights in Ams or Edin, I'd choose Edin because I prefer the geography of Edin over Ams. and I like McEwans and Tartan better than Heineken and Amstel. If it's a matter of spend 10 days in Scotland or 10 days in the Netherlands, I'd take 10 days in Scotland for more or less the same reason.<BR><BR>Having said that, I really enjoy Ams. It's one of the quirkiest cities in the world . . . something for ALL types. I'm not likely to avail myself of ALL that Amsterdam has to offer, but I like going to Disneyland and Disneyworld even though I don't ride all of the rides.

I love to travel but I think, as objectively as I can, that I'd still pick Edinburgh over Amsterdam. It's a very self contained city, and you can have a great time without leaving it. Nor will you feel you're missing anything.<BR><BR>But I agree with the rest of Snoopy's synopsis too.

Amsterdam offers pretty good countryside excursion opportunities in mid-late April (at least daffodils, probably tulips); or you can take fun day trips to the Hague or Delft. We've never been bored one iota in Holland.<BR><BR>

Hi David,<BR><BR>Have been to all four. Preferences in order are: Edinburgh, Dublin, Amsterdam and Glasgow. All are must visit cities in Europe.<BR><BR>Having said that, if this is the ONLY time you will get to the city you chose, I would suggest Amsterdam because it is very consolidated. And, Edinburgh/Glasgow and the rest of Scotland; as well as Dublin and the rest of Ireland deserve more than four days. <BR><BR>Not that Amsterdam and the Netherlands do not. It is just easier to attach the Netherlands to a mainland European trip if you are looking for more time there.

I vote for Amsterdam! The Van Gogh museum is really special. The brewery tour is fun. A diamond factory is interesting - the ones that let you watch the grinding. They don't care (much) if you don't buy anything. There is a 300 year old pub, a very old cathedral which gave me a different idea of worship way back when, Anne Frank's house (not hokey), a ride in a canal boat, AND a day trip to a village just outside of Ams. that has a chocolate factory and a windmill and old country houses. Have fun.

David... I agree with your question. Yes, I chose Amsterdam for a quick visit. If you have the chance save Edinburgh and all Scotland for a longer linger. Or visit Edinburgh and see it as just a taste of what is yet to come! It is grand.

<BR>Go to Amsterdam. I've also been to all four, and I enjoyed Amsterdam much more than the others, though I liked all of them, it has to be said. The winning points, for me, is that Amsterdam has the best atmosphere: very warm and friendly, fun AND serious, with a huge variety of things to see and do. I found it incredibly beautiful, especially by night; the Dutch really know what they're doing with illumination. I was sorry to leave this great city. I also felt Amsterdam to be very romantic, something I didn't experience in any of the other three cities.

Another big vote for Amsterdam. Great day trips from there include Utrecht, Leiden, Delft, Den Haag, and Haarlem. All of these places, including Amsterdam of course, fit all your requirements admirably. <BR><BR>As for shopping, you'll find many more cool, quirky little shops in Dutch towns and cities than in any of the other cities you are interested in. Depends what you're after, of course, but most shops in the other cities are replicated in every other biggish European city, including Amsterdam.<BR><BR>The museums are more varied and numerous than in the other cities too, from the very small and unusual, eg the Kattencabinett and the Torture Museum, to the fascinating Tropenmuseum and Jewish Museum, to the world class Rijksmuseum and Van Gogh Museum. <BR><BR>I preferred the variety of bars in Amsterdam to those in the other cities too. Also, in these bars, you can run up a tab then pay as you're leaving, which is more civilised in my opinion. I got fed up, at busy times, queueing at the bars and having to pay on the spot in the other cities. Sometimes I noticed a kind of frantic atmosphere in some of the Glasgow, Edinburgh and Dublin bars, especially on weekend nights. I never found that at any time in any Amsterdam bars. The brown bars, such as 't Smalle, are extremely cosy, friendly and relaxed.<BR><BR>I must, however, put in a word for Glasgow on the subject of Indian restaurants. They were quite simply the best I've ever been to. Though not exactly cheap, they were well worth it.<BR><BR>As for architecture, those canal houses in Amsterdam are just gorgeous, especially those from the Golden Age of the 17th century on the Grachtengordel.<BR><BR>I'm very interested in discovering where you'll decide on, wherever it may be!<BR><BR>

To the top for David.