Hi, for a while now I have been making and re-working my itinerary at any spare moment I have, I would like to bring it before you all, so you can tear it apart. Please note any cities that you feel are not worth visiting due to the lack of interesting things to do, if I shouldn't go to that many cities, etc. Have at it. I really appreciate when you do this, because it helps make my trip so much better, and hopefully it will help out other people looking for places to visit. Thank you! <BR> <BR>Day 1- Frankfurt (Fly-in, depart for Cologne) <BR>Day 2- Cologne (Depart for Koblenz, Rhine) <BR>Day 3- Koblenz Area (Should I stay longer?) <BR>Day 4- Depends on stay in day 3 <BR>Day 5- Wurzburg <BR>Day 6- Linz <BR>Day 7- Vienna <BR>Day 8- Vienna <BR>Day 9- Vienna <BR>Day 10- Salzburg <BR>Day 11- Salzburg <BR>Day 12- Munich <BR>Day 13- Munich <BR>Day 14- Innsbruck <BR>Day 15- Innsbruck <BR>Day 16- Venice <BR>Day 17- Venice <BR>Day 18- Empty (More Venice?) <BR>Day 19- Empty (Dont know yet) <BR>Day 20- Interklaken Area <BR>Day 21- Interlaken Area <BR>Day 22- Empty <BR>Day 23- Empty <BR>Day 24- Fribourg <BR>Day 25- Fribourg <BR>Day 26- Bern <BR>Day 27- Bern <BR>Day 28- Luzern <BR>Day 29- Luzern <BR>Day 30- Zurich <BR>Day 31- Frankfurt <BR> <BR>There it is. For the empty ones, any city town suggestions to fill would be much appreciated. THanks again

Dear George, <BR> <BR>Don't be disappointed by my post, because I don't have much to say - I haven't been to any of these places except Koblenz, and that wasn't even into the city. I would recommend a brief departure from the Rhine and travel down the Mosel River a bit from Koblenz into Eltz. I would than take the time to visit the Burg Eltz - if you like Castles that is. It is worth the effort. <BR>I was also wondering - you have a lot planned for the first part of your trip, do you have a special remedy for combating jetlag? I don't mean that negatively, but wow I am usually feeling like my head is in the clouds for the first 3 days and like to acclimate by being in one place.

Yikes.16 cities in 31 days!!!. I'd try to spend a few more days around Munich. You should see Dachau, Rothenberg and King Ludwig's castles, all very doable if you day trip out of Munich. And you'll need to unwind just a little bit when you arrive in Frankfurt. Maybe spend an extra day in Cologne. When I fly into Frankfurt I like to head to one of the pretty towns on the Romantic Road and settle in to unwind a bit. I'd try to find a place for Florence on my trip, too. I think you can do Venice in two days but why would you want to with so much time. Unless you have six months to live and know you'll never get back to Europe, I'd try to concentrate a little more on a particular region. I'm not a great fan of Innsbruck and I think you might be Schnitzled out by that time. Hate to say you should start from scratch but you need to figure out what you really want to see and then plan your itinerary. You've got a rare opportunity to spend more time in Europe than many people ever do. Soak in some of the culture at some of these cities. (For the record, I've taken aggressive two week trips around Europe but come home exhausted--and happy. You'll wear yourself out with this schedule.

George, I just have to ask if you have a specific reason for visiting Cologne and Koblenz? These are not usually stops on tourist itineraries... not saying there's anything wrong with going there, just wondering. If you are looking for somewhere on the Rhine to visit/stay, for example, you would be missing the boat there (no pun intended). Please give me an idea of why you've picked these locations and I can help you fill in the blanks. For example, Elizabeth recommended going down the Mosel from Koblenz to Burg Eltz, and I would second that and recommend staying at perhaps the town of Muden, just south of Koblenz on the river, from which you reach the castle. I also second the post from jwagner that you're going to be doing a lot of running on this schedule... but if that's what you want, go for it! Please let us know some specifics on what you're looking for and we'll try to help.

How's it look? Exhausting. <BR> <BR>Have you traveled in foreign countries for 30 days before? <BR> <BR>Do you speak German?

Well - it does look like a lot to see in 31 days. I have done two different 6 week trips to Europe, generally covering a lot of ground in a short time. I find that moving every other day is very exhausting. On the most recent trip we would hit a large city (e.g. Paris) for 5-6 days, then have 2-3 days where we moved each night or every other night to see smaller towns. Any more can be so exhausting that eventually you stop noticing where you are and in the end your memories are all sort of a blur. Nothing really has time to sink in. <BR> <BR>At the very least I would recommend on your empty days simply staying put. Maybe you can pick a homebase for some of the countries (e.g. Switzerland) and use day trips to explore a bit. I have been to Bern and didn't find it the most interesting place. I ended up spending a lot of time in the Interlaken area because it was beautiful and because it offered a slower pace of travel. <BR> <BR>One of the hardest things about planning a trip is wanting to get in everything - afterall it is expensive to go to Europe (IMHO), and so the temptation is to maximize your time. However, being tired and wrung out from packing and unpacking and traveling around too often will really throw a wet blanket over the whole affair. Also, you have to account for travel time between these cities and that will eat into your already short time in some of these places. I hope this is helpful.

Just my two cents of course, and you may have personal reasons for your first choices. That said, I would drive to the Rhine from the airport, or take the train and base myself there, taking daytrips to the surrounding area. There have been a lot of good suggestions on this forum of places to stay. From there, on one of the days, I would take the train to Koln, because driving in the city is hectic. I would probably go on a Rhine cruise the day after you get there, just to get over jet lag, and then branch out for the next two days. For one thing, it rests you for the rest of your whirlwind trip!

Crtical question: What mode of transportation are you using? <BR> <BR>Off the bat, way too many cities. Spend more time in Munich, even if you have to scratch Insbruck off. Rule of Thumb; if you are going to move around that much, pick a different home base every four days and explore from there. <BR> <BR>Also, pick home bases that would offer sightseeing variety; even 31 days of mountains and castles may be a bit much after DAY 16!

Just to answer xxx. Sort off, I traveld to europe for 24 days once, and 32 days in Northern Canada, and also 28 days in Australia. No, I dont speak german. I can learn though. <BR> <BR>To the others who replied- <BR> Thank you very much, I appreciate the comments, as they all seem to be the same, which means they must be accurate! I am trying to collect all this info to try and make my itinerary better, but it is difficult. Would 10 cities in 31 days be too many? I think I could cut it down to 10, maybe even 9 "homebases". Then take day trips from there, ey? <BR> I am still trying to find out what I want to get out of this trip, so that may help me plan better. I do not want to see museums, zoos, or things of that nature. I would rather spend my time looking at buildings and mountains, or strolling around a town just to look at it.

Oh, forgot this answer to another question. I am only 17, so can't rent a car and must take the train everywhere! <BR>

Yes, I am the same xxx as before. <BR> <BR>And your age, experience and the ambition/willingness to plan and undertake this trip changes my outlook completely. <BR> <BR>Have a great trip!

George, <BR>I would add a few days to the Interlaken area. You are spending a lot of time in Switzerland, while beautiful it is expensive. Have you thought of adding more of Italy to your itinerary and maybe taking out Innsbruck since you'll be seeing the mountains in Switzerland? Just a few thoughts. For my first trip to Europe I kind of followed Rick Steve's Best of Europe itinerary. You can see what he recommends at his website. <BR>www.ricksteves.com

Dear george.SLOW DOWN.Too much too often.Pick 2-3 base cities and do your day trips .Above all try to have some fun.

This is for SCIGIRL.And I thought I was the only one unimpressed by Bern. thank you.

Just my opinion, but I'd skip Cologne and Koblenz and spend 1 or 2 days looking around the Rhine. Bacharach is a good place to stay. Also, I didn't think Wurzburg was that exciting. I'd probably vote for Rothenburg instead for a day and a night. It's very touristy but it's a cool little town. How about Florence after Venice? When you're in the Interlaken area, be sure and go to Wengen or Muerren up in the mountains.

The most important site for planing your itinerary in Germany: http://bahn.hafas.de <BR> <BR>You can look up the time needed to get from one destination to the next. Distances aren't always helpful since sometimes no fast connection between towns exists. I don't know whether the english version accepts english city names. If not, type german names having umlaute with an e (like Muenchen). If asked for a clearer destination, look for the main railway station (Hauptbahnhof or Hbf). If you want to plan day trips, look for Regionalbahnen. They are slow but cheap. Within Germany, prices are cited. <BR> <BR>One principal thing: Do you want the itinerary fixed in advance or just as a rough guide-line? Personally, I would prefer the later. It has the disadvantage that you can't reserve anything (or only a few things) really early. The great advantage is that you can stay longer at places you like, add day trips people recommend or skip places. This can be very important, for example if it rains cats and dogs, you won't want to be in Interlaken for hiking trips. My experience is that you are always able to find a place to sleep, especially if you phone ahead one or two days early. <BR> <BR>Don't worry about the language. You will survive with english. Pick up a few phrases but you can do that in the plane. <BR> <BR>As for the places: Cologne is a really interesting city with a great night-life. I might be prejudiced since I live near to it but I never understood why it isn't one of the popular travel destinations in Germany. You can take day trips from there, for example to Bonn or Duesseldorf. Aachen is just possible. If you just want to stay one night, it might be better to skip it. Although you aren't primarily interested in museums, I can recommend the roemisch-germanische museum in Cologne, dealing with roman past of Germany, the chocolade museum in Cologne and the Haus der deutschen Geschichte in Bonn, dealing with the german history, mainly post-war. <BR> <BR>The Rhine area is scenic. River cruise, looking at the castles and so on. If the weather is fine, do it. <BR> <BR>I like Wuerzburg and I prefer it to a town like Rothenburg. Matter of taste, of course. Still, my advice would be to leave out one or two towns of Wuerzburg, Linz, Salzburg and Innsbruck. <BR> <BR>Stay longer in Vienna. Great town, lot of atmosphere, many things to do and to see. Give yourself at least three full days (i.e. days without travel). <BR> <BR>Munich offers a lot, including day trips. Go to the german technical museum if you have any interest in such things. Spend more time there. <BR> <BR>Venice is a little bit out of the way. If you really want to go there, spend more time, otherwise it isn't worth it. Florence is great and I understand why others recommended it. But in my opinion, you should leave out northern Italy and spend more time at the other destinations. Go for Italy next holliday and take your time to see it. <BR> <BR>The Interlaken area is wonderful. If you are into hiking and the weather is good, it's heaven. Spend more time there. <BR>I would leave out Zuerich and Bern. I've never been in Fribourg but I've heard that it's nice. <BR> <BR>So my best advice would be: Roughly spend a week at the Rhine, a week in Austria, concentrating upon Vienna, a few days in Munich and a week in Switzerland, concentrating upon the Alps. This leaves you with a few spare days for ideas during travelling. <BR> <BR>To confuse the whole issue: If you aren't fixed upon the places you've mentioned, think about a week Berlin, a week Czech Republic, 10 days Austria (Vienna and the austrian Alps), a few days Munich. <BR> <BR> <BR> <BR> <BR> <BR>

Response to Hans H- <BR> My itinerary is a brief layout of the "base" cities I plan to visit. On my actuall itinerary, on EuroData program, I include the many smaller day trips that I plan to attend, but that is not a worry to me, really I just want to get my base cities set, and when I get there I will decide whether or not to go somewhere on a day trip. I plan on using this brief itinerary just so I know what area I will be in. I chose to go to Venice because of all the great comments on the city, plus I can get there in 5.5 hours, which really isn't that much, if I leave early morning one day, get there by 11AM, I should have plenty of time. I plan to give venice one travel day, and then threee in the city. I have also, with the help of all the people on the board, cut out bern from my itinerary, and am currently working on the koblenz/cologne area right now. I'll let you all know soon. Thanks again

Just thought I should thank you all for the responses again. THANKS!

Please don't take this as patronizing or belittling: When i read your age, I was very impressed by your planning, attitude and maturity. There are people far older than you who do not plan as much as you have b/f they ask for help and are not nearly as gracious when help is given. I hope you have a great trip. 2 substantive thoughts: Follow the great advice about the Rhine and Mosel. Also, while in Wurzburg, you may as well zip over to Rotherburg. It has its detractors, but I enjoyed it and you'll be in the neighborhood (relatively).

My first trip to Europe was six countries in a month with a Eurailpass. I really got tired of schlepping that suitcase around, moving from one hotel to another. It seemed like I was always moving. After I got back a lot of it was a blur. I recommend staying in each hotel for 3-4 nights -- take day trips from your base city -- even if it means narrowing down the itinerary. Have a great time!