Dublin & Stockholm
 

2 travelers in their mid 50's - been to Europe several times.(Spain, Germany, Italy, Netherlands)

we are planning a trip to Europe for 8 or 9 nights in early June 2016
trying to decide best way to split this up.
option 1 - phl to dublin - spend 4 nights in Ireland (couple cities), then fly to stockholm - 4 nights in Sweden

option 2 - phl to copenhagen, 3 nights in denmark, fly to Oslo 2 nights in Norway, fly to stockholm - 3 nights in Sweden (or we could drive between Scandinavian countries if it makes sense)

any suggestions or comments would be most welcome.

IMHO much of what there is to do/see in Ireland is in the countryside and 4 nights (3 days) there really isn;t enough time to see much.

If it were me I would do Copenhagen and Stockholm, which have the most to see/do in Scand cities. I would drop Oslo - not because I don;t like it but because the best of Norway is the fjords and with just one day there you won;t really have time to see much. Would stick with just Copenhagen and Stockholm as there is plenty to see/do there with only 4 days each.

Agree with nyt. Go with Copenhagen and Stockholm. Dublin isn't (to me) that rewarding and getting out to the countryside is a bit of a stretch in a four day trip.

I would take the train or even fly between Copenhagen and Stockholm. I wouldn't drive.

Driving in Scandinavia costs a ton - check out the fare just to cross the Oresund from Copenhagen to Malmo ($53 to cross a bridge - puts NY-NJ crossings to shame). Sheeyoot, it costs less than that to get a one-way ticket on the train from Copenhagen to Stockholm. Plus, if you're going to stay in the two capitals, each has public transit and no real need for a car.

Then check the gas prices.

Either option you outline would be too rushed for me -- but then, it really depends on what YOU want to see and experience.

With 8 or 9 nights, I agree that you might want to consider Copenhagen (3 - 4 nights, counting a day trip to Roskilde) and Stockholm (5 - 6 nights), counting a day trip to the archipelago and maybe Uppsala.

Thanks for your advice, very much appreciated.

8 nights makes 9 days - 3 of which will be mostly taken up by travelling (or 4! if you do your option 2). Try and make your 'middle' travels scenic rather than a day at airports - eg. ferry Copenhagen to Oslo then Norway in a Nutshell to Bergen and fly out of Bergen. This would at least give you a bit of scenic Norway rather than just 3 cities.
http://www.norwaynutshell.com/

I would agree with several points: lots to see in Dublin but more time needed for Western Ireland if you haven't been there...combine Stockholm with Copenhagen and/or Oslo (night ferry between the two cities)...yes lovely Nutshell trip takes you Oslo to Bergen which is a favorite spot for me.

Hi
here is what we are now thinking - planning for early June 2016
philly to london 2 nights
london to copenhagen 3 nights
copenhagen to stockholm 3 nights

any thoughts on this? should we take the train or fly or drive from copenhagen to stockholm? - we will fly home direct from stockholm,
any other cities we should add?

That is, IMO, very little time for London and very little for Stockholm. With your time, the combination of Copenhagen and Stockholm -- with nothing else -- makes most sense to me. YMMV. I strongly recommend that you get some good guidebooks (always a worthy investment, IME, or spend some time with a few in your local library), identify the things you most want to see in each location, check their opening/closing times on the web, and mark them on a calendar. Then pencil in your transportation, add some time on either side (for getting to/from your lodging, checking in/out, packing/unpacking, getting oriented, etc.). Then see how things fit together.

Have you been to London before and this is just a pit stop? If not -- I'd forget about London and just to Copenhagen and Stockholm.

London is ENORMOUS and you will be jetlagged -- 2 nights will only give you 1.5 days and your heads will be spinning. I adore London - and visit at least 2 or 3 times a year. And once in a while I will stay only a night or two enroute somewhere else -- but in that case I don't do any sightseeing. Just a nice meal and maybe a play/show.

You only have 8 nights -- do three in Copenhagen and the rest in Sweden. (OR -- add a few nights to London and skip either Copenhagen or Stockholm)

If you do Copenhagen and Stockholm, take a flight or train between the two cities. There is no need to drive, firstly you will have one way drop off fees and secondly the drive is not particularly interesting and is very long. If you do rent a car within the countries, i.e you want to do local excursions by car, car rental price and gas is the same/similar price as elsewhere in Europe, eg France, Netherlands, Germany. If you rent in Sweden and want to drive in Stockholm, you'll have to pay congestion charge but it's not very expensive.

yes london is a pit stop - been there several times, want to take my partner to a fave spot or 2 and maybe tour buckingham palace and the tower of london....i realize it seems compressed but knowing london so well makes for very easy travel while recovering from jetlag.

>> maybe tour buckingham palace<<

The Palace is not open in June.