Hello, I'm planning a first Europe trip in April '08. Thinking I'll fly into either Frankfurt or Munich, and travel to a 2nd destination from there. Probably Vienna, Budapest, or possibly part of German Switzerland. Was wondering which of these would be good for a first-time traveler - not too expensive and easy to navigate around by public transport?

I'm flying to Germany because the fares seem to be cheaper, then I will take train to other place for few days, and return. I'm thinking maybe Vienna, since I'd like to visit Melk Abbey, outside of Vienna. Any input appreciated. Thanks, Greg

Well April isn;t the greatest time for the Alps - after ski season but still very uncertain weather for doing other sorts of things. And that's one of the months (along with late Oct/early Nov) when things tend to be shut down for repairs.

Given the choice I would fly into Munich (much more interesting than Frankfurt) and from there do Prague, although Vienna would be another reasonable choice.

Since you don;t say how much time you have it's hard to make specific recos.

In all places the tourist infrastructure is very well developed and English very widely spoken. And prices may not be quite so high as in London and Paris.

There are so many places to see in Germany that travelling to Vienna, Budapest or Prague is really unnecessayr (although I took a side trip from Munich to Salzberg myself last year). I plan to visit Berlin, Dresden, Prague and Vienna next year, so I can't recommend a particular city outside Germany to you, but I wonder if you've considered flying open jaw to minimize travel time and avoid backtracking?

Thanks, I'm looking at about 8-9 days max. for the trip. I just figured that flying open-jaw would be more expensive, so I didn't really consider it. I may push the trip back to May instead. Greg

Train travel is not necessarily inexpensive in Germany, Austria, and Switzerland. So I would double check how much the total fare will be when you compare return airfare to Vienna with airfare to Munich plus train to Vienna.

Frankfurt is quite far away from any of your potential destinations, so I would take that from my list.

For a first time visit (and especially in May), I would say that you can't do much wrong with choosing Vienna as your base. Lots of impressive architecture from the Austro-Hungarian empire, palaces, churches, museums, and a beautful historic city center.

Budapest would make an great combo with Vienna (day trip, or spend 1-2 nights there), plus you have options for numerous other half day or day trips from Vienna, e.g.

Melk
(short walk from train station)

Klosterneuburg (very close to Vienna)
http://www.stift-klosterneuburg.at/i...hp?language=en

Short or long trips on the Danube with pleasure boats.

With regard to costs and prices, it is hard to give general recommendations, but Switzerland should be the most expensive, Austria and Germany rank second and third - with not that much difference between the latter two.

HI G,

>I'm planning a first Europe trip in April '08....

Unless there is something that strongly draws you to Germany/Austria, I suggest going to Paris.

After that, it won't matter if you never get to Europe again.

PS

>I just figured that flying open-jaw would be more expensive.

Never assume. Sometimes it can be cheaper.

Flying open jaw is often the same price or only slightly more expensive; if you consider the cost of going back to your departure city the extra money spent (if there is an added cost) on open jaws often pays for itself.

Given your desires, I would fly into Munich. Vienna is an easy 4 hour train ride from Munich and would make a great second destination, as its a beautiful city. If you wanted to experience Austria but stay a little closer to Muncih, Salzburg would be a good choice as its only a few hours away and is also quite lovely.

If you can push the trip back to May, definitely try to work in some mountain time, even if its only as a daytrip. Munich is fairly close to some amazingly stunning scenery in the Bavarian Alps that is, in my opinion, not to be missed.

Happy planning!
Tracy

I've booked open jaw tickets a couple times for Europe. They were similar priced to a normal round-trip in and out of the same city.

8 days is a pretty short trip, you only need to choose a couple places imo.

You'll probably enjoy Munich more than Frankfurt as a starting point. With an April vacation, I'd encourage you to visit Vienna. It is a city of gardens and very easy to move through on public transport. Also, we were surprised and found that Vienna may be the biggest travel bargain in Europe. We find a nice hotel with cooked breakfast for under 60 euros last year.

We actually flew into Stuttgart because of low fares and rented a car for a trip that took us through Prague, Vienna, Budapest, Slovenia, Venice, Salzburg and Munich.

Consider renting a car, driving through southern Germany, visiting Salzburg and then heading to Vienna. Melk is an impressive history lesson with gold-leafed altars that tell you about the wealth of Austrian clerics, but we found the nearby Aggstein Castle ruins even more interesting. We hope to return to the Danube area to cruise it by bike and get to know the people and area better; what we saw in a few hot summer days was charming.

You might also consider staying at a bed and breakfast which you could identify with a the Zimmer frei sign. Rooms are surprisingly cheap and usually include a hardy breakfast. We found one at the base of the Grossglocknerstrasse for about $40 for two persons.

I have more information on travel through Austria at www.eurfirst.com/europe/austria.htm

Thanks everyone. I thought flying to Frankfurt would help, since it is one of the busiest airports in Europe - thus, better chances of low airfares. But you're right, with the extra cost of train travel it may not pay off. I'm gonna look into open jaw. Can i book open jaw tickets thru Orbitz and Priceline, etc.? Greg

bkmk

I just checked orbitz, for a flight from Phila. - Munich + Vienna - Phila. for mid-May. Found a fare for $700 R/T, wow. I'm not ready to book quite yet, but I'll def be checking back on open-jaw tickets. thanks, Greg

With such a short timeframe, definitely take everyone else's suggestion of flying into Munich, rather than Frankfurt. It's a nicer city and closer to the other places you want to visit. Open jaw will save you precious travel time too.

Fussen in the Bavarian Alps is a pretty little village which can be reached by train (it's at the end of the line). Salzburg is also nice and only about 1.5 hrs by train from Munich. I haven't been to Vienna or Prague, so cannot offer comment on these.

As for the transit system for novice travelers - it's superb and you should consider a train trip as a way to see the lay of the land between cities and the best way i know of meeting Europeans

For novice types i always refer to some great sources on European trains: www.ricksteves.com - has lots on trains and railpasses as well as cheap flights that you may want to do on long haul parts of your itinerary. And www.budgeteuropetravel.com where on the home page you can request their superb free European Planning & Rail Guide that is a perfect primer on understanding trains and railpasses - rail maps for each country, suggested itineraries, etc. For Swistzerland www.swisstravelsystem.com will whet your Alpine appetitie. But Fodors folks are by far the best resource of European travel particulars - ask any even most esoteric of questions and someone will know the answer.