bibliotecaria71

Hi Everyone! My husband and I (in our 40s) have promised each of our six (6!) nieces and nephews a graduation trip to Europe. The first will be graduating high school next summer (2018).

Our niece has never traveled outside of New England and will likely be attending a local college while living at home. We would love to give her a new and broad experience over (about) two weeks. Our current itinerary is, admittedly, ambitious. But knowing our niece, we think she would prefer being on the go versus digging into one spot.

**Sorry for the length of the post! There really is a question down there.**

Disclaimer: DH and I have visited each of these locations previously, and feel like we understand the logistics of traveling to and through each location.

Fly from Boston to Reykjavik in late June via Iceland Air and include a (roughly) 48-hour stopover. We'll a rent a car from the airport and drive the Golden Circle one day and spend part of another day in Reykjavik and the Blue Lagoon.

Fly from Boston to Paris via Iceland Air. Paris is on her wishlist and we have only been here once for a week. We are thinking of three full days in Paris. Yes, I know, a week would barely scratch the surface, but we will only be walking around, taking pictures, eating, and will be museum-light.

Take the overnight train in a couchette from Paris to Venice. Italy is also on her wishlist and, well, twist my arm, I guess we have to go back again! (Btw, I'd rather spend the night trying to sleep on a train than take another flight.) Since this is going to be the dead of summer and filled with us tourists, hot, etc. I'm pushing for a very short stay of two nights. Again, our goal is to give her a taste of as much as we can.

And finally, Rome, too, is on her wishlist. After our third visit in 2015, we vowed never to return in summer, but here we go again. (Thank goodness for gelato!) We are thinking of a three-day visit to end the trip. We'll fly home via Delta with points.

So, here's the real question: We have a couple of days available -- or more if we extend the vacation a little -- that I would like to use to chill a little. (We are still in the early, flexible days of planning where vacation days and money are plentiful -- in our minds, anyway. Lol.) Where would you spend the time? I'd love to be on the water (sea or lake) and have stunning views. (I can dream, right?)

Since DH thinks it would be easier to travel straight through from Paris to Venice, he isn't keen on breaking up the train travel to Venice and stopping in Switzerland for a couple of days. (But I'm open to it! We've never traveled to Switzerland and I'd like to see something new.) But perhaps we could visit Lake Como or maybe perhaps Cinque Terre? (We have visited the Amalfi Coast and do not want to travel that far south from Rome.) Or maybe somewhere nearer to Venice? Our niece loves the water, will appreciate the beauty of it all, and I would like some time to sit in the sun with a good book. And DH's favorite place on earth is the beach at San Sebastian, Spain. Well, and the restaurants a short walk away.

More than anything, I would like this to be a car-free vacation and focus on train travel -- something we rarely do here in the States. Thanks for your suggestions!

Sassafrass

Personally, I would skip the Lake stay, and add time to Venice for day trips to Burano and Vicenza, but you know what is important to you.

Awfully rushed, no time for relaxing, but some better itinerary options, IMHO.

Day 1, depart Boston
Day 2, arrive Rome
Day 3, 4, 5, Rome with day trip to Ostia Antica, Orvieto or Hadrian's villa at Tivoli.
Gets you out of Rome and gives you something new to see.
Day 6, train to Venice
Day 7, Venice
Day 8, travel to Lake
Day 9, Lake
Day 10, Fly to Paris from Milan (know you don't want to fly, but easier this trip)
Day 11, 12, 13, Paris (If you really want to rush, go to Versailles one day. It would probably be worth it to your niece.)
Day 14, Fly home.

so
4 nts Rome (3 days)
2 nts Venice (1 day)
2 nts Lake (1 day)
4 nts Paris (3 days)

You could also
Day 1 Depart Boston
Day 2 arrive Milan, go straight to Lake
Day 3, Lake
Day 4, travel to Venice
Day 5, Venice
Day 6, Train to Rome
Day 7, 8, 9, Rome
Day 10, fly to Paris
Day 11, 12, 13, Paris
Day 14, home

2 nts Lake (1 day)
2 nts Venice (1 day)
4 nts Rome (3 days)
4 nts Boston. (3 days)

No time for another place unless you cut something

Sassafrass

Sorry. That last line should not be 4 nts Boston. LOL!
Should be:
4 nts Paris (3 days)

bibliotecaria71

Thanks, Sassafrass!

I'd love to tackle Rome first, but Icelandair does not fly to Rome (and we only have enough reward points for a one-way trip on Delta. I am *thrilled* to break the Icelandair trip into two parts. (I also think that Iceland is stunning and two days there will be really rewarding.)

Versailles... DH and I have been and I just cannot be bothered to return. She'll have to go someday on her own.

We'll see how it continues to shape up as the realities of money and time come into focus. Thanks!

ekc

Why not add a day to Venice to see the outer islands, and a day to Rome, where you can spend the day on the beach at Ostia?

denisea

Do you have any interest or plans for any day trips outside Paris? Three days in Paris is so little! I hate to change locations too many times in a trip because checking out and in plus the travel is time you aren't seeing/doing amazing things.

You might consider day trips from Paris, Rome and Venice to see more but not have to change hotels so often.

From Paris: Vaux Le Vicomte, Giverny, Fontainbleu, Chantilly, Chartres are just a few options (there are tons of options and many an easy train ride from Paris)

From Rome: Tivoli (Hadrian's villa, Villa d'Este), Ostia Antica, Orvieto are a few options

StCirq

It sounds very rushed to me.I don't see where the relaxation comes in, at all. Giving your neice a "taste of as much as we can" could well come at the price of a cranky, disoriented kid. All that packing, unpacking, getting yourselves oriented, picking up on the new languages, waiting for and boarding and de-boarding trains....I love zooming around Europe as much as the next person, but a) I'm used to it and know my way around, and b) I need a rest every now and then. And I did when I was in high school and college, too, so it's not a matter of being "old."
But you know her and your temperaments and priorities,so do what is best for you.

isabel

I think your original plan but with a couple nights in Switzerland instead of the overnight train would be a fine intro to Europe. Yes it would be very rushed - no relaxing, but you are only going for two weeks, do you really need to relax? Now if you were going for a month I'd say you should slow it down a bit but I think an 18 year old and a couple of 40 somethings could do that. I just took a first timer to Europe and we did Venice, Florence and Rome in a week which most people on this forum (including myself) advise against but she had a great time (and so did I actually) and said she didn't feel rushed. Not my preferred pace anymore but it works for some people. As StCirq says, knowing your way around certainly helps but it sounds like you at least have been to Europe a number of times so it won't all be 'foreign' to you.

I also did the 48 hour Iceland Air stopover but I didn't rent a car. I took the bus to Reykjavik and the next day did a Golden Circle tour. Normally hate tours but this one was good and more relaxing that trying to drive it.

So I'd suggest: 2 nights Reykjavik, 3 Paris, 2 Switzerland (or an Italian lake), 3 Venice, 4 Rome. If at all possible I'd add a day to Rome and Paris.

bibliotecaria71

I totally agree, StCirq, that this is not a relaxing vacation -- and definitely not the trip I would take with DH alone. But this is meant to be an educational trip for my niece who may not have the opportunity to travel abroad for many years, with a sliver of sun and relaxation squeezed in.

I want her to know what it's like to walk centuries-old cobblestone streets; to sit in a cafe and observe people who live differently than her; to buy trinket jewelry and say to her new college friends that she bought it in Venice; to read a book and think "I've been there!" I am hoping that this sparks something in all of the kids, that they will want to see the world and learn to think "globally" as they become adults.

Thanks, Isabel, for your comments. A couple of years ago we took my mom on an Adriatic cruise from Venice and flew in and out of Rome (due to using Delta points). We spent four nights in Rome, a single night in Venice, and two nights in Florence. She was thrilled with Italy-light and thanks to good planning and some pre-booking, we managed to see and experience quite a bit. I am thinking that the same speed will work well with my niece.

As for Iceland, we have been wanting to go back and this is great excuse! DH drove the Golden Circle before and is looking forward to it again.

Thanks for the suggestions for a Swiss lake (any suggestions?) and, ekc, for looking into a beach near Rome! Denisea, we will definitely be doing more travel within France for another niece, who at 13 already knows that she wants to spend her graduation vacation in France!

Thanks so much!

bvlenci

The overnight train is no Orient Express, to put it mildly. You could easily do the trip in two steps, stopping for a few nights in Switzerland. Lucerne is a fairly good chose, although packed with tourist in the summer. Basel is a little easier as far as connections go; there are direct trains from both Paris and Milan. Basel is a lovely town on the Rhine, on the border with Germany and France. It's not very touristy, but that's a plus in my book. With your limited time, I wouldn't try to visit any of the classic Alpine towns. You'll see mountains from the train.

If you have nights available, you could do the following, which I don't think is too aggressive:

Two nights in Iceland
Four nights in Paris
Two nights in Switzerland
Two nights in Venice
Four nights in Rome

Jean

The overnight train doesn't run every day or even every week in summer, so you'd have to plan the start of the trip to coordinate with the train.

bilboburgler

The trouble with visiting Switzerland is you may end up "enjoying" the pleasures of say Geneva. Much as I like the turgid place ( i have friends who live there), the best bits of Switzerland are the countryside and not the cities.

So unless you are going somewhere interesting dump the Swiss section and go say to Turin or even Milan.

Dukey1

I'm not going to comment on what some feel is/are the "best" parts of switzerland. I AM going to advise you to think about flying N/S fro Paris To Venice using a budget airline. And I mean flying to Marco Polo (VCE) and not some RyanAir out in the middle of nowhere airport.

Time is MONEY and you can do this segment a lot faster than an overnight train, obviously.

www.skyscanner.com

Sassafrass

Dukey1, "Time is MONEY."
Never truer than when traveling. You can't avoid some travel time, but I always think how much a trip costs. If you have 10 days, divide the total cost by 10, and every day spent traveling is not just the cost of flights, trains, etc. It is also 1/10 of the trip.