Help us decide where to travel next year?
Jun 21st, 2014, 02:33 PM
#1
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Help us decide where to travel next year?
DH and I expect to make a European trip next year and are beginning to consider where to go. We have enjoyed trips where we pair two destinations for a two week trip. We have done this by flying between cities on one trip but usually taking trains between locations. Our last trip was to Italy and I would like to visit Venice again so that might be an option paired with another location. Friends recently visited Amsterdam and recommend it so we thought about pairing Amsterdam and Bruges. Paris is our all-time favorite place to visit and we haven't been there for a few years and thought about Paris and Bruges. We also like London but want to save that for a longer, post-retirement trip that would allow me time to visit the area where my dad was stationed in WWII.
We like to visit museums and churches; we can happily spend time walking and shooting photos; we enjoy good simple food, bread, cheese and wine but not expensive meals and, of course I like a little shopping.
Fodorites: Have you any suggestions for us?
We like to visit museums and churches; we can happily spend time walking and shooting photos; we enjoy good simple food, bread, cheese and wine but not expensive meals and, of course I like a little shopping.
Fodorites: Have you any suggestions for us?
Jun 21st, 2014, 02:53 PM
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Would really help to know what time of year you think you would be traveling.
That said, I'm not sure a week in Brugge would provide you with enough interest or be a good hub for day tripping around. You might think of staying in Antwerp and visiting Brugge.
Amsterdam and Venice, as two historic canal cities, each one time the seat of an ambitious global trading empire, make for an interesting pairing. But I definitely wouldn't enjoy that trip in wet months (although I might risk it in spring at tulip time).
Other pairings I would find appealing (at select times of year) are Amsterdam and Lisbon or Berlin (or Munich) and Athens.
That said, I'm not sure a week in Brugge would provide you with enough interest or be a good hub for day tripping around. You might think of staying in Antwerp and visiting Brugge.
Amsterdam and Venice, as two historic canal cities, each one time the seat of an ambitious global trading empire, make for an interesting pairing. But I definitely wouldn't enjoy that trip in wet months (although I might risk it in spring at tulip time).
Other pairings I would find appealing (at select times of year) are Amsterdam and Lisbon or Berlin (or Munich) and Athens.
Jun 21st, 2014, 02:57 PM
#3
How about Barcelona and Paris? Maybe 4 nights Barcelona, and then on the 5th night take the overnight train to Paris. That gives you maybe 8 nights in Paris.... from there you could take a trip to Bruges for a night or two since you've seen Paris before. It's 2.5 hours by train or a pleasant 3.5 hour drive. I've heard of some people just doing Bruges as a long day-trip, but spend at least one night as there's a special charm to Bruges at night for sure.
Or maybe fly home from Brussels doing a couple of nights in Brussells after Paris?
Or maybe fly home from Brussels doing a couple of nights in Brussells after Paris?
Jun 21st, 2014, 03:21 PM
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We did Belgium in 2010... had done an overnighter in Bruges in 2008 and wanted to return. I think 2 days in Bruges is the norm for most people... it is nice and cozy at night, but there just isn't a lot to do. We stayed 5 nights in Ghent and I really loved it there.
I think you could very easily start in Amsterdam, stop in Belgium (Bruges, Antwerp, Ghent or Brussels, whichever you choose) and end in Paris, if you desire. Easily done by train.
I think you could very easily start in Amsterdam, stop in Belgium (Bruges, Antwerp, Ghent or Brussels, whichever you choose) and end in Paris, if you desire. Easily done by train.
Jun 21st, 2014, 03:56 PM
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Thanks for the quick responses. We often travel in September but have made a couple of April trips, never travel in summer.
We thought about some guided day trips from Bruges but Ghent could be interesting. If we did 4 nights in Bruges we could spend longer in the second location and do some day trips from there as well.
We thought about some guided day trips from Bruges but Ghent could be interesting. If we did 4 nights in Bruges we could spend longer in the second location and do some day trips from there as well.
Jun 21st, 2014, 05:00 PM
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Ghent is a charming, cheerful place if you are leaning that way. Because it is a university town, there is also an abundance of inexpensive places to eat. If you are thinking of loads of day trips, helps to examine whether the trains connections are favorable, and pick a place to stay convenient to getting to the train station. In Belgium, it is hard to rule out the chance of plenty of wet weather, so you want to have convenient access to transportation when it is to soggy to walk everywhere.
Many of the things that make me unenthusiastic about Brugge are the same things that make me unenthusiastic about Venice, so by this logic, if you like Venice, you might very well like Brugge. However, personal preferences aside, I don't think anyone would disagree that Brugge has a mere fraction of the sights and interest of Venice. I thought it was interesting to get well away from the touristy main square -- but unfortunately that meant moving further and further from the train station. (Not an issue if you don't mind paying for taxis).
Altogether I just felt Antwerp had more present-day life and texture plus historic beauty, and lots of good transportation connections. But it is a city, although a small one, and I believe its glorious art museum is presently shut for remodeling.
Hope you have fun fine-tuning this. I would prefer September to April in Belgium and Paris.
Many of the things that make me unenthusiastic about Brugge are the same things that make me unenthusiastic about Venice, so by this logic, if you like Venice, you might very well like Brugge. However, personal preferences aside, I don't think anyone would disagree that Brugge has a mere fraction of the sights and interest of Venice. I thought it was interesting to get well away from the touristy main square -- but unfortunately that meant moving further and further from the train station. (Not an issue if you don't mind paying for taxis).
Altogether I just felt Antwerp had more present-day life and texture plus historic beauty, and lots of good transportation connections. But it is a city, although a small one, and I believe its glorious art museum is presently shut for remodeling.
Hope you have fun fine-tuning this. I would prefer September to April in Belgium and Paris.
Jun 21st, 2014, 06:02 PM
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My husband and I much preferred Ghent to Brugge It was nearly as pretty, but without the throngs of people. Better and cheaper food, too. We enjoyed our day trip to Brugge, but mostly because we rented bikes and rode along the canal to Damme. If I have a chance to return to Belgium, Antwerp will be a must. Obviously, these are just personal preferences, though. YMMV. I'd add that that we paired Ghent with Paris, along with an overnight in Brussels. It worked rather well to fly into Paris and out of Brussels.
Jun 21st, 2014, 10:23 PM
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I also hear a lot of about after the retirement trips. I know many people where the "retirement" never came. Just last month, I talked to two such people. One colleague wanted to visit European ruins with her husband when she retired. Her husband lost eye sight and she is now in chemotherapy. She cannot see how she can visit these life goal destinations. She wished she had done it years ago. I also visited my old friend. She lost her husband several years ago. He visited Far East several times a year on business and promised her that he would take her when he retired. He passed away suddenly. Now, she is in tears when she talks about their unfulfilled dream of traveling to the Far East together.
Jun 21st, 2014, 11:15 PM
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I'm someone who is still putting any number of trips off for my retirement days. My list of high-priority destinations is SO long that I truly appreciate ANY reason to defer any particular trip! I say that half seriously....
If London is, far and away, your highest priority -- don't delay!
If London is among your top choices, any one of which would make you happy, then the idea of deferring London (at least for this trip) seems to me to have merit.
FWIW, I am (and have, for some years, been) deferring some trips because I think I will find them easier once I am older than certain other trips that are on my highest priority list. But NONE of the possible trips on my highest priority list are SO different in how much I want to see them that prioritization is critical. Ideas about what I might be able to defer are just one factor that I take into consideration.
Another thing: I've never understood the "pairing" of cities idea. Maybe you can explain it?
If London is, far and away, your highest priority -- don't delay!
If London is among your top choices, any one of which would make you happy, then the idea of deferring London (at least for this trip) seems to me to have merit.
FWIW, I am (and have, for some years, been) deferring some trips because I think I will find them easier once I am older than certain other trips that are on my highest priority list. But NONE of the possible trips on my highest priority list are SO different in how much I want to see them that prioritization is critical. Ideas about what I might be able to defer are just one factor that I take into consideration.
Another thing: I've never understood the "pairing" of cities idea. Maybe you can explain it?
Jun 22nd, 2014, 01:02 AM
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kja,
I'm not sure everybody who enjoys pairing cities or experiences does it for the same reasons, or even the same reasons all the time. I'm very interested in history and also very interested in how certain artistic ideas spread, so it is interesting to me to visit two European destinations with different languages and trajectories but which have a strong connection. Other times it is just as interesting to pick 2 places that have a total contrast but where both are in the EU. I planned a trip once that paired Dublin and Budapest. (Alas, had to cancel it.) But generally feel that a week is a good amount of time to spend in a major European city, with an apartment rental, and if I have 2 weeks to travel, then I like 2 cities, and while ease of transport sometimes ends up influencing the choice of which two, I also like to think about what feels like an interesting mashup, whether the connections and contrasts are about art, or modern vs. ancient, empires, or wine.
I'm not sure everybody who enjoys pairing cities or experiences does it for the same reasons, or even the same reasons all the time. I'm very interested in history and also very interested in how certain artistic ideas spread, so it is interesting to me to visit two European destinations with different languages and trajectories but which have a strong connection. Other times it is just as interesting to pick 2 places that have a total contrast but where both are in the EU. I planned a trip once that paired Dublin and Budapest. (Alas, had to cancel it.) But generally feel that a week is a good amount of time to spend in a major European city, with an apartment rental, and if I have 2 weeks to travel, then I like 2 cities, and while ease of transport sometimes ends up influencing the choice of which two, I also like to think about what feels like an interesting mashup, whether the connections and contrasts are about art, or modern vs. ancient, empires, or wine.
Jun 22nd, 2014, 03:13 AM
#17
Paris and Barcelona. There's absolutely lots of things to do in both places and you can refresh your Paris memories with a new destination.
It's easy to travel between the two cities, by air is best for me.
It's easy to travel between the two cities, by air is best for me.
Jun 22nd, 2014, 04:56 AM
#19
Venice and Istanbul with a historical connection, Venice and Slovenia(you can drive between them)
Amsterdam and London or Paris. Brugges is only good for a few days. Or Paris and Normandy
London and Amsterdam, London and Paris.... When we are asked why we travel so much, we say it's because we are able to and you never know what may happen healthwise. We have seen this happen to friends. So off we go!
Amsterdam and London or Paris. Brugges is only good for a few days. Or Paris and Normandy
London and Amsterdam, London and Paris.... When we are asked why we travel so much, we say it's because we are able to and you never know what may happen healthwise. We have seen this happen to friends. So off we go!
Jun 22nd, 2014, 05:49 AM
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Last month we visited Brussels, Ypres, Brugge, Gent, Anterp, Amsterdam, Delft and Rotterdam over three weeks.
Brussels is an almost interesting city.
Brugge is a beautiful town ruined by people like us-tourists.
Gent is a much more interesting city but not as beautiful as Brugge.
Ypres was most interesting if you are interested in WWI.
Delft may have been the most charming place. Although it is a tourist destination you do not feel overwhelmed by people posing for pictures.
Rotterdam was a most pleasant surprise with modern architecture which is at once practical, beautiful, and whimsical.
Antwerp has one of the most interesting rail stations we have seen.
The trains in Belgium and The Netherlands are clean, efficient, and comfortable.
As for possible combinations the streets of Barcelona are the museum. It is a decidedly unSpnaish city with its Catalan history, traditions, and language. And one can spend a week there especially if you make trips to Figueres or Girona.
Best museum cities-Paris, London, Amsterdam, Madrid, Amsterdam
Same list for best walking cities except substitute Barcelona for Madrid.
As far as photography is concerned it is your eye more than the destination.
Brussels is an almost interesting city.
Brugge is a beautiful town ruined by people like us-tourists.
Gent is a much more interesting city but not as beautiful as Brugge.
Ypres was most interesting if you are interested in WWI.
Delft may have been the most charming place. Although it is a tourist destination you do not feel overwhelmed by people posing for pictures.
Rotterdam was a most pleasant surprise with modern architecture which is at once practical, beautiful, and whimsical.
Antwerp has one of the most interesting rail stations we have seen.
The trains in Belgium and The Netherlands are clean, efficient, and comfortable.
As for possible combinations the streets of Barcelona are the museum. It is a decidedly unSpnaish city with its Catalan history, traditions, and language. And one can spend a week there especially if you make trips to Figueres or Girona.
Best museum cities-Paris, London, Amsterdam, Madrid, Amsterdam
Same list for best walking cities except substitute Barcelona for Madrid.
As far as photography is concerned it is your eye more than the destination.
