My DH and I are trying to plan a vacation in May. He is starting graduate school and this will be our big vacation for a while.

We are open to any country. We like to see as much as possible. We like to hike and sightsee and take in local culture. We would really like to focus on one country since we will only be able to travel for 12 days. We would also like to keep our total budget to roughly $3500. We are not interested in 4 star hotels, just would just like to get the best bang for the buck.

We have travled much throughout Western Europe as we were fortunate enough to backpack through 10 countries in 6 months 2 years ago.

I know this is vague, but any input that you can give us would be wonderful.

Bang for your buck, local culture, hiking.... How about Croatia and maybe Slovenia?

hi there,
i suggest estonia. it's kind of a pain to get there, but you can easily go through amsterdam. estonia is beautiful, lots of natural areas to hike and enjoy, and it's cheap. hotels can be pricey if you stay in the old town. outside of tourist areas, very former soviet union. it's really interesting. spain is also beautiful and fairly inexpensive. the two and three star hotels can be clean and reasonably priced. have fun!

Hi smg,

1. Fly to Bordeaux. Rent a car. Spend 2-3 days in St. Emilion area, drive to the Dordogne, spend 5-4 days around Sarlat-la-Caneda, drive to Libourne, drop car.

Train to Paris.

Stay a week in Paris.

Fly home.

I estimate approx $3200 for airfare, car and gas, hotels (w/bkfst).

See my trip report for more details:
Ira Does France
http://fodors.com/forums/threadselec...p;tid=34676645

Photos at http://www.kodakgallery.com/I.jsp?c=...&y=-pla2au

2. Fly into Venice VCE (4 nights), rent a car and drive through Tuscany for a week, drop car off in Florence, see Florence, fly home from florence FLR or Pisa PSA. About $3350.

Car rental at www.novarentacar.com and www.autoeurope.com.

Train schedules at
http://www.voyages-sncf.com and
www.trenitalia.com

Also see:

Paris Superthread
http://www.fodors.com/forums/threads...p;tid=34519236

Helpful Information: Italy 2
http://www.fodors.com/forums/threads...p;tid=34568596

Have a nice vacation.

I predict that Estonia is going to have the upsurge in tourism in the next couple of years that Croatia has enjoyed in the last 3 years. You could go there and be the "first on your block" to discover it.