jameschung3136

We will be going to Barcelona, Amsterdam, Brussels, and Sardinia.

The one question I had was we get to Barcaelona on Saturday local time and have to get to Brussels by Thursday at anytime. Should we leave for Amsterdam on Monday or Tuesday. I am leaning towards Monday because I'm not really a big museum person.

Thank you!

Tulips

You arrive in Barcelona on Saturday, you'll have Sunday for Barcelona and then want to leave on Monday for Amsterdam, to spend Tuesday and Wednesday there? Just don't bother with Barcelona and fly to Amsterdam instead. Or skip Amsterdam and fly to Brussel from Barcelona. You don't have to go to museums in any of those places, there are plenty of other things to do.

hetismij2

Or even skip both Amsterdam and Brussels and go on to Sardinia.
Why criss cross the continent for a couple of days at most in each city?
Quite apart from the flying and climate problems you will see more of airports, and I assume train stations for Amsterdam - Brussels, than you will the cities.

bilboburgler

+1

Madam397

I agree, no point in going from Barcelona to Amsterdam. If you are already scheduled for arrival in Barcelona, stay there the entire time and then travel to Brussels either Tuesday night or Wednesday. There is much to see and do in Barcelona apart from some outstanding museums that in my opinion it would be a shame to miss. Just touring the Gaudi architecture alone will take time and waiting on line to get in. You would want to visit the port area as well as the Cathedral and the market for either lunch or possibly tapas as well a walk along the Ramblas.

Michael

You can take a ferry from Barcelona to Sardinia:

https://www.ferryhopper.com/en/ferry...a-porto-torres

jameschung3136

So it seems like 6 days in Barcelona and then Brussels where Im goin to a festival on Thursday is a better idea then 4 days in Barcelona and 2 days plus travel day in Amsterdam.

hetismij2

How long are you planning on being in Brussels before flying back south again to Sardinia?
You really didn't think this trip through did you?
Can you not start in Brussels or Amsterdam, then go to Sardinia if that is a must see and drop Barcelona, so you are not flying all over the shop? Or start in Brussels take the train via Paris to Barcelona, and then on to Sardinia.
Actually given you have the time you could I guess get the train to Brussels from Barcelona and cut out one flight at least.

jameschung3136

The only thing set in stone is brussels for 4 nights for Tomorrowland music festival. I have 6 days before and 4 days after. I'm thinking I will just do Barcelona before and Sardinia after. I'm not gonna do anything after Belgium except sit on a beach for 3 days so thats why I picked Sardinia. Was just asking if I could fit another city in before but the common response seems like that's not a great idea.

Tulips

I don't know where you are coming from, how far you have to travel. If Barcelona is a priority, then do that + Brussel. If you have not booked flights, it could be expensive to get from Brussel to Sardinia just for 3 days of beach. So go to Barcelona and the beach there, then go to Amsterdam after Tomorrowland and fly home from there? Tomorrowland is actually in Antwerp, are you staying at the festival? It's great fun, or so my kids tell me.
If you haven't booked flights, do so asap. The prices for tickets in the summer can be high.

coral22

Tulips has a lot of good advice. Since the only destination that is essential is the music festival, you have a lot of options.
Zeroing in on airfare is essential, do you have any nonstops from where you live or easy connections? Flying in and out of different cities would be ideal. Are you looking for small bites of different experiences, more on the go, or to settle in and relax and absorb an area?

It sounds like you are structuring this to have 1 or 2 locations, the Music Festival, and then down time on a beach.
My first thought would be to go to Amsterdam, the Festival, and then Barcelona because it has a gorgeous beach and good flight connections.
Sardinia is too far out of the way. Portugal has beautiful beaches, also, but all 3 of these possibilities will be HOT in July.

Others will know more about more northern locations with beach potential, which might not be as hot. France would be nice, but remember the Olympics will be in Paris at the end of July, so you might be competing with those attending for flights and nearby location accommodations.

Tulips

By the way, Bloemendaal, close to Amsterdam, has some great beach clubs. If the weather is good, it's a really nice place. Some have a festival atmosphere; https://woodstock69.nl/
You never know about the weather in the Netherlands in summer, but when it's warm it's great.

bilboburgler

You could even go to a river beach say on the Mosel.

lavandula

If you have to go to Belgium for Tomorrowland anyway, why not visit a beach resort like Knokke-Heist for your three days afterwards? And if the weather is bad you can easily pivot and make it a trip to Bruges. I don't see a reason to go to a beach somewhere else when Belgium has perfectly good beaches (although the weather is always uncertain there, I will admit).

Lavandula

Travelsofalife

My advice for a successful journey is to plan fewer cities and more time on each visit. It's very frustrating to spend time in airports for transfers. So choose either Amsterdam or Barcelona or Brussels but not the three together. They're all great to visit.