My husband and I are planning a trip to Europe for May/June this summer. We have an unlimited amount of time during the summer, but because of budget constraints we are thinking we will be able to afford about one month of travel. Usually because of my job I can only travel 2 weeks at a time, but this summer will be unique in that neither of us are working so we want to take advantage of the time we will have. We have been to Europe twice, one summer we spent two weeks in Italy and the next summer we spent two weeks in Ireland. We are pretty fast paced travelers but have learned it is good to schedule a few days of relaxation in with the sightseeing so we don't get burned out. We don't have a set budget yet, but I would call us "in the middle" travelers meaning we don't want to stay in hostels but we also don't need expensive luxury hotels. Small hotels and B&Bs are fine. In Ireland we rented a car but in Italy we took the train, so we are comfortable with either form of transportation.

The three countries that interest me most are France, Italy and Greece. I am having trouble narrowing down our itinerary. Greece is a must for this summer. We would love to visit Athens, Sanotrini and maybe a few other islands. I've never been to France but places that interest me include Paris, the Loire Valley and Normandy. We went to Italy two summers ago and visited Rome, Florence, Cinque Terre and Venice so those places are not on our "must see" list. We would love to spend more time in Tuscany, visit Pompeii and see the Amalfi Coast. Since Italy is close to Greece I figured this would be a natural route to take, but I don't know the logistics of getting from one country to the next. I would love to hear from people who have done both Italy and Greece in one trip.

We would like to create an itinerary with a mix of cities, countrysides and beaches. We love touring vineyards so if we could stay somewhere in the french countryside or Tuscany for 5 days or so that might be fun.

I've posted on Fodors before, so I am bracing myself for plenty of repsonses of the opinion that this is too much to see in one month. I realize I will need to cut some things out. I would like to hear what everyone's "must-sees" for these countries are. Should we cut out France and just do Southern Italy and Greece? What is the best route to take? etc, etc...

I would split the trip between Greece and France, looking for a cheap flight between the two countries:

http://www.flylc.com/directall-en.asp

You might also want to split the time in Paris. A few days at the beginning of your French travels and a few days at the end.

From Paris, rent a car and do a loop of Normandy and the Loire valley, returning the car in Paris, or if you do not like the idea of driving in that city, in Chartres (see the cathedral) and taking the train to Paris.

When traveling in France, we usually try to stay in B&Bs, using http://www.gites-de-france.com/locat...bre-hotes.html as our main source of information. This is also a good source: http://www.france-balades.fr/index_us.html

The non Paris section of this trip report will give you an idea of how we find our accommodations:

http://www.fodors.com/community/euro...ummer-2009.cfm

I recommend that you get the Michelin Green Guides for Normandy and the Loire valley for their tourist information.

For an unlimited amount of time I think those three countries would work going overland and oversea if want.

Start in Paris and train or drive to Bayeux, IMO the best base for D-Day beaches, cemetery, museums, etc and then train or drive to the Loire Valley and head south via Provence and Avignon area to French Riviera

then head into Italy - via Genoa to Cinque Terre and Florence and Rome and up to Venice - then hop overnight ferry to Patras for bus or train to Athens.

That is if time is unlimited - if going by train all is doable by rail and this avoids steep dropoff charges potentially for renting a car in one country and returning it in another - fly back from Athens - working this way keeps nice weather as you move south and east.

For lots of great info on European trains I always hype these IMO fantastic sites - www.seat61.com; www.budgeteuropetravel.com and www.ricksteves.com. If doing all that by rail check out some kind of Eurailpass or just the France-Italy pass as once in Greece trains are limited and becoming due to the austeriy crunch even more limited than even before. A Saverpass is for two people traveling together on one paper pass - cheaper than two solo passes.

e I figured this would be a natural route to take, but I don't know the logistics of getting from one country to the next. I would love to hear from people who have done both Italy and Greece in one trip.>

I have done it several times and have always taken the overnight ferries - actually cruise ships with accouterments of a cruise ship on board - so not a tramp steamer. And these leave from several ports, like Venice, Ancona, Bari, Brindisi, etc. They all have rail connections to near the ships. You arrive early in Patras and hop a bus to Athens or some place in the Peloponnese.

I do agree that flying is what most folks do but taking the overnight boats to me is a neat experience to boot.

Hi NS,

Have you considered starting by looking up France under "Destinations"?

Thank you for all of your suggestions! I think I am either going to do Greece and France or Greece and Southern Italy, but not all three countries. Will post again soon once I have an itinerary in progress!

If Greece and France I'd fly between them

If Greece and southern Italy I'd take the overnight ferry to experience the trappings of a cruise ship and also to stop in Corfu - lovely Corfu en route to Italy.