Wondering if any fodorites can help. Planning a 25th anniversary trip and would love to experience both city and beach such as Paris + French Riviera which we've done already and loved. Flying out of NY for 7 to 8 days and thinking about February or March but am flexible. We like museums and art but love wandering around, sightseeing and of course food. Please let me know your suggestions! Thank you and happy new year!

Florence and Elba.

Seville and Sanlucar.

Rome and Sardinia.

Malaga and Nerja.

Venice and the Lido all come to mind.

Barcelona and the Costa Brava.

This is quite a luxurious and elegant hotelmy fav on beach.
http://www.expedia.com/Venice-Hotels...xcelsior.h7338.
Stayed Here in the Churchill Suite courtesy of
Princess Cruises a few years back it was GREAT!

Right on the beach on Venice Lido, this 5-star hotel offers a peaceful location and a large outdoor pool.
http://www.booking.com/hotel/it/veni...e.en.html?film
Recent reviews above... Congrats!

Average temp in Feb/Mar for Nice is <60.

Palma, Mallorca and the small beaches the west. Now very high end.

Not sure any Europe destination is going to be very good beach weather - at least not for sunning or swimming! Maybe a Canary Island or North Africa, but again not sure about the musuems and art in those locations. But Barcelona is a great city with a beach, museums, some unique architecture and art scene and some very good food options.

If you want sun/warmth and beach then combine Madrid with a Canary Island perhaps. Which island depends on what you want from the beach part of course.

I looked at Izmir and Capri, both are cool. Tenerife seems to be low 60s.

Rome & Positano

Athens & Santorini

....but not good for those dates...

The Lido beach is incredibly shabby, and its dead in winter, and the food throughout that area is awful.

If the weather is dry and sunny, it can be pleasant along the mediterranean, but you really can't count on it being fun to stroll around beaches, so you best to pick the mediterranean city you might want to get to know better, and whose tastes most appeal to you, so in case it rains, you can cancel the second half of your hotel reservations and stay in the city.

Rather than pair Rome and Sardinia, I would pair Rome with the Amalfi Coast, with a car.

In FEb or March any place in europe is going to be too cold for the beach - unless you want long walks along chilly, deserted ones. By late April the beaches of southern Spain should be warm enough for swimming and the hotel pools open. Before then - you need to head to the Carib or Hawaii for beach weather.

Thanks to all for your replies and suggestions. Leaning towards Barcelona and Costa Brava but will change travel plans to late April early May. Thanks again.