Open for suggestions
 

Thinking about a week in Europe in August, probably towards the end of the month but could even do September. My husband and I are in our mid 30's, like to see a lot of sights but experience some of the local stuff too, flying from Boston and have never been to Europe at all (Mexico and Carribbean tons of times). We don't have a set budget in mind but looks like the flights are about $400+ each round trip. 3 or 4 star hotel, maybe even 5 star one or two nights. Is one country more bang for our buck then another in terms of attractions, weather, dollar and overall experience? We are open for suggestions and are very flexible with our travel plans! Any feedback?

Sounds like you found really cheap airfare. Is there any place that you might actually prefer to visit? Paris? Venice? Rome? Or would you rather go to smaller cities and villages?

Airline tickets for $400!?! Where are you going?

For "bang for the buck," consider Greece which has had real monetary difficulties. Otherwise, it's a good time to consider traveling to Europe as the value of the US dollar vs. the Euro and Pound is relatively strong.

If you've never been to Europe, follow your heart! What countries are you dreaming to see?

I'm still stuck on the $400 airfare. Wish I could find it.

Is that $400 as a base fare, or including all taxes and fees, which can be another $120 or more.

Maybe I'm just slow, but how do you know how much the airfare is when you don't know where you are going?

You must have SOME interest in something in Europe. Don't go for the cheap price...otherwise you just go to Mexico all the time.

Go to a country that you are interested in seeing. History? Art? Museums? Water sports? You must like to do something. If you travel by 100% price you will never see the great stuff. Just go to Florida and sit on a beach.

hm, I thought I found tickets for about $400 roundtrip from Boston to Dublin! Maybe I was dreaming it all wishfully! :) We would like to see some of the old buildings although probably wouldn't do formal tours of them or do museums, we tend to like to wander on our own. One thing that we like about Ireland or England is the shorter flight from Boston. Language barriers make us a bit nervous for some of the other countries, I think France and Spain we would be ok with but Germany or Greece is intimidating to us for the language reason alone.

Don't know how adventuresome you are, but if you DO book, and go, keep in mind that Priceline has "name your own price" hotel options in the larger cities in Europe. You could try using it for that 5 star hotel night you mentioned! We snagged a Westin in a great part of Frankfurt for $100. Hotwire has something similar,except you don't bid on the hotel, you simply accept a star category and price.

We've been to Europe on cruises, and used trains from the ports, and buses in the cities we visit. While I've always tried to learn a little language before we went, it was never enough. However, the language barrier might be less than you think - even in Greece! I didn't even try to learn Greek, except Hello and Thank You, and yet we managed.

All I can say is that in my opinion, Spain is highly under-visited by Americans, and a wonderful country. We love Germany, too!

Use the trains rather than a rental car.

Just because you found $400 to Dublin, doesn't mean you'll find similar fares to other locations. IF price it a factor, I'd compare prices for various locations of interest. Use Kayak to compare various possibilities. When planning a trip, I usually check airfare for a few places I'm interested in, and then go with the best deal.

If 1 week, I'd focus on 1 major city, and maybe a day trip or 2. Places like Barcelona, Rome, Paris are great for a week visit. As far as bang for the buck, I'm currently planning a trip to Portugal in the fall and the prices there seem very reasonable. Lisbon, and maybe a beach area would be a nice trip.

www.europeandestinations.com seem to have some good packages, you can choose your hotels and flights and it includes a car. Are they reputable or should I stay clear? One 7 day package for Ireland was about $4000 for both of us, some breakfasts included.