I am feeling vacation deprieved, so I am thinking ahead...

I would like to take about a week long vacation to Europe in the spring - maybe late April. This past year I went on my first solo trip to Madrid & Seville and fell in love with Spain. That is why I want to go back to Spain and visit Barcelona this time.

I'm sure I could spend the entire week in Barcelona and do side trips. However, I think I'd prefer to spend a few nights in Barcelona and then maybe hop on a plane to another European city.

Any suggestions? I've been to London & Paris, so eliminate those. I was thinking maybe Rome, Amsterdam or Athens? Any opinions? I like warm weather - that is why the spring trip - but I'm thinking in late April most places will be fairly mild. Italy is tempting, but another part of me says to save it for when I can go back and spend more time there. But I suppose a few days would give me a little taste of it and the desire to go back.

Any opinions? I'm open to any and all options! Thanks.

Scratch Amsterdam or Paris or anything north of that if you want guaranteeably warm weather - especially Amsterdam

could be rainy and in the 50s in either at that time or could be fairly nice but not normally warm, in your context

I agree that Amsterdam will be cold. But it is a good city to visit when you only have 2-3 days. Just layer up. Lolly, If I was you, I would hop on a plane to Amsterdam!

There certainly are plenty of ways to keep warm in Amsterdam!

And if you're there on Queen's day - usually Apr 30 you're in for a real treat - one of the world's largest and most happening citywide parties and festivals. Worth the journey along IMO

Interesting... I didn't expect Amsterdam to get 2 votes right away! Thanks for the responses! Espcially the tip on Queens Day - that definitely sounds like something I would enjoy.

I'm not necessarily tied to travelling in April. I just thought that was before "peak" season and airline tickets & hotels may be a little cheaper than going a month later in May when it would be warmer in Europe.

But please, keep the ideas coming! I really appreciate it. It's fun to toss these thoughts around & daydream of travel.

peak season in Europe is the week before and the week after Easter - especially in the south and Rome and Italy

Rome is always enticing, particularly as part of another Mditerrean country

April is the start of high season, easter actually falls in march in 2008 so you might want to take that onboard. cheap flights from bcn www.vueling.com, to rome, athens, amsterdam etc. very convenient.
look into apartment accommodation at way2stay.com, who have area guides too.
if you're going to ams queen's day, you need to book WELL IN ADVANCE.
Going to rome for the first time next month so I'll post how we get the city covered in 3 little days!!!

Easter next year is 23rd March 2008. Amsterdam should not really be that cold at that time of the year. Isn't April when the Tulips are in full bloom? So liley to be busy but I think ist a good choice as well. I thibk yiou should leave Itay until you spend more time. you could spend a couple of days in souther France lots of places to say and diffrent from Paris.

I might look for festivals at that time of year I guess Santiago Di Compestela will be good around Easter but also look for cheap flights which makes Rome good

How about Nice, France, or Provence, or somewhere on the French Riviera? We spent three nights in Nice, and I posted a detailed trip report. It's a lovely mid-sized town, with lots of easy day-trips via train and bus.
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Thanks for all the replies. There are so many great possibilites and I know I'll be happy with any of them.

Yes, lucky for me Easter is early this year so I will miss those crowds by going in April or May.

Amsterdam would be lovely if I could time it to see the tulips in bloom. I'm definitely also considering Rome. Any thoughts on Athens or any other cities? I think I would prefer a larger city rather than a smaller one like Nice. But thank you for all the ideas!

Any more suggestions? I think right now Rome is at the top of my list, then Amsterdam, then Athens. Any other opinions or possibilities?

ttt

We went to Amsterdam for the tulips this spring - it was wonderful - we arrived about April 22 and left before Queen's Day. Actually we had very nice weather - in the 70's but I suspect that was very unusual. The tulips were a delight - just gorgeous. One day we went to the formal gardens, the next day we rented bikes and rode thru the commercial tulip fields. My vote goes to Amsterdam in late April / early May. Save Rome for when you can start there and go on to other parts of Italy.

For something quite different you might consider flying to Marrakech, Morocco and seeing Marrakech and Essaouira.

If you stick to Europe then perhaps pick a destination in either Southern Italy (Rome, Naples and Pompeii) or Northern Italy such as Venice

Have you considered flying to Seville from Barcelona?

Unless you're determined to "do" two cities at about two days each plus travelling in between, there should be plenty in Barca to keep you for a week. We went intending to stay three days and had to be dragged kicking and screaming to the airport two weeks later. Enjoy!

I agree with the previous poster. If you only have a week, dealing with the airport in the middle of it would probably be a hassle. I spent a week in Barcelona in 97. There's plenty to do and see. That being said, if I could only go to one city, it would be Rome.

How about Vienna? In late April the city is beautiful - it can already be quite warm, the flowers in the many gardens and parks are coming out, you can drink your Viennese Coffee and eat your Schnitzel outside in nice cafes (en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Schanigarten). Vienna would make a good contrast to Barcelona - Barcelona being mediterranean and open, Vienna being imperial and traditional (and, btw, getting pretty cool in the last years - many young designers, trendy hotels and clubs).
If you book soon, there are pretty cheap flights from Barcelona to Vienna (e.g. with www.airberlin.de, starting at about 90 USD).
Official information for tourists in Vienna: www.wien.info