Hello All
We (5 of us) are planning a trip August 15 for 10 days or so to a part of Europe none of us has ever visted. We are planning on flying to Frankfurt and immediately going from there by train to Prague. We want to visit Czech Republic, Slovenia, Slovakia, Austria, maybe Hungary, - and anything else that appears inviting. We are limited on time so I guess we will be hitting the highpoints of those countrys. Traveling mostly by train (Car rental????) and pretty much on a very flexible itinerary.
I'm asking from you - any input insofar as how to schedule things, what to see, what to avoid, and any experiences you would care to share. I have asked you guys for travel advice several times before and have always received really good information.
One of the things that worries me is that looking at various countries online they sometimes say "avoid July and August - crowds". Well unfortunately we have to go then. We want to stay in small, locally owned hotels. Do we need reservations? I really like getting into little towns and trying to find a hotel. Weird huh? At any rate, all help, suggestions, caveats etc., will be greatly appreciated. Thanks.
Shrink

Check to see if it is possible to rent a car (since you are thinking that might be a possibility) in Germany and drive it into the Czech Republic (or perhaps renting a car after you get to the CR.

However, rail travel is possible between these places although depending on which "small towns" you are considering, a car might be more convenient.

With a short amount of time you may have to limit yourselves to the larger places such as Prague, Budapest, etc.

Have you considered an open jaw flight itinerary so you wouldn't have to go all the way back to FRA to return home?

Or, the possibility of a budget flight(s) between places? You can check those at www.skyscanner.net or www.whichbudget.com

Hi
Thay's an awful lot of countries to be covering in 10 days. How are you planning to travel after Prague? Czech Rep. to Slovakia is easy and close. Have you looked up a map? austria is west of Slovakia, which is so.east of Hungary and both are north of Slovenia. You would probably spend most of the 10 days traveling. Even driving is difficult in 10 days. Have you considered planning less countries?

Ten days is a very short time in which to see five countries. I would try to get it down to two -- possibly Czech Republic and Austria or Czech Republic and Slovakia. There is more than enough to see in either pair. Or any pair in which the two countries are right next to each other. I would also try to fly in to the first country and out of the second country, if at all possible. I would not wait to reserve hotels in August -- especially for five people. I would want to have that planned ahead --but, of course, that means you have to figure out where you are going and how long you will stay there. The five of you need to be making these plans fairly soon.

I really enjoy those countries, at least the ones I've been to, as well as Poland -- and you had me interested in this trip until you said you were interested in visiting FIVE countries (and maybe others in addition that appeared interesting) in 10 days and that includes all your travel time. And you aren't even going there to start with but Frankfurt, which is about a whole day away by train from say, Prague, to begin with.

no, I think this is a crazy idea. I suppose you've looked at a map, but you need to really look at it a lot and realize how far apart these places are, not to mention that you want to actually do something when you are there, not just slow down to 10 MPH and wave as you go by.

You probably shouldn't have any trouble without reservations as long as you aren't picky about hotel rooms. YOu need to narrow down what you want to do a lot more, and it being July/Aug is the least of the problem.

Hey Again
OK--OK you made a believer out of me about trying to cover too much territory. Primarily the reason for Frankfurt in the first place is that there appears to be a DRASTIC difference in airfares from Dallas to places like Prague, Vienna etc, and Frankfurt. Are you guys saying that I will be OK if I confine it to maybe Czech Rep, Slovakia and Austria?? Other "inviting places" didn't mean other countries but little out of the way things from wherever we were. Say more about hotel reservations please. Thanks for the info.
Shrink

What are your interests? Your disinterests? Hard to comment without knowing your likes/dislikes more.

hi, shrink,

plan B certainly seems much more "doable".

I just got the fodors guide to austria and another guide to czech republic/slovakia out of the libary, as we are planning to do Prague, Vienna, Krackow, Dresden, Prague next year, taking about 14 days.

they have made a good starting point for planning our route.

we'll be hiring a car.

one of joys of those countries seems to be the countryside, which will be more difficult though not impossible to see without a car.

you could think about doing part of the trip on the danube - boats go from Budapest to Vienna and back.

in 10 days, you could do Frankfurt -Prague -Budapest -vienna - Frankfurt.

good luck,

regards, ann

Ditto most of the above. Too much already.

Use the train if you are visiting major cities. If you want to see the villages rent a car.

With only 10 days I would do Prague and Vienna, maybe Budapest. I would fly into either of those cities instead of F a/M. Use night trains to save time, and maybe money. You could buy the 6th bunk in a T6 couchette and have it all to yourselves.

In 10 days you should limit yourselves to 3 cities - no more - or you won;t see anything.

Travel method should depend on the 3 cities chosen and the options they have. I would do either train or air - as being fastest - since you won;t have much time to see counryside anyway.

As for hotel reervations you absolutely need them in advance. These places will be mobbed in the summer and you don;t want to waste half your limited time anywhere looking for a decent place you can afford.

So much of your desired answer depends on your desires. You'll need reservations in Prague, Vienna, Budapest. The small towns in CR,SR,HU and AT never see a crowd, and commonly have a tourist info office which can book either a hotel or a pension (boutique hotel/b&B) for same day accomodations. The "highlights" for a 10 day trip would primarily be in the cities mentioned, and would hence require reservations. If you had interest in the little towns, you wouldn't.
As above, your 5 country itinerary won't allow you to get out of the car.