Hi, I´m requesting any help for planning the itinerary inside europe (saving time and money) this is my first time and I´m little bit confused in where should I begin it I mean ,is better from Rome, Paris or Madrid ??? I want to know the principal cities (Venezia, Nice,Roma, Florence Paris, Barcelona, Belgium, Prague, Munich, milan, lucerne, frankfurt, Amsterdam(the most the better..) I will be there for 30 days Any itinerary sugesstions... ? please!!<BR><BR>

I would recommend getting a Rick Steves book or check out his Web site ricksteves.com for suggestions. He's very opinionated and tells you what he thinks are the best places to visit (he's usually right). He even has sample itineraries you can look at.

Coco, dear, Europe has been there for thousands of years, and will be there for the rest of your lifetime. You don't have to see it all at once. And if you do, it will all be a blur of churches and trains. Please do some research on the places you have named, and pick three or four to focus on.

Coco - you have posted this question before. Search for your first thread - there may be answers there.

I can't find any indication that "coco" has posted this question before - - certainly no posts found searching isobrino.<BR><BR>I don't know what you nean by "the most the better" - - is that supposed to be a reference to Amsterdam? or the way, way too many cities in your itinerary. You barely have 48 hours per city - - and you will spend an average of 3-7 hours just moving from place to place every other day.<BR><BR>worst of all, you're thinking that the attraction of europe is in its cities. Barely half of the magic is there. I recommend that you reduce to 5-7 cities in 3-4 countries - - and see some of rural Europe around many, if not all of the cities you've listed.<BR><BR>Best wishes,<BR><BR>Rex<BR>

Coco, I've mapped out an itinerary for a 5 week train trip should I decide to do that instead of spending 5 weeks in Paris.<BR><BR>3 countries MAXIMUM, and they'd better adjoin (Spain/Portugal/France England/Scotland/Ireland Italy/Switzerland/France you get the idea). That gives you about ten days in each, enough to see a city or two and some of the countryside; fly into one city and out of the last city on your itinerary (don't backtrack); use overnight trains as much as possible/travel when tourist venues aren't open, like early a.m. or after 7p.m.; reserve hotels - either before you leave or as you go along - so you save time hunting for a room and/or spending more than you planned.<BR><BR>Decide what interests you to decide what 3 countries you'll visit - no point in going to southern Spain if you like high mountains or going to the Alps if you get altitude sickness.<BR><BR>

topping for Itza/Coco

I guess I disagree a little bit with some of the others, in that while I do think you've listed way too many places, I still think you could see a great many of the cities you've listed in 30 days -- although you'll still need to pare it down a lot. Sometimes on a first trip to Europe it's fun to get a taste of as many places as possible so that you will know where you want to return to later. On the other hand, if you move around too much, you spend all of your time on logisitics and packing and unpacking and never really get to experience any of the places you're trying to see. Just based on geography I would leave out Prague and Spain this time and save them for another trip.<BR><BR>I assume you will have some sort of rail pass. While it's better to get an open jaw plane ticket if you can, if you must arrive and depart from the same city, I would suggest the following itinerary which hits a lot of places on your list:<BR><BR>Paris -- 5 days<BR>Bruges, Belgium -- 3 days<BR>Amsterdam -- 3 days<BR>Munich -- 5 days<BR>Venice -- 3 days<BR>Florence -- 3 days<BR>Rome -- 5 days<BR>Lucerne -- 3 days<BR>train back to Paris for departure<BR><BR>On the way from Rome to Lucerne you can change trains in Milan -- stop for a few hours and see the Last Supper, the Duomo, whatever -- and then take the rest of the journey to Lucerne. I would not stay any nights in Milan, or Frankfurt for that matter. <BR><BR>I would save Nice for another trip too.<BR><BR>Just my opinion.