Prague/Krakow/Dresden or Madrid/Toledo/Barcelona?
 

Hi all, I am a long time lurker, though this is my first time posting. Sorry for the length of the post - I'm trying to be as detailed as possible so you know where I'm coming from.

You know you can't complain when your biggest problem is deciding on where to go on your next European trip...

My husband and I are currently deciding where to go for our 8-day (not including air travel) trip at the end of August/beginning of September. We've narrowed it down to Prague/Krakow/Dresden or Madrid/Toledo/Barcelona.

You may think that those combinations of cities are a lot for an 8-day trip. We are speedy travelers - you should see some of my husband's itineraries. This is a good thing though -- I have a hyperactive husband who would be miserable sitting on a beach somewhere, and he would make me miserable in turn. If I can manage to spend an hour or so reading or picnicking in a park, or having good hot chocolate at a cafe, then it's a good compromise for us. And I can sometimes manage to get a spa afternoon out of the deal.

We are seasoned European travelers - over the past two years of marriage we have honeymooned in Austria/Switzerland/Northern Italy, and taken trips from 4 to 14 days to London, Paris, Northern England/Wales, Florence/Rome, and Scandinavia.

Spain's been on my to-do list forever, Prague's been on my husband's list just as long. This will probably be the last big trip we take before we have kids. Hopefully, once we have kids, we'll still be able to take trips to "easy" places like the UK.

We like: art, architecture, history, and clean/safe cities.
We don't like (or don't make a point to seek out): expensive restaurants, and shopping.

One more factor is weather. We usually go places off-season, and so it seems on every trip I've brought the same combination of fleece/Goretex shell. We have LOTS of pictures with rainy/overcast skies. (Though we lucked out on a few of our trips, with weather that was better than forecasted.) But if every trip has been 50s-60s F and overcast, it's by design. Husband is from New England, and doesn't handle the heat well. I'm from Washington DC, and don't handle extreme cold well. The heat would be the biggest drawback to Spain that I can see, but he would give on this point, since he's had more of the "picks' on our destinations so far.

Any help you can give us would be most appreciated!

My vote: Prague/Krakow/Dresden.
Whatever you decide make sure you write us a trip report!

vamoodys - unless you speak Spanish, I would pick Central Europe. Despite what many Fodorites feel, I think a passable knowledge of the language definitely helps in enjoying the local scene. Other than language, you might find Spain and Prague more touristy than Krakow and Dresden, both of which I think are the most spectacular small cities in Europe outside of Venice. No matter which area you choose I am sure you will enjoy yourselves!

Madrid/Toledo/Barcelona = for the museums [Picasso, Renia Sofia, Prado, Thysseum (sp?)], architecture (Gaudi..enough said), food, and other attractions.

My vote is Dresden/Prague/Krakow. Have visited all three but not on same trip.
Have not been to Spain (yet! pretty far down on the list). We were in eastern Germany last September-highly recommend it. I expect Ingo (Dresden resident expert) will post on this when he sees it.

Hi,
Well I have been to Madrid, Toledo, Barcelona, Dresden and Prague...and have Krakow on my list as well as Warsaw...Am doing Northern France/ London and Hungary, Romania and Bulgaria in the next two months...

If you have never have been to Spain...its an amazing place... Madrid and Barcelona have tremendous muesums art and archeticture... Barcelona can be tough...but just take precautions..
In Madrid you have the Prado as well as two other world Class museums... Toldeo, Avilla, and Escorial are nice day trips...Barcelona has the Bario Gothic, as well as the Gaudi and Picaso museums...and of course the chruchs..take the Bike tour in Barcelona...a lot of fun..Monserrat outside the city is a neat monestary to see and allows for some great hikes..

Prague, Dresden and Krakow are so different because you have three different countries and cultures...I did Dresden in a day on my way to Prague...Dresden has 5 small museums including a very impressive art collection with the famous angels looking up... Prague is fantastic the Castle, the Church, ect .. and as Ive said ..Ive never been to Krackow..

One thing to consider about your trip in addition to all your important qualifications is getting a feel for the culture and country...Spending 8 days in Spain would be a good start... Get Mitchners Iberia...read a chapter about Toledo, Barcelona, or Madrid and then decide if you can afford not to go to Spain...and go to a bull fight!

I haven't been to Spain as I want to do it, Portugal, Gibraltar. I can't imagine doing Prague/Dresden/Krakow in 8 days. We were in Prague for 4 days and barely saw it. Dresden is doable in a couple of days--small, nice museums and good food. Krakow is nice but the sidetrips to Zakopane and Auschwitz/Birkenau and possibly the salt mines and the town with the Black Madonna are important.
There is nothing more romantic than the Charles Bridge in Prague at night.

Have been to all these cities except Krakow. You do not need to speak Spanish OR German/Czech/Polish to enjoy those cities in my opinion...plenty of museums in all those I've listed..GREAT museums in Madrid in terms of important works. Plan to enjoy eating LATE (after 9-10 PM in Spain..you'll love it, too) Madrid and Barcelona will both be hot in August..dry in Madrid..humid in Barcelona. Prague/Dresden can be hot and humid..I'd opt for hotels with A/C if that doesn't bust your budget...you'll definitely need A/C in Spain. Agree that Prague will take a couple of days and other than the museums in Dresden I don't think it is nearly as memorable as Prague..three or four aren't too many. Very different cultures between Spain and the others but BOTH enjoyable...I notice a lot of the folks here who are opting for the first three haven't BEEN to Spain so that might tell you something. Either combo would be memorable so don;t think you'll regret your decision.

Can I ask 'Why Dresden?'

Could I suggest possibly starting in Vienna ? (Oh, you honeymooned in Austria) Why not Prague, Krakow and then finish in Berlin ?

That would be a fascinating journey.

Having said that Barcelona is truly amazing, and I hear that central Spain is stunning.

Difficult choice, but if I were you I'd go Eastern European whilst you're perpared to "rough it".

Spain would be easier when you have your family than Eastern Europe.

Cut a deal.

Tell your husband that he can have his choice Prague etc this time, as long he agrees to A, B, and C !


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My Travelogues & Photographs
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Thanks for all your replies so far. Keep 'em coming!

Couple of responses to comments & questions.

Yes - we went to Vienna on our honeymoon.

Berlin vs. Dresden - I'd have to consider that. Read in the guidebooks, search the forums, etc. As an alternate to Dresden, we were already thinking of Munich though, since we haven't been there. In our initial research, we liked Dresden because of what CharlieB wrote ("...one of the most spectacular small cities in Europe....").

Re: Spain, and eating late. Yes, this is one of the problems we'd have with Spain. We're not late-night people. When we were in Italy, we never managed to eat as late as the locals do.

Hmm - maybe we're having such a hard time deciding because, as Bootman4U said, either would be memorable.

Thought of something else that may be good background:

Our favorite cities/places: Peak District in England, Luzern, Vienna, Siena, Paris, Stockholm, Helsinki, Canadian Rockies

Places we're glad we went, but don't want to go back: Rome, Innsbruck (bad hotel memory), Oslo

Thanks again for all your help!

Well, being a Dresden resident I am maybe biased on this ?

Given that your husband does not like the heat you should avoid Spain in August/September. Usually the weather is fine in Dresden/Prague/Krakow this time of year ? not too warm, not much rain (sorry for the rain last year, auntgrapes!). I have been to Barcelona as well and found it to be a wonderful city, though.

As CharlieB said I think that Dresden is one of the most spectacular small cities in Europe ? much underrated (I am not angry on that because it is not crowded yet). Berlin or Munich vs. Dresden ? Munich is quite out of the way from Prague and Krakow. Berlin is a very lively, very modern and a big city. Dresden on the other hand has a very compact historical centre with (mostly Baroque) sites and outstanding art museums. In addition it is surrounded by very beautiful landscape. The sandstone rock formations 20 miles southeast of the city (right on track to Prague) are called ?Saxon Switzerland? ? a fantastic region for hiking, panoramic views, paddle steamer trips on the river etc. (Just thought of that because you mentioned Peak District in England).

In case you have more questions feel free to email me [email protected]

yamoodys- given your time frame, I would opt for 3 days Prague, 3 days Krakow (1 day to Auschwitz) and 2 days in Dresden. Three delightful European cities and 3 distinctly different cultures. By the way, I have been to all the cities you mentioned. Yes, you don't need to know the language to enjoy a country, but it sure makes the visit a bit more enjoyable. A case in point was a recent trip to Poland. We spent a week there before being joined by our daughter who speaks Polish. The first week was enjoyable but the second week was so much more fun. While there we took a side trip to Dresden. My daughter did not particularly want to go, but as we entered the Palace Square her jaw dropped and she just said "Whoa!" Have a great time and share your experiences when you return!

Prague/Krakow/Dresden for me. You've seen a good bit of western Europe in previous travels, so I think it would be interesting to get a taste of the cenral/eastern part. The architecture and history of these three cities will certainly keep you busy with just 8 days.

If you are travelling Krakow to Dresden, consider a stop in Wroclaw.

Whoa...tough one!

I loved my stint in spain, and left a bit of my heart in Seville (I realize it's not on your list). Still, I think I'd have to vote for the Prague/Krakow/Dresden combo, especially because eating late ain't your thing (I tried to do the "when in Rome" thing and nearly died from exhaustion. Still, you certainly can dine out earlier if you want...)

It'd also be nice to visit C.R. and Poland before the euro. I had lots of fun spending crowns! (And you gotta love the heller...)

Well, back from our trip, so I'll post a quick report.

We ended up going to (drumroll, please) Spain, and LOVED it. We chose Spain simply because at the time we bought our plane tickets, we could get a better deal to Spain.

I actually had lots of misgivings about our choice in the weeks prior to the trip (read too much about crime there, and was not looking forward to the heat, etc.), and generally had low expectations. Maybe it was those low expectations that made the trip all the better, but I just had a fantastic time.

A quick rundown of our itinerary:

Saturday - arrive in Madrid. Taxi from airport to bus station, and bus to Toledo. Evening in Toledo

Sunday - Toledo.

Monday - early train back to Madrid, and morning AVE to Sevilla. Afternoon and evening in Sevilla.

Tuesday - Sevilla. Evening flight to Barcelona.

Wednesday - Barcelona. Private guided tour of the Eixample neighborhood and modernisme sights.

Thursday - Barcelona.

Friday - early morning flight to Madrid.

Saturday - Madrid

Sunday - day trip via bus to Segovia. Back to Madrid in time for bullfight.

Monday - fly home.

I'm sure that itinerary looks packed to most of you slower travelers. What can I say? It worked for us!

The most memorable parts of the trip were the El Grecos in Toledo, the absolutely amazing flamenco performance we saw in Sevilla and the Alcazar there (plus the best gazpacho I ever had in my life), the modernisme in Barcelona (I LOVED the Gaudis), the Picasso museum and MNAC in Barcelona, the Prado, and the walk around the panoramic road outside of Segovia. Also loved the palm trees everywhere (haven't traveled to many warm places in my life!), and having fresh squeezed orange juice at least three times a day (hoping it helped the cold I had in Sevilla and Barcelona).

We did have a difficult time adapting to the late dining hours - that was probably the hardest part of the trip for us. We ate a couple of times at cheesy VIPS in Madrid, simply because we couldn't wait to eat later, and were too frustrated/tired to try to find someplace better. And we ate a LOT of tapas, everywhere we went.

The heat didn't bother us too much, even my cold-blooded husband. It was hot in Sevilla, but not unbearable. And the last day in Segovia was downright chilly (after a week of 80s and 90s, that is)! Probably in the 60s til around 11:00, and after, only in the low 70s with a strong breeze. I bought a touristy toro t-shirt to put over my sleeveless shirt to stay warm.

So, thanks for all your good advice. The Prague/Krakow/Dresden trip is still on our to-do list - who knows, maybe we'll make it there next year!