Toni

Anyone who can help,We are a family of 4 Mom, Dad, and 2 teenage girls. We are planning a trip to Edinburgh, London, and Paris. We are using our frequent flier miles and our Marriott rewards to fund the trip. We can go for approx. 12 nights. From a Wednes. to a Sun. We have never been to Europe and have settled on these three cities. Which city should we start out in? What is the best way to get from Edinburgh to London or vice vers? Is the Chunnel the best way to go to Paris? How many nights and days should we spend in each city? Can some kind soul out there plan my iteneray? Should we use a travel agent? Any thoughts and tips would be greatly appreciated. Thanks in advance. Toni

Beth

Toni - <BR>I think we first need to know where you'll be flying into. If you're flying into London or Paris, the Eurostar (which goes through the Chunnel) is a great way to go between the two cities. Remember, weekend travel is cheaper and always buy a round trip. For some unknown reason it is less expensive than a one way. Also, make your reservations well in advance. I tried to get a weekday ticket from London to Paris in March and it was almost $400. Ouch! <BR> <BR>Here is what I would suggest as far as itinerary goes: <BR>Fly into Paris - spend three nights Day Four - Eurostar to London - spend three nights <BR>Day Seven - Train to Edinburgh (I've never been there, so its not easy to make a recommendation. I'm sure other veteran travelers will though!) <BR>Day Ten - Train back to London to connect to Eurostar back to Paris for last two nights. <BR>Fly home from Paris. <BR> <BR>Personally, for your first trip, I would limit the trip to London and Paris. There is enough to see and do in either one of these cities to cover 12 days, but six nights in each would be a good start to what I'll bet will be an incredible experience for your family. <BR> <BR>I am all for planning your own trip. It is definitely one of the best things about traveling. The excitement builds as you make reservations for hotels or trains, you research the places you want to see and make plans on how to get there, where to stay, etc. I love it! If this forum had been around for my first few trips, I would have done it all myself. I did use a travel agent for those and they did a good job. The trips I've planned myself seemed much more "me" though. I would strongly suggest bringing your daughters into the planning process. Let them do some research on places to see. I took my two teenagers to Paris last Christmas for ten days and they loved it. They now ask me weekly when we can go back! Keeping them involved in the planning will help them enjoy their visit even more and make it a true family event. <BR> <BR>I could keep going, but I won't. I'm sure Elvira and the rest of the Fodors addicts will offer some excellent advice. <BR> <BR>By the way, when are you going? <BR> <BR>Beth

wes fowler

Toni, <BR>Some suggestions you might consider: <BR>Do a text search here for a posting titled "How do you plan your European trip?" It'll provide you with a wealth of ideas. <BR>It's difficult to suggest an itinerary without knowing what your interests and those of your family are. Come back and tell us. Tell us too when you plan to travel. <BR>To make the trip truly meaningful for all members of your family, get them all actively involved in the planning, particularly the youngsters. <BR>There's little need to employ a travel agent. Marriott's 800 number can secure reservations for you. Regarding your flight plans, recognize that "cashing in" Frequent Flyer miles can be problematic during the peak tourist season (June through August)particularly so for four passengers. <BR>You might consider an "open jaw" flight plan, flying into London and out of Paris, for example, or vice versa. <BR>McClain suggests a possible Scottish heritage which perhaps explains your choosing Edinburgh as one of your cities to visit. Have you given thought to any places on the continent, instead; Belgium or the Netherlands for example, to give you a more diverse perspective of European culture and custom? <BR> <BR>If you'd like some specifics regarding where to go, what to see, feel free to Email me directly. By all means do text searches here on London, Paris, Edinburgh. <BR> <BR> as oss <BR>

Toni

Thanks to Beth and Wes for responding. I will act on your suggestions. I have already called the airline and we could do an open-jaw ticket. Should we land in Paris first then on to London and finally to Scotland?. USair from Edinburgh goes back to the States via Brussels. Should we try to spend a day there as well? Yes to Wes about the McClain name being the reason to go to Scotland. My husband has always wanted to go to Scotland to see where his mother came from. I have always wanted to go to London. It seems a shame to be in London and not go to Paris. Would it be a better idea to just tour Scotland and England w/o Paris and do that another time? Having never been to Europe I just don't have a clue as to what to do. Thanks for your suggestions. Toni

Tony

Stick with your original plan Toni, it sounds good. The open jaw, arriving Paris, leaving Edinburgh, will save you a lot of backtracking. Don't bother with a stopover in Brussels - the three cities you have selected are all very good, and deserve your full attention. <BR>The Chunnel from Paris to Londond (3 hours) is the best way to transfer - trains about every hour. There are also excellent fast trains at least once per hour from London Kings Cross to Edinburgh, journey time just over 4 hours. On both train trips you need to shop around for the fares. If you can lock in your dates in advance you can get cheaper Advance Purchase (Apex) fares on both trains. As Beth said the Chunnel trains are often cheaper on Saturdays, although I'm not totally convinced on her round trips being cheaper all the time. <BR>There are websites for Eurostar, and www.gner.co.uk for the London Edinburgh trains.

Sheila

Missed this whilst away, Toni. Generally agree with not backtracking so either Edinburgh-London-Paris or vice versa. Do I understand you're flying all the way? If not, I suggest train between all three cities becasue the connections are so good. <BR> <BR>Can I help with the Edinburgh bit, at all?