My wife and I are planning a rather last minute trip to Europe this September. We have previously traveled to Paris/Switzerland/Barcelona in 2002 and to Ireland in 2003.

We loved the 2002 trip, particularly the contrast between big city Paris/Barcelona and the Swiss Alps small villages.

This years list of potential areas is:

Prague
Vienna
Venice
Rome
Budapest
Italian Alps
Paris (again)
Germany (Rhine area)
Amsterdam

We probably can only squeeze two of these areas into the time we have, which is about 9 nights in Europe. Also, we may have to fly in and out of Paris because our frequent flyer miles might not allow many other choices.

Please make suggestions! The wealth of information here is tremendous, and I value the opinion of those who have traveled more than we have!

Thanks.

Dave Zemens
Rochester, Michigan

If it helps you at all, I'm going to Prague and Vienna for a week this fall. I've been told the contrast between the two is quite interesting. However, I've already been to most of the places you have, and Italy twice and really do recommend that if you've never been! Venice and Rome over 9 days would be nice!

The possibilities are endless and altogether dependent on what you like when you travel. But with your statement about enjoying the city/village contrast and your 9-day time frame in mind, I suggest you fly into Paris and go west, through the Loire Valley (Amboise, Tours, Chinon, Saumur) and all the nearby chateaux and beautiful towns and villages. You won't feel as if you are rushing through an overly ambitious itinerary and can really go at a nice pace. We did this trip for 8 days in the mid-90's. We stayed at a country hotel outside of Tours (La Domaine de la Tortiniere) and then we splurged on the last night (we typically do that on our trips to Europe) by staying in the Chateau D'Esclimont, in the town of St. Symphorien near Chartres, with a relatively easy drive to the airport the next morning.

It's really tempting to say the "no-brainer" decision is Italy. Many people would go for the "big three", given nine days/nights in Italy.

By foregoing Florence/Tuscany (for a later trip, hopefully) - - then you could squeeze in two nights in the Alto Adige or Dolomites (to me, the Italian &quot;Alps&quot; are in the northwest, where France, Switzerland and Italy come together) - - I am particularly fond of these areas in the Italian north<i>east</i> &quot;high country&quot; (though I must confess, I don't consider myself an &quot;expert&quot; on any of the three).

But it's getting easier and easier to link together almost any two or three of the areas you mention (largely because of the proliferation of low-cost, no-frills <i>intra</i>-Europe airlines) - - so you should do a lot of reading, and just follow your heart.

By the way, if you need to connect to Italy from Paris see www.volareweb.com

For all kinds of other intra-Europe air travel, see www.whichbudget.com

Best wishes,

Rex

I'm partial to Germany, so that would be my choice. It sounds like driving isn't a problem - you could start in Paris and head East - hit Metz, Trier and then head up towards the Rhine. Drive back down along the river, even hit Mainz and Frankfurt, then head back towards Paris.

Hi
I suggest Florence (with daytrips in the Tuscany area) and Venice.

I suggest either Paris with a trip to Provence or Venice and Rome. Why? Because those are my very favorite destinations and I think everyone should experience them. Since you may be flying into Paris, that seems a logical starting point. From there, I would spend 4 days in Provence or, if that doesn't appeal, Normandy - another favorite. You can't go wrong.

You could also do a fairly easy car-based loop from Venice up into the Dolomites, then back down for a couple of days in the Veneto. The wine road near Bolzano can be lovely in September, and the peak crowds should have left the Palladian villas in the Veneto by then.

We took a vacation to Munich and Vienna and loved both places. After spending a few days in either city, there are numerous daytrip options. From Munich you can explore Bavaria or Salzburg. From Vienna, a trip to Melk is lovely, as is the country of Austria in general. Another option is to take a train from Vienna to Budapest as the ride between the two is less than three hours.

DWZEMENS - I'm curious - have you decided on an itinerary for your September trip?

Have you ever thought of holidaying on Corsica or Malta?
Corsica is a very scenic island in Med, with beautiful mountain scenery in the centre of the island. A great place for a cycling holiday.
Now I haven't been to Malta, but my Maltese mate, whom I call the Maltese Godfather, tells me to visit there, to enjoy the swimming, alfresco dining, shopping, old ruins, churches, etc, but also to visit the Island of Gozo, greener &amp; more scenic. He tells me that all the Maltese can speak english, and they drive on the left hand side of the road, hey, they can't be all that bad then. So you can guess where my next European side trip will be...Corsica or Malta.

Since you've never been, I'd suggest going to discover new places rather than revisiting old.

You mentioned three areas in a straight north-south line (more or less!).

Start out with the Rhine area, drive down through Austria, then into the Italian Alps, and end up in Venice.

Or you could do an east-west straight line (more or less!) - start out in the Rhine area, go to Prague, then Budapest, and end up in Vienna.

Enjoy your trip! What a great opportunity!

OK, we have it narrowed down to two trips, but I would still like your thoughts...

I can get an open jaw into Zurich and out of either Prague or Venice.

So, we are thinking of doing (1)Zurich, Lugano/Bellagio and Venice OR (2)Zurich, Vienna and Prague...

Vote once only, please for #1 or #2!



Thanks.

My vote goes to #1 (I love Venice, but wasnt charmed by Vienna)

Hi dw,

Havingbeen to Paris a number of times, we are planning a trip to Bordeaux, the Dordogne, and Paris for Fall 2005.

Can't not go to Paris.

Sounds like you can't lose!

Of the places you list for your final choices, I've been to Venice and Vienna. I personally preferred Vienna, and Prague is changing very quickly (I can't wait to get there!) so I say #2.

Just one opinion, we all have different priorities in life--Vienna is fine, but Venice is a unique world treasure. Choosing Vienna over Venice is like choosing Denver over San Francisco. Denver is nice and I've enjoyed living and visiting there, but Denver just isn't San Francisco.

Rome/Venice is quite a contrast. Also either of those and the Italian Alps.

If you must fly into Paris, then perhaps the Mosel/Rhein and Amsterdam would be a nice choice.