EuroBound0904

Thanks so much for all the tips about Spain and Italy I've gotten just from reading these postings. This is terrific!

Please critique our plans so far...A friend and I are traveling to Spain and Italy for the first time. We want to learn as much as we can about the cities we visit, get a real feel for them, but we're on a shoestring budget, and fairly short on time. We would appreciate any input about the tentative itinerary below. Is it too much to try to cover? Will we have any time to relax and enjoy? Are there too many connections? Will we be spending too much time in train stations and airports? Maybe one more day in Rome instead of Venice? We chose between plane/train with time/cost in mind.

Fri 9/3 Arrive Madrid from DC
Sat 9/4 Madrid
Sun 9/5 train to Almansa (friend's home)
Mon 9/6 train to Barcelona
Tue 9/7 Barcelona then Volare to Rome in PM
Wed 9/8 Rome
Thu 9/9 train to Benevento & back (family)
Fri 9/10 Rome then Volare to Venice in PM
Sat 9/11 Venice
Sun 9/12 Venice
Mon 9/13 Volare to Madrid in PM
Tue 9/14 Madrid back to Dulles

Any insight would be apprciated...thank you!

mjs

I think this is an excellent itinerary to experience in depth the excellent transportation systems of Spain and Italy.

rex

mjs is saying that you are purchasing way too much transportation, and not enough vacation.

Try to fly home from Venice, not Madrid.

Try to drop Barcelona (or Madrid - - I didn't bother to look at where Almansa is).

Use the train instead of Volare for Rome-Venice.

Best wishes,

Rex

Oh dear - - I just now noticed the dates - - I fear that you have already purchased the roundtrip trans-atlantic airfare into/back from Madrid. Alas...

ellenem

>>Is it too much to try to cover?
yes

>>Will we have any time to relax and enjoy?
no

>>Are there too many connections?
yes

>>Will we be spending too much time in train stations and airports?
yes

Keep in mind:
Your first day you will be tired from the overnight flight.
Your last day will be mostly taken up with preparations for your return flight.
Each time you move from city to city, subtract half a day for travel time (to and from stations/airports, train rides, flights).

Any reason why you must return to Madrid to depart? Why not depart from Venice and save a day, or connect from Venice through Madrid on the same day?

Almansa is almost Valencia, while Benevento is outside Naples. Have you checked train schedules to see how such day trips could be scheduled? I suspect both might take up to three hours in each direction.

Since you want to visit family, I would do Madrid and Almansa in Spain, and Rome and Benevento in Italy. Give more time to Rome and Madrid and your family visits. While visiting Benevento, perhaps you could add in Naples and Pompeii. Fly into Madrid, fly home from Rome.

kaudrey

Sorry, but I have to agree with the others. I am all for seeing a lot in a short amount of time, really, but you aren't going to see anything, except in Venice.

A day and a half in Madrid, a day in Barcelona, maybe a day and a half in Rome...

Since you are in DC, I'd compare it to this: Spending a day in DC, taking a train to Philadelphia to visit a friend, taking a train to NYC, spending a day there, then flying to Boston, taking a train to Providence, RI and back to Boston in the same day, then flying to Manchester, NH for 3 days and then flying back to DC.

Does that sound like fun to you? If it does, great. If not, you may want to rethink your plans.

Karen

m_kingdom2

I will have to agree with others - what do you expect to see in a day? If you simply want to say you've been somewhere, then by all means proceed with that itinerary, if not try and make big cutbacks in the middle. Aim to spend at least two nights in each place.

travelbunny

...I am not sure why i am posting except to reiterate the comments of others, However, If you want this sort of trip, take a bus tour..a sampler of everything as a rule of thumb you loose half a day with travel (excluding a day trip)..count this up in your present itinerary!..no matter how short the trip, by the time you build in the time to get to the airport or train station, by the time you find your hotel it is always close to half a day..so try to rework the above...or get out the flyers for "its tuesday it must be Belgium" type of tour.

EuroBound0904

Thanks for all the replies...I was afraid we were trying to see too much. Back to the drawing board...the only tickets we've actually purchased are the round trips between DC and Madrid. Is time a factor in the price/availability of Volare flights? Also can we wait until we get there to get train tickets?

Thanks again

bobthenavigator

It takes at least 4 weeks to see Spain and 6 weeks to see Italy. After 4 trips to Spain and 12 trips to Italy I still want to go back and see more. For your trip, spend 3 nites in Madrid and the rest in Andalusia--to "get a real feel for them". Then, start planning your next trip as you fly home.

rex

The advice from bobthenav is the best so far.

EuroBound0904

Here's the revised itinerary. I'm much more comfortable with it. How does it look? We bought the tickets in and out of Madrid, so that can't change. We have to go to Barcelona because that was the only affordable flight I could find to Rome (train takes 30 hours). I don't actually have family in Benevento, it's where my great grandparents are from and I was just curious to see what it looked like.

Fri 9/3 Arrive Madrid from DC
Sat 9/4 Madrid
Sun 9/5 Madrid
Mon 9/6 Madrid then overnight train to Barcelona
Tue 9/7 Barcelona then Volare to Rome in PM
Wed 9/8 Rome
Thu 9/9 Rome
Fri 9/10 Rome
Sat 9/11 Volare to Valencia, train to Almansa
Sun 9/12 Almansa (friend's home)
Mon 9/13 Almansa train to Madrid in PM
Tue 9/14 Madrid back to Dulles

I wish I had 4 weeks to see Spain and 6 weeks to see Italy! This is my first trip to Europe and I have a feeling it won't be my last.

Thanks!

rex

Good listener. Hugely improved. Have fun.

Myer

Getting better.

I would remove a day from Madrid and add it to Barcelona.

Madrid is more of a museum city and Barcelona is a lot more fun to walk around: Gothic area, Eixample, etc.

We were there at the start of June and spent 4 days in Madrid including day trips to Toledo and Segovia and ended with 3 complete days in Barcelona and didn't get to the water front beyond Columbus.

We really enjoyed the Prado (3 hours)but are not really museum people.

artlover

I agree with Myer about taking one day from Madrid and adding it to Barcelona. While I like Madrid, I LOVE Barcelona.

(Is it too late to change you ticket to be open-jaw in to Madrid and out of Rome rather than back-tracking to Madrid?)

bobthenavigator

You miss the point--stay in Spain !
Do Italy next year.

walkinaround

still too much in my opinion. also i would consider how much time you spend in cities vs. countryside. i love city life but one city after another is punishing. european cities, as you know, are very vibrant and full of life but with the constant travel plus a new city every other day, it can get to be too much. four journeys including a plane trip in 10 days is too much. other posters are right, you should stay in spain. each time you travel: pack and unpack, check out hotel, check in, find new hotel, get from/to train station to airport, carry bags, wait, possible delays, you get the point. train travel is great but too much of it and you will hate it.

mjs

Better, but I agree with Bob.

Myer

Bob,
I agree. For that length of time stay in one country. The trip is only 10 days long I believe.