SURPRISE TRIP
 

So DH surprising me in December with 4 day trip to one of these cities: Prague, Oslo, Copenhagen, Madrid or Barcelona. Since I do not know until the day I leave where I am going, I cannot thoroughly prepare in advance. Your quest, if you choose to accept it, is to give me your best version of an itinerary to any one of these cities inclusive of 4/5 star hotels with great views and 4/5 star restaurants for dinner.thank you!

Seems you DH hasn't considered the effect of weather on packing...

If he is planning the trip, why are you asking about hotels and restaurants.

Thursdayd- I failed to mention first week in December as time of year. I can still ask about hotels to visit them

Oslo in December and Barcelona in December will not have the same weather.

See weatherunderground.com - easily 20F difference in the highs.

It will be cold everywhere mentioned, except for Barcelona, so pack accordingly.

Retarding hotel and restaurant recommendations, I think you should let the crowd know a little more about your taste in accommodations and cuisine.

All are different. Not all 4 or 5-star hotels are created equal. Restaurants are a matter of personal taste ☺️.

I have had the lucky privilege of celebrating my previous two January birthdays in Prague. And, we have also spent the week between Christmas and New Years in Prague. Not early December, but close.

On the gray days the camera is set to B/W; on the clear mornings we rise early to catch the purple/pink/blue swirls of morning light over Prague Castle. A Saturday visit to a farmer's market is a must for me (we live in Vienna, so I can take purchases home); if the day is truly weather-spectacular we have gone to Vsyehrad for an outing, but that has happened only once. In July. Other times, we pick a neighborhood, bundle up, and set out. If you are visiting for the first time, the usual suspects of sights and museums will fill your days. Bonus points if there are Christmas markets.

Shopping is also on my activity list. Vienna lacks true department stores; and the stores that do exist shutter by 1800 on Saturdays and all day on Sundays. Plus, Prague has several French and British labels that I have come to enjoy.

For dining, the birthday dinners have been at Deer and Caserol, with Deer my new favorite for its seasonal and modern Czech cuisine and outstanding wine selections.

For lodging we have stayed at Iron Gates, though it offers no view; and Old Town Square which is, as the name suggests, right on the square. We like both, but Old Town Square delivers breakfast to the suite as part of the reservation; it is so nice not to have to "dress" for breakfast sometimes.

Happy Planning!

Although you did not state, it appears this is not a total surprise. Is this more like this: you create a list of options and your DH chooses one of them but would not tell you until the departure day?

Given that the destinations include cities with various weather scenarios where you can be snowed in, hotels with great view can lose all their attractions at the last minutes.

Barcelona for me - can't stand the really short often dark dank days in northern Europe.

It can be cold in Barcelona too. Snow is not unheard of there.

What an awful surprise.

On the average days will be longer; temps warmer and much less likely to snow in Barcelona than northern Europe. Yes it could and it could be rather warm in northern places at times too.

>> inclusive of 4/5 star hotels with great views and 4/5 star restaurants for dinner<<

I still don't understand how recommending 4/5 star hotels and restaurants will be of any help . . . presumably your husband has already booked the hotel (or will shortly) and grand restaurants generally need to be booked weeks or even months ahead.

Really? No advance warning about the climate or sunset/sunset times? I can understand that the intent is incredibly romantic, but in pragmatic terms, I would NOT be happy. JMO.

To comment further, I would need to know a bit about YOUR intersts, as I find these cities extraordinarily different from each other.

I do appreciate your husband’s intent. With a bit more information, maybe we can help shape your questions to him so that he can still offer a surprise, without delivering a disaster.

That’s my hope!

First,

Bedar- I resent your comment. This forum is for travel advice. No need to make a general negative comment. I hope FODOR deletes it!

Fourfortravel- I appreciate all of your advice!

PalenQ - can always rely on you. But thought you would elaborate some more.

Janisj - why so negative?

hetismij2- thank you.

Greg - correct! Makes it more exciting. You give your bucket list, partner picks, whalah surprise off we go. So yes, silly romantic who cares. We're living life.

How come this forum has so many negative nellies? What happened to go with the flow?

We like, art, culture, seafood, meat, potatos, flea markets, museums, long walks, boat rides, doesn't matter. We will wear snow boots or rain boots if we have to. Life is short, we are living it!

My experiences with each of the cities you mention are ones that suggest an appreciation of graciousness and civility. So I guess NONE would match your needs. Good luck!

I think Bedar's comment was meant in fun. If there had been a happy face at the end of it perhaps the tone would have been more the intent.
If Greg had written the original post, I might have understood it. I am afraid it just wasn't clear.
With all due respect, when first read, I wondered why you as the recipient were asking about hotels and dinner. If go with the flow works for you, then let husband choose one, and go with the flow. None of these places are going to be sold out and all are known for their excellent lodging and food options. Giving him a short list of restaurants, hotels and cities to pick from doesn't allow him to provide that romantic personal gift for you (unless that isn't the intention). It sounds like one of those Christmas lists a wife or mom has on hand. Give me one of these items that I really want but won't buy for myself and then 'surprise' me.
For myself, I would be game to pack 2 bags - cold or rain and let him put the correct one into the car/taxi trunk. I will know he has booked accommodation and one excellent restaurant. We would use the fight to plan what we would do once we decided to leave our room ;-)

"Shopping is also on my activity list" The sales in Spain and France do not begin until after Jan 6, Epiphany.

If you go for Oslo in December you will get Christmas lights everywhere and hopefully some snow. Stay in old world Grand Hotel where the Nobel Peace Prize laureates always stay, and meet the Nordic kitchen in three Michelin stars Maaemo.
Grand: http://www.grand.no/en/default.html
Maaemo: https://vimeo.com/27856616
https://maaemo.no/

>>Janisj - why so negative?<<

I didn't post anything negative. You asked specifically for suggestions for high end hotels and restaurants. I was simply wondering how we could help - you say you won't have any idea where you are going until the day before you fly out. So how useful could/would be any recommendations be? All arrangements would be complete before you know where you are going . . .

>>Bedar- I resent your comment. This forum is for travel advice. No need to make a general negative comment. I hope FODOR deletes it!<<

That seems goofy to me. I assumed Bedar was saying in essence "Wow, what a terrific/generous surprise!"

No, I wasn't. For me, not knowing where I was going would be awful, not romantic at all. The destination for only 4 days is inmaterial. I would just need to know what to pack. The husband will have to make all reservations in advance so recos don't count here. The OP will have no say in the matter. Anticipation is one of the great pleasures of travel so if she can wheedle the destination info out of him, they could have pre-trip pleasure planning where to stay and eat. Then again, she could go with an empty suitcase and spend all four days shopping for a new wardrobe. Not my idea of fun. ��

Quiltingmamma:
My DH needs to be somewhat spoon fed. It will be a surprise/miracle to me if he organizes this half as good as I do....all the time we travel. So my questions, albeit confusing to some, is basically a safety net for myself in the event HE didn't do his homework. I'm A TYPE AND WOULD LIKE TO BE PREPARED FOR WHEREVER HE TAKES ME. Thank you

Bedar- YOU ARE JUST NOT NICE!

Buffy - You need to lighten up. Now at long last, you have told us the reason for your enquiries. You usually plan your trips, and you're afraid your husband who's planning this trip won't have done as good a job as you would have. Oh, give the poor guy some credit and enjoy the places he will have chosen. Pack for cold weather and you'll be OK. Enjoy !

Seems to me there is a big disconnect between Type A and go with the flow.

Bedar -- I was just trying to get you out of the doghouse ;)

(your post still wasn't rude IMO though)

Thanks, Janisj. People sure are funny (strange). So it goes (K. Vonnegut).

What happened to typical/basic travel advice? I didn't ask anyone their personal opinions about my trip. I asked you for recommendations of sights, restaurants, etc. If you can't do that, please refrain from commenting.

Yes, this is opinion, but here goes. This thread has gotten tainted, so I suggest you try a new one with specifics (such as neighbourhoods you have researched) and tag the post for a specific city. See if that can refresh what you are looking for.
One also has to accept that forums are all opinion based whether from experience or otherwise.

<<What happened to typical/basic travel advice?>>

We can only respond to what YOU have written, which was odd to say the least.

Basic travel advice can be found in any guidebook or internet site. If you don't value experienced travelers' opinions, posting on a travel forum isn't useful because that's what it's all about - opinions.

"I didn't ask anyone their personal opinions about my trip." You can always seek the advise of a paid professional if you don't want someone's opinion.

FWIW, I understand that an OP might not always be pleased with responses one receives to posts on Fodor’s or elsewhere. What I don’t understand – just speaking for myself here -- is why an OP would choose to respond with rudeness. JMO; YMMV.

That said, I can offer a few of restaurant suggestions for Barcelona, with due thanks to fellow Fodorite kimhe (but without suggesting that he would agree with my mentioning them here), and noting that I have no idea what would make them a 4 or 5 * option in the OP’s view. I’m simply noting that I enjoyed them.
• Can Culleretes
• http://www.culleretes.com/en

• Restaurant 7 Portes
• https://7portes.com/en/

• For tapas: Tapeo
• http://www.tapeoborn.cat

I haven’t been to Oslo and my time in Prague, Copenhagen, and Madrid were all while on a very limited budget, so I have no suggestions for restaurants in any of them.

Good luck, travelbuff127. I think there’s a lesson or two for you in this thread. Given your responses, I don’t expect you to learn from them, but I hope that I'm mistaken.

Second all kja's restaurants suggestions for Barcelona, and I'll add Somodó for the best bargain gourmet experience in town, and tapas on Tickets, now # 25 on the world's best restaurants list. Extremely affordable for what you get, expect some 80€ pr person for about 15 tapas tastings and cava/wine beer. But at Tickets you must order two months in advance on the minute in order to get a table, so guess that's out of the question ;-)
Somodó: http://www.spottedbylocals.com/barcelona/somodo/
Tickets: http://www.theworlds50best.com/The-L...0/Tickets.html

And plenty of great restaurants here in Oslo apart from three star Maaemo. Kontrast is one of the newer and better, and Ekebergrestauranten has got great food and the best views over the city, the fjord and the hills.
http://www.restaurant-kontrast.no/en/
https://www.ekebergrestauranten.com/english/

Perhaps I missed it, but after all this I can't find the exact dates. There's a huge difference between early December, over Christmas, between Christmas and New Year etc. and whether it's a weekend or a midweek trip.

OP added the info in second post >>I failed to mention first week in December as time of year.<<

4 days trip....including flights ?

Tuesday to Sunday

Agree with travelbuff127, why not answer her question or move on. If anyone wants to talk about why they wouldn't like such a surprise start another thread.

And the really strange thing is, the op was made out to be the rude one here.

What an odd group. Who responds to an excited inquiry as "not my idea of fun"? or "what an awful surprise"?

I always finding it interesting -- maybe even rude -- when someone who poses a question chooses to come back and chide people who don’t respond in the way s/he wanted, but then ignores some posters who do try to answer the question. JMO.

THANK YOU CELFAN !11111

Thank you KJA