This is my DREAM! (help!) :)
Oct 29th, 2003, 06:05 AM
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This is my DREAM! (help!) :)
(my dream to have a chance to go to Europe)
Ok guys - I know this is asking a lot but I'm asking for all your expertise on this one -
Near the end of March/beginning of April 2004 I will have approx. $5,000 and I want to go to europe for at least 10 days. Can you all tell me what the best itinerary for this trip would be? (times of year, etc) I definitely want to hit England but I'd also like to go somewhere in Italy, Romainia, Prague, possibly France.... and I don't know if 5g is enough with airfare and all, or if my trip would be better spend between two places or just in one.
So basically I'd like to hear what you all would do with $5,000 and a trip to Europe.
If you need to know - I'm pretty much interested in anything other than sports. I'd like to see really old historical things, castles, typical tourist stuff, and even visit some non-tourist small towns/villiages. I want to do everything!!!
I'd like to have the "Rick Steves" experience and go about things as he does on his show, so I'd like to know if you guys would research the languages or history before you go or if you'd make friends in other countries to pair up with them and have a host... etc.
You can post here or email me
Any input is greatly appreciated!
Ok guys - I know this is asking a lot but I'm asking for all your expertise on this one -
Near the end of March/beginning of April 2004 I will have approx. $5,000 and I want to go to europe for at least 10 days. Can you all tell me what the best itinerary for this trip would be? (times of year, etc) I definitely want to hit England but I'd also like to go somewhere in Italy, Romainia, Prague, possibly France.... and I don't know if 5g is enough with airfare and all, or if my trip would be better spend between two places or just in one.
So basically I'd like to hear what you all would do with $5,000 and a trip to Europe.
If you need to know - I'm pretty much interested in anything other than sports. I'd like to see really old historical things, castles, typical tourist stuff, and even visit some non-tourist small towns/villiages. I want to do everything!!!
I'd like to have the "Rick Steves" experience and go about things as he does on his show, so I'd like to know if you guys would research the languages or history before you go or if you'd make friends in other countries to pair up with them and have a host... etc.
You can post here or email me
Any input is greatly appreciated!
Oct 29th, 2003, 06:51 AM
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Thinkpinkpop: what would I do with $5,000? I wouldn't blow it all on one trip, that's for sure. I'd get TWO trips out of it! At the time you are going, the airfares will still be reasonable, especially flying out of O'Hare. My husband and I just came back from two weeks in Italy and ate well, slept well, and travelled about for under $3,500, all expenses included. Flights and trains between European cities will not break the bank, since you want to do more than one thing. Perhaps you might want to take a look at alitialia's tour packages. You can go guided all the way, if you wish, or you can take advantage of their combo deals that include flight, hotel, and transportation. Last spring, for example, they had a nice combination of London, Paris, and Rome--the three biggies. Anyway, that's only one of the ways among many to get a first time taste of Europe.
Oct 29th, 2003, 06:53 AM
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Hi think,
You are lucky, Air France (www.airfrance.com/us) has specials to Europe through April 4.
You have a very generous budget.
My suggestions for your first 10-day trip are
1. Paris
2. London and Paris
3. Paris and Rome
4. Rome and Florence
5. Florence and Venice
6. Rome, Naples and the Amalfi Coast.
Have a great trip.
You are lucky, Air France (www.airfrance.com/us) has specials to Europe through April 4.
You have a very generous budget.
My suggestions for your first 10-day trip are
1. Paris
2. London and Paris
3. Paris and Rome
4. Rome and Florence
5. Florence and Venice
6. Rome, Naples and the Amalfi Coast.
Have a great trip.
Oct 29th, 2003, 06:56 AM
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HI
Do you have the time to go for longer than 10 days? You have enough money for a very nice two week trip, even longer if you stick to budget hotels and restaurants.
It's hard to recommend destinations--what are those more specific dreams?
Ok, you know you want England. London, and/or anywhere else.
London and environs could easily be a week's trip in itself, but let's try this, in a very rough kind of way.
Let's assume you have two weeks.
Allow arrival day plus 4 days for England--either London plus a day trip or two (Bath, Windsor, Hampton Court, Oxford, etc), or whatever destination in England you had in mind.
Then fly or take the Chunnel train to Paris, spend 4 days.
Then pick one other city, and fly there--Prague or Rome or Venice or whatever appeals. That's your final stop, fly home from there. Practically speaking, it would be easier to concentrate on a third stop that's nearer London or Paris (Amsterdam or Barcelona or...) but if you are not sure you'll be back anytime soon, then pick another dream city.
The ticket should be an open jaw allowing you to fly into one city and home from another.
Here are some very rough estimates (note that the estimates are in dollars, but hotels and such will quote prices in euro): June is peak, you'll probably have to allow $650-$850 for the round trip fare.
If you can do better great.
A couple of inter-city plane or train rides, another $300. So that's already
$1200 or so. If you plan on modest hotels at $125-150 per night for one person (are you going solo or sharing hotel rooms?)that's another $2100 at most. You can spend a bit less on hotels and get still clean but basic places, perhaps without elevators or a/c.
That still leaves you $1700 or so.
That's $100 per day for modest meals, museums, etc. It can be done.
If you click on the top of your screen here for Destinatons, you will find lots of basic info on most popular cities and towns. Other message boards and websites such as frommers.com, lonelyplanet.com, ricksteves.com, have lots of other good info for budget-minded travelers.
I have files on Paris, London, Rome, etc; if you'd like to see them, email me at [email protected]
best of luck
Do you have the time to go for longer than 10 days? You have enough money for a very nice two week trip, even longer if you stick to budget hotels and restaurants.
It's hard to recommend destinations--what are those more specific dreams?
Ok, you know you want England. London, and/or anywhere else.
London and environs could easily be a week's trip in itself, but let's try this, in a very rough kind of way.
Let's assume you have two weeks.
Allow arrival day plus 4 days for England--either London plus a day trip or two (Bath, Windsor, Hampton Court, Oxford, etc), or whatever destination in England you had in mind.
Then fly or take the Chunnel train to Paris, spend 4 days.
Then pick one other city, and fly there--Prague or Rome or Venice or whatever appeals. That's your final stop, fly home from there. Practically speaking, it would be easier to concentrate on a third stop that's nearer London or Paris (Amsterdam or Barcelona or...) but if you are not sure you'll be back anytime soon, then pick another dream city.
The ticket should be an open jaw allowing you to fly into one city and home from another.
Here are some very rough estimates (note that the estimates are in dollars, but hotels and such will quote prices in euro): June is peak, you'll probably have to allow $650-$850 for the round trip fare.
If you can do better great.
A couple of inter-city plane or train rides, another $300. So that's already
$1200 or so. If you plan on modest hotels at $125-150 per night for one person (are you going solo or sharing hotel rooms?)that's another $2100 at most. You can spend a bit less on hotels and get still clean but basic places, perhaps without elevators or a/c.
That still leaves you $1700 or so.
That's $100 per day for modest meals, museums, etc. It can be done.
If you click on the top of your screen here for Destinatons, you will find lots of basic info on most popular cities and towns. Other message boards and websites such as frommers.com, lonelyplanet.com, ricksteves.com, have lots of other good info for budget-minded travelers.
I have files on Paris, London, Rome, etc; if you'd like to see them, email me at [email protected]
best of luck
Oct 29th, 2003, 07:00 AM
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I agree with dln that you can probably geet two great trips out of that kind of money. Furthermore, I would do no more than two countries in ten days, and focus on no more than two cities per country (perhaps the most well known in each country). Even this might be pushing it.
This summer we spent 10 days in Florence and Venice, Italy, and barely got to all the things we wanted to see in each city. So, be sure not to plan your trip so that it's nothing but a blur when you get home. Take the time to enjoy the places that you decide to visit.
This summer we spent 10 days in Florence and Venice, Italy, and barely got to all the things we wanted to see in each city. So, be sure not to plan your trip so that it's nothing but a blur when you get home. Take the time to enjoy the places that you decide to visit.
Oct 29th, 2003, 07:03 AM
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Hi, thinkpinkpop!
Fun name!
How wonderful to be able to go to Europe! You are very lucky!
Here's what I'd suggest:
1) Yes, definitely start reading up NOW on what you want to see and do. Planning is half the fun! If you like Rick Steves, get his beginning book which covers most of Western Europe. Also get his "Mona Winks" which is an introduction to Europe's major art museums.
You can either borrow books from the library or buy them yourself. After Rick Steves, if you were going to purchase travel books, get the Lonely Planet books for the countries you plan to visit. They have the best city maps of all the guide books that I have used and so I find them invaluable in this way.
I would also get some pleasurable reading material with travel-related books, such as those by Peter Mayle on the south of France, Frances Mayes on Italy, and - for France - Polly Platt's Savoir Flair. Fun reading, all of these authors.
2) When you have a possible itinerary in mind, I would seek out the best airfares. Believe that the beginning of the year would be the best time to get great fares to Europe. But you never know, you should try to get on Travelocity, Orbitz, and Expedia just to see what the fares are like. You did not say what your departure city is, but sometimes you can get fares as low as $400 round trip, then add in another $70-$100 for taxes. Sometimes you can even get fares as low as $280 round trip from the East Coast. Flights to London, Paris, and Frankfurt would generally be cheaper than flying into some other city. But again, you never know...so it's best to check periodically.
Mentally set a limit to how much you want to pay for airfare and then shop downwards from there. Once you have your airfare purchased, don't regret selecting the one you did, because airfares will fluctuate wildly. Just be glad you nailed a good fare!
3) Lodging: both Rick Steves and Lonely Planet have excellent inexpensive places to stay, about $50-$90 for a "pension" type of lodging. Nowadays, not doing any more business travelling, my wife and I prefer the pensions because it is more intimate and we get to meet interesting people, especially Europeans. Look for the word "clean" in the guide books! It'll save you a lot of headaches, because a clean place to rest your head will color your entire perception of that city/country. Fortunately, Europe has tons of inexpensive, clean places to choose from!
Once you have decided on your itinerary, start making hotel reservations, especially in big cities. If you are going by train, find something that is easy to get to from the local train station.
I do not recommend the sometimes Rick Steves method of just arriving in town and going around checking out several pensions in the area. Too much waste of time during the trip. Good, bad, or ugly, you should have your lodging settled before your arrival. After all, your time in Europe is precious and you do not want to be spending the better part of a day trying to find lodging!
Of course, if you could find a companion, you split the costs of lodging and your lodging dollars go twice as far! But travelling together can be hazardous to your friendship, so it's six of one, half a dozen of the other - save some money and risk friendship and sanity during the trip or travel alone at slightly higher cost and know you really like the companionship of I, me and myself!
Also, when you make your hotel/pension reservations, be very certain of your choices. These are small establishments and it's usually customary to pay one night's lodging if you cancel!
4) At this point, you should also have a pretty good idea of which cities you want to be in, so you should check into buying an Eurailpass. There is a great variety of fares. Again, some savings can be achieved if two people bought certain types of Eurailpasses.
5) Start thinking about what you want to pack. Get something no larger than a 22" rollalong, a nice big backpack, and a smaller carryall, like a smaller backpack, a courier pack, a purse (not really recommended). Everything you want and need should be able to fit into the rollalong and the big backpack (including the smaller carryall). Remember that you have to haul all your luggage from the train station to your lodgings. In a lot of the pensions, you will also have to haul all of your luggage yourself up stairs, sometimes several flights of stairs. Don't take more than you can take and carry!
When you have gathered everything you want to take, lay it out on your bed and weed everything down by half. Last trip to Europe, I still had a pair of pants in my luggage which I never wore.
Where luggage is concerned, LESS IS BETTER.
But, you are still far from that point! When you are a month away from departure, come back to this forum and ask a luggage question! Fodorites have a lot of great ideas on luggage.
6) Places to visit - generally, London, Paris, Rome, Prague (definitely!) - then the rest of the countries depending on your own tastes. Romania is a bit off the beaten track and all parameters are different. Do you have special reasons for going there?
I would suggest staying with the EU nations, which will include the Czech Republic by next May. One currency (except Great Britain!). Also, for those "Schengen" nations, one "border" to cross.
After you have nailed down the preliminaries, please come back to this forum and ask away! Wonderful friendly people here!
Have fun planniing!
Jason
Fun name!
How wonderful to be able to go to Europe! You are very lucky!
Here's what I'd suggest:
1) Yes, definitely start reading up NOW on what you want to see and do. Planning is half the fun! If you like Rick Steves, get his beginning book which covers most of Western Europe. Also get his "Mona Winks" which is an introduction to Europe's major art museums.
You can either borrow books from the library or buy them yourself. After Rick Steves, if you were going to purchase travel books, get the Lonely Planet books for the countries you plan to visit. They have the best city maps of all the guide books that I have used and so I find them invaluable in this way.
I would also get some pleasurable reading material with travel-related books, such as those by Peter Mayle on the south of France, Frances Mayes on Italy, and - for France - Polly Platt's Savoir Flair. Fun reading, all of these authors.
2) When you have a possible itinerary in mind, I would seek out the best airfares. Believe that the beginning of the year would be the best time to get great fares to Europe. But you never know, you should try to get on Travelocity, Orbitz, and Expedia just to see what the fares are like. You did not say what your departure city is, but sometimes you can get fares as low as $400 round trip, then add in another $70-$100 for taxes. Sometimes you can even get fares as low as $280 round trip from the East Coast. Flights to London, Paris, and Frankfurt would generally be cheaper than flying into some other city. But again, you never know...so it's best to check periodically.
Mentally set a limit to how much you want to pay for airfare and then shop downwards from there. Once you have your airfare purchased, don't regret selecting the one you did, because airfares will fluctuate wildly. Just be glad you nailed a good fare!
3) Lodging: both Rick Steves and Lonely Planet have excellent inexpensive places to stay, about $50-$90 for a "pension" type of lodging. Nowadays, not doing any more business travelling, my wife and I prefer the pensions because it is more intimate and we get to meet interesting people, especially Europeans. Look for the word "clean" in the guide books! It'll save you a lot of headaches, because a clean place to rest your head will color your entire perception of that city/country. Fortunately, Europe has tons of inexpensive, clean places to choose from!
Once you have decided on your itinerary, start making hotel reservations, especially in big cities. If you are going by train, find something that is easy to get to from the local train station.
I do not recommend the sometimes Rick Steves method of just arriving in town and going around checking out several pensions in the area. Too much waste of time during the trip. Good, bad, or ugly, you should have your lodging settled before your arrival. After all, your time in Europe is precious and you do not want to be spending the better part of a day trying to find lodging!
Of course, if you could find a companion, you split the costs of lodging and your lodging dollars go twice as far! But travelling together can be hazardous to your friendship, so it's six of one, half a dozen of the other - save some money and risk friendship and sanity during the trip or travel alone at slightly higher cost and know you really like the companionship of I, me and myself!
Also, when you make your hotel/pension reservations, be very certain of your choices. These are small establishments and it's usually customary to pay one night's lodging if you cancel!
4) At this point, you should also have a pretty good idea of which cities you want to be in, so you should check into buying an Eurailpass. There is a great variety of fares. Again, some savings can be achieved if two people bought certain types of Eurailpasses.
5) Start thinking about what you want to pack. Get something no larger than a 22" rollalong, a nice big backpack, and a smaller carryall, like a smaller backpack, a courier pack, a purse (not really recommended). Everything you want and need should be able to fit into the rollalong and the big backpack (including the smaller carryall). Remember that you have to haul all your luggage from the train station to your lodgings. In a lot of the pensions, you will also have to haul all of your luggage yourself up stairs, sometimes several flights of stairs. Don't take more than you can take and carry!
When you have gathered everything you want to take, lay it out on your bed and weed everything down by half. Last trip to Europe, I still had a pair of pants in my luggage which I never wore.
Where luggage is concerned, LESS IS BETTER.
But, you are still far from that point! When you are a month away from departure, come back to this forum and ask a luggage question! Fodorites have a lot of great ideas on luggage.
6) Places to visit - generally, London, Paris, Rome, Prague (definitely!) - then the rest of the countries depending on your own tastes. Romania is a bit off the beaten track and all parameters are different. Do you have special reasons for going there?
I would suggest staying with the EU nations, which will include the Czech Republic by next May. One currency (except Great Britain!). Also, for those "Schengen" nations, one "border" to cross.
After you have nailed down the preliminaries, please come back to this forum and ask away! Wonderful friendly people here!
Have fun planniing!
Jason
Oct 29th, 2003, 07:03 AM
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Good advice from dln and I agree that with careful planning your "stash" should take you more than once to Europe. I would suggest starting in London. I suspect flights there would be the least costly (they are from here SFO). You could then use the no frills airlines to your other destinations. You could also spend some time in London and then take Eurostar or air to Paris. Stay there a few days and then go on to a third destination.
For a first trip, if it were me, I wouldn't want to try to see everything and everyplace I've dreamt of. Better IMO to pick 2-3 cities and really do them justice, especially since you are talking about only 10 days to travel. If you try to cram in too much, you will spend a lot of that precious time on trains/planes going from one place to another. Additionally, it will complicate your plans by necessitating research for more hotels, and of course the requisite packing and unpacking. I would prefer to savor a few places rather than just get a tiny taste of many.
Good luck.
For a first trip, if it were me, I wouldn't want to try to see everything and everyplace I've dreamt of. Better IMO to pick 2-3 cities and really do them justice, especially since you are talking about only 10 days to travel. If you try to cram in too much, you will spend a lot of that precious time on trains/planes going from one place to another. Additionally, it will complicate your plans by necessitating research for more hotels, and of course the requisite packing and unpacking. I would prefer to savor a few places rather than just get a tiny taste of many.
Good luck.
Oct 29th, 2003, 07:14 AM
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Giovanna, you've got to admit there's something irrisistable about planning someone's trip for them! I think when travelling is a pleasure, as it obviously is for us, you can't help but want to send someone to the places you love. Hence all the advice!!!
Oct 29th, 2003, 07:21 AM
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WOW you guys are great! I can't believe how much info you've given me to work with in such a short time! I'm still a little overwhelmed with the whole thing, my dream has always been to visit London but in the last few years I've also really wanted to see many other cities, but London has to be the first. I asked about Romania beacuse I have a pen friend out there that told me lots about it, and she mentioned that it's the best kept medieval town in Europe, which fascinates me.
I've been seeing a lot more of Italy in the movies and tv and that's peaked my interest to go there as well.
I've kind of lost interest in France but since it's convenient to get there in the chunnel, I definitely wouldn't rule it out - I'm up to pretty much see anything.
If I had to narrow my trip down, It would be London and a few other surrounding towns, and then I would LOVE to go see the Loch Ness and the Orkney Islands!
I would be travelling alone (scary, but exciting!) and I could go for 2 weeks, I'd love to go for as long as I could effectively stretch my money.
It's just hard to start all of this - I don't want to go off of guide books alone because I'd rather know what other people like me (crazy fun and adventurous) have done and the things that they've really enjoyed. If I started off with travel books I'll want to do everything and end up driving myself crazy!
I actually wouldn't mind just going somewhere and getting lost, but I want to make sure I wouldn't miss out on the things you guys think I shouldn't miss.
So.. if I narrowed it down to either:
London - Loch Ness - Orkney
or
London - Prague
Can you all give me some advice on the "don't miss" sights and places to see?
I do appreciate all your help, its overwhelming!!!
I've been seeing a lot more of Italy in the movies and tv and that's peaked my interest to go there as well.
I've kind of lost interest in France but since it's convenient to get there in the chunnel, I definitely wouldn't rule it out - I'm up to pretty much see anything.
If I had to narrow my trip down, It would be London and a few other surrounding towns, and then I would LOVE to go see the Loch Ness and the Orkney Islands!
I would be travelling alone (scary, but exciting!) and I could go for 2 weeks, I'd love to go for as long as I could effectively stretch my money.
It's just hard to start all of this - I don't want to go off of guide books alone because I'd rather know what other people like me (crazy fun and adventurous) have done and the things that they've really enjoyed. If I started off with travel books I'll want to do everything and end up driving myself crazy!
I actually wouldn't mind just going somewhere and getting lost, but I want to make sure I wouldn't miss out on the things you guys think I shouldn't miss.
So.. if I narrowed it down to either:
London - Loch Ness - Orkney
or
London - Prague
Can you all give me some advice on the "don't miss" sights and places to see?
I do appreciate all your help, its overwhelming!!!
Oct 29th, 2003, 07:22 AM
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My husband and I did 14 nights in Italy, 5 cities (Lake Garda, Venice, Florence, Rome and CT) for about $4300 and that was with high season prices - late June. We ate well, slept well, and brought back more things than we expected to!
You can do a lot with that budget, especially if you are flexible with your airfare. Good luck! And boy and I jealous... Kristy
You can do a lot with that budget, especially if you are flexible with your airfare. Good luck! And boy and I jealous... Kristy
Oct 29th, 2003, 07:27 AM
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Giovanni and dln: Hear! Hear!
Forgot to add that if you go by Eurail, you can get a sleeper, e.g., Paris to Rome - save a night's lodging!
As for getting two trips out of $5000 - dunno, not with today's exchange rate. I was thinking that the money saved could well go towards splurging on the wonderful food and wine. However, if you buy some baguettes, lunch meats, and wine - also fun things to do! - you could stretch your dollars to two trips!
Jason
Forgot to add that if you go by Eurail, you can get a sleeper, e.g., Paris to Rome - save a night's lodging!
As for getting two trips out of $5000 - dunno, not with today's exchange rate. I was thinking that the money saved could well go towards splurging on the wonderful food and wine. However, if you buy some baguettes, lunch meats, and wine - also fun things to do! - you could stretch your dollars to two trips!
Jason
Oct 29th, 2003, 07:42 AM
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If you plan to stay in 5 star hotels and eat gourmet meals everyday, then you may need $5000. Otherwise you can easily do a 10 day trip for $2000 or even less. The $2000 would cover staying in 3 star hotels, eating in nice (but not fancy) restaurants everyday, and also paying entry fees for museums and other sights.
Oct 29th, 2003, 01:18 PM
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I don't mind the cold, I'm accustomed to chicago winters so that's not a problem. I just picked Prague for all the castles and because I thought it would be unusual.
I could care less about whether or not my hotel is 1-5 stars, the only thing I'd look for is privacy and my own bathroom!
I could care less about whether or not my hotel is 1-5 stars, the only thing I'd look for is privacy and my own bathroom!
Oct 29th, 2003, 01:24 PM
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Hi Jackie,
Prague only has one castle. It has also been "discovered".
I strongly suggest that you do London and Paris for your first trip.
However, doing London and the UK is also a good choice.
Try doing a search and see what others have had to say.
Prague only has one castle. It has also been "discovered".
I strongly suggest that you do London and Paris for your first trip.
However, doing London and the UK is also a good choice.
Try doing a search and see what others have had to say.
Oct 29th, 2003, 03:37 PM
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To clarify, Romania is a country. My wife, who's been there twice in the last two years, would agree that there are a number of medieval towns there where your dollar will go a longs ways.
But aside from that, it's a depressingly poor country, and probably not worthy of your limited "DREAM!" trip time.
But aside from that, it's a depressingly poor country, and probably not worthy of your limited "DREAM!" trip time.
