CIB

What is the shortest trip you have taken from the US to Europe?

We are thinking of going to Lisbon from New York - leaving on a Friday and coming home the next Tuesday.

Taaner

Not rely ecological... (yep, I care).
But a lot of Europeans go to NY for only 4 days.
Don't forget about the jetlag ;-)

wombat7

All depends on how you react to the time zone change.

I have a trip to London in a couple of weeks time and am leaving on Sat night returning on Wednesday. The purpose of the trip is a business meeting on Tuesday - but am sight seeing for other days. My partner is coming with me because I had an unused FF ticket that was about to expire.

SallyCanuck

To London from Toronto from Thursday night to Tuesday afternoon ... packed a lot into those days.

tcreath

There was a recent thread on this subject.

Mine was a 3 night trip from the Midwest to Rome and a 4 night trip to Paris.

Tracy

LaurenKahn1

I did one of those long London weekends (4 days/3 nights or 5 days/4 nights--I can't remember) when the kids were small. We got a sitter for the time we were away. I would never do it again for such a short time due to never really recovering from jet lag. Too little time for too much airfare--especially at today's prices.

weindell

Check this thread:
http://www.fodors.com/forums/threads...p;tid=34547756

TRSW

Mine was earlier this year. I spent 4 nights in Munich and 1 night in Frankfurt. Short, yes, but I had a great time. You can see the pictures at

pbase.com/trsw/germany2008

Tom

NEDSIRELAND

I met a couple on a Friday Newark to Lisbon flight; they were on an extended weekend trip, as you plan.
They were staying at the Mondial which is an excellent location. My Lisbon trip was for a 'foto essay,'

I have also done weekend trips Newark-Madrid-Santiago (Thu-Tue) and Newark-Shannon (also Thu-Tue). I like getting over my jetlag Fri and 'hitting the ground running' on Saturday.

Unless you're flying 'Business First' where you can get some sleep, I don't recommend less than 4 full days on the ground

Shanti

I've never gone for a short time but on my last trip I met a woman from Quebec. She wanted her daughter to see the Louvre and Versailles, so they had flown to France two days earlier and were now catching the RER with me early in the morning, so they could catch their flight back home.

She seemed totally sane but I couldn't imagine flying that much for only one full day in France.

LaurenKahn1

Sometimes I am asked if I have ever been to Spain. Spain is just one part of Europe I want to explore, but it just never has happened. OK, my answer to "Have you been to Spain?" is "I once went to Spain for lunch." I then wait for the reaction and tell them I was in France at the time. You would be surprised at the number of people who say, "I know you travel a lot but that's nuts." It would have been if I had not been in France at the time. It was at Figueres--a town on the Spanish border years ago.

So, I once went to Spain for lunch, but I guess it does not qualify as a short trip.

wombat7

I agree with the Business Class comment - it certainly helps.

Having said that, a while ago BA had a "fly one transatlantic business class and we'll give you 2 economy tickets for anywhere we fly". My partner and I booked transatlantic to Cairo, through London but plans changed and we couldn’t make the trip. BA would change the dates but only on the same itinerary – we didn’t have time to go to Cairo and see Egypt so, to cut a long story short, we used them for a long weekend to London. Left on Thursday pm overnight arrived London Friday am and left London Saturday afternoon – had a great time.

Greenhouse

My husband arrived in London yesterday and will return on Monday.

He'll probably play 4 rounds of golf and see 2 soccer (sorry, football) games.

Today, I went shopping all day (after a dentist app't), hair done tomorrow, <i>might</i> go to New York on Saturday.

I feel like <i>I'm</i> the one on holiday!

frogoutofwater

Two nights in Madrid. Granted, it was a business trip - but it was a really fun business trip. Worked Monday, flew business class to Madrid, arrived at noon on Tuesday, took a siesta, went shopping, met entertaining Australian colleagues for tapas, returned to hotel to dress for a formal dinner, went out after dinner with Spanish and Australian colleagues and stayed out until 3 am. Business meetings 9-5 the next day (which included a 2 hour lunch with wine and a tour of the host's private collection of Goyas). Stopped by a museum on the way back to hotel for a nap. Tapas, drinks, late dinner and out again until 3. Got up at 6 and flew home.

Sigh - I used to have a great job ...

SAnParis2

From CLT to Munich, Paris &amp; Amsterdam all were Thurs.-Tues. trips.

Rich

Don't know if business trips count here, but before I graduated to retirement, it was not unusual for me arrive in LOndon office at 10:00 for a meeting and return that nite.

Fortunately, I sleep like a baby on planes

DAX

I've flown SFO to Frankfurt on a Thursday afternoon and landed back in SFO on the following Sunday afternoon.

I basically stayed only 2 nights at the Hyatt Regency in Mainz for a one day seminar and flew back. The good thing was I had no jet lag when I got back.