I will be visiting Munich, Switzerland, and Paris In winter, and unfortunately it gets dark so early in Europe. any suggestions for how to make thr most of the day and what to do at night (besides eating and shows) when it is cold and dark?

I plan to visit the Lourve on one of the days in Paris where it closes late.

Take an evening walking tour or Segway tour at night. The eiffel tower will still be beautiful and have the fireworks at night. A boat tour on the Seine will be pretty - the boats are covered for warmth.

Im Munich the sun goes down around 4:30PM, in Paris almost an hour later.

http://www.sonnenuntergang-zeit.de/s...en:januar.html

http://www.timeanddate.com/worldcloc...&afl=-11&day=1

You go to concerts - the season is in full swing, orchestras, chamber music, opera - the lot. You walk, you do night photography, you take the bus (instead of the Metro) to watch the world go by.

Museums are open until 5 or 6 and as you said, the Louvre is open a couple times a week until 9 or so. Dress warm and take some walks and enjoy the relatively tourist free streets

We love traveling in the winter, but we're early risers and love to see the sun coming up over fresh snow. We also make sure to have reading material and a deck of cards, just in case.

Paris is called the "city of lights" for a reason. It is beautifully lit at night. The same walks and sites you can enjoy in the day time can be even better at night in Paris.

Can't really talk about Munich and Switzerland as we have never been in winter but Paris is nice in winter. Although it gets dark early, many things remain open after dark and the city is really beautifully lit so that walking in the evening is a pleasure. A concert at Ste. Chapelle or the ballet at the Opera Garnier is lovely and some churches have evening concerts. Go to an early performance and have a fashionably late dinner. Walk back to your hotel. Delightful evening.

Frankly, I go out very little at night even though Paris is so beautiful in the dark, so I really like it when night comes to me -- particularly the end of December and the beginning of January when night falls at 5 p.m.