Looking for Europe Travel Suggestions...
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I assume most tourists in Europe now spend most of their time staring at their iPhones.
Good WIFI is the key requirement.
@Copper said in Looking for Europe Travel Suggestions...:
I assume most tourists in Europe now spend most of their time staring at their iPhones.
Good WIFI is the key requirement.
I've been to Europe twice (2005 and 2010) and both times before I had a smartphone to use. Perhaps it's why I wandered the streets of Rome for 2 hours before finding my hotel, but hey... now I have that story to remember. Or when I rented a scooter in Sorrento and made it all the way down to the town of Amalfi just relying on street signs. In retrospect, it really helped me enjoy the trip more without worrying about staying connected, checking news or social media, posting pictures, etc... but I guess that type of experience is over?
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What would you do with a three-week trip to Europe?
Karla's never been, I've been to Munich and Vienna, Luke's been to London. So we've decided that next year we would visit Europe. That really narrows it down, eh? So we're trying to figure out exactly where our must go to are, and how much time we should spend soaking in the culture and history while keeping a 5-year-old entertained. Any ideas?
I was considering traveling through Strasbourg, Munich, Salzburg, and Vienna. A lot of music, some time in the Bavarian Alps, and maybe we swing around to the Italian Alps for a few days as well.
On the other hand, it wouldn't take a lot to convince me to spend 3 weeks exploring some of my family heritage and the history in Ireland, Scotland, and England.
I also think we could easily spend 3 weeks in Greece and Italy.
I wouldn't say no to Spain...
So we are running around in circles, here. Any suggestions?
@LuFins-Dad said in Looking for Europe Travel Suggestions...:
So we are running around in circles, here. Any suggestions?
First of all, this is great. The five year old definitely changes the dynamic, but at least they aren't a toddler and are somewhat interested in the trip.
Secondly, it really depends on the time of year. If it's hot/crowded, then I'd avoid places like Rome. Heat, crowds, misery...
Thirdly, I'd very much recommend scheduling day(s) of relaxing, no itinerary, and unwinding. The logistics, travel, and steps taken will be very exhausting if you don't have scheduled rest days. Like.... barely leave your hotel days.
Fourthly.... oh to your question, where to go? Personally, I'd love to see Switzerland and the fjords of Norway, both have stunning visuals. So I would suggest something like Ireland (beautiful, easy weather, speak English) for 4 days (drive from Dublin and visit towns/castles/cliffs in a clockwise fashion) until you reach Galway. Then fly to Paris and spend 3 days there. Then perhaps Switzerland or Norway for a few days. Then off to Vienna, the Alps, and Rome.... perhaps even throw Croatia at the end?
Man I am jealous...
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The fewer places you visit the better your vacation will be.
It's horror to change the place every few days.
Also, I would not only put big cities on the list. At the end of the vacation you'd puke if you see yet another famous church or museum.
If a European would visit north America for the weeks, you also wouldn't recommend him to visit NYC, San Francisco, Vancouver, Mexico City, Anchorage, Miami, and Chicago.
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The fewer places you visit the better your vacation will be.
It's horror to change the place every few days.
Also, I would not only put big cities on the list. At the end of the vacation you'd puke if you see yet another famous church or museum.
If a European would visit north America for the weeks, you also wouldn't recommend him to visit NYC, San Francisco, Vancouver, Mexico City, Anchorage, Miami, and Chicago.
@Klaus said in Looking for Europe Travel Suggestions...:
The fewer places you visit the better your vacation will be.
Agree with this. I would suggest looking to "base" yourself at three (maybe 4) places. Do day trips from those bases. Distances in Europe are pretty small compared to the US.
(I loved visiting Ireland. Was there for a bit more than two weeks, but would have been easy to extend to three)
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If I was following this plan, which I definitely like, I'd pick a couple of places in France, and a couple of places in Italy. I wouldn't mix mainland Europe with the UK - too much of a hassle getting from one to the other, and then it's a very different kind of place. Going from southern Italy to Northern Scotland would feel like visiting Mars.
I was only joking
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If I was following this plan, which I definitely like, I'd pick a couple of places in France, and a couple of places in Italy. I wouldn't mix mainland Europe with the UK - too much of a hassle getting from one to the other, and then it's a very different kind of place. Going from southern Italy to Northern Scotland would feel like visiting Mars.
@Doctor-Phibes said in Looking for Europe Travel Suggestions...:
like visiting Mars.
And just as unintelligible.
"Now look here, you Baltic gas passer... " - Mik, 6/14/08
The saying, "Lite is just one damn thing after another," is a gross understatement. The damn things overlap.
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@Doctor-Phibes said in Looking for Europe Travel Suggestions...:
like visiting Mars.
And just as unintelligible.
@George-K said in Looking for Europe Travel Suggestions...:
@Doctor-Phibes said in Looking for Europe Travel Suggestions...:
like visiting Mars.
And just as unintelligible.
I'm better at Italian.
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If I was following this plan, which I definitely like, I'd pick a couple of places in France, and a couple of places in Italy. I wouldn't mix mainland Europe with the UK - too much of a hassle getting from one to the other, and then it's a very different kind of place. Going from southern Italy to Northern Scotland would feel like visiting Mars.
@Doctor-Phibes said in Looking for Europe Travel Suggestions...:
If I was following this plan, which I definitely like, I'd pick a couple of places in France, and a couple of places in Italy. I wouldn't mix mainland Europe with the UK - too much of a hassle getting from one to the other, and then it's a very different kind of place. Going from southern Italy to Northern Scotland would feel like visiting Mars.
Well, it looks like the UK is going to be the start. As @taiwan_girl stated, I’m sure we could easily stay 3 full weeks in the UK, but I’m thinking of splitting it into 2 parts. Let’s say a full 10 days in the UK and maybe another 10 days in France.
So let’s say a day for the obligatory London visits: Buckingham, The Tower, Big Ben…
I’m sure Karla will want another full day for the Warner Brothers Studio Tour. Anything else that you would suggest in London? Say 3 days total?
After London, I was actually thinking of renting a car and maybe driving around for a week? Any suggestions? Cornwall looks nice, then maybe work my way north to Edinburgh? Thoughts?
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@Doctor-Phibes said in Looking for Europe Travel Suggestions...:
If I was following this plan, which I definitely like, I'd pick a couple of places in France, and a couple of places in Italy. I wouldn't mix mainland Europe with the UK - too much of a hassle getting from one to the other, and then it's a very different kind of place. Going from southern Italy to Northern Scotland would feel like visiting Mars.
Well, it looks like the UK is going to be the start. As @taiwan_girl stated, I’m sure we could easily stay 3 full weeks in the UK, but I’m thinking of splitting it into 2 parts. Let’s say a full 10 days in the UK and maybe another 10 days in France.
So let’s say a day for the obligatory London visits: Buckingham, The Tower, Big Ben…
I’m sure Karla will want another full day for the Warner Brothers Studio Tour. Anything else that you would suggest in London? Say 3 days total?
After London, I was actually thinking of renting a car and maybe driving around for a week? Any suggestions? Cornwall looks nice, then maybe work my way north to Edinburgh? Thoughts?
@LuFins-Dad said in Looking for Europe Travel Suggestions...:
I’m sure Karla will want another full day for the Warner Brothers Studio Tour. Anything else that you would suggest in London? Say 3 days total?
After London, I was actually thinking of renting a car and maybe driving around for a week? Any suggestions? Cornwall looks nice, then maybe work my way north to Edinburgh? Thoughts?
I don't know London that well - there are some very good museums - Science Museum, Natural History and British Museums. Kew Gardens is good if you like plants and stuff.
If you're going down to Cornwall, it's likely to take a long time getting in and out - it's a lot further than it looks.
Places of natural beauty - Snowdonia in Wales (again a bit remote), The Lake District in Cumbria (my personal favourite place, but it gets very busy), and the Scottish Highlands. Edinburgh is a nice town to walk around, but quite hilly.
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The Churchill War Rooms in London.
If you have a few stop by the Handel Hendrix house. That’s right. They lived in adjacent apartments (at very different times) and they’ve combined them into a museum.
Royal Air Museum is awesome.
Walk around Greenwich. The observatory is cool, I went to a wedding there once. Also get on the Golden Hind.
A Thames cruise is worth it.
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If you and your family are Harry Potter fans, you can visit the Harry Potter studio, which is a pretty easy day trip from London via bus. Lots of fun I thought.
Scale model of Hogwarts that was built for filming
Another fun day trip was the city of Bath. I had a debate to go there or to Stonehenge. Decided on Bath and was glad I did. Quite interesting and fascinating. Easy train ride from London. Lots of history (Roman baths) and beautiful buildings.
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for london, i would definately second the british museum (dont you want to see the rosetta stone?) or the magnificent assyria collection (cant miss Ashurbanipal dining with the severed head of the elamite king hanging on a tree?)
and the churchill war rooms, (cant see enough churchill movies to get a feel for those monumntal days)i agree with phibes that you may be underestimating the distances. you can train to any of those more rural areas, and rent a car locally.
as for france, my best vacations in france were staying in one place for a week and travelling around from that base. ive done it in provence, and I especially liked doing it in the dordogne area, east of bordeaux. just crazy nice, and the food and wine was amazing (truffles!!!)
ive always wanted to do a canal trip, where you rent a canal boat and travel that way, that can be done in both england and france.
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Oh, speaking of Harry Potter - if you're driving up to Edinburgh you could stop at Alnwick Castle where they filmed the movies. My wife took my kids there about 10 years ago and they really enjoyed it. Probably not worth a trip by itself, but it's on the way to Edinburgh if you're driving.
However, I would recommend following Bach's advice and take the train.
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Is The Globe worth a visit? It feels like visiting London requires seeing Shakespeare…
The Brad
