Paris, London, Amsterdam, Bruges, Germany

Monica Wales 73,
Are you looking for one tour, to all these cities, or for local tours, separate for each city? And where in Germany? Which cities there?
How many days do you have in total, from arrival day to departure day?

Gate 1 has a 10-day tour of Amsterdam, Bruges, Paris & London. They also have a separate tour to Germany (8 day Essential Germany or 9 day Tastes of Germany). You can try to do these back-to-back if the dates work.

https://www.gate1travel.com/europe/france/2025/escorted/europe-tour-10dclabpl25.aspx

https://www.gate1travel.com/europe/germany

i would like 1 tour if possible. Maybe 2 separate trips though Paris, Amsterdam, Bruges and not specific city in Germany, just want to experience the culture and food. And then later on maybe London, Ireland and Scotland. I would say up to 12 to 14 days.

"Is this to much or to many cities to do at least 1-2 days in each?"

Honestly, when I count my time in Europe I look at how many nights for each destination, knowing 2 nights = 1 full day.

Paris - to me needs a minimum of 5 or 6 nights for 4 or 5 full days. I just got back Wednesday from a month in France and did 13 nights in Paris. I STILL did not see everything on my "to-do" list. Well, I never do so I just have to keep coming back! I've done a couple of weeks in Paris most years since 2014 when I spent 2.5 weeks there!

London - To me also needs a minimum of 5 or 6 nights for 4-5 full days

Amsterdam - Maybe 4 nights for 3 full days. If you don't plan to do the Rijksmuseum and the Van Gogh Museums then you might be able to squeak by with 3 nights for 2 full days.

Bruges - needs 2 nights at least for 1 full day. Many do this as a day trip from Brussels or Ghent but to me it's at it's best in the morning and evening before the crowds descend which is why I recommend overnights here.

Germany - a Whole country. Where do you want to go?

I agree with asking how much time you have?

There is the Rick Steves classic 21 Day Best of Europe that will get you Amsterdam, part of Germany and Paris along with Italy, Austria and Switzerland. You can add time in London before hand and take the train to Amsterdam. IF you have enough time you can take the train from London to Brussels and take a local out to Bruges for a few nights before traveling on to Haarlem for the start of the tour.

Editing to add: Crossposted with you! With your time frame of 12-14 days, I'd go with London and Paris OR Paris, Bruges and Amsterdam. To me London, Scotland and Ireland is way too much for 12-14 days. Rick has a week tour just of London plus 8 and 14 day tours of Ireland and Scotland alone.

Monica, I'm not an expert on guided tours, but from what I remember seeing as I was considering my first trip to Europe via a guided tour, this is probably not an itinerary you are going to find.

In order for the forum to help you better, it would be essential that you tell us how many nights on the ground you would like to spend, where or what type of town in Germany you are contemplating, and whether you are a budget traveler or a spend-what-it-takes traveler.

Going out on a limb with a prediction, I bet that to satisfy these itinerary goals, you will need to be an independent traveler. That isn't as daunting as it seems. Start with Rick's Europe Through the Back Door book, which you may be able to find in your public library. Guided tours are great for those who have more money than vacation time and can't spare the time to research and plan a trip. For the rest of us, we can go on our own, especially if our dream trip doesn't fall neatly into line with popular itineraries.

Hey monica, this newsboard tends towards independent travelers who don't use tour companies. But you'll get a few replies.

You may understand your search problems better if you do some general reasearch on Google Maps. People hate spending most of a day, bouncing on a 49-passenger bus just to get to a far-away country. I personally don't recommend pairing London with the continent, especially since Brexit resulted in a 90-minute extra check-in time for Eurostar trains. (I also hate bargain airline fees for "everything.") This is not like adding Madison, WIsconsin (a place I like), to a trip to Chicago!

Do you understand that even by easy, unreserved train, Bruges is a two-hour "spur" rail journey from Brussels, which isn't even on your list? That means, usually, "from Amsterdam". Now, it happens that Brussels is very well connected (2 hour direct train) to Cologne (which I happen to like.) But Germany is a huge country. Almost no one can offer a two-week tour that covers "all" of Germany. So you need to have realistic expectations.

I'm not questioning your preference for a guide everywhere. But some travelers pick a very accessible and welcoming place (I mean like Amsterdam or London) to do independently, "on the way" to picking up a group-tour.

There certainly is a learning curve for independent travel, like knowing that you can buy a train ticket from Brussels to Cologne for (made up number) $40 two months in advance, but NOT two weeks in advance. And you might have to pick a departure time that business-duuudes don't want. It's just like buying a plane ticket.

BTW, do you know what an "Open-Jaw" or "Multi-City" plane ticket is yet? Be sure to look it up.

Also, https://www.ricksteves.com/travel-tips

My goodness, I looked at the Gate 1 Itinerary. I'm sure that satisfies some folks but wow, does it move quickly and with free days in Paris and London so they don't have to furnish admissions or guides to museums or other sites.

I DO admit to being a museum person!

IF you choose any tour I do recommend arriving the day before the tour starts to allow some flex time in case there are travel hiccups. IF you can stay longer at the end city I'd recommend that as well. Getting to the airport in most big European cities is not particularly hard to do. There are taxis and often public transit that are reliable and dependable.

I agree with Pam's comments on the Gate 1 itinerary. It's really important to carefully read the itinerary. If they mention that you will "See A, B, and C", chances are you will only view it in passing, from the outside. Dont count on going inside a site unless it specifically says so. Inexpensive tours may seem to offer a lot, but you may be on your own to visit some iconic sites. And even then only if you have the time to do it. I noticed that Odyssey Unlimited has a 12 day tour of Amsterdam, Bruges and Paris that includes a lot more actual visits, but at a price, of course. London is such an easy city to DIY, that I'd recommend doing it independently before or after a tour on the continent. I highly doubt that you will find a tour that includes everything you want, including German cities, especially in 2 weeks or less.

Thank you all. You have given me a lot to think about.