2019 vacation

"13 days" is open to interpretation. What specific dates do you arrive in Europe and you fly home, and what are the cities you fly into/out from? (If you don't have flights booked yet, good -- then what are your specific proposed dates). Need to know these things before advising if your plan is realistic or not.

Flying July 4 and back on the 18th leaves 13 days for traveling, we fly in and out of Amsterdam.

Do you mean you are departing from the US/Canada on July 4 or landing in Amsterdam on July 4?

How good is it to book a hotel as we go, plans can change. I already booked a hotel from the 5 to the 8th

We are departing the 4th and landing the 5th

If you wanted to include Paris I would have made more sense (and probably cheaper) to fly into Amsterdam and home from Paris. With only 13 days I would focus on a circle route around Amsterdam. That area is full of locals since all of the local population lives, eats, sleep, and work all through the region. However, you will also be rubbing shoulders with lots of tourists both Americans, Canadian, Europeans, and especially from China and Japan since it is a popular area to visit in the summer.

You need to spend some time with a map of the Netherlands. Giethoorn is some distance to the NE of Amsterdam and the opposite direction from Paris. Many of the typical tourists sites in Netherlands are south of Amsterdam including Belgium and cities of Bruges, Ghent, Brussels, Rotterdam, The Hague, etc. etc. For places to stay get a good guide book. You need to spend some time with a map and pins.

Assuming you are flying out of Amsterdam on the 18th (please confirm), then you have 12 days, not 13. July 5th is a travel day for you, not a usable day (this is based on the assumption that you're coming from North America or equally far away, ie on an overnight flight, and on your arrival day - no matter what time the flight is scheduled for - you will be exhausted and jetlagged that day).

It's not ideal to fly both in and out of Amsterdam, if your plan is to move on to cities in Belgium and France - because at the end of your trip, you will need to burn a day getting back to Amsterdam from wherever you are (many experienced travelers would suggest you do that the day before your flight, to avoid the risk of missing the expensive flight home if you are delayed getting from wherever you are back to Amsterdam).

So now you are down to 11 full, usable days.

How good is it to book a hotel as we go, plans can change.

"Winging it" (versus having everything prebooked) has both advantages and disadvantages.

The advantage is that you can change your mind, stay someplace you like a little longer (or leave someplace you don't like so much). That's the only advantage.

The disadvantages are many: most of all, you will probably find all the best options booked up (long before you show up - like months before), so you have to pick from what's left. "What's left" will be some combination of more expensive and less desirable (location, amenities, comfort). Also, you will spend some of your precious vacation time shopping around for, sniffing out, and deciding on, where to sleep that night (and probably ending up disappointed and spending a lot more, if my experience is any guide). Don't underestimate how much time this can take.

You need to be aware that traveling to popular places in summer (and that's most of Europe) often means intense competition for accommodations. The best places have already been snapped up months ago. The longer one waits to book, the more the options narrow. You can always find something, but that "something" often will be less than what you may be dreaming of for more than you hoped to pay. If all you need is someplace, anyplace, to sleep, and sleeping far from where you actually want to be is OK, then no worries. If you have your heart set on a charming place in a great location for a reasonable price...you're late to the game.

Personally, nowadays I always book my accommodations for summer trips many months in advance (for a summer trip, I start booking the previous fall). I've tried "winging it" before and have concluded that my time in Europe is way too precious to waste several hours every day "shopping" for a place to sleep. I can do that from home, end up right where I want to be, and enjoy those 3 hours with a bottle of wine and a plate of food, watching the tourists go by as I relax.

Some folks wing it and seem fine with it, but that's too stressful for me. Paradoxically, I have concluded that getting locked in to a rigid schedule actually gives me more freedom, since I "get back" all those hours I would spend figuring out where to sleep. YMMV.

I would think that if you leave time open, ie, not planning everything, eg, as to where to stay, etc, that might be undesired by some members in the group. I plan most, (that means not all which enhances the flexibility ) of the activities for the duration of my stay in a given city, ie, I don't see a certain museum or visit a specific site, say on Wed, then I go on Thurs or Fri.

Do all members of your group agree on seeing the same places, have the same priorities, or don't care?

Traveling solo I don't have to deal with this, those times when traveling in Europe with the Mrs, if we disagree or have no interest in each other's activity for that day, then we split up and meet up some hours later, ie she goes her way, I do likewise, then rendezvous at 7 pm or so.

Wherever you head to in Europe in July, peak school holiday season, I would book accommodation, particularly as you are a party of 6. Accommodation in Holland isn’t cheap and the best choices will have been booked months ago, so I would book ASAP. Look at apartments on sites such as Booking.com.

Paris is a waste of travel time for only a day or 2, so I would save this for another trip, when you can give it 5-7 days. Travelling here would have made more sense if you were flying open jaw.

I’m not a Brussels fan, so I would head to Ghent or Bruges in Belgium.

I assume you are hiring a car if you want to see the more rural parts? You will need a large vehicle for 6 plus luggage or have 2 cars.

Booking on the fly isn't as bad now - if you have a smartphone/tablet, it's easy to go on Expedia or Booking and see what is available - limited as those choices may be. And who is to say if you decide you want to spend another night in (say) Amsterdam that the place you're at isn't booked up - then you have to look for something else.

That being said, I tend to book 3-5 mos out. And with a group of 6 adults - last minute is going to be even harder, since you'll probably need two rooms.

Here's the thing (in my opinion). Many people hit the big cities with a limited amount of time and don't give secondary, tertiary, or rural locales enough credit. Advice is given with regards to personal opinion and experience and might suit the majority, but not necessarily everyone.
So, if you find a larger car and decide on a road trip, will you find rural lodging along the way? Possibly. Not every hotel in Belgium is going to be booked. You have to decide your risk factor.

I have a friend who lived for a time about an hour outside Brussels. Her husband was fond of motorcycle road trips which they took during the summer and never prebooked hotels. Sometimes the morning of and sometimes when pulling up into the town of choice. There are some lovely chateaus and gardens along the Namur river and south of Brussels. Leiden is in an opposite direction from Giethorn, but a thriving local university town with canals and a fantastic Asian Art Museum. Stay in The Hague and you have plenty of day trips to Rotterdam, Leiden, Delft or further afield.

Heck friends came on a day trip to see me in Paris from near Brussels - the trains and buses in these compact countries are all feasible.
I would, however, suggest you firmly define your major wants. Do you want to spend time in major cities, or a 1(2) country road trip? Planning will be different for both.
Given that you are travelling in and out of the same city, I would suggest dropping Paris form this trip unless you are only doing major city travel.
I recommend rome2rio for plotting times and travel options between locations. You might not be able to depend totally on the pricing and scheduling, but as a first kick at the can, it gives a good visual and optional scenerios.
Before you get too indepth with traveling and if you want a road trip you will want to research car rentals and what will fit your travel party and whether there are limitations about crossing borders. As you will be returning to Amsterdam you don't have to deal with one way drop off fees.

I think you have about the right amount of time to see Netherlands, Belgium and a couple days in Paris. Netherlands and Belgium are both relatively small countries. As always it depends on how much you are hoping to see.

The way I decide how much time I need is first pick out sights, then divide those into how many days I need. For example I want to see Rijksmuseum, Van Gogh museum and take a canal cruise in Amsterdam. Normally I'd try to do two things in a day, one sight in the morning, lunch, second sight in the afternoon - and keep a list of things that fall a little below "must see" in my back pocket in case I have time and energy to cover more. If all I wanted to do in Amsterdam were those three, I'd try to squeeze them into one day - but I don't normally schedule every day like that.

To keep going with that example, you have one full day of activities. How many nights should you schedule in Amsterdam? Two. Why two? Your first day, July 5, is what I call your jet lag day. You need to walk around to stay awake until a normal bed time to get back on schedule. Your must sees, art museums and a canal cruise, will have everyone out on their feet. The first night is ONLY for getting a good night's sleep and putting jet lag behind you. The next day you can cover your sights. You won't have time to see all those AND move to your next destination on the 6th so plan another night and move on the 7th.

As you plan your itinerary, figure sight-seeing days and moving days. On a moving day, you may be able to stop for a sight or have time after you check in when you arrive at your next destination - but make these primarily about getting from one place to the next. Think of time to see sights on a moving day as a bonus. Your distances are short, so you can probably work something in.

I regularly travel without reservations. I also travel shoulder season. Are you going to be comfortable taking some time to book accommodations each moving day? You will likely never go homeless, even in high season, but your choices may be limited. I usually make a list of places to call ahead of the trip. You can also use tripadvisor and book directly from there. I use a tourist information center as a last resort. They will book you a room but they aren't concerned about your budget.

Very good inputs, thank you.
This is my itinerary so far but can be subject to change: July 4: departure Miami to Amsterdam.
July 5: arrive around 11 am to Amsterdam , settle at hotel and explore the city.
July 6: tour Amsterdam as much as possible .
July 7: head to Giethorn day trip.
July 8: head to Harleem, Leiden and sleep in The Hague. (Our 30th anniversary, yeah!!!!)
July 9: The Hague and visit delft
July 10: head to Bruges and Ghent (sleep in Ghent).
July 11: head to Brussels and maybe back to Ghent.
July 12:head to Paris until the 14.
July 14: head to Rótterdam and Utrecht until the 16.
July 16: Back to Amsterdam ( celebrate my sons 23 birthday)
July 17 Amsterdam .
July 18. 7am flight home via Tap Portugal.
Is it to tight ? Should we rent a car or take trains,?
This can be subject to changes .
Thank you every one , this is our second time in Europe and been learning how to travel light and easy

Given that your choices are cities, and there is a lot of day trips and moving, I would stick with train for efficiencies. Car might seem cheaper divided by 6, but add parking and extra independent logistical time finding parking lots, routes, getting lost, I wouldn't bother. Some countries offer 'group' train travel rates so there might be savings. Your time in Belgium seems strange. You are sleeping in Ghent but really haven't allows any time to see it. It is central, but I would choose either Brussels OR Brugges not both. It is still a fast pace, but some people like that.

Happy anniversary.

Thank you !!

Between The Hague and Delft which would be nicer to stay overnight?