3 week trip July 2020

JFender start planning with the Rick Steve guidebooks to get an overview of what you want to see and places you want to use as a base.

Welcome to the forum Jeff!

First off, do you have job restrictions that make it necessary to travel during the high season instead of during the off or shoulder seasons? Have you traveled in Europe before?

Consider open jaw flights to keep from backtracking. Compare prices. In may we flew into Paris and out of London. We had two weeks and stayed in just two places - Loches and London.

Be sure to include travel days. Even though 21-24 days sounds like a long time, if you constantly change locations the travel can eat up a lot of time. Lay out your itinerary day by day.

You are pretty specific in your choices. How did you choose them? Do they have things you want to see? Make sure you schedule in "down time" where you have no schedule and can feel free to roam.

I hope you have a great trip!

If you are interested in these destinations, do not fly in and out of the same place. Fly home from your last place. You will gain a precious day of sightseeing.

Lets assume three weeks, which is a day or two to get over jet lag in Paris, a week in France beginning in Paris and ending crossing the Italian border, (for example from Grenoble to Turin on day 9), a week in Italy beginning in Turin and ending crossing the Slovenian border (for example from the Veneto region, not necessarily Venice, to Ljubljana on day 16), and four days in Slovenia ending on day 21 when you head back to Venice airport for a flight out on day 22.

Lots of possible day trips from Paris, Giverny, possibly all the way to St Michel, etc., and then on to the southeast Tours, Lyon, Dijon, Grenoble, etc. Rhone Valley vineyards and agritourismos possibly.

Turin, Milan, Verona, Padua, Venice, Bolzano, etc. Maybe south to Florence, or north to the Lakes Maggiore, Como, Garda, etc. We love the Dolomites Region in the Sud Tirol from Bolzano eastward to the Julian Alps in Slovenia. Last summer we did a driving tour for a week which was great, starting in Verona and ending back in Padua after visiting Slovenia and particularly the Trilev National park there. Lake Bled will be a zoo in July - as will Venice, and Paris.

You have year to plan. Check out the guidebooks as already mentioned to locate the greatest "second rate" cities of which there are many, and which preserve much more original charm than the "Top ten" destinations. . Check out guides for your favorite kinds of activities too, like hiking guides, bicycling guides, food tourism, etc. When we have booked major trips in the summer I start scoping it out during the fall/winter, and looking for bookings (with free cancellation) at least 4 months out, although I will not book all of them then (just the highest traffic spots). There will always be places, but not necessarily at prices you want to pay.

Have a great time!

If at all possible, consider traveling sometime other than July and August. We spent 3 weeks in Europe last summer, starting in mid June. The crowds and heat were considerably worse by July. Keep in mind that air conditioning is not as prevalent in hotels and restaurants as in the US, and the heat can be unbearable. It was 113 F in Paris this week. I was sweltering in Venice last year and it was only mid-80’s! May or September (shoulder season). Will have cooler temps and fewer crowds, even in the touristy places (which are touristy because of all the cool stuff to see).

I agree with flying into one city and out of another, saving a travel day. To compare prices, look for the multi-city option for flights. If you’re trying to use miles, you can still do this with multi-city flights.

We’ve found that at least 3 nights at each location gives us a chance to get to know a place and relax more. That gives you two full days to explore.

Ljubljana is beautiful, with many gorgeous places in the surrounding areas. You could spend a week there easily.

Something to consider for the France part of the trip - The Tour de France is held in July. Depending on your interests, you might want to include this in your schedule or stay far, far away. The official route won’t be announced until late October, I believe, but I know it will start next year in Nice and, as always, end in Paris.

Jeff,
Sorry, I have been to most of the places you listed. Nothing wrong with them (I particularly like the Provence area of France), but don't be too afraid of the jewels. Insead of jewels, you are picking costume jewelry. For example, Verona is nice for a day.

If you want to visit some out of the way places, consider Strassburg, France and Colimar. For France, Normandy is a wonderful area to visit, as is the Loire Valley.

Don't skip great cities like Florence, Venice, Rome and of course, Paris.

Have you researched the list of places that you want to visit. Have you identified what you wish to see there?

Thanks to all of you for your replies and advice. Lots of great ideas and suggestions.
Due to my occupation (teacher), I am limited to July and August for travel.
Also I have a companion fare voucher to and from Paris, or London (WestJet). So this forces me to fly out of the same place.
I am starting to wonder if I should focus just on France and do a 3 week train trip.
I love cycling and the Tour de France so maybe that would be something I could see also.
Anyhow thanks again.

Jeff

As a fellow teacher, I understand those scheduling limits! The good news is that you can still have a wonderful trip in those months. I have for the past several years. I will admit that when I retire in a few years the very first thing I am going to do is take a trip in Sept/Oct at last!

With three weeks I would probably visit France and 1 other country. Italy will be warm at that time. Does England interest you at all?

There is a huge variety of destinations in France. You can certainly have a great trip without including any other countries. I'm finishing up my second long trip since 2017 (a total of about 4-1/2 months) and haven't yet had time for Paris and quite a few other places I have on my list.

I'd encourage you to plan some time along the northern and western coasts, which tend to have more moderate temperatures in mid-summer.

Lodgings along the path of the Tour de France may be rather pricey, or conceivably nearly unavailable if not booked well in advance.