My husband and I are planing to travel to Europe in January for about 9 days, and welcome input on the best cities to visit during the off-season. We were thinking about Paris and one other city. Thanks for your advice!
Posted by
Tresana, Highlands Ranch, CO, USA
23624 posts
I would drift further south just for potential weather issues -- southern Spain, southern France, Rome.
Posted by
Eureka, IL
65 posts
Lindsey,
My wife and I are planning a trip in late January/ Early February and were wondering the same things. We are planning our trip to Paris and Rome mostly for reason's listed in the other posts. The major attractions will not be as crowded and it should be more economical with cheaper flights and accomodations. Another good reason is that everyone complains about the heat in Italy and especially Rome in the summer. We thought this would be a great time to go and enjoy this city. It should be around 40-60 degrees F at that time which will be better than IL at the same time. We will do a lot of Museums, Architecture, and catch a couple shows so if the weather is miserable it will not completely ruin our trip. Good Luck and Happy Travels.
Posted by
Pensacola
9110 posts
This sounds like it might be your first time to Europe. If so, Paris is an absolute must, as it is for trips two through nine million. For a second city, take a heavier jacket and go to London. It's not far away and has a lot more to offer than Rome, Madrid, Lisbon, Berlin, etc. Alternatively, you might want to stay in Paris and make day trips or rent a car and do a three or four day loop -- nothing's very far away and France has a large variety of everything is a relatively small area.
Posted by
Sacramento, California U.S.A.
10597 posts
With only 9 days (is that actual days there or are you also counting travel days?) I would split the time between Paris & London. It doesn't matter which order you do it, but fly into one and out of the other. The Eurostar train is fast and easy to get from one city to the other. Buy your Eurostar tickets ASAP to get the best price.
Posted by
winston salem, nc, usa
1078 posts
Agree--Paris and London if only 9 days. I am urging anyone thinking of a trip to the UK to do it now as the Pound is pretty close to the same exchange rat as the Euro 1.61 for the Pound to 1.51 for the Euro.
As an aside, look at flying to Manchester and taking EasyJet to Paris(if cost is a consideration) and/or taking the train to London
Posted by
Atlanta
3262 posts
Last January we visited Paris, Beaune, and Lyon. Off-season Beaune was a little sleepy so if I were doing the trip again I'd plan for just Paris and Lyon. Maybe 5-6 nights in Paris and 3 in Lyon...
I always love Paris but this was our first trip to Lyon. We loved it--especially the week-end markets and the restaurants. Lyon is an easy train trip from Paris. I'd suggest keeping your trip simple!