50+ trip to Europe advice

It's a lot of moving around but the bigger problem (at least for me) it's Spain and Italy in July. Very hot. I don't know which part of US you live, maybe you are used to it. But still; air-conditioning here is better than there (if they even have any, it's not everywhere like in this country. For me to go to Italy or Spain in July would border on masochism.

In Italy - it's more efficient from Rome to the Cinque Terre, then to Florence and Venice. There's been a lot of discussion here about the overcrowding in the CT. There are lots of other great places in Italy that you may want to consider instead. For instance, you may be able to fly from Barcelona to Naples and spend 3-4 days in Sorrento, visiting the Amalfi Coast by bus and ferry, and seeing Pompeii by train. Then on to Rome, Florence, Venice.

It's easier and faster and probably cheaper to take the train (Eurostar) from London to Amsterdam. You can get huge discounts on tickets if you buy early - they go on sale about 6 months in advance.

Iceland is expensive. Do you have a plan for your 6 days there? 3 days in London is not much.

Have you checked the train times for Spain? Will you have enough time in Madrid and Valencia to make it worthwhile to stop there?

Otherwise, it looks pretty reasonable.

Take a day from Amsterdam & give it to London.
Take a day from Venice & give it to Florence (and head to Siena).
Drop Valencia & give the 2 days to Madrid (and head to Toledo and maybe Segovia).

Thanks for the responses. I wish I could go another time but I'm a teacher and this is the only time. I wish I new about the train to Amsterdam from London but I already booked the flight. Even with a lot of ppl isn't cinque Terre beautiful? I don't want to miss it for a large crowd. Is Valencia not that great? Thanks!

To being with, I'd suggest keeping the Cinque Terre in your Itinerary, as it will give you an opportunity to rest after some of the other travelling you'll be doing. You'll have to decide which of the five towns you're staying in, and I'd suggest getting accommodations booked SOON as July will be busy. While it might be crowded, if you're touring around the area and not in the towns during the peak part of the day, the crowds should be manageable.

I would have also suggested using the EuroStar from London to Amsterdam, but if you've already booked flights I suppose it's too late to worry about that. This is why it's a good idea to research all the details (using a forum such as this), prior to booking anything.

For your visit to Paris, you might find the Paris Museum Pass worthwhile, as that will minimize your time waiting in the ticket purchase queues.

I'd have to give some thought to your overall Itinerary, and will add more later if I think of anything.

Even with a lot of ppl isn't cinque Terre beautiful? I don't want to miss it for a large crowd. Is Valencia not that great?

Before you decide whether to visit the CT, read the recent threads about it, like here and here. When I visited (briefly) in October 2008, there were hardly any tourists there at all. I did my hiking along the most popular trails and was mostly alone. If it had been crowded I would have been miserable. Ken loves the area and has visited several times as have others here. Different experiences, different points of view. There are many great places to visit in Italy . . . and in the rest of Europe.

I'm not saying Madrid or Valencia isn't worth a visit. I don't know what your transportation options are. I took a quick look at trains from San Sebastian to Madrid - seemed to be 7-8 hours at least. Add a couple hours to pack/unpack, get to/from the train station and you've used an entire day getting there. That leaves you 1 day in Madrid (2 nights), then you use 1/2 day to get to Valencia, 1/2 day from Valencia to Barcelona, leaves you 2 half-days in Valencia (1 night). Now I see that it's about 9 hours by train from Paris to San Sebastian.

Redo your itinerary, counting nights instead of days. Add actual travel time - door-to-door, allowing ample time to get to the train stations/airports and find your train or check in for your flight. Consider that you may well have to check some luggage (and wait to collect it) because of lower carry-on limits that are often strictly enforced. Then you'll know how much time you have to sightsee in each place. The German train website bahn.de is a good place to see train schedules for all of Europe.

You are covering a lot of distance but missing gems. Why not Granada and Cordoba while in the south of Spain? I'd take the days off Barcelona and add them to the south, although, others are right that Spain is very hot in July. Also, why only three days in London but six in Iceland. Where are your travel days? When you say days, do you really mean six nights in Iceland and three nights in London? If so, then the day you fly into London is mostly gone, and the day you leave is mostly gone, or is it really four nights in London, which would give you the three days. It's a little confusing using days rather than nights for measuring the amount of time in a place because the travel days aren't accounted for.
The train from Paris to San Sebastian is a full day.

Valencia vs Madrid
http://www.planetware.com/tourist-attractions-/valencia-e-val-val.htm
http://www.planetware.com/tourist-attractions-/madrid-e-mad-mad.htm

Being anywhere in Spain is usually a nice experience - the people, the food, the weather - however for visitor interest I would rate Toledo and Segovia above Valencia.
http://www.planetware.com/tourist-attractions-/toledo-e-cast-tol.htm
http://www.planetware.com/tourist-attractions-/segovia-e-castl-seg.htm

Finally I would consider the time and effort of an extra train journey and hotel stay as opposed to 'staying put' in Madrid for 4 nights.

Thank for for all the responses. I wish I had found this website earlier before I booked Iceland and London and Amsterdam. That is already booked and can't change. I have done a lot of switching due to your ideas. I am not going to go to as many places so we can spend more days and quality time. Here are my plans so far. I am wondering if it is worth a trip to Antwerp or if I should switch that with more days elsewhere? Here are my plans more written out.

Arrive Iceland July 5th stay 5 days
Leave July 10th to London fly
London 10th to 13th 3 nights
Leave July 13 to Amsterdam fly
Amsterdam July 13 through 17th 4 nights
Leave to Antwerp July 17th
Antwerp July 17th - 19 2 nights
19th leave Antwerp to Paris train
Paris July 19th to 25th 6 nights
leave 25 to San Sebastián train
San Sebastián July 25 to July 29 4 nights
Leave July 29th to Madrid train
Madrid July 29th to August 2nd 4 nights
Leave August 2nd to Barcelona train
Barcelona August 2nd - August 7th 5 nights
Fly to Rome August 7th
Rome August 7th to 12th 5 days
Leave to cinque Terre August 12th
August 12th to 15th 3 days
Leave August 15th by train to Florence
Florence August 15th to 18th 3 days
Venice August 18th to August 21 4 days
Fly to Frankfurt August 21 to see friends
Leave Frankfurt August 25

I think at cinque terre I will stay at Monterosso? That sounds less busy and should be nice.

You have a discrepancy with Venice - August 18th to August 21 is 3 nights, not 4 nights.
A format such as this will be easier to follow ...

July 05 Arrive Iceland - 5 nights
July 10 Fly to London - 3 nights
July 13 Fly to Amsterdam - 4 nights
July 17 Train to Antwerp - 2 nights
July 19 Train to Paris - 6 nights
July 25 Train to San Sebastián - 4 nights
July 29 Train to Madrid - 4 nights
Aug 02 Train to Barcelona - 5 nights
Aug 07 Fly to Rome - 5 nights
Aug 12 Train to Cinque Terre - 3 nights
Aug 15 Train to Florence - 3 nights
Aug 18 Train to Venice - 3 nights
Aug 21 Fly to Frankfurt - 4 nights
Aug 25 Depart Frankfurt

That is much easier to follow thank you! You are also right about the wrong amount of days. Does this seem like a good travel itinerary? Any changes people would suggest?

I think it's wonderful. A good pace for you to enjoy, given the length of your trip.
You might like to look at possible excursions from Frankfurt with your friends.
Look at a day from San Sebastian to Bilbao to see the Guggenheim.