Ambitious Itinerary?

The first cut, IMO, would be Bruges and add that day to Paris.

To me personally seems like too much. Can you fly into Amsterdam from US,spend maybe three days there and then go to Germany or Paris and fly home from a city in Germany or from Paris.

Honestly, whats the point of trip, seems to be a tour of train stations.
Unless you are terminally ill, or say over 80 , why assume you will never get back to Europe and try and cram 5 destinations into 9 days.. I really do not get it. And why fly into Dusseldorf when you allow no time to visit it? I will assume you found a great airfare to Dusseldorf, in which case use it as an opportunity to see Dussldorf. Give it at least a full day. You will want to recover abit from travel fatique and jet lag anyways. Then choose one , or at very most , two other destinations. I am not sure what season you are planning this trip for either, winter versus summer or spring, makes a difference, for instance, you say "go to Rhine region" thats a bit vague, go where, to see what.. rental car, train , how are you touring?If its winter what activities do you plan on enjoying, it may be cold and rainy, or possibily snowy,, hiking around and sitting at outdoor river side cafes may be out.. lol I love Paris, but if it was me I would make this short trip about one country, the one you land in perhaps one more, from Dusseldorf Amsterstdam is closest,but there again, I wouldn't go to Amsterdam in winter, its grey and wet. Don't cram so much in, its really doing yourselves no service you will find memories of your trip will all blur together. ( was that Dusseldorf or Amsterdam where we had that great meal?)

Quinn, That's way too much travelling for such a short trip (IMHO). Could you clarify a few points.... > Why are you flying in and out of Dusseldorf if you're not planning to tour there? That adds a lot of transportation time and reduces your sightseeing time considerably. > Have you bought your air tickets yet? > When are you planning to take this trip? I'd suggest focusing either on Paris - Bruges - Amsterdam OR on the Rhine region and Germany, using open-jaw flights (ie: inbound Amsterdam and outbound Paris OR return from Frankfurt). Good luck with your planning!

Its unanimous. Must be one heck of an airfare to Dusseldorf. These darned cheap airfares - then destroyed by trying to get to the destinations you really wanted to see...

Paris alone is worth an 8 day visit. We were in Paris in May 2012 for 10 days (including day trips to Versailles and Giverny) and could have used more time.

Thanks for the great feedback! You folks confirmed my suspicions. This is the first independent Europe trip we (me, husband and my father) are planning, so we flew into Dusseldorf because it looked to be centrally located (i.e., it seemed like it was a great jumping off point for a number of different itineraries)...and it was a dirt cheap airfare (@ PM, you hit the target). We're going in late May 2013, and my father may not want to return to the continent after 9 days with us. Just joking! We had heard that there wasn't a lot to do in Dusseldorf itself, so that's why we were planning on catching a train to Amsterdam on our first day, and spending our last day in Cologne (I guess Cologne is only a 20 minute train ride from the Dusseldorf airport). Have I been too quick to dismiss Dusseldorf? Also, 5 days exploring Germany by either car or train and 3 days in either Amsterdam or Paris – would that still be too much? I realize that all of those places are deserving of more time, but we are fine with a "highlights" sort of tour, especially for my dad... Again, thanks - from a very humble novice.

Flying open jaw is a great idea. You may have to pay more, but when you factor in not having the expenses to get back to the original aiport city, along w/ the time you save, it is worth it. I would take out half the itinerary. The first time I went to Europe, I felt compelled to see it all. When I finally realized I'd be spending all of my time in transit and not really being there, I just promised myself I would go back. I've been back 10 times since then. Each time I go I cover less territory & pack lighter. I stay in centralized hotels for a minimum of 2-3 days and travel out from there. I recently enjoyed a river cruise down the Danube. The best part was traveling w/ my hotel room. Do whatever you can to reduce the time involved w/ packing/unpacking and being in transit. You are there to see places, not juggling logistics! Then promise yourself you will go back to see the places you missed! Have fun!

The only thing I would change is to skip the Rhine region and add 1 more day in Paris

This could work as long as you are OK with just the highlights and are OK with always being on the go. I have done several trips similar to the one you have planned and it worked out just fine. If your style is to just get the once over and then move on then this will work great. Good Luck!!