Amsterdam or Paris for 5 days

Fly open-jaw (multi-city) into one and out the other. Booked on one itinerary, this comes close to round trip fare. Saves the 1/2 day of backtracking time, and cost of one rail trip, so take that into account when comparing costs.

Pick one. Go back next year for the other!

I am really unable to decide what all I can do in Amsterdam for five days. It just seems a little long. But again I think day trips from Amsterdam seem convincing.
@stan, I did try the multi city option and it's coming out to be more expensive than the train fares.

I agree with Ast. Set aside your Fear of Missing Out and just pick one city. Five days is not enough to explore two large, grand cities. Pick one. How many should you pick? One.

We are going to Amsterdam for the first time in 45 years and I decided we'd stay 6 nights, 5 full days. As I fill in the blanks on what we might do and see while there, I wish I had added at least one more night. Get the Rick Steves Guide to Amsterdam & The Netherlands and see how full your time can be. Take his self-guided walks, day trip to Delft and Rotterdam, cruise on a canal, see teh great museums, sit in a cafe.

Paris is also a great choice for a short trip. But pick one or the other, not both.

I disagree with the crowd. You can do both if you have the energy and desire. One of the best things about Europe is getting to see different cultures. It sounds like you are young and energetic. Get a taste of both and if you fall in love with one or the other you can always go back and spend more time.

I'll add to the pile on. With only 5 days, I wouldn't waste 2 half days travelling between cities. And don't forget how jet lagged you'll likely be on at least the first day. Amsterdam and environs have more than enough to occupy your time. Ditto Paris, of course. Pick one.

Pick Paris.

Taking a round trip train ride between Paris and Amsterdam will take too much time and the view from the train is very limited. It is a comfortable ride but with only 5 nights you can see one city or barely taste both.

Enjoy the trip!

I have never found open jaw tickets to be substantially more expensive than RT and some times cheaper, so you need to look again. I did a quick check on your dates and found it was $25 cheaper doing OJ into Amsterdam and home from Paris than a RT to Paris. This is what I found - RT Paris - $1250, RT Amsterdam - $1150 and into Amsterdam and home from Paris - $1225. Didn't look at the reverse. For that short a period of time, you absolutely need to do an open jaw (multi-city) ticket to save time and money. It is very rare for us not to do open jaw ticketing when we travel.

We spent 4 days in Amsterdam and did not see everything we wanted. Also, I spent 6 days in Paris and need to go back to see more. We plan to go back. 5 days in one spot gives you a chance to absorb what you are experiencing rather than rushing through everything. You can always do a day trip from one of those locations in case you run out of what you want to do. I suggest pick one place for so short a time.

My itinerary looks complicated. We are traveling to india from SFO on the 5th., we are going to be there till the 12th.
Fly to AMS or Paris or any other country which is not that expensive to fly into and have a five day vacation there and back to SFO on the 18th.

@Frank, what does RT And OJ stand for ? Sorry for my ignorance.

RT -- round trip. OJ - open jaw. When you posted, "back to San Diego" and showed showed San Diego in your log-in I assumed you were flying round trip from San Diego. But you can still do open jaw tickets for your schedule.

Sorry. !
My bad.. I am flying back to SFO

Also, i am looking at kayak.com and justfly.com for the airfares.
Are there any other websites you recommend ?

I did Paris for 6 full days and Amsterdam for 5 and felt those numbers gave me a really good feel for each; had my list of must-sees and dos, with plenty of time to wander, explore and relax. Yes, you could combine the two cities for a shorter number of days, but in my opinion both are quite spectacular (Paris definitely more so) and worthy of at least 5. Do a bit of research to determine what you need/want to see then decide which option is best. If you do combine then definitely fly open jaw with the train to connect. If you only choose one either will be wonderful!

I just got a great deal on Travelocity for flight + a hotel. Coach, and a three-star hotel, but both together were cheaper than the flight alone for whatever weird reason. I'm gaming the system by submitting a bid for an upgrade to business class on the way over, and I've upgraded my room from a super-cheap, shared bathroom single to a single with ensuite bath, which the hotel is giving me for just a few more Euros a night. Even with those upgrades I'm ahead.

Best strategy in my mind is to figure out what the prices are likely to be and just buying when you find that price. It's not good to stress over it, so figure out what you think is reasonable and fair and just resign yourself to paying it. Unless you have loads of points or whatever. But a lot of people love the game of finding the absolute best price--up to you!

You can book multi-city tickets for your trip. Enter 3 sets with your dates:
SFO to India, India to Paris, Paris (or Amsterdam) to SFO

I like kayak, Expedia and Google flights are popular, but searching and booking with the airline directly has some advantages.

@Beth, that's exactly what i am looking for now. But I think reading all the suggestions, makes me feel that I should just pick one city and I think i will go with Paris.
I will have to look out for hotels or airbnb for the accomodation.
I hope Paris won't be too hot or crowded in Aug.

Around the world, literally, in just 2 weeks?!??

Is this a penance or did you lose a bet?

Definitely just one city in Europe.

While I have spent five days in Amsterdam, I spent seven in Paris and would gladly spend another seven. I like Amsterdam fine, but with your short itinerary and round trip booking, Paris is the easier answer. City of Lights for the win.

I had 5 nights in Ams this past April. Honestly - we didn't spend much time in Ams proper and I'd love to go back for more time. We daytripped to Den Haag, Haarlem, Keukenhof (not an option in August), spent a day in Ams doing a canal ride and visiting the Rijksmuseum and our other time (after the day trips) just wandering around. Most evenings we were back in our room as dark came a bit earlier, and the temps were cooler (and we didn't pack many warm clothes)...if we'd had lovely mild nights I imagine we would have stayed out more. Plus - I got either a touch of food poisoning or something, as I was sick one night and didn't feel well for a few days after, which kinda limited our wandering a bit.

OTOH - we've been to Paris 4 times- probably 10 nights overall. There is honestly no shortage of things to do - museums, parks, shopping, walking along the Seine.

I'm not really much help, but I was worried 5 nights in Ams would be too much - but it was probably perfect with the day trips thrown in. I can see going back again sometime with the weather is a bit warmer and staying another 4 nights so we can explore more of Ams itself. If you just want to see Ams itself and not do any day trips, two full days would prob be OK, but I'd lean more to at least 3.

OK - I see you decided Paris - yes, Paris will most likely be really hot in August, unless rain/cooling trend comes thru. Make sure to get air con in your accommodations! And Paris is always going to be crowded.

People can give you tricks to help avoid lines...want to go up Notre Dame - arrive early. Want to see the louvre? Don't stand in line outside at the Pyramid entrance - go inside to the 'Carrousel de Louvre' and get your tickets there...way way faster. Plan for inside things during the heat of the afternoon if you can - be it a museum or relaxing in the shade at a park, or sitting at a cafe. People can give you other tips depending on what you want to see. Check what evenings museums are open. We did the d'Orsay when it was open late on Thurs...now, I don't know what it's normally like, but it wasn't super crowded at all (then again, it was April vs August). Take a Seine river boat ride...lots of fun.

Thanks everyone for all your suggestions.
We decided to do Paris starting (Aug 13th to Aug 18th) - so five nights in Paris.
I want to check out the main tourist attractions but really don't want to spend our time in the long lines. So maybe we will pick one museum to see and skip going to the top floor of Eiffel tower. We want to enjoy the hidden places in Paris and also maybe do a day trip Bordeaux/ Versailles.

People will disagree with me, but I don't see the point of going up the Eiffel Tower (although viewing it from below is a must). Why would anyone want a view of Paris without the Eiffel Tower IN it? I love the views from Montmarte.

It could quite possibly be hot in August and Paris is a city that seems to absorb the heat and radiate it out at night. Definitely get a hotel with air conditioning. It was a trip to Paris in July that made me never travel in Europe in Summer without AC in the room. Even if you don't need it 75% of the time, the 25% of the time you do need it.

Although the museums and big sites in Paris are wonderful, there's a lot to enjoy just exploring different neighborhoods. I really like the Marais, the area around the Canal St. Martin, and Butte Aux Calles. Don't forget to explore the parks in Paris, they are lovely and a good place to beat the heat, if needed.

Do keep in mind that many Parisians take a month long holiday during August so some restaurants and stores will be closed. This is true of most places in Europe but is especially noticeable in Paris.

I have been to Paris dozens and dozens of times . I have been to Amsterdam 5 times .

The longest I've been to Amsterdam was a week , the shortest three days .

A week was too long for me .

I have no problem spending several weeks in Paris though , there is simply so much more to see and do, and many more interesting day side trips . I think you made right choice .

As everyone has said , get air conditioning .

@Pat: Since you have been to Paris so many times, do you have any particular recommendations for the hotels ? and which part of the city to look for ?
We don't want to stay in the center with a lot of hustle.

Thanks Sarah. Will check to make sure our room has air conditioning :)

No website covers all airlines everywhere. Maybe the closest is matrix.itasoftware.com which is run by Google for airlines. It doesn't sell tickets but is useful to see possible routes. Buying direct from airlines is usually the most economical approach but if the itinerary combines several carriers which don't deal with each other then an agency is needed. I've been happy with www.cheapoair.com despite the name. You won't find "open jaws" as a description but multi-destination or multi-city is common. You certainly should be looking at such a route instead of going back to Amsterdam; it shouldn't cost more when considering the train ride you save and will let you use your time better. Time is scarce on your itinerary.

August....Amsterdam. Paris in August doesn't sound fun to me. I've been to Amsterdam twice and have yet to explore the surrounding areas. I love Paris.