Anyone used EuropeanDestinations.com?

When you say "family" how many people?
Where are you flying from? The US? Where in the US?
How do you travel from London to Paris and Paris to Rome? Train or plane or both?

Hi Emily!

The family is 4 of us - my husband & I, our 16 yo son & 11 yo daughter.

We will fly from Columbus OH. The quoted trip includes flights from London to Paris & Paris to Rome.

Thanks!
Susan

are you really flying from London to Paris? That is so much more expensive and so much slower than just taking the Eurostar high speed train which goes right from the middle of London right to the middle of Paris. If that is representative of how they are wasting your money I'd wonder.

Do you have 9 days total for your vacation, or have you figured in the first and last day as well as travel time in between cities? Do you have 3 days in each city or 3 nights? Your trips to the airport, flight, etc, will take up most of a day, and then 2 days later, you turn around and do it again? Is the 8160 for the whole family or per person?

Having flown into Col. quite a few times since I am from there and my family is there, am curious as to which airlines and layover stops you will have. The easiest I have found has been Air Canada, flying Col. to Toronto, a nice short little hop, and then direct to Europe on a fairly short flight.

The trip they proposed is 11 days with the travel time. $8160 for the whole family.

Friday evening - leave CMH on KLM Royal Dutch, Operated by: ENDEAVOR AIR DBA DELTA CONNECTION; Arrive London Saturday 8:45 AM.

Tuesday evening - Fly Air France from Heathrow to Charles de Gualle; arrive Paris 10:20 PM

Friday morning - fly Iberia Airlines from Paris to Rome; arrive 8:45 AM.

Monday morning - Rome to CMH on KLM Royal Dutch Operated by: CHAUTAUQUA DBA DELTA CONNECTION.

So it looks like we would have mid-day Saturday- mid-day Tuesday in London (3 days); Wednesday & Thursday in Paris (2 days); and mid-day Friday thru Sunday in Rome (2.5 days).

Clearly we would just hit selected sites in each city in that time. My daughter is young (ie. impatient) & not a lover of museums, and my son is interested in history, so we'll want to be strategic in what we choose so they are both relatively happy.

If I end up booking the flights & hotels myself instead of doing the package I will definitely look at the train instead of the London to Paris flight. I have heard good reports about that option before. We have considered paring it down to London & one other city. If that's the case Paris seems like a good choice because the train is an option, but my son is interested in seeing the Coliseum & some other Roman ruins. So we are still looking & making the plan, but the bottom line is we want to give them (well, all of us :)) a good experience.

Thanks again!

Don't know anything about them but it does seem like a good price for 9 nights hotel, transportation between cities and air fare for 4 people.
Let us know how it works out when you get back...
I'd post this question on TripAdvisor for more feedback and I'd Google the company to see if I could find reviews from others that used them.

Well, these two arrivals and departures don't sound like fun at all.
Tuesday evening - Fly Air France from Heathrow to Charles de Gualle; arrive Paris 10:20 PM
Friday morning - fly Iberia Airlines from Paris to Rome; arrive 8:45 AM.

If you arrive at 10:20 in the evening, you won't get checked in to your hotel until about midnight.
If you are going to be arriving in Rome at 08:45, what time does the flight leave, and what time will you have to get up in the morning to get out to the airport?

Both of those sound like you will need a taxi, and with 4 people and their luggage, you will need a mini-van. Make sure you include those trips in your costs.

Have you priced out flights in August or hotels in central locations to see what they cost? That is the only way you will find out if you have a good deal or not.

http://www.reviewcentre.com/reviews162782.html

The flight IB5718 to Rome is not operated by Iberia, it is operated by Vueling. It does not fly from Charles de Gaulle but rather Orly which it leaves at 6:45am. You will need to be at the airport by 6:00 am.

The flight AF1181 is operated by Air France themselves. It leaves Heathrow at 20:10 so you will need to be at the airport by 18:30 (6:30pm), leaving central London no later than an hour earlier unless you just happen to be right at Paddington station and pay the high price for the Heathrow Express. It will be an Airbus A321 most likely.

The Marriott Regents Park is a 4 star hotel well north of Regents Park, with the nearest Underground station, a little walk away, Swiss Cottage (on the Jubilee Line only) which gets a steady 4 on most review sites.

Classics Paris Bastille is a 3 star hotel which earns a steady 4 on Tripadvisor, close to the Charonne Métro (only served by ligne 9). It is some distance from Bastille - about equidistant to Nation.

Best Western Globus in Rome is somewhat off the beaten path, being a fair walk to the nearest Metro, Policlinico, through the Policlinico (hospital) area to the station, which is on the "B" Metro half way between Termini and Tiburtina rail stations. A 3 star, it just earns 4 on Tripadvisor, with a number of somewhat less favourable reviews, many mentioning the neighborhood and location.

After reading the reviews on the website that marbleskies provided a link to, I would be hesitant to use them.

Have you looked into RS' tours? or a cruise?

Laurie

Thanks everyone for such thoughtful replies, you can't beat the voice of experience! That's exactly why I posted here :) Sorry I haven't responded, a nasty stomach bug has kept me offline for a while.

With your input and some more thinking about the time we have, we think we will narrow the scope of our trip to London & Paris. Since it's the kids' first trip, we'll probably spend a greater amount of time in England. Speaking the same language (nominally :) ) should make being so far from home a little less intimidating.

@Marbleskies, the review site is so helpful! The feedback seemed mixed on europeandestinations, and the comments were helpful. Last time we went to England we booked our own flights with the airline & hotels directly, so I will probably do that again. The little bit of looking I have done seems to show that I can do about as well on total price.

@Nigel, thanks for the details on the hotels! So it looks like the Marriott is worth a look if the sites we are interested in are close by. The Classics Paris Bastille probably not. Maybe as I continue to research and find other places I'll post and hope you'll offer more insights :)

@lmkramer85, I did look at the RS tours and unfortunately they looked a little out of our budget. And I hate to say it, but my daughter doesn't like RS videos, so if she knew it was a RS tour she would probably not like it on principle ;) A cruise is an interesting thought. The Viking River Cruise commercials do look fantastic!

I sent the kids off online to search for things they would like to see & do, and they both have a long list of ideas. With the new edition of RS England that I ordered in hand, it should be fun to hone the plan!

Thanks again everyone!
Susan

Susan, before the children grow up too much you all might enjoy a week on an English narrowboat on a return trip.

Yes I have used European Destinations and would certainly use them again.
I was very pleased with my trip to Greece and the great budget lodging we found thru this site.