Book it or Wing it

The question is not so much whether everything will be booked up - because that is unlikely unless a town is hosting a special event. The question is really in two parts; 1) How much time and hassle are you willing to put up with to find a place to sleep? Is spending an hour or two of your day in the hunt for a bed part of the adventure, or an annoyance? 2) How flexible are you about your lodgings. Some people are very much of the "I don't care 'cuz I'm just there to sleep" variety, while others want their lodgings to provide numerous amenities. Still others want their lodgings to be of a particular sort of quaintness that adds to the memories of the trip. You need to do some self-discovery to know what works for you. The idea of not locking yourself into a time frame and staying longer in one place (or shorter) as the mood strikes you certainly has a natural appeal. But I find that a lot of research ahead of time takes care of most of that unknown. Over the course of five rather lengthy trips through some 50 or so major locations, I can think of very few that, in retrospect, I would have wanted a significantly different amount of time in. And I cannot think of any example of kicking myself because I should have stayed at x instead of y if I had only known z ahead of time. But then again, I don't really dwell on those things.

I do research ahead and make a list of about four or five decent choices for each place I'm likely to stop. If those run out, my first back-up is my guide book, my back-up, back-up is the TI. If I still couldn't find anything, I'd press on to the next town and find something there (still haven't had to do that). I am easy to please. I want clean and quiet, convenient to public transportation is also a plus. I don't care about air conditioning (because I normally travel shoulder season), en suite bathrooms (I'm perfectly happy going down the hall), elevators (I pack light in one carry on), bellmen (same reason), concierge (I make my own plans), in-hotel restaurant or bar (I'd probably go out anyway), exercise facilities (I don't have time and I'm walking plenty), etc. It's not unusual for me to call about two or three places before I book a room. To date I've never gone homeless, even in Munich on opening day of Oktoberfest (but I'll say that was close, I probably called more than ten places and attempted the TI, which was a zoo, before finding a perfectly nice pension at a good price). Overall I prefer it to being tied in to a set itinerary. If I was traveling in high season, especially August, I'd want to book ahead.

There is a fundemental problem with booking the day before. There are a lot of European (and others) who book well in advance, and they get to choose from the best selection. If they find a really good place, they don't say, "That place is too good for me, I'll leave it for some last minute booker." They take it, and you get what they didn't want.

Hi, Picking a place to stay is primarily based on location in my view. That's the overriding factor. The good thing for you and your wife is that you're not over there during peak season, which in itself should give you some flexibility in deciding where to stay in those instances you want to wing it. I've done both, winging it and reserving in advance, be it a Pension or a hostel. But, if you prefer staying at a particular establishment, such as for me in Munich, then I would suggest booking it first instead of chancing it by as a drop-in.

Rick,
While I can't comment on booking/winging at that time of year as I typically travel in the Fall ( others here can offer more reliable advice) I can make a suggestion if you decide to wing it. Do you have a smartphone? On my last trip, in November, I took my IPhone, with free apps for Booking.com and Hotels.com and found these to be excellent resources for booking rooms. Most of our trip was winging it, and what we typically did was while in a hotel one night, we'd access WiFI and use these apps to find accommodations for the next night, typically in another city. The apps allowed us to find hotels in our price range, in our preferred location, and we could even check hotel photos, reviews, etc to assist us in making our choice. Then it was a simple matter to make our bookings using these apps. In Paris, we arrived with no accommodations booked, went to a restaurant to eat, and while waiting for our meal, we used the restaurants WiFi ( its everywhere these days) to book our hotel! Finished eating, strolled to the hotel, and checked in, completely hassle free...

I think Lee's comment would apply during "tourist" season, and would very likely apply for the time period you have suggested( May-June). However, I would have to respectfully disgree for the off season, as I've stayed in first rate, centrally located hotels in both London and Paris, for less than $150, booked online 24 hours in advance( in November ).

Glenn, do you think it is only in "Tourist season" that early bookers claim the best places. In off season, there might be more places left, but those already booked will be the best places. "with free apps for Booking.com and Hotels.com" Too bad they don't have an App for www.town.de (for Germany, or .at for Austria, .it for Italy,etc). Because booking websites charge a big commission, a great many places don't list with them, particularly the more economical places. I've compared town websites, which list properties with URLs and email addresses, and I've found that the town website typically list about 3 times as many places as do the booking website. As for flexibility, I'm not going to spend $1000 for airfare and stay up all night, only to land in Europe and say, "Now what do I do?" By the time I arrive in Europe, I've researched the trip extensively, and I know exactly where I am going. It's a little known fact the Moses and the Isrealites wandered in the desert for 40 years because they didn't have a plan. It doesn't take long to walk from Egypt to Isreal if you know where you are going.

Lee, That was funny...:)

@Lee... I bet with all that wandering and following the 'road less traveled' they found a few backdoors :) I would be perfectly happy following the lost wanderers, but it is all a matter of travel style and what you are comfortable with. I love landing in Europe, looking around and thinking 'what now?' But, I am pretty much okay with most of what happens as long as it is not life threatening. What I dislike is having to check a clock to see if I am on schedule. It's not a competition of who travels best....its about what makes you happy. There are times when reservations are a great comfort (possibly first day, last night out, big cities) But for the last part of you trip (areas I have been to many times) I would definitely risk it if you are willing to be flexible. I would get a res in CT and maybe Salzburg, and the night out... but for the rest of the time exploring is lots of fun. (I don't have to live on a schedule at home and I sure don't want to do it on vacation)

All your input has been excellent. One more question... How far in advance should night trains (with sleeper car) be booked traveling in May-June. Thank you, Rick

I like to book in advance, generally - I get a price I like and don't have to waste any time looking around. Your Italy destinations are pricey and popular year round - I'd want to book ahead there for sure, and probably in Salzburg and in Munich if you'll be there. But at that time of year, it's also possible to find accommodations in smaller towns without too much trouble in Germany. "..possibly castles along the Rhine and Mosel valleys." Don't leave specialty lodgings to chance if you want them. Book them ASAP.

Rick - you should book night trains as soon as it's possible which I believe is generally 90 days out.

It's also not universally true that booking sites charge more than you would by booking directly - in fact very often you save money. Yes, the hotel is charged a fee to be listed on the site, but there's no reason to think that cost is reflected in your rate. The hotel gets exposure to a far wider pool of potential guests through big websites like that, which increases their revenue is why they do it. Before I book a hotel, I usually check the price with the hotel itself compared to booking.com. I usually - not always - but usually end up saving money with booking.com or similar websites. Of course yes, generally the old couple renting a room out of their house isn't going to be listed so if that's where you prefer to stay then those websites are going to be useless for you. But they're far from useless for everyone.

Rick, I think to "book it , or wing it", would depend on a few things. Your stress level, European travel experience, and how you pack. Can you change, move, and adapt your itinerary easily? We make reservations for some things, like flights, rental cars, night trains, Last Supper, dining at the Eiffel Tower, etc, etc. We have never made a reservation for a hotel room, ever. That said, going in May and June makes it tougher to find good rooms in good locations. Was your wedding planned to the Nth degree? Or was some of it "winged"? Being a honeymoon, I would think you would only want pleasant surprises, and not have to spend time hunting for accommodations. And congratulations on your marriage! My wife and I think you have made great, romantic choices for your trip. We loved the boat ride and little museum in Hallstatt, and the sights in Sorrento and Positano. Then the Rhine and Mosel.....ahhhhhh. Be sure to book your night train(s) as soon as possible.
It's 92 days prior with the leap year day added on the DB site.

Hi Rick! A Europe Honeymoon! What a great way to start your (traveling) life together! I'll leave the other posters to give you advice about the pros and cons of getting lodging on the go as opposed to booking in advance. Make reservations for Cinque Terre as Vernazza and part of Monterrosso are not back in full operation after the fall landslides. What struck me about your plans was the number of places you want to go between May 25th and June 6th when you depart for US from Munich. It looks to me that you have 12 days and at least 5 specific towns and 2 general areas (Bavaria and Rhine/Mosel Rivers) on your itinerary. May 6th is a travel day home so now you are down to 11 days. I am trying to get my mind around how you would be able to fit all of these places in an itinerary. NW Italy (Cinque Terre ), Western Austria (Salzburg, Hallstadt) are fine. You have to be in Bavaria SE Germany (Munich) for your flight home. Now come some choices and picking the outliers in terms of location is sometimes the best way to focus your itinerary. Bled is the furthest East, way east. And the Rhine and Mosel Rivers in Germany are on the far west / south central area. Continued Below

Continued from above Although some of these areas are time consuming to get to by rail, it can be done but not efficiently. Remember if you are changing locations by train, it will often take half a day to get from one hotel to the other. Pack, check out of hotel, get to station, wait for train, train ride, get to hotel, check in, unpack.
You could use Salzburg as a base for your Austria cities and maybe other areas. And Munich as a base for day trips in Bavaria. At least for trains. I am not sure how you would get a car rental for Italy, Austria and/or Germany. Rental companies don't like you to travel and drop off in other countries. I am sure others will chime in with advice. Good Luck with your itinerary! Bobbie

This is what I do. If the trip is air-based or high-speed train based: transportation was probably bought in advance for better prices, so if the itinerary is set I reserve all accommodations before leaving. If the trip is car-based: I will ALWAYS make reservations for the duration of the trip. However I might flexible fares that allow me to cancel up to the day of arrival or the day before, so that I could change plans if I want to by canceling reservations. For this reason I prefer services like Booking. com that offers easy apps or sites to cancel and modify the reservation (now its even easier with the iPhone app). I honesty don't care if they take a cut from the hotelier because I am very satisfied with Booking and HotelsCom and teut convenience usually mean same or lower prices from direct booking (at least on my experience). As for looking for accommodation on spot, my travel time is usually too valuable to be spent on checking rooms as if I were a travel guide writer myself. Moreover, I'n keen on certain amenities like Internet, mandatory en-suite bathroom and depending on the place a/c. So I see no reason to arrive in a place and try to find a hotel on spot.