Catalonia to Constantinople

(PART 2)

Day 10: Florence [Sunday]
• Start early and visit Accademia Gallery (1.5 hrs)
• Visit Medici Palace, Galileo Museum & Pitti Palace/Gardens in succession (3-4 hrs)
• End the day by walking to San Miniato Al Monte (2 hrs) *dinner options?

*Which all museums should I pre-book for?
*Any sites that I should swap in place of one of the above?
*Is it worth taking a guided tour in Florence? Or self/audio guides are good enough?

Day 11: Florence-Venice
• Check-out of hotel, take early train to Venice *Where to keep luggage?
• Start with a cruise of the Grand Canal (1 hr)
• Visit St Mark’s Square & Doge’s Palace (2-3 hrs) *Should we pre-book?
• Walk around the streets and visit Rialto Bridge & Market (2 hrs)
• End the day with a Gondola ride and then dinner (2 hrs) *options?
• Take overnight train to Munich – City Night Line Service *Is flying a better option?
*Any other suggestions for one-day in Venice?

Day 12: Munich
• Arrive early morning in Munich and check-in to hotel
• Start by visiting Nymphenburg Palace (2-3 hrs)
• Carry on to BMW Museum (2-3 hrs)
• End the day at Marienplatz *Is it worth taking a guided tour?
• Dinner at Chinese Tower in English Garden *Suggestions?
*We’ll be in Munich around mid-Sep, would Oktoberfest have kicked-off? Should we modify itinerary?

Day 13: Munich
• Start early to visit the castles – Neuwachstein & Hohenschwangau
• Full-day at the castles
• Visit the Hofsbrauhaus for dinner *Nightlife options?
*Should we pre-book our castle visit?
*Anything else that we can do in Munich within the period?

Day 14: Munich-Istanbul
• Wake-up to visit English Garden and Viktualienmarkt
• Take afternoon flight to Istanbul
• Arrive at Istanbul in late evening
• Check-in to Hotel
• Visit Galata Bridge and Taksim Square *Dinner Options?

Day 15: Istanbul
• Start early and visit Topkapi palace (2 hrs)
• In succession, visit Aya Sofia, Blue Mosque, Hippodrome, Basilica Cistern & Sulemaniya Mosque (4-5 hrs)
• Turkish Food – Nightlife Options?

Day 16: Istanbul
• Start early and visit Chora Church (1 hr)
• Take a Bosphoros cruise and visit Dolmabahce Palace – lunch options? (4-5 hrs)
• Visit Grand Bazaar in the evening (2-3 hrs)
*Should we pre-book any of the museums?
*Anything else that we can do in Istanbul within the period?
*Is the itinerary schedule in correct order?

Day 17: Istanbul-Mumbai [Sunday]
• Take a hamam experience (1.5 hrs)
• Visit spice bazaar (2 hrs)
• Check-out of hotel and take late evening flight back to Mumbai
*Would renting apt or Airbnb be better in any of the cities?
*Is there anything I can add or swap in the sites/attractions to visit?
*Is there some way I can cut down on travel time between cities? Flights/overnight trains/buses etc.?
*We have calculated and taking the Eurail pass is not worth for our itinerary; which all train journeys should we definitely reserve in advance?

Currently, we have booked our flights to & from Mumbai and between Munch and Istanbul. We have also blocked (free cancellations) hotel options at each of the locations. Other than that we are still flexible and can move our plans around.

The La Boqueria Market is closed on Sundays.

You are targeting a lot of high-traffic sights that will probably still be busy in September. A good guidebook should highlight those for which advance reservations should be considered. La Sagrada Familia is definitely subject to long lines.

You can type the name of a sight in the Search box at the top of this page to find recent posts about it. I suggest also going to each relevant country forum and reading threads with titles pertinent to your trip. There you will surely find some tips to make your trip more efficient.

The historic centre of Nimes has many pedestrian-only alleys, and there is a small square near the north border street Rue des Orangers that is called Place des Esclafidous which has open tables under shades surrounded by a number of interesting restaurants, the best of which are L'Esclafidou and A La Table de Clair.

This is if you prefer something out-of-the-way and atmospheric. There are loads of restaurants around the Arene, and around the more modern squares.

I understand your preference for a more fast paced trip, but I think you would gain enormously by omitting Munich. Take an extra night in Nimes to allow for Avignon and/or Arles. Plus, it would also allow for 2 nights in Venice and dispense with the night train.

Barcelona (3)
Carcassonne (1)
Nimes (2)
Nice (2)
Florence (3)
Venice (2)
Istanbul (3)

It appears your flights may be with Turkish Airlines. I am wondering if you can rebook Munich-Istanbul and fly from Venice instead.

Tell the immigrations officer when you enter Turkey that you cant wait to see Constantinople; then write and let us know how that worked out for you.

Istanbul,
You will need more than two hours to see the Topkapi Palace, especially if you see the Harem, which is the highlight of the Palace. Plan on about half a day for Topkapi. Also, plan at least two hours for Hagia Sophia, another hour for the Cistern and another hour for Blue Mosque. Are you going to the Grand Bazaar or Spice Bazaar, that will add two more hours.

I suggest that you spend half a day at the Archaeological Museum. It is fantastic. The Chora Church is great, but you will need to take a taxi both ways, since it is near the old walls of the city.

There will likely be fewer people in line, since tourism has been temporarily crushed by the airport bombing.

• Barcelona is the fourth most popular destination in Europe, when it's not for holidaying, it's for concerts, congresses, sports events, cultural gatherings, festivals, etc. so the city is pretty busy all the time all year long. Obviously that increases a lot from Jun to late Sep. DO pre-book online, especially those you mention or else risk long queues.

• Check out timeout.com/barcelona for suggestions on eateries.

Enjoy!

PS: Me too, I would also like to hear back from you after you've told the Turkish immigration officer about your desire to visit Constantinople...

Thanks for all the suggestions.

To all those asking for a blow by blow of my encounter with the turkish immigration officer, I will surely express "your" interest in their "Constantinople" while still my maintaining my undying love for Istanbul.

P.S. - Ironically, Istanbul derives from the greek "Eis Ten Polin" meaning "To the City"