Europe- Germany/Italy/France 3 week itinerary question

Hi Tessa. In my opinion, you're going too many places in too short a time. You have 19 full days (I'm not counting arrival and departure days) during which you want to visit at least 11 places. You won't see much in most cities you'll visit. Keep in mind that your jetlag will not be helped by an overnight train ride on the second night you're in Europe. I haven't ridden one but others on this site say they don't get much rest and are like zombies the next day. I'd suggest limiting your time to Italy, since that's where the bulk of your desired cities are located. There's PLENTY of art in Italy, don't worry! Save France and Munich for a subsequent trip. Slow down and experience a few places instead of rushing through many.

Do you already have your plane tickets? If not, I would consider flying into Paris and out of Rome or vice versa. I would omit Munich and allot more time in Rome itself.

Hi! Yes we bought tickets to Munich (family is there) and we bought tickets out of Paris on August 21st. I know that there are some stressful days of travel. I have traveled overseas before and jet lag is a nightmare. I remember getting into London early morning and basically sleeping ALL day. So I figure August 1st will be our sleep day. The overnight train from Munich will not allow us much sleep but I figure we can cut our day in Venice down. Venice isn't important....so maybe we should skip it and go right to Florence? Florence and Rome and Paris are a must. We figured being in Rome and only an hour and a half from Pompeii we should go for it...if even for a day. Nice is also not necessary but it was a tie between not being on a train straight for 15 hours (straight to Paris)...and seeing a little bit of Southern France by train for the hell of it. Before we commit to train tickets....we thought it would be best to see what others thought...specially those who travel in Europe a lot. Thanks for the replies and all future help. We need it! :)

Hi Tessa "Florence and Rome and Paris are a must." I'd plan on hitting just those cities, then, and minimize the travel time. Certainly they each are wonderful enough (as is Munich) to enjoy for a few days. I'd recommend saving at least the Cinque Terre and Venice for a later trip. I'd also recommend scheduling one day after every five, of doing nothing, in order to rest up from travel overload. Just hang out in a piazza and stroll around, catch an afternoon nap, have an early dinner and get to bed early, to recharge.

According to the Italian train website (trenitalia.com), there are no baggage facilities at the Ravenna station. You would have to make other arrangements for your luggage while you tour. If Ravenna is high on your list (I think it is a real wow), then plan to stay overnight. Echoing what Sarah said, the reports here have been completely negative on overnight trains in Europe. According to the German train website bahn.de, there are only "day couch" tickets left, no "couchette cabins" or "sleeper cabins." I don't know what that means, but it sounds the least comfortable (and cheapest) option. I think you'd be better off flying from Munich to Florence, spending your time there and in Rome (with or without Pompeii and the CT - not much art in either) and then flying to Paris. Rather than go to Pompeii, go to the Archaeological Museum in Naples. Almost all the art work that was uncovered in Pompeii, Herculaneum and other Vesuvian towns is housed there. Ostia Antica is a nice alternative to Pompeii and is an easy 1/2 day outing from Rome. In Paris, there is nothing to see 'surrounding Giverny.' If you are fans of Monet, do not miss the Marmottan Museum in Paris.