Hi,
We want to visit Europe in Jan 2016 (we plan to go to Germany, Amsterdam, and Prague this time). We understand it will be cold everywhere in Europe. you recommend visiting these places in Jan? If not, will Feb be ok to visit? Where else do you recommend to go in Jan? We have already been to Paris, Provence, Italy, London, and Amsterdam....
Thanks
We have lived in Berlin, Amsterdam, and Prague (as well as London, Paris, Salzburg and Vienna) and while we especially love Spring and Fall in those cities, January and February, while cold with often bad weather, are as charming and less crowded then. Actually, those months are when we like to hit Spain, southern Italy, and southern France. Really though, Europe is wonderful year around. I hope you have a fantastic trip. If you like to ski (as we do), Austria and Switzerland are top notch places to go those months.
I live in Central Europe and really don't leave the house unless it is necessary in January and February. Days are short (sun goes down before 4:00), it can be bitterly cold. During this time of year, I would say that Spain would be a much better choice.
If you stick to big cities there will be many fun things to do and it will make for a great trip.
This January for example it was very cold - but at the same time quite sunny and you could take spectacular pictures of the Alps e.g...
Visiting museums and going to concerts are the top things to do in Jan. For Germany, they days are slowly getting longer as we move away from the shortest day on 21 Dec.
For Feb. the Fasching/Fastnacht festivities will be the first week of Feb. so that would be a unique thing to see and do. Cologne, Mainz, Frankfurt, Wiesbaden, Stuttgart, as well as smaller towns will all have parades. Think German Carnival or Mardi Gras.
Thanks for everyone's suggestion!
Unfortunately, Jan seems to be the only time we could visit....since we have been to so many museums in our previous trips to Europe, we are not sure if we want to fill our full of museum visits (but of course, we will still visit some of the famous/main ones). Because we haven't visited Germany, so this time the main focus will be Germany :)
We visited Amsterdam in late Nov before (it was already cold in late Nov), but only stayed for 3 days (2.5 days actually after taking out the travel time) and thought it wasn't enough so we wanted to go back. Would it be better to visit Amsterdam during the flower blooming season instead (skip Amsterdam this time)? Because we are flying in to Amsterdam, so we thought we could spend a couple of days there? or should we fly to Germany right after arriving Amsterdam?
thanks!
I could be rained on in Seattle or rained on in Europe, so I'd prefer Europe. Agreed that bigger cities have lots of indoor attractions and year-round resources. See also http://www.ricksteves.com/travel-tips/trip-planning/timing-your-trip.
