Europe this December, January or February

Just finished my Dec. travel with a week in London. Next up is a Norway Hurtigruten cruise first of March. Not sure what I am going to do with myself in January and February….. 🤪

Sitting in my hotel room in Vienna checking out the RS board after packing my bags for my return trip to the US tomorrow. Landed in Munich -- on to Salzburg -- finished in Vienna.

I am in London now, enjoying the holiday festivities. Staying home in January and February.

I'm in Prague, wrapping up 2+ weeks that started in Berlin and wound through Saxony. I fly home Wednesday. Nothing else on the books until fall.

Hi, JazzPlus. I am working on finalizing plans for my January birthday trip (just a long weekend, not anything big)

We are here for the rest of December after having gone to the States for two weeks around Thanksgiving.

What about you?

My husband and I are taking my Mom to Ireland in February. We're flying into Dublin and spending a few days in Kenmare to explore the Ring of Kerry, heading north to Dingle Peninsula, and then wrapping up the trip in Galway. Any tips are welcome!

milissannie,

On your way from Dublin to the Ring of Kerry, if you go clockwise along the southern part and back up to Kerry, I suggest visiting Glendalough. They are very moving remains of a monastery founded by St. Kevin in a gorgeous setting. From there go to see the Rock of Cashel at Tipperary (St. Patrick connection). We drove to Youghal (pr. Yawl) for an overnight with a stroll in the town and a great fish dinner. Then onto Blarney. Don't let people who say it is too touristy discourage you. Blarney Castle grounds are absolutely beautiful. They are just outside Cork. Whether or not you climb to the top to kiss the Blarney Stone, the view from the top of the castle is worth the climb. Ireland is small enough that you can cover a lot in one day's drive. Also near Cork is New Ross, where you can tour the Dunbrody, one of the coffin ships from the 19th century. You can look up your ancestry on the computers aboard the ship. We didn't drive around the Ring of Kerry, but we did go to Killarney and Tralee. Going north from there we went to the Dingle Peninsula, the Cliffs of Mohr, the Burren, and Galway. Everything we saw was a joy. The people of Ireland were warm and welcoming and fun. Mostly we stayed in people's homes (real bandbs, where our hosts lived in the houses, rented rooms and served breakfast in their regular dining rooms). We reserved our rooms for the night at the tourist office of the town we were leaving, the same day. That's probably not possible now, but we did enjoy not using hotels, except in Dublin. The places were really varied, from humble to sort of fancy, and all were welcoming.

We went to other counties and saw many wonderful things that spoke to us as (partially) Irish descendants. The land is truly an emerald isle, the Irish are great people, and there is a lot to see and do. I am going to stop now, but recommend the Ireland section of the forum for lots more info.

Safe journey!

I’m in Strasbourg now, arriving yesterday. The trip started in Bruges and then to Cologne before coming here. Back to Germany on Friday and will wrap up my two weeks Tuesday when I fly home. Belgium and the first part of the time in Cologne was cold, now the temps are about 14 F above normal.

I’m leaving here on January 3rd for a month in France and Ireland and flying home on Feb 3.

I’m spending a couple of weeks of January on Gran Canaria, bracketed with time in Madrid.

We leave Feb. 1st for Iceland and Amsterdam.

I am jealous I'm not going anywhere.

Don’t know that anyone should be jealous exactly, but we’re going to Fairbanks AK in January. 45 below is not unusual and I hate cold weather but I need a grandkids fix💕!

We’re spending some weeks away from the snow in early 2024 in southern Spain. This will be the first time we’re in Europe during Winter.

Not Europe but...in January/February we're spending two weeks in Mexico City and one week in Oaxaca.

First time for both!

lyndash--I am envious! We have family up there in North Pole and are itching to go visit in the winter. We usually go in the summer and early fall, but are wanting to go around Christmas.

We have a daughter up in Fairbanks, SIL use to teach in North Pole.

It is very cold there in Winter, but the snow is so different than in upstate NY. So much drier. Try and time your visit towards the end of the ice carving festival. I only caught the first week, the pics I got later as more exhibits opened was impressive.

Spouse and I heading on a Rhine river cruise, boards 23 December, hoping water levels recede or it will turn into a partial bus tour.

Going to Sicily in early February with a friend.

Excited, and really hoping it doesn’t rain!

Temps seem to historically be 40 low 60 high, which sounds good to me.

bdokeefe--One of our relatives was a teacher in North Pole as well;)

I am off to Paris for a week at the end of January, solo. Planning to revisit old haunts from my student days, attend the opera and focus on smaller museums that I have missed over the years.