European summer trip ideas one month

A sort of compromise between the two is Croatia. A great country just on the edge of becoming a big tourist destination, but still relatively cheap. Sure the cruise ships stop a couple places, but you can rent apartments cheaply and still island hop and see great things up and down the coastline. Another great option is Turkey, we love getting a long term place then just deciding in the morning if we want to hit the pool, the beach, or a really old cave/ruin.

Something to consider would be combining some Italy with some Dalmatian coast. You can also do a short cruise to Adriatic ports in the area as part of the overall trip. I'm only slightly familiar with sailing itineraries in the area. Google "Blue Water Cruises Croatia" - I'm not sure if that's a company or a generic term for cruising in the area. My wife and I just did a month in Spain for under $5,000, including airfare ($750 each), but I tend to shop for budget lodging and don't need fancy dining. I also took three kids and spouse for a month starting in Amsterdam and ending in Rome (by leased car) in 2005 for well under $10,000, including airfare. It really depends on your tastes/preferences.

"Any other ideas?" Sure. Spend a week somewhere you enjoyed in Italy previously and show the boys around. Then spend another week somewhere new in Italy - you seem to like the place a lot. Then spend 2 weeks somewhere that's completely different. Germany? It's not terribly far and easier on the budget than many places, and 1-2 week rentals are plentiful in vacation regions. Stay near a border and make train outings into different countries to mix it up a bit - see Salzburg from Berchtesgaden, for example, or Strasbourg and/or Colmar from the Black Forest region. Germany has train daypasses that are particularly family-friendly. The "Bavaria Ticket", for example, gets your family around Bavaria (an enormous region) and to Salzburg for 30€ per travel day: http://www.munich-touristinfo.de/Bavaria-Ticket.htm In many Black Forest towns, regional train travel is free: http://www.blackforest-tourism.com/konus I stayed in handsome Löffingen a few years ago at Haus Liebermann and did train outings (free) to different Black Forest destinations and to Basel, CH; the 2-bedroom apartment with fully equipped kitchen there goes for 35€ per night for two + 6€ per additional person: http://www.haus-liebermann.de/ferienwohnung%202.htm

I've been using http://matrix.itasoftware.com/ or Kayak.com to arrange flights. ITA shows the flight fares daily on a calendar. Your least expensive flights are from Houston to Rome. Choose your dates carefully for June travel, and you can save $200 per flight vs. going out of San Antonio. July and August are a little hot for Italian travel, since their A/C is often not so good. Italy can be history, art and architecture overload for inexperienced world travelers. Tuscany and Rome was really the start of the modern world society, and it deserves to be taken slowly. Have you considered staying in a B&B outside of Rome where you could do day trips by train? Olivetreehill.com 20 miles south is tops for your purpose, and they'll even cook for you. The Roman suburbs has many great day trips. Then move up to Florence by train, rent a car and stay on an Agriturismo in Chianti doing short day trips to the hill country fortress towns. You could then take a train north and stay outside of Verona. Day trips to the mountains and Venice could be easily done. I'd also like to visit the area north of Milan, around Lake Como. Then fly home from Milan.
Planning is half the fun. Have a great time!

Keep the great ideas coming! I'm thinking about Turkey for the coastal on the water part of the trip. Would Turkey be better than Greece? Haven't thought about Croatia. Is the water cold in June/July?

I like the Germany idea also. My wife is not all that excited because she thinks it will be nothing but sausage and beer, but I've never been so I'm interested. How about the Alsace region?

The Turkish coast is very nice too. Very green and with lots of history. Not only Greek history but also Lycian for example, which I found very impressive. They also do cruises like you did in Greece. These are called "Blue Cruises" and should be even cheaper than the ones in Greece. The Croatian coast is very nice too, but there are almost no sand beaches but mostly peeble beaches, which means very clear water. Towns like Dubrovnik, Trogir and Korcula are very picturesque and pleasant, but after a while they all look the same. There are no real highlights except for Diocletian's Palace in Split and the cathedrals in Sibenik and Porec. Water in June/July is between 21 and 24°C I think. However: I wouldn't want to spend to much time away from the water. July can be very hot in Southern Europe/Turkey, and visiting sights can become a torture. IMHO a country in Central Europe is much more pleasant during that time of the year. And beach holidays are possible too, in places like this:
http://www.drei-kaiserbaeder.de/index.php?id=1588&L=2 http://en.ostseebad-binz.de/

"she thinks it will be nothing but sausage and beer..." I'd encourage her not to let her stereotypes drive the itinerary! It's actually a little tricky to find sausage on a menu these days except at food stands. In Freiburg, university town and the Black Forest's premier city, the emphasis is international. Only 3 of the top 10 Tripadvisor restaurants there even serve German dishes, much less sausage: http://www.tripadvisor.com/Restaurants-g187281-Freiburg_im_Breisgau_Black_Forest_Baden_Wurttemberg.html "How about the Alsace region?" The Black Forest region is adjacent to French Alsace (Strasbourg, Colmar, etc.) You might look into Gengenbach as a base town - it's very close to Strasbourg with good train connections. Gengenbach is an old walled town with towers, cobblestones, and half-timbered buildings, a smallish, modest Rothenburg without the tourists. It's right on the main train line that cuts through the Black Forest. http://www.stadt-gengenbach.de/en/tourism/
Apartments are relatively plentiful in the area. This 2br place is typical and runs about 50€/night for a family of 4: http://www.ferienwohnung-geigerhof.de/en/info.html

(cont.) An outing to Freiburg (free w/ the Konus card) or Strasbourg would take about an hour. G'bach is on the scenic Black Forest Railway line - outings to Triberg, Villingen, Schiltach, Haslach and other villages by direct train are easy (and free.) http://www.black-forest-travel.com/places-of-interest/black-forest-railway.html http://www.black-forest-travel.com/schiltach/ http://www.black-forest-travel.com/places-of-interest/vogtsbauernhof.html Double-decker trains with big windows make for a scenic ride: http://www.bensbauernhof.com/russschwarzwaldbahn.jpg

One month sort of like Croatia or the Greek Islands but cheap? Simple; go east young man! East to the Black Sea Coast of Bulgaria. Well actually its sort of south. (1,2) Houston to Frankfurt ($2,800) Frankfurt to Burgas, Bulgaria (or Varna). (3,4,5,6,7,8,9) Burgas (or Varna a few days in each by bus or train) ($1200 for hotels) (10) Bus or Train to Veilko Turonovo (Maybe $100) (11) On your own ($150 hotel) (12,13,14,15) Tour Guide picks you up for an inland tour ending at the Romanian border (probably at Ruse). ($1600) (16,17,18,19) Transylvania tour ending in Budapest ($1600) (20,21,22,23,24) In Budapest ($500 apartment) (25) Return to Houston ($2800) Food $3,250 Trinkets $1,000 Total about $15,000.00 Okay, 25 days isnt a month but I spent all your money and had to stop. It's a pretty intense trip with a lot to see and do and at a real bargain price. You aren't going to miss anything because of cost. I know the guides and have some other information if you are interested. Links of interest are: • http://bulgariatravel.org/ http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bulgarian_Black_Sea_Coast http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tourism_in_Romania http://budapestflat.shutterfly.com/bulgaria
Also see BU2 and BU3 and RO and RO1 (under the "MORE" heading) and Bp1, Bp2, Bp3 and Bp4 and HU and HU2.

Your best bet is probably to rent an apartment and do daytrips. South of Sorrento on the mainland is Paestum, which has a good beach, great ruins of Greek temples, and a very good museum. It's also the buffalo mozzarella capital and you can visit farms within walking distance of the ruins. If you are interested in Greek/Roman history and haven't been to Sicily, it has Greek ruins as good or better than what you will find in Greece or Turkey, some very good beaches, cities with many levels of history and various cultures. If you want more info on Sicily, send me a PM, I have lots of suggestions. As for your question about Greece or Turkey, I'd suggest Turkey (I've been to both several times and love them both, but for variety of experience as well as lower cost and stability of infrastructure, Turkey wins for me).

Thanks for all the replies and ideas! Keep them coming! I'm definitely looking into Turkey now. I like the looks of the Gulet charter that smaller boat that was linked looked interesting. Maybe 3-4 nights I'm thinking. What's the easiest way to get from Italy to Turkey? What airline? What airports? Sicily interests us as well..........

I like the Greek island hopping idea. The big Blue Star Ferries (bluestarferries.com) have several lines that run to and from Athens each week, stopping at several islands along the way. Ferry tickets are pretty inexpensive, and you don't need to buy in advance. One route goes through the Cyclades (including Santorini, Paros, Naxos -- some of the more well-known islands). There's also a route that goes to the Dodecanese. We did some of the Dodecanese islands last year. Upon arriving in Athens, we flew directly to Rhodes and then island-hopped for two weeks. One of our favorites was Nisyros (it has an active but not erupting volcano that you can walk around inside ... I think boys would love it). Each island is unique. If you focus on the smaller islands, food and lodging are very inexpensive (with careful planning, you may be able to do it for your $10,000). You don't need to pack much (shorts, t-shirts, sandals). There will be no rushing around looking for trains and buses. June and July would be good times to go.

Hello Bill, I think teen age boys would like being in GERMANY more than being in Italy.
I think teenage boys are not likely to enjoy seeing the Italian renaissance paintings of Madonna and child, and the portraits of unknown men who lived in the 1500s. That is what is in the Uffizi galery in Florence. I recommend flying to the airport of Frankfurt in Germany, and riding in trains from there to Bacharach or St. Goar at the Rhine River. At and near the Rhine River : the Niederwald monument on top of the hill at Rudesheim, ride on a K-D ship on the Rhine River from Bingen to St. Goar. Walk through the medieval castle Marksburg at Braubach. And I guess your boys would like to walk through an old royal palace. That could be the Sanssouci Palace of Frederick the Great at Potsdam near Berlin in Germany, or the Schonbrun palace at Vienna in Austria. And for a great view of the majestic Alps mountains, go to Switzerland. Going to the islands of Greece takes time. The Greek islands are places for relaxing and savoring that Mediteranean environment. Going to Greek islands may not be a good idea in a person's first trip to Europe. And Athens is a very stressful city, and very hot weather with poluted air at Athens in the summer.

I like the idea of going to a place you loved in Italy to share with your boys, and then exploring another place together. My family loves Italy, too. There's much more than just art to satisfy teenage boys. Crypts, domes to climb, the way cool Galileo museum in Florence, gelato and piza are just a few. Pompeii can be really exciting with the right guide. Venice is fun, you can climb the stairs at the Leaning Tower of Pisa (granted there isn't much else to do in that city...) and there's tons more to do. My suggestion would be to follow up two weeks of Italy with two weeks of France or Spain. Or - for a crazy idea - look at doing a Med. cruise while you are there (since you mentioned Island hopping.) You can sometimes pick up cruises leaving from Italian ports for cheap, but not always. We found a deal once and did 12 days for 5 people for less than $5500 total (including shore excursions, tips, etc.). If you can stand sharing an inside room, it may not be that expensive, as often the 3rd and 4th passengers are deeply discounted.