First European Vacation Suggestions Welcomed!

Hi Ryan! I sent you a private message.

Why bother flying into London if you will only have one full day there? You could fly into Paris and avoid Heathrow.

One day in Venice jumps out at me: Fly in, overnight, and then train out. Seems like you will only tease yourself. Venice (IMHO) is really one of the most beautiful cities in the world. We were there last Thanksgiving and it was sunny, warm and uncrowded. I only fear you will kick yourself for not allowing a little time to soak it in a bit more. But I guess it might inspire you to want to return.

I don't see any mention of a flight from London to Paris. I do think you are short changing yourself with only two jet lagged nights in London. Also I would suggest adding a night to Venice. I would take one night from Florence and one from Rome and add them to London and Venice. This looks like a fun trip!

I would add 2 nights to London, 1 more to Paris and Venice. If this were my trip, I would skip anything south of Rome to give some of your other cities the time they deserve.

Hi Ryan, I agree, you could drop London. You won't have time to see much of anything and every destination will eat up both time and money. And I also think Venice deserves more than one day. If you are locked into flying to London, then start right now to buy your train ticket to Paris on Eurostar. The cheap tickets go on sale about 90 or 120 days (can't remember which) ahead of time and the savings are huge. I suggest you take an evening train so you can use the day for sightseeing. Venice to Florence is very easy by train. Florence is all about art and architecture (mainly Renaissance and tons of sculpture). If this is your thing, you will need at least 2 full days in Florence. If not, you could just spend a day. Or even skip it. If you do stay in Florence, the Archi Rossi hostel is the BEST. Book through their website. Great location, coin-op laundry, free morning walking tours (very good with professional guides), and more. I wouldn't stay anywhere else in Florence and I never stay in hostels!! Before I forget, Rick has several free audio guides for each of your destinations, other than London. All are good. As for the "best" things to do, it does depend a lot on your own interests. Art? History? Scenery and hiking? Food and drink? And what is your budget? One of the best things I did in Paris was a segway tour - but it's pricey.

continued - Naples, etc. I think you will find that Sorrento is the most expensive place to stay, compared to Naples or anywhere in-between. But it is also the nicest. I was there in February (my base for the area) and thought it was absolutely charming (even in the rain) . . . there were more locals than tourists then, as there probably will be in November. I didn't go to Capri. I did spend an entire day at Pompeii (don't miss the Villa dei Misteri - it's a bit far from the rest of the site and a wow), another one at Herculaneum, and a third at the National Archeological Museum in Naples. It depends on how much these things interest you. Hostelworld.com is a good place to start to look for hostel accommodations. They also have reviews. Some hostels (like Archi Rossi in Florence) have their own websites and may be either cheaper or offer more options, so check before you book through hostelworld. Of all your destinations, Rome is my least favorite. For me it just doesn't have any 'atmosphere.' But it has great museums, and the VAtican and tons of ruins. The gelato in the north (Venice, Florence) is much better though. if your are really into archeology, ancient Rome, etc., you could go to Ostia Antica for a day (or half-day) trip. It's easy to get to by train. The Trastevere area in Rome is a good place to wander - start with Rick's audio guide. Another lovely day trip, on a sunny day, is to Hadrian's Villa.

One of the best things I did in Venice was to get up before dawn and watch the sunrise over the lagoon from St Mark's Square. Early morning and late evening can be magical, when the rest of the world (and all the tourists) are indoors. I love Paris late at night - many buildings, especially along the Seine, are floodlit until midnight. Not so interesting early in the morning - they don't turn the fountains on until around 9 or 10 am. Most of the best museums in London are free. The Carnavalet Museum in Paris is free and very good. Most of the churches are free everywhere and they are all beautiful, and many have wonderful works of art. The San Luigi dei Francesi church in Rome has several paintings by Caravaggio, for instance.

Ryan, you asked so here goes. Definitely more time in London. Definitely skip anything south of Rome. Were this my trip, it would be London, Paris, Salzburg, Venice. But given the itinerary proposed, I would suggest London, Paris, Venice, Florence. The caveat is that I have not been to Pompeii, Capri or Florence, and do not have an intense interest in ancient history. But I have been to the Amalfi coast, a bit of Tuscany, and Rome, which is my least favorite of Europe's great cities. However, Paris is beautiful, and London with its many sights and theater is one of my favorite destinations. Also, there are places in southern Italy that are beautiful--the Amalfi coast and Taormina in Sicily come to mind. But on a first trip to Europe with time limitations, I personally would not venture south of Rome.

Ryan, It seems to me you are trying to cover a lot of ground in a relatively short time considering the travel days. You will regret short changing Venice. It is a magnificent place and deserves at least two full days at a minimum. I would drop everthing south of Rome. If you really want to see Pompeii, it can be done as a day trip from Rome, but it will be a loooong day! A neat short day trip from Rome is Ostia Antica -- easy to get there, cheap to get there, and you can do a whole day or a half day depending on your interest. Let me know if you need specifics. TC

Sorry about hitting twice the "send" key above. If a moderator could fix, I would appreciate it. Ryan, I think you should strongly revisit only one full-day in London and not even a full-day in Venice. To me, those are the biggest problems with your itinerary. London is one of the world's great citites, with way too much to see and do, including the finest theater in the world. In general, I am not as critical of ambitious first-time itineraries trying to get as wide a sample of Europe as possible as some others, but London deserves several full days (I personally would suggest at least five nights). And Venice may be the most beautiful city in Europe and merits at least one full day.