First time to Europe

Wow, congratulations on your first time to Europe.

I think this is a very doable itinerary, but I have one suggestion. Ghent and Bruges are just a short train ride away from each other. I would stay four nights in one and do a day trip to the other. I'd recommend staying in Ghent, because from Paris to Ghent and from Ghent to Amsterdam are both shorter train rides (assuming you're traveling by train).

You might also consider cutting the Belgium cities, which are significantly smaller than London, Paris, and Amsterdam, to a total of three nights, and add one night to any of the other three cities. But some of this depends on what your interests are (museums? neighborhoods? food? nature?).

It's surely going to be a great trip, and October should be great weather for you to really enjoy it.

Lane's advice and comments are spot on. If you haven't been to Europe before, don't underestimate the time it takes to get oriented in each new place. . . new coins and currency, use buses and metros, find street signs (!), avoid getting lost in the maze of streets, signage in foreign languages to name a few.

For someone who's traveled in foreign countries your itinerary is doable, preferably with Lane's changes, but not slow-paced. For first-timers, it sounds very rushed. London and Paris are huge cities with sights that are spread out. Amsterdam feels somewhat more compact and less hectic than the other "biggies" but that doesn't mean there's not a lot to see and do.

Good, plan, most first timers in Europe only go to big cities. We have found that smaller towns and cities are wonderful and not to be ignored.

I actually think it's a nice pace. You've avoided the mistake 99% of travelers make; bloated itineraries with too many hotel changes. You can do a couple day trips (train/metro) from London or Paris if you want to mix in some variety, but there's plenty to see in those cities to fill your time. Ghent and Brugges are close and I guess it makes sense to do one as day trip from the other but they also make for a pretty easy transfer so I might violate my core tendency to avoid hotel switches.

Your dates are fast approaching and some attractions are timed tickets. If you are locked out of a must-see, you can always check some of the various tour consolidators like Viator who gobble up tickets and repackage them as tours. But don't think you have to do everything on this trip. Plan to come back.

Pack light. I can't stress this enough. Pick a color capsule so you can mix & match. Choose fabrics that pack down and don't need ironing. Splurge by having an innkeeper or laundromat do the work while you are enjoying your trip.

Choose small independent hotels. Avoid rentals that gobble up housing stock and ruin the flavor of neighborhoods.

There's a lot of walking, so get your steps in now.

Mix in a "chill day" around day 9 or 10. No plans, just sleep in, go chill at a coffee spot and watch the world go by, journal, decompress and soak up the vibe.

Public transit in Western Europe is great. Dive in on day one and use it during your stay.

Different way of thinking about it… Consider a 7-in-30-day 1st-class Eurail Global Pass instead of locking into long stays. Something like 2 days in London, overnight ferry (Rail & Sail via Harwich–Hook of Holland) to Amsterdam, 2 days in Amsterdam, 2 days in Brussels, 3 days in Paris, 2 days in Zurich, 2 days in Milan, (or any 5-6 cities really) then train to your departure city. You get a real taste of more places, the trains (and that ferry) are part of the experience and very easy once you have the pass, and you can decide on the fly which cities you actually want to dig deeper into on a future trip. With only a couple of nights in each spot you still have plenty of time to see the highlights and wander a neighborhood or two without feeling like you’re on a forced march. Just remember you can’t have a lot of luggage—per Rick Steves and me. Pack light and the whole thing stays surprisingly low-stress. Except for the ferry I mostly take day trains anymore so I can watch the cities and countryside go by after 38 years of traveling around Europe. Europe’s rail network makes this kind of flexible sampling easy and fun.

Good itinerary to introduce yourself to Europe. You’ll see a lot but not at a frantic pace. If this is a precursor to more trips you’re making a good start. Bounce the suggestions here off of what you have already created. Have fun!

I like your itinerary. I wouldn’t tweak it. Regarding the suggestion to stay in just one of Bruges or Ghent, I think if you stay in one and day trip to the other, you’ll shortchange the one you day tripped to. Both are great, with many worthwhile attractions, and both are nice to just walk around. Both deserve more than a day trip.