Future plans, crazy or doable?

These are a seemingly random list of cities, but if they are your top choices then there is no reason not to combine them on one trip! Just be sure to factor in all travel times into your schedule (to airport early, flight time, possible connecting flight, arrival, transport to the city, time getting situated). You will loose most of a day on each hop between cities. It seems you have that factored in and are not counting your arrival day in each city as a day. If so, then this is a good, if unusual, plan. People might advise you to pick a region and dig in more (i.e. go to Dubrovnik for 3 days, but then see more of Croatia/Balkans), but if these 3 cities are top of your list then why not?

I agree totally with Mira. If you have the time and these are the places you want to go then, by all means do it! Yes, it's an unusual selection of cities but it's your trip, go where you want. You seem to have planned an appropriate amount of time for what you want to see and do and you have given yourself plenty of time to change locations. Enjoy your trip.

Your itinerary is certainly do-able. But there are other places in Europe that'd be on my bucket list before I get to your three cities.
If you liked Prague, you'd really, really love Budapest. And it's so much easier to get to than Dubrovnik.

I've heard a lot of good buzz about Croatia the last five years- good tourism infrastructure that's geared more toward European crowds and hasn't so much been discovered by North Americans yet, and much in the way of natural beauty all around.

Are you flying Iceland Air so that you can have the Reykjavik stop-over for free? If not, consider that as an option, with the caveat that Iceland Air does not fly to Dublin or Dubrovnik (would you consider another city instead? you can check out where they fly on their website). Flying to Dubrovnik is both expensive and time-consuming although that may not matter to you..I'm just putting it out there in case you have some flexibility. I traveled to Iceland via a stop-over to Germany the first time and it turned out great. They allow up to 7 days for a stop-over at no extra charge.

On a future trip perhaps, I would highly recommend Krakow and Gdansk (have not been to Budapest yet but I'm fairly sure I'd love it). Much easier and quicker travel between these three than the ones you selected. Also better value per dollar, if that matters at all.

Hi,

Your amended itinerary of Krakow, Gdansk, Dublin, Budapest, Dubrovnik and Iceland is very doable., even more so if Dublin is dropped. That way you can just focus on East Central Europe after Iceland, using both day and night trains. You plan the routes right, day or night trains, it can be done with these cities.

Six days is not too long for one place, especially a city that is fascinating. I wish I had had six nights to spend in Gdansk instead of the 4, the same applies to Krakow, where the focus was on the city itself, ie, no day trips.

Thank you all for the suggestions! We were inspired by the beauty of Dubrovnik and its remoteness a few years ago in a travel magazine. This past year we went through with a similar inspiration and visited Saba, and it got us thinking we should try to get away from the main hubs at least once when traveling. Krakow and Gdansk have long called to us, but the uncertainty in Putin has made travel plans to the region uneasy. Is that unreasonable? Probably, but I don't want my wife to have worries about future travels.

In recent years, my wanderlust for travel has rubbed off onto my wife. I am thrilled when she becomes excited in a destination. Prague Winter was an inspiration for our visit to Prague, and she's been dropping hints at Dublin. While Icelandic Air doesn't fly DUB to KEF, WOW Airlines does three times a week. I had looked at Oslo and Stockholm as alternatives, but prices would not make this trip feasible between three destinations. From our conversations with fellow travelers last year in Prague, we figured let's make the most out of our Euro travels. A component of this trip is our use of air miles. We currently have enough miles for (2) adult one-way tickets from ORD to anywhere in Europe, and (2) adult-way tickets from point B to point C within Europe. The only airfare we need to cover will be from point C (i.e. Dublin) to point D (Reykjavik) and onto home. Icelandic Air does not fly into ORD, but they have one of the cheapest rates for (2) one-way tickets via codeshare with JetBlue or Air Canada. I have priced it out for less than $1100 total from KEF - ORD. We are writing off each transit day, figuring that will not count as our 3 full days in each respective country.

If you were to change out Dublin, where would you suggest? Thanks again everyone.

Krakow and Gdansk have long called to us, but the uncertainty in Putin has made travel plans to the region uneasy. Is that unreasonable?

Yes, I have to dispel this myth that Putin has some relationship with travel to Polish cities, or that the area is somehow unsafe or off limits to travelers. As of yet, Poland has not been invaded or annexed (and heaven forbid, I don't expect this as a person of Polish descent), so I don't know where this thinking is coming from. People are traveling to St. Petersburg without any issue as we speak, some on RS tours.

As aggressive as Putin has been, he is unlikely to mess with a NATO member, which Poland is. Same with Hungary, Czech and Slovakia, the Baltics, etc.

@ vanham920....You need not worry about Putin moves towards Poland, 101 years ago the Russian strategic objective was the city of Lemberg, now Lviv in the Ukraine. He won't try absorbing the rest of the Ukraine and Lviv. Take the history back to 1980 when the Soviets used the Polish General Jaro (sp).....to clamp down on Solidarity. If they had marched in similar to Czech in 1968, they knew there would have been Polish resistance with a bloody and messy affair ensuing.

Take the trip to Krakow and Gdansk using the trains, which I've heard are better than the ones I rode ten years ago.

I agree, it is unreasonable ref. Putin concern. I also want my wife comfortable with our travel decision, which is always # 1 priority. We're still considering Poland, it's just that little thought tucked away in the back of one's mind. Let me ask then, Krakow or Gdansk for a 3 day period?

Let me ask then, Krakow or Gdansk for a 3 day period?
That's a really tough one because they have a really different feeling to them - Gdansk feels like a Henseatic Baltic city with buildings that look a bit like Amsterdam/Holland and is the birthplace of the Solidarity movement, and Krakow feels like a giant open medieval square with wonderful churches everywhere, Wawel Castle, old Jewish Quarter very much worth visiting, and the feel of a university town. They are both fantastic to visit and you can't go wrong with either one. Obviously Krakow is more touristy but I think that's changing. Decide based on what you'd want to see at each one. Check out Tripadvisor or In Your Pocket Guides for both cities and hopefully one will call out louder to you based on your interests.