Honeymoon to Switzerland, Italy, Southern France and Spain

What a wonderful honeymoon. 4 weeks in 4 countries, 3 of them some of the biggest in Europe, will still need careful planning, if you are not to be rushed. I live in Andalucia so know far more about Spain than the other countries, but if you are only planning a week in Spain, it may be wise to choose between Andalucia and the north. You could easily spend a week between Granada, Seville, Cordoba and some white villages. The time of the year is a consideration. July and August will be hot everywhere, with likely more tourists in most places. I would choose mid September...weather will be a bit cooler but still warm. The days still long
And the kids returned to school. Paris is obviously a romantic city. In Italy we loved Rome, the Amalfi coast and the Cinque terre. And Umbria and Tuscany are wonderful too, Happy planning. .

First of all, there is a huge difference between your two travelling periods. One is the height of peak season, you can expect crowds, lines and traffic jams in places like "Southern France" and coastal Spain. If you want to kick off your trip with a destination that is romantic and relatively luxurious, start your trip heading for Davos, St. Moritz or Pontresina in Switzerland. I can't think of anything less romantic and cozy than a hostel. If you are staying in a room for 2 with en-suite bathroom, expenses with a hostel almost always are higher than those of budget hotels. Especially if you book far ahead in advance. The most important hint I'd give you is not to overstretch your itinerary. Mix some small cities with big ones, but try to stay at least 3 nights in each hotel/place.

First, I agree with the excellent advice in the other replies: consider weather at the time of year in each place, don't stay in hostels for a honeymoon, and don't try to see to much, even in 4 weeks. You will have to pare down your itinerary ruthlessly if you actually want to enjoy your trip, unless you really want "if it's Tuesday, this must be Belgium." If you do want to see a lot, go with a tour; they can be far more efficient at getting you from point A to point B than you can do on your own. Remember that the rule of thumb is that you lose a half day going between close together places (say, Rome and Florence) and a whole day going between farther-flung destinations. You can check train times on the Bahn website, flying times on Skyscanner, and driving times on Via Michelin (although many report that these last are too optimistic). One way to approach this is to ask yourself what you want out of each place. In the four countries you've listed, what made you choose them? You've already said at least one thing you envision when you say "southern France"; now do this for the other places. If you can post this, then people can give more specific advice.

Thank you all for your replies! I realize my timeframes are quite different, we were originally planning to go for the entire month of September, but I have another wedding to attend in early September which is holding us back. Our actual wedding date is July 20th, so we thought we may just suck up the busy season crowds and head out right after we say I-do.... still a lot of decision making to do, obviously (maybe that should be a topic on it's own - July/Augst compared to September/October?). We're planning to see a travel agent in the next few weeks and I will be sure to post some s and get some more feedback from everyone! Thanks Again!!!

Lisa, Peak season operates differently depending on destinations. It doesn't get really crowded in Switzerland, just busy but still manageable. If you are going to travel in July/August, by all means start you trip in Italy, where you can avoid the two weeks in which, on top of foreigners, half of Italy takes vacation (first 2 full weeks of august, culminating with the "Ferragosto" holiday). The whole Côte d'Azur is very busy in this period, your driving experience along the oceanside might become a traffic jam and fume inhalation experience. If going on July/August, consider driving south of St. Raphael for a less busy experience. In any case, despite the geographical proximity travelling between Nice and Barcelona (or other similar routes) is a bit tricky. Trains are slow, flights are expensive OR require long connections in places like Paris or Roma or even Lisboa (strange, I know). Spain is too broad to define. Madrid gets busy, but manageable (many locals take vacations and leave the city). Grenada, Cordoba and Sevilla are extremely hot on peak summer (think of Central California weather on July). The Costa del Sol is the capital of mass beach tourism in Europe, from Benidorm to La Línea, I'd rather focus on attractions on the hinterland or even consider underrated cities like Zaragoza or Salamanca.

Now to expand my observations about September/October: it's tricky time in Switzerland mountains as I said. If weather is not good enough, some cable cars or trails might be already closed. It's low season there (winter crowds come back in December). It's a pleasant time to visit places in the Northern third of Italy (Venezia, Milano, Torino, Genova, Bologna, Verona), you might or might not get cool foliage fall do have fun with. However, places like Costiera Amalfitana, parts of Sicily, Pompeii etc. enter a short increased rain season that might ruin your plans. I think you can enjoy your trip either period, it boils down much to your own plans. Just make sure you plan and adjust accordingly.