Hi everyone, I posted about a month ago but did a poor job of explaining, so I'm starting over now that we have a rough itinerary mapped out. I'd love any feedback and ideas on filling in the gaps.
My husband and I will be in Europe this January (so, Winter!). We will have about a month and our primary purpose is to visit friends (mostly other international teachers) so we have specific places/ days we need to go. Here is our rough itinerary:
Athens (probably 4 nights): fly here from the US (where we'll be for Christmas and New Years). We've been to Greece but not to Athens. Probably planning about 4 nights to see the main sights and I also really want to do a day trip to Meteora. I know it'll be a long day but it's on my bucket list. From here, fly to:
Sofia, Bulgaria (probably 3 nights). We have not been to Bulgaria before. We will definitely do a day trip to Rila Monastery. Questions:
- Would a day trip to Veliko Tarnovo be worth it? Or maybe Plovdiv? Seems like a long day. We were hoping to homebase in Plovdiv but couldn't seem to make the connections work without a really long flight.
- Would Sarajevo (with a day trip to Mostar) be recommended instead? (Leaning towards Bulgaria but Sarajevo was the original plan, but flights are trickier). Next, fly to:
***Bucharest, Romania* (probably 4-5 nights):We have friends who live here, so this is fairly locked in because we want to visit them overlapping a weekend, when they'll be off work. We did a roadtrip through Transylvania a few years ago but were only in Bucharest for dinner before flying out the next morning. Then, fly to:
**Zurich (3-4 nights in mountain town TBD) Ideas needed here, please! We've been to Gimmelwald, Murren, Wengen, and Lauterbrunnen- all are stunning but we want to stay somewhere else. We are thinking Grindelwald because we haven't been there before and we'd be interested in doing the Jungfraujoch (the Schiltorn was a trip highlight years ago) and possibly the First Cliff Walk. We were also thinking Zermatt, but it seems kind of out of the way.
- Any town/ homebase ideas here?
Lucerne/ Zug (3-4 nights): We have friends who live in Zug, and this is also locked in, because we want to visit over a weekend when they're not at work. We've been to Lucerne before but it was 20 years ago. Next, train to:
Luxembourg (3 nights):We have not been here before. Definitely exploring the town and doing a day trip to Vianden Castle. Next, train to:
Ghent, Belgium (4 nights): We have been to Belgium a few times (Brussels, Bruges), but not Ghent. Will probably do a day trip to Bruges since it's been a while, and maybe Antwerp. We are big Belgian beer fans so will try some breweries. Next, train to Brussels and fly to:
Porto, Portugal (4-5 nights): We have friends who just retired here and we have our flights booked back to Lima, so the end date is set. I've been to Porto but it was 25 years ago, and my husband has not.
Any suggestions, recommendations, or thoughts about our plan? Especially in regard to Bulgaria (or Sarajevo), where to base in the Swiss mountains, and any other recommendations. Thank you!