Hello,
I'm planning my 2016 Euro trip and the hotels are on hold. This year I visited 5 cities in 15 days and I felt it was a bit rushed. This time I want to enjoy more the actual city. I would love feedback.
Berlin - June 16th - 21st - 5nights
Prague - June 21st - 25th - 4 nights
Vienna - June 25th - 30th - 5 nights
Budapest - June 30th - July 4th - 4 nights.
Would I be able to do side trips to recommended nearby towns? Any thoughts are greatly appreciated.
Thank you!
When in Prague consider the Grayline dinner cruise, the ship docks in front of the Hotel Intercotinental, good food, you get to see Prague at sunset and when the lights all come on at night, really wonderful time. In Vienna you MUST go to Demel's, this is a world famous chocolate store that will amaze you.
Your timetable looks good, of course it has to include travel time between the cities. Lovers of Budapest might suggest five nights there and four in Vienna, but it depends on your interests. I liked Budapest better, but Vienna has more world-class museums and palaces.
For a different way to travel between Vienna and Budapest, consider the hyrdofoil. Takes 5 1/2 hours, longer than a train, but you experience the Danube.
You'll get so many suggestions for things you "must" see on this board, at least you're allowing enough time to see some of them! ;-)
Shame to pass through Dresden and not stop ...
Berlin - June 16th - 21st - 5 nights
Dresden - June 21st - 23rd - 2 nights
Prague - June 23rd - 26th - 3 nights
Vienna - June 26th - 30th - 4 nights
Budapest - June 30th - July 4th - 4 nights
David beat me to the punch. I was also going to suggest stopping in Dresden. I found the evenings delightful there, so I'd leave Berlin late afternoon, spend 2 nights (2 evenings + one full day), and continue on the Prague first thing in the morning.
Overall I'd give more time to Berlin since you'll be jetlagged and sleep-deprived on arrival and because there's so much to see and do. I'd also give more time to Budapest and less to Vienna. Both are worthy of the time, but Budapest is very different, very "Eastern European", while much of Vienna was built to copy and rival Paris (the architecture and the parks), so it feels "Western."
I day-tripped from Prague to Terezin and found it fascinating. I wanted to take a day trip from Berlin to Potsdam, but there was just too much to see and do in the city.
This will be a great trip. Of course, everyone will apportion the days slightly differently, and that includes things like whether or not to see Dresden, spend more time in Budapest or Berlin and less in Vienna, etc. But I can't emphasize enough how different these four cities are from each other; you will have an astonishing variety on this trip. Everyone has very different reactions to these places too, and you won't know how you feel about each of them until you see them.
Will you be able to do day trips? - Of course. That is, if you are not too busy seeing the cities themselves. Of course, if there's a specific activity or sight that draws you, you can do that (the aforementioned Terezin and Potsdam are good examples of "must-sees" for many, although I haven't been to either one). Or if you find you don't like a place as much as you anticipated and want a change, you can do a day trip. No advance planning is necessary for most daytrips, so you can decide while you're there.
My one specific recommendation for a daytrip is for Budapest. While Szentendre is the classic, I found it nice, but touristy and crowded. Vac is actually a faster train ride (if you get the correct, express train, which takes 25 minutes), and at least in 2008, virtually unvisited. The mummies under the renovated town square were fascinating, as was the synagogue and the general town vibe. It's not mentioned in Rick's books; I found out about it in Frommer's Budapest.
They do all have elements of the Baroque of course, and I think it's the contrast in aspects of similarity that makes this a very interesting itinerary. I always like to travel with a theme !!
After Harold's excellent and eloquent advice, I withdraw my suggestion for a stop in Dresden. I'd still add a night each to Berlin and Budapest.
Thank you so much for all of your replies. I'm going to do some research on the locations you suggested. :) Super exciting!
also, I might use this as my first solo trip. I've always wanted to do that, but haven't had the opportunity. Would I be okay on my own? I know silly question.
If you can handle New York on your own, you can certainly handle these places on your own. They are cities, so someone not comfortable with city travel, using subways, crowds, etc might have more trouble. However, they are all smaller than New York, so you will find your NYC skills make them logistically easy.
Whether you will enjoy the experience of traveling alone is another matter. Most do, but some do not.
Also , we have been able to start a travel group meeting here in Manhattan , with the next meeting roughly set for early December . Love to see you then . Watch the meetings thread for time and place .
Not at all a silly question. A goodly number of us here on the forum occasionally or often travel solo. These are all places you can see and enjoy on your own.
If you have any specific concerns, let us know and we'll give you lots of tips.
Without knowing your interest, it's hard to give meaningful advice; however, here's our reactions to Berlin and Vienna.
Berlin has so much to do and see that we didn't even make it to Dresden during a 2 week stay. Fabulous museums and so much history. We did visit Potsdam, which is an easy and very worthwhile day trip. Also, Leipzig.
We had 5 days in Vienna last year. We not only loved it, we found that we could only get to do around half the things we wanted. We're returning for another 5 nights this year. Again, fabulous museums, history, architecture, pastries! (Demel also does wonderful apple strudel.)
