itinerary suggestions and advice

Posted by scott (sneads ferry, nc, usa) on 12/29/09 04:07 AM

my wife and i will be on a company trip in April. it last for a week and we will be staying in Vienna. since the flight is already paid, here is my idea. this year is our 25th anniversary and i want to do something special. i want to leave about a week to 10 days before the company week and fly in to either France or London and then make our way by car driving across France and Switzerland to Vienna. stopping at our leisure along the way and seeing as much history and sights as possible, without spending to much time each day driving. i need some suggestions, advice, do's and don'ts, etc.

thanks.

Posted by Ed

Pensacola

12/29/09 04:54 AM

9110 posts

London's to0 hard if you're going to drive the rest of they way -- beeline from Paris to Vienna is about eight hundred miles and twelve hours driving time. See how this works (adds about a hundred miles and four hours of driving):

Paris (three nights)

Dijon via Beaune 200mi/3hr (one night)

Grindlewald 200mi/4hr (two nights)

Landeck 200mi/4hr (one night)

Salzburg 150mi/2.5hr (two nights)

Vienna 200mi/3hr

This is a slight variation on direct to minimize driving. It offers more in scenery than history.

For history it might be better to skip Switzerland and leave Paris toward Reims, then to Trier, Rhine gorge, Munich, Salzburg, Vienna; this would really extend daily driving time leaving precious little time to look around in each place before it gets dark in April.

Posted by Travel Boss

Florida, USA

12/29/09 04:58 AM

12172 posts

How about a Danube river cruise that ends in Budapest? Then a stop in Brataslava on the way to Vienna by train.

It will be liesurely and a chance to see some cities and towns.

Another alternative is to fly into Munich, see sights in the area and work your way through Salzburg and Melk toward Vienna.

The second alternative would require more effort with lodging and transportation.

A third alternative would be to fly into Berlin, see Potsdam, Dresden and Prague on the way to Vienna.

Transportation on this route will be easier than the second alternative because you will be going city to city by train.

Dress for rain and cool/cold temps.

Driving across France or Switzerland from London or Paris is too ambitious for the time frame. You would spend all your time moving and very little time relaxing.

Posted by Adam

Boston

12/29/09 10:08 AM

4132 posts

You should price this out because most rental companies levy a stiff surcharge for dropping off a car in a different country than origin.

I think it is nice to have a car to explore the countryside and maybe spend a few days an nights there, but it is really a pain to have one in the cities. And the trains are really excellent.

So maybe you want to organize your itinerary to have a car in France, or Germany, and take a train for the other parts of your trip.

Early April can be cold and wet (also can be nice), so be prepared.