Hi! I'm traveling for the first time to Europe from mid May to end of June 2013, and would like some ideas of a good itinerary to hit the best sights without feeling overwhelmed. I'm flying into London and plan to travel by train to France, on to Italy, then to Spain where I will spend the duration of my trip, and flying home from there end of June. I was thinking maybe 5-7 days in London, 1-2 weeks between France and Italy, and the last 3 weeks in Spain. Any suggestions? Thanks!
Posted by
Huntsville, AL, USA
8159 posts
We seldom see someone asking about a 7 week itinerary, and you might do better if you split your trip up into segments. It's hard to come up with so many specific things to do, so I'll just be general. My suggestions: 1. Fly into London and do the tourist sights for a week. 2. Take the Eurostar train down to Paris for a week. 3. Take a budget air carrier EasyJet.com down to Venice and spend 2 nights there. 4. Go by train to Florence and spend 3 nights there. Move 20-30 miles south into the Tuscan/Chianti countryside to an Agritursimo by rental car. Take day trips for 4 days visiting the "hilltowns" like Volterra, San Gimignano, Siena. 5. Drive down to Orvieto and turn your rental car in. Take the train into Rome. 6. Do the tourist thing in Rome for 5 to 7 days.
7. Fly over to Barcelona or Madrid. I'll yield to someone else as I've not been to Spain. It's a very large place, and you can get home non-stop from either Barcelona or Madrid on Delta.
Posted by
Charlotte, NC, USA
235 posts
Hi Rikkia, you have posted this twice so you should delete the second post. A few things might help to narrow this down. Are you traveling alone or with someone? What are your interests? Are you a museum and cathedral person? Are you interested in cities, countryside, hiking or beaches? What kind of lodging are you considering and are you on a tight budget? You have a nice amount of time in Spain, which is great. Five to seven days is good for an introduction to London. France and Italy are where you will really have to decide what your priorities are. I could pick out a fantastic itinerary for you, but it would be full of places I want to go. You will have to decide what will work for YOU. I'd suggest reading Europe Through the Back Door and Rick Steves' Spain. Also, his shows are all available on Hulu. It's a great way to get some ideas and inspiration. Good luck.