Hello
It is a bit of a short notice to plan a trip but.. our life schedule just opened up and we have about a week in early October (now!) for a vacation. Traveling from the US west coast.
What cities are good to visit at this time of the year? We have already been to London, Paris, Barcelona, Rome,Venice, Vienna, Salzburg.. I gotta hurry up and book flights & accommodation soon :)
Thanks for your help.
G
I would consider Dublin, Madrid, Lisbon--more so cities I could get a better flight to, hence leaning toward western Europe.
We were in Lisbon and Porto this week last year. Weather was good.
Assuming you're flying from SFO direct, I would say Amsterdam because with just a week, you can easily see all the major sights and maybe do one day trip.
I often listen to Peter Greenberg's radio show on Sunday nights and once again last night he said that since fewer people are flying to the States, there are more open seats available to Europe at great prices. So you should be in luck. Also, even though you've been to a particular city, there is more to a country than just that. The WSJ today warned people that even though Greenland is a "hot" destination at the moment (pun intended), customer service there is the pits.
I would suggest a neat trick in Google flights, for destination don't put in a city put EUROPE. All the various options for your dates from your chosen airport will appear and you can compare and contrast. You should also specify if you want nonstops or premium econ or a preferred airline. It's a very dangerous wishing tool.
Lisbon and Porto, 4 nights and 3 nights. Rather short train ride between them. Weather should be nice. Pricers are good. Lovely people, friendly and welcoming. We spent a week in those 2 places about 7 years ago, but from what I read currently, everything is just as good now as it was then. I love Ireland too, but not sure what the weather would be like in October. You can't go wrong with either. If Ireland, 3 full days in/around Dublin, 4 days almost anywhere else in Ireland. It is beautiful there!
Have fun!
Iceland is great in October as it is typically one of the best times to see the northern lights. There is a lot to see and do as well.
I often listen to Peter Greenberg's radio show on Sunday nights and
once again last night he said that since fewer people are flying to
the States, there are more open seats available to Europe at great
prices.
I just flew Budapest to Washington DC on Lufthansa round trip for under $600. So the price part was true, but the flights were full. Every last seat was sold. I suspect fewer planes crossing the Atlantic right now.
If you are on a budget then Hungary, Romania, Bulgaria, Greece, Albania. October is actually my favorite time of the year in Budapest and in south Central Europe in general. Unlike the coast, its amoung the dryer months.
The weather in the UK is just starting to turn now as we enter my least favourite time of year, where it rains a lot and each day is darker and colder than the last. I personally would avoid this area and head south to Spain, Portugal, or Italy.
If you can find good airfare & schedules, Istanbul would be an interesting place to spend a week. Or Dubrovnik, with a couple of days on Korcula?
SFO > FRA Airport
Catch a train from FRA to the Mosel River for a few days. Think great scenery, history, castles, old-world towns, river cruises. Wine festival in Cochem on the weekends...
https://www.mosel-inside.de/en/travel-guide/mosel-villages.html
https://www.trier-info.de/en/places-of-interest
https://www.zughalt.de/wp-content/uploads/2011/10/DB11321.jpg
https://en.visitmosel.de/cities-culture/event/federweissenfest
https://germanfoods.org/german-food-facts/federweisse-and-zwiebelkuchen/
Then visit Mainz or Frankfurt on the return trip to FRA airport.
Thats a nice idea Rus, and the weather is better than I thought. 40F to 60F and 9 hours of daylight with 4 or 5 there being sun. Unlike for a city holiday, for that sort of trip the sun and daylight will be important and this is pretty nice.
CharleneB, love the Istanbul idea. One of my more favoirte places. The mid October temps are 55F to 65F and thats great. Being a city with lights I would worry less about hours of daylight and sun ... but being further south, more in Istanbul than Europe in general. But Dubrovnik, no. I also love Dubrovnik despite the Disney like character I keep returning. Its and the region are just so good in warmer weather that I would hold off till the trip were perfect.
I'll third Russ' suggestion, even though I already made one. The Mosel Valley is really a lovely place for a short visit. Last summer we did our flight recovery in the thermal pools in Wiesbaden before heading north along the Rhine and then west along the Mosel. We chose a car because we only had three days, and we were glad we did because it gave us access to places we might not have visited without it. OTOH, it did kind of prevent us from seeing the Chagall windows at St. Stephen's in Mainz. Next time!
"We chose a car because we only had three days, and we were glad we did because it gave us access to places we might not have visited without it."
Almost by definition, a car permits access to places trains cannot go. But my take on a 3-5-day Mosel visit is this...
1) The area's prime destinations are located on/near the railways anyway...
Cochem w/Reichsburg Castle (walk or shuttle bus up) river cruise docks, and the wine fest
Trier, Germany's oldest city and Roman history site
Traben-Trarbach and Winningen, well known for wine; T-T is also a cruise boat center.
Koblenz (Ehrenbreitstein fortress + Cable car lift across the Rhine)
2) Popular places without train tracks do not require a car...
Burg Eltz Castle: Rick's favorite castle in all of Europe. Two ways to get there:
Bernkastel: Beautiful half-timbered town with two ways to get there. ...
Beilstein: Fairytale town (see Rick Steves materials.) Two ways to get there from Cochem:
So basically, the bus/train systems are integrated; buses step in to fill almost any transport gap you might have if the train system doesn't include a given destination.
Cochem makes for a convenient base town for the area.
The existence of bike trails along the river and the short distances from town to town also make biking very popular on the Mosel:
Bikes can be taken onto trains if needed; designated bike cars or spaces within passenger cars are offered:
https://www.bahnbilder.de/bilder/inneneinrichtung-br-425-anschliessend-an-3904.jpg
Some accommodations providers on the Mosel hand out passes for free train travel to their guests for exploring the "VRM" zone, which includes some Mosel towns, some Rhine towns as well:
https://www.vrminfo.de/en/tickets/tickets/leisure-tickets/vrm-guest-ticket/
https://www.vrminfo.de/fileadmin/data_vrminfo/PDF/Gaesteticket/Infoflyer/Flyer_GT_englisch_01.pdf
Participating accommodations providers: https://www.vrminfo.de/fileadmin/data_vrminfo/PDF/Gaesteticket/Uebersicht_Gaesteticket_Apr_2025.pdf
Russ is the Mosel expert, so you should certainly take his advice if you're going there. I more so meant that the car gave us flexibility to check out something we found on Google Maps, etc. Also, the cost of the rental car was very low, even with a second driver. The driving was easy and fun. Obviously, you don't need a car.
Russ. Thats amazing
Well... "expert" is a way-too generous moniker. I do WISH I were a true expert on the Mosel because it's one of the finest destinations in Germany. But sadly, it isn't so... I'm an ignoramus on wine. I have no experience with - and can make no recommendations for - fine restaurants or high-end accommodations. Sadly, I have the unrefined palate of a 13-year-old. What I do know about the Mosel comes from my mostlly backpacker/semi-hobo-style experiences there. While I've picked up cars in Koblenz and at Hahn airport for family trips on the Mosel, my other visits have been mostly solo and always carried out on public transport or on foot - with the exception of one hitch-hiking adventure. A 1971-published YHA (England/Wales) guidebook targeting college-age kids - a book with crazy levels of detail - was my Bible for a couple decades. Still have it. So mine is really a "worms-eye" view gleaned from lots of backpacking around on trails and backstreets... usually with a baguette in one hand... while I was in between train rides, with overnights in multi-bed hostel rooms or "eight-by-ten four-bit rooms" (as the Roger Miller song dubs them) whenever I found a "Zimmer Frei" sign hanging in the window.
What I am familiar with most is how to get around. That said, I am learning things all the time about getting around, often from the German participants on this forum.
When I have driven, the actual driving has not been unenjoyable. What I dislike about driving is the details that come with it. Rental contracts, pick-up/drop-off issues, the driving limitations that come with having a couple of beers in a row, the usual potential for getting in an accident or fender bender and having to deal with such things in a country that is not my own, etc. etc. But also the fact that you can just take in the scenery without driving worries on the train, and not feel isolated from the general population. People-watching can be entertaining and informative too.
Bordeaux is a wonderful place to be at the moment. The harvest has been completed and the châteaux are easier to visit.
Thanks everyone for your valuable suggestions.
The area around Nice, France is beautiful. You can take a regional train to several great towns. Villefranche sur Mer and Eze are charming, and Monaco was interesting also. The Mediterranean Sea with the mountains in the background is spectacular. We went in early October one year and loved it.
Kay, we'll be in Nice next week. Let's see if we agree. :o)
