My first time overseas - 18 day trip

I'd add a day in London at least and subtract one from Edinburgh. I'd add a day to Munich and take one from Salzburg. But not sure what your interests are and what day trips you have planned in these locations.

I agree with Dianejay. Shortchanging London and Munich. Is there a reason you're spending so much much time in Edinburgh?

My initial thought is I’d be taking a day or two out of Edinburgh and Salzburg and add them to London. You may have reasons for not wanting to spend time in London of course, but it does seem a bit disproportionate.

Hi! Sounds like a fun trip!

I might be biased, but I would add a day or two to London, and delete those days from Edinburgh. Looks like I am joining a chorus of voices saying that.

Edinburgh is great - a gorgeous city - much to do and see - but London is on a whole ‘nother level. Even four days in London will be barely enough to scratch the surface, and that holds true no matter what interests you most, be it museums, old cemetaries, churches, parks/green spaces, nightlife, food, pubs, theatre, markets, vintage shopping, architecture, history, WWII, the royals… I could go on. :-)

I agree with the above. You could easily remove 2 nights from Edinburgh and add them to London, then remove one night from Salzburg and add it to Munich.

Edinburgh is a lovely city but much smaller than London, and you can easily see the highlights in 2 1/2 days (which is what 3 nights would give you). London needs more—it's huge and wonderful! I've been there 3 times and I'm heading for for a 4th next week, and there is still so much I have not seen. It's one of my most favorite cities in the world.

And I love Salzburgh but again, it's a small city and you could easily see the highlights with 3 nights there instead of 4. Munich is a fun iconic Bavarian city and would be best served by you staying at least 3 nights.

Lastly, I am assuming that you are flying into London and then flying home from Munich. Is that correct? If not, I would definitely change your flights (or if you haven't booked yet, book a multi-city flight).

So to be honest the only reason I even included london is to visit the Harry Potter studio tour (I'm a potter nerd), hence the one day there. I will consider looking into my edinburgh details and seeing if I can squeeze it down a day to add one more in london.

Even though I listed the city I will be sleeping in, this does include some day trips from these cities. For instance, one day in "salzburg" I'm actually renting a car and driving to areas outside of Salzburg like hochkeil hiking etc. Edinburgh I'm renting a car one day to explore the countryside etc. So the cities I've listed are just my homebase for the nights.

To answer another question, yes I'm flying into london and out of munich. I only included munich cause it was easier to reach then going back to vienna for a flight back home. However, I am excited about the germany part so I'll also consider trying to move a day there.

Thanks!

So, as a “Potter nerd” I assume you have seen this? :-)

https://www.tripadvisor.com/Articles-lNKmsjla710I-London_harry_potter_locations.html

Tons of Potter stuff besides the tour. Way cool filming locations, etc.

Why are you spending so little time in London and so much in Edinburgh. London has so much more to see. Nothing wrong with Edinburgh, but five days is a bit much in my opinion.

Also, I love Salzburg, but you could take a day from it to spend another day in Munich. Of course, if you do a day trip to Berchtesgaden, no problem.

TravelNewbie,
I agree with the others. Take 2 days from Edinburgh and give them to London. And a day (or two) from Salzburg and give to Munich.
Both London and Munich offer so much. At least research your options in those two cities compared to Edinburgh and Salzburg.
Have a wonderful first trip to Europe!

Here is a great link regarding train travel for your first trip https://www.seat61.com/london-to-edinburgh-by-train.htm. This site also has info regarding the sleeper train from London to Edinburgh.

I don’t know when you’re travelling but make sure you book the Harry Potter Warner Bros Studio as soon as you know your travel dates. It sells out months in advance.

I guess I’m a bit stunned that you don’t want to see London. It’s so full of interest and attractions! It’s one of the world’s great cities.

But it’s your trip!

First, congrats! For a first time Euro trip you have done a great job constraining the number of locations to maximize the ability to create wonderful memories of your journey.
We are a family of Potter fans and have done. the tour, phenomenal experience. Buy your tickets early and strive to obtain a mid-morning entry. Take a dive into best methods to travel to the studio. It is easier than it sounds and part of the fun. Make your trip a bit more memorable by adding a bit of HP to your wardrobe for that day, doing so opens doors for conversations with other fans and the staff usually takes notice.
London does have a huge menu to sample so if you add a day then consider a selection allowing ample walking. Example: Kensington Palace through Hyde Park to Victoria & Albert museum back to Hyde Park makes for a great long stroll. Point is London is ez to get around with selection of Underground, Bus, cabs/Uber and the best mode of all, your feet!
Second, great job on selecting "open jaw" airfare to maximize your time on the ground.
When will you be traveling?
Enjoy your journey!

Ill be traveling in summer. I have summers off for my job so won't need to ask for time off!

Yes, the day we come in, we arrive after a red eye so we plan on spending some time that day for some sightseeing in london Including the churchill war rooms (for my husband) and Buckingham palace and westminster abbey.

I know we may be a little tired but we have no problem pushing through to have some fun before going to bed a little earlier then normal.
Second day is reserved for harry potter but that Nighttime afterwards we will also be able to walk around a little. I may add another day, i just have to sit down and look at my detailed plan.

Thanks for the suggestions. I'm looking into all of them!!!

Sounds like a great trip for you! My biggest concern is you'll have too good of a time!

Happy travels.

And yeah, London rocks-- but then so do all the places you're going so, yeah, never mind. You do you!

I agree with what others have said about giving London more time. I won’t belabour the point, as you know your own interests best, except to say that it would be very aggressive to do the Churchill War Rooms, Buckingham Palace, and Westminster Abbey all in one day, especially your arrival day. Even if you arrive on the earliest red eye flight, by the time you go through immigration, get to wherever you are staying, and get checked in, it’s going to be 9am at least, maybe later. Assuming you want to grab a bit of breakfast or some coffee, by the time you transit to the first destination, it will be well after 10am. I’ve been to each of those sights numerous times and they each need two hours at minimum, and that’s if you’re moving through them at a pretty fast clip. Add to that time to get between them (they are relatively close but it still takes some time to walk from one to another, go through entry processes, grab some food or have a bio break, etc.), and you’re looking at at least 8 hours of sightseeing. It’s just about feasible given that Buckingham Palace stays open into the evening, but I would find that plan exhausting even if I wasn’t jet lagged. Giving yourself more time in London would allow you to slow down a bit and take things at a more relaxed pace while enjoying things like breaks in pubs or parks.

OP, I would echo what others have said about adding days to London and Munich, and subtracting from Edinburgh and Salzburg. What are your interests and things you're most excited about? This looks like a solid itinerary, although it's very much city-city-city. I personally like to mix up big cities and small towns. I'm also not a huge fan of Vienna, but most people probably love it. Enjoy!

Yes, my itinerary is city-city-city however, thtlat is just where our hotels will be as we will have lots of luggage and want to minimize having to move it a lot. So while we are based in the city we have planned at least one day in each city to venture out into other surrounding areas like hiking in the alps, dinner in halstatt, cliffs in rural Scotland etc.

I could reply with a list of activities we plan to do if that helps...the logistics of public transportation and buying ahead of time vs buying them there.

I will look into getting some more days in the other cities especially Germany as I am looking forward to that country quite a bit.

Mainly I like places that have a real cultural feel to them, so I look around and know I'm in a place very different then America. Possibly why london doesn't really do much for me. Visually much of it is a modern city. I would love to do the cotswalds, bath etc but just don't have time on this trip to venture into the countryside there. We like outdoor activities and having experiences we could not have where we live. So while we are doing a few museums they are not my favorite unless they are very unique.

You wrote…..
OP
USA
03/20/25 08:41 AM
4 posts
Report

“Yes, my itinerary is city-city-city however, thtlat is just where our hotels will be as we will have lots of luggage and want to minimize having to move it a lot.”

“……..as we will have lots of luggage…….”

Please……….don’t.

Biggest killer of a journey is having lots of luggage to which you become enslaved to transporting.
Don’t.
Challenge yourself to one piece of luggage each.
Lots of articles on how to constrain your luggage needs.
For example, for a two week journey we have adapted to one carry on each plus a small back pack. We accept the need to visit a local laundromat mid trip to wash clothes. Far easier a travel experience than being a lagged mule.

Yes, I have heard others say that about luggage. My thought right now was for each of us to have one piece of rolling luggage (but it wouldn't be carryon size). That way we each only have one thing to keep track of. Do you think that's light enough?

I will look up some ways to save space as I'll need different pairs of shoes, hiking boots, rain gear etc do I have a feeling that might add up. But I sure will pack as light as possible!!! Thanks!

Keep your itinerary as is. You say you have everything planned out. That was work. Why even post to see what others think? Then you begin to doubt and change and add a lot of work for yourself. Your itinerary is fine for anyone, not only a first time Europe person. All the places you list can have day trips stuck in if you get bored. Those you can wing. Or there is always the slow travel, the living like a locals thing.
On these forums itinerary suggestions always boil down to too long, or too short in places to visit. There are as many suggestions as there are people on the forums. Do your thing and be free of being overly concerned about if it is exactly right or not.

I won’t belabour the point, as you know your own interests best,
except to say that it would be very aggressive to do the Churchill War
Rooms, Buckingham Palace, and Westminster Abbey all in one day,
especially your arrival day.

Ditto to this! I wouldn't even attempt to do this straight off an international flight. There's too big a chance that it'll all be a jet-lagged blur. It can also take a bit of time to get acclimated to a city's layout and how the public transport works. I'm a bit baffled as well that you've given London so little time but as said earlier, it's your trip.

OP, if you're a Harry Potter fan, please don't miss "Harry Potter and the Cursed Child" in London. It's a long but absolutely fantastic day.

You’re shortchanging London. I’d spend minimum 3 nights. Not only do the big things, but go to Covent Garden/ soho to walk, eat, shop. So quaint!

One rolling bag each is a start, but please strive to avoid the largest size. Luggage is a science and art which experience will define and refine, even during this journey. Yep, shoes are clunky, add weight and important to your experience so I hesitate to counsel on diminishing these items. As my wife advises: go lighter on brighter clothing designed for nice dinners and evening events. We carry the following:
Five of underwear
Three bras (her) and likes one to be athletic
Five pairs of socks
Three blouses
Three shirts
Two pants one shorts
One skirt, one pants, one skort
We each have one hat
we each bring a water resistant windbreaker
Shoes two pairs.
Our daily kits are threadbare as we purchase in small quantities at our destination toothpaste, shampoo, soap and daily needs. We enjoy shopping to learn what local stores have to offer. We do not bring my of these items back.
She loves to buy scarves especially at second hand shops which we find easy to search and find.
If pressed we have purchased an umbrella but often where we stay umbrellas are there for use.
I am warm blooded so can tolerate a lot of cold, she not so much.
We both enjoy finding a bit of local fashion and will toss an item we brought with us to make room for the noon. These items make for great memories.

I agree with Steven and other posters to try to pack as little as you can. Over the years we’ve gone from two large heavy suitcases, carrying tour guides and backpacks, to two carry-on bags, ebooks on an iPad, and day packs. Each time we take a trip we try to bring a little bit less and it is so much easier than lugging bigger suitcases. There are a lot of videos and articles about building a travel capsule wardrobe that you might want to check out.

I can’t emphasize enough how much easier is to get on and off of public transportation with a carry-on bag and a day pack compared to what we used to do. Last fall when we went to Switzerland, we wore our heavier shoes/hiking boots on travel days, and everything else fit just fine in our smaller bags. We went from surprise snow in September in Switzerland to warm enough weather to wear a sundress in France, all in the same trip! We each kept our waterproof jacket, packable down, sun hat and travel umbrella in the outside pocket of our suitcases and it worked great.😃

Your itinerary sounds great to me, whether or not you shift your allocation of days as others suggest. I hope you have a wonderful trip.

Laurie

Congrats on your first trip!
One thought:
Have you checked if your hotels have AC and elevators? (Elevators are important if you have heavy luggage.) Many old hotels have neither. And sadly, even London can get quite hot in the summer now.
Have a great trip!