Need help in planning my central europe itinerary

In between Berlin and Budapest, are you planning on traveling by train, air, and/or rental car? Krakow is the farthest point to the East on your list, and Ljubljana is the farthest South, so either one will involve some zig-zagging to connect with the other locations. Depending on your mode of transport, that might take extra time to get to and from the other places.

In 2003 we visited Ljubljana for part of a day, on our way to Lake Bled and other locations in Slovenia. Ljubljana was nice, but it wasn't the main focus of our visit. Are you considering seeing things near Ljubljana, or just in the city itself? If you might consider a trip in the future that included Venice and/or Croatia, those would be closer to Ljubljana than your wish list for this trip.

want to get the most I could out of this trip without having to rush through each place.

That is really a conflicting statement but only you can define what most means to you. For some it is arrival by train in the afternoon, seeing a highlight or too, having dinner, sleeping, catching a couple more highlights the next day and then moving on by train or plane the next day. They are satisfied with a drive by look, been there, seen that, and moving on to the next town. That is their definition of most. For me three days, maybe four - morning in a sidewalk cafe having coffee with a pastry, a museum or cathedral, lunch, another site, strolling the streets, maybe an afternoon glass of wine, late dinner, and repeat the next day, and the next day. That is my idea if getting the most of our a trip. Of course, at that pace I can only hit two or three places in a couple week. But there is always next year.

So only you can decide what is important for you. Give that some thought and get back to us.

Here is suggestion to make it doable and logistically easy. Fly open jaw. Berlin, Prague, Vienna, Budapest. Krakow and Ljubljana are out of your way having just 15 days for everything.

Ljubljana and Krakow are two points a bit off the main transportation corridors, so you could consider cutting one or both of those to reduce travel time. From our tour page, you can also see some of our eastern itineraries, such as Berlin-Dresden-Prague-Cesky Krumlov-Melk-Vienna, then add Budapest. Or for a route with Krakow and not Vienna, look at Eastern Europe but add Berlin at the start and delete Ljubljana at the end.

thanks for all the responses!

what I meant by "getting the most out of the trip" is definitely not about transiting and touching on few major attractions and hop out of the city and move to the next. I do want to spend at least 2-3 days at each place so that I can visit some of the attractions and most importantly, experience the city in terms of the culture and food. I want to see the cities in the eyes of locals as much as possible. And the day to day sounds just like what Frank has described..

Between the cities, I'm looking to travel by trains/bus, not so much of driving as I'm traveling alone and I didn't want that to be an added hassle.

I'm not familiar with this region and I have been reading up on the various places, and honestly there's so much things to do! Ljubljana sounds really beautiful and so are Prague, Vienna and Budapest.

Would this itinerary works?
Berlin (3 days)
Dresden (half day en-route to Prague)
Prague (3 days)
Cesky Krumlov (2 days)
Vienna (3 days) - Anything to see in Salzburg?
Budapest (3 days)

Cheers,
B

Your new itinerary does not take into account the time it takes to get between places, set up in your new hotel, etc. Remember that two nights in a place equals only one full day, and one night means less than a full day.

That said, you can certainly cut a night in Czesky Krumlov. It's quite small, and the town itself is the sight. One night will give you enough time to appreciate it.

Hi,

Choosing which places to drop or keep in travel planning is all relative and subjective. I can tell you which cities I would drop given your tight time frame. They may not be your choices. Ljubljana and Prague would be the first to go, ie, save for the next trip. What's your top priority for going to Central Europe? History (in light of the centenuary), culture, geography, language, food, etc?

I've been to Berlin, Prague and Budapest. Of the three, Berlin is easily my favorite and I would recommend dedicating as much time as you can to it - I've been there twice now and would love to go back someday. I would say try to spend at least 4 full days there (which I have done on a similarly-paced trip a few years ago). We spent 3 full days in Prague, I think, which was pretty adequate. For us, it was mostly an outdoor city - a lot of walking around and seeing the sights, not so heavy on museums and other attractions. I also quite enjoyed Budapest - I think we spent at least 3 or 4 full days there, which again was adequate but left me wanting to come back sometime (though not nearly as much as Berlin). Some people might find it more "gritty" or "bleak" in places, especially if anticipating something as ornate as Prague, but I didn't. It's an especially big draw for travelers who are perhaps younger, on more of a budget, and looking to go out,and eat/drink well on the cheap.

As far as daylight, I visited all three of these cities in early-mid October, and daylight wasn't really a problem. I don't remember exact sunrise/sunset times, but it never seemed like it was getting dark too early. The weather was great, too, sunny but not hot.

I agree with most of the above, Ljubljana is OK but too far out of the way. I have been to each city, except Krakow and enjoyed each place. In fact I am returning this summer to Prague, Vienna and Budapest, adding Cesky Krumlov and Bratislava. last time I visited these cities I stayed 2 nights in each and it felt too rushed. I didn't get to see all I wanted. this trip we are staying 4-5 days each city plus the side trips to Cesky and Bratislava. Should enjoy it more. I agree with Laura that the smaller towns are usually the best.

I have been to all the locations you are considering, and of course, have my favorites, but all of these places are so wonderful with a ton to do. I don't mind whirlwind trips but not when I am doing all of it by train or by myself. I usually do that kind of trip by car and typically not such big cities. You will really be spending lots of time traveling and less time enjoying the city. I do agree that one night for CK is fine to see the place. I love Budapest and would want a few nights there. Vienna is not my favorite, but I did enjoy it. I would choose Krakow instead and yes... there is lots to do and see in Salzburg (one of my faves) I never minded the fall/winter travel. You can still be out, everything does not close down and you get to see the beautiful city lights as well.

I would keep it to Berlin, Prague, Vienna, Budapest. That will give yoh 3 or 4 days in each place with a full day between each for travel which is about right. Do some homework to determine how you think ths time best spent. If you can work in some flexibility so you dont get stuck some place you don't enjoy. Being able to move on and improvise a little makes you a better and more intelligent traveler.