Please critique my beginner's itinerary :D

Never been impressed with Zurich, so I'll leave that to you. I'd spend more time elsewhere in CH, including Luzern. Half day in Zurich would be more than enough for me, unless you have a fiend for banks. Actually since your trip is short and your list of cities is long, I would drop CH altogether and add those nights to Paris and Italy. Paris make it at least 4 nights. Add one night to Venice. If you add a night to Florence you can see other parts of Tuscany as well on day trips from Florence. Hoever your to do list in Florence will take you way more than a day.
The Cinque Terre should be visited after Florence and before Rome. Therefore the itinerary should be: Venice, Florence, Monterosso, Rome. You can visit Pisa on the way from Florence to the Cinque Terre since you need to change trains in Pisa. Just drop off the luggage at the station luggage storage (Deposito Bagagli) and visit the tower and the cathedral. It takes less than two hours for both, including travel from to the train station.

The main issue I notice is that 5/20 in Florence is an impossibly full day - you should be able to see a lot of what you want to see the preceding afternoon or the next morning.

5/10 is too much for one day

You may want to re-think the 3 nights in Zurich?

Personal preference, but I'd spend 1 more day in Venice and 1 day less in Cinque Terre (although you're right, you should spend a minimum of 2 nights in CT).

Only spending 1 night in Venice?

You should research the night train from Venice to CT to make sure you have enough uninterrupted time to actually get some sleep, look for changing trains in the middle of the night, which will disrupt any planned sleep activity.

5/20 is probably too much for one day

Nobody in this office would recommend using Zurich as you primary Swiss destination when you can continue by train to make your home base in Luzern (under 1 hour) or Lauterbrunnen (2.5 hours).

I agree that 5/10 is way too ambitious. You have no idea if or how you will be affected by jet lag. I've spent 4 weeks in Paris over 4 trips and I know how to get around. There's no way I could fit all that in.

You have a number of 2 night stays. With 2 nights you only have one full day. Don't underestimate how long it will take you to change locations. You have to check out of your lodging, get to the train station or airport, wait for train or flight, time in transit, then get to your next lodging and check in.

It pains me to say this because I love Paris, but with the amount of time you have I would spend the entire time in Italy. If you already have your airline tickets I would spend at least one more night in Paris and skip Switzerland altogether. Add the extra time to Italy.

Everyone I know wants to see more than possible, no matter how much time they have. Part of the trip planning process seems to be trimming down the list to something more manageable.

Oh WOW!! This is a lot more help than I was expecting! I am SO glad I joined and posted!!

Two things:

1. I meant Criticize (title) I was at work and saw it and was gonna change that before submitting and obviously that never happened. Sorry!

2. SOOO useful feedback here! Every single reply. I will definitely make adjustments.

Looks like the consensus is Zurich "adios"... The funny thing is I had that feeling from what I've seen and read. Once again, I'm glad I posted here!!

By the way, I have not booked anything yet (flights nor accommodation) I am planning to do that this week (I know it's getting late =/). So any more suggestions will be very appreciated.

Thanks again guys!

Glad we could help.
Let us know if you have more questions.
Happy travels!

I suggest you get maps and plot the locations of the sites you plan on visiting. There are also apps that allow you to do this. There is no way that I could visit all the sites you have listed for 5/10 and 5/20 – even though I know those cities well and therefore could get from place to place efficiently. You need to allow some time in your schedule for exploring when you reach an attraction, getting from place to place, getting lost, etc. With the number of attractions you list on certain days,you're not going to have time for much other than walking by and checking things off the list.

I think it's good that you're going to drop Zürich. With the time you have available, I would drop one additional locale -- possibly Paris or the CT (based only on location/transit time).

Definitely fly open-jaw or multi-city. Into your first place and home from your last. You have so many things on your wish list that I fear you will burn yourself out. Don't try to do so much that it ends up just a blur.

Paris is a city to savor, not race through. Allow time to sit awhile at a sidewalk cafe with a drink of your choice. When people travel with such a tight schedule they are bound to be disappointed when they can't do it all. I was looking at your proposed schedule again and I don't think 5/20 is possible. Enjoy Europe, don't race through it!

I am a less experienced traveler than many who have posted on your thread but I will add that if you fly from Paris to Venice take a look at EasyJet. I had a good experience with them on a Paris/Venice flight last fall but it still shoots most of a day. Be sure to read all the terms and conditions before you purchase and consider paying up front for a checked bag and to be able to choose your seat.

Transportation from the airport to central Venice is of course by boat and way slow. That part drove me nuts about Venice! It took about the same time to fly (just the in the air part) Paris Venice as to take the Alilaguna ferry from the airport to near St Marks Square.

It's also possible to take the #5 bus from the airport into Venice - don't know how it compares time wise with the Alilaguna, but it didn't seem too bad.

Hola again folks!

I read every comment multiple times went back and ford to my itinerary and came up with the below draft. I got rid of Switzerland which gave me 3 extra days spare.

A few things (I hope I am not asking too much stuff):

• Could you help me confirm my order of places at least for Italy? I am unsure now. I came up with that based on distance and transportation logistics.

• What activities would you fit on 5/21 (Florence) from 5/20? I took your great recommendation and I am using the next day to reduce the load. I've been looking and it seems that everything is a few blocks away (I could be wrong).

• I am open to remove things from Paris on 5/10. I also might add an extra night there 5/13.

• I've been told that Versailles visit is a full day, is that so?

• A co-worker of mine keeps telling me that in Venice, they can fine tourists from rolling their baggage on the streets, is that right? Sounds odd.

I am very thankful for your valuable advice.

Regards.

Gustavo.

Fri 05/08/2015

Flight:
Minneapolis - Paris (Will probably land the next day)

Sat 05/09/2015

PARIS

Ile de la Cité
Notre Dame Cathedral visit
Ile St. Louis,
Latin Quarter visit
Dinner in Latin Quarter (optional)

Sun 05/10/2015

Arc de Triomphe
ChampsÉlysées
Eiffel Tower
Champ de Mars
École Militaire
Les Invalides
Conciergerie
Tuileries
Place Vendôme
Opera House

Mon 05/11/2015

Versailles guided excursion
State Apartments, Hall of Mirrors, Gardens of Versailles
Dinner at a crêperie (optional)

Tue 05/12/2015

Louvre visit
Tour Director-led Sightseeing Tour of Montmartre
Seine River cruise (night)

**BURGUNDY???

Wed 05/13/2015

Extra night in Paris?

Thus 05/14/2010

Flight Paris - Venice ($76 Ryanair or EasyJet 1hr 40m)

*depending on the flight we may be able to accommodate activities here

Gondola
Venice city walk
Dinner

Fri 05/15/2015

VENICE

St. Mark’s Square
Basilica di San Marco
Doge's Palace visit
Glassblowing demonstration
Optional: Night train to Cinque Terre (Monterosso)

Sat 05/16/2015

VENICE

Available

Sun 05/17/2015

CINQUE TERRE

Early train to Cinque Terre (Monterosso) 100 miles
“Vacation from vacation”. Pick a Cinque Terre Village
Explore stairways and alleyways or
Tan by the rocks or
Have coffee at an outdoor cafe and plan the next days or
Try to checkout other villages in Cinque Terre

Mon 05/18/2015

Free day at Cinque Terre (Rick Steves says we would regret not staying at least 2 nights)

Tue 05/19/2015

Train: Cinque Terre - Florence

Wed 05/20/2015

FLORENCE

Early train Cinque Terre - Florence
Palazzo Vecchio
Piazza della Signoria
Ponte Vecchio
Chiesa di Santa Croce (This is the only one a bit farther than the rest)
Brunelleschi’s Duomo visit
Giotto’s Bell Tower
Dante's House
Uffizi Gallery
Accademia Gallery
Baptistery visit (Gates of Paradise)

Thu 05/21/2015

FLORENCE

Activities from previous day will be accommodated here to make it less saturated

Fri 05/22/2015

ROME

Early Train: Florence to Rome (100 miles)
The Colosseum
Roman Forum
Pantheon
City walk

Sat 05/23/2015

Vatican City

St. Peter's Basilica, home to Michelangelo's sublime Pietà
Vatican Museum
Sistine Chapel
Free evenning

Sun 05/24/2015

Rome night (Available)

Mon 05/25/2015

Flight: Rome - Minneapolis

Gustavo:
No one's every going to say you're not a detail oriented person. It's one thing to read up on a destination, but it is simply not possible to execute an itinerary in such detail--unless you and your wife are marathon runners. You'd do best to take each city day by day and prioritize the palaces, museums, etc. you want to see. Then, adjust your stops according to how you feel that day.

Fri 05/08/2015 Flight: Minneapolis - Paris
Sat 05/09/2015 Arrive early morning at Paris de Gaulle Airport--Take a train into town and get to your hotel. Take a nap until late afternoon and go out to grab a bite to eat. Spend a couple of hours in awe of the city's sights from a distance--like the Eiffel Tower lit up with the strobe lights going off periodically.
Sun 05/10/2015--eat a heavy breakfast and hit the road. I suggest starting at The Louvre on day one. Go back to your hotel mid-day to rest a little--and hit the road again to see your priority stops. Take the Metro #6 or #9 around to the Trocadéro station around 6:00 p.m. As you exit the station, the Eiffel Tower will be just across the river--and it's an incredible sight at sundown.

Mon 05/11/2015--Continue your center city tour of Paris
Tue 05/12/2015--Take the train out to Versailles--about 10 miles.
Wed 05/13/2015--Followup on the places you've missed in Paris
Thus 05/14/2015--Take Metro to train station that takes you back to deGaulle Airport.

Fly to Venice on budget air carrier. Upon landing, take a vaparetto (boat) into Venice--and find your hotel.
Walk around St. Marks Square and figure out the lay of the land.
Fri 05/15/2015--begin your tour thru St. Marks and the Doges Palace. You could also take a vaporetto to Murano (island.)
Sat 05/16/2015--Complete your tour of Venice.
Sun 05/17/2015--Take a vaporetto back to the train station and catch a train (reservation required) to LaSpezia. A local train will take you into Monterosso.
Mon 05/18/2015--hike from town to town at the C/T
Tue 05/19/2015--Catch the train to LaSpezia and transfer to another train to take you to Florence. Find your hotel and walk around the Duomo--getting a lay of the land.
Wed 05/20/2015--eat a heavy breakfast and hit Florence tourist sights.
Thu 05/21/2015--continue seeing Florence tourist sights
Fri 05/22/2015--Early Train: Florence to Rome. Find your hotel and hit the town. It would be best to have a Roma Pass, and just ride around on the bus to figure out where the popular tourist sights are. (It's a town that'll walk you to death.)
Sat 05/23/2015--visit St. Peter's Basilica, and take the Vatican Museum tour--with ticket reservations.

Sun 05/24/2015--continue with your tour of Rome
Mon 05/25/2015 Flight: Rome - Minneapolis

Note: Anytime you can eat breakfast in your hotel, take advantage of eating heavy. We often only pay for one meal per day--as a cost saving. Don't flip out in Paris when two 9" pizzas, two beers and tip is 50 Euros.
If at all possible, lengthen your trip a few more days. A day tour of Tuscany out of Florence going to popular hill towns like Siena, San Gimignano and Volterra would be very, very nice. Also, Rome has so many sights that it's at least a 4 day stop. And don't forget to "roll with the flow."

Gustavo,

Answering your bulleted points:

You're correct, Florence is compact, most of the sights are close to each other.

Your order of itinerary in Italy is fine. Coming from the north, you naturally come to Venice first, then Florence or CT can be seen in either order, there is some unavoidable doubling back besides they are side by side, so to speak. Then onto Rome.

Because of the crowds (lines) and the travel time, although Versailles seems like it should not be a whole day, for most people it ends up being pretty much a full day. By the time you get back into Paris from Versailles, you have time for a dinner and walk but the sights are closing or have closed.

Even if you're not an art museum person, the Uffizi is probably 3 hours, by the time you stand in line and have lunch in the museum.

In Venice there was apparently some talk of banning roller bags but I heard they decided not to do that. You could google around and see what the latest is on that.

Hi David!

Hehe... I kinda want to plan even the time we go poop! (Just kidding) I do not mind changing plans once we're there, just want to be prepared and we'll informed.

I cannot believe you just took the time to do this.

Thank you VERY much. I already forwarded your suggested itinerary to my wife.

This will be our belated honeymoon. Worth the wait! :)

Hi Kent!

Thanks for your valuable advise too! It helps a ton!

I will be reading this thread over and over for a long time :)

One more thing I gotta say is thanks to all of you I am now a fan of this comunity.

Have a good night!

Gustavo:
You actually read our stuff in detail and express your appreciation for our volunteer efforts, which makes us want to spend extra time on your questions.
Some people don't.

I guess David and I are also detailed-oriented persons (I certainly am), and so I identify with another detail-oriented person.

guss,

I'm not sure where to begin? You've received lots of good suggestions so far, and I may as well provide my two cents worth. You might arrange your Itinerary along these lines.....

• May 8 - Fr - D1 - Flight to Paris
• May 9 - Sa - D2/N1 - Arrive CDG - take RER "B" or other transport into Paris * (have a look at the excellent Paris By Train website for more specific information). Which area of the city are you planning to stay?* I'd recommend buying a Paris Museum Pass as it will minimize your time in queues.
• May 10 - Su - D3/N2 - Paris, touring
• May 11 - Mo - D4/N3 - Paris, touring (Although it will be crowded, I'd suggest touring the Louvre on Mon. as it's closed on Tuesday).
• May 12 - Tu - D5/N4 - Paris touring (I suggested four nights as you have so many place on your touring list - more on that below)
• May 13 - We - D6/N1 - Flight to Venice (my preference would be EasyJet from ORY, although that may mean a VERY early trip to the airport).
• May 14 - Th - D7/N2 - Venice, touring
• May 15 - Fr - D8/N3 - Venice, touring
• May 16 - Sa - D9/N1 - Train to Florence (Time 2H:05M via Freccia high speed - Note that you don't want to use Venezia Mestre - in this case your departure station will be Venezia Santa Lucia and your arrival station Firenze S.M. Novella - I usually prefer not to arrive in a new city too early, as the hotel room may not be ready yet - early afternoon is usually good - while they will store luggage, I usually like to check in right away).
• May 17 - Su - D10/N2 - Florence, touring
• May 18 - Mo - D11/N3 - Florence, touring
• May 19 - Tu - D12/N1 - Train to Cinque Terre / Monterosso (one of the easiest trips will be a departure at 10:28, arriving 12:52 - time 2H:24M, one change at Pisa Centrale - one of the trains is a Regionale so DON'T forget to validate your ticket prior to boarding the train on the day of travel or you'll face hefty fines!).
• May 20 - D13/N2 - Monterosso, touring
• May 21 - D14/N3 - Monterosso, touring
• May 22 - D15/N1 - Train to Rome (one of the easiest trips will be a departure at 09:24, arriving Roma Termini at 14:33 - time 5H:09M, one change at La Spezia Centrale).
• May 23 - D16/N2 - Rome, touring
• May 24 - D17/N3 - Rome, touring
• May 25 - D18 - Return flight to U.S. (take Leonardo Express to airport, €14 PP - DON'T forget to validate your ticket prior to boarding train on day of travel).

You have FAR too many sights on your May 10 list in Paris. While it may be feasible to get to all of them, it's not realistic, and that's true of some of your other locations as well. For sightseeing, I'd suggest making a list of sights you want to see in each city, ranked in order of most-to-least important. Get to as many as you can, and plan to visit the others on a future trip.

As mentioned several times, you MUST validate (time & date stamp) tickets for some classes of trains or risk a hefty fine, which will be collected on the spot! The same is true of Metro and Buses. Tickets for the faster trains like the Freccia don't have to be validated but have compulsory seat reservations which are specific to train, date and departure time! You can only use the one train specified on the ticket, or again hefty fines!

Especially for the Cinque Terre (but also for the other places), it would be a REALLY good idea to get accommodations booked SOON! Which part of Rome are you planning to stay in?

Many hotels provide breakfast, so they're essentially "B&B's". You might consider buying copies of the Pocket Paris" and *Italy 2015 guidebooks, as they will be valuable reference both in planning and during the trip. Note that some of the Museums are closed one day per week, and the guidebooks specify which days those are.

Have you also considered.....

• Money Belts
• Plug Adaptors
• Charging electronic devices on 220 VAC
• ATM & credit cards

Good luck with your planning!

You probably have read that it's a really good idea to get reservations for both the Accademia and the Uffizi, to reduce greatly the amount of time you spend waiting in line - I think it would be really difficult to see both of them in one day. I was also wondering whether you just wanted a cursory look at the Palazzo Vecchio, or to visit it as a museum. Moving one of these major, time-consuming attractions, plus 2 or 3 of the smaller ones, to the 21st would help a lot.

WOW Ken, that's such great advise! Thanks for taking the time!

Inbsig: Thanks for the suggestion!

Kent: Thanks again!

I've been forwarding all comments to my wife. This is what she just replied:

"These guys are just awesome, too bad we can't travel with them!"

Just thought I'd pass it on :)

PS: Reading all the comments again this morning I can't believe the spelling mistakes I made hahaha, I apologize...

Hey Ray!

Thanks for sharing your experience! That makes a lot of sense. I will apply your advise for sure :)

I like your planning style! I also microplan on paper.

Keep in mind that the original "Gates of Paradise" in Florence are in the museum (Museo dell' Opere del Duomo, part or all of which may be open).

Your free evening in Rome should include a night walk around the centro storico to see the monuments lighted.

If you want restaurant recommendations, please post again. Florence has some excellent restaurants, but it's the only city in Italy where I've walked out of a restaurant because the food was terrible (I stupidly chose a restaurant with busloads of daytrippers).

About the rolling luggage in Venice, it was a tempest in a teapot. Don't worry about it.

Here are 2 websites to refer to for your stay in Paris: tomsguidetoparis.com and parisbytrain.com

Hi Zoe (fellow micro-planner :) )!

That is a REALLY good point, I'm glad you mentioned it. I'll go check the real Gates of Paradise. I believe Rick Steve's mentioned this in a video!

Some restaurant recommendations would be awesome! Not necessarily fancy ones but traditional non commercial stuff.

Right now I am puzzled with my amount of nights. I am trying to find an excuse to give Rome one more night. Perhaps you have one :)

This are my nights at this moment:

• Paris: 4 (3 full days)
• Venice: 3 (2 full days)
• Florence: 3 (2 full days)
• Cinque Terre: 3 (2 full days)
• Rome: 3 (2 full days)

How long in advance should one book the trains? I'm sure I can find a post with this info, just thought I'd ask here :)

Norma, thanks for those great links! I checked them out quick and they will be very useful. I will go over the whole thing this weekend! :)

Hello Guss!

I didn't know you had this thread going already, otherwise I wouldn't have recommended you doing such on your other post.

Anyway, you can purchase your freccia (high speed) train tickets up to 120 days( at a discount) in advance but keep in mind that these tickets are
nonrefundable & unchangeable so you have to have your travel dates firm.

This is the website for train schedules: http://www.trenitalia.com

So you will take freccia train from Venice (Venezia S. Lucia) to Florence (Firenze S.M. Novella)

and also from La Spezia Centrale or Pisa Centrale (depending which route you choose) to Rome (Roma Termini)

Florence to CT, you will be taking Regionale & intercity trains so you can buy those when you get to Florence as you can buy them 7 days in advance.

Make sure you validate your Regionale/ intercity train tickets prior to boarding the train to avoid hefty fines!

You rock Priscilla!!

Yea, this was my first post. The one we were hanging out at is my second and it turned into itinerary stuff (which I dont mind at all cause it's been super helpful).

You just answer some of my big questions about transportation. Woohoo!! :)

When will you be going back to Europe?

Hi Guss,
I was just in northern Italy this past Sept/Oct. Hopefully will return in 1-2 years :-)

If you have any other questions, keep posting.

As you have experienced, there are many very
knowledgeable travelers on this forum.

I'm very new to the forum and I'm always learning!

Have a wonderful trip!

Hey guys! This is what I came up with so far. Using all the advice I've gotten from you:

Let me know if you have any suggestions (like food, transfer and days that we have no activities) THANK YOU! :)

(I took Priscilla's and Roberto's advice of swapping CT and Florence)

Flight:
Minneapolis - Paris (Will probably land the next day)

PARIS

Eiffel Tower
Champ De Mars
Dinner around here or in the Latin Quarter (optional)

Versailles guided excursion
State Apartments, Hall of Mirrors, Gardens of Versailles
Notre Dame Cathedral visit
La Sainte Chapelle
Pantheon (optional)

Musée du Louvre
Arc de Triomphe
Champs-Élysées

VENICE

Flight Paris - Venice

Venice city walk
Gondola
Dinner

Piazza San Marco (St. Mark’s Square)
Campanile di San Marco
Basilica di San Marco
Torre dell’Orologio (Clock Tower)
Palazzo Ducale (Doge's Palace)

Open (Murano?)

FLORENCE

Train to Florence

Palazzo Vecchio
Piazza della Signoria
Dinner around here

Accademia
Brunelleschi’s Duomo visit (Cattedrale di Santa Maria del Fiore)
Giotto's Bell Tower
Baptistery visit (Gates of Paradise)
Museo dell'Opera del Duomo (original Gates of Paradise) (optional)
Dante's House (Casa Di Dante) (Optional)

Uffizi Gallery
Chiesa di Santa Croce (Basilica of the Holy Cross Florence)
Open

CINQUE TERRE

Early train to Monterosso
Walk around

Explore stairways and alleyways or
Tan by the rocks or
Have coffee at an outdoor cafe and plan the next days or
Go to other villages in Cinque Terre

Open (Explore Cinque Terre)

ROME

Early Train: Monterosso - Rome

Pantheon
Fontana Di Trevi
City walk
Dinner

The Colosseum
Via Sacra
Roman Forum

VATICAN CITY

St. Peter's Basilica, home to Michelangelo's sublime Pietà
Vatican Museum
Sistine Chapel
Free evenning

Rome night (Open)

Flight: Rome - Minneapolis

Yikes! A lot to absorb! Just my 2-cents…

I'll respectfully disagree with David's the advice to "Take a train into town and get to your hotel. Take a nap until late afternoon" the first day in Paris. For one thing, you'll be too early to check in if your plane arrives early in the morning. Go to the hotel and have them store your bags, use the lobby restroom, and then take off walking. Maybe grab some coffee somewhere. Yes, you'll be tired but the fresh air and adrenalin ("We're HERE!) often helps, and you want to get your body acclimated to local time as quickly as possible. We usually go to bed early on that first day but don't nap - not that we've been able to check in anyway.

The same applies to your bags with morning arrivals by train: go the hotel and have them store your bags.

Yes to the Paris Museum pass! We don't buy passes very often but that one really worked for us.

Make notes of the things you can see at night that can be taken off the daytime sightseeing list. For instance, the Arc de Triomphe is open late into the evening, and you could walk the Champs-Élysées to get there (although personally I think the Champs is overrated). Also take a look at what days some of the museums have late openings.
In Rome, Trevi, the Spanish Steps and the main piazzas are fun to walk at night. Anyway, you can extend your sightseeing time without killing yourself trying to fit it all in during the day, and walk off your dinner besides!

Early mornings are great times to hit the streets before the majority of tourist do. We've done that in Paris, Florence, Rome and the CT, and those quiet hours were WELL worth crawling out at the crack of dawn for.

Oh, and do the Tuilleries on the same day as the Louvre as it's right THERE.

Awesome advice Kathy! I am adding Tuileries!

Thanks!

Hey amigos!

Checkout my itinerary in a REALLY cool and graphic way. I'm sure you would like this for your next trip (if you don't already use it).

http://www.tripomatic.com/trip-journal/54c1db36710a3

Guss,

Thanks for sharing your trip via 'tripomatic'.-- very neat! I'd never seen this before.
You are missing a photo of Monterosso Al Mare in CT!

Don't forget to notify your credit card & debit card banks regarding your travel plans!

Happy planning!

Hi Priscilla!

Nice catch! Tripomatic doesn't have Cinque Terre on their database. That's the only flaw I could see.

The credit card thing I am aware. I used to be a concierge in resorts and used to see tourists being frustrated about that all the time. Being unable to use their cards. Such a headache!

Since you're planning a full day in Vatican City, which is an excellent idea, consider going to the top of the dome of St Peter's. We followed Rick's advice of course. We took the elevator to the base of the dome and then walked up 300+ steps to the top. Looking down at the Basilica from the base of the dome and also seeing the ceiling up close was incredible. Once up at the top, seeing all of Rome and Vatican City is a memory I will always treasure.

Some of the days in your itinerary are pretty packed. I know on my first trip esp to Paris I think I did 4 museums/sites in a single day. It was exhausting but worth it but I made the rookie mistake of going from one end of the town to the other because I just didnt plan my 2 days there very well. So! Look at that map and plan your itinerary accordingly. Versailles will take a day in itself but you will be able to spend the evening in Paris.

I just have a general statement: Choose your "must see's" and prioritize them for any given area. Then, take it as it goes. You have a lot of sites to see, and hopefully it will work out, but it might not. So you at least want to hit your most important. And, don't forget to wander aimlessly, just take in the city, noises, people, etc. Honestly, you will find that it is very satisfying.

In Rome we ran site to site and spent 4 days. Never did we really have a chance to just be there. I didn't make that mistake again with Paris. We picked two things to see/do each day and had a chance to just take it all in. Also, a favorite experience of ours in Paris- the Paris Greeter program. It is free and you can take a private tour from a local. Ours was a highlight of our time there. We spent most of the day with our greeter not seeing any sites, but we did see a bakery that has been baking the same bread for hundreds of years, talked a women in a cheese shop and she showed us her job of aging cheese, talked with a wine expert, and ended up with a picnic in the park learning all about what it is like living in Paris with our new friend. All of this far from any tourist area.

Just another way to look and the possible things to do and how to spend your time. It is really hard to not run site to site. But, watch yourself so you don't forget to take it all in,

Great advise Claudette! I had forgotten about that from Rick Steves video! I will do that for sure.

Susan, I agree with the priorities. My list is in order of priorities so we may not get to the last ones. I also have a full open day that might help see other things we missed (Hopefully), or maybe just to walk around Randomly.

My question now is: from my itinerary, should I take one night from Venice and give it to Paris? So Paris 4 nights, Venice 2 nights? Instead of 3 each?

Thanks a lot for all great advise. I have already gotten way more than expected :)

Hello again Guss,

My question now is: from my itinerary, should I take one night from Venice and give it to Paris? So Paris 4 nights, Venice 2 nights? Instead of 3 each?

I probably would, especially since you plan to spend a day visiting Versailles.

Remember that 4 nights = 3 full days; 3 nights= 2 full days; 2 nights =1 full day.

So if you stay 3 nights in Paris & plan to take day trip to Versailles, that only leaves you with one day to explore Paris!
Keep in mind that the day you arrive to Paris (from US) you will be jet-lagged & won't do much sightseeing that day.

I thought this was your itinerary: (I copied it from your post on 01/22/15 03:28 PM)

• Paris (4)

• Versailles

• Venice (3)

• Cinque Terre (3)

• Florence (3)

• Rome (3)

• Vatican

What happened to the 3 nights in Venice?

I didn't re-read all your replies so perhaps I'm missing something.

Good night!

Hi Priscilla!

I apologize for the confusion. Here is my current itinerary, I took one night from Paris and gave it to Rome

Paris: 3 (2 full days)
Venice: 3 (2 full days)
Florence: 3 (2 full days)
Cinque Terre: 3 (2 full days)
Rome: 4 (3 full days)

Looking at Venice, I was wondering if I should take one of those nights and give it to Paris so the result would be:

Paris: 4 (3 full days)
Venice: 2 (1 full day)
Florence: 3 (2 full days)
Cinque Terre: 3 (2 full days)
Rome: 4 (3 full days)

Total: 16 nights.

Thank you!!! :D

I love Venice, but yes, if it were me I would take the 1 day and add it to Paris. Venice is walkable, very small, cool to just wander and even though it isn't ideal, I still think there is so much more you want to do and see in Paris.

Thanks Susan!

That's kind of the idea that I had in my mind :)

I don't think 3 nights (2 days) in Paris is enough. Especially if you plan to go to Versailles. You also have 3 nights in CT. Those two places are not equal in my opinion, time wise. CT is small villages you can see in a day if that's all the time you have. There is certainly much more to see in Paris. I would take a night from CT and a night from Venice and add them both to Paris. That would give you 5 nights (4 full days) there. You don't know if or how you will react to jet lag. You may hit the ground running. Or you may be dragging for your first few days. You definitely don't want to be too tired to really see Paris. When we go to Europe on arrival day we stay busy, preferably outdoors, until bedtime. In the morning we are pretty good to go. You may react differently.

Susan mentioned the Paris Greeter program. I've done it twice and highly recommend it if you have the time. We did it for the first time a few years ago and spent about 4 hours with the Greeter. We did it again last October and spent about 3 hours with that Greeter. It's a fantastic opportunity to see a part of Paris (you choose what you do) through a Parisian's eyes and experience.

Hey Andrea!

Thanks for your advise!

Ugh, the one and only accommodation I have booked is the CT one (just a few hours ago), wish I had asked that before.

I took Rick's advice of staying at least 2 nights or we'll regret it :)

We are super excited!

Here's where we'll stay: http://tinyurl.com/qarhfw7 (check out the view!)

If you guys have any activities recommendations based on our location that would be welcome ;)

PS: It will be fun if I report back to this thread when we get back right!?

Guss,

Your itinerary looks fine.

Everyone has their own opinion, but this is what you have decided upon, so just make the best of it!

Keep in mind that you may not see all the sights you want to see.

You may even decide that you don't have time to go to Versailles because you are enjoying Paris so much!

Don't worry so much about all the little details -- just enjoy your trip!

Remember that this is your first trip and hopefully there will be others...

You or your wife may want to keep a journal of your trip for future reference.

Have a fantastic time in Europe!!!

Edit: The view from the cottage in Monterosso is magnificent!

Make sure you travel light as it looks like you will have to climb a hill to get there!

What a fantastic view! You are going to have a great time and I predict you will be talking about your next trip before you get home. Travel is addicting! Please do a trip report so we can all hear about your experiences. I keep a blog on my iPad. I try to write each night before I go to bed while the day is still fresh in my mind. I add photos too. I love to re-read and re-live my travel adventures.

Hi Andrea! I will definitely report back :)

Great idea blogging about your trip!

Just a quick note about Venice, this is very important. When you are taking the train to Venice, make sure you do not get out at the Venezia Mestre stop that you have listed in your itinerary. That is one stop too soon and is not on the island of Venice! You will have to pay extra to get to Venice, it's a lot of wasted time, and you will also miss the spectacular surprise of the view of the canal getting off the train in Venice instead. Wait to get off at the next stop which is the Venezia Santa Lucia station. Make sure before you purchase your ticket that your train goes all the way to Venezia Santa Lucia, they usually do, and it doesn't matter if your ticket says Venezia Mestre, you can just stay on til the final stop at Venezia Santa Lucia. The same in reverse for your return. This is a common mistake that even travel agents make because the name Venezia Mestre is misleading. You are trying to cover a lot of ground in a short period of time and you wouldn't want to waste time waiting for transport from the mainland to the island, plus the extra cost and hassle. Hope that helps.

"This will be our belated honeymoon....."
Where are you planning time to enjoy the romance?
I am not being critical, but I am striving to focus you upon the length and endurance needed to complete this journey. I am speaking from the experience of our first journey to Europe, a long time ago, when we spent 23 days driving through Italy, Austria, Switzerland and Germany.
Consider, when have you ever spent 24 hours a day for over two weeks TOGETHER without a break? In foreign lands? Where travel stress, especially for newbies, will focus upon finding restrooms, a decent place to eat, packing and unpacking, transportation "glitches", weather, etc? Hmmmm.......
Maybe it was just us, but after day ten we were, ...... Well, lets say our thoughts towards each other were not reflecting loving considerations.
Plan to allow some time where you can take a walk alone, allow someone to sleep late, or sit in a park just relaxing without thinking of your next destination or your spouse.
Breathe.
Make this a journey with the opportunity to create wonderful memories.
Take care to not create a trip where you most recall the travel.
Pack lite. Really lite.
we enjoy purchasing inexpensive clothes at second hand shops as they make great reminders of our journey when we return home.
And be flexible. What you find at hand should be thouroughly enjoyed in lieu of thinking there is the need to move on to the next destination.
Remember, leave time and space to enjoy the romance.
Safe travels.
Btw: despite thinking it would be tough to return, we were there pre kids, we found ways to return many times. So keep in mind this need not be the only opportunity to travel to europe.

Cuttyko: Great detailed advice. I will make sure I read it again when booking transportation which should be in the next few days.

Marbleskies: Great points. We have been together for 10 years so enjoying the romance (honeymoon style) will not be our priority.

Hopefully we won't be fighting :s

Thanks again to all of you guys!

Hey guys! I wanted to share my final itinerary with you as I built it based on your advice and also lots of research mostly in this forum.

Me and my wife are on the plane right now!

Wish us luck! ;)

https://docs.google.com/document/d/1nUDZCLJNT6oSZ98_9_G1IkotAcyJe5yIzuvruZz18Fg/edit?usp=docslist_api

http://www.tripomatic.com/trip-journal/54c1db36710a3

Have a wonderful trip! I love your tools for organization!

Note: some days it may seem packed but it's just walks from Rick Steve's book.

The melody sign means that the sight has an audio tour.

I will also be flexible and be ready for changes in the plans.

Thanks for the help!

Hehe thanks Pam! :)

Wow. I really love this community. Just reading this thread is helping me so much plan what I want to see (which I posted a few days ago). Thank you all that respond to us newbie explorers.

Erika:

So glad to know this thread helped someone else!! :)

Guss,

Have a fabulous trip!!!

Thanks Priscilla! And thank you for all the advise :)