Going on a backpacking trip. Already have Paris, Marseille, Nice, Zurich, Vienna, Munich, Berlin, and Heidelberg on my list. Have room to add Strasbourg, Lucerne, or Salzburg for a couple days. Not sure what to do.
A great destination is representative of the national culture, architecturally and naturally beautiful, and has a decent nightlife.
Thoughts?
Tough choice. Three of the most beautiful places in Europe.
I would visit all 3 and cut out Marseille, Nice and maybe even Zurich. Berlin is a major detour too.
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With the three places you mentioned, Salzburg would be a good fit between Vienna and Munich. You might also consider skipping Zürich and substituting Lucerne. That would get you to two of the places on your list.
Skip Zürich and put in Luzern instead. Zürich is a big city, you already have enough of those. Luzern is the start of the Alps, a good place for day trips up mountains or on the lake. You don't say how many nights in each place. If it s more than 2, you have enough time to replace Luzern with somewhere deeper into the Alps, e.g. the valleys running from Interlaken.
Skip Marseille (not enough sights), and add either Strasbourg or Salzburg.
Get a map and line up these placesin order so they make a good route without any doubling back.
Where are you flying into and out of? For the list you have easiest would be into Paris and out of Frankfurt (after visiting Heidelberg).
P.S. You need to know the "real" name of places, as well as the English version; both for looking up trains on the internet, and for when you get there.
English Name = Real name in local language
Lucerne = Luzern
Munich = München
Vienna = Wien
Zurich = Zürich
Agree with the above comments completely. Each city is unique, worth visiting. Strasbourg in modern form contains the EU foundational institutions, and looks great as you float along by on a quiet riverboat tour. The old city has a marvelous cathedral
and main square, and this place is easy to reach by train. Lucerne, cozy by lake, surrounded by Alps is a fine beautiful break during a busy tour schedule. It is Switzerland, compact and friendly. And Salzburg in any season or weather still is a classy favorite for history, music, and artful looks, setting by a lovely river, towered over by mountains. I've seen it snow covered, with busy travelers flooding cold, bright streets seeking food at the many fine cafes, or samples of Austria's best shopping environment (Yes Vienna has more but...) Summer or winter time climb or ride to the hilltop fortress walls for an infinity of mountain magic. Oh, sorry does this show bias toward Salzburg? Yes.
Are you planning stops at smaller towns not mentioned here? Smaller towns provide a very different view of the culture and history of each area and are often cheaper, more walkable, more friendly, more architecturally and naturally beautiful, and less stressful. Your focus on big cities makes me think that you chose these names off a map and have not yet done much research. You haven't said when the trip will be, so perhaps you still have lots of time to fill in the details.
Rick summarizes lots of great smaller town destinations on this site at http://www.ricksteves.com/europe, and covers them in his TV shows, but most importantly, he provides detailed information in his guidebooks. The Best of Europe book is designed for this type of multi-country visit, but his coverage of Strasbourg (and the recommended town of Colmar), Marseille (and the recommended town of Cassis), Munich, Zurich, and Luzern are in other books. I would also drop Zurich in favor of the Berner Oberland and/or Luzern.
