Visiting daughter studying abroad in Amsterdam, help with itinerary?

Please say where the two of you have been in Europe before. Are you considering two-segment flights to Europe? Have you considered more than one departure airport in the US? Has your daughter ever been abroad before? Have you ever been to London before? Are your bags small enough to use a bargain airline on your internal flight to Amsterdam?

How did you pick Barcelona? If you're interested in Jewish history, it might make more sense to fly to Berlin or Antwerp (i.e. Brussels) or Paris, all of which have very active airports and frequent discounts.

MoCoMom

are you traveling on points or space A or buddy? If not, you may find that a lot of the best fares have gone just 6 weeks out, and the same for European internal flights.

The reason you may be finding pricey flights is for just that reason.

If they haven't gone, it would be good to get on those soon.

So will your daughter join you in Spain, or will you wait for her to finish school and all travel together?

I would have thought if you are trying to avoid rush rush rushing that two cities for a combined 10 days is enough, and presuming you want quality time with your daughter. Adding lots more in is likely to result in just that rushing you don't want.

I think two major cities (possibly with a day-trip or two) is about right for the time you have. There's so much to do in London...I wouldn't be a fan of making a special effort to spend just two days there. But that's just me; I like to feel that I've seen most of the local sights that interest me before I leave each city. Others prefer more a cafeteria-plan approach. If your primary interest is Jewish sites, I'd change my answer and say that you probably want to branch out. I think Toledo might be worthwhile in that case, but this is not a subject I know much about.

Be sure you're using the "Multi-city" option to price out airfare. London is likely to be cheaper; it nearly always is. But you have to add in the cost of transportation from London to Amsterdam, and the time required. On a short trip, I think the extra cost of flying in and out of your desired stops is worth it, as long as it is reasonable.

In Amsterdam, check out the Dutch Resistance Museum.

I suggest Googling "Jewish tour Barcelona" and "Jewish tour Amsterdam". Following the resulting links should give you lots of ideas whether you are interested in the tours themselves or prefer to be your own guide. If you don't get enough responses to this inquiry, you might also create new "Jewish Sites in the Netherlands" and "Jewish Sites in Catalunya [or Spain]" threads in the appropriate country forums so people with special knowledge are more likely to see them.

Thank you Tim, Nigel, and acraven, all good questions, I'll try to provide more info. Hubby has never been to Europe and is completely ambivalent, not participating at all in planning. I traveled all over Europe many decades ago. Daughter is doing extensive travel throughout Europe while abroad and will travel with us October 22-30. Then we'll all return to Amsterdam, she'll attend class (University of Amsterdam) during the day and visit with us afternoons and evenings. We'll spend our days touring the city and surrounding areas, maybe some day trips. We'll fly home to DC on November 4 or 5.

No particular reason for choosing Barcelona except I've never been and have been told it's a "must-see" destination. I'm having second thoughts however, maybe Berlin makes more sense? In any case, we have no airline points, and I'm open to traveling by air or train within Europe. I have no idea what a 2-segment flight is!

After more review of my dog-eared "Europe Through the Back Door" and this forum, I'm wondering if we should fly in and out of Amsterdam. Maybe scoop up daughter on 10/22 and take a train to Berlin. So much history, especially Jewish history. That will be a heavy few days. Maybe head east (train?) to the Rhine River area for some FUN, a river cruise? Vineyard? Spend the night in a castle? Just brainstorming here, all assistance appreciated! Then head back to Amsterdam on October 30.

Seriously, all advice and guidance is appreciated! I know I'm late planning this trip and I'm starting to panic.

I'm a late planner, too, but not having a plane ticket tends to worry me. On the other hand, it's October we're talking about, so you may snag a really good fare. To check for what used to be called an "open-jaw" flight (into City X, out of City Y), choose the "Multi-city" option rather than "One-way" or "Round-trip".

I spent 6 days in Berlin last summer and 10 days in Barcelona last month. Those cities are now near, possibly at, the top of my list of "Favorite European Cities". They are both great, and they both have really good tourist infrastructures and non-exorbitant hotel prices, but in some respects they are fairly different. Maybe this will help you make a decision:

Berlin seemed to have far more sites of special Jewish interest. It also has a lot of large museums of both the art and the historical type. There's a nearly unbelievable number of WW II and Cold War sights; this is why I spent six days in the city and still left some significant sites unvisited. Barcelona also has important museums, but I found it a bit easier to pick just a few. If you happen not to be a fan of Picasso or Miro, you've eliminated two of the art museums right there and might be able to stick with just the (unskippable in my view) National Museum of Catalonian Art.

But Barcelona has far more architectural eye candy. There's the Barri Gotic, where you can get your medieval fix, plus a large number of modernista buildings (some with visitable interiors, some walk-bys). I loved just walking from modernista cluster to modernista cluster, interspersed with side trips to many of the visitable (pay-to-enter) sights. It's physically a very attractive city, and a lot of the things you want to see are within walking distance of each other if you have no mobility limitations.

In Berlin the sights are more spread out, so the city feels less walkable. You will need transportation; the S-Bahn, U-Bahn and trams are all good. World War II destruction left the city in ruins, so the city proper doesn't have the sort of historic district we tend to expect in Europe. It's, frankly, not a particularly pretty city. Yes, I know Potsdam is great, and there are other lovely places nearby. I'm talking about the core of Berlin proper. It's not unattractive; it's just not all that memorable.

In late October, if there's a difference in the weather, I believe it will favor Barcelona, but I think you'd mostly be indoors in Berlin.

You should see both of these cities, so one will need to wait for your next trip! Maybe ask yourself: Am I more interested in a sight-intense destination (Berlin), or in walking around and enjoying a European atmosphere and pretty building exteriors with plenty of indoor sights when I am ready to be indoors (Barcelona)?

If you can do it with a change of planes, Aer Lingus showing prices of $688 RT to Amsterdam out of Dulles. You can stop a couple of days in Dublin on the way home for just $7 more.

@ MoCoMom....You're absolutely correct in saying that Berlin has the historical Jewish, sites, I mean here, prior to the horrors of Nazi years. Traditionally, Berlin had the largest Jewish population in Prussia-Germany with Frankfurt am Main coming in as #2. If you're interested in tracking down some of these esoteric sites, go to the Pankow district, ie where the Weissensee Cemetery is located...it's huge, the largest Jewish cemetery in Germany. I saw the cement walls from afar since I was in a car on this last trip going to Frankfurt an der Oder. Berlin-Pankow is also the site of the Soviet military cemetery and memorial.

Regarding your husband: While I often recommend Amsterdam to nervous Europe first-timers, things are very different, and more relaxed, than your decades-ago travel. Every waiter in Berlin answers me in English. Even in Paris, little French is necessary, and the welcome is warmer than 25 years ago. Would you care to share his "interests"? Does he ride a bike?

The Netherlands actually has a lot to see. There are some unusual special locations, like UNESCO windmills, the Delta Works, a music machine museum, Delft, the Hanseatic League towns, the Hoge Veelue park, the Aalsmeer flower auction, WWII sites. But a week in Berlin barely scratches the surface. It's not comparable to Berlin, but Cologne is closer to Amsterdam, and more compact. Cologne has the most-visited tourist sight in Germany, the Cathedral.

@ MoCoMom....On your husband indifference on traveling, Berlin is relaxing, even if the pace is quick. But it's a relaxing city. My first time to Europe I made sure I had set aside ample days for Berlin. On the traditional Jewish culture/history in Berlin, (they are both interconnected from the 18th century on), check into the Scheunenviertel. Berlin still has the largest Jewish population in Germany.

For Oct/Nov I would choose Barcelona for a week. United offers direct services from Dulles to BCN, and returning from AMS. You can pick up a cheap flight with easyjet between the two.

I'll just chime with the Jewish slant on things. There's very little of Jewish interest in Barcelona (a city I really love) even though there's a kosher restaurant, but you can day trip to Girona which has a well-preserved (small) Jewish quarter and an excellent Jewish museum. Most Jewish museums focus on introducing and explaining Judaism (like the Jewish Museum in Berlin - skip it). In Girona, the museum details the history of the Jews in Spain - fascinating. Cordoba has a larger Jewish quarter with an interesting museum (Casa Sefarad), the remains of a beautiful (small) synagogue and a prominent statue of Maimonides. Cordoba is a lovely place for 2-3 nights, with an easy day trip to Sevilla to see the Alcazar there. If you go, I can recommend a Jewish tour guide. I hired him for a 3-hour tour in Sevilla, where he lives. We ended up spending the day together and he's now a personal friend. I've never asked, but I would guess he'd be available for a tour of Cordoba as well. Toledo also has 3 old synagogues (not in use) and a Jewish museum worth a visit and is an easy day trip from Madrid - or even better as an overnight stay. Added bonus, the weather in Barcelona and Andalucia should be mostly warm and sunny.

In Amsterdam, besides the Anne Frank House, there is the beautiful Portuguese Synagogue and adjacent museum (closed on Shabbat).

I looked for "Jewish" in Berlin and found nearly none, so I am quite surprised that others even suggested it.

Chani, it's too bad if your visit to Amsterdam missed the rest of the Jewish Quarter, the Hollandsche Schouwburg, and the Dutch Resistance Museum.

I wonder if you should be giving second-hand internet advice about Berlin, a city you say you have never visited. Some people in my grandparents' generation swore they would never set foot in Germany [again]. Is your comment influenced by older people you knew?

Edit: Thanks, Judy. Those plaques are called stolpersteine (singular: stolperstein) and they are in multiple cities. I think there are some in Amsterdam, too. The internet has a registry of all the names. I hope you also saw the Neue Synagoge in Berlin. Besides being a magnificent (deconsecrated ... ) visit, it was one of the few that were not damaged and burned on Kristallnacht, which is an interesting story by itself.

I was in Berlin in June 2015 on a RS tour - Berlin, Prague & Vienna. Berlin was a marvelous surprise in so many ways! World War II history, Communism, art, music and culture and Jewish history abounded. We went to the Monument for the Murdered Jews of Europe which was incredibly moving and, not as a group, but in our free time, my traveling companion and I went to the Jewish Museum which we would not describe as an introduction to Judaism at all. It contained artifacts and stories of the Jews who were sent to Concentration camps, etc. We visited a neighborhood with the old Jewish cemetery, a Synagogue. Our guide pointed out the brass plates placed in the cobblestone and sidewalks commemorating the Jews who lived or worked in those places. Usually the name, birth date and the last date that person or family was known to be alive and where they were deported. I would say if you want Jewish history, go to Berlin. My traveling companion is Jewish and she was quite moved by it all. Btw, Prague has a lot of Jewish history there also.
Best,
Judy B

Tim - first, I was only pointing out a couple Jewish sites in Amsterdam. BTW I didn't find the Dutch Resistance Museum had much at all on Jews, but I only spent 2-3 hours there, so maybe I missed it. I did find it fascinating to learn about the Dutch resistance. Second, I don't know you say that I haven't been to Berlin. I stated that I looked for "Jewish" in Berlin which means I was there and looking. My host was an Israeli working there in an Israeli government post who knew the city well. The only Jewish sight that he told me about was the very moving sculpture by Frank Meisels (a contemporary Israeli artist) at the train station in Mitte. The stolpersteine don't tell anything about the interest the OP expressed in "Jewish history and culture." Nor do Shoah (misnamed Holocaust) memorials. My visit to the Berlin Memorial was traumatic, not because of the memories but because of the visitors' blatant disrespect for the sight. In spite of signs strictly forbidding it, there were children noisily running between the pillars playing hide and seek, there were teens leaping from pillar to pillar, and people sitting on the lower pillars picnicking. The staff around the site did nothing to stop any of it (I hope because they'd given up trying and not because they didn't care).

Judy - I'm sure it was very interesting and moving for you. However, people who are "particularly interested in Jewish history and culture" are generally looking for more than remembering the horrors of WWII.