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Week long trip in March - deciding between three locations (Spain, Italy, Central Europe)

Posted by on

Hi everyone,

I am looking to take a week long trip in early March to Europe.

Currently deciding between three locations (flying out of NYC metro area)...

1.) Spain - Andalusia region - specifically seville, cordoba, malaga

2.) Italy - Was thinking either Rome and Umbria; Tuscany (Sienna, Pienza, Montepulciano, San gimignano) or Florence and Bologna

3.) Prague and Budapest

For some more background, I would be traveling with my husband. We are in our late 20s. We like walkable cities, food/drink, some museums/history.

I have traveled before to Ireland, Scotland, England, and Sweden and have enjoyed all of those countries.

I would love to go to Italy but not sure early March is the right time of year to go and if I should save it for another time.

Posted by
6949 posts

I see you deleted the previous thread that asked the same questions.

Any of these areas would work, depending on your likes, preferences, and priorities. Unquestionably, Andalucia would have the milder weather conditions, and likely lower odds of rain or snow. OTOH, Budapest will be the coldest of the 3 areas, with even the possibility of freezing weather. Rome and Tuscany sits in the middle. Cooler than Spain but warmer than Budapest. It's off season in all 3 areas but Florence and Rome have larger numbers of tourists all year round.

You already have a thread about Italy itineraries, with some replies. If you aren't going to proceed with a trip there, you should post that on that thread.

Posted by
24988 posts

If weather is a determining factor, then I would go to Weatherspark and do a comparison. Here is one with some of the locations you mentioned. https://weatherspark.com/compare/y/77807~84771~34152~69010/Comparison-of-the-Average-Weather-in-Prague-Budapest-Sevilla-and-Florence Beats the heck out of guessing.

Cost, Central Europe wins, followed by Spain. Well, that doesn’t count airfare. I don’t know about that.

Appropriate for a weeklong trip? Well, you could marginally do two cities in a week. Let’s call a week 9 days because of the second weekend. So, Travel 1 night, Prague/Florence 3 or 4 nights, Budapest/Rome 4 or 5 nights. Or you could spend the entire week in Rome for that matter. So, if your hope is to see a lot of Italy or Spain, save them for longer trips.

Then there is what you are going for. Others can help you on the other cities, in Budapest in March it can be a little cold, but because it’s so dry the sky is the most amazing blue. Some of the outside cafes are open (heck, some are open now and we have snow on the ground). The bathhouse runs year round, the jazz clubs and music scenes are active as are the theaters and if you are in town after the 14th of March the Spring festival should be in full operation. Other cities have similar; you just have to match what interests you.

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