7 Night European Trip for College Kids - Looking for Recommendations

What’s a short time?

Amsterdam and London. Three distinctly different cities.

I enjoyed the same places as a 20 year old that I enjoy now. Hard to say what they might enjoy without knowing their interests.

Art? History? Hiking? Beaches? Partying?

I would recommend a lot more than 2 nights in Paris. They could easily spend all 7 nights there. But during the Olympics it might be challenging to find lodging on such short notice.

With 7 nights, I'd recommend Eurostar to Amsterdam. Paris and Amsterdam is about all there is time for with 7 nights. They could also arrange a stop in Brussels on the way (either direction) just to explore for an afternoon. The Grand Place has a high "wow" factor first-timers would get a kick out of.

Paris and Rome..... if there are no particular interests.

^^^^ Paris and Rome were actually my first thoughts as well. Berlin and Hamburg are also popular with that age group for "stag" parties (in my understanding - not personal experience!).

Perhaps Munich? Plenty of young people and beer to enjoy.

This is such a short trip that they should meet the friend in Amsterdam or Paris, not in Metz. I think Amsterdam is particularly attractive for Americans who have never been to Europe, because almost everyone speaks fluent English. Can they resist the Brown Cafes? Have they ever slept without air conditioning in the summer?

This is not a normal "vacation" trip, but Paris and Rome are each good for 7 nights for a first-time visitor who has two weeks abroad. I say that not to be bossy, but to suggest that asking about 1 or 2 nights in Paris may show a mis-calibration of scheduling. It will take more than half a day to get to another major city, so they need to plan conservatively. You are right that they need to be in Paris the night before they fly out.

You or the kids might buy (or go to the library) for Rick Steves Paris, partly because he has so much information about going to Europe for first-time visitors. Have they looked at train times yet?

I agree that the Olympics are a big potential problem. Especially IF the friend wants to meet them in Metz, perhaps they should do Strasbourg (a small city) and Cologne, or Strasbourg and Rome (or Amsterdam) if you insist on a big city.

hey hey marniebeckeris
are they staying with friend in metz? too bad they didn’t do a multicity flight (into one city out from another, no backtracking).
7 days is a short time, does that include travel days which is 5 days total, check train schedules, check-in time usually 3-4pm check-out time 10-11am, figure in jet lag with flight over, crowds and heat to deal with, be careful with the “partying” issues, whatever that means to them. staying within towns near paris or eurostar to Amsterdam or Brussels (expensive transportation/accomodations) for 2 days since we are near June and late planning stage, budget in euros, notifying bank of travel overseas, checking international phone plans, age to rent hotel within France and finding a place for 3 guests.
so much to think about mom, and wanting them to enjoy & have fun. with the olympics happening, not only paris will be crowded and busy but everywhere. have them make a list what they want to see/do, attractions booked like yesterday. good luck with planning and no stressing
aloha

My first visit to Rome was a mere 3 days. No regrets. Beats not seeing it at all. I would do 3 there and 3 in Paris. Good introduction to Europe.

Seven nights: they don’t have time to travel far, so here are some close possibilities. From Metz it’s a reasonable train ride to Trier a lovely university town which has an abundance of Roman ruins. Another possibility is Strasbourg on the French-German border.

Here's something to think about while planning. A 5 to 6 hour train ride takes about the same amount of time as a 1 or 2 hour flight ..... door to door.

From Paris, you can reach a big chunk of Europe by a plane in 1 or 2 hours.

If they can appreciate the history, I think they’d love Berlin. So diverse, and everyone speaks English.

With my kids, I wanted them to have some understanding of how the West got where it was, so throughout school I made them read the classics workig from Homer forward. They dont really teach much of that any more. Then when they were 21 I sent them to Athens, Rome, Paris and London. To some degree it worked, in one case it backfired ... he got a degree in Philosophy (but has a good job as an officer in the USAF). Sort of why I suggested Rome. That and the kids get a kick out of seeing the locals strutting around dressed like Centurions; and in seriousness, they have some concept of where they are going from television.

If they like history and partying, then I say that they fly to Rhodes for 3-4 days and then spend the rest of the time in Paris.