Prague, Vienna, Budapest

I haven't been to Bratislava, mainly because I know some people who have been there a number of times (business) and they just were not that impressed and they keep suggesting other places first. Earlier this year I finally made it to Gyor, which is a stop on the rail line between Vienna and Budapest. The old baroque center is really fun and not overly populated by tourists. Just outside of the town, at Taxi ride away, is the Archabbey at Pannonhalma (I think I spelled that sort of correctly). There is even a monastery that has been converted to a pretty decent hotel. I've been to the famous abbey at Melk (outside of Vienna) and Pannonhalma is much better. Another trip, a little more difficult because of the distance and the transportation issues is Cesky Krumlov south of Prague. Wonderful town with a wonderful castle.

Between Prague and Vienna: Tabor, Telc, Mikulov, Jindrichuv Hradec (all small towns, with Telc being the most beautiful) or Brno.
Between Vienna and Budapest: Sopron, Lake Balaton (Tihany) or Bratislava. Bratislava and Brno are a mixture of Prague and Vienna, just a bit smaller. I would either choose Telc or Tihany.

With only three nights each in Prague, Budapest and Vienna and assuming he is taking the train (?) I would encourage something in route as opposed to a side trip. Balaton is sort of out of the way and Tihany (which I just love) is even more difficult to get to unless you have a car. I can think of a number of other places that work too but none as cleanly or with as much interest as Gyor and the Archabbey. Heck you could take a morning train out of Vienna spend the day in Gyor and the Archabbey (about 1.5 hours away from Vienna), then catch a late train on into Budapest; and it would be a great trip. Also depends on the time of year; in the spring Godollo is nice and its just a day trip as well; then there is the trip to the towns of the Danube bend followed by the boat taxi back into Budapest which i still do if the weather is good. Somethng special about entering Budapest on the river. Here is a help site for Budapest http://budapestflat.shutterfly.com/fivedaysinbudapest and if you poke around on that site there are some photos of some of the places listed.

Bratislava is not really a small town. And it is not on the train line between Vienna and Budapest. But it would be on your way if you would go Prague Budapest. Logistically very easy would be to visit chateau Valtice and Lednice. You would get off from train Prague-Vienna in Breclav and it is about 10 minutes by local train to Valtice. Chateau is about 1 km from the station. You can either walk or take a taxi. There is a hotel Hubertus in the wing of the chateau. More information about the hotel is on Google. Google also Lednice Valtice. You can also find useful information about the area in Rick Steves book: Prague & the Czech Republic. Hotel Hubertus is renting bicycles (at least it was when I was there). There is a nice ride (about 5 miles) to chateau Lednice (or you can take a taxi). In chateau Valtice there is a wine cellar where you can taste the best one hundred wines of the Czech Republic (probably not all of them). See this website: http://www.salonvin.cz If you don't speak Czech click on english.

Since you arrive on an overnight flight from the US and your first day isn't going to be your best, I'd simply add one night to the first city that you land in. Whichever of the three it is, if while there on Day 2 you find that you might have your fill before your time is up, book yourself into a day trip out of the city for Day 3 (or get the hotel to do it for you). Each of the cities on your list will offer a range of good day tours, if you want to do one on the spot. Chances are, there will still be things to see & do on your city's list by Day 3...

I would skip the side trip. So much to see and do in the three cities you are going to. If Prague is your first stop coming from an overseas flight I would take the extra night there.

Todd, One option would be to add a night in Prague and take a day trip to Cesky Krumlov. That would save the annoyance of a one-night stop. Cheers!

I assume you are flying into Budapest? There aren't many connections arriving before 11am so I a guessing by the time you get through passport control, pick up your bags (there really isn't any customs check) and out the front door to the cabs it will be close to noon if all is on schedule. Then 30 to 45 minutes to a hotel means you are checked in about 1 pm. Clean up and unwind and you are out the door sight seeing at 2pm. (I go to Budapest several times a year so I have this to a science .... If you are flying and if you are staying in a hotel). That website I referenced has an itinerary if you need help deciding what to do. But I left all the good stuff off like driving tanks and crawling through caves. Anyway, so you have Saturday and Sunday in Budapest. That's good. There are train almost continuously all day long to Gyor and again from Gyor to Vienna. Here's the rub. I checked the schedule and you may be out of luck at the Archabbey on a Monday and possibly completely out of luck no matter what day if it is prior to March 21st.
http://bences.hu/article/opening_times.html Of course I am wondering why so much time in Vienna? It's a lovely town but ..... and while this may start a battle I think another day in Budapest is better spent time. If you skip Gyor the train to Vienna is about 3.5 hours and a pretty easy trip. You can pretty much pick a departure time as the trains run all day and you will arrive in Vienna in much better shape than you did in Budapest after a 19 hour journey and 7 hours of time difference. Also if you haven't booked anything yet I would start in Prague. One, it might afford you the opportunity to see theArchabbey because you might be coming through after March 21st and second Budapest is a better place to decompress after a whirlwind trip. I think you might also find the flight connections to Prague a little easier.

Thanks for the great ideas. We will be arriving budapest on friday morning. Train to Vienna monday(Hopefully stop in Gyor for the archabbey, can we leave bags at the train station?) Friday to Prague
Depart monday morning for the states, and back to work, bummer! I make my own beer, so am wondering if anyone knows some breweries I can tour? Thanks for all the comments and I have 3 more months to plan.

I would suggest two breweries. One is in Prague and one is in Plzen (Pilsen). The one in Plzen is bigger and more famous. Plzen beer (Pilsner Urquell) is very good (IMHO the best). Brewery in Prague neighborhood Smichov is the second largest in C.R. and my brother considers its beer the best. You can easily do Plzen brewery in one day trip. Very good and frequent connection from Prague by train and bus. It's only 100 km (60 miles). You can check them on these websites: http://www.prague-stay.com/lifestyle/review/404-staropramen-brewery/ http://www.prazdrojvisit.cz/en

We are leaving south texas thursday march 7th and returning monday march 18th. I picked to fly into budapest because flights out of prague get us home that night without having to overnight in an airport somewhere. I have not booked the hotels so we are flexible on the nigths. I have no problem staying in budapest or prague a 4th night instead of Vienna. I would rather stay in 3 big cities and day trip as opposed to unpacking an extra time. I figured we would be at hotel around noon and after walking and getting acclimated we could go to a thermal bath friday afternoon. I am thinking that each day in Budapest we would tour and sightsee in the mornind and then mid-afternoon go to the baths and relax. Your thoughts are greatly appreciated.

I can generally find a flight back from Budapest (to San Antonio) that gets in about 8pm to 10pm the same day. But I guess finding a connection to Brownsville is a little more challenging. I've been in Budapest several times in March and it can be chilly but I have always been fortunate with good weather at that time of the year. It that time when the air is cold but the sun is warm and it just feels good to be outside. I have business that I should handle in Budapest in February but I am trying to stall so I can push it to mid March. Doubt I will succeed. I have no idea what your interests are but: Night of the Baths is the 10th of March. Sort of party time at the various bath houses with music, dance, light shows, etc. Never done it myself. March 15th is a holiday in Budapest. On one hand it's good that you are missing it on the other hand it's a little unfortunate. Hungary like a lot of Europe is struggling with what is being called Nationalism in a derogatory manner. The holidays quit often end up being great spectacles of protest done is a way only the Europeans can do it. It can be pretty interesting to witness. Other than the protests there are all sorts of activities along the embankment and on the chain bridge.
Budapest Spring Festival begins on the 16th of March which is always good. Here is a pretty off beat thing if you are interested in such: http://caving.hu/

I would also suggest the Opera which has a ballet on the bill for the 10th of March. Or the Operett Theater which has published March yet, but there is a good chance for an English subtitled program while you are in town. We've seen most of what they do in English and its all good. Let me know if you are into anything like Cold War or WWII history and I can point you to some interesting things. How about a Hospital/Fall Out Shelter deep in the heart of the Castle Hill that remained a secret for decades. Oh and the Zoo in Budapest is excellent as is the Jewish Quarter. See, there is a lot so you need to do a little focusing each day. The best part is that its all easily within reach if you stay in the right part of town; and Budapest is pretty inexpensive. Sword fights in basements? Gypsy dancers? Michelin Star restaurants or neighborhood dives? Wine, Wine, Wine....PALINKA!