New Years in Eastern Europe

I think you should widen your choices to include Central Europe as well as Eastern Europe. We have spent Christmas and New Year in Budapest and Moscow; and the winter months in general in Austria, Hungary, Russia, Slovakia and Romania. It can be sort of magic with the snow all around. The Christmas Markets in Central Europe are a lot of fun (they generally stay open until New Year) and its also the time of year when the theaters, operas and various concerts are at their zenith. There is always a lot to do in the Winter. But beware of one thing; Christmas eve and Christmas day is pretty much family time in most of Central and Eastern Europe so the streets can be pretty empty after about 4 pm on Christmas eve. If you decide on Budapest I can give you some ideas for restaurants for New Year or even Christmas if you are interested. Rent an apartment and I know a 5 star hotel restaurant that will deliver to you a complete Goose Dinner for Christmas (or was it Turkey?). That was last year but I suppose they will do it again. Air fares from the U.S. are always sort of iffy. I have heard all of the tips on when to book to get the best rates and for me they haven't really been that real. A couple of days ago I purchased my tickets to Budapest for the first week in October and got the better rates than I had in the three previous trips in the last 18 months. The tickets for June were the most expensive I have ever purchased and I got them in early April. I'm pretty particular. I don't like running through airports to make connections and I don't like bad seats so I tend to book a little early for the seat selection and to ensure I can find connections with just the right layovers.

CONTINUED: Hotels. Generally 60 days out hasn't been a problem for me. Christmas is still the low season and while airlines can cut back on flights the hotel can't cut back on rooms so there is generally a surplus. In Budapest I rent an apartment to tourists and I have noticed that most of my clients book 30 days in advance at most; no matter what time of the year. I wouldn't cut it that close in the high season. Poke around on this site and you can find some photos of winter in various Central and Eastern European countries. http://budapestflat.shutterfly.com/bp3

Celenda, Go to this website: http://budapestflat.shutterfly.com/fivedaysinbudapest On the right hand side of the page you will find a link to a PDF file called "PRAGUE, VIENNA or BUDAPEST"

We are looking at Central Europe too. Maybe Budapest, Vienna, Prague with train passage between. Seems doable.

Thanks, James. Is that your apartment? The site is a wealth of great information.

Yes, thats our little labor of love. I'm glad you found some useful information on the site. Let me know if i can help.