Trip 2012

Virginia, I'm not too familiar with the flight options from Boston to Europe, however you might find it helpful to have a look at This Website. For travel from Krakow to Nice, using one of the budget airlines would be my choice. Have a look at This Website to see what the choices are. You didn't say when you'd be travelling, so all the schedules for next year may not be posted yet. You didn't say where in northern France you wanted to visit, but I'd probably take the TGV from Nice to Paris and then regular train to your ultimate destination. Without knowing your ultimate destination in "northern France", it's difficult to make specific suggestions. Good luck with your planning!

You need to do a lot more research and come back to this web site with more specific information for dates and places to get good replies from the folks here, otherwise all you will only be getting general information from what you have posted so far. You might also want to check with a local travel agent for some additional information to help you refine your plans. Happy travels.

After reading my post, I realize how vague it is! I would like to leave on May 28, 2012 and arrive in Krackow the next morning (Saturday) I would like to spend a week in Poland. I don't want to go to Wasaw. I won't have a car so will have to rely on trains and buses for my vacation. From there I would like to fly to Northern France, how to get there? The one place I would dearly love to see is Giverny. I would like to spend a week in Northern France and a week in Southern France. I have stayed in Southern France for the last two vacations 2010 and 2011. Now...how to get from Krackow to Northern France and what to see for one week in Poland and 1 week in Northern France?
What would my fellow travelers give for advice? Hope this is less vague.

We went to Europe last summer, 6/13-6/30. We began planning about in March. We began by picking cities that we wanted to see. We sketched out a tentative itinerary. One suggestion - come up with your itinerary, and then spend $75 to consult with Rick's advisor group. They can help you confirm or broaden your ideas. Get Rick's books - we used them pretty religiously - my daughter's facebook page is "In Rick Steves we trust" and that is true - we followed him carefully. Once you determine where you are going to stay and for how long, then use the internet to get rooms. I did one group at a time - it probably took a week to get reasonable prices for each night - prices are higher than the US for cheap stays. We did about E 80 / night for a family of 5, but some nights were more expensive. I was hoping to do E 60, but we never got that cheap. Long stays are better and cheaper than short stays. So, in conclusion, to get help, you need a VERY SPECIFIC itinerary, and very specific plans about how many nights, etc.

Virginia, For the trip from Krakow to "northern France", my choice would be an EasyJet flight from KRK to CDG. They currently have flights listed with a departure at 15:40, flight time 2H:15M and fares as low as €51.22 (subject to change of course). Note that the cost will be slightly higher when the baggage and booking fees are added. After arrival at CDG, you can make your way to Giverny. Without a car, you'll likely have to travel from the airport to Gare St. Lazare via RER and Metro, and then take a train to Vernon. From there you can take a Taxi (~€15) or Shuttle (~€4) to Giverny. For the trip to "southern France", travel back to Gare St. Lazare, Metro to your departure station (Gare de Lyon?) and then by TGV to Nice (or wherever you'll be staying). Cheers!

We visited Krakow for a week in 2006, avoiding Warsaw since RS doesn't give the city a positive recommendation. As part of our travels in eastern Europe last fall we spent 3 nights in Warsaw and absolutely LOVED the city. We stayed in the Castle Square area, visited the rebuilt castle and the Old Town area, traveled around the city on buses visiting the Wilanov Palace and enjoyed interacting with the wonderful people of Warsaw. RS gives the city too little credit. The people are wonderful, the second generation whose parents' strenght was forged by the horrors of WWII. It is a contrast to Krakow, which was unscathed by WWII, but Warsaw has done a wonderful job of recreating as much of their old charm as possible after being nearly totally destroyed in 1945. Don't sell the city short. Cut a couple days off Krakow and southern France and "meet" the wonderful city and people of Warsaw.