Hi everyone,
I am a 22 year old college grad and am going on a trip to Europe this summer, May 25-June 15th. I have already created an itinerary that is fairly packed, but have 2 free days to dispense with. My itinerary is such: Munich (1 day/night), Venice(1 day/night), Florence(2 days, day trip to Pisa/Siena on the second day), Rome (3 nights), Cinque Terre(1 night), Nice/Monaco (2 nights), Barcelona (3 nights), Ibiza (1 night), Paris (3 nights).
This leaves me with two days and nights before I need to head back to Munich. The party consists of three guys (me included). My friends and I are stuck between two nights in Amsterdam and two nights in Interlaken. We all love partying and having a good time, which Amsterdam seems excellent for, but also all love the outdoors, and no trip to Europe seems quite complete without seeing views of the Alps. Interlaken and Gimmelwald seem absolutely amazing, but looking at the climate averages for these in late May/early June I have noticed an overwhelming majority of rainy days, which it seems would be quite miserable in a small village, vs. Amsterdam which should be fun in any weather. Any suggestions/comments/guidance on which one to pick would be GREATLY appreciated. I realize I am asking for an apples/oranges comparison, but if you only had two days in Europe and these two to pick from, which one would you pick? Which one is the quintessential European stop? Thank you so much!
Ignas
Posted by
victoria, Canada
11507 posts
You have no spare time you will be travelling constantly..LOL
As you say, the weather means some trails may still be snow covered. I love Switzerland, but, party land it is NOT, and it is more expensive then Amsterdam. You are young, you will likly come back to Europe again( why do young people always think they will never get back,, if you like it, you will be back, I promise, LOL ) so do Amsterdam this time.
PS.. do not bother with Pisa, what a waste of a day that was for us when we were 23, ( yes, about a hundred years ago, but I don't imagine its much more interesting now, LOL )
Personally I think you should sit down and figure out your train schedule and actual travel time, you seem to want to spend an inordinate time on trains..O]
Posted by
OP
Los Angeles, CA
12 posts
Thank you so much for your suggestion, Pat. I will go with what you said and go to Amsterdam.
Indeed, I have been looking at rail timetables and am definitely worried about all the time that will be spent travelling haha. To save some time we intend to use a night train from Munich to Venice and actually fly from Nice to Barcelona and from Barcelona to Paris as it seems those legs are simply too long by train if we are not even stopping anywhere in between. That leaves only two long legs - Cinque Terre to Nice, which I am hoping will be scenic, and Amsterdam back to Munich, which I might take the night train on. Is it worth it at all spending a day in Dusseldorf or Cologne on the way back to Munich?
Thanks for the suggestion on Pisa, I was thinking of just swinging by for an hour to take silly pictures with the tower. Would you say it's best to skip it altogether? Is Siena worthwhile for a day trip, on the other hand?
Posted by
Krems, Wachau, Austria
386 posts
Ignas,
I am wit Pat on this one, hands down!
Go with Amsterdam this time, and make a little room in your itinerary! You guys are young, I would say: go ahead with the night train Venice - Munich.
Posted by
Calgary, Alberta, Canada
368 posts
Like the others, go with Amsterdam and possibly pare down some of the rest of the trip as you are traveling as much as you are staying in places.
Also, where are you flying in and out of?
Posted by
San Diego, CA, USA
14 posts
Not even close - AMSTERDAM. The most beautiful city in the world and such a great place to enjoy at your age, heck - at any age. Of all my travels, Amsterdam is where I always want to go back to, simply for the beauty of the place. You'll enjoy the night life.
You have some excellent places picked out for your trip - be sure to walk the trails of the Cinque Terre between all of the towns, the views are just amazing. And stop for a Gelato in every town - try a new flavor each time, it beats ice cream hands down!!!
To answer your original question: Amsterdam is the quintessential European stop. The canals, the cobble stone streets, the wonderful people... it just goes on. Oh yea - pizza in Amsterdam is far better than what we get too.
Have a great time!
Posted by
OP
Los Angeles, CA
12 posts
Thanks, Cynthia, now you have me really excited about this trip =]
Jon, I am flying into and out of Munich. Which parts of the trip would you suggest changing/omitting?
Posted by
Vernon, Canada
32352 posts
Ignas,
Your Itinerary looks a bit too packed, to put it mildly! To begin with, have you booked your flights yet? I'd highly recommend using open jaw flights to avoid having to return to Munich. Schiipol is a major airport, and you should have no trouble finding flights from there.
The most significant potential problem areas are the few one-night stops you have listed, and no mention of travel times between destinations. Those will definitely have to be allowed for. With only 20 days for travel, I'd probably drop at least one of your stops, in order to allow for a more relaxed and practical pace. Also, have you allowed for the fact that you'll lose one day in flight times and time zone changes when you fly to Europe?
Good luck!
Posted by
OP
Los Angeles, CA
12 posts
Hi Ken,
I agree with you, however I have no experience of traveling through Europe so have no idea of how to budget my time better. I have attempted to input my itinerary from a little excel sheet I have been keeping. It contains the days and travel times. Any suggestions on places to drop/spend more time would be greatly appreciated. Thanks!
26-May Tuesday Munich ~5PM Day of Arrival
27-May Wednesday Munich- Venezia 21:03 6:03 Train Day spent in Munich/Night Train
28-May Thursday Day/Night In Venice
29-May Friday Venezia-Rome 7:47 12:10 Spend Day in Rome
30-May Saturday Rome
31-May Sunday Rome
1-Jun Monday Rome Florence 9:00 10:40 Day in Florence
2-Jun Tuesday Florence/Siena
3-Jun Wednesday Florence-Cinque Terre 7:58 9:51 Spend night in Cinque Terre
4-Jun Thursday Cinque Terre-Nice 7:01 12:06 Spend day in Nice
5-Jun Friday 23:15 0:25 Spend day in Nice/Day trip to Monaco/FLIGHT to Barcelona
6-Jun Saturday Barcelona
7-Jun Sunday Barcelona
8-Jun Monday Barcelona
9-Jun Tuesday FLY Barcelona-Paris 7:30 9:10 Spend day in Paris
10-Jun Wednesday Paris
11-Jun Thursday Paris
12-Jun Friday Paris-Amsterdam 8:25 12:36 Day in Amsterdam
13-Jun Amsterdam
14-Jun Sunday Amsterdam-Cologne 8:04 10:45 Night Train to Munich Day trip to Cologne/ Night train 23:46 to 07:16.
15-Jun Monday -Neil Departs at 10:10 to DUS/ Ignas 13:25 to VNO
Posted by
OP
Los Angeles, CA
12 posts
Wow that Excel sheet didn't post well at all. =(
Posted by
Vernon, Canada
32352 posts
Ignas,
You're right, the Excel sheet didn't transfer well to this format. I can see the general order of your Itinerary, but it's difficult to understand. You might try re-listing it here in point form.
You didn't indicate if you've booked your flights to Europe, or the flights on the airline to Barcelona?
If you haven't done so already, I'd suggest having a look at the Guidebook Europe Through The Back Door as there's some good tips there on Itinerary planning. Also since you haven't travelled in Europe before, you'll need to be especially aware of "Rail skills".
IMHO you'll need to drop at least one of the stops you have planned (I'd start with the one-night stops). Which one will depend on which places you most want to see? Hopefully some of the others here will have some good suggestions also.
I'll send you a PM with another tip that might help you to put together a more workable and practical Itinerary.
Cheers!