We're going to France (Paris & possibly one other place toward southeast - maybe Cote d'azur); Italy Cinque Terra; Switzerland for Jungfrau train; Germany Rothenburg and Romantic Road; Frankfurt. We'd like to have some flexibility on how long to stay, route changes, etc. BUT we're going at the end of July, beginning of August. Do I need to give up on flexibility just to be sure we'll have lodging? There are 5 in our group so I need family lodging or D & T rooms. Am I nuts? If we do remain flexible, how can I prepare a good list of potential places to take along so we can reserve en route a couple days ahead?
Posted by
Puyallup, WA, USA
881 posts
Off season, sure. End of Jul through August? NUTS, I say!
Posted by
Puyallup, WA, USA
881 posts
PS - Most hotels will let you reserve and cancel at no fee if you cancel a couple days in advance. If you're not 100% sure of your schedule, reserve hotels with good cancellation policies, in places you might wind up,and just be diligent about canceling.
Might cost you a couple dollars in phone calls or cancellation fees, but makes sure you have a place to stay.
Posted by
near NY, NJ, USA
445 posts
Yes you are nuts!!!!!! A. it will be the height of the season. B. you have special needs in terms of rooms (no just being lucky to find A room!)
If you wish to do a flexible trip like this, you cannot do it in the summer. So there is a tradeoff for traveling in the height of SUMMER!!!
And any thoughts of traveling economically go out the window as you would have to take what you can get
Posted by
Denver, CO, USA
1601 posts
I tend to agree that with 5 in your group you are going to take a hit on your flexibility. Are you willing to split the group and stay in different hotels? Do you have a car to stay outside of town if everything in town is full?
You could also be sacrificing significant time just searching for a place that you could have spent sightseeing, etc. This will also tire you out quicker.
If this was the off season I would say wing it. You could have some flexibility if you are going off the beaten path - i.e. 2 years ago when traveling through Romania, Bulgaria and Macedonia we waited till we got into town to book our hotels. However, I would tend not to leave this to chance in the highly touristed parts of W. Europe where you are headed.
Posted by
Sacramento, California U.S.A.
10609 posts
I think that Chris had an excellent suggestion.
Posted by
Lake Forest, CA, USA
1633 posts
Travelling by car or train?
Posted by
Vernon, Canada
32355 posts
Becky,
At that time of year (when many Europeans are also taking holidays) and given the specifics of your room requirements, my suggestion would be to forego spontaneity and pre-book your rooms. Given the fact that your trip is only about a month away, you may have difficulty finding vacancies now.
The risks of not pre-booking are that you may waste a lot of expensive holiday time looking for something when you first arrive in a new town, might have to pay more than you budgeted or may have to accept something in a dodgy part of town.
Also, as the previous post asked, are you travelling by train or car?
Cheers!