Suggestions for Two-Week Vacation

Jake, before you get too much further in your planning process, you need to decide how important a role the weather plays in your decisions. While much of the Mediterranean coast will still have temperatures within your comfort range (ie >45º), as you move inland you'll find that temperatures go down. Play around with the weather data you can find here: http://www.wunderground.com/tripplanner/index.asp and you'll get a clearer idea of where you might want to stay. On the other hand, keep in mind that the areas which are warmer during the day may not have a heater installed, and during the night you will be chillier than if you were in the North. My wife and I usually travel during the winter season (great way to avoid crowds) and have had fabulous experiences in Amsterdam, etc. Part of the reason we like the trips is the opportunity of staying in hotels with central heating -- something our apartment in Barcelona is lacking! In a couple of hours I'll head for the airport for a trip to Portugal. Since the hostel where I'll stay has no heating, I'm taking a wool sports coat (yes, in July!). I can't remember a trip to Portugal where I haven't been cold. To those of us from the South, weather is a factor.

Jake - We took a two week trip over the winter holidays, arriving in Amsterdam the day after Christmas. We spent one night there, went to Bruges for two nights and spent the next 10 nights in Paris. The warmest temp we experienced during those two weeks was about 34F. I'm not talking night time temps either! It was in the teens at night. We thought we prepared for the cold weather, bringing layers, wool socks, etc. Although we had a great time, we froze our butts off. For me it was mostly my feet and hands. I had warm socks and Ugg boots, but still felt at times that I was getting frostbite! If you think that the cold will be an issue you should seriously consider staying in Southern Europe. I would rather be cold at night trying to sleep (bring warm PJ's) than be cold all day while outside seeing the sites. Maybe I'm just a big baby when it comes to being cold, but if you are asking this I suspect you might be the same... ;-) Maybe going a month earlier than we did will make a difference too.

For late fall/early winter travel in western Europe, realize that the climate is often more mild than the northeastern US, if you're using that as a comparison. Wih the exception of the Alpine areas and far northern Scandinavia, you are unlikely to encounter uncomfortably cold weather at this time. The biggest difference, however, is that daylight hours are much shorter. This doesn't affect sight-seeing in the cities, but can limit your options in rural areas, like Provence.

Well I have not been to all of these places in Nov/Dec. but i have many times gone to London and Paris. Since I live in the NE, I always find the temperatures in both of those places. warmer than at home but probably damper. I have done these trips many times so I feel confident about this.

Even at home late-Nov./early December are transitional months and the weather is variable so
it is difficult to say a hard and fast rule. But I always dress appropriately for cold weather and take gloves, hat, etc. I like traveling with a raincoat with a zip-out liner as you can adjust it to
the temps. Als o it covers your trousers if caught in rain.

The charm of Provence lies in the countryside for the most part. Avignon and Arles are good bases as
they are good all year-round cites with lots of restaurants, etc. that are not necessarily geared to
tourism. Although I have not been there in Nov. and Dec., it is the time of the olive harvest so the weather can't be that bad. There are places like
Nimes that you can visit in a day trip. You would just have to have an early start due to the short days.

I would think that Italy would be a good idea as well. But you might want to base your self in a city so you have enough restaurant choices, etc.

There is a good weather website where you can look up weather ranges for various times. You can even check on the temp. for a specific day in years past.
It is the Weather Underground and I cannot remember the exact web address. It has been mentioned here frequently and you could Google it. Contains very useful information.

Just remember that it always feels colder when you are in the country and always at higher altitudes.

I would just research places like mad to find out if places are open, etc. This is easily done using Google.

Good luck and happy planning.