I studied these boards extensively leading up to my trip so thought I would repay the community with my own report :)
Who: Me (female age 40) and my 16 year old son on a mother-son European adventure
When: March 17 - March 29 of 2023 ( we than flew to Athens on March 30th and cruised Greece until April 8th)
Where: We began our trip in Prague on the 17th of March and ended part 1 in Rome on March 29th.
My son and I flew from Canada to Prague on British Airways on March 17th - we stayed at Grand Hotel Praha for 3 nights (18th - 21st) in a room with a window facing the Astronomical Clock. The hotel was perfect for what we wanted - something with character in a fantastic location and a great breakfast each morning. It was wonderful to be able to watch the clock from our room window and look down at the crowd. We spent our days in Prague simply exploring on foot - we walked everywhere and visited the Jewish Quarter, Prague Castle and all surrounding alleyways along with some shopping and alot of eating! Loved the Chimney cakes and one of my most atmospheric meals I have ever enjoyed was in Prague at the Charles Bridge Restaurant on the little corner outdoor patio looking up at the bridge in the dark - very memorable.
March 21st - we got up at the crack of dawn and caught the 5:30am direct train to Munich - this was very uneventful and we were in Munich by 11:30am. We stayed at the Eden Wolf Hotel directly across from the Hauptbahnhof - very nice hotel in a very convenient location! We spent the day enjoying the Munich Hop on Hop off bus, eating pretzel sandwiches and having a delecious dinner at the Ratskeller in the Old town - very good food in a great atmosphere.
March 22nd - we left Munich after breakfast for our next 3 night stay in Salzburg - the train ride to Salzburg was a highlight for me as it was so exciting to see the mountains coming into view as we got closer to the city! We had 3 nights booked at the Radisson Hotel Altstadt right in the Old Town - we had a huge room here with wooden beam across the ceiling and a view out the window of the Fortress up on the hill. This was a fantastic hotel with an amazing breakfast spread overlooking the river. 10/10. Our 3 days in Salzburg were probably our very favorites overall - we explored the Fortress, we shopped, we took a daytrip to Hallstatt with Panorama Tours and we just explored on foot the entire area - our best meal in Salzburg was definitely at Barenwirt - the best potato salad and fried chicken!
March 25 - we headed off from Salzburg to Florence via Verona - this was a scenic train ride day as we went through the Brenner Pass where we encountered falling snow - very beautiful . The day was a bit long feeling and we were exhausted by the time we finally made it to Florence. Florence unfortunately failed to charm us as it was extremely crowded especially compared to the calm and peace of Salzburg - we had a great room at Hotel Baglioni near the train station but we weren't in love so after one night in Florence, we packed up a day early and headed off to Rome.
March 26 - 30 - Rome. This was our second time to Rome and we stayed at the same hotel as last time - the Rhea Silvia Luxury Navona - this property is located directly in Piazza Navona and is one of my favorite hotels I have ever stayed in. I just LOVE Rome and can't get enough of it - we spent these next days just eating and again, slowly exploring the city by foot - Vatican City, the Colosseum area, Via Del Corso etc. - we had no bad meals in Rome and would return in a heartbeat. It was with sad hearts that we said goodbye to part 1 of our mother son trip on March 30th and flew to Athens where we boarded a cruise until April 8th. We loved the cruise as well - but it honestly didn't even come close to comparing to this whole section of our trip! A total 10/10 mother son trip of a lifetime!