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Post by merry27 on Apr 26, 2023 21:15:04 GMT
I’m planning a trip to Europe towards the end of summer. I would like to go for 2 weeks and spend time in Paris, Italy and somewhere in Germany. Ive been to Rome and would like to go somewhere else. Never been to Germany and not sure where to go. Only want to spend 3 days in Paris. Where would you recommend going? We like touristy stuff, good food and beautiful scenery. Also, any tips for planning a trip with multiple airports? We travel quite a bit but usually stay in the same place and I use Travelocity.
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Anita
Drama Llama
Posts: 5,646
Location: Kansas City -ish
Jun 27, 2014 2:38:58 GMT
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Post by Anita on Apr 26, 2023 21:23:09 GMT
If you are going to Italy and you are looking for beautiful scenery, you can't miss the Amalfi coast. Hands down the most beautiful place I have ever seen. The best touristy spot there has to be the duomo in the city of Amalfi.
You should also go see Monte Cassino if you haven't already. And Herculaneum.
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Post by ~summer~ on Apr 26, 2023 21:43:07 GMT
I am planning a trip to Europe in September so have also been looking at different option.
For Italy, I am looking at Rome and Positano. I am also looking at Barcelona and Cadeques.
In France, you could add on Provence and the Cote D’Azure. I’m doing that next year.
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Post by Ryann on Apr 26, 2023 21:43:14 GMT
Cinque Terre in Italy is on my bucket list!
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Post by ntsf on Apr 26, 2023 22:01:36 GMT
be sure to reserve a seat if traveling by train in germany. somehow all my research did not bring up that tip.
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Post by birukitty on Apr 26, 2023 23:01:00 GMT
3 countries in 2 weeks is going to be full of travel time with less time seeing sights and enjoying yourself. Maybe consider narrowing that list down to 2 countries?
I'm planning a trip to Germany in May of 2024 for DH and myself. We'll be going for 2 weeks and then I'll be spending an additional week by myself. In Germany I love the Bavaria section-that's where you'll find the Alps and the most picturesque towns. We are planning on flying into Frankfurt and then hitting Mainz (I went to kindergarten here as a child), Rothenburg, Bamberg, Nuremberg, Regensburg, Salzburg, Mittenwald and Fussen. We are getting rail passes and switching cities/towns every 2 days. I did this 5 years ago as a solo trip and had a blast. A lot of tourists prefer to stay in one town or two as a base camp and make day trips from there (like Munich) but I don't. For one thing I like to see the towns in the evening and take additional photos after all of the day tourists leave, plus to me it's an additional train ride back to your home base.
As far as reserving a train seat in Germany-that depends. On the time of year that you go-high season vs. low season. And if the train you are taking is one that will be a high volume train. There is a wonderful website you can find at bahn.com. It's in english and very easy to navigate. Has a fantastic app as well. It will tell you how long each train ride will take, what it will cost and whether that particular train will be a high volume train.
I follow a German travel planning group on facebook and it's helped even with my previous trip experience.
BTW, I've also booked our hotels already through booking.com booking hotels with cancellation policies. It was shocking to me how many already had no openings even a year in advance!
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Post by Merge on Apr 26, 2023 23:24:09 GMT
I agree that three countries is a lot. If you decide to go into Germany from France, we love the Alsace region. Lots of wineries and quaint villages, and you can pop over to Cologne (Köln), which we loved. Very cosmopolitian, Roman history, medieval cathedral, lots of good food.
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Post by Marina on Apr 26, 2023 23:31:56 GMT
For Paris the touristy things include: Arc de Triomphe, Champs Elysees, Eiffel Tower, Latin Quarter with Sainte Chapelle, Louvre, Musee D'Orsay, and a day trip out to Versailles.
You might want to Google Rick Steves as he usually has itineraries for cities and can give you some ideas of what to see in just a few days.
I love Florence so would recommend a stop there. In Germany get reservations for Neuschwanstein Castle if that is something you would like to see. We could not get in there when were were there as they filled up.
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Post by Basket1lady on Apr 26, 2023 23:42:43 GMT
Ah, the quandary of multiple cities vs really exploring an area! It sounds like you have been before, so it sounds like you’ve decided your plan. There’s no right or wrong.
You said the end of the summer. Just know that Europe takes their holiday mid-July to mid-August. Smaller places may shut down as the employees are all on holiday. And if they remain open, it’s likely to be mobbed. When we lived in Belgium, we stayed home or did less popular day trips those first 3 weeks of August. It’s just easier. I’m not sure that I would do the Amalfi coast in those weeks, but it is on my bucket list! Also know that Italy and likely Paris will be hotter than Hades at that time. It takes a lot of energy to keep going when it’s super hot and a/c isn’t always available.
So after all that negativity, the last week of August and the first few weeks of September are great times to travel. The tourist season is winding down, but sites often still keep their summer hours and the weather can be a little cooler. Kids are back in school and a lot of the crazy that comes from family vacations dies down.
For Germany—we loved the Oberammergau (Bavaria) area. There’s a lot to do, it’s not as touristy, and it’s at a higher elevation and cooler. For Italy, I’ve always wanted to do Florence. Some day!
For travel, check train prices as well. By the time to get to an airport early, go through security, and take the flight, it can be faster. Watch for direct or express trips that are more expensive, but faster and will take you less time as there are fewer stops.
For flying, you may want to check Ryan Air. Flights are bare bones but dirt cheap. Use the EU site vs the US site and you will save even more money. If you use traditional airlines, there’s a box to check that says something like “3 cities+” or something like that. It can be cheaper than booking non stops or air and train trips. Also know that prices are likely to be double or higher if you are in that mid-July to mid-August window for both air and train.
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sueg
Prolific Pea
Posts: 8,055
Location: Munich
Apr 12, 2016 12:51:01 GMT
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Post by sueg on Apr 27, 2023 6:34:15 GMT
In Italy, I would go to Florence/Tuscany. Great food and wine (we were lucky enough to be there when the Chianti festival was on, and there was a parade around Florence!), great scenery in the surrounding area and fabulous museums and galleries (book in advance for the Uffizi and Academia). In Germany, I am a little biased, as I live in Munich, but again it is a beautiful part of the world. Munich/Bavaria is probably the image most people have in mind when they think of Germany -mountains, big beers, schnitzels and pork knuckles etc. You can easily travel to Neuschwanstein Castle and Salzburg for day trips from Munich. Berlin also has amazing history and I also quite liked Leipzig and Dresden, both cities that were in the DDR.
One thing I learned when travelling Europe by train a few years back is that Germany (Deutsche Bahn) is one of the few national rail companies that doesn't require seat reservation for its Very Fast Trains. Sometimes, it won't matter, but if you are travelling with a partner or a group and you'd prefer to sit together, then you should reserve. Otherwise, you could end up spread all over a carriage, or even in different carriages. I recently travelled by ICE from Munich to Frankfurt and on some sections there were far more people than seats, so I was glad I had my seat reserved.
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Post by h2ohdog on Apr 27, 2023 7:08:35 GMT
If you are going to Italy and you are looking for beautiful scenery, you can't miss the Amalfi coast. Hands down the most beautiful place I have ever seen. The best touristy spot there has to be the duomo in the city of Amalfi. You should also go see Monte Cassino if you haven't already. And Herculaneum. I’m giving myself a retirement present of a trip to Sorrento and the Amalfi coast this fall. This is great information. Grazie!
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Post by smasonnc on Apr 27, 2023 13:09:37 GMT
Cinque Terre in Italy is on my bucket list! I was going to say Cinque Terre. A friend who takes groups to Italy gave me the best advice. We stayed in Santa Margherita Ligure which is gorgeous. From there, we took the train for a day trip to Cinque Terre. You can also walk or take a 15 minute bus ride to Portofino. Both connections are really simple. The train is up the hill and the bus runs right by the hotels. Both Cinque Terre and Portofino are very busy and expensive. Santa Margherita was charming and much more relaxed. At Cinque Terre, you can hike or there is a train that runs along all five villages. Some of the hiking trails got washed out at one point so they may not all be open. We liked the last two villages the best, Manarola and Riomaggiore, but they're all beautiful.
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Post by nightnurse on Apr 27, 2023 13:59:33 GMT
My Italy vote is for Venice. The city itself is such an experience then there’s the amazing food and art. We ate at Trattoria di Nico 20 years ago and I’ve never forgotten the risotto.
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Post by gar on Apr 27, 2023 15:10:59 GMT
My Italy vote is for Venice. The city itself is such an experience then there’s the amazing food and art. We ate at Trattoria di Nico 20 years ago and I’ve never forgotten the risotto. I agree that Venice is such a wonderful city
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Post by smasonnc on Apr 27, 2023 17:05:51 GMT
My Italy vote is for Venice. The city itself is such an experience then there’s the amazing food and art. We ate at Trattoria di Nico 20 years ago and I’ve never forgotten the risotto. Venice is unforgettable, something beautiful everywhere you turn. If you go there, just try to get Por Una Cabezza out of your head every time you think of it. (And yes, tango is not Italian) The orchestras in St. Mark's Square play it all the time. It's lovely. Por Una Cabezza
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Post by tallgirl on Apr 27, 2023 17:14:40 GMT
If you are going to Italy and you are looking for beautiful scenery, you can't miss the Amalfi coast. Hands down the most beautiful place I have ever seen. The best touristy spot there has to be the duomo in the city of Amalfi. You should also go see Monte Cassino if you haven't already. And Herculaneum. I’m giving myself a retirement present of a trip to Sorrento and the Amalfi coast this fall. This is great information. Grazie! Sorrento was our favourite spot in the whole Amalfi area when we visited last August. All of the charm and less of the pretentiousness of the whole area. Try to find time to eat at Enjoy the Little Things Bistrot in Sorrento - best meal of our entire 2 weeks in Italy and an incredible value - so good, we went there twice! Have a lovely time.
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Post by Tearisci on Apr 27, 2023 17:19:32 GMT
I would recommend Tuscany and Umbria if you have a car. I stayed in Florence and drove down through Tuscany and ended up having lunch in Orvieto which was such a cute town. Florence was a bit too touristy for me but it was nice to get out and explore on my own. I went here: Civita di Bagnoregio and it was amazing! If I were to go back, I'd spent more time in the medieval hill towns more off of the beaten path.
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Post by imkat on Apr 27, 2023 18:41:39 GMT
For Italy, I recommend Venice. The canals make it very unique compared to other cities. Since it is in northern Italy, you are not too far from Germany. As others recommended, Bavaria is very pretty with the Neuschwanstein castle and you might be able to catch Oktoberfest in late September/early October in Munich. Salzburg is very lovely too.
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Post by Darcy Collins on Apr 27, 2023 22:05:24 GMT
My Italy vote is for Venice. The city itself is such an experience then there’s the amazing food and art. We ate at Trattoria di Nico 20 years ago and I’ve never forgotten the risotto. Venice is unforgettable, something beautiful everywhere you turn. If you go there, just try to get Por Una Cabezza out of your head every time you think of it. (And yes, tango is not Italian) The orchestras in St. Mark's Square play it all the time. It's lovely. Por Una Cabezza But in late AUGUST? I regretted early July and hear it just gets worse as summer goes on and then begins to emit some rather unpleasant odors.
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Post by Darcy Collins on Apr 27, 2023 22:06:13 GMT
I’m giving myself a retirement present of a trip to Sorrento and the Amalfi coast this fall. This is great information. Grazie! Sorrento was our favourite spot in the whole Amalfi area when we visited last August. All of the charm and less of the pretentiousness of the whole area. Try to find time to eat at Enjoy the Little Things Bistrot in Sorrento - best meal of our entire 2 weeks in Italy and an incredible value - so good, we went there twice! Have a lovely time. We loved Positano - pretentiousness and all! We only had 4 nights, and really wished we'd booked a whole week.
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Post by Darcy Collins on Apr 27, 2023 22:09:42 GMT
Sorry for the repeated responses, I should have read the whole thread then added my thoughts! We loved Bavaria! Added on Salzburg which was fun as a Sound of Music fan. We rented a car and drove and had zero issue. German roads and signage is excellent. I also agree with an above poster than Tuscany is amazing and a car is extremely helpful. I'm also on the 3 countries is way too many for 2 weeks, but the OP hasn't really come back to address thoughts there. We did 2 weeks in Germany/Austria alone and similarly in Italy.
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Post by ntsf on Apr 28, 2023 0:47:53 GMT
I didn't reserve seats on a german train and it was early june and I had to sit on the floor..and my 93 yr old dad almost had to do that too. people were lovely with helping us figure out the bus when the train stopped far from our stop due to construction.. then my dad and I crammed on a bus full of upset commuters. fortunately we only had two carry ons and small knapsacks.
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Post by merry27 on Apr 28, 2023 1:07:58 GMT
Thank you so much for all the responses and advice- I really appreciate it. I didn’t realize that summer was so busy there so I think we are now looking at going the beginning of October. Flights are almost half the price vs August!
I know 3 countries seems like a lot for 2 weeks. Last time we were only there for a week and did Paris and Rome. I only want to spend a short time in Paris and 5 or 6 days in each of the other 2 countries.
The Amalfi Coast has been on my bucket list. It’s funny that I never considered Venice but several of you loved it. I may need to rethink that!
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Post by slowrunner70 on Apr 28, 2023 10:44:58 GMT
For those of you traveling in or near Nürnberg or Bamberg, let me know. We live there :-) Would love to meet up for a cup of coffee and/or some sightseeing!
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sueg
Prolific Pea
Posts: 8,055
Location: Munich
Apr 12, 2016 12:51:01 GMT
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Post by sueg on Apr 28, 2023 11:01:46 GMT
For those of you traveling in or near Nürnberg or Bamberg, let me know. We live there :-) Would love to meet up for a cup of coffee and/or some sightseeing! The same goes for me if anyone is visiting Munich. I’d love to meet up if possible and show you my beautiful city. OP - or anyone else interested - if you are coming here in September/October, Oktoberfest this year is from September 16 - October 3 ( it runs a few days longer due to German Unity holiday on October 3) Be warned though - accommodation during the Fest is scarce and expensive!
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Post by smasonnc on Apr 28, 2023 11:56:05 GMT
Venice is unforgettable, something beautiful everywhere you turn. If you go there, just try to get Por Una Cabezza out of your head every time you think of it. (And yes, tango is not Italian) The orchestras in St. Mark's Square play it all the time. It's lovely. Por Una Cabezza But in late AUGUST? I regretted early July and hear it just gets worse as summer goes on and then begins to emit some rather unpleasant odors. August is not ideal in a lot of Europe, but if the alternative is missing Venice it's a tough choice.
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Post by Bridget in MD on Apr 28, 2023 14:47:21 GMT
For those of you traveling in or near Nürnberg or Bamberg, let me know. We live there :-) Would love to meet up for a cup of coffee and/or some sightseeing! The same goes for me if anyone is visiting Munich. I’d love to meet up if possible and show you my beautiful city. OP - or anyone else interested - if you are coming here in September/October, Oktoberfest this year is from September 16 - October 3 ( it runs a few days longer due to German Unity holiday on October 3) Be warned though - accommodation during the Fest is scarce and expensive!OMG! sueg my DH and I are finally taking our 20th wedding anniversary Germany trip (which we had to postpone for 3 years due to Covid!) this Sept! We have airfare vouchers from British Airways that have to be used by Sept 30, due to his travel snafus while travelling to Scotland last year. I was bummed bc I thought we'd just miss Oktoberfest but it sounds like we are going to be there for most of it! LOL. So we have to fly into the UK, and then flying into Munich Sept 18! We leave the 28th to come home. We are staying at the Edleweiss resort in Garmish, and plan to tour Neuschwanstein castle and some other things in the area. Would love to meet a fellow pea if it works out!!!!!
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Post by slowrunner70 on Apr 29, 2023 8:12:33 GMT
The same goes for me if anyone is visiting Munich. I’d love to meet up if possible and show you my beautiful city. OP - or anyone else interested - if you are coming here in September/October, Oktoberfest this year is from September 16 - October 3 ( it runs a few days longer due to German Unity holiday on October 3) Be warned though - accommodation during the Fest is scarce and expensive!OMG! sueg my DH and I are finally taking our 20th wedding anniversary Germany trip (which we had to postpone for 3 years due to Covid!) this Sept! We have airfare vouchers from British Airways that have to be used by Sept 30, due to his travel snafus while travelling to Scotland last year. I was bummed bc I thought we'd just miss Oktoberfest but it sounds like we are going to be there for most of it! LOL. So we have to fly into the UK, and then flying into Munich Sept 18! We leave the 28th to come home. We are staying at the Edleweiss resort in Garmish, and plan to tour Neuschwanstein castle and some other things in the area. Would love to meet a fellow pea if it works out!!!!! Can we plan a get together? I'm off September 18th, 19th and 20th. I'd bring my (american) husband with me, too.
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Post by Bridget in MD on Apr 29, 2023 13:00:29 GMT
OMG! sueg my DH and I are finally taking our 20th wedding anniversary Germany trip (which we had to postpone for 3 years due to Covid!) this Sept! We have airfare vouchers from British Airways that have to be used by Sept 30, due to his travel snafus while travelling to Scotland last year. I was bummed bc I thought we'd just miss Oktoberfest but it sounds like we are going to be there for most of it! LOL. So we have to fly into the UK, and then flying into Munich Sept 18! We leave the 28th to come home. We are staying at the Edleweiss resort in Garmish, and plan to tour Neuschwanstein castle and some other things in the area. Would love to meet a fellow pea if it works out!!!!! Can we plan a get together? I'm off September 18th, 19th and 20th. I'd bring my (american) husband with me, too. oh wow, this would be SO FUN!!!!!
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Post by smasonnc on Apr 29, 2023 13:33:15 GMT
I thought we'd just miss Oktoberfest but it sounds like we are going to be there for most of it! LOL. Lucky you! Get yourself a dirndl on Amazon. Most people dress up and it's really fun. DH won't even wear a Halloween costume but he bought lederhosen, a checked shirt, and the whole Octoberfest drag. The most fun is the Hoffbrau tent where everyone stands. We reserved a table last year and it wasn't nearly as good because you don't mingle with other "festers". If you're going to be there on the first day, see the Parade of Landlords and Breweries. Have fun!
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