Europe Trip Recommendation

[rubecube]

Also, does anyone have a suggestion on backpack size?

[Jbo]

Originally Posted by rubecube

Also, does anyone have a suggestion on backpack size?

For that length of time, you will probably want one duffle like bag and a backpack you can stuff in it.

[Nyah]

I use a 60L pack. Tip: if you can, get a bunch of cloth bags (I use old sleeping bag wraps) and sort your stuff in those. Tshirts in one, shorts in another, etc. I didn't do this the first time I used a pack and trying to keep that thing organized was a nightmare!

[undercoverbrother]

Originally Posted by Flash Walken

When I was there, there were minefield warnings over the crest of that hill. A little bit scary, but it made the place seem more 'real'.

Sorry Budapest, but Croatia had the most attractive people, too.

What do you mean by "more real"?

[formulate]

I've spent the last 11 months living and working near Zürich as part of my degree program. Lots of vacation time and weekend travels, so I've seen a fair portion of this continent. A couple of my favorites:

-Edinburgh. The castle dominates the city and it really feels like you've traveled back in time. Quite small so walking around is easy and quite enjoyable. Plus, there is plenty of opportunity for daytrips up in the the highlands. There is something to be said about a drive through Glen Coe with the 007 theme music in the background.

-The Greek Islands. Santorini will be a mess of tourist in the summer (we were there slightly off-season in early October) but a walk from Oia along the caldera at sunset will be worth it.

-Budapest (as you've read) is quite incredible and deserves your attention.

-Dubrovnik's old town is really a spectacle. We rented kayaks and paddled around the outside of the walls, which really provides a unique perspective.

-Munich, Vienna, and Prague are all very nice visits, and probably the cities I'd be most likely to want to live in. The underground medieval-style pubs in Prague were great, the beer is divine.

-Bruges, Belgium. Speaking of delicious beer, Belgiums high-percentage trappist beers will change your life. The city of Bruges was lovely in the winter and would be a nice change of pace.

-As for Switzerland, Bern is my favorite city, but the true value of the country is in the landscape. I would recommend all of the hiking trails. Mountain huts give you the ability to do multi-day hikes if desired.

Have fun!

And fyi, my order of best beer by country would be:
1. Belgium
2. Czech Republic
3. Germany
4. UK/Ireland

[NomNomNom]

Go to Switzerland, but hostels book fast so book in advance. Go to: Bern, Geneva and Luzern. Avoid Zurich, it was fairly blah.

I backpacked Europe for two months last summer and Switzerland was by far the nicest Country. I also had a blast in Rome. But it also depends on who you're travelling with and what it is you guys like to do.

[Aeneas]

Originally Posted by rubecube

Alright, I'm gonna jump into this thread. I'm moving to Copenhagen for an exchange semester that starts in September, however I'm heading over on July 22 to do some traveling first. I'll land in Copenhagen on the afternoon of July 23, and then I have 11 days to kill before I meet a friend of mine in Milan on Aug. 3. We then have 8-9 days in Italy (no itinerary yet) before heading off to Budapest for a week. After we're heading to Spain from the 18th - 30th, when my friend flies out of Barcelona. We don't have a set itinerary for Spain other than we want to hit San Sebastian and either Ibiza or Mallorca, as well as doing La Tomatina on the 27th.

I'd love some suggestions for both the time I have before I meet my friend and also some suggestions for Italy. I've been to Italy before but was solely hanging around the Torino area.

I will be in a lovely cottage in the Chianti region just SE of Florence in July. Come on over and we can talk about Rob Anders!

[Locke]

Originally Posted by Aeneas

I will be in a lovely cottage in the Chianti region just SE of Florence in July. Come on over and we can talk about Rob Anders!

Single tear. Single tear...

[Righteous1]

Originally Posted by rubecube

Thanks! Yeah, my temporary plan for Spain looks kind of like this:

18th - San Sebastian
21st - Madrid
24th - Ibiza
27th - Valencia/La Tomatina
28th - 31st - Barcelona

watch for the ketamine in ibiza and stop by cera23 in barca for a good meal

[Calgary14]

Originally Posted by FlamesPuck12

I'm thinking about taking a couple weeks between May and June to travel with my friends and I was wondering if CP had any recommendations for planning a Europe trip.

None of us have been outside of the continent before or went on a trip like this so we have no experience with planning such a thing.

We have about 4 weeks to play with and the budget isn't the biggest problem. We'd like to visit a couple countries and some of the major cities in Europe. Since we haven't been to Europe before, we'd like to visit some of the boring tourist traps as well.

Right now, we're thinking about flying out to London and coming back with a couple day layover in Iceland (CP seems to have some kind of obsession over Iceland so I thought I would include it in the trip).

I've looked at couple posts on the Travel Junkie thread and I'm currently using Google Flights and HipMunk to search for the flights.

Aside from that, we have nothing else figured out and we're in the process of planning so some recommendations would be great!

I backpacked through Europe for 5 weeks a couple years ago and am pretty familiar with Western Europe, PM me if you have any specific questions

[squiggs96]

How has polak not posted in this thread yet? I have been holding "What? You've been to Europe? This is brand new information!" back for so long that I can't keep it in anymore.

[undercoverbrother]

Originally Posted by squiggs96

How has polak not posted in this thread yet? I have been holding "What? You've been to Europe? This is brand new information!" back for so long that I can't keep it in anymore.

I ha no idea why I liked this comment so much......

[OffsideSpecialist]

Originally Posted by rubecube

Alright, I'm gonna jump into this thread. I'm moving to Copenhagen for an exchange semester that starts in September, however I'm heading over on July 22 to do some traveling first. I'll land in Copenhagen on the afternoon of July 23, and then I have 11 days to kill before I meet a friend of mine in Milan on Aug. 3. We then have 8-9 days in Italy (no itinerary yet) before heading off to Budapest for a week. After we're heading to Spain from the 18th - 30th, when my friend flies out of Barcelona. We don't have a set itinerary for Spain other than we want to hit San Sebastian and either Ibiza or Mallorca, as well as doing La Tomatina on the 27th.

I'd love some suggestions for both the time I have before I meet my friend and also some suggestions for Italy. I've been to Italy before but was solely hanging around the Torino area.

I can provide you a suggestion for a hostel in Budapest if you are looking for one. I also stayed at a good one in Prague.

I have a couple recommendations for Budapest:
-Ruins Bars/the Bar on the boat (#1 & 2 according to this list by Lonely Planet)
-Szechenyi baths, or other thermal baths in the city. They sometimes have parties in the evening, sadly I missed one the night I left for Bratislava
-Caving (didn't have time to do that)
-Find a walking tour, they are usually only paid by tips. They have several different tours (like one on communism)
-Just walk around and look at the architecture

Also, know where you are staying relative to the Oktagon in case you get lost...everybody knows where it is lol. The tram on the "korut" (ring road) that goes to the Oktogon runs all night.

Also, I would recommend Berlin, Prague and Munich en route to meeting your friend in Milan. Even though I was sick for much of my time in Berlin I found it to be a super cool (and huge!) city. Prague was also very nice and easy to get around. Munich I found didn't have as much character as the other cities I visited, but if you are interested in cars you can go to BMW world and the BMW museum. Also, the beer is good!

[rubecube]

Originally Posted by OffsideSpecialist

I can provide you a suggestion for a hostel in Budapest if you are looking for one. I also stayed at a good one in Prague.

I have a couple recommendations for Budapest:
-Ruins Bars/the Bar on the boat (#1 & 2 according to this list by Lonely Planet)
-Szechenyi baths, or other thermal baths in the city. They sometimes have parties in the evening, sadly I missed one the night I left for Bratislava
-Caving (didn't have time to do that)
-Find a walking tour, they are usually only paid by tips. They have several different tours (like one on communism)
-Just walk around and look at the architecture

Also, know where you are staying relative to the Oktagon in case you get lost...everybody knows where it is lol. The tram on the "korut" (ring road) that goes to the Oktogon runs all night.

Also, I would recommend Berlin, Prague and Munich en route to meeting your friend in Milan. Even though I was sick for much of my time in Berlin I found it to be a super cool (and huge!) city. Prague was also very nice and easy to get around. Munich I found didn't have as much character as the other cities I visited, but if you are interested in cars you can go to BMW world and the BMW museum. Also, the beer is good!

I'm actually going to be staying on site at the Sziget festival in Budapest but I'd be happy to hear about the hostels in Prague and Berlin. I'll probably skip Munich because I'm planning on being there in September for Oktoberfest.

[Flash Walken]

Originally Posted by undercoverbrother

What do you mean by "more real"?

They haven't sanitized their uncomfortable history.

History of an area is a big deal to me. Seeing an old Roman Coliseum is really cool, but understanding as recently as a decade ago, mines were being laid in roughly the same area gives the place a sense of purpose, not just an antiseptic tourist trap.

Real people, real history.

[undercoverbrother]

Originally Posted by Flash Walken

They haven't sanitized their uncomfortable history.

History of an area is a big deal to me. Seeing an old Roman Coliseum is really cool, but understanding as recently as a decade ago, mines were being laid in roughly the same area gives the place a sense of purpose, not just an antiseptic tourist trap.

Real people, real history.

The mines are all about sanitizing or cleansing their country.

[Flash Walken]

Originally Posted by undercoverbrother

The mines are all about sanitizing or cleansing their country.

'zactly

[undercoverbrother]

Originally Posted by Flash Walken

'zactly

'Zactly the reason I won't go.....

[4X4]

Originally Posted by fotze

Most importantly, when you get back, be sure to regale everyone with stories about how awesome Europe was. Bonus points for picking up an accent.

I knew a guy who actually had the gall to have a british accent after 6 months there. You just sat there with your maw open in astonishment.

My friend's brother's girlfriend picked up an australian accent after going there for two weeks.

And there isn't enough talk about Rome in this thread. Everyone should go to Rome, and spend at least 7 days there.

[FurnaceFace]

As a couple of others said, don't try to hit a crazy amount of places. It's super tempting and before you go it seems like it would be okay: "I can spend 3 days here, 2 days here and see 13 cities on my trip, it'll be awesome!" It'll be awesome tiring for a long trip. Traveling, finding where you're going to stay, unpacking, figuring out the basics of getting around the city, figuring out the sights, prepping for the next leg, repacking, and repeating a dozen times really cuts into the quality of what you can see.

If you do want to see a number of places picking ones in an area where you can have a home base for a week or so is nice. For example finding a centrally located villa in Tuscany or gite in Normandy/Brittany and then doing day trips is a great way to get to see a few places but in a more relaxed way. You can truly unpack, do laundry, and even do nothing for an afternoon. You could even plan to spend a week mid trip like this and use it to help you recharge.

Another way to recharge is spend some time away from the big cities. They are the obvious draw but they are also the more tiring. Small towns and cities are fantastic to experience and much more relaxing to get around. I like all the big cities I've been to but the smaller places are the most memorable and the ones I think of first and most fondly.

You can't go everywhere and see everything so hit the places you really want to go to. You'll always have people before the trip saying "you have to go to ____" or "you should have gone to ____." There will be other opportunities.

You have come to the right place though. There are lots of people here who have lived or are living in some of these places. 4x4 is your Rome connection should you go there, there are some Uk contacts above, Aeneas has visited a number of places, and there are members like Calgaryboy, Thor, or Itse who live in some of the places you want to see.

I'm going to Paris in May for my 8th or 9th trip and have a few ideas beyond the usual or some ideas on how best to experience some of the usual places. As I said in a previous thread, if you're interested in Monaco and can make May 11th work I recommend getting tickets for the Historical Grand Prix. 60€ for tickets that are 600+ two weeks later for the regular Grand Prix.

Enjoy your trip.