Europe!

[icarus]

If you can get tickets, you can try to catch the NHL season opener in Prague. I'll be at one of the Wild-Canes matches in Helsinki.

[cmyden]

I kind of agree with Jimmy about maybe fitting in too much in 3 weeks. I did the same thing the first time I went to Europe, it's hard to resist wanting to see and do everything.

You may want to just run the numbers and see just how much time you would be spending on the train. The DB website is probably the best for that, it has train schedules for all of Europe.

http://reiseauskunft.bahn.de/bin/que...rotocol=http:&


If I had to eliminate one city from your itinerary, it would probably be Vienna. It's a nice city, and the Schonbrunn palace is pretty amazing but you might be architectured out after Rome. Or you could always do a side trip to the Versailles Palace from Paris. Vienna is also the one city that seems kind of out of the way on the map if you're doing a loop, it can almost be considered Eastern Europe, geographically.


Amsterdam has really cheap flights to Rome on EasyJet ($70-$100). So you could check out Amsterdam, fly to Rome, and then work your way back. Taking the train both ways across the continent could get tiresome.

Maybe Rome to Nice by train, and then fly from Nice to Paris ($49 on EasyJet). And then Paris to Munich by train, Munich to Amsterdam by train. Whoops, forgot about Venice...!

[Pinner]

Originally Posted by CaptainCrunch

And don't forget the safe word

The safe word is CaptainCrunch, all sexxing stops with CaptainCrunch

[Meelapo]

If you can afford it I would spring for the first class rail pass. It'll be a bit more but well worth it, especially for the long train rides. A few years ago my friend and I went backpacking through Europe and the first class rail passes were great. We got big, comfortable seats, and they were easy to sleep in. On one of our train rides (Lyon --> Nice I believe) we had to sit with the general boarding and it was really cramped and uncomfortable. Just a suggestion.

[CaptainCrunch]

Originally Posted by Pinner

The safe word is CaptainCrunch, all sexxing stops with CaptainCrunch

Don't I know it

[BerubeHater]

nm

[Pinner]

That wouldn't be the best safe word

[troutman]

You can find a Macdonalds in all of those cities.

[kermitology]

Find a good Schnitzel place in Munich.

Best dinner I ever had was in Salzberg Austria and it was schnitzel. Amazing meal. It's a bavarian specialty!

[peter12]

7 cities in 3 weeks? You won't see anything.

[Pinner]

Originally Posted by kermitology

Find a good Schnitzel place in Munich.

Best dinner I ever had was in Salzberg Austria and it was schnitzel. Amazing meal. It's a bavarian specialty!

Ever eat at the Gasthaus 30th/25th ? ave 4th sw? It's been 20 yr's but I used to love that place.

[Fobulous]

Thanks for the tips!

Anyone know if there is a good way of getting from Nice to Rome without having too many stops? I see on the eurail website that there is a train that goes but at minimum you have to stop twice.

Also, from Venice to Munch?

[jolinar of malkshor]

The wife and I are in Rome right now. We are 2 weeks in to a 3 week trip. We started in London. We toured England for a week and visited some relatives. We then took the Eurostar from London to Paris.

We did Paris for two nights and then rented a car and drove to Rome. We took 3 nights to get to Rome staying in Avallon, Annecy and Pisa. The country side of France was amazing.

Like others have said Rome is very busy, although I think Paris was more crowded. Italy is quite a bit cheaper than France. If you are going to do a guided tour in Rome make sure you do some research on the tour outfit first. We did a night tour with a company called Carrani Tours and it sucked big time. We thought we would be on an open air bus but we were in a massive bus which was not open and it was very hard to see through the glass. It didn't stop at any places and the guide explained all the sights in 4 languages which was annoying.

We then took another guided tour through the Vatican. We were debating if we should do it on our own or in a tour and we are so glad we did the tour. So, my suggestion is if you are going to the Vatican do a guided tour of it.

We wished that we stayed on the coast for a longer period of time. The Mediterranean ocean was great.

Tomorrow we head back to Paris with stops in Florence, Lake Como, Switzerland and Dijon.

Driving really isn't a problem until you get into the major centres where it then becomes a little tricky. No major problems yet just a few missed turns. The speed limit in France was 130 and Italy it was 110 but people go much faster than that.

If you want any other advise pm me.

[jolinar of malkshor]

Originally Posted by peter12

7 cities in 3 weeks? You won't see anything.

Well, they will see a lot less. If they have never been to Europe before it really isn't a bad idea to do some what of a whistle stop tour so that they can decide what they like and what they don't. Then, if they get another chance in the future they can return and stay for a longer period of time at the places they liked.

I for one am glad to leave the big centres after a few days, just to many people for me.

[rockstar]

I think it's a bit busy.

You can manage, but you might get sick of all the noise and crowds of people in major centres.

Your itinerary is full of must-see cities, though, so you may as well check them all out. I didn't care for Venice, but then, I didn't go with my wife. Nor did I have a wife when I went. Nor do I now.

But something I might consider is spending a night or two off the beaten track, in a small town somewhere in between your metropolis adventures, at a little bed and breakfast overlooking a potato field, vineyard, or mountain range.

Get some fresh country air, genuine European hospitality, and a feel for what life might be like on the quieter side of the continent. (I don't think it matters which country you do this in - all the ones you're visiting have charming countryside and I'm sure the people are the same).

I've fallen in love with some of the more remote areas over here (France) and I can't seem to last more than a couple of days in a big city nowadays. Too much BS.

Get out to the smaller towns. People are interested/ing. Things are cheaper.

I'm in a village outside Valenciennes in the north region, an hour from Lille. The people I'm staying with run a bed and breakfast. It's awesome. And for a couple making a stop between major city excursions, I could see it being an enriching thing to do. A nice wind-down, a place to pause mid-way and relax a little.

Or not - whatever tickles your fancy.

[flamingreen]

Originally Posted by Fobulous

Thanks for the tips!

Anyone know if there is a good way of getting from Nice to Rome without having too many stops? I see on the eurail website that there is a train that goes but at minimum you have to stop twice.

No. There use to be a non stop train but that was discontinued a couple years ago.

I did Rome to Nice by train through Genova and Ventimiglia, it was a very, very long day. Fly instead.

[jolinar of malkshor]

Originally Posted by rockstar

I think it's a bit busy.

You can manage, but you might get sick of all the noise and crowds of people in major centres.

Your itinerary is full of must-see cities, though, so you may as well check them all out. I didn't care for Venice, but then, I didn't go with my wife. Nor did I have a wife when I went. Nor do I now.

But something I might consider is spending a night or two off the beaten track, in a small town somewhere in between your metropolis adventures, at a little bed and breakfast overlooking a potato field, vineyard, or mountain range.

Get some fresh country air, genuine European hospitality, and a feel for what life might be like on the quieter side of the continent. (I don't think it matters which country you do this in - all the ones you're visiting have charming countryside and I'm sure the people are the same).

I've fallen in love with some of the more remote areas over here (France) and I can't seem to last more than a couple of days in a big city nowadays. Too much BS.

Get out to the smaller towns. People are interested/ing. Things are cheaper.

I'm in a village outside Valenciennes in the north region, an hour from Lille. The people I'm staying with run a bed and breakfast. It's awesome. And for a couple making a stop between major city excursions, I could see it being an enriching thing to do. A nice wind-down, a place to pause mid-way and relax a little.

Or not - whatever tickles your fancy.

I Agree 100%. I enjoy seeing the sites in the major centres but the small towns are where you really feel like you are on a different continent.

Good post rockstar.

In Florence right now just heading out to the market.

[gargamel]

Originally Posted by Fobulous

YYC -> Amsterdamn
Ams -> Paris, France
Paris -> Nice, France
Nice -> Rome, Italy
Rome -> Florence, Italy
Florence ->Venice, Italy
Venice -> Vienna, Austria
Vienna -> Munich, Germany
Munich -> Amsterdamn
Ams -> YYC

It would be a shame to go so close to Florence and not spend at least a few days there. Unless you specifically want to go to Vienna, I'd cut it from your trip to make room for Florence and to cut down on travel time, then make a separate trip to Vienna and Prague at some point in the future.

[icarus]

If you want to fly between some destinations and if you want to use EasyJet or RyanAir be forewarned about their baggage restrictions. If you're travelling for three weeks you'll probably have a lot of stuff (or your wife will at least). Unless you're prepared to pack lightly, then make sure you factor in the cost of going overweight on the discount airlines into your pricing calculations. Also, the cost of getting to and from some of the regional airports. You might end up spending more than you would have using Air France or Alitalia, for instance!

RyanAir and EasyJet make their money by enticing you with cheap tickets, and then making you spend money in other ways.

[Pinner]

You just have to stay another week, it happens.