- My Forums
- Tiger Rant
- LSU Recruiting
- SEC Rant
- Saints Talk
- Pelicans Talk
- More Sports Board
- Fantasy Sports
- Golf Board
- Soccer Board
- O-T Lounge
- Tech Board
- Home/Garden Board
- Outdoor Board
- Health/Fitness Board
- Movie/TV Board
- Book Board
- Music Board
- Political Talk
- Money Talk
- Fark Board
- Gaming Board
- Travel Board
- Food/Drink Board
- Ticket Exchange
- TD Help Board
Customize My Forums- View All Forums
- Show Left Links
- Topic Sort Options
- Trending Topics
- Recent Topics
- Active Topics
Started By
Message
2 weeks in Europe ideas
Posted on 2/9/24 at 7:21 pm
Posted on 2/9/24 at 7:21 pm
Wife and I 25th anniversary coming up next summer. She's never been to Europe and has no idea what she wants to see. Budget is 10kish. I'm thinking London, Paris, Rome. I would love to do Vienna, Prague, Salzburg, Florence but i doubt there's enough time for all of that.
Give me all the ideas you got
Give me all the ideas you got
8
Posted on 2/9/24 at 8:37 pm to hawgndodge
quote:
has no idea what she wants to see.
Watch some Rick Steves videos.
quote:
I'm thinking London, Paris, Rome. I would love to do Vienna, Prague, Salzburg, Florence but i doubt there's enough time for all of that.
I mean, it depends on whether you want to actually see anything, or whether you merely want to be able to take a few selfies for IG and say that you were there.
Posted on 2/9/24 at 10:11 pm to hawgndodge
Either a London Paris combo or just Italy.
Posted on 2/9/24 at 10:55 pm to jkylejohnson
quote:
Either a London Paris combo or just Italy.
This is 100% the correct answer.
Posted on 2/9/24 at 11:30 pm to hawgndodge
London, Paris and one other city are doable in two weeks. If the third city is Amsterdam, you can take the Eurostar from one to the other.
I agree with the people who say that if you want to go to Italy, you can spend the whole two weeks there.
I loved Vienna and Salzburg, but I would save that for the third trip.
I agree with the people who say that if you want to go to Italy, you can spend the whole two weeks there.
I loved Vienna and Salzburg, but I would save that for the third trip.
Posted on 2/10/24 at 7:42 am to jkylejohnson
Also I’ll add that I think 2 weeks is a perfect amount of time for a London /Paris combo trip. Plenty of time to explore each city and also a day trip from each. Maybe Normandy or something from Paris. Cotswolds from London. Obviously you could look at several other day trip options.
Posted on 2/10/24 at 9:09 am to hawgndodge
I’ve done Europe trips with 5 countries in 2 weeks and other trips with 1 country in 2 weeks.
I enjoyed the two weeks not leaving France the best. You can’t go wrong with the history of northern France, the wine regions, the French Riveria, and oh yeah…Paris.
And YouTube videos are by far the best resources for ideas. I think Touropia is the channel.
I enjoyed the two weeks not leaving France the best. You can’t go wrong with the history of northern France, the wine regions, the French Riveria, and oh yeah…Paris.
And YouTube videos are by far the best resources for ideas. I think Touropia is the channel.
Posted on 2/10/24 at 11:09 am to jkylejohnson
Why not break it up and do one metro and one area with outdoors attractions? Paris/crete? Annecy/geneva and London? Munich (and surrounding area) and Rome?
Time of year is probably the key thing here (along with budget).
Early June/late May is not full "summer" for many areas.
Rome in August would be intolerable. Paris in August will be pretty empty. Lots will depend on timing.
Time of year is probably the key thing here (along with budget).
Early June/late May is not full "summer" for many areas.
Rome in August would be intolerable. Paris in August will be pretty empty. Lots will depend on timing.
This post was edited on 2/10/24 at 11:13 am
Posted on 2/10/24 at 12:42 pm to Foch
End of June early July is what we're looking at.
Posted on 2/10/24 at 1:56 pm to hawgndodge
Squeeze in Edinburgh
Posted on 2/10/24 at 2:32 pm to S
.if You are in London, take the train from waterloo Station out to Windsor. Tour the castle. pretty little town.
Posted on 2/10/24 at 2:59 pm to hawgndodge
Good time to go. 2 weeks is a good length of time for London and Paris. In Paris, take the train to Versailles, since the crowds will be small and the gardens in bloom.
Always a question for those asking about travel is what kind of traveler are you?
History
Countryside
Wineries
Food
Hiking
Architecture
Off-the- beaten-path places
Culturals [paintings, sculptures]
Romantics [river dinner/cruise]
So, I am just going on general sightseeing with my reply.Whatever, you guys choose to do, have fun!
Always a question for those asking about travel is what kind of traveler are you?
History
Countryside
Wineries
Food
Hiking
Architecture
Off-the- beaten-path places
Culturals [paintings, sculptures]
Romantics [river dinner/cruise]
So, I am just going on general sightseeing with my reply.Whatever, you guys choose to do, have fun!
Posted on 2/10/24 at 8:33 pm to hawgndodge
quote:
End of June early July is what we're looking at.
We've made two 3-week journeys during this timeframe. As suggested, just binge watch Rick Steves episodes (free on YouTube) to find out what you like and what you don't.
For 2 weeks, I'd suggest these itineraries:
--London/Paris as suggested (plenty of time for side-trips and things like Versailles)
--Amsterdam/Bruges/Rhine Valley (flights can be open jaw AMS & FRA)
--Italy (Venice/Florence/Rome w/ a Cinque Terre side trip)
If I had 2 weeks, I think I'd fly into Paris, head to Burgundy and the Alsace on the way to Bavaria and hit Munich & Salzburg.
Hopefully that provides some ideas
Posted on 2/11/24 at 7:07 am to hawgndodge
London - Paris - Rome is too much.
Key is to travel by train. No intra-Europe flights.
Fly into London. Stay in the Residence Hotel SoHo (formerly the Nadler), or if your budget permits the SoHo Hotel. Have dinner at Hakkasan Hanway place. For quick bites, pop into Pret a Manger. Get some one pound coins for the loo. Get to the tower when it opens- go straight to the Crown Jewels to avoid the one hour queue. Consider day trips to Windsor, Cambridge or Bath. People hate on it, but I really like the hop on hop off bus to get the lay of the land on your first day - especially for your first trip to Europe. Don’t take Uber - take the tube or a taxi - London has the best taxis in the world. Whilst you need to eat fish and chips and a Sunday roast, try some Indian and Asian food.
There is a direct train from Heathrow into central London. From there take a taxi to your hotel. You can taxi from Heathrow if you want to spring for 80 pounds.
From London, take the Eurostar to Paris. For a guide to European trains go to seat61.com. Download the rail Europe app. Buy 60-90 days in advance and get first class tickets. If you time it right, they are cheap and well worth it.
I’ve only been to Paris once, so I’ll defer to others who know more.
I like the idea of doing two nights in Amsterdam. It’s unique and super compact. Take a mid morning train - about 4 hours. That will give you a day and a half to explore. Take a canal cruise. Visit the Rijksmuseum and MOCA (Banksey exhibit). Anne Frank house. Eat some pickled herring from a street vendor and visit a coffee house. Walk the red light district in the evening.
Fly out the next morning out of AMS. About a 40 minute train ride from Amsterdam Centraal. Buy an open jaw ticket - probably on Delta. Assuming you connect through Atlanta, you can book Virgin Atlantic on Delta’s website. Way better than Delta and usually cheaper. Maybe take KLM home.
One other thing. Try to dress like a European, especially in Paris. The French treat you better if you’re not obviously American. Parisians dress up - especially the women. Wear dark navy or black. Americans stand out because we're fat, and wear logo t-shirts, ball caps, cargo shorts or khakis and sneakers. You don’t have to get a manbag or anything, or you may not care. Just saying you can get better service in a restaurant if you don’t stand out like a sore thumb.
Have a great trip. It will be amazing!
Key is to travel by train. No intra-Europe flights.
Fly into London. Stay in the Residence Hotel SoHo (formerly the Nadler), or if your budget permits the SoHo Hotel. Have dinner at Hakkasan Hanway place. For quick bites, pop into Pret a Manger. Get some one pound coins for the loo. Get to the tower when it opens- go straight to the Crown Jewels to avoid the one hour queue. Consider day trips to Windsor, Cambridge or Bath. People hate on it, but I really like the hop on hop off bus to get the lay of the land on your first day - especially for your first trip to Europe. Don’t take Uber - take the tube or a taxi - London has the best taxis in the world. Whilst you need to eat fish and chips and a Sunday roast, try some Indian and Asian food.
There is a direct train from Heathrow into central London. From there take a taxi to your hotel. You can taxi from Heathrow if you want to spring for 80 pounds.
From London, take the Eurostar to Paris. For a guide to European trains go to seat61.com. Download the rail Europe app. Buy 60-90 days in advance and get first class tickets. If you time it right, they are cheap and well worth it.
I’ve only been to Paris once, so I’ll defer to others who know more.
I like the idea of doing two nights in Amsterdam. It’s unique and super compact. Take a mid morning train - about 4 hours. That will give you a day and a half to explore. Take a canal cruise. Visit the Rijksmuseum and MOCA (Banksey exhibit). Anne Frank house. Eat some pickled herring from a street vendor and visit a coffee house. Walk the red light district in the evening.
Fly out the next morning out of AMS. About a 40 minute train ride from Amsterdam Centraal. Buy an open jaw ticket - probably on Delta. Assuming you connect through Atlanta, you can book Virgin Atlantic on Delta’s website. Way better than Delta and usually cheaper. Maybe take KLM home.
One other thing. Try to dress like a European, especially in Paris. The French treat you better if you’re not obviously American. Parisians dress up - especially the women. Wear dark navy or black. Americans stand out because we're fat, and wear logo t-shirts, ball caps, cargo shorts or khakis and sneakers. You don’t have to get a manbag or anything, or you may not care. Just saying you can get better service in a restaurant if you don’t stand out like a sore thumb.
Have a great trip. It will be amazing!
Posted on 2/11/24 at 9:31 am to hawgndodge
First time? Hmm...My vote? Just go to Florence. Use it as a base. Tour Tuscany. OR go to Prague and spend the time in Czechia. Magical city and country.
BUT..
Summer. You'll be there with a lot of other people, so remember it's in season and expect crowds.
Thinking out of the box...
International travel can be intimidating for a first timer. Doing it with a package tour where they do everything for you helps alleviate the stress. You can see locations you'd want to do on your own later. OR, build some time pre/post tour.
Look into the Viking Homelands Cruise. We had an amazing time. Beautiful locations. Service/food etc. is spectacular. Unpack and that's it. Certainly you'd avoid first time jitters and hassles of international travel.
Finally, do like we do and watch tons of travel videos on YouTube. Lifestyle Hal is the best in the business in my book.
BUT..
Summer. You'll be there with a lot of other people, so remember it's in season and expect crowds.
Thinking out of the box...
International travel can be intimidating for a first timer. Doing it with a package tour where they do everything for you helps alleviate the stress. You can see locations you'd want to do on your own later. OR, build some time pre/post tour.
Look into the Viking Homelands Cruise. We had an amazing time. Beautiful locations. Service/food etc. is spectacular. Unpack and that's it. Certainly you'd avoid first time jitters and hassles of international travel.
Finally, do like we do and watch tons of travel videos on YouTube. Lifestyle Hal is the best in the business in my book.
This post was edited on 2/11/24 at 1:32 pm
Posted on 2/11/24 at 1:26 pm to Nole Man
I've looked at go ahead tours but i really think i can do it cheaper than they can.
Great advice from everybody. Thanks a ton.
Great advice from everybody. Thanks a ton.
Posted on 2/11/24 at 3:05 pm to hawgndodge
For first timers and our 5th anniversary, my wife and I (35 years ago when we were only 29 yrs old) flew to Zurich, Switzerland and took the train to Lucerne for 3 days/2 nights. Then, took the train to Interlachen for 2 nights. Next, we took the train to Bern, then took the TGV to Paris for 5 nights. Lastly, we took the train to Calais, hopped on the Hovercraft across the channel to Dover, took a train to London and spent 5 nights in London. It was a great experience. Now, you can can take a high speed train from Paris to London. With this itinerary, you get the mountains in Switerland (which are similar to Austria) and 2 big cities in Paris and London. Plus the high speed train travel is fun and easy.
For our 30th anniversary, we spent 19 days traveling around France, by car, to 5 of the major wine regions. We drove over 1,800 miles, but ate great food, saw great sites and had great wine. We avoided Paris (except the last 2 nights) because we had done that before.
Last year, for our 35th anniversary (delayed 3 years from 2020 because of Covid), we spent a 10 nights in smaller Tuscany towns (Bologna, Assisi, Montepulciano and Volterra) and finished with 5 nights in Florence. It was a great trip also. Lots of wine and food.
We love to drive in most countries, although I avoid driving in England and Rome. We have blogs on our last 2 trips if you want a link to see where we stayed, ate, etc. Happy to share with you.
For our 30th anniversary, we spent 19 days traveling around France, by car, to 5 of the major wine regions. We drove over 1,800 miles, but ate great food, saw great sites and had great wine. We avoided Paris (except the last 2 nights) because we had done that before.
Last year, for our 35th anniversary (delayed 3 years from 2020 because of Covid), we spent a 10 nights in smaller Tuscany towns (Bologna, Assisi, Montepulciano and Volterra) and finished with 5 nights in Florence. It was a great trip also. Lots of wine and food.
We love to drive in most countries, although I avoid driving in England and Rome. We have blogs on our last 2 trips if you want a link to see where we stayed, ate, etc. Happy to share with you.
Posted on 2/12/24 at 11:58 pm to S
quote:
Squeeze in Edinburgh
This. I enjoyed Edinburgh more than London. City is magical.
Posted on 2/13/24 at 11:13 am to hawgndodge
I lived in Hawaii 2.5 years and didn't do it all. You can't do all of London in 2 weeks, you can't do all of Paris in 2 weeks. Guys love to say "stay in one place". If its a 25 year anniversary and its her first time ever, personally I'd suggest seeing some different countries. Italy is great, I don't want to go to Italy every single vacation. Some people love London, I think its the most boring place for an American to visit as their food, history, language, etc. is so similar to US. Given that, I've had fantastic times there.
For her first time ever, I'd personally try to do 3-4 countries all close together. London-Paris- Amsterdam. Venice - Switzerland-Munich. Paris - Munich - milan. Paris - Amsterdam - Copenhagen. Something like that to really get a taste of different cultures. And plan to go back!
There's so many options though. Youtube and my wife now says tiktok is one of the best places to watch travel videos
For her first time ever, I'd personally try to do 3-4 countries all close together. London-Paris- Amsterdam. Venice - Switzerland-Munich. Paris - Munich - milan. Paris - Amsterdam - Copenhagen. Something like that to really get a taste of different cultures. And plan to go back!
There's so many options though. Youtube and my wife now says tiktok is one of the best places to watch travel videos
This post was edited on 2/13/24 at 11:15 am
Page 1 of 1
Popular
Back to top
Follow TigerDroppings for LSU Football News