puppypaisley asked:
Hey guys…I am thinking about a Europe trip with my boyfriend as a law school graduation gift! However, I have only briefly been abroad once, and my boyfriend never, so I was wondering if you could help us out….
1. Where should we go? I know that we want to do Spain, Italy and Greece–and Venice and San Torini are a must within these countries. What other cities/countries should we visit? In what order? Is three weeks enough time to do this?
2. What city should we fly into from the US? Should we fly out of a different city? How far in advance should I order our tickets to get the best price? Is a travel agent helpful?
3. Which mode of transportation should we use traveling between cities?
4. We were thinking of going late Feb or early March, is this a good time?
5. How do we find nice, but affordable places to stay? Should I do this in advance or wing it when we get there?
6. Any good planning websites or books?
7. Any other tips?
Thanks so much for your help!
Hey guys…I am thinking about a Europe trip with my boyfriend as a law school graduation gift! However, I have only briefly been abroad once, and my boyfriend never, so I was wondering if you could help us out….
1. Where should we go? I know that we want to do Spain, Italy and Greece–and Venice and San Torini are a must within these countries. What other cities/countries should we visit? In what order? Is three weeks enough time to do this?
2. What city should we fly into from the US? Should we fly out of a different city? How far in advance should I order our tickets to get the best price? Is a travel agent helpful?
3. Which mode of transportation should we use traveling between cities?
4. We were thinking of going late Feb or early March, is this a good time?
5. How do we find nice, but affordable places to stay? Should I do this in advance or wing it when we get there?
6. Any good planning websites or books?
7. Any other tips?
Thanks so much for your help!
In late February – early March the weather could be cold and foggy here, in northern Italy. A better choice might be April – May it’s still before tourist season starts, but good weather and lots of festivals.
Barcelona is a good choice in Spain. In Italy, you could go from Venice to Florence to Rome then on to Bari and catch a boat to Santorini. There are lots of museums, art galleries, etc on days when the weather isn’t so good, but they’re all good places to be out when it is nice.
Spain, Italy, and Greece are doable in a three week period. I wouldn’t recommend planning much more than that or you’ll be spending all your time in transit.
is a reliable site for finding hotels in the various locations. You shouldn’t have a problem finding a place to stay on arrival at that time of year. Most of the train stations and airports in the major cities have reservations offices. This would provide a lot of flexibility in your schedule. You might be more comfortable knowing that you have reservations though.
There are lots of websites to check airfares. Expedia.com is pretty good or. You don’t necessarily need a travel agent, but a good one can be helpful. I usually find the flights I want on-line and go to a travel agent to print the tickets if electronic tickets aren’t available for the flights I want.
The trains are a good way to travel in Europe. For the longer trips like Barcelona to Italy, you might consider using the night trains. You can sleep through the night, and have a full day at your destination. Often the trains are cheaper than a hotel for the night. For trains in Italy, see:. The German train site is useful for planning train travel throughout Europe:
Look for local festivals. There are often opportunities to try the authentic local foods and learn more about life at your destination. When you’re in Italy some things, like fresh fish, may be priced per etto. Unfortunately, Carnevale will be early in 2008 – 25th Jan to 8th Feb in Venice.
the greek island it’s called Santorini and it’s really beautiful. Still my fav country is Spain. Don’t miss Barcelona and i would suggest before you go to Italy, check Azure Coast in France and Monte Carlo
have fun
some suggestions: if you go in late feb start in Spain, you will catch carnival; best place is Cadiz!! You can fly into Sevilla take a train from Santa Justa train station or bus from Plaza de Armas into Cadiz, but book early all of Sevilla will be heading into Cadiz!!! Once your in europe you can get some great deals, check airlines like Ryan Air, but plan airlines like this only fly in out limits airports. Check their wesite and under destinations it will give you a map of the airline routes.
The travelogues on our web site will provide food for thought:
For help from other travelers, join TheTravelzine discussion group:
Both are free and non-commercial!
3 weeks will be too short I would say to appreciate all these places…I did only part of Italy in 12 days and that was way too short….It may give you an idea….I travelled to Verona, Venice (2 nights), Montepulciano, Rome (3 nights…too short), Florence (3 nights) and Bologna…all these places I recommend…and you can do some day trips to places like Pomepeii, Sorento, Capri (from Rome) and Pisa, Lucca from Florence.
Train is very good in Europe and gets you from A to B effienctly…but you could get some cheap flights (site might help here)
I am not sure which city to fly from, but again the website might help you there as it offers the cheapest option in each link for that day, plus has links to the airlines themselves.
I would say cities like London, Paris and Frankfurt would be the most popular for arrivals, but Rome might be a good one for you in this case.
Sometimes you can get some good deals and this time of year might be quite good for cheaper flights (but obviously weather will be colder…as long as you are happy to put up with the colder days and a bit more rain, it will ok to travel…I visited Spain over Christmas (the coast south of Barcelona and while it was cool and overcast a bit, we did see the sun and it was nice…that is compared to the UK where we were living at the time!!!!)
Affordable places…try these webistes….hostels will be the cheaper option…if you share from time to time maybe it will be even cheaper and it will free up the wallet to do other things you might like ( as the accommodation will eat up the most of your money)….there are some links attached that give you some options to look at and some ratings too. They also include some cheaper hotels…but there are heaps of websites and sometimes it pays to shop around.
I would maybe get a travel guide like lonely planet or rough guides as it does tell you little things that maybe of interest….you could get single books or the europe one, but they can get heavy to carry around in your bag at times.
I have preplanned accommodation and winged, which has been ok in most cases really….the only problems i ever had was a large conference in Bologna where I paid thru the nose for accommodation!~!! and another time in Trieste where after an hour of searching for a cheap place I wnet into a 4 star hotel ( it was very nice) but then found several 3 star places nearby that I haden’t seen in my searching prior!! I had been so tired of looking for somewhere (even with signs pointing) that I gave up……
I would try not to pack TOO much into your time as you would spend you entire time travelling from A to B rather than enjoying your trip and it can get stressful at times too (ie which train, which ticket, validating your ticket, finding accommodation, where to go to eat….seems silly but it can get tiring and stressful at times…planning can help, but overplanning does not allow flexibility…say you hear about a fantasitc place to go and you have no time to see it)
Have fun
1-Spain: Madrid – Barcelona – Seville – Toledo.
Italy : Rome – Florence – Venice.
Greece: Athens – Mykonos
3 weeks are enough, but don’t expect to see everything.
You should allow 3 days for each city.
Stick to the main sights this time. Be selective.
If you’re going in February, forget about Greece. There’s nothing to do there at that time.
2-Consider flying ‘open jaw’. Fly into Spain (Madrid) and out of Greece (Athens) to avoid backtracking.
The earlier you order your tickets the better. A travel agent is helpful but not necessary.
3-Mode of transportation: Train between Spain and Italy, and ferry or budget airline between Italy and Greece.
Plan your train schedule here.
4-February and March are not the best times to visit Spain, Italy and Greece. Especially Greece, which is famous for its beaches.
5-Stay in hostels and bed and breakfast.
6-Here’s a good planning website. You can plan your whole itinerary via this website, but make sure to sign up.
7-Other tips:
Contact me if you need more information.