Europe Itenerary

Mack4President!

Mack4President!

25+ Posts
So this is my Europe Itenerary (plus or minus a few cities) for a Backpacking Trip Through Europe. 2 other friends and I.

2 weeks and 5 days.

Amsterdam (the Bulldog Hostel), flying to Rome (any advise on a good hostel, Yellow?), Maybe over to Sardinia (Costa Smerlda), Cinqueterra, Portofino, Genoa. Over to the French Riviera- Monte Carlo, Cannes, Niche. Over to Spain (Barcelona, Pamplona "running of the bulls", Madrid (flying out of Madrid).

We are going to get a eurorail pass for Italy through Spain.

Any comments or experiences (what to do's) would be appreciated.

Thanks,
 
That seems like a lot of stops for only a 2-week-5-day trip. Just my own opinion, but I'd probably try to cut the list in half so you actually get to spend a little time in each place. As it stands, you're looking at just over one day per site, and your travel time is going to eat into that significantly.
 
From someone that has backpacked in Europe a month each of the last 2 years, that is WAY to much to pack into a 19 day trip. I don't think you are considering how much train travel cuts into your time. It's not just the actual train ride but checking out, getting to train station, then finding hostel and getting settled in at your new destination. Travel days (especially when you are likely hungover) are total beatdowns.

If you want to adequately experience any of these places you need to cut quite a few out.
 
i agree with the other 2 posters as well. i spent a month backpacking in europe and went to about half as many cities as you plan on going to, and could have used alitte more time in each.
 
Thanks for all of the information. We came up with a new itenerary.

What I am thinking right now is Amsterdam, Rome, Cinqueterre, Portofino, MonteCarlo, Nice, Barcelona, Pamplona, Madrid

How long is the train ride from Nice to Barcelona. How long is it from Barcelona to Pamplona.

Has anyone taken a Italian Riviera and French Riviera trip before that has any advise on what to hit.

Any comments on this itenerrary would help.

Thanks,
 
IMO, if you travel to Europe and do not visit Paris and see David in Firenze then you have wasted your airfare. IMO.
 
My only observation is that you are missing some really neat places between Amsterdam and when you head to Italy. I would recommend taking the train or fly through Germany and stopping in Duesseldorf (great part place in the Altstadt) and continuing on to Munich. You could back track a little and head through Zurich (I wouldn't stop there) and train it down through the Alps which takes you into Italy via Lugano. The train ride, if it is during the day and clear, is absolutely breathtaking. This might be too much of a stretch with the time you have and the fact that you need to get to Spain at the end, but Germany is probably one of my most favorite countries so I thought I would mention it.
 
Everyone giving him advice to do more stuff needs to remember he's only going for 19 days. I still think you have too much on your plate.

With your current plans I would do Amsterdam, Rome, Cinque terra (still haven't been and it's on my list) OR Nice and French Riveria (NO TIME FOR BOTH IMO) Night train from Nice to Barcelona, Pamplona, Madrid.

Unless you're dead set on Rome, I would Italy out of this trip altogether. Italy is a country you need to go see all at once (not to mention nightlife generally isn't as good there in the summer as other places) I would personally reccomend you go Amsterdam - Paris - Barcelona - Pamplona - Madrid - Sevilla, Lagos Portugal (one of my fav places in Europe - awesome beach and nightlife). Then fly from Faro, Portugal to Madrid.
 
Again, people are suggesting more stops for you, and I think you've already got enough on your plate as it is. I did a trip similar to this one last year, but we started in Prague rather than Amsterdam (I've been to Amsterdam before, and it's a good stop, you'll have fun).

For your itenerary:

Amsterdam - Good start to a trip. If you had more time I'd definitely suggest taking trains down through Belgium (possibly my favorite country in Europe because of the amazing beers), France, Germany, Austria, and Switzerland. But, you've already got a lot of places you want to go, and not much time to spend there.

Rome - Your travel from Amsterdan will cost you most of a day here. But you should still have plenty of time to go out at night. This is a can't-miss in Italy.

Cinqueterre - One of my favorite places on Earth. Yes, it's a lot more touristy than it was even just 5 years ago, but it's still fantastic, Keep in mind this is a relaxing-on-the-beach, or exploring-through-the-hills, kind of destination. There isn't really any nighlife, although like the rest of Italy, the restaurants are open very late. We stayed in Monterosso, the largest of the 5 towns and certainly the most touristy, but it has a nice beach, and it's very easy to get to the other towns. One day we hiked all the way from Monterosso to Riomaggiore and then took the boat all the way back. You could take the train instead if you wanted. Drink the local wines, they're very good. And eat the local peasant foods, they're better than any of the fancy stuff. In fact, I like the food in Italy even better than the food in France, which is saying a lot.

Okay, now I'm going to be THAT guy and tell you that I think you'd be missing out if you didn't visit Florence while you're in Italy. We added it at the last minute (literally at the train station in Milan we decided to go there), and I am so freaking glad we did. It's am amazing cultural experience. And, it's so compact, you can see most of everyting in less than a day (well, at least the outside of buildings-- if you want to go inside some of the museums, then you'll likely spend a lot of time in line). If you do end up deciding to go to Florence, I'd do it in-between Rome and the Cinqueterre, then you can head on up and around the Riviera after Cinqueterre.

Portofino -- I didn't do this one, but I think you could probably do Portofino OR the Cinqueterre, and give yourself more time later on or sub in another destination (like Florence
smile.gif
).

MonteCarlo-- This place is expensive as heck. All of the Riviera along there is expensive, but Monte Carlo is beyond. Still, it was pretty cool to see.

Nice-- I think you could do Monte Carlo OR Nice, you don't need to do both. These are both nice stops because you get a decent idea of French culture, although the Italian culture is also still very prevalent. I don't think you need to see Paris if you're in Europe, although it's great if you have time. I much prefer Southern France if you're only going to one place in France.

Barcelona -- The train ride from Nice to Barcelona is a long one. It'll take an entire day, and you'll have to switch trains around the France/Spain border. This would be a really good one to try and do as an overnighter-- but the overnight train only runs on certain days, like Tuesday and Thursday or something like that, so you'll need to plan ahead.

Pamplona, Madrid -- I stopped at Barcelona and spent 3 full days there,so I can't make any suggestions here.

One suggestion-- it sounds like right now you might be tempted to make as few plans as possible, and that's an okay way to approach it. But, 19 days really isn't a lot of time, so I would suggest making as many of the train reservations as you can, well ahead of time. You can do it from here in the USA. The problem with doing it over there is that you might end up spending a long time in a line at a train station, which is exactly what you don't want to be doing. Here, your time is free. Over there, you're already spending a grand just to get there and back, so you'll want to get the most benefit from that time as you can. Also, in the peak season (late june through august) train reservations fill up fast. And, like I mentioned before, some trains like the overnighters only run on certain days.

Anyway, good luck, and you're going to have a great time.
 
I stayed at the Faulty Towers several years ago when I was in Rome and I highly recommend it. It is only a block or 2 from Termini. If you do decide to stay there make sure every menber of your party gets a key to the outside door before you go out at night. I learned that lesson the hard way. I had to sleep on the sidewalk one night. I also recommend taking as many overnight trains as you can. You will save money on accomodations and you won't waste daylight hours traveling.
 
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