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Itinerary suggestions for 2 week Europe trip

Itinerary suggestions for 2 week Europe trip

Old Aug 21, 2012, 7:16 pm
  #1  
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Lightbulb Itinerary suggestions for 2 week Europe trip

I will be in Rome next June 2013 with family(wife and 2 kids). I am spending 4 days in Rome, 2 days in Venice, 1 day in Pisa(Kids love to see Leaning Tower) and then want to take a scenic train ride to Switzerland. I will be spending 2 days in Paris and last one and half-day will be in Madrid(catching my return flight from madrid).

I dont want to spend more time in museums in Florence or anywhere else as kids will be tired with all the things they will see in Rome

Questions to the experts:

1) Will it be good to go from Rome-Venice-Pisa-Zurich/Geneva-Paris or Rome-Pisa-Venice-Zurich/Geneva?
2) Any good scenic rides(morning time) from Pisa/Florence to Switzerland
3) Where to stay in Switzerland(may have 2 days at maximum)
4) Suggestions for Zurich/Geneva - Paris and Paris - Madrid(want to book trains as much as possible).
concordian is offline  
Old Aug 28, 2012, 11:04 am
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This is quite a busy itinerary! Just clarifying, you do already have your international flights in to Rome and out of Madrid, correct ? You'll want to take the train from Venice to Switzerland, so you would want to do Rome, Pisa, Venice, Switzerland, Paris, Madrid...if in fact your flights are confirmed. Going Rome-VCE-Pisa would be seriously backtracking. As far as hotel suggestions in each destination, it would depend on budget and requirements.
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Old Aug 29, 2012, 7:46 am
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Your schedule is too convoluted to answer. You have mapped out a few itineraries and then you talk about spending time in Florence but not at museums without listing any plans to stay there. You cannot do a day trip to both Pisa and Florence and then spend the night in either Rome or Venice. You would need to spend a night in one of those cities from both a travel and enjoyment aspect. Also, I agree with the poster above. Why would you bypass both Florence and Pisa to go to Venice just to travel back south to those cities and back north to Switzerland? That’s a lot of time wasted. A much better schedule would be:

Rome-Pisa-Florence-Venice-Zurich/Geneva-Paris-Madrid

If it’s a coin toss between Geneva and Zurich, then it really depends on what you’re looking for. If you are asking which is the better city to visit, then it’s Geneva. Zurich is a lot like Frankfurt in that there are some decent sites, but it’s mostly a business/financial town. However, if you are taking a train to Paris, you will have to route through Zurich at some point regardless. So, from a pure travel aspect, Zurich makes the most sense if you only have 2 days. Those pesky Alps will play a factor in what you can see/do in the time you are allotting.

I’m assuming that you want to take a train from Venice to Switzerland for the scenery. Figure on about 8 hours between Venice and Zurich. It’s about 6 hours from Zurich to Paris on a day train. I would also fly between Paris and Madrid as a train will be 13+ hours and cost you more than an EasyJet flight from ORY-MAD. (Especially if you are taking children…ouch!) Sleeper cars are more cramped than a cabin on a cruise ship and it makes much more sense to do a night train on that leg as there isn’t really any scenery to speak of.

Lastly, this thread is probably more appropriate for the Europe forum as Italy is just a sample of the places you are looking to travel to.
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Old Aug 29, 2012, 12:47 pm
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i see no problem with this trip. i would however suggest you consider doing it over at least 3 weeks, and maybe 4.
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Old Aug 29, 2012, 6:48 pm
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Thanks for all the suggestions. To answer a few questions: I do have my flights booked(incoming to Rome) and Madrid(going out). Also, i had to remove Switzerland due to lack of time(painful decison but may be next time). I also changed itinerary: Its Rome-Pisa(stay overnight)-Venice(2 days). I just had to look at Italy map to see my original idea was very bad(Rome-Venice-Pisa) :-)

I will take Thello train from Venice-Paris and spend 3 days in Paris(had to see Versailles) and then booked flight from Paris to Madrid(Train ride was long and we have another 14 hour journey back home). Also, I wanted to maximize my time in Madrid.
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Old Aug 29, 2012, 7:50 pm
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Originally Posted by concordian
Thanks for all the suggestions. To answer a few questions: I do have my flights booked(incoming to Rome) and Madrid(going out). Also, i had to remove Switzerland due to lack of time(painful decison but may be next time). I also changed itinerary: Its Rome-Pisa(stay overnight)-Venice(2 days). I just had to look at Italy map to see my original idea was very bad(Rome-Venice-Pisa) :-)
If you are traveling w/ltd luggage, I wouldn't bother w/staying the night in Pisa - simply stop there for lunch, see the tower, and be on your way.
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Old Aug 30, 2012, 9:36 am
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Originally Posted by bdemaria
If you are traveling w/ltd luggage, I wouldn't bother w/staying the night in Pisa - simply stop there for lunch, see the tower, and be on your way.


+1

If you need an in between to stay the night, Id do Florence over Pisa. There are many more options for hotels and its a cool city at night. Pisa is pretty limited in things to do and is a day trip like Stonehenge would be in England. I believe that you have to change trains in Florence to get to Venice anyhow.

I think youll be happy with that revised itinerary. We were going to do Switzerland for a few days next spring but it is just too comprehensive of a place to make an add-on. Unless you make it your primary destination, youll see most of your scenery from a train or mountain lift. Especially if you want to get to the meat of the country in places like Gimmelwald or Interlaken. Almost everything routes through Zurich, so there is a lot of zig-zagging. From Munich and Salzburg, it didnt look like it would be too cumbersome on the map. But, those mountains disagree.

Good call on flying to Madrid. The train path doesnt take you through the countryside and vineyards that you see on TV. I did a Paris-Rome sleeper car train one time and I swore that I would never do it again. I couldnt even imagine doing that with kids. Venice to Paris is a better view, albeit, you will have to change trains.
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Old Aug 30, 2012, 10:42 pm
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I thought with Thello trains, you don't need to change trains. Was told Coach attendant takes your ticket/passport and you will not be disturbed. I will change my night stay to Florence and see if i can see the top most attraction the next day morning before catching Venice train.

This is my first time to Europe and all the knowledge is from Flyertalk Destinations and Google maps :-).

Pl. keep the suggestions coming.
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Old Aug 31, 2012, 10:00 am
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Well, there is an overnight Thello train that doesnt change in Milan. (Though, it does stop along the route) But when you mentioned the train I assumed that you wanted scenery, which you wont get with an 8:00 P.M departure.

Any particular reason why you are going with an overnight train vs. flying? EasyJet has the VCE-ORY route on sale for $75.00 or less all the time. (Albeit, their schedules for June probably wont be released until February or March) A single quad-sleeper ticket on Trentalia will be around $150.00 per person.

4 train tickets = $600.00

4 one-way EasyJet flights from VCE-ORY = $300.00
Cab fare to VCE and from ORY = $100.00
1 night at a 3-star Paris hotel = $200.00

The difference is that you will see the south of France from 30,000 feet instead of 100 KPH during the night and into early morning. You will also get a bed instead of cramming yourself into a sleeper. As you are making your way up from Rome, you will get the train experience. Doing a sleeper train only makes sense when you are backpacking with friends or saving enough money where a flight + hotel are too expensive. Its literally a cruise ship cabin on rails.

Id rethink the train. Its not nearly as exciting as it sounds and will probably be longer than your transatlantic flight. Ive harped on it a few times, and dont know how old your kids are, but it will not be a pleasant trip. A sub 2 hour direct flight will be much more desirable.
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Old Aug 31, 2012, 1:47 pm
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I am OK with a morning trip also, may need to check that option. How is the scenery from VCE-PAR? I don't want to do a morning trip with kids who will be 6 & 8 as it would be challenge to hold their interest for too long. I got Hyatt Vendome booked for 3 days, so can take the morning train/plane to get to Paris.
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Old Aug 31, 2012, 2:11 pm
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Originally Posted by concordian
I am OK with a morning trip also, may need to check that option. How is the scenery from VCE-PAR? I don't want to do a morning trip with kids who will be 6 & 8 as it would be challenge to hold their interest for too long. I got Hyatt Vendome booked for 3 days, so can take the morning train/plane to get to Paris.
Its c. 12 hrs to get from Venice to Paris by train. Spankytoes has it right: if possible take the train. There isn't *nearly* enough scenery, etc.. to keep the kids interested for 12 hrs.
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Old Sep 7, 2012, 4:56 pm
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Thanks for all your suggestions. I am going to fly from Venice to Paris on Easy Jet/Ryan Air. I dropped the train idea completely after feedback.
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