7 Week European Tour Itinerary - Advice Needed

Windows7forever on 10/05/2023 - 12:58

Chat GPT put together an amazingly accurate itinerary starting and ending at the correct destinations and ticking off most of the countries/cities on my wishlist. I am still reading travel guides and only in the planing stages but the basic route is what I had in mind. There will be some amendments in week 3 so I can squeeze in Brussels and possibly Bruges. Amendments in week 7, so I can visit Venice for a couple of days before flying out of Rome. I would have liked to see the Alps but I'm travelling on a budget and services might be limited and/or expensive there.

Do you think the Europass will be the cheapest/best option for me to transfer between all of these places? I was looking at the 10 days in 2 months flexi pass. I won't be getting the full 2 months of use out of it but the 1 month pass is probably too short for the duration of this trip. i.e. Europass will start in week 2 when I leave UK but will expire in week 5 when I arrive in Austria. I intend to use local services If I am travelling internally within countries to avoid depleting the Europass on smaller trips. The continuous/unlimited Europasses are very expensive and don't suit me as I am a slow traveller and plan to spend 5-7 days in each location.

Thanks for all your helpful insights and advice :)

Chat GPT Itinerary:

Week 1:

Start in London, UK and explore the city's iconic landmarks like Big Ben, the Tower Bridge, and the British Museum.
Take a day trip to Stonehenge or Windsor Castle.
Enjoy a night out in the West End, watching a play or musical.

Week 2:

Take the Eurostar train from London to Paris, France.
Spend a few days in Paris, visiting the Eiffel Tower, Louvre Museum, and Notre-Dame Cathedral.
Take a day trip to the Palace of Versailles.

Week 3:

Head to Amsterdam, Netherlands and explore the city's canals, museums, and nightlife.
Visit the Anne Frank House and the Van Gogh Museum.

Week 4:

Travel to Berlin, Germany and learn about the city's history by visiting the Berlin Wall, the Brandenburg Gate, and the Holocaust Memorial.
Enjoy the vibrant nightlife scene in the city.

Week 5:

Take a train to Prague, Czech Republic and explore the city's stunning architecture and old town.
Visit the Prague Castle and Charles Bridge.

Week 6:

Head to Vienna, Austria and explore the city's coffee culture and classical music scene.
Visit the Schonbrunn Palace and St. Stephen's Cathedral.

Week 7:

End your trip in Rome, Italy and explore the city's rich history by visiting the Colosseum, Vatican City, and the Pantheon.
Enjoy the city's famous food and wine before departing for home.

Travel Europe

Comments

  • Donaldhump on 10/05/2023 - 13:04
    +4

    dont you want to visit what you want to visit, not an AI bot

    ask chatgpt your question if you asked it design your itinerary why stop there

  • TheMindsetTraveller on 10/05/2023 - 13:49

    Typical tourist attractions but yeah, first time in Europe - I get it.

  • stickingly on 10/05/2023 - 13:56
    +3

    That looks very similar to what I did recently, although in the opposite order and over 5 weeks. It worked well. I would try and see some of the countryside as well, not just the cities, even if you just do day trips. You get big city fatigue

    I had a eurail pass (7 days in a month), and whilst it didn't work out much cheaper it was great from the point of view of flexibility. EU Train tickets get more expensive the closer to the time you get, so you need to book well in advance to get cheap prices (Also I missed one train, with the eurail I could just get on the next one. If I had bought a ticket it would have cost over $300 for last minute tickets for the 4 of us on the next train + what we lost on the missed train). In some countries you also have a pay a seat reservation on top of eurail, so have to factor that in as well. T

    • Windows7forever on 11/05/2023 - 06:28

      City fatigue. That's a good point you raise. The crowds and noise really starts to bother me after after a few days too. I will plan a day trip out of the big cities. Being a ww2 history buff, Normandy will be a nice diversion from Paris.

      • sumyungguy on 11/05/2023 - 14:30
        +1

        Dresden is just 147km from Prague, so consider if you haven't already The Bundeswehr Museum of Military History

        • Windows7forever on 15/05/2023 - 10:39

          Thank you. I am considering Berlin > Dresden > Prague. I find smaller cities more charming and easier to get around on foot. I am even considering bypassing Paris/France entirely and going straight to Amsterdam from London.

  • sumyungguy on 10/05/2023 - 14:22

    I've typically done 3 nights in each city so you could easily cover 16 in seven weeks. Consider how many online travel guides cover 48 or 72 hours. Do you want to see the Aurora Borealis, or swim in the Blue Lagoon? An un-ordered list (n=12): London, Paris, Lisbon, Barcelona, Berlin, Zermatt, Dubrovnik, Prague, Vienna, Venice, Rome, Naples/Amalfi Coast. You could spend the other stops in the Nordics: Reykjavik, Stockholm, Copenhagen. Your transit strategy could be a mixture of Easyjet/Ryanair and inter-city rail. Some of the sleeper services are back too.

  • Marty-69 on 10/05/2023 - 14:29

    Book any tickets in advance if possible.

    • Windows7forever on 11/05/2023 - 06:05

      It's a shame that it takes the flexibility out of the trip. I guess I will have to be strategic and book certain things in advance and pay the reservation fee when necessary to ensure transit.

      • Marty-69 on 11/05/2023 - 12:19
        +1

        Yeah, you're right but things like Louvre, Eiffel Tower, van Gogh, Anne Frank Heineken experience etc. are booked out in advance quite often or have very long queues. If you stay in a place/area for a week, book them in the middle. July and August are very busy in Europe. Summer, school holidays, and lots of tourists from other continents.

        Some random tips from the top of my head:
        Vienna Spanish riding school is really cool.
        Keep the dress code for the Vatican in mind, otherwise they won't let you in after the long wait.
        Rodin Museum in Paris is nice, and the Sacre Coeur has a great view.
        Prague is insanely busy in summer, but there are National Parks close by. The zoo has a Shoebill.
        In Italy, Pompeii is very special.
        Amsterdam, cannel boat tour and the Amsterdam museum.

        • Windows7forever on 15/05/2023 - 10:42

          Thanks for the suggestions. I am going in Autumn so hopefully the crowds won't be too crazy big but with post covid travel, I am doubting that lol.

  • dtc on 10/05/2023 - 16:15

    You can probably spend less than a week in the Netherlands, Austria and Czech republic (you dont have to and can fill in the time if you want to spend a week in each of the countries). Then add that time to any other place. And, as great as most of those cities are, honestly you might not want to spend 7 days in any of them - again, no doubt you can; but you can see the main sites in 3-4 days (other than Rome I guess) so are you thinking about any other travel?

    • Windows7forever on 11/05/2023 - 05:59

      Thanks for the suggestions. I would like to visit the Swiss Alps but it's super expensive. Maybe I will see the Alps from neighbouring countries. Possibly add Poland too if I have time.

  • astrotrain on 10/05/2023 - 16:20

    Looks like a good starting point. Add in a few of your own unique experiences and make the trip your own.

    Also checkout this sub on Reddit
    https://www.reddit.com/r/Europetravel/

    In Paris if you enjoy art i also recommend Musee D'orsay (Monet, Gaugin, Van Gogh etc) and Centre Pompidou (Matisse, Picasso, Kandinsky).

    Bruges is great, can also recommend Ghent which is in between Brussels and Bruges. Think its less than an hour from Brussels and then 40ish minutes to Bruges.

    • Windows7forever on 11/05/2023 - 06:02
      +1

      Great thread, I'll be sure to check it out.
      I do enjoy musuems and some art. I have a feeling I am going to get massive fatigue and run out of time during this trip if I try to see every museum and art gallery LOL. I will select a few of the best ones that interest me and some free ones.

      • astrotrain on 12/05/2023 - 13:53

        Haha yeah i feel you there. I was in Paris for 9 Days (5 days start of trip, 4 days end of trip) so had plenty of time to check out a bunch of galleries.

  • Seraphin7 on 10/05/2023 - 16:21

    I'll just add one piece of advice … avoid airports to the greatest extent possible. Expensive, time consuming, difficult, and exhausting.

  • Drakesy on 10/05/2023 - 17:36
    +2

    I've done 2 major European gallivants - 3 months in total.
    Top spots.

    1. Lauterbrunnen, Switzerland
    2. Florence, Italy
    3. Rome, Italy
    4. Porto, Portugal
    5. Nice/Monaco, France
    6. Prague, Czech Republic.
    7. Barcelona, Spain

    Paris, meh
    London, meh

    • try2bhelpful on 11/05/2023 - 18:22

      How can you say “meh” to Paris? Personally I found Prague a bit meh, but it was one of those cities that we just had a lot of things go wrong. Not a bad list apart from that.

      • Drakesy on 12/05/2023 - 11:14

        It's more the people in Paris that turned me off, oh and a couple of corrupt policemen.

        Yes the Eiffel tower and Arc di Triomphe were nice but at the end of the day it left a bitter taste in my mouth.

        • try2bhelpful on 12/05/2023 - 12:51

          Yeah, Prague was like that for us. Too much went wrong. Give Paris another shot it is an amazing city.

  • sumyungguy on 10/05/2023 - 22:27

    Notre Dame won't reopen until at least late 2024 and Sagrada Familia will be complete in 2026 - so you could either save Paris & Barcelona for a future trip or do a return visit to see these incredible buildings. I've spent Christmas in Europe three times (Dresen, Copenhagen, Rome) and suggest you allow a slightly longer stay wherever you choose as there's not much open; it blows my mind that public transport in London is suspended on Christmas Day.

    • try2bhelpful on 11/05/2023 - 18:29

      The Sagrada Familia is a bit organic anyway so seeing it partly finished is not a biggie. We went in 2019. The cathedral is amazing. The light playing across the floors from the stained glass windows was stunning. Also we booked the trip to the top of the tower and walked down again.

      we also had a go in the bouncy castle in one of the Museums.
      https://www.barcelona.cat/grec/arxiugrec/en/show/white-bounc…

  • try2bhelpful on 11/05/2023 - 18:40
    +1

    In Paris look at San Chapelle. The Moyen Age museum. The roof of Sacre Coeur. The Eiffel Tower at dusk. The walk from the Louvre to the Arc de Triomph. Go up the stairs to the top of Arc De Triomphe and watch the bonkers traffic. Go on the bateau boats on the Seine. They go between a number of the museums. Look at the Carte de Musee to minimise standing in queues.

  • endolphin on 11/05/2023 - 22:14

    Planning a big trip is half the fun! That is an extremely lazy way of planning and way too vague.

    Also, train travel in Europe is good… but it is not the only way. Personally I love the freedom of hiring a car, especially when heading away from the city. Also, you can find cheap flights that take you from one corner of Europe to the other.

    So, my advice is, don't be totally constrained by what is logical from a train perspective.

  • try2bhelpful on 12/05/2023 - 14:23

    https://www.seat61.com/

    Look at this one.

  • kiitos on 17/09/2023 - 14:03

    OP how is your planning going? We are going at the end of the year for a similar time and haven't really planned much yet, which is a bit of a worry but I very much relate to your not wanting to lock in a rigid schedule.

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