11 Best first-time Europe itineraries for 1, 2, or 3 weeks
Europe is going to be very busy in the summer of 2024 as the world is back to normal and travel demand is higher than ever. One other key factor is that most European currencies are still hovering at lower levels historically compared to the US dollar, which means that Europe will feel somewhat cheap again this year. In fact, according to our World Backpacker Index, European cities like Lisbon, Madrid, and Munich are about 30% cheaper to visit than Boston, Chicago, and New York City. In other words, flying to Europe might seem expensive, but most things will be cheaper once you get there compared to the costs of visiting a large US city.
Below you’ll find 11 of the most popular and best itineraries for a first visit to Europe. Your first visit is not really the time to be different or creative, and the famous destinations tend to be popular for a reason. In other words, it’s kind of silly to visit, say, Bulgaria, if you’ve not yet been to France or Italy. I lay out the best options along with how long to stay in each place as a general guide. I also discuss Mediterranean cruises, which can actually be an amazing way to see a lot of Europe on your first visit, especially if you don’t like going back and forth to train stations and airports every 2 or 3 days.
For a bit of fun you might be interested in the cheapest 5-star hotels in Europe, which start at US$80 per night for really nice hotels. It helps show that if you choose some of the cheaper cities, you can treat yourself to some luxury that you can’t afford in most other places.
This article was last updated in March, 2024.
There are 11 starter itineraries described in detail below
- Classic London and Paris
- England and Scotland
- Paris and Italy
- Mediterranean cruise
- France, Belgium, and Netherlands
- Paris and elsewhere in France
- Italy
- Spain
- Germany
- Switzerland
- Best of cheap eastern Europe
For each itinerary there are suggestions of other destinations that are easy to add on to the main cities.
Note: This article was most recently updated in March, 2024
Building the best itinerary for your first trip to Europe
Below there are 11 popular itineraries for one week in Europe. If you’ve only got a week then choose one of them and assume you’ll return again to conquer more of this amazing part of the world. If you’ve got more time then you can choose from some of the top add-on suggestions for each one.
Start in the most famous cities
Your first visit to Europe is no time to try to be different or edgy. I recommend that you focus on these 5 great cities before you start branching out into cheaper or more obscure places.
Keep your travel days to a minimum
The closest major European cities are at least two hours apart by high-speed train, and from the time you check out of one hotel until you are checked into your hotel in the next city, it’s going to be 5 or more hours in most cases. A travel day isn’t much of a sightseeing day, so if you change cities every day or two, you’ll have very little time to see the things you’ve actually gone all that way to see.
Spend 3 (or 4) nights in almost every major city
Cities like London, Paris, Rome, Amsterdam, Berlin, Madrid, and Barcelona are all large and packed with world-class things to see and do. Since the day you arrive and the day you leave will offer little sightseeing time, you need at least two full sightseeing days in order to even see your choice of the top sights.
So many first-time visitors are initially planning on spending only 1 or 2 nights in major cities that I wrote a detailed explanation of why 3 nights is ideal for almost all European cities, even if you want to see as much as possible.
3 (or 4) nights will be enough for any city on your first trip
Most first-time visitors are tempted to move too quickly, but it can also be a mistake to move too slowly. It’s really amazing how much you can see in two full sightseeing days. If you spend too long in one city you’ll end up seeing things that are way down your list, while you could be in another city seeing things at the top of your list there.
Choose cities that are easy to reach from each other
Since traveling from one city to another will take at least half a day, you don’t want to waste more time by visiting far-flung cities. Krakow and Lisbon are both fantastic cities to visit, but they are on opposite ends of Europe.
For your first trip it’s best to visit cities that are no more than a 5-hour train ride apart.
Choose cities that are connected by reasonable train rides rather than flights
To build on the point above, finding cheap flights within Europe is easy, but train travel is about a million times more enjoyable and less stressful. You’ll enjoy the train rides almost as much as the cities, so focus on places that are within 5 hours of each other by train.
Start with one of the classic itineraries below, and then add to it if you have more time
If you only have 7 days then you’ll find a list below of classic itineraries that are well-suited to a first visit to Europe. Hopefully you have more than 7 days though, and if you do you can add in one or more of the suggested add-on cities to build an itinerary that appeals most to you.
Best 1-week itineraries for the first time in Europe
Itinerary 1: Classic London and Paris
Fly into either city and take the 2-hour Eurostar train between them
Honestly, unless you have a specific reason why not, this is probably the best one-week itinerary for most first-time visitors to Europe. If you can read this article then London will be easy for language reasons. It’s packed with famous sights and it’s a major world capital.
London highlights
- Big Ben and Parliament
- Westminster Abbey and St. Paul’s Cathedral
- Tower of London and Tower Bridge
- West End shows (Broadway equivalent) and classic pubs
- Buckingham Palace and Windsor Castle
Paris is actually far more beautiful than London and the food is famously much better as well. Since Paris gets so many tourists from non-French speaking countries, it’s easy to get by on just English, and the Metro system makes it fast and easy to get around. The architecture of both cities is amazing from the Tower of London, Big Ben, Westminster Abbey to the Louvre and the Eiffel Tower. These cities each pack a huge punch and they are very different from each other as well. Actually, England is arguably the best choice for your first trip to Europe.
Paris highlights
- Eiffel Tower
- Louvre Museum and Museum de Orsay
- Arc de Triomphe and other monuments
- Montmartre neighborhood and Sacré Coeur Cathedral
- Probably the world’s best affordable restaurants and wine
Best add-ons to London and Paris
- Edinburgh (2 or 3 nights, from London)
- Amsterdam (2 or 3 nights, from Paris)
- Bruges and Brussels (2 nights, from Paris)
The only efficient way to get between London and Paris is on the Eurostar train, which runs between St. Pancras station in London and Gare du Nord station in Paris. The earlier you buy tickets, the cheaper they will be. Unlike other trains in Europe, the Eurostar (which of course runs through the Channel Tunnel) has airport-style security and you have to be there at least 30 minutes before departure. Eurostar tickets to and from London go on sale 6 to 8 months in advance and will be cheapest for the first few months they are on sale, with fares steadily rising after that.
>>>Best one-week London and Paris itinerary in detail
>>>Check London hotel deals
>>>Check Paris hotel deals
Itinerary 2: England and Scotland
- London (3 or 4 nights)
- York (1 night)
- Edinburgh, Scotland (2 or 3 nights)
- Inverness, Scotland (2 or 3 nights)
If you prefer to focus your first Europe trip on England and Scotland, you can have a great time and save the Continent for next time. London is the obvious place to start and spend 3 or 4 nights before taking the train north.
York is a small Roman city with intact city walls and one of the most famous cathedrals in Europe. Edinburgh is not only the capital of Scotland, but it’s easily the second most interesting city in all of Britain. If your time is short, skip York and spend more time in Edinburgh.
If you prefer to focus on the south of England on your first trip then the best option is to go to Bath or nearby Bristol after London. Bath is another of England’s top destinations and it’s a gorgeous city that has been a spa resort for many centuries. It’s also reasonably close to Stonehenge. You can also easily get to Cornwall in England’s southwest corner from Bath, and that’s a whole different and fascinating experience (with nicer weather than up north).
If you’ve got more than a week and want to spend more time in Scotland, especially in the summer months, the place to head to is Inverness. It’s a small town that is considered the gateway to the Scottish Highlands, but it’s an interesting and charming place on its own. You can take day-trips by bus to the highlights of the Highlands including the Isle of Skye and Loch Ness. Between you and me, it’s better to minimize time in Loch Ness or skip it altogether because it’s not one of the more photogenic parts of Scotland and the monster has always been a hoax.
Travel times between the recommended places
- London to York by train: 2 hours
- York to Edinburgh by train: 2.5 hours
- London to Edinburgh by train: 4 hours
- Edinburgh to Inverness by train: 3.5 hours
- London to Bath by train: 85 minutes
Best add-ons to England and Scotland
If you think you want to spend your whole trip in Britain you should have a look at our article on the best itineraries in England, Scotland, and Wales.
>>>Check London hotel deals
>>>Check Edinburgh hotel deals
Itinerary 3: Paris and Italy
- Paris (3 or 4 nights)
- Venice (1 night)
- Florence (2 or 3 nights)
- Rome (3 nights)
The fastest version of this extremely popular itinerary that I recommend is 9 nights, but if you skip Florence you could actually do this in 7 nights if you had to. Paris is obviously the best first place to start exploring France and 3 or 4 nights there will feel like a very complete first visit.
From Paris you can easily fly to Venice (or nearby Treviso) where you should try to spend about 24 hours. Venice is small enough to see in a full day, and so crowded that most people are satisfied to leave after that day. The key is to stay in the main part of the main island so you can enjoy Venice before the cruise passengers and day-trippers arrive, and also after they leave for the day. Two nights in Venice would not be wasted time, and it’s possibly the most gorgeous city in the entire world, but you can see the best of it in a bit over 24 hours.
Florence is a highly recommended stop after Venice, as it’s the capital of the Tuscany region and also arguably Europe’s most important city for a couple hundred years. Florence probably has the best food of the three most popular Italian tourist cities, which is another reason to stop over there for at least a couple days.
Rome also lives up to the hype and spending a day in the Vatican City will be a highlight even for non-Catholics, but it’s also a crowded and busy city so three days is usually enough for most people. Similar to Paris, Rome is an unusually beautiful city from almost any angle when you are in the historical center. You’ll walk through a stunning piazza (town square) and then turn a corner and you’ll see gorgeous buildings or public statues that are as nice as anything in the museums. Seriously, it’s worth a visit.
Paris to Venice flight: 1 hour 35 minutes
Venice to Florence by train: 1 hour 53 minutes
Florence to Rome by train: 1 hour 16 minutes
You can of course instead fly from Paris to Rome and then go north to Florence and then to Venice and fly home (or back to Paris) from there, and it would be just as enjoyable.
Best add-ons to Paris and Italy
France
- Nice/Cannes/Monaco (2 or 3 nights)
- Avignon (2 nights)
- Bourges (2 nights)
- Bordeaux (2 nights)
- Aix-en-Provence (2 nights)
- Reims (2 nights)
- Dijon/Burgundy (2 nights)
Italy
- Milan (1 or 2 nights)
- Lake Como (2 nights)
- Siena (2 nights)
- Cinque Terre (1 night)
- Naples/Sorrento/Amalfi Coast/Pompeii/Capri (3 to 5 nights)
- Sicily (3 to 4 nights)
>>>Much more information in this article about the best France and Italy itineraries
>>>Check Paris hotel deals
>>>Check Venice hotel deals
>>>Check Florence hotel deals
>>>Check Rome hotel deals
Itinerary 4: Mediterranean cruise
If you’ve decided to finally explore Europe for the first time, it’s quite possible that you haven’t considered doing it on a cruise. The best place to start would be one of the cruises that leaves from a popular port in the Mediterranean (and the adjacent seas). Barcelona and Venice are among the most popular departure ports and you can find cruises that go west or east from those places as well as cruises that drop you in another part of Europe or cruises that return to the departure port.
In spite of the reputation of cruises to be floating buffets, they can actually be an excellent way to visit a great number of amazing European cities in a short time. The ship typically is in port from the early morning until mid evening, often giving you the opportunity to have dinner in the city (unlike Caribbean cruises). Better still, the cruise ports are often near the center of town, so you can just walk off the ship and do sightseeing on foot or by public transportation.
Mediterranean cruises usually start at 7 nights but can go up to 3 weeks, which can provide an amazing tour of the entire region without having to pack and repack your bags more than once. They also can provide excellent value, especially compared to the price of taking trains or flights and finding new hotels in every destination.
Most popular Mediterranean departure ports
Barcelona, Spain – It’s an easy port to reach. Ships generally go from Barcelona with stops in France and then Italy.
Rome (Civitavecchia), Italy – The port isn’t very close to Rome, but it’s easy to get back and forth. Ships go west to France and Spain as well as south around the tip of Italy and then on to Croatia, Venice, and to Greece.
Venice, Italy – The cruise ships no longer dock close to the best tourist areas, but it’s easy enough to visit Venice for a day or two before boarding a ship. Ships starting in Venice go south and then head west and to Rome and then to France, or they go south to Croatia and then head east to Greece.
Athens, Greece – The cruise port of Piraeus is just south of Athens and easy to reach. Ships from Athens usually head west towards Croatia, Italy, France, and Spain, but there are also ships that visit Greek islands and Turkey.
>>>Check for deals on Mediterranean cruises
Alternative to consider: a river cruise
As alluring as cruising the Med may be, a river cruise on the Rhine or Danube might suit you even better. River cruises all over Europe have been booming in popularity lately and for good reason. They are typically more expensive than Med cruises on huge ships, but they also allow passengers to see more because they only hold a few hundred people and they often dock literally in the middle of the historic cities they visit.
Amsterdam, Budapest, and Prague are some of the most popular river cruise ports, but there are dozens of others including many smaller towns in France where few other tourists will be when you stroll off the ship. There is little or no entertainment on the river cruise ships, but passengers don’t miss it because the entire day and into the evening is spent just steps from local cultural offerings and restaurants.
>>>Check for Europe and river cruise deals
Itinerary 5: France, Belgium, and Netherlands
Paris to Brussels: 1 hour 22 minutes
Brussels to Bruge: 58 minutes
Bruges to Amsterdam: 2 hours 45 minutes
Amsterdam to Paris: 3 hours 17 minutes
If you want to save the UK for a future trip, starting in Paris on a first Europe visit is ideal. You’ll probably land in the morning so you’ll have almost 3 full days for Paris sightseeing. After that you can hop on a high-speed train for 1 hour 22 minutes to reach Brussels, or go straight to Amsterdam in a bit over 3 hours total.
Spending 4 nights in Paris and 3 nights in Amsterdam would be a great trip, but if you want to see something else you’ve got a couple options in between. My advice is to spend an afternoon looking around the Grand Place (main square) in Brussels and then hop a 58-minute train ride to Bruges for a night or two. Brussels isn’t a great tourist city, but Bruges really is so it’s a better option for most people. Whatever you choose out of this group, you can be back in Paris on another high-speed train for your flight home.
Best add-ons to France, Belgium, and Netherlands
- Luxembourg City (1 or 2 nights)
- Cologne, Germany (1 or 2 nights)
- London (3 or 4 nights)
- Interlaken, Switzerland (2 or 3 nights)
>>>Check Paris hotel deals
>>>Check Bruges hotel deals
>>>Check Amsterdam hotel deals
Itinerary 6: Paris and elsewhere in France
- Paris (3 or 4 nights)
And a choice of:
- Nice/Cannes/Monaco (2 or 3 nights)
- Avignon (2 nights)
- Bourges (2 nights)
- Bordeaux (2 nights)
- Aix-en-Provence (2 nights)
- Reims (2 nights)
- Dijon/Burgundy (2 nights)
- Normandy (2 nights)
France is such a rich country for tourism experiences that you could spend a month there and still feel like you are missing significant sights. Obviously you’ll want to start in Paris, and then after that it’s just a matter of what interests you most and how much time you have. The architecture all over France is a highlight, and of course Paris has some of the most famous structures on earth including the Eiffel Tower and Louvre museum.
While Nice is a wonderful tourist city for a look at the French Riviera, the other larger cities of Lyon and Marseilles are probably better saved for a future trip because they are light on key sights compared to many smaller towns. Wine lovers can rent a car or take trains into Bordeaux or Burgundy. Since you can get between most of these towns by train in 2 hours or less, spending only 2 nights in each one is a reasonable option if you want to see a lot in a short time.
Normandy is an interesting choice and easy to reach in only about two hours by train from Paris. Some visitors like to see the famous WWII beaches and memorials, while others (especially in summer) like to check out one or more of the beach-resort towns. Deauville is one of the more famous of those, and it’s also famous for its horse race track and as one of the epicenters of the industry in Europe.
Best add-ons to Paris and elsewhere
- More France, of course
- London (3 or 4 nights)
- Interlaken, Switzerland (2 or 3 nights)
- Amsterdam (2 or 3 nights)
>>>Check Paris hotel deals
>>>Check Nice hotel deals
Itinerary 7: Italy
Rome to Florence: 1 hour 16 minutes
Florence to Venice: 1 hour 53 minutes
Especially for first-time visitors to Europe, Italy might be the most popular destination of all, and for good reason. The country has a famous “Big 3” destinations in Rome, Florence, and Venice, which are all teaming with worthwhile sights and they are conveniently located fairly short train rides from each other. Rome is by far the largest of those and it’s packed with great sights, but it’s also a bit chaotic, so 3 nights is a good stay for a first visit. Rome’s architecture is an obvious highlight and fortunately you can see a lot in a fairly short time. You can visit the Colosseum, Roman Forum, Vatican Museums, and Trevi Fountain in two days if you are organized.
Venice is small enough that you can see the main sights in about 24 hours, and it’s so insanely crowded that many people tire of it after about a day as well. It’s better to pay more for a hotel to be on the main island and visit quickly than to save money with a hotel on the mainland where you’ll be in crowds going back and forth as well. Florence is the most relaxing of the 3, and also a great base for side trips to Pisa, Siena, and Cinque Terre, just to name a few.
Going to Italy? Here are the best first-time Italy itineraries for 3 days to 2 weeks (in much greater detail)
Best add-ons to Italy
- Milan (1 or 2 nights)
- Lake Como (2 nights)
- Siena (2 nights)
- Cinque Terre (1 night)
- Naples/Sorrento/Amalfi Coast/Pompeii/Capri (3 to 5 nights)
- Sicily (3 to 4 nights)
>>>Check Rome hotel deals
>>>Check Florence hotel deals
>>>Check Venice hotel deals
Itinerary 8: Spain
Madrid to Barcelona: 2 hours 30 minutes
Spain is another huge country with many things to see, but on your first visit to Europe it’s best to focus on its two huge cities. Madrid, which is the capital, and Barcelona, which is on a northern Mediterranean beach, are very different from each other and not substitutable for each other at all. A day trip on a 33-minute train ride from Madrid to Toledo is very worthwhile, although there are many other options.
A huge part of Spain’s tourism industry is built around its southern beaches and islands such as Ibiza, Mallorca, and Tenerife (in the Canary Islands). For most people it’s best to ignore those places on your first trip because none of the beaches are special enough to spend days on them compared to the culture of the cities.
Best add-ons to Spain
By popular demand, I’ve added a full article on where to go in Spain with itineraries from 7 to 10 days up to two weeks.
>>>Check Madrid hotel deals
>>>Check Barcelona hotel deals
>>>Check Lisbon hotel deals
Itinerary 9: Germany
Berlin to Munich: 6 hours 2 minutes
Munich to Rothenburg ob der Tauber: 2 hours 56 minutes
Munich to Füssen: 2 hours 4 minutes
Germany is a popular first-time Europe destination for those with family and/or roots in the country, even if other people save it for a 2nd or 3rd trip. Berlin is the capital and the most interesting city in the country by quite a bit, and it’s also pleasantly affordable compared to the other large cities in Germany. Munich is wealthier and more relaxed, and different from Berlin in many other ways as well.
Those two cities are the keys to a Germany visit, and after that you’ve got a wide variety of choices. I cover most of the popular choices in my article on where to go in Germany, which covers several smaller towns that are major highlights.
Best add-ons to Germany
- Cologne (1 or 2 nights)
- Hamburg (2 or 3 nights)
- Amsterdam (3 nights)
- Prague (3 nights)
- Salzburg (2 or 3 nights)
- Vienna (3 nights)
- Interlaken, Switzerland (3 nights)
- Lucerne, Switzerland (2 or 3 nights)
>>>Check Berlin hotel deals
>>>Check Munich hotel deals
Itinerary 10: Switzerland
- Interlaken (3 nights)
- Bern (1 night)
- Lucerne (3 nights)
Zurich Airport to Interlaken: 2 hours 10 minutes
Interlaken to Bern: 53 minutes
Bern to Lucerne: 1 hour 50 minutes
Lucerne to Zurich Airport: 1 hour 3 minutes
If you aren’t much of a city person at all and you have a much stronger desire to see beautiful scenery and landscapes, then Switzerland could be a good choice for your first visit to Europe. The large cities here such as Zurich, Geneva, Lausanne, and Basel are all fairly dull and very expensive, so it’s better to minimize your time in any of them and head straight to the smaller scenic towns.
Interlaken is the best hub for the most dramatic Alps views and experiences. The one-hour cable car ride up to the Schilthorn observation deck is something you’ll never forget, and the only thing that might be more dramatic is the train ride up to the Jungfraujoch station, which is the highest in Europe. Lucerne is almost as beautiful with a scenic lake at its heart and also great mountaintop views nearby. If you do want to see a Swiss city then the capital of Bern is the most interesting and photogenic on a short visit. Read more about where to go in Switzerland for even more ideas.
Best add-ons to Switzerland
>>>Check Interlaken hotel deals
>>>Check Lucerne hotel deals
Itinerary 11: Eastern Europe’s best cheap cities
This isn’t really recommended for a first trip to Europe unless you are a backpacker who is sure they are going to be able to visit Europe again when they have more money. If you can get a cheap enough flight, the 3 best cheap European cities to visit are Prague, Budapest, and Krakow, which are all around half as expensive as most of the other cities on this list.
Each of these cities is beautiful and historic, but English is less widely spoken so they can also be quite a bit more challenging for a first-time visitor. Another difficulty is that the trains between them are still quite slow compared to the high-speed rail in the West, so it takes most of a day from one to another, and a bus is often a better choice. I cover this best cheap Europe itinerary more fully in the linked article.
Prague to Budapest: 6 hours 41 minutes
Budapest to Krakow: 9 hours 54 minutes (flying might be better)
Best add-ons to cheap Eastern Europe
- Cesky Krumlov, Czechia (2 nights)
- Ljubljana, Slovenia (2 or 3 nights)
- Split, Croatia (3 nights)
- Belgrade, Serbia (2 or 3 nights)
- Sarajevo, Bosnia and Herzegovina (2 or 3 nights)
- Sofia, Bulgaria (2 or 3 nights)
>>>Check Prague hotel deals
>>>Check Budapest hotel deals
>>>Check Krakow hotel deals
Hi Roger
Big hello from India!
First of all I would like to wish you a Merry Christmas and a happy new Year!
I am so glad that I found out your website and articles on the Eurotrip.
I am planning a trip to Europe somewhere in April 1st week for 15 days.
It would be great it you can suggest an itinerary for the same.
Countries which I am interested in are:
1. Netherlands
2. France
3. Spain
4. Switzerland
5. Italy
6. Asutria
7. Czechia
I understand that the list is long, so it would be great if you can suggest me which country I can skip from the above list as a first time traveler to the continent.
Awaiting your revert.
Happy holidays!
Sup
Sup,
Happy New Year to you as well! My strong suggestion is to spend 3 nights in each city you visit for the most part because if you go faster than that you’ll be spending too much of your time on trains and airports and such. It also adds quite a bit to the cost of the trip every time you go from one city to another. So in 15 days I’d recommend choosing 5 cities or no more than 6 cities.
I’m among those who feel that Paris is unmissable and that Italy is also ideal for first visits to Europe because the sights are also so amazing. The fastest visit to those places is Paris for 3 nights, Venice for 1 night, Florence for 2 nights, and Rome for 3 nights. Venice is quite small so you can enjoy the highlights in 24 hours or so, and Florence is fairly compact as well. Better still, each of those cities is 2 hours or less apart by train, so you don’t need a half a day to get between them.
That gives you 6 more days and I’d recommend Amsterdam for 3 nights and also Switzerland for 3 nights. You can save Spain, Austria, and Czechia for a future trip. The easiest way to do it would be to fly into Amsterdam and then take the high-speed train to Paris, and then the train to Interlaken in Switzerland, and then a train to Venice and to Florence and to Rome. If you can fly home from Rome that would be ideal, but it might be cheaper to get a cheap flight back to Amsterdam and then fly home from there. I’m happy to help if you have other questions. -Roger
Hi Roger. Looking for some advice here. I am planning a 12 night trip this June in Europe and am thinking of (3) separate options. Please let me know which one you think is the best use of time and which would make the most impactful experience. Also, this is my first multi-country European trip for both me and my girlfriend. I’m leaning towards one of the first two options.
Option 1: Amsterdam (3 nights)
Paris (3 nights)
Barcelona (3 nights)
Madrid (3 nights)
Option 2: Amsterdam (4 nights)
Brussels/Bruges (1 night)
Paris (3 nights)
London (4 nights)
Option 3: Barcelona (3 nights)
Valencia (2 nights)
Madrid (4 nights)
Lisbon (3 nights)
Jake,
For a first trip like this I’m leaning towards the first two options as well. Lisbon and Valencia are both really cool places, but neither is as unique or memorable as the others, so I’d save them for a future trip.
So it’s really down to Barcelona and Madrid vs. Belgium and London. I think I’d include London and then save Spain for that future trip. London feels like one of the world’s most important cities and there is so much to see and do there that I’d push it to the top of the list and Spain down just a bit. Really I think it’s down to which of these cities sounds the most interesting and exciting to you. When I grew up I was REALLY into British music and culture and whatnot so London was a huge thing for me. But Barcelona and Madrid usually have better weather and they famously have better nightlife, so for some people they might be better.
One thing about Option 2 though, Bruges is a charming little town, but it will remind you a LOT of Amsterdam because it was built by similar people at the same time. Brussels has a few highlights, but I’m not a big fan unless there is something there that you want to see. So you might consider limiting Amsterdam and London to 3 nights each and adding another city for 3 nights, or some variation on that. For example, in June you might include Edinburgh, which is a bit similar to London but also very different and the sun doesn’t set there until 11pm in June. As always, let me know if you have any other questions. -Roger
Hello Again Roger,
I had asked questions about ideas of an ideal budget friendly trip to Europe for first timers. We are two college students from Florida. After further research I would to take my girlfriend to
Amsterdam, Interlaken, and Paris.
However, flights from Miami to Amsterdam are expensive so I saw that flights to London are way cheaper. So this is a rough draft of an itinerary I made up.
Trip from June 4th to 16th roughly give or take found a flight from Miami to London for ~$800 for both of us. Arriving in london at 5:50 AM at LGW. Via Norwegian airline
From there I found flights to Amsterdam for $60 for both of us via Easyjet departing at 8:00 am from london. I think that would be enough time correct? However, I saw the luggage may be an issue but I don’t know how much a different it will make in price. Or should I look into train rides? Staying 3 nights in Amsterdam.
From there I found a train ride to Interlaken taking roughly 11-12 hours traveling at night. Staying there two nights.
Then taking a train to Paris taking around 9 hours also taking it at night to say time. Staying in Paris for 3 nights and then taking a flight arriving at london LGW at 7:30 AM and the flight from london to Miami departs at 10:00 AM would that be adequate time?
Would this be a good start to the trip??
Thank you very much I would love your expert input on this.
Giuliano,
I answered the other questions before I saw this, so I’ll have a go at these now. If you can get a decent roundtrip into Paris I think it would work better than flying into London (unless you plan on visiting London). Still, overnight flights from the US into Europe usually land a bit early in my vast experience. So 2 hours at Gatwick should probably work. The immigration and customs queues usually take about 30 minutes or less, and landing early like that could make it even quicker. Often you’ll only be competing with the other people from your flight, so if you get as forward seats as possible you’ll get off earlier and that alone can save 10 or 15 minutes in the queues.
The train from London to Amsterdam takes about 5 hours and it requires getting from Gatwick into London, so it would be more like 7 hours altogether. The flight is better as long as it’s from the same airport and you are skipping London sightseeing. I’m a fan of Easyjet (especially compared to Ryanair), but make sure you research the various fees for luggage and such. Norwegian is great value, so that’s a very good choice.
That said, I’m no fan of overnight trains, and Europe has done away with most of them in the last 5 or 10 years. At least scan the article I linked to and decide for yourself. I’m happy to answer other questions if you have them, but I just had a drink and I’m going to start my holiday celebration soon. -Roger
Hello Roger,
I am a college student and trying to take my girlfriend to Europe. This would be our first time. I am fresh in my research however, would love to get some direction and realistic input on the topic.
I think the best routes we would like to do would be Amsterdam –> Paris–> Interlaken staying like 2-3 days in each. How possible and budget friendly would this be? Would you have a rough estimate of cost I know this is very dependent on situation to situation however, would love some input on this. Obviously we would love to visit everything in Europe but that is impossible would sticking to these few cities be possible? We would be looking to travel in June I know that is a high season but that is the only times we have. Also any tips on travel between these three places?
Thank you
Giuliano,
I’m sure this will be a wonderful trip, and you’ve chosen three amazing places to start with. I’d highly recommend staying 3 nights in Paris for sure and probably Amsterdam as well. If you only have 8 nights you could visit Interlaken in 2 nights (although 3 is better) and that would help your budget as well.
As far as budgets are concerned, yes, it’s almost impossible to say. But you’ve come to the right place and I will suggest having a look at our 3-star traveler index for Europe, which lists those 3 cities and 53 others. The 2019 edition will be there in a couple weeks, but the numbers won’t change much so the 2018 version should be very helpful. Basically it’s a daily cost estimate for each person in a couple traveling together and staying in 3-star hotels. If you stay in 2-star hotels you can get by on a bit less, and if you share a hostel (private or dorm) it would be even a bit less.
Switzerland is crazy expensive for restaurants and most hotels, but it’s also amazing and totally worth a little splurge. And you can see and do quite a bit without spending too much money.
My guess is it would be cheapest to fly into and out of Paris. From Paris you can take the high-speed train to Amsterdam in about 3.5 hours. Then it’s probably best to fly from Amsterdam to Zurich and then take a train from the airport to Interlaken (without even spending any time in Zurich), and then you can get back to Paris from Interlaken by train. Europe does have buses that are usually cheaper than trains, but also MUCH slower and less comfortable, so the trains are the way to go. As long as you buy your train tickets (and flights) at least two months or so in advance, the fares will be quite reasonable. Let me know if you have any other questions. -Roger
my husband and i need to be in london by march 13, from virginia, and then we’d like to see amsterdam, paris, naples, and somewhere in here fit in aalen germany to see some friends who have become refugees from turkey…we are in 70’s and 80 yoa, with no walking problems, have traveled quite a bit over time. we can’t afford much time, nor expensive transport in each place, perhaps 2-3 complete days each. any suggestions you may have will be welcome…thank you…
Patricia,
You could fly into Paris and after 3 nights take the train (3.5 hours) to Amsterdam. Then after 3 nights you could take a train down to Aalen for as long as you’d like, and then take a train from there to either Frankfurt or Munich (whichever is cheaper) for a flight to Naples to end the trip. However, you might consider basing yourself in Sorrento and visiting Naples as a day trip. Naples, as you may know, has a reputation for petty crime and being disorganized, so many people aren’t keen on spending nights there. It’s also a very dense city with almost no green or open areas, so it’s not as pleasant as the other Italian cities for hotels and longer stays.
Sorrento, on the other hand, is lovely and friendly (many people there speak English), and it’s an ideal base for day trips to Naples, Pompeii, the Amalfi Coast, and the isle of Capri. I’m happy to help if you have other questions. -Roger
Hi Roger. I did some research and went through your website, and then also read comment responses here. My wife and I will be heading to London from March 29 until April 17, so about 20 days. I’ve been to the main countries before but it’s her first time and I want to prioritize the selection in a way that she can get the true Europe experience. Based on your responses, I have shortlisted the following cities. Could you please review the itinerary and suggest the best ordering, given that we need to start and end our trip in London (before heading back to Toronto)? I have put the suggested nights in brackets:
London (3-4)
Paris (3-4)
Amsterdam (2-3)
Rome (3)
Florence (2-3)
Venice (1) – then take train to:
Interlaken Switzerland (2-3)
Fly back to London?
Thanks a lot!
Omer,
I’m glad this site has been helpful. Your itinerary looks quite good and the order is logical. From London to Paris you’ll take the Eurostar train and from Paris to Amsterdam the fast train only takes a bit over 3 hours. Then you’ll fly to Rome and take trains to Florence and Venice and then through the Alps to Interlaken. From Interlaken you’d take a train directly to the Zurich Airport (in 2 hours) or to Geneva Airport (3 hours) for a flight back to London. Most likely Zurich will have lower fares and more flights, but you can check Geneva Airport as well. Just be sure to check which London airport you’ll be flying into. Your Toronto to London flight almost certain goes into Heathrow, while the cheaper Zurich to London flights will almost certainly go into Luton or Stansted or Gatwick. If you are flying back to London and then home on the same day it’s worth paying more to fly into Heathrow because it takes a long time to get between those airports.
Or you could fly into London and then take the Eurostar to Paris on the same day, and then spend your last few days in London before flying home. Let me know if you have any other questions. -Roger
Hi Roger,
Thanks for all you’ve been doing to help us out. Keep up the good work.
My wife and I will be traveling to Europe for the first time for about 18 days. We want to see Paris (3 nights) fly to Rome (3 nights) then train to Florence and Venice (not sure how long to stay in these two cities? Then on to Switzerland by train (2 nights) then on to Amsterdam (2- 3 nights). Is this a good itinerary? Originally we had London in the itinerary but I’ve heard there is not much to see or do there? Should we re-consider? If not London, what other city would you suggest adding?
Thank you for your suggestions.
Xavier
Xavier,
I appreciate the kind words and I apologize for the holiday delay in responding. I’m not sure if you are joking about London or not. It’s truly one of the world’s greatest tourist cities and you could spend a year there and not get bored. I’d highly recommend it if you are still open to it.
Spending 3 nights in almost any city is ideal if you want to see a lot. Florence in 3 nights is great, although you can see quite a bit in two nights, partly because it’s a short train ride from Venice and Rome. Venice is really crowded and quite compact so I recommend a stay of 24 hours if you are in a hurry (many people get tired of the crowds quickly) or two nights if you aren’t in such a hurry. The key to visiting Venice is to stay on the main island (near St. Marks Square if possible) and do your sightseeing in the morning before the crowds arrive and/or the evening after the crowds are back on the cruise ships and back on the mainland.
Switzerland is amazing and my recommendation is to go to the Interlaken area for the best scenery. It’s also very expensive so many people visit for only 2 or 3 days. I’m happy to help more if you have other questions. -Roger
Hey Roger,
Brilliant portal, to begin with. The kind of information you’ve provided us with is so helpful.
I’m Vishal from Mumbai, India and planning my first trip to Europe during April-end / May-beginning in 2019 (yes, I know its an early start, but that’s where the economies kick in 🙂 ).
I’ve gone through your article, as well as the other link that names the top 5 places to visit as a first trip. But I’m honestly not a huge fan of large, commercial cities so I’ve thought of something that’s a bit of a mix and mash of everything. I intend on doing a 3-week trip here, with a moderate budget of around 2500 euros, including travel. I’ve quite a few credit card points accumulated, so the one-way flight will be taken care of at least.
This is what I’m thinking of right now. As per your advice, I’m hoping to spend roughly 3 nights at each of these places. It’ll be really helpful if you could take a look at the below and share your thoughts/suggestions on this, and if you feel something isn’t working as per the flow. WIll be very happy to hear from you.
Mumbai to Barcelona
Barcelona to Valencia (I have a few family members here, so can’t skip it)
Valencia to Madrid
Madrid to Lisbon
Lisbon to Porto
Porto to Amsterdam
Amsterdam to Munich
Munich to Prague
Prague to Mumbai
Does this seem like a good plan? I’d prefer a slightly slower mode of travel and not keep hopping every other day, so just wondering if the above is good enough, or should I change the route or for that matter, even add or remove a place or two.
Would love to hear your thoughts and suggestions on this.
Best,
Vishal
Vishal,
I’m really glad my information has been helpful and I thank you for the kind words. Your plan looks very good and well thought out. Valencia is a lovely city so even if you didn’t have family there I’d recommend it.
From Madrid to Lisbon the only train runs overnight and I’m not a fan of those, so flying is your best option. And of course you’d fly from Portugal to Amsterdam. My only major suggestion would be to substitute Berlin for Munich, which will cut the train travel times way down. Berlin and Munich are very different cities and personally I find Berlin to be far more interesting and it’s also cheaper. If there are specific things you want to see or do in Munich then I’m sure you’d enjoy it, but if you mainly just wanted to experience a large German city I’d highly recommend Berlin instead.
The flights and train tickets will be fairly cheap as long as you buy them as far in advance as you are able, especially with the flights. I’m happy to help more if you have any other questions. But again, it looks like your plan is already quite good and it seems like you know what you are doing. -Roger
Thanks for the quick reply Roger, Have you been to the BMW museum? We were originally super excited to visit that but heard it might not be as much about the classic BMW’s as we thought. I can do more research on that if you have not been personally.
As for London those are some great tips about the certain areas. I think what would interest us is exploring the culture of the town/country, I would love to explore some old castles meant for battle, not the fancy castles, as well as seeing the big known sights of the city. So definitely want to check out the houses of parliament and Elizabeth tower so the suggestion of checking out the walking tour sounds just right for us to see the big sights. We were thinking of renting a car in London and maybe doing a day trip to outside of London, getting to drive on the left hand side of the road and all. Ive been looking into visiting beachy head and seeing the seven sisters and maybe end up in portsmouth to explore the old british navy. Are there any other areas outside of London that would be a good day trip. It seemed that stone henge and bath seemed super touristy and might skip unless you think that is a must see. For Munich we are planning on joining a bar crawl that explores the different beer houses, sounds super fun and meet some people. Exploring the beer gardens paired with some sightseeing would be awesome. We plan to spend 1 day to travel to the bavarian alps and head up there. Anything of worth in Munich or outside that would be a must visit.
Finally the last unknown, which would be extremely helpful, is some suggestions of the best areas to stay in London and Munich. We will most likely be staying in AirBNB’s and like you suggested staying away from the hotels would be awesome because the tourists would die down at some point. I know we are tourists ourselves but I like to try and blend in.
Thanks for the awesome response so far and I look forward to hearing more.
Philip,
No, I’ve yet to make it to the BMW Museum, but I do know that it’s very popular with car people.
Personally, I would never rent a car in London, although if you rented out by one of the airports it wouldn’t be so bad. Left-hand driving takes some getting used to, of course, and most of London is very unforgiving with small lanes, lots of one-way streets, and very confusing streets in general. Take a look at a map and you’ll see what I mean. Also, the trains should go pretty much anywhere you’d want to go.
Stonehenge is indeed touristy, but it’s quite cool. Still, it takes most of a day to see it and get back and I wouldn’t recommend it unless you had a week there. Bath is actually super nice and interesting, but also filled with tourists all day, so probably not what you are looking for. Cambridge and Oxford are both really cool small towns outside of London and they get some tourists, but it’s still mostly students and locals. Brighton is the main beach just south of London (and a bit over an hour by train) and it’s a really cool city that is also very interesting. If you just went to some random town well outside of London I think you’d find it quite boring. Believe it or not, almost every city and town in Britain has the exact same chain stores in its downtown, although most of them are wedged into older, somewhat historic buildings. I’d say just going to the places that interest you is wise, and Portsmouth isn’t too touristy.
I’ve done a bunch of those pub crawls in different European cities and they are really fun, with many of them put on by the free walking tour companies. There is a surfing wave on a river in a park that is pretty central and easy to reach in Munich, and it’s worth a look.
Choosing London neighborhoods is challenging because it’s a huge city and you want to be fairly central so you don’t have to spend an hour on the tube to reach the main attractions. I’d recommend looking for a place in the Camden Locks or Chalk Farm area. During the day it’s crowded with (mostly locals) shopping at the various funky outdoor markets, and at night it’s a pretty good nightlife area. Since there aren’t many hotels there they don’t get many tourists. Google “Camden Town” and “Camden Markets” and look at the photos that come up. If you like what you see it should be a good area and it’s not too far from Oxford Street, which is kind of the middle of everything.
Another option that is quite central is Brixton, as I mentioned before. There are very few hotels and it’s just one train stop from Victoria Station, which is very central. Most of the residents are from Jamaica and the West Indies, although in recent years it’s become somewhat trendy and gentrified. If that sounds interesting you’ll probably like it.
I’ve been to Munich a few times but to be honest I’ve always stayed within walking distance of the main train station because I’ve always arrived and departed by train. It’s a pretty generic neighborhood, but it’s also very central (of course), although it’s also filled with hotels. Most of Munich is quite upscale, so it all feels very safe. I’d imagine finding a place near a large university would be one way of getting away from tourists while still having some good nightlife options. Let me know if you have any other questions. -Roger
Hi Roger,
I found your article very helpful and really enjoyed reading through the comments. I am planning a trip in the second half of May 2019, it will be just me and my brother both in our mid 20’s. We are looking at spending 3-4 days in and around London and then fly to Munich where we would spend another 3-4 days. This will be my first time in Europe, would you suggest changing this at all? My brother is currently living in Rome and working remotely so we need to be back in Rome and I would hang around with him for another 4-5 days and get to explore Rome and surrounding areas. Do you have any suggestions of must-see and unique things for us to do? My brother is a big car guy so we were thinking of taking a trip to the British Motor Museum outside London, maybe there is a town around there that would be cool to visit and see some locals. I think it would be cool to see some more local areas that are less touristy, or should we not worry about that and just go where everyone else goes? ie. ‘changing of guards’, ‘Neuschwanstein Castle’.
Thanks in advance
Philip,
I think the plan to spend 3 or 4 days in London and then 3 or 4 days in Munich sounds great. Munich isn’t an obvious choice for a first trip to Europe, but since you are also doing London and Rome I think it’s a good addition because it’s very different from those two. You might also want to look into the BMW Museum in Munich.
It’s hard to recommend must-see attractions and such without knowing more about you and your budget and interests. I lived in London (in Notting Hill) for six months just a couple years ago so I have done nearly all of the popular things and many less popular ones, but I’m not sure which of those you’d like. I’d say for people your age that I’d definitely go to the markets around the Camden Locks in the early afternoon. It’s filled with unusual items and some great pubs and food stalls. You might also check the Brixton neighborhood out during the day, as it’s now kind of a cutting edge place for younger people. Oh, and do one of the free (tips-based) walking tours as soon in your trip as you can. Those are fantastic for getting a lot of the mandatory sightseeing out of the way in a few hours and in an entertaining way for cheap. I’ve never been more bored than when watching the Changing of the Guard though, and it’s a total madhouse.
I like the idea of getting out of the touristy areas and hanging with locals, and you can actually do that almost anywhere in London except for a few key areas with loads of hotels. Notting Hill for example has lots of tourists along Portobello Road during the day (and it’s a very cool place to visit), but in the evening it’s almost 100% local because there aren’t any hotels nearby. I’m happy to give you more advice if you give me some specifics. I hope this helps. -Roger