best european city to visit

[luckyman]

where is a nice eurpean city to visit,,,on a budget,,,have been barcelona/poland/paris but am wondering maybe we would get better value for money in bucharest? riga? bratislava ? we want a nice 4 star hotel but reasonably priced and also need lots of things to see over 3 days....we will be going in february 2009 sometime..

[flip_flop]

Budapest is excellent, as is Prague, Warsaw and Hamburg (ignore the stories of Hamburg being sleazy, it is Germany's second largest city and is very very picturesque - unless you want sleazy of course, in which case the Reeperbahn is fantastic: the red light district knocks Amsterdam's into a cocked hat).

I have done all of the above on a budget - which usually means hotels not quite in the centre, but all four have brilliant and cheap public transport

[Bbbananas]

Why not try Venice - in February it's their carnival time/ Mardi Gras. In 2009 its February 13th to 24th.

There are lots of balls; usually expensive - but also lots of free entertainment & public shows.

Even during carnival time, you should be able to shop around now & get something reasonably priced. There'll certainly be lots of things to see over 3 days.

[jen78]

I'd go for Budapest, went there in June with some clients of mine who come form there and loved it. You can also do cheap days out to Vienna and Bratislava by train. It's very cheap and loads to do.

We stayed in the Art'otel by the Danube on the Buda side (Castle, St Mattius Church, Palace, Gellert Spa baths side) and the main town is in Pest over the River with the stunning parliament and bascilica.

http://www.artotel.hu/budapest/budapest.html

They have a wonderful zoo and caves if you travel a bit further out.

It's quite big (compared to more walkable places like Prague and Amsterdam) but they have a great metro system.

I'd highly recomment the Sir Lancelot restaurant - definitely a night to remember!

http://www.sirlancelot.hu/

You'd definitely have a lot to see and could go by hydrafoil up trhe Danube to Vienna (for the wonderful Patisseries - we have a fantastic day there - 3 hours on the very cheap train each way) or Bratislava. Think the hydrafoil is about 5 hours to Vienna.

Also easily reachable are...

Szentendre - http://www.budapesthotels.com/touristguide/pro grams/szentendre.asp

and

Visegrad - http://www.budapest.com/excursions-hungary/vis egrad-hungary.htm

I've been to Bucharest doing youth work and have to say I wouldn't go as a holiday.

Prague is lovely though very pricey round the tourist areas. Hotel wise I stayed at the 987 Design which was lovely and just out from Wenceslas Sq with som

[joannie10]

cant comment on price but we were staying in Vienna in the summer and visited Bratislava - would definitely like to go back and spend more time there. I am going to Milan next month and lots of people are telling me it is a fabulous place to visit.

[Bushwhacker]

Berlin is a fantastic place. Easy to fly to from UK, plenty to see and do, transport system is second to none and food and drink are cheaper than UK.

I highly recommend Berlin.

Further afield - I also recommend Tallin (Estonia) - not so easy to get to, but a beautiful city nonetheless. Very, very cheap when you are there. Only thing is, I would imagine it would be very cold in February.

I would stay away from Prague - it is a nice place but is totally swarming with tourists all year round !!

BW

[jen78]

Milan is lovely but not a huge amount to do there.

I went there a few years ago on a hen do and we ended up getting a train up to Lake Como which is just lovely and I would highly recommend it.

[dimligump]

Have you thought of Copenhagen? It can be pricey, but there are loads of hotel bargains at the moment.

There's tons to see that doesn't cost anything and there are various river sightseeing trips to choose from that are excellent value.

The Bofhaus chain of steak restaurants are fabulous - great steaks and very reasonable. There are lots of cafes and small restaurants that are also excellent value. You can even go over to Malmo on the train for about a fiver.

[bubbles4920]

madrid, not barcelona! venice for carnival in feb is freezing, wouldnt bother"

[VLADIMIR]

berlin without a shadow of a doubt.

[Aimee1992]

If you want to go somewhere that is cheap id suggest Turkey, it is now a european country but its currency it the lira which is a much better exchange rate and also cheaper. Marmaris and Bodrum in Turkey are known for there great sights and you wont be stuck for things to do, there is also a wide variety of hotels and you deffinatly will have alot to see in 3 days =]..... hope i was some help any way lol... have a good holiday

[mandimoo]

tallin, estonia

[Jo20082008]

Milan is not great other than shopping for designer clothes..
Rome is amazing and so much to do.. You can find a pensione at a cheap price and if you like pasta eating out is really reasonable too.. Nightlife is great and so is shopping but there are so many beautiful sights to see in the daytime that you will not manage to see it all..
I think if you go there you will not be disappointed and will want to go again..