Daytrip To European City

[Deelitefull]

I have a friend visiting from Nth America in July and as a birthday surprise i want to take her to a european city for the day.

Stansted would be our nearest airport. We have done the eurostar cities and want to fly this time.

Has anybody been impressed by a city and can recommend one?

She loves street markets.

[postman44]

venice or budapest. you will enjoy both much to see

[rockyracoon]

Cologne is only an hours flight away and the city is only 15-20 mins from the airport. Very compact city with lots of shops and beautiful architecture. And, many, many pubs...

[Jennykenny]

Love Amsterdam. Friendly, easy to get around, lots to see, almost everyone speaks English. There were lots of market stalls when I went about a year ago, bound to be still there.
Have a look at the Independent newspaper '48 hours in Amsterdam' - lots of good recommendations, and has similar articles should you decide on another city.

[Jennykenny]

Amsterdam follow-up.
I should have said that I went overnight by boat from Harwich, (train from central London, Liverpool Street I think). Very smooth trip, with none of the over-the-top security of airports, or noise and too many people. Very pleasant staff both on shore and on board. No problem on weight or size of luggage, although I imagine you will be travelling light.
(Have also flown and been by Eurostar, and flying definitely comes bottom.)
Was great fun. Lovely cabin, excellent meal, and a few minutes from where the boat docks, catch a train to Amsterdam, Rotterdam or Brussels. (Liked Brussels a lot too.)

[EDDIE51]

Dublin, very friendly and a huge number of American citizens have Irish ancestors. It has several street markets plus some of the best Pubs and bars in Europe.

[237SJ]

I`d say Amsterdam as well. Ann Frank`s house, the flower market etc. Of course you will be limited by the flight times and how many per day there are.

[Patsy33]

Dublin. Same views as Eddie. Lovely city, went there a couple of years ago.

[Jennykenny]

On a further note, re-reading your question maybe you have already been to Amsterdam.
How about Jerez? Fascinating city. Visit the sherry lodges, interesting buildings, great food especially if you take the train down to Puerto de Santa Maria, on the coast and renowned for seafood. Lived there for ten years, loved it. Worth thinking about.

[Buenchico]

I have a certain amount of expertise here because I live fairly close to Stansted and, while I've not taken a proper 'holiday' for about a quarter of a century, I love taking day trips abroad (from Stansted, Luton or via Eurostar). Further, I've spent lots of time over the past few weeks researching the best possibilities for day trips from Stansted, with the two obvious requirements being that:
(a) there has to be an early flight out and a late flight back (otherwise it's not worth going) ; and
(b) the prices have to be reasonable!

Unfortunately many of the places I've visited in the past no longer seem to have flights at the right times (or, if they do, they're mega-expensive!). However I can definitely recommend Amsterdam. The city centre is compact enough to allow you to explore many of the main sights within a day. Further, it's only a 15-minute hop on the train into the city centre. There's an 0700 flight out (arriving at 0905), with a return flight at 2130 (arriving at 2130). Fares are currently around £68 return.
http://www.iamsterdam.com/en/visiting
and
http://www.easyjet.com/en/

Mainz is another possibility. It's got the loveliest market I know of anywhere in Europe. It's also a very attractive city. You'd need to take the 0730 flight from Stansted to Hahn (arriving at 0955). Walk out of the airport and turn right to walk the few minutes to the bus station. From there, the 1030 direct bus gets you to Mainz at 1140. The 1920 bus back (NB: Wednesdays, Thursdays & Fridays ONLY!) gets you to the airport at 2030, well in time to grab a bite to eat before catching the 2235 return flight (arriving 2255). Return flights are currently priced at around £40.
http://www.touristik-mainz.de/stadtportrait.html?&L=1
Flights:
https://www.ryanair.com/gb/en/
Bus timetable:
http://hahn.orn-online.de/busfahrplan_mainz.htm

Somewhere I've yet to get to (but is widely recommended) is Berlin. Ryanair flies there from Stansted at 0630 (arriving 0930) and 0750 (arriving 1040). Trains into the city centre run every half hour, taking 30 minutes for the journey. There's a return flight at 2255 (arriving 2325). Return fares are currently around £56.
http://www.visitberlin.de/en