Must see places in Europe?

[jd_1984]

Myself and a friend planning a 30 day trip in Europe for June/July this year. We are weighing up whether to hire a car or camper or whether to do it all on the various public transport modes. We have a rough itenary - Belgium, Germany, Poland, Austria, Czech Rep, Slovenia, Croatia, Italy, France (not neccessarily in that order). Would love to see more but conscious of the time frame as we both have work commitments to return to. Can anybody reccomend cities or places of interest we may want to look at as we go? We are both mid to late 20's but quite cultured, looking for a bit of variety. We have our own thoughts but its always best to ask those who may have visited Europe more extensively than ourselves?

Cheers

[joggerjayne]

Belgium ... Bruges (give Brussels a wide berth)

Switzerland ... Montreux (you can't do Austria and Italy, but ignore Switzerland)

Italy ... Venice

[Bbbananas]

The usual suspects - Florence, Paris, Venice, Prague.

Though I would add Seville & definitely, bearing in mind your ages, Tarifa in Spain. I know you didn;t mention Spain, but you sound fairly flexible.

[Messalina]

If you're going to Czech Rep try to get to Cesky Krumlov.

[jd_1984]

On our hit list up to now we have Bruges, Brussels, Strasbourg, Prague, Krakow, Vienna, Budapest, Zagreb, Milan, Genova, Monte-Carlo, Nice, Lyon, Dijo, Paris. But with stops in between. But welcome as many suggestions as possible as it is something I havent done before and want to get most out of it. Equally, if any of the above are best being avoided, let me know!

[jd_1984]

*Dijon*

[Mosaic]

With that amount of distance, why not use the excellent rail network? These have the advantage of dropping you off right in the centres of big cities without the worries about parking, security and traffic.
Use http://www.seat61.com for advice, and get a Thomas Cook rail map of Europe.

[netibiza]

Barcelona is fabulous, Parc Guell is a must!!

[jd_1984]

Thanks Mosaic

[LDC134]

I haven't travelled Europe, but have travelled many other places extensively by both train and camper van and if you are mainly doing cities I would strongly recommend the train - it's far less stressful and you can enjoy the stunning scenic views rather than having your head in a map or listening to a sat nav ! Plus with a camper van you will have to head out of the city every night to park up.

[jd_1984]

LDC134 - That sounds like sensible advice, leaning towards the train. You can get an all area pass valid for all domestic trains in the E.U which works out quite cost effective considering the mount of places we would like to visit.

[boxtops]

I'm supporting the suggestion of going by train, much less driving stress on the both of you, and you wouldn't have worry about parking or driving habits ion the continent. It sounds a fabulous trip!

[jno]

Ljubljana's much nicer than Zagreb, I think, but you may prefer the latter for nightlife. Lake Bled's very pretty too if you're in Slovenia.

Plus Florence and Venice if you can get that far - both worth a journey in themselves. Same for Berlin and Dresden but maybe a bit far out of your way.

If you like palaces and castles, look at the chateaux in the Loire valley and Ludwig's castles in Bavaria (Neuschwanstein, Herrenchiemsee, Linderhof), and Versailles outside Paris, the grandest of the lot.

[sitges]

I second Barcelona if you have the chance. Also I would use the train as you can get to most places just as fast or faster then other modes of transportation. Take the fast or speed trains when you can. You can now go from Paris to Lyon in about an hour and a half if I r;emember correctly and then onto Barcelona in a couple of hours. These cost a few Euro's more be are worth the time you save.

[jd_1984]

Thans all.
If time allows, we really should do Barcelona. It is quite an unpredictable journey in times of timescale. We might be quite taken by a place and wish to spend 2 or 3 nights or equally we might arrive somewhere and think "this is a sh*t hole - lets move on!"
Venice is another one, if time allows, we should really go.

It is hard to commit to a route and weigh up the places you want to go. For us, nightlife will be a factor but not all the time, I am happy to go off the main routes and avoid the cities from time to time and see the country. I will continue to welcome suggestions - cheers all!

[jd_1984]

*Thanks*

[claybury]

A CAMPER VAN, BEST FOR TRANSPORT & ACCOMODATION. HAVE BEEN TO SOUTH OF FRANCE,THEN ITALY, STOPPING OFF AT LOVELY PLACES, ALSO VICE VERSA .ANOTHER YEAR.VENICE,MONACO,ST.TROPEZ, ST RAPHAEL, ALL FANTASTIC, UP ALONG THE RIVIERA COAST OF FRANCE, SO MANY LOVELY PLACES, BEST TO HAVE A CAMPING SITE BOOK IF POSSIBLE OR SEND FOR HOLIDAY BROCHURES. " CARAVAN EUROPE 1 AND 2 " FROM THE CARAVAN CLUB , VERY GOOD BOOKS. HAPPY TRAVELLING. FROM 2 GOLDEN OLDIES.

[Bigfellah]

When in Budapest fror a truly amazing experience visit the Invisiible Exhibition - http://www.lathatatlan.hu/en/ - and experience what blind people have to go through in life. The tour ends with a dinner (depending what time of day you go) in total darkness! It's very different to the normal touristy places but well worth the experience.

Cheers

[Twirls]

Prague and Florence are definitely worth a visit and Rome has loads to see. 30 days doesn't sound long to try and see all those places you've listed