If you could only do 1-2 things in these European cities...

[Deleted]

... what would you do?

- London
- Paris
- French Riviera (I think close to Cannes and Nice)
- Rome
- Florence
- Venice
- Munich
- Amsterdam

I'm going to be visiting each of these places on my upcoming tour. I have a full day in London, Paris, French Riviera, Rome, and Amsterdam. I have less time in the others, but still should have some flexibility to check out a couple of things. I know I will not get to see everything in any of these places, which is sad, but I really want to be prepared so I can do the BEST stuff in each place.

Also if you have any recommendations for food in any of those places, that would be appreciated! I am looking to keep a reasonable budget but willing to splurge a little if it's really worth it. If you don't know names, even types of food to be on the watch for would be great!

[Deleted]

Jul 29, 2013 19:35:07 GMT -5 @sfgal530 said:

@buckybells - may I ask a quick clarification question - you said you leave Sept. 8th. Is that the day the tour starts, or the day that you fly from the US? Can you tell me what day, exactly, the tour starts on?

It's funny the way they describe it - they count the day you fly as day 1, but day 2 is actually the first real day of the tour.

So I fly out Sept 8, spend the night in a hotel that night (that I paid separately for), then I have all day the next day in London and the tour actually starts that evening (with just a meeting, then you have more free time). If you look at the website for the tour, that would be considered day 2.

Can I ask why you ask?

[sunshinedaydreams]

Oh man, just picking 1-2 is difficult, but I'll try. :-)

Rome - Coliseum, Trevi Fountain & Spanish Steps (right next to one another)

Venice - just wander around and get lost, walk over the Rialto Bridge and along the Grand Canal, Doge's Palace if you really want to do a museum-ish experience, Companile Tower if you just want views of Venice

Florence - Accademia (The David) and Piazzale Michelangelo for beautiful views over Florence, at least walk past the Duomo to take pictures

Amsterdam - Canal Tour, Anne Frank House, walk through the RLD

London - Westminster Abbey, maybe a Thames Clipper tour - you could see the Tower Bridge, London Bridge, Big Ben, etc. from the water

[tcu2003]

Paris - Sacre Coeur and Notre Dame. Next would be Eiffel Tower. Louvre is amazing, but too much to see for one day.

[Deleted]

Jul 29, 2013 19:55:13 GMT -5 @sfgal530 said:

Jul 29, 2013 19:38:34 GMT -5 @buckybells said:

It's funny the way they describe it - they count the day you fly as day 1, but day 2 is actually the first real day of the tour.

So I fly out Sept 8, spend the night in a hotel that night (that I paid separately for), then I have all day the next day in London and the tour actually starts that evening (with just a meeting, then you have more free time). If you look at the website for the tour, that would be considered day 2.

Can I ask why you ask?

Certain museums/events will be closed on certain days (or, alternatively, have late hours, allowing you to do them later in the evening).  I'm going to cross-check the dates of your tour with my recommendations so that I don't tell you that you MUST go to the Louvre, only to find out it is closed the free day you have in Paris. 

Ahh thanks! I kind of thought that might be it

Thankfully, I did actually see that the Louvre is closed on Tuesdays before I booked. I was originally going to leave on Sept 7th, which would have put me in Paris on a Tuesday! So I booked for Sept 8th. I definitely do want to stop in there, even though I know I won't be able to see everything.

That's literally the only one I know about the operating hours for, though! Thanks for your help!

[Deleted]

@sfgal530 - thank you thank you! These are great recommendations and I think they will be very helpful. Thanks also for sharing your blog! I'm going to take the time to read through it too!

As far as Dachau goes - that was actually one of the stops that made me pick this trip over another similar one that didn't stop there. I have a feeling it's going to be a difficult place to visit, but I am really glad we're stopping there too.

[alleinesein]

London- Tower of London, Borough Market (if you are there on a friday or saturday), afternoon tea at The Orangery at Kensington Palace.  Cheap eats- Nando's.  Its a chain based out of SA and they make peri peri chicken; they also offer free refills on drinks

Paris- Tea and macarons at Laduree

Amsterdam- Anne Frank house.  Wander all over the city; its small and easy to walk everywhere.  There is a sex museum and a torture museum but we didnt have time to visit either of them. Eat Indonesian food...yum!

[GilliC]

London - British Museum; take photos of Parliament & Big Ben
Paris - Notre Dame (including going up to the roof to see the chimera); Montmartre/Sacré-Cœur
Rome - Colosseum (can we include the Roman Forum here, since it's right next door?); St.Peter's
Florence - Duomo (and climb the Campanile); 
...if you like paintings more: Uffizi [book tickets in advance if you're short on time]
...if you like sculpture more: Borgello
...if you don't care for art museums: walk through Piazza della Signoria to see the sculptures (including a reproduction of David in his original location) and visit Ponte Vecchio
Munich - visit a beer hall; see the Glockenspiel and new town hall (I'm guessing the day trip out to Neuschwanstein isn't really an option on a tight schedule)

[klingklang77]

Jul 29, 2013 19:32:53 GMT -5 @buckybells said:

... what would you do?

- London- Tower of London and Westminster. Indian food- Kennington Tandoori

- Paris- I haven't been in 13 years, so I forget a lot, but I enjoyed the Eiffel Tower, Arc de Triomphe, and Musee d'Orsay. For food, I really liked Rue Claire (check spelling?)- nice crepes!

- French Riviera (I think close to Cannes and Nice)- so expensive! I'd splurge and do a day at the beach in Cannes. I ate at a fab restaurant, but I can't seem to find the name of it It was cheap for Cannes and it was away from the main area 
 
- Rome- I don't think I can pick just one! I'd do the Colosseum, Spanish Steps, and Trevi. Those are my favourites. Try some Roman food specialties- Cacio e Pepe and Carbonara are really yum 

- Florence- The David, Bag shopping! Food- The Florentine steak! It's from the white cow and it is so yum! Also I loved the cannelini bean dish in Florence.

- Venice- Went a long time ago, but I liked the Guggenheim museum

- Munich- If you do a Dachau tour, use Marcin! We went with Marcin from New Europe tours- he was amazing! I'd skip Hofbraeuhaus- there are much better beer halls/gardens out there! Definitely go to Augustiner Braeustuben www.braeustuben.de/ and get yourself some Edelstoff Bier! It's the best! Munich specialties: Weisswurst (order before noon), Knoedel!, Munich schnitzel. I'm not a big pork fan, so I haven't had a lot of wurst. I don't mind the schnitzel, though. I really like Kaese Spaetzle, but it's not a total Munich dish, but you can find it. I'm moving there in February. 

- Amsterdam- I don't remember a lot , but I've been there tons of times. I like the Anne Frank Huis and I never get tired of the Van Gogh Museum, but I tend to go to art museums when I travel.  

ETA: someone mentioned the Rhine Valley. Are you going there, too? It's a few hours from Munich, though. 

[Deleted]

Paris - Norte Dame, Sainte Chappelle, Eiffel Tower, Arc de Triomphe,, Luxembourg Gardens - I'd skip the major museums - you won't have time, but if you want to see Monet's water lillies, go to L'Orangerie, it's small and doable. Also, save time for a drink at a cafe for some people watching.

Florence - Duomo, walk the Ponte Vecchio, see the outdoor David in Piazza Signora. If its nice out - head to bobolink gardens, if its crappy out, the market is kind of neat. If you want to do museums, book them in advance. If you like steak, come hungry and get a bisteca fiorentina.

Rome - Spanish Steps, Trevi Fountain, Colloseum, and Forum. Eat some cacio e pepe or amatriciana.

Venice - DO.NOT.GRAB.A.DRINK.IN.ST.MARK'S.SQUARE. Most expensive snack of our lives! Wander. Walk through the square and over the Rialto Bridge. Grab a Bellini at Harry's Bar or a cafe along the water. Splurge and take a gondola ride. Might be cheesy, but we really enjoyed it. We also really enjoyed the Doge's Palace.

[mrsstreet]

I won't reiterate the suggestions you already have because you have received some great ones. I'll add the English Gardens to Munich. We enjoyed walking through them. It's very peaceful and relaxing. Oh..I will reiterate one thing. The Hofbrauhaus is fun to check out but I would pick a different beer hall to eat/drink in. We liked the Augustiner, too.

[udscoobychick]

If you can, do the Trevi Fountain in Rome at night. It's all lit up, and it's absolutely stunning.

[mdgirl]

Jul 30, 2013 8:27:21 GMT -5 mrsstreet said:

I'll add the English Gardens to Munich. We enjoyed walking through them. It's very peaceful and relaxing. 

This. When we went to Munich we'd already done a lot of running around on the trip, and it was lovely to just relax and enjoy the sun at the gardens.

[Deleted]

alleinesein I love that you love Nando's. I always go several times when I'm in London or DC

[wanderlustfoodie]

There are so many great sights to see in all these places but in my opinion you should also leave some time to experience the feel and culture of the cities by sitting at outdoor cafes sipping a cappuccino or having gelato. Also London is my favorite city for shopping.

London
Tower of London
Tate Modern which is near Borough Market
Selfridges

Paris
Go to a market (like Raspail) and pick up provisions for a picnic and eat on the banks of the Seine
The Louvre and Musee d'Orsay
Eiffel Tower
Pierre Herme (I tasted my way through this book www.amazon.com/The-Patisseries-Paris-Chocolatiers-Parlors/dp/1892145529/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1375198286&sr=8-2&keywords=best+patisseries+in+paris and Pierre Herme wins by a landslide)

French Riviera
Cannes is only fun if you're there during the film festival which you won't be so I would base yourself in Nice and go to the Chagall Museum and then sit at an outdoor cafe near the beach

Rome
Vatican, specifically the Scavi tour if it fits in with your schedule (need to make a reservation online in advance)
Gelato while sitting on Spanish steps
Colisseum
More gelato (can you tell I love ice cream?)

Florence
Duomo
Uffizi

Venice
Gondola cruise
Wander around canals

[anasara]

I've only been to Paris & Amsterdam.

Paris:
-Pere Lachaise cemetery.  We spent a day just walking around.  Beautiful & peaceful.  We're both history nuts.  It was lots of fun hunting down various graves.
-Tie between Notre Dame & Saint Chappelle.

Amsterdam:
-Anne Frank House
-Rijks Museum

[dutchgirl678]

What a fun trip! You will have a blast. I have visited many of these cities, some on my own, and it's very doable to wander around on your own.

I will see if I can find some more off the beaten track places to spend some time.

Paris: Montmartre. I loved that neighborhood. The Sacre Coeur on the hill there is beautiful and you get a great view of the city. You can easily take the metro all over Paris to check out different parts of town. There is a cute little restaurant in Montmartre that has a pink facade. It's called La Maison Rose. Super cute and the food is great! We also went to the Notre Dame and climbed up to the top to see the gargoyles up close. We had crepes for lunch at a restaurant near there. The Champs Elysees is a boulevard that goes from the Louvre to the Arc de Triomphe and there are many cool shops.

London: The Tower museum is a great place to visit. They have wonderful tours and you can see the crown jewels. The National Gallery of Art was great to wander around in too and it's right on Picadilly Circus. I have never been to the British Museum but I would love to go there to see all the Greek temples they have plundered and the Rosetta Stone.

Amsterdam: I grew up in the Netherlands so I've been there several times. If you have never been, definitely take a canal tour! Anne Frank house is a must though it can be really crowded. I love the van Gogh museum and the Rijksmuseum just opened after a long renovation. These two museums are close to Vondelpark, a beautiful urban park that is great to walk around in and find a nice cafe for lunch / coffee.

Florence: The Duomo. The climb was fun too. Lots of cute little streets to wander around and lots of great restaurants. Avoid the ones on the big squares. The best ones were actually on the other side of the Arno river (as you cross the famous bridge). One was called Quattro Leoni. I'm pretty sure Rick Steves has some great information about Florence on his website.

Rome: Loved that city! We stayed on the Campo de Fiori, which is centrally located and a great little market to check out. My favorite place is the Pantheon. It is just a magical place. We visited the Roman Forum and got our ticket for the Coliseum there (to avoid the crowds at the Coliseum) but we were there several days and it was a combination pass so that might not work for you. The underground tour of the Coliseum is supposed to be really good. We didn't do it as we were traveling with little kids and it was hard to commit to a long tour like that. The Vatican was a great visit too. Loved the Trastevere neighborhood for wandering around. It seems almost like a small town instead of central Rome. It had some great restaurants too.

[Susie]

Jul 29, 2013 19:32:53 GMT -5 @buckybells said:

... what would you do?

- London
- Paris
- French Riviera (I think close to Cannes and Nice)
- Rome  With 1 day, it's really hard to pick.  The Vatican, sculptures throughout Rome, various museums, the Coliseum... Depends on your interests.
- Florence  EAT.  Tuscan food is awesome.  See at Michaelangelo's David at the Accademia and/or the Uffizi, climb to the top of the Duomo.  The Pitti Palace was non-essential.
- Venice  The Doge's Palace was cool, but if time is limited I'd rather just explore.  Let yourself get a little turned around.  Cover territory and see it.  There's no place like it.
- Munich
- Amsterdam

(The other cities I haven't been to.)

[neonpink]

Rome, If you can do the Scavi tour it's an amazing hour. You can pre book tickets online. The Colosseum. Grab lunch at in the Campo Di Fiori square while browsing the market, and walk to the Pantheon and Trevi fountain they are near there. For me the Spanish steps are eh just steps and shopping. I wasn't thrilled with them.


If you have a chance/ time and like Art the Vatican museum has amazing pieces.
Eat your fill of Gelato. It's wonderful.


London- Westminster abbey and Parliament. I did the tour of Parliament while there and really enjoyed it. For me the British Museum was a must see. The Rosetta Stone, Mummies, and the Parthenon were amazing to see. See if you can see the changing of the Guard at Buckingham palace it can be fun to listen to what music they play.
I also thought the tower museum was really interesting and cool.

Have fun!

[Deleted]

What I would do (but I think so much depends on what you like!!! there are no wrong answers!!!).  

London:
- Tower of London
- Walk across Tower Bridge
- Borough Market (if open the day you're there)
- Walk along Thames to the Millennium Bridge and cross bridge
- Walk up to St. Paul's
- Get on tube/bus and go to Buckingham Palace, and then walk to Westminster Abbey/Parliament
If you have extra time, check out the ground floor of Harrod's, walk through a park, visit a museum (Tate Modern is on the route)

Paris (please excuse spelling, and this is out of geographic order but you can find a way to make this make sense. I think Paris is a wonderful savoring/absorbing city so I try to explore more than do when I'm there):
- Notre Dame
- St. Chappelle
- Place de Vendome
- Explore the Left Bank.  If you take the Rick Steves book out of the library, we enjoyed his Left Bank walk.
- Walk down Boulevard du Saint Germaine, sidewalk wine at Les Deux Magots or Cafe du Flores
- Go to the top of the Arc de Triomphe
- Walk down towards the Eiffel Tower

Rome:
- Trevi Fountain
- Coliseum and Forum
- Campo di Fiore (get street pizza as a snack at Il Forno)
- Pantheon
- Spanish Steps
- Piazza Navona
- If you have time, go up to St. Peter's Square and see the Basilica.  Do the Vatican Museum on the next trip.

Florence:
- I *highly* recommend this walking tour, which covers almost everything: www.italy.artviva.com/package/1/original_florence_in_one_day
- Otherwise, it is a small city.  Wander.  See David (I was not excited about that, but it was way better in person than I would have guessed).  Go to the Uffizi.  Walk across the river.  

Amsterdam:
- Also a small city... very walkable and charming.  Go to the Ann Frank Museum and wander around the lovely Jordaan neighborhood and gawk at the canals.  Head to Dam Square and that general area and see the new and old churches and the Red Light District.  Head down to the Rijksmuseum if you have time (we went there when it was mostly closed for renovation, but there were some good highlights to see). 

Have fun!

[Deleted]

London: Tower of London/Tower Bridge, Westminster Abbey, Parliament. Wander along the South Bank there are always street performers there. The boat from Westminster to Tower of London is enjoyable and easy way to get from one end to the other. For food definitely find a good curry place. I also second the Nando's suggestion. I love Nando's.

[mrsukyankee]

London - do the hop-on-off bus tour - best way to see the city (plus you can get off if you want to see something more). I would suggest Borough Market for food as they have lunch stalls all week long - inexpensive but good food!

[allibally]

My one day in Amsterdam involved a Bike Tour with Mike's Bike Tour and a visit to the Anne Frank House. The bike tour was a great way for us to get a history and sightseeing lesson. Mike's Bikes also has a tour in Munich. They give you a discount after your tour in Amsterdam for the one in Munich... Well they used to that was Sept 2011.

We did a canal tour too. Cheesy but we didn't have time to research a better tour as it was our last thing before we had to drive back. We did it at night. Very pretty to see the lights on the bridge but couldn't see much else.

[gt7301b]

Others have given you great recommendations, my tip would be to book as many of the sites ahead of time as possible and buy a Rick Steves' guide for Europe.  He has great tips on how to avoid lines and gives pretty good history of most major attractions.

A few other tips-

Rome -
Colosseum - you can by tickets to the Colosseum at Paletine Hill across the street, the ticket is good for entry to the Colosseum, Paletine Hill, and the Forum
Vatican - buy tickets online, if you get there early they will let you enter before the time on your ticket

Venice -
St. Mark's Cathedral - book tickets online, they are pretty strict about time
Campanile - Get there when it opens to avoid the entrance line and just go right up
Doge's Palace - You can buy tickets at the Correr museum across the square and avoided the lines

Florence -
Academia - Sounds like you already have tickets, but if you don't the website stinks and is difficult to use.  There is also a phone number that can be used to purchase tickets

Munich -
Glockenspiel - make sure to be there when it chimes, it only chimes a few times a day

[Wanderista]

I agree with the great suggestions so far. It's intense but if you start early in the day and are kind of efficient, you can see a lot in a day.

For London - I agree that you should try to see both the Tower of London and the area around Big Ben/Parliament/Westminster Abbey. If the weather is good and you want to, you can actually walk between the Tower of London and the Big Ben area by crossing Tower Bridge and walking along the Southbank. Then you can go past the Globe Theatre and see St. Paul's from the river. It's a really cool area and there are pubs for lunch or chain restaurants like Nando's if you prefer. There is actually a Nando's that is built into the base of a railway bridge near Clink Street and Bankside which is really cool/funky. I like going there a lot and you are right by the river there. Nando's is expanding in the US though, so while I love it, it is possible to find it stateside now.

I don't really think that you can go wrong however you spend your time in most of London. It is a great city. Definitely try to get to the Parks if you can. I agree that St. James is beautiful and so is Hyde Park/Kensington Gardens. They are quite close together so if you stroll up St. James and see Buckingham Palace then you can easily walk through Green Park if you like as well and then you can easily ride the Tube or possibly walk (though I've always taken the Tube there because it is a bit congested) over to Hyde Park Corner. 

I know you don't have a lot of time, so maybe I would just stroll along a bit of the Thames or as someone said, you can take a boat tour if you like. That is one of the first things that I ever did in London. 

I will say about the museums that I do love them but they are going through a bit of a rough time right now because of the current "austerity measures", so they aren't as free as they used to be. Yes, they are still free but there are lots of revenue-raising exhibitions some of which are really overpriced. So while I love the museums there, I think if I had to economize on time, I might do it with them. 

You should definitely stop in Trafalgar Square though and have a look at the fountains and columns and the view to Big Ben. That is classic London and it is also right by St. James Park. Maybe then you can have a quick look inside the National Gallery. 

If you do go to Hyde Park, I would walk along the Serpentine and if you can make it to the Italian Gardens, they are really gorgeous. On a nice day, walking over to Kensington Palace is really pleasant too.

Basically, large sections of London are very walkable so you can definitely get a good sense of the place by walking around a bit, then you can jump on the Tube when you need to save time.

If by any chance you find yourself in South Kensington (which is a neighborhood that I love, you can go there if you want to see the Natural History Museum or V&A) then I recommend having lunch at the Cremerie Creperie Kensington. It is absolutely fantastic and I've never had crepes like that anywhere else including in Paris. Here is the website: Kensington Creperie It is in the French quarter of London.

So yeah, I didn't really narrow it down at all with this post in the way that you asked, but hopefully this is helpful info depending on where you find yourself and what you prefer to do. Don't feel badly if you can't do all that has been suggested.  At the end of the day it is really down to what you feel like doing. As I said, it's really hard to go wrong.

[travelingjen]

I've been to all of the cities you will be visiting except for Munich. I've provided my favorite sites below given your time in each city and a link to entries in my travel blog.

- London: Westminster Abbey, St. Paul's Cathedral, Tower of London, and Victoria & Albert Museum.
- Paris: My most favorite city in the world! My fav sites are Notre-Dame, Eiffel Tower, Sainte-Chapelle. blog entries here
- French Riviera (I think close to Cannes and Nice): I found Antibes to be just meh. Within the French Riveria my favorite cities were Nice and Villefranche-sur-Mer. blog entry here
- Rome: Colosseum, Trevi Fountain & Pantheon. I also love Piazza Navona & Campo de'Fiori. blog entry here
- Florence: Palazzo Vecchio, Accademia Museum & the Duomo-the interior is ho-hum but if you can do the Terraces of the Cathedral and Dome tour you'll skip the lines & be rewarded with amazing views of Florence. blog entry here
- Venice: I agree with some of the previous recs to just walk around and explore. While St. Mark's Square & the Rialto Bridge are beautiful, they are massively crowded. If you detour just a few blocks you will be rewarded with quiet back streets & canals. It's also fun to take a vaporetto ride all the way around the Grand Canal. If you have time the view of Venice from the Campanile is gorgeous. blog entry here
- Amsterdam: Another great city for just simply strolling and exploring the many canals. My favorite site was the Anne Frank House.

[neonpink]

Oh someone mentioned Rick Steves' he has a great app that you can download. It has walking tours of places on your iphone/ipod. I listened to one at Sistine Chapel and another in Ostia Antica and it was 20 something minutes well spent. They give they history and information like his guide books but you can just listen instead of reading.

[marytini]

Jul 29, 2013 19:32:53 GMT -5 @buckybells said:

... what would you do?

- London- Churchill War Museum in the AM, ride Heritage red double decker bus around, then Evensong at Westminster Abbey. Ooh, Borough Market for lunch.
- Paris- D'Orsay and Orangerie museums (think there is a combo ticket; get the audio guide at D'Orsay to hit up the highlights), wander around towards the Eiffel Towers, stopping for macaroons somewhere along the way. Picnic/relax on the Trocadero. Evening river boat tour?
- French Riviera (I think close to Cannes and Nice) n/a for me
- Rome- Roman Forum, Coloseum(even just the outside), Trevi Fountain, Spanish Steps. Personally I'd skip St Peter's if you only have 1 day. Gelato break
- Florence- Museums here aren't my preferred art style, so I'd skip them in favor of a self guided walking tour, end by taking bus to Piazza Michaelangelo for fab views of the city. Gelato break
- Venice- I'd just wander the streets and canals personally. St. Marks square. More gelato.
- Munich n/a for me
- Amsterdam- Bike tour, either in the city or in the country, then wander the canals and streets, RLD can be a quick visit. Book evening visit to Anne frank House before you go.

[KKD]

Paris: Notre Dame/Sainte-Chapelle, Eiffel Tower
Rome: Colosseum/Roman Forum, St. Peter's
Munich: Altstadt (including the glockenspiel), Englischer Garten

We spent four days in Paris and Rome so we were able to see pretty much all of those cities, and it's hard to narrow it down to just one or two things! While the Louvre was a highlight, I'd be hesitant to visit there and risk missing out on everything else the city has to offer. Same with Montemarte/Sacre-Coeur (which I also loved), just because they are a trek outside the city center. I much preferred the Left Bank to the Right Bank.

In Rome, I enjoyed the Pantheon and Trevi Fountain but do not consider either of them as much of a must-see compared to the ruins and St. Peter's, though you could easily see both if you walk (with only a slight detour) from the Colosseum to St. Peter's. I found the Vatican Museum interesting but not worth it with limited time, and I wasn't overly impressed by the Spanish Steps either.

We only spent one day in Munich (and had our two young daughters with us) so we were much more limited there, but we got a taste of the city just walking around the center and enjoying a relaxing afternoon in the park. I do think Hofbrauhaus is worth a stop, even just for a walk-through; the size alone is impressive and the atmosphere is fun.

Enjoy your trip!

[jaime183]

I really enjoyed the bike tour in Munich. It showed us a lot in a short amount of time and was fun.