I am wanting to plan a trip for early/mid December and I'm going with my sister. She wants to go to London, so that's a must. The question came up of "Well, should we go somewhere else while we are already headed that way/in Europe?"
I don't know! I understand it is an easy jumping off point to a few other places.
Would you do an entire week+ in London (we are flexible on dates and can do anything from a week to probably 10 days total) or would you go somewhere else?
I know Paris is a popular second city, as is Amsterdam. Any other recs?
Also, is that a bad time to go? Due to our work schedules, we can only really travel in the winter (December through March) but it doesn't have to be December - we just thought it might be cool if places are decorated for Christmas.
Any thoughts at all are welcome from you experienced travelers!
I only had 2 days in Paris, so I didn't go in to any museums but did just a lot of walking around and wondering.
I think both locations are great for just wondering around, looking at the architecture, shops, etc and eating good/different food. I had some great Indian and Lebanese food in London.
I personally always try to get at least 2 different locations in when I travel, especially if I'm going overseas so I'd recommend not just staying in London the whole time.
It would be a great time of year if you want to do Christmas markets as well. You could do London and then eurostar it to Paris or Brussels/Brugges and visit their Christmas markets. Germany has amazing markets, as does Vienna.
If it weren't December I would say stop in Iceland.
Too cold? Or too dark and too cold?
I'm sure it is perfect that time of year for the right person. I'm not that person . We loved it in early June. The free extended layover there is a nice perk. I'd probably just explore the UK. We did a day trip to Paris last time we went to London.
Post by alleinesein on Sept 16, 2015 1:19:38 GMT -5
Germany. Lots of great Christmas markets and you can usually get a decent price at a 5 star hotel. Dresden is a good choice if you like museums and the Taschenbergpalais is a wonderful hotel to stay at.
Post by rupertpenny on Sept 16, 2015 8:28:32 GMT -5
I'd go somewhere else in GB, maybe Edinburgh? Of course Paris is probably closer, haha.
I wouldn't do Iceland. Too dark. Although actually I've been in London for Christmas before and it got dark around 4 I think. Not a deal breaker, but maybe something to keep in mind.
I'd go somewhere else in GB, maybe Edinburgh? Of course Paris is probably closer, haha.
I wouldn't do Iceland. Too dark. Although actually I've been in London for Christmas before and it got dark around 4 I think. Not a deal breaker, but maybe something to keep in mind.
Yes, it will get dark in London by about 4:00/4:30pm that time of year. It wasn't that bad for me though since I realized that's pretty much the case back home in Boston, too
I did London & Paris for a week last May and it was great. I've heard that Germany has great Christmas markets. There's also plenty of things to explore in the UK that would keep you busy for a whole week.
Paris & London are such a fun combo, but at Christmas, I would definitely do Brussels or somewhere like that, to see the Christmas markets. I'm jealous! Sounds like a fun trip.
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Paris and London is a super easy combo, but Amsterdam or Brussels & Bruges would also be nice. I think the Eurostar serves those as well from London???
If you do feel like flying, take a look at Easy Jet's offerings out of Gatwick or Heathrow and see if anything catches your eye. Vueling might also fly out of London?
Post by osumelissa on Sept 16, 2015 13:54:44 GMT -5
I'd just stay within the UK for 7-10 days. Lots of cool places to explore. London is quite lovely in December - if you go then, definitely check out the Winter Wonderland at Hyde Park.
I would do London and Rome. The flight is short and the Italian Christmas markets are really beautiful too. I will always remember having real roasted chestnuts from a street vendor. It made me feel even more in the holiday spirit.
I spent last Christmas in Prague which was stunning then headed to Berlin and Amsterdam I was there for New Years. I loved being there for the Holidays it's fun to experience how other countries celebrate. The Christmas Markets were still up in Berlin after the holiday and they were charming.
I'll just throw this out there...you can take an overnight train/ferry/train from London to Amsterdam. We did it in the opposite direction 3 yrs ago in September. It was a fun adventure, plus you don't need a hotel room that night and travel while you sleep. Check out StenaLine.
Post by jennybee1018 on Sept 18, 2015 5:53:01 GMT -5
Hey Kwynn!!!
We're actually looking at London and Edinburgh for the holidays this year :-)
We've been to a lot of cities at Christmas time, and our favorites have been Vienna, Berlin, Heidelberg and Cologne! I was just in Paris this summer and loved it. If you end up in Paris, and need non-touristy recommendations, I can send you my list!
Also, we went to London this summer, and we took the train to Oxford, since DH went to undergrad there for a few semesters and it was great! There are a lot of options - I think you really can't go wrong. I'd definitely do London in addition to another city!!
Post by kelley182 on Sept 21, 2015 13:32:37 GMT -5
I would also suggest Paris since you can take the train and get over there fairly quick. I would suggest only London and Paris since your trip is a max of 10 days.
Post by sillygoosegirl on Sept 22, 2015 21:17:11 GMT -5
My approach is generally to see from where the cheapest non-stop return flight can be found, and find out what is cool to do there or along the way. I figure I want to see it all, so I may as well prioritize by price.
We just got back from a 10 day trip to London, Paris, Luxembourg, and the Mosel/Rhein Valleys in Germany. We were combining it with a trip to the east coast to see the ILs, and the cheapest outbound was to London and the cheapest return was Frankfurt. One of my favorite things about Europe is that you can take a relaxing 2 hour train ride and be in a whole new country. It was a good trip, except for all of us getting really sick, starting with DH on day 2, then my parents, then the baby, and ending with me getting a double ear infection on the flight home.
Not that you couldn't easily fill 10 days in/around London, just depends on what you want to do.
Post by dutchgirl678 on Sept 27, 2015 4:53:21 GMT -5
If you come to Amsterdam, I will meet up with you and your sister and show you around! Send me a PM or FB message (we are on the PB together in case you didn't know). But London is great too and you could do a few day trips to the countryside. A friend of mine recently came and they did an overnight ferry from London to Amsterdam, but there are also quick flights (45 minutes) with Easyjet or other low-cost airlines. Check out skyscanner.net for flights out of London with these budget airlines.
I just went to London for the weekend in February and have lots of fun tips .
you have so many choices. London/Amsterdam or London/Edinburgh would probably be my two choices. You can fly almost anywhere in Europe in just a couple hours from London.
Post by pittpurple on Sept 29, 2015 7:35:49 GMT -5
jennybee1018 - let me know if you're back in Edinburgh, maybe we'll get luckier this time and can meet up!
Obviously I suggest Edinburgh for a 2nd city :-) If it's before Christmas, there's a cute Christmas market. Otherwise, I'd choose cheapest / easiest. Skyscanner.net is a great site where you can put in dates and just see what the cheapest flights are that time. So you could see where you could get cheapest and fly open-jaw into London and out of somewhere else. If you at all like countryside though, I'd be tempted to just stick with trains and stay in the area - 5 nights in London and a few in the Lake District or something like that? Or just train up to Edinburgh and fly home from here!
Post by jennybee1018 on Sept 30, 2015 3:01:25 GMT -5
pittpurple - Yes!! I'm hoping we can connect this time when we're in town!! We're looking at dates between December 11 - 19 or so :-) Will you be in town? You're not heading home for Xmas?
pittpurple - Yes!! I'm hoping we can connect this time when we're in town!! We're looking at dates between December 11 - 19 or so :-) Will you be in town? You're not heading home for Xmas?
We'll be around! Going away for Hogmanay but we never go 'home' for Christmas. Will be working but dinner / drinks / weekend whatever all on the table! Just checked - the game on the 13th is a 1pm game so you could come over and watch football with us ;-)
Post by mrsukyankee on Oct 19, 2015 16:09:09 GMT -5
If you want any personalised London ideas, do get in touch - I live here but I also do lots of touristy things to try them out as suggestions for friends. Food/drink recommendations from cheap & cheerful to going all out.