Favorite spots in Europe?

[mrsstreet]

At the suggestion of another poster on The Nest where I originally posted this thread, I am reposting here. Thanks!

Hello!

Im trying to start planning a trip to Europe next fall ( late September or early October) and I'm looking for ideas. What are some of your favorite spots?

A few criteria:

1) I dont want to repeat destinations I've already traveled to. Those would be London, Amsterdam, Florence, Pisa, Venice, cinque Terre, Krakow, Warsaw, Wroclaw. I've been several places in Germany but dont mind repeating Berlin or Munich.

2) we want to end up in Munich for Octoberfest.



3) I am really interested in Slovenia. Anyone been?



Thank you! Just looking for ideas at the moment. Oh. We like a mix of culture and outdoorsy activities, history, good food, etc.

[dutchgirl678]

September/October is perfect at the Mediterranean. You could either go to Italy (but it sounds like you've been there already, although the Amalfi Coast is a good option), Greece, maybe Croatia? I've never been to Slovenia so no advice there.

We've also done a trip to Germany, Austria, Switzerland, though we went in August. It can be really hit or miss with the weather. How long are you going for?

[neonpink]

I absolutely love Spain. I've traveled all over and have always had a fantastic time.

I have never been to Slovenia, but it's on my list. Part of my heritage is from there and I secretly want to see If I'll blend.

[Deleted]

We spent 5 weeks in Eastern Europe in 2009 in Sept/Oct and had a great time. Two of my favourite spots were Budapest aroundtheworldwithrebecca.blogspot.com.au/search/label/Budapest and Sarajevo aroundtheworldwithrebecca.blogspot.com.au/search/label/Sarajevo. You can also see my trip posts about Croatia aroundtheworldwithrebecca.blogspot.com.au/search/label/Croatia

[mrsstreet]

Thank you for all the suggestions so far. My husband and I actually brought up the Mediterranean area today while talking. It depends on whether our friends end up going with us. If they do, we will end in Munich for Octoberfest but, if they do not, we will not need to end in Munich (we were just there last summer).


We have tossed around the idea of Spain, too. There are just so many options! We have two full weeks to play with (12 days excluding travel days).

Thank you, maggie78, for the blog links. I'll be sure to check them out!

[mdgirl]

I liked Spain a lot more than I thought I would. We went because one of my husband's uncles has a house on the Costa del Sol that he offered to let us use. We combined it with Barcelona, which was beautiful. I have a review of the trip in my blog.

I also loved Austria. Vienna is stunning, and we also spent a night in Hallstatt, which was a nice quiet break in a busy trip (and super gorgeous).

[gt7301b]

Spain and Greece, are you really planning a trip for next fall?

I would let the sales predict where you go. Sometimes in the summer tickets will go on sale for next fall and I would go where I could get the best deal.

[frlcb]

Oct 12, 2012 5:03:24 GMT -5 neeps said:

Slovenia is amazing. By far one of my favorite countries in Europe - a million times better than Spain. Portugal is really nice though if you're looking for something on the Iberian peninsula.

We spent a week in Slovenia. It's a tiny country and stunningly beautiful. Just as gorgeous as Switzerland in my opinion, cheaper too! We rented a car and were able to cover quite a bit of it. The highlights though are:
Lake Bled
Ljubljana
Lake Bohinj
Vintgar Gorge - this is amazing. If you can fit this in - do it.
Triglav National Park
Slap Savica

I'll send you a PM of my blog post about our week in Slovenia.

I agree with all of this (and neeps, you have a travel blog? you are holding out!), we loved Slovenia, it is so amazing. I go to Spain often and love it, but we have spent a lot of time there. The Galicia region of Spain, down into Portugal near Porto is amazing.

[Wanderista]

I agree with the comparison of Slovenia to Switzerland. It is a lot like it ... a beautiful mountainous country with the most elegant white churches and chalets. I agree with the recommendation of renting a car and driving around. Just driving around the country is breath-taking. I recommend seeing Maribor and the region nearby called Prekmurje. There are some charming bed and breakfasts around there.

Honestly, if you are going in Septemberish, I'd recommend popping over the border to Croatia and visiting the region called Istria which is just to the south of Slovenia. It is an elegant "foodie" region with lots of seafood, wine, truffles, locally cured hams, arugula, olive oil, and "slow food". You can visit Motovun if you want to see a gastronomic hill town, you would be there right around the truffle-hunting season in that area. Also, I recommend visiting Opatija and Volosko on Kvarner Bay. The area is spectacularly beautiful with a unique blend of influences, Austria meets Italy by the sea. Plenty of natural and architectural beauty. It is one of my favorite places in Europe and kind of a "hidden gem".

Personally, I'd start in Venice or even fly straight to Ljubljana if possible, they have a beautiful airport. If you rent a car, you can cover Slovenia, Istria, and head up through Maribor to Austria. Be sure to see Vienna while you are there. Then you can perhaps stop in a few places (Salzburg?) while going to Munich. Depending on your budget, you can do a mix of car, bus and/or train or short-haul plane.

Here's a link to an example of the kinds of b&bs that are found to the east of Maribor, Slovenia: www.booking.com/hotel/si/dvorec-jeruzalem.en-gb.html?label=gog235jc-index-XX-XX-XX-unspec;sid=2cde94ac4b5c8d0a4bd3fe8f6065cf74;dcid=1

Here's a link to a very nice hotel that we've stayed at in Opatija which is open all year around (some of the hotels close at the end of the "season", though even those will probably be open until November). If you scroll through some of the photos of the hotel then you will see some photos of Opatija: www.tripadvisor.co.uk/Hotel_Review-g297515-d566482-Reviews-Hotel_Bristol-Opatija_Primorje_Gorski_Kotar_County.html

This is an image of Volosko:

[laptopvixen]

Tampere, Finland
Cefalu, Sicily
Bilbao, Burgos, Avila, Madrid, Spain

If you're into hiking, the Samaria Gorge in Crete is pretty amazing.

One of my dream trips is to drive from Bordeaux to Porto.

[dearprudence]

Salzburg is one of my favorite places in the entire world. And would keep you close to Munich for Oktoberfest.

[mrsstreet]

I appreciate all the information. I am loving the blog links, too. I have found lots of helpful information in them. We are planning for next fall but just in the early planning stages of gathering ideas. From what I have read, Slovenia sounds amazing!

Mdgirl, is the picture in your post of Austria? We thought about Austria but we really want to do a Christmas trip sometime in the future to visit Christmas markets and thought we might save Austria for that trip.

Wanderista, your itinerary suggestions sound amazing, too! Thanks!

[mdgirl]

Yep, it's Hallstatt, which is south of Salzburg. It's sort of in the foothills of the Alps so I imagine it would be snowy and picturesque in the winter.

[ILikeSloths]

I agree with the PP that Salzburg is a great city with close proximity to Munich so it's definitely worth at least a day trip.

I also enjoyed Barcelona if you decide to visit Spain.

Another city that comes to mind that isn't on your list of previously visited is Budapest, depending on how much time you have. My H and I just spent 4 weeks in Central and Eastern Europe this past spring and like maggie78, Budapest was one of our favorite cities also.

[elenetxu]

Oct 11, 2012 20:55:46 GMT -5 @mavjen said:

I love Spain too. Our last trip there was in Northern Spain, starting in the west and ending up in the east. It was wonderful, the culture, food and people are amazing. We can't wait to see the rest of Spain someday.

We really enjoyed Prague as well.

I completely agree with this post. I near Bilbao and have traveled the north from France to the tip of Galicia. I love it here. If you're looking for outdoorsy activities, at this time of year you can still hike. It's amazing. Check out places like Bilbao, Santander, Santillana del Mar, Potes, Oviedo, Laguardia, Logroño, etc.

I just got back from the Costa del Sol in the south on the Mediterranean and I was dying to get back north the whole time.