December trip to europe

[chrishulsey]

Hello everyone, my girlfriend and I are going to be planning a trip to europe in December.
Some of the places at the top of our list are 1. Paris 2. Amsterdam 3. Brussels 4. Venice 5. Rome 6. Prague and any other place that you guys think would be nice this time of year. We will most likely be flying to Paris and working our way clockwise through europe

My questions are... Is seeing these places in December a good idea? (as far as weather and things to do)

What are our best options for travel place to place?

We are in our very very beginning stage of planning so I am somewhat uneducated on the ways of backpacking Europe. I have read through these boards and have found them very helpful but would really like to know some specifics on December in the locations I have mentioned. Thank you in advance for any advice

[Eagle]

chrishulsey,

Welcome to the Boards! I have a few comments on your travel plans.

It's difficult to say whether travel to the cities you listed is a "good idea". December is not the best time to be travelling in Europe, as the weather (especially in the northern areas) could be cold, wet and miserable. Be sure to pack accordingly! However, there won't be many crowds so that will make touring some Museums, etc. a bit less hectic. For Paris you might consider a Paris Museum Pass (depending on how many places you plan on visiting that would be covered by the pass).

Your best option for travel between cities is undoubtedly by train. Slower regional trains are less expensive than the "fast" trains such as the TGV in France.

As you're "somewhat uneducated on the ways of backpacking Europe", I would HIGHLY recommend that you pre-read the Guidebook Europe Through The Back Door before you get too far in your planning. That will provide you with a lot of information to "travel well" in Europe. Use country or city-specific Guidebooks (from the same author or others) to plan your sightseeing in each city.

You might consider using open-jaw flights so that you don't have to return to your starting point for the flight home. You could start in Paris and fly home from Rome (for example).

Hopefully the others will have some comments also.

Cheers!

[madamtrashheap]

chrishulsey, to echo Eagle's advice, there are advantages to travelling in Europe in Winter, and as long as you are prepared for cooler weather, potential transport delays and shorter opening hours for some sights, you'll be fine.

In addition to Eagle's notes, if you are travelling in early December (ie before Christmas) you'll have a bevvy of Christmas Markets to visit and enhance your experience of Europe at this time of year. The particularly excellent ones are those in cities in Germany, Austria, Switzerland, Czech Republic, but both Paris and Brussels and even Venice & Rome have their own versions which are a great introduction to the way the season is celebrated by each country.

As well as the cities listed, you will probably be able to fit a few days in Munich into that schedule, depending on the time you've got to travel.

Once you've given a litlle more thought to the length of time you have to play with, let us know your next step and we'll start filling in the blanks.