Going to Spain!

[kristengingera]

Hey guys! I just found out I have extended family in Valencia, Spain and they offered to let me stay with them for free for a while! Given my itinerary, when and how could I fit that in?

Apr 16- Fly Montreal to Paris
Apr 17- Land in Paris at 10 am
Apr 18- Paris
Apr 19- Paris
Apr 20- Paris
Apr 21- Paris
Apr 22- Day trip to Bayeux, Canadian beaches tour
Apr 23- Day trip to Versailles
Apr 24- Night train to Venice (leave at 10:30 pm, arrive 9:30 am)
Apr 26- Venice
Apr 27- Night train to La Spezia (leave at 10:30 pm, arrive 7 am)
Apr 28- Cinque Terre
Apr 29- Cinque Terre
Apr 30- Half-day in Pisa, to Florence
May 1- Florence
May 2- Florence
May 3- Florence
May 4- Train to Orvieto, bus to Civita di Bagnoregio
May 5- Civita di Bagnoregio
May 6- to Rome
May 7- Rome
May 8- Rome
May 9- Rome
May 10- Flight to Dublin
May 11- Dublin
May 12 to 17- Paddywagon Tour
May 17 or 18- Flight to London
May 19- London
May 20- London
May 21- Flight from London to Montreal

Thanks for any advice (free accommodation by the beach, I have to go!)

[WillTravel]

That is really hard when you have such a perfect itinerary!

How about substituting Spain for Italy? In a way I hate to suggest this, because Italy is so great, but it would work out much better logistically rather than trying to cram Valencia in there somehow. And Spain is great too.

[me]

you'll need to decide what you're willing to give up. another option would be to drop Ireland from your plan.

i'd hesitate to suggest dropping Italy, because Italy is the heart of your plan. and Italy is near the top of my list of favorite places. [didn't make it to Civita. look forward to hearing your take on it.]

dropping Ireland might be better, it's later - in the warmer month of May. warmer is often better beach weather.

i've never been to Ireland. can't comment on its relative value as a tourist destination.

if you opt to drop Ireland, you could fly from Rome to Barcelona (or a nearby town, Girona, has cheap flights) train or bus to Valencia, after a few days there, train or bus to Madrid and fly to London.

Barcelona & Madrid are also well worth visiting!

EDIT: there are also flights to Valencia from Rome, and from Valencia to London, if Barcelona and/or Madrid don't interest you.

- d

[herrbert]

If you only want to fit in Valencia, then I think it would be best to fly Paris - Valencia, and then fly Valencia - Venice.

Paris - Valencia can be done with Clickair, Vueling and Air Europe (Ryanair is also possible but they fly from Beauvais Airport, about two hours away from Paris, if this turns out to be the best deal, please check the connections and the timetables, before booking!!

Valencia - Venice can be done with Alpi Eagles, but you can also turn around the Italian leg of the tour, and start in Rome instead of Venice. Then you can fly Valencia to Rome, with Clickair or Ryanair.

I agree with David, that there is a lot to see in Spain. But maybe that can wait until another trip.

[kristengingera]

well i wasn't looking to take anything out of the intinerary, just add Valencia in. Because I get free accommodation, I can afford to spend 50euros on a extra flight and spend some relaxing days on the beach.

herrbert thanks for the info about the airlines, I am going to look into the logistics of it!

[me]

kristengingera said:

well i wasn't looking to take anything out of the intinerary, just add Valencia in.

unless you change dates of your flight from and back to Montreal, it's a zero-sum situation. if you add time in Valencia, how can you not remove something else?

- d

[kristengingera]

I still haven't bought my tickets yet! I am thinking of going with Zoom Airlines and they only fly in/out of certain cities on certain days. So far my trip is 36 days and I finish my education stage on May 9th.

Zoom has a flight that leaves May 9 at 20:45 from Montreal to Paris, landing on May 10. My trip (as planned) would bring me to June 16.

Zoom has a flight leaving London on June 15 or June 22. I would much rather spend some extra days on a beach than leave Europe a day earlier than I had hoped.

Is 814.09$CAD a reasonable price for my dates? Should I wait a little longer (I was thinking after Christmas) to book my flight?

Now it seems my family in Spain will be moving this winter to Alicante. Anyone been there?

[WillTravel]

I can't see it getting much cheaper, because so much of that cost is actually taxes and fuel. Canadian airport taxes are high, London airport taxes are astronomical, so there's not a great deal of room for the fares to go down, particularly for an early summer flight.

Don't kill me if you later see it for $701, though .

If you're adding days to your trip, then Alicante is no problem at all. I haven't been there, but certainly it's a popular holiday spot.

[me]

kristengingera said:

I still haven't bought my tickets yet!

that's different. i misunderstood, thought you'd bought your transatlantic tix already.

perhaps it'd be best to fit Alicante between Italy and Ireland.

Ryanair has flights from Milan <Bergamo> & Pisa to Alicante, and Aer Lingus has flights from Alicante to Cork & Dublin.

maybe go from Venice to Rome, then Civita, Florence, CT, ending Italy in Pisa for the flight to Alicante.

the Times has a travel article, "The Riches of Lucca," about this town just 25 km from Pisa. but, as it was published in 2006 September 24, i din't know about Lucca when i was in Tuscany in 2004.

a article clip: "Where can you find the best food in Tuscany? This walled city, once a thriving banking and silk center, might be the place." travel.nytimes.com//2006/09/24/travel/24LUCCA.html

- d