First timer to Europe in Winter

[frankhsu01]

Hey guys I would appreciate any help you guys could give me. Basically, I'm planing on going during ... like mid December to early January for about 3 - 3.5 weeks. I understand it's going to be cold there... and I don't know how well I can stand the cold. I've lived in southern California for most of my life.

I know 3 weeks isn't a long time but I'm planning on going back again in the Spring. I just really need a getaway and I don't want to wait till Spring. So with the truncated time period, I decided to only hit the major places. Also, another side note is that I have been to Europe before. Heres what I have so far:

england - london,
france - paris,
germany - munich
spain - barcelona
italy - rome, venice, florence

I want to know if this is a little too ambitious. I want to land in England...mainly because as a solo traveler, I would feel more comfortable landing in a country that speaks English.

Another question I have is... I know people say that the people you meet in Hostels are generally pretty cool, people you can hang out with. Well, that's what I want and so is there a list of Hostels that people who want to meet others go to, like popular Hostel destinations.

Thanks and I really appreciate any input you can provide me.

[mslibrarian]

Hello,
I've done some travellig in the UK so I can help you out there. Is it only London you wish to see? or are you planning on going a bit futher outside the city.

I stayed at the City of London Hostel, right next to St. Paul's and enjoyed it. In fact, I'll probably stay there again when I return next May. It's not a party hostel, but I felt safe there and the breakfast wasn't bad. It was also very close to a tube station.

I should add a bit of cold weather advice. Dress in layers. I can't stress that enough! This is especially true if you aren't used to the weather. Im Canadian, England in winter is a bit like our late spring. LOL

Just make sure you have a jacket that will keep you dry.

[frankhsu01]

Thanks for the replies.

So is England generally cold around Winter? It may sound stupid but I don't know.
And also, I'm going on this trip solo so I really want to meet people in Hostels. Are there Hostels where the people that go there are more outgoing? I know of Hostelworld.com but that doesn't tell me about the people? Or is it all by chance?

Thanks.

[aussiechick007]

i havent been, am hopefully going next year, but i would imagine it is all by chance...

[mslibrarian]

I guess it all depends on what you think of as cold Im' from Canada, so I'm sure I'd find England to be warmer in winter..maybe.

Hostels are all different. Are you looking to party? To drink? Or to just meet people? One thing to remember though is the party hostels tend to be...ummm...not the nicest.

[WillTravel]

Here's a good site for researching the weather, although it can always be different than the average:
www.weatherunderground.com

As an example, I have been to Paris in February when it was overcast, but not that cold, and quite pleasant for touring. When I went to Paris in late March 2008, it was hailing and snowing (not all the time, but it was cold).

[frankhsu01]

I'm not looking to party. I just want to meet other fellow travelers...hang out... go to a bar or something. I'm not looking to get trashed nightly. Just meet other travelers, particularlly from the States.

Another question I have is...when you go out like at night... what do you do with your stuff, like your backpack and all?

[mslibrarian]

In my travels through England and Scotland I didn't meet many Americans. They just weren't there. The hostels were filled with Germans, Scandinavians, Canadians and an amazing number of Aussies.

Frank, try to meet some of the locals, some of the other travellers. You will have a richer experience than if you just meet people from back home. No matter how big that home is.

[frankhsu01]

That's cool. I don't care who I meet...locals or not... I just want to meet people.

I've heard from people that going in Winter is much colder...and your load gets much heavier...making your trip less enjoyable.

I think I'll be only targeting England,France,Italy,Spain. Currently I'm still a student at UCLA so winters here are like say.... maybe 50F ... maybe a bit lower but over there I'm looking at like 30-40 maybe?

[mslibrarian]

Your pack will be heavier because you will have more clothing and stuff like sweaters and things. That's just normal.

The weather seems to be your biggest concern. Maybe you shoudl consider putting the trip off until the weather warms up if it's going to wreck your fun.

[frankhsu01]

No no, cold weather isn't a problem. It's just I know that Spain and France is gorgeous and I don't want to be missing out on any scenic sites because the weather is gloomy, that's all. I can deal with the weather, I just want to be able to see the sights and scenes.

[frankhsu01]

Ok sorry guys but change of plans. I'm planning on heading to Europe in the Spring. The duration of my trip will be roughly 7 weeks.

Here is what I want to see....is it possible?

England - Cambridge, London, Oxford
France - Avignon, Bordeoux, Nice, Paris, Provence, Marsaille
Spain - Barcelona, Madrid, Baleanic Islands, Valencia City, Costa Blanca,
Italy - Florence, Milan, Naples, Rome, Venice

What do you think? Too ambitious? If so, what should I not go to... like seeing one city is like seeing the other. Also, am I missing anything?

Please help...thanks!

[mslibrarian]

I can speak about England!

Give yourself 3-4 days (at least) for London if you are into museums. Most of the big ones are free there so it's a great way to spend your time. This next trip will be my 4th to the city and I still haven't seen all that I want to.

Cambridge and Oxford are day trips out of the city. I've never been to either (keep trying to get to Cambridge, never did manage) but I want to see Blenheim Palace and that's near Oxford.

When will you be going in the spring?

[madamtrashheap]

Whilst all the cities you've listed are well worth visiting, I think you'll find doing them all justice in 7 weeks will be hard. For example, cities like Rome, Mardrid, London and Paris need at least 4 days each, and other cities like Florence, Barcelona, etc need 3 days each in order to cover them properly.

While I'm loath to take cities out of an itinerary, perhaps you could visit some as day trips rather than overnight stays (eg base in Nice and visit Marseilles and parts of Provence from there). And of course, the direction in which you travel and the methods of travel will have a great bearing on how much you can fit in. For example, if you travelled from Paris to Marseilles, you could take the TGV with a stop for a few hours in Avignon on the way. But the most effective way would be Paris-Bordeaux-Barcelona and this is a long journey. I guess the best method would be to identify why you've listed certain cities, ie why you want to visit each one, then whittle them down from there.

At first glance, my suggestion would be to fly into Paris then fly to Madrid, travel Spain ending in Barcelona, then fly from there to Nice (check Iberia Air). Then visit Marseilles, etc as day trips before continuing to Florence by train (I'd skip Milan unless you have a major reason for going). Then continue with Venice, down to Rome and Naples (try Sorrento as a base with a day trip to Naples & Pompei) and then you could fly out of Rome to London and complete your trip in the UK. Of course, you could also start in Rome and work your way around in reverse, whatever suits.

mslibrarian is spot on in noting that Oxford & Cambridge are both good day trips (on different days!) from London, but you could also stay in one of them overnight (both have good pub-life).

[pointofnoreturn]

Sept 19, 2008 1:25:45 GMT -5 frankhsu01 said:

Ok sorry guys but change of plans. I'm planning on heading to Europe in the Spring. The duration of my trip will be roughly 7 weeks.

Here is what I want to see....is it possible?

England - Cambridge, London, Oxford
France - Avignon, Bordeoux, Nice, Paris, Provence, Marsaille
Spain - Barcelona, Madrid, Baleanic Islands, Valencia City, Costa Blanca,
Italy - Florence, Milan, Naples, Rome, Venice

What do you think? Too ambitious? If so, what should I not go to... like seeing one city is like seeing the other. Also, am I missing anything?

Please help...thanks!

It will definitely be better to go to Europe in the Spring, weather-wise. Keep in mind that if you are over there around Easter Holidays, expect full capacities. Book ahead of time, and I mean, way ahead of time!

England - take 5 nights for London. If you are flying into England first, you'd want to rest easy on the first day because of jet-lag. I haven't been to Cambridge but I've been to Oxford. Not my cup of tea but both places are popular daytrips so it is doable. Because you want to do two daytrips, I'd suggest a week in England altogether.

France - I've only been to Paris. Paris is massive and there's SO much to do. It wasn't my favourite city but I absolutely love the culture and art and museums. 4 nights weren't enough for me to visit the museums I wanted but after 4 rainy days, I was happy to leave! Can't comment on the other places though.

Spain - we have a poster or two who have extensive experience in Spain so I'll leave it up to them.

Italy - Italy definitely warrants two weeks. Rome - 5 nights, Venice - 3 nights, Florence - 3/4 nights (watch out when you're exactly going to Florence, many museums are closed on certain days), Naples - 2/3 nights (can be done as a daytrip from Rome), Milan - 1/2 nights.

A tip about Italy - every year, there is a week called Culture Week (the dates are revealed sometimes in February) where all state-run museums, galleries and archaelogical sites are free of charge in Italy, with the exception of Vatican City. I was lucky to be in Italy for 2007 Culture Week and I saved loads of $$$ and the only admission I paid for the whole trip was the Vatican Museums naturally. Another thing, certain museum tickets still need reservations, such as the Last Supper in Milan, most Florence museums, Borghese in Rome, etc.