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Post by madamtrashheap on Apr 8, 2015 17:56:59 GMT -5
Hi Crystal, so sorry for late reply - it's already Spring 2015! Clearly Winter 2014-15 kept me busy! The train journey during the day is, as you see, 6hrs. If you wanted to break it up you could always go via Cologne for an overnight stop (the overnight train goes through there but wouldn't recommend for a 6yo no matter how adventurous he is!). This would mean adding a bit of extra time as it's a deviation from the ICE route. Or you could stop in Bremen along the way - lovely old town area, Bremen Town Musicians statue, compact for sightseeing. Or you could get off in Hannover, which is the more direct route the train takes, and spend time there. Again, good town but wouldn't rate it as a 'must-see" as such.
It's so great your son is still taking after you - hope he still has the backpack he got at birth!
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Post by madamtrashheap on Apr 18, 2014 4:00:06 GMT -5
Yes my only interest in lyon was to stop for food and have a wander around. Ive read its the gustatory capital of France and I want to try the specific regional cuisine. So any restaurant from the old town would be good? Food in Lyon is great, and there are plenty of places in the Old Town (Vieux Lyon) to choose from. The Bouchons in rue St Jean, rue Ferrachat and rue Bouef are plentiful,but you want specific places, here's my list:
- Les Adrets - Aux 24 Colonnes - Les Retrouvailles (a good alternative is Les Adrets is full) - Can't recall the name, however the Bouchon on the left as you turn from rue St Jean which has a barrel out the front, looks "rustic" but has some of the best escargot (snails) and cuisses de grenouille (frog's legs) I've had - delish! And a great wine list all at good pricesNice-Turin-Chamonix isn't necessary, but wouldn't be a bad journey. It's going to be a 9-10hour journey by train whatever route you choose. Otherwise, you could fly from Nice to Geneva then take the AlpiBus (book online) to Chamonix which takes 1hr30 (the train takes 2h30 - 3hr and is fiddly). Looks like the itinerary is taking shape really well!
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Post by madamtrashheap on Mar 28, 2014 6:09:03 GMT -5
to answer an earlier question - doing CT in a day trip on your way from Florence to Monaco or Nice won't work. It's a long way and you won't see anything if you just "stop off". If Italy doesn't hold much interest for you then don't add another Italian destination to your itinerary. Didn't realise you were travelling with friends - that always makes things more interesting in terms of sorting logistics vs likes. The latest version of your itinerary looks fine. Just one point - if you don't have a real interest in Lyon (ie you don't want to explore the city and surrounds) then one night to have a great meal somewhere (the Old Town is the place to go) and a bit of a wander around will be perfect. Otherwise you could go straight through from Paris to Nice on the TGV. I'm also assuming that where you have a different destination near to the previous one in the middle of your stay (eg Paris/Versaille, Nice/Monaco) that you are noting a day trip and not an overnight stay? Turin is new on the list - what's your reason for going there? If it's just a transport thing, then it's not necessary as there are other ways. As for Chamonix - going up the Aiguille du Midi on the cable car will let you see Mont Blanc. The same one brings you back down to Chamonix (it's a hair-raising ride, totally worth it!) Then you can do whatever else takes your interest, but I think the Mer de Glace will suit you - looks like you've already looked it up and that info is correct. Trains from Chamonix to Montreux are going from France to Switzerland, but you can look up the Swiss Train site www.sbb.ch and click on the English section to look up what suits you in terms of train times. Because of the terrain in that area, you don't have much choice in terms of connections as that's the way the trains go. There is a weekday train that leaves Chamonix-Mont Blanc just before 9am and takes around 2hr30 to get to Montreux with 2 changes. All the others will take a lot longer because of connections. The next shorter one is after 12noon. Rather use the train websites of each country to sort out trains as other sites might not be up to date.
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Post by madamtrashheap on Mar 13, 2014 0:02:10 GMT -5
Aha, was wondering why the order of things and in the 2nd trip why AMS was at the end. No problem, you can easily fly from most of those places to AMS to spend the last days then fly out, so don't make things hard transport or geography-wise. I'm sure your friend knows you better than we do, but "shortchanging" Rome and Berlin might disappoint you as there are many many things to see/do/eat/drink in both places. Rome - rather than list a raft of things, can you tell us what you were considering doing in Rome. That way we'll have a better idea of what else to recommend. And be warned - that day trip from Rome to Pompeii is a long day trip. Well worth it, but be prepared for an early start, hot day and getting back to Rome late. If you're up for that, then go for it. Add an overnight stay to Rome, rather than trying to get from Rome to Naples to Pompeii to Florence all in one day. Madness! And you'll be rushing, which is not what you want. Don't worry about the Amalfi Coast - save it for next time. And if you have no interest in Naples other than to say you had pizza there, then skip it and just connect to the Circumvesuviana regional train at Naples train station (follow the signs once in Naples Centrale Station) to get directly to Pompei. Trains leave every 20mins or so. If you can take the first and fast - Frecciarosso) train from Rome at 7.35am, you'll get to Naples in 1hr10min, then take the next train to Pompei (journey takes around 35mins) so you'll be there just after the Scavi open and you have a good start on the day. Then, if you find you have time, you can get pizza in Naples on your way back to Rome. There are 2 places claiming to be the first to produce pizza, but it was a street food long before these places set up. The one called Da Michele is the one which first made Pizza Margherita for the then-Queen, so that's the famous one. Great pizza can be found in Rome, just a different style to Naples, so keep an eye out for the "Forno" sighs with "Pizza al Taglio" which you can get by the square and with many different toppings. Then, the next day, you can take the fast train Rome to Venice which takes around 3h45 and be there by lunchtime. From Venice to to Florence (again, fast journey, around 2hrs) and you can do Pisa by train as a half-day trip from Florence (you won't need more time than that), but if you plan to go up the Tower, then know that you HAVE to book well ahead and will be given a specific time and date. In the middle of Summer, it's nigh on impossible to get a ticket as you arrive. BTW, that train Florence to Nice is a long day, so if you're interested (and want to add to your destinations) Cinque Terre is a region worth looking at for a 2 night stop. Skip Milan. No need if you're not into museums or shopping. Save it for next time around. In France I'd like advice on where to go actually. I know definitely I want to go explore Monaco. I thought i'd stay in Nice and visit Monaco from there. Do you think i should go to Marseille or stay longer in Nice and skip it? I also put Montpellier in there (although I don't know much other than there are a lot of students there) as the world's oldest medical school is there and I'm interested in historical things such as that. I think i'm pretty set on the Loire Valley and seeing the chateaux there and it'll take three full days to see the main ones so i've dedicated 4 nights there. Would I able to see Orleans and would you recommend it before i heading off to London. Again i'm interested in the historical side but also if theres any attractive sites to see and region specific food to eat. When heading off to London what would be the best way from there? It would have to be through Paris? Nice is a good base to explore the French Riviera, and a day trip to Monaco (or an afternoon and part of an evening) is plenty. Just don't miss the last train back to Nice (around 9.30pm from memory) as it's an expensive taxi ride back (Euro120!!!). Montpellier is a cool town, I liked it, and in a popular region (for foodies). Marseilles is interesting, but again if you're just putting it in without a plan on what to see, perhaps you can go from Nice to Montpellier with a lunch/quick stop in Marseilles as the train goes right through there and you'll have to change stations (train comes into one and the train to Montpellier leaves from another station in town) there anyway. Luggage lockers at the train station. As for going Lyon-Chamonix, that works, then you can fly out to London from Geneva or Grenoble (or back out of Lyon), depending on flights and if you decide to go to Montreux. Lake Geneva is stunning, and yes, a visit to the CERN facility just outside Geneva is possible but you'll have to check about their Open Days as there were only 2 last year, at the end of September, as far as I am aware. Best research it before you plan to go out there - you'll have to book ahead either way. Ah yes, the fabled AUTOBAHN! It really means "car way" in German, that is, the highway. It's no longer possible to do whatever speed you like on every Autobahn due to EU regulations, but there are a few sectors where speed is unlimited. BE AWARE: if you're not used to high speeds (ie anything over 140km/hr) then don't push yourself. The regulated speed is 130km, and that's plenty fast enough. You can hire a car (if you're over 25yo) in Germany and drive on any highway, so you don't have to do the long trip from Munich to Berlin. Oktoberfest is huge, again it depends on how much time you plan to spend there. There are so many things around Munich to see - Dachau Concentration Camp, Neuschwanstein castle, Linderhof castle, Herrenchiemsee, Andechs Monastery... the list is long. Munich is super busy during this time, as I noted in my previous post, so plan well ahead in terms of what you want to do. As for not liking Berlin - I won't hear of it!!! Berlin has something for everyone, so again, tell us what you are thinking of seeing/doing and we can fill in the blanks.
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Post by madamtrashheap on Mar 9, 2014 22:23:48 GMT -5
Welcome to GFE, jlimster. That's great you've done some research on places to visit while you're based in the UK. You're spoilt for choice and it's easy to travel back and forth to Europe, and within the UK don't forget, so make the most of it. You can take small trips from your base during your stay - not sure if you're working or studying so this will limit the time you're away - so don't try to cram everything in on the big trip. At first glace at your itinerary, you are, obviously, travelling around a lot and in some cases might want to allocate more time to some places, especially if you are considering day trip. For example, when you travel to Rome from Madrid (flying is a good option), you've only allowed 3 nights (= 2 full days) in Rome and then travel south to Naples before going north to Florence, all in the same day from what I can make out. This is a) a long day and b) no necessary, and c) shortchanging Rome and the Amalfi Coast (if that's what you were intending). I know you're not into museums as such, but allow 3 days for Rome itself at least as there is so much to see and do. Then if you are interested in Naples and/or the Amalfi, allow a few nights here. Then travel north to Venice next - spend 3 nights here and you can get out to the islands like Burano, Murano or Torcello as well as walk through Venice in the evenings (quieter). Then on to Florence for 4 nights (3 days) which will give you time to travel to places in Tuscany like San Gimignano or Siena as well as wander through Florence (with or without museum visits). Have a look at the route you're taking as you could clean it up a little geographically once you work out the exact places you want to go and for how long. Obviously the fixed dates of your tour and of O'fest will affect some parts, but try to minimise backtracking by having a map open while you plot your route. Travel methods will vary for you - I'd use a mix of flying and train travel. Italy the Point-2-Point (P2P) tickets are cheap and it's not worth getting a full European rail pass, but you'll only know what to get once you've plotted your route. As for your second trip, it's good to see you're chunking things geographically together here, and consider moving Berlin into this side of your travel as it's a short train ride between Berlin and Prague and you could stop in Dresden for lunch/a day on the way. You could fly into Amsterdam from London, then train or fly to Berlin, then train to Prague via Dresden, and so on. Geneva vs somewhere else - I'd pick somewhere else if you have no major interest in something specific in Geneva. It's a pretty enough city, but not on the exciting side. Certainly visit on your way through to somewhere else, but don't use it as a base. I'd be inclined to suggest travelling direct from Lyon to Chamonix-Mont Blanc by train (around 4hrs, 2 changes), staying at least a night in Chamonix, rather than doing it as a day trip. If you stay 2 nights, you can get up Mont Blanc in the morning of your full day, spend your time up there (there's a new viewing glass box opened as of December last year) and even get time to go over to the Mer de Glace once you've come back down from the Aiguille, and then have time on arrival day afternoon to wander through town as well. But you couldn't do it all in a day and travel from/to another base such as Montreux without it being a very long and tiring day. No need to rush this one. A few other things to keep in mind for your travel time: Summer in Europe - it's a busy time (clearly!) and many Europeans also take their own Summer holidays in August, so the beaches are busy and some shops/restaurants in cities are closed for the month of August. Accommodation gets booked up much in advance too. Oktoberfest - book your accommodation AS SOON AS POSSIBLE! You will pay more than usual to stay in Munich during this time, but it's worth it if you want to access the O'fest grounds easily and not travel hours each way. There is something called The Tent if you want super-budget accommodation, otherwise I'd consider booking a hotel around the train station as a) there are many budget ones to choose from, and b) it's an easy walk/underground train ride to/from the grounds. One other thing to keep in mind - not sure what passport your are travelling on (Australian or EU country), but if you are on an Australian passport and only have an entry clearance visa for a certain period of time, rather than Right of Abode for the UK, then you will need to keep in mind the Schengen Zone rule of only 90days in the Schengen Zone (countries in the Schengen Treaty) over a 180 day period. Read here for a little more information: smartraveller.gov.au/zw-cgi/view/TravelBulletins/Europe_Schengen That should give you a little more to go ahead and continue filling in the blanks for your trips.
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Post by madamtrashheap on Feb 12, 2014 0:29:03 GMT -5
Welcome to GFE, princessjazzle. Not sure what advice you're looking for - but based on your post I can advice the following: London – 4 daysGood start of time to adjust - not sure where you're flying from, but jet lag may be a factor for the first day so don't plan on cramming too much in to that day. With 4 full days you may find that you either only have time to see just London, or if you've been there before you could fit one(and only one) day trip in to somewhere close (Stonehenge, Bath, Windsor, Oxford) if you're so inclined. Paris – 4 days Book as far ahead as you can (90days out is usually when they release seats for booking) to take the Eurostar train from London to Paris. Quickest way and better than mucking about with flights on this route. 4 full days will allow again for exploring plus a half-day to Versailles. Amsterdam – 3 daysThe Thalys (fast) train on this route is the best way to travel. 3 full days is plenty to explore the city, no day trips. Berlin – 3 daysFlights with Transavia between AMS and Berlin are usually fairly cheap, otherwise there is an overnight train which stops in Cologne briefly if you want to jump out, take a quick look at the cathedral, then jump back on. 3 full days in Berlin will be enough to explore just the city, no day trips. Prague – 2 daysTrain Berlin to Prague is the best method, and You may find you want 1 more full day here as there is a lot to see and do. A lunch stop for a few hours between the two cities could be Dresden if you're interested. Venice – 3 days2 full days usually does most people for time in Venice, but 3 will allow a day trip out to the islands like Burano or Murano or even Torcello. Trains - in Italy there are many trains per hour between the destinations you've listed, so you can look on www.trenitalia.com for an idea of times. Florence – 2 daysNot sure what your interests are here, but I would be inclined to add 1 more full day if you plan to see a lot. Otherwise 2 full days will be enough for the city only. Rome – 3 days3 full days will let you scratch the surface of Rome, but don't plan any day trips. Barcelona – 4 daysfly Rome to Barcelona - look at Vueling or Iberia for flights. 4 days in Barcelona are enough to get a good amount of time to explore the city. A few questions/notes:When you write "days", do you mean full days? That is, 3 days = 4 nights? I've taken it to mean this in my notes above, but if you don't mean this then that will alter some suggestions. What are your interests in each city - museums, food, etc? If you are looking at museum visits, be aware that Mondays (and in Paris Tuesdays as well) are the closed day for most museums, so plan your visits accordingly. I've listed a combination of trains and flights for each sector, and from the looks of it you won't need a rail pass, esp in Italy as train travel is cheap enough. Backpacking - if you are planning on staying in Hostels then start booking pretty soon as the good/cheaper ones get booked out quickly. Flights to/from Europe - if you haven't already, look at an open-jaw ticket which will let you fly into your start city and out of your end city, saving time and the need to back track to the start city just to fly out. That should get you going on the next stage of planning - good luck!
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Post by madamtrashheap on Jan 14, 2014 1:25:46 GMT -5
And after all that I took too long on the same page and didn't see your most recent posts Thomas.
Ah well, some of it is still relevant! ;D
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Post by madamtrashheap on Jan 14, 2014 1:02:38 GMT -5
OK, let's see what I can dig up: Rome - if you do decide to get a taxi from the airport, make sure you take note of Eagle's advice and only get a taxi from the official taxi rank. There is a set fee for the airport-city journey, regardless of where in the city, of Euro48 (might have gone over 50, it's been 3 years since I took a taxi from the airport). If anyone comes up to you in the airport, or just at the exit and asks you if you want a taxi, decline and move on. These are "mini cabs" or taxis without meters and will charge you far too much. Empoli - there is a car park next to the train station, can't recall how much as it has been many years since I've driven around that part, but know that many locals park and ride when commuting to Florence during the week, so the car park fills up from around 8am. For the towns you've listed to visit as day trips in Tuscany, you may find you can't see them all, but if you plot your journey and use the B roads (ie, not the highways) you'll have great scenic drives in between destinations. As for wineries, there are many (!), particularly in Montepulciano, Montalcino, Greve in Chianti. It depends what you want to taste - are you looking for Chianti Classico, whites, all of the above? On your visit to San Gim, there are two wine tasting places not far after you enter the main gate. The one on your right (look for the wine barrel and Vino sign) has a great terrace and you can taste the Vernaccia, a white wine local to San Gim only. In San Gimignano, there are some great Tratorrie (plural of Trattoria) and Gelaterie (plural of Gelateria) to be found. In particular, the gelateria in the Piazza Cisterna is the best one. It's on your left as you walk up the hill and into the square. He wins many awards and has a wall of famous visitors, so you know you're in the right place when you see the photos. And as for places to eat - they are all good, even if they are on the main street. Just look at the menu (stay away from Menu Turistica) and see if anything takes your fancy. Of course there are a few tourist-oriented ones on the main square (Pz Cisterna) but if you walk a few paces down any street off the square you'll find good ones. While I'm on San Gim, I found some accommodation information in my notes which might help you: Hotel Pescille - www.pescille.it Good value at a rustic hotel only 3 km from famed San Gimignano with great views---100 to 130E Hotel Bel Soggiorno – San Gimignano centre - www.hotelbelsoggiorno.it/If you're after Chianti Classico (and why wouldn't you be?!!), then Greve in Chianti is the epicentre of all things Chianti. Handily, Panzano is in the Greve district...see below: If you want to spoil yourselves with wine and meat, then a trip to Panzano and a wander into Dario Cecchini's L'Antica Macelleria Cecchini (butchery) is a must. He's become quite famous now, as the Dante-quoting, meat-loving Tuscan butcher. He opened a restaurant across from his butchery called Ristorante Solo Ciccia (local dialect for "Restaurant Only Meat", ciccia = flesh, although they do have a Vegetarian menu now!). You have to book ahead for a seating, and there used to be two sittings - at 7pm and 9pm. Otherwise you can buy some specialties from his shop and take them back to Montepulciano to enjoy with your wine purchases if you prefer. If you want to do a little tour around Chianti for wine tastings, then have a look at this site for ideas www.chianticlassico.com/en For Florence, Eagle's restaurant suggestion is a good one for Tuscan fare. You could also try my favourite, Dei Fagiole (to the beans!) which is on Corso dei Tintori, just off Via de’Benci and between the river and Santa Croce. Traditional Tuscan restaurant, known for it’s Bistecca Fiorentina (Florentine T-Bone steaks) and great regional dishes. Looks like an old place, and it is, but is just amazing and worth spending an evening (or lunch) sitting, eating and drinking before rolling home. Be warned, don't ask for your steak to be done anything above medium - the boys who own the restaurant also have their own cattle farm and they will be able to tell you the best cooking time for each cut. Another good place for lunch or dinner is Francesco Vini, on Borgo dei Greci - the street between Piazza Santa Croce and Piazza della Signoria. They do seasonal produce, great Tuscan dishes as well as a selection of dishes from around Italy. And a great wine list! Yellow Bar, on via del Proconsolo, near the Bargello museum, is great for a quick pizza (not Florentine, but very popular nonetheless) or pasta. The Mercato Centrale is also a great place to wander just before lunch and pick out what you want to eat from the small stalls there. Lampredotto is the Florentine specialty, but it's not for everyone. Have it if you really want to immerse yourself in the food culture - it's tasty, but many visitors freak out at the thought of it. Otherwise you can buy your fresh produce there before 2pm. Gelati: In Florence two of the best places are Vivoli in via de’Bentaccordi (near the Dante House) and Perche No! in via dei Tavolini, just off the shopping street Via Calzaioli on the way to the Duomo from the main square Piazza della Signoria (with all the statues). There is a new one (well, a few years old now, but new in Florentine terms) just near the Duomo in a side street (via del Campanile) called Grom. I haven't had a gelato from there, but friends tell me it's good. Perhaps a compare and contrast test is in order!
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Post by madamtrashheap on Jan 9, 2014 0:16:27 GMT -5
Glad we can help! ;D
A few more points for you:
Good idea to keep Paris for next time - you'll want at least 5 days there if you've never been, so to rush it in 2 days would be a shame.
Montepulciano is indeed a pretty Tuscan town, you won't be disappointed. To do a day trip to Florence, plan it well. Sundays are quieter for shops, but most open after 12noon. Museums are, on the whole, open too so it's a good day to go. Mondays are the issue for museum visits in Italy - except Venice where most stay open. And don't drive to Florence - take the train from Chiusi station (you can drive there easily and quickly from Montepulciano). Parking is difficult and if you drive within the restricted zone you'll get a large fine - which would be a waste of good wine and shoe money!
If you don't fancy driving to Siena, you can get the local bus (SITA). Parking is available outside the city walls (at the train station or on the opposite side of the walls to the station) and then you have a bit of a walk up the hill, but it's pretty so not a bad thing.
I love San Gim, have stayed inside the walls for a night and explored the city on many day trips there. Staying in the region will give you a great feel for Tuscany (like Montepulciano) and you can do more wine tastings to boot!
As for where to add a day, looking at your Rome plans and now you've changed the arrival time, you really only have 2 full days there, so if you think you want to explore it more, then perhaps add the day there and keep Venice back to 1 full day with an afternoon on arrival. You'll only have time to explore around St Mark's and neighbourhoods, no island trip this time, but that's still a nice introduction to Venice.
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Post by madamtrashheap on Jan 8, 2014 21:54:30 GMT -5
So you're also going to Paris? Not sure I'd try to cram that in as well - as tempting as it is. As Eagle has noted, there's a lot of moving around already, so it won't be a relaxing time. If that's OK with you then go for it, but if you want a little more down time (eg, the hardest decision you have to make on a quiet day should be where to have coffee!) then perhaps leaving Paris out this time (don't worry, you'll go back, you always go back!) and placing those days somewhere else would work better.
I'm still for adding a day to Venice and to CT. As you're in CT early in the season, and as Eagle noted, some of the trails won't be open, but you'll still want more than 2 nights there as it's a stunning place. And will be blissfully quiet at that time of year too. Just check that some of the lower paths are open - they have done major work to get the paths and trails back to accessible status since the landslides a few years ago, but are still working on some of them. Hiking all 5 villages in one day makes for a long day, but stunning scenery. So you might want that extra day to relax and enjoy Manarola.
The reason I recommend adding a day to Venice and not Tuscany in this instance is that the train from CT to Venice will take a good chunk of your day travelling, so you won't have a lot of time on arrival afternoon to explore, and I'd like to see you have a day for Venice to wander, and perhaps a day to visit the islands like Burano and Torcello, just for something a little different and stunning.
I had a proper look at trains from CT to Venice and there are more than 1 a day (phew!), but you'll still spend 4-5 hours from La Spezia to Venice, so you'll need to leave in the morning in order to make the most of your time in Venice, regardless of if you stick with just 2 nights or go to 3.
Check flights from Venice to SF as I'm sure there are as many options as Paris and you don't have to return to Rome to fly out.
Let us know what you decide to go with in terms of itinerary and time in each place.
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Post by madamtrashheap on Jan 7, 2014 0:49:21 GMT -5
Hi stearnz33 - yep, a few of us still lurk here, but things have been very quiet this year. Not sure if we've given all the advice we can, or if people are too busy travelling! Either way, nice to see you back!
Shame you couldn't make your last trip, but that's great news about your wedding - congratulations! And you both still get to make the trip - win win!
What time of year are you planning to travel? And is it travelling for 14 days once you're in Italy, or does that include flying time. Time of year will have a little bearing on CT (Autumn storms can stop any sightseeing), but other than that, your cities listed are fine at any time of year.
If you're just doing Rome, ie no day trips south, then 3 nights only gives you 2 days, you might want to add at least 1 more night to allow for jet lag and not rushing around the city.
Montepulciano is a great town and 2 nights will be fine.
Either San Gim or Siena would be great to stay in (just don't drive in the old town of either - big fines unless your hotel gets you a permit), but if you're looking for a "castle" (think you mean villa), then look at Agriturismo places around Siena as that will give you the experience I think you're looking for without the cost of a whole Villa for just the two of you.
2 nights in CT will give you 1 and a bit days, which may be 1 day too few if you really want to get a feel for the place. I'm a fan of Vernazza or Manarola to stay in, particularly if you are only there for a short time. Plus if you're stopping in Pisa en route, you'll take a few hours there too, so don't plan on having half a day on arrival day to explore CT.
Venice for 2 nights is really only 1 full day as the time it takes to get from CT to Venice will be a good chunk of the day (if you take the trains, less hassle and only one change in La Spezia - after CT village train - at Milan then on to Venezia; but limited choices of trains, only one a day I think; might be a drive thing again).
I'm not sure what you mean by " what I need to figure out is which towns to stay in for the total of 5 nights and how many of the nights in each one." While I'm thinking of it, you could combine all nights in Tuscan into one place as a base (either Montepulciano, San Gim or Siena) and use your car to travel to the other places for day trips. That way you can do, say 4 nights in Tuscany, then add another night to CT or Venice depending on your preference.
That should give you a little more to work with for now, but if you can let us know answers to the above qu's that will help too.
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Post by madamtrashheap on Apr 10, 2013 18:18:12 GMT -5
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Post by madamtrashheap on Apr 4, 2013 19:51:52 GMT -5
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Post by madamtrashheap on Mar 27, 2013 0:33:06 GMT -5
Bit late, but in case anyone is thinking of visiting in the next few months, the IPW in London will be closed until June 2013. www.iwm.org.uk/
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Post by madamtrashheap on Feb 9, 2013 5:23:55 GMT -5
Welcome back to GFE, bethanygm! And congratulations on your daughter - an acceptable reason to postpone your trip last time, but great to hear you're going now. By your note that she will be 3yo when you travel, I'm guessing you're taking her with you? At any rate, you don't say how long you have to travel, but the route you've mentioned is certainly doable. I haven't checked ticket prices on any form of transport mentioned below, but have listed budget airlines or tips on booking trains which may help. Sticking with your original plan of Florida to Dublin, then London, then Paris, then go to Italy.. maybe Florence and Rome? And then fly home - you could do: Dublin to London - fly (check Aer Lingus or British Airways. If you choose to go with Ryanair their excees baggage fees are hideous so travelling with a child might put you over.) London to Paris - Eurostar; if you book 3mths ahead you'll get decent prices. Check www.eurostar.com Paris to Italy - you could fly to Rome from Paris from Orly or CDG airports (not Beauvais as too far out of Paris) Rome to Florence - train; the Eurostar Italia will be around Euro40pp and takes 1h30m, but if you want to spend less and take the regional train (around 3.5hrs) the tickets will be considerably less. Florence to Dublin - this will be tricky to fly as to the best of my knowledge there are only 2 budget flights per week from Pisa (1hr by train away from Florence) and they are with Ryan Air. With this in mind, perhaps you could look into an open jaw ticket for in to Dublin and out of London (I know airport taxes are high, but bear with me) or even in to Dublin and out of Paris. Which would mean rejigging your travel order a little in the middle, but certainly doable. If you can find out the prices on those two open-jaw tickets and report back, we can work out a route in between for you. HOTELS - I'm not sure which hotels in Europe accept the Starwood points, you'll have to do that research - but I can tell you that cheaper hotels in central Rome and Florence are usuallly not part of a chain group or partner program, so might not accept points. Once you get to that part of the planning, let us know and we can suggest some hotels in these two cities.
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