First european holiday - any suggestions?
First european holiday - any suggestions?
Im trying to arrange a long weekend away with my boyfriend but because neither of us have been on such a trip before, we dont know where to start.
I've been looking at paris, amsterdam, venice, prague and its starting to confuse me. All im after is a relaxing, romantic hotel in a good location which is cheap.
Has anyone got any suggestions?? maybe any recommended cheap hotels?
Answers:
Do you want shopping, culture, nightlife, dining, relaxing ... tell us a bit more. Are you interested in architecture or history? How much would hordes of noisy fellow-Brits bother you?
Prague is beautiful but over-run with tourists and you have to be a bit careful there with pickpockets/cab drivers. I don't know what the prices are like there hotelswise any more but it should still be reasonably cheap to eat and drink so long as you stay out of the obvious tourist spots like the Old Town Square.
I adore Paris, but it does help to have a bit of French there - they're not very tolerant of Brits who can't even manage a please and thank you, never mind a menu or a cab ride. It's so beautiful and there's so much to see there, and the shopping and eating are fantastic.
Amsterdam is big and quite sleazy in parts, though very lovely around the canals and the shopping is very good, too. You could consider staying in The Hague, which is small, elegant, has good shopping and a nice vibe and is 40 minutes from Amsterdam's airport by rail and an hour from Amsterdam itself by train.
In Holland I also like Maastricht very much - it's a beautiful city with gorgeous architecture and off the beaten tourist track. The other great thing about Holland is that everyone speaks English.
I've only been to Barcelona once and only briefly but it too is very lovely - fabulous architecture, good shopping, good eating and drinking.
For relaxing and romantic I'd seriously consider The Hague (Den Haag in Dutch) or Maastricht, as they're easy places to be - no hassle, no major issues with working out public transport.
Answers:
Do you want shopping, culture, nightlife, dining, relaxing ... tell us a bit more. Are you interested in architecture or history? How much would hordes of noisy fellow-Brits bother you?
Prague is beautiful but over-run with tourists and you have to be a bit careful there with pickpockets/cab drivers. I don't know what the prices are like there hotelswise any more but it should still be reasonably cheap to eat and drink so long as you stay out of the obvious tourist spots like the Old Town Square.
I adore Paris, but it does help to have a bit of French there - they're not very tolerant of Brits who can't even manage a please and thank you, never mind a menu or a cab ride. It's so beautiful and there's so much to see there, and the shopping and eating are fantastic.
Amsterdam is big and quite sleazy in parts, though very lovely around the canals and the shopping is very good, too. You could consider staying in The Hague, which is small, elegant, has good shopping and a nice vibe and is 40 minutes from Amsterdam's airport by rail and an hour from Amsterdam itself by train.
In Holland I also like Maastricht very much - it's a beautiful city with gorgeous architecture and off the beaten tourist track. The other great thing about Holland is that everyone speaks English.
I've only been to Barcelona once and only briefly but it too is very lovely - fabulous architecture, good shopping, good eating and drinking.
For relaxing and romantic I'd seriously consider The Hague (Den Haag in Dutch) or Maastricht, as they're easy places to be - no hassle, no major issues with working out public transport.
thanks bossie! I might look into Holland as sounds nice.
thing is my normal holidays consist of sunbathing and drinking but ever since I went to New York, I really loved exploring and wondering around the city. Want this to be a nice cultural trip around sites etc. Shopping is a thing I do enjoy but dont think my boyfriend would appreciate it. Think eating out is another thing which would be nice.
Another place i've been looking at now is venice and rome and they seemed quite reasonable. Really love art so might be interesting to see.
fingers crossed xx
Answers:
I (and many others on here) am a big fan of Barcelona - its beautiful, fairly cheap and the weather's better.
I wouldn't do Paris if your budget is limited - travel and hotels are never that cheap as it is (apparently) the most visited city in the world.
Answers:
Finally got my list down to Barcelona, Rome and Bruges.
Barcelona cause everyone I have talked to says it is nice, rome because of the whole cultural aspect and Bruges for the chocolate and prices are coming up cheap.
Going to try and find some nice hotels which are cheap, spacious and romantic.
Im trying to arrange a long weekend away with my boyfriend but because neither of us have been on such a trip before, we dont know where to start.
I've been looking at paris, amsterdam, venice, prague and its starting to confuse me. All im after is a relaxing, romantic hotel in a good location which is cheap.
Has anyone got any suggestions?? maybe any recommended cheap hotels?
Answers:
Do you want shopping, culture, nightlife, dining, relaxing ... tell us a bit more. Are you interested in architecture or history? How much would hordes of noisy fellow-Brits bother you?
Prague is beautiful but over-run with tourists and you have to be a bit careful there with pickpockets/cab drivers. I don't know what the prices are like there hotelswise any more but it should still be reasonably cheap to eat and drink so long as you stay out of the obvious tourist spots like the Old Town Square.
I adore Paris, but it does help to have a bit of French there - they're not very tolerant of Brits who can't even manage a please and thank you, never mind a menu or a cab ride. It's so beautiful and there's so much to see there, and the shopping and eating are fantastic.
Amsterdam is big and quite sleazy in parts, though very lovely around the canals and the shopping is very good, too. You could consider staying in The Hague, which is small, elegant, has good shopping and a nice vibe and is 40 minutes from Amsterdam's airport by rail and an hour from Amsterdam itself by train.
In Holland I also like Maastricht very much - it's a beautiful city with gorgeous architecture and off the beaten tourist track. The other great thing about Holland is that everyone speaks English.
I've only been to Barcelona once and only briefly but it too is very lovely - fabulous architecture, good shopping, good eating and drinking.
For relaxing and romantic I'd seriously consider The Hague (Den Haag in Dutch) or Maastricht, as they're easy places to be - no hassle, no major issues with working out public transport.
Answers:
Do you want shopping, culture, nightlife, dining, relaxing ... tell us a bit more. Are you interested in architecture or history? How much would hordes of noisy fellow-Brits bother you?
Prague is beautiful but over-run with tourists and you have to be a bit careful there with pickpockets/cab drivers. I don't know what the prices are like there hotelswise any more but it should still be reasonably cheap to eat and drink so long as you stay out of the obvious tourist spots like the Old Town Square.
I adore Paris, but it does help to have a bit of French there - they're not very tolerant of Brits who can't even manage a please and thank you, never mind a menu or a cab ride. It's so beautiful and there's so much to see there, and the shopping and eating are fantastic.
Amsterdam is big and quite sleazy in parts, though very lovely around the canals and the shopping is very good, too. You could consider staying in The Hague, which is small, elegant, has good shopping and a nice vibe and is 40 minutes from Amsterdam's airport by rail and an hour from Amsterdam itself by train.
In Holland I also like Maastricht very much - it's a beautiful city with gorgeous architecture and off the beaten tourist track. The other great thing about Holland is that everyone speaks English.
I've only been to Barcelona once and only briefly but it too is very lovely - fabulous architecture, good shopping, good eating and drinking.
For relaxing and romantic I'd seriously consider The Hague (Den Haag in Dutch) or Maastricht, as they're easy places to be - no hassle, no major issues with working out public transport.
thanks bossie! I might look into Holland as sounds nice.
thing is my normal holidays consist of sunbathing and drinking but ever since I went to New York, I really loved exploring and wondering around the city. Want this to be a nice cultural trip around sites etc. Shopping is a thing I do enjoy but dont think my boyfriend would appreciate it. Think eating out is another thing which would be nice.
Another place i've been looking at now is venice and rome and they seemed quite reasonable. Really love art so might be interesting to see.
fingers crossed xx
Answers:
I (and many others on here) am a big fan of Barcelona - its beautiful, fairly cheap and the weather's better.
I wouldn't do Paris if your budget is limited - travel and hotels are never that cheap as it is (apparently) the most visited city in the world.
Answers:
Finally got my list down to Barcelona, Rome and Bruges.
Barcelona cause everyone I have talked to says it is nice, rome because of the whole cultural aspect and Bruges for the chocolate and prices are coming up cheap.
Going to try and find some nice hotels which are cheap, spacious and romantic.