how are you getting around??

Are you flying in and out of London?
If you have a couple months total, maybe you don’t want to cram too much in before San Seb?
Are you on the train, or using inexpensive airlines, or both?
Maybe you could do 3-4 days London, cross the water, do 3-4 days Paris, then take the train southwest or southeast through France towards Spain in a meandering fashion.
You can always take Vueling back north from Barcelona or Madrid (both worth a couple/few days, esp Barcelona), and do a circular route with Amsterdam, Germany, Prague.
Just an idea, maybe someone else will chime in.

hey!
we’ve bought rail passes and will also use cheap air flights if needed.
we’re meeting a friend after we leave london and she wanted to see amsterdam and paris while she was with us so that’s why we wanted to see both of those before heading to san seb.
so you think we’d only need 3-4 days for london? and does paris really take 3-4 days also?
thanks so much for your help so far!

Yes, I would plan a total of 7 for these two cities. If you get bored there are great day trips you can take from either. Getting between them takes less than 2 1/2 hours on Eurostar. I’d then head to Bruges, Belgium for a couple of days plus a quick stop in Brussels and then plan at least 2 days in Amsterdam. From there I’d head to Cologne and spend a couple of days along the Rhine — your rail pass gets you free passage on some Rhine cruises.

thanks so much for your help! is there anything in particular we should check out in the places you listed?

our plans so far are:
london – 4 days
bruges – 1 day?
amsterdam – 2/3 days
cologne/rhine – 2 days
paris – 3 days
madrid – 2/3 days
barcelona – 2/3 days
san seb (for running of the bulls) – 5 days

then off to italy for a few days before my friend leaves for aus on the 14th june, where we wanted to visit venice, florence and rome but not sure which order or if there are other places we should try to squeeze in?

lysh x

The REAL running of the bulls take place in Pamplona…it’s like Mardi Gras except with bulls chasing you. To be honest 5 days might be a bit much. After 2 days you’ll want to go some place quiet to detoxify and where they aren’t setting off fireworks all night.

hey finnegan,
yeah we’re doing a tour for the festival that has accomodation in san seb and includes transfers to pamplona for the opening ceremony & the first 2 days of the bull runs. it should only be 4 days in san seb, including the day before the opening ceremony when we arrive there through until the 2nd day of the bull run when we depart. i’ve heard it’s one of the wildest party experiences ever – can’t wait!

On your way to Venice, i would strongly suggest a stop (perhaps 2 days) in Cinque Terre. It consists of 5 breathtaking villages. It really lets you escape the hustle and bustle of the cities but is ALOT of fun and truly beautiful.

If you want to fit in in pamplona, bring some white pants and white shirt and buy a red bandana and sash we you get there. If running make sure you check some websites first fro advice and run with someone who has done it before (local folks will team up with you if you ask)

Where are you staying in Pamplona or which company. I’ll be there two for the opening ceremony and 2 days after and then to San Seb.
I will also be in London and Paris the two weeks before – Would be be good to see some other Aussies!

thank u my daer
Very interesting post, I will be checking into this website again

advertising links removed by moderator

Between Florence and Rome is a small town called Orvieto.
Visited after the hustle and bustle of 5 days in Rome and absolutely fell in love with this place.
If you’re looking for a beautiful place to kick back for a few days, this is it. Also, the food here was the best I had during my 3 weeks in Italy.

You mentioned your friend is leaving June 14th…but if you’ll still be in the Rome/Florence area, Il Palio is on July 2 in Siena, and is worth checking out imo.

me and my mate are heading over from sydney around mid-june too for our first backpacking trip, ur trip plan up until running of the bulls is almost identical to ours.

were gonna spend nearly a week in london, then head over and do brussels, amsterdam and paris (not sure which order works out best yet). then flying to ibiza for a few nights, then over to spain for bulls and some time in barca. You should consider ibiza cos I’ve been told its amazing for nightclubs and beaches, and pretty convenient to head over to spain for bulls after.

glad u posted this cos it pretty much answers all the questions we had about our trip

Thank you all so much for your advice! Really appreciate it!

*beckvanr *- for Running of the Bulls we’re staying in San Sebastian. We’re doing a tour through The Fanatics from the 5th until the 8th. Where are you staying?
Would love to catch up with some Aussies aswell! What dates will you be in London & Paris?

*tristan *- So glad to hear other people have similar plans to ours! I think we were only going to do Brussels & Amsterdam before Paris because it would be easier to then travel onto Spain from there.

I’d LOVE to head to Ibiza but unfortunately we’re pretty stuck for time before Bulls though I may be heading down there for a few nights sometime after the 14th. I hear it’s amazing!! Where are you headed after Bulls? Would be great to meet up if we were travelling to similar places along the way!

Lysh x

yeh thats sounds like a good trip plan, umm were only staying for the first 2 or 3 nights at pamplona then heading to valencia and barca for the next week or so. Really looking forward to barca! think were gonna try stay at the same camping grounds as fanatics cos quite a few of our mates are doing bulls with fanatics. Would be awesome to meet up with other young aussie backpackers lol.

when are u guys headed to prague and germany?

tristan

Traveling to Europe is full of excitement,sweetness and Thrill…its really a good way to visit or enjoy the natural beauty of Switzerland….Wow what a lovely Place I must say…The HEAVEN in the Earth….!! One Place is Ice Hotel which must to see…Its really wonderful That you are in ice and enjoy the Drinks With ice pot…….How COOl ……….???
_________________________________________________________

Sounds good! I’m really looking forward to Barca aswell! Are your mates at the Pamplona campsite for Bulls? Haha seems like soooo many Aussies are heading over this Summer!
Not too sure when we’re headed to Prague and Germany anymore – I’ll be on my own for a week or so after my sister flys and I’m told Prague is pretty risky for a chick on their own so I may have to miss it What about you? When are you headed there?

Lysh

yeh talking about it is making me so excited about it, less than a month now!!
looks like were staying with fanatics now aswell cos finding a hostel works out more expensive, and this way we get to be with our other mates. So yeh, we’ll all be at the pamplona campsite from 5th to 9th July, those 4 nights.
ah that sucks, the more i read about prague the more comments i get saying that its amazing. We should be there for about a week starting 22 July, although this could all change depending on how the trip goes really. thats the plan anyways, then we do berlin for a week after that.
well i hope we can meet up at some stage, wud be great to see how our travels cross paths…

Prague is not sketchy for “Chicks on their own”…now Spain onthe other hand….

tristan – just sent you a message

finnegan – ahh i’ve heard that too! at least i’ll have my friends with me when i’m doing spain. any tips to stay out of trouble? thanks!

Unfortunately there’s a perception in some countires that single women traveling on their own are “easy.”

Spain, Italy, Greece and Portugal have bad reputations for guys who won’t take “no” for an answer. At bars they will insist on sitting at your table, dancing with you etc. On the streets they’ll whistle and sometimes follow you.

Buy a cheap looking gold ring at Walmart, wear it on your wedding finger and you’ll be left alone.