Visiting Europe for a month this summer

[JaredL]

Barcelona is a much, much better place to go than Madrid unless you have something in Madrid you that you particularly want to see (Prado museum or Guernica in the Reina Sofia would be the two likely candidates).

I'm sure you will find very few that disagree with that.

[Spy Dog]

I was just checking out www.ryanair.com a little bit. They are constantly having sales. Currently, they are having a sale for travel thru June 30th, which doesn't apply to you. However, it's a 99.99% certainty that they'll have sales later this spring for travel that includes your dates.

After a few clicks I was able to find great deals, like Paris->Rome for 8 Euro. And Barcelona->Paris for 1 Cent.

[adsman]

[ QUOTE ]
Barcelona is a much, much better place to go than Madrid unless you have something in Madrid you that you particularly want to see (Prado museum or Guernica in the Reina Sofia would be the two likely candidates).

I'm sure you will find very few that disagree with that.

[/ QUOTE ]

I was going to say this as well. Barcelona at that time of year is THE party down. The beach which is right in the middle of the city is just a 24 hour party zone, with every bar trying to outdo themselves with DJ's and parties. You want to try and find a room at Barcolonetta so you can be right near the action.

There have been a few recommendations for Florence. An awesome city, but not in the 2nd week of August. To tell you the truth Rome will be absolutely heaving as well but you have to do Rome. No reason to survive being with every tourist on the planet in Rome and then following them to Florence though.

I live up in the Italian Alps in Trentino in a valley called Val di Sole. I'm a rafting guide in the summer. If you want I can organise you guys a room up here, take you rafting as well as some wicked downhill mountain biking.

http://www.valdisole.net/

Here's a link to the valley so you can check it out. By train it's about 10 hours from Rome so that's a bummer. But you can get a really cheap internal flight from Rome to Bergamo with Ryan Air. Here's one I've found for you for 15 euro.

http://www.bookryanair.com/skylights.../skylights.cgi


From there you can get a bus right up through the mountains to my valley which takes about 3 hours. Let me know if you're into it and I'll set it up for you.

[TheMetetron]

adsman,

Tell me more about the rafting thing? I don't think he will be down for the mountain biking as he's a fairly big guy, but I can't see how anyone passes up a rafting trip in the Italian countryside. PM me some more details.

[adsman]

I'm the head guide so I can get you down free or close to it. The rafting base is located in the main camping ground in Val di Sole. At that time of the year there will be around 700 people in it, good for partying it on.

Here's a link for our rafting base.

http://www.raftingcenter.it/comeraggiungerci.asp

Here's a link to the campsite. Check out the bungalows, I can organise one of those for you guys.

http://www.campingdolomiti.com/

I'm also opening my own bar/club this summer right in front of the rafting base, so you'll definitely be able to party on. Easy to get here and the closest airport is Milan/Bergamo which is the one in that airfare link. If you want more specific details or want me to organise a room for you just PM me. I'm more than happy to help.

ads.

[ahnuld]

If you want to do Barcelona, I suggest kabul youth hostel. Alot of young people, very clean, 2L of heineken for 3 euros at happy hour, and right in the heart of the action.

http://www.hostelworld.com/availabil...-Barcelona-722

[DemonDeac]

instead of Milan, go to Cinque Terre

just trust me.

[TheMetetron]

Airfares within Europe: Buy now or wait a while?

People keep saying RyanAir will have sales, but they don't appear to do that during busy summer months, do they? Also, they only appear to fly the Madrid to Paris route out of all the trips I am taking. Should I consider reworking the order to make some flights on RyanAir work?

I wish they had they sale they have now for the summer, but I'm not sure it is going to happen.

I'm going to work on some way to cut out Milan now.

[TheMetetron]

No one has hostel or hotel recommendations for Paris or Copenhagen?

[Arnfinn Madsen]

At least NOT wait until a few weeks ahead, the prices on Ryanair etc. jumps up when planes are full and I guess they are in summer, almost all of their planes have a limit on cheap tickets.