30 days in europe, is this too much cities for me to visit??

im going to backpack Europe for 1 month in around Nov this year.
my plan is to land in Rome then travel by train to Madrid.

( Italy ) Rome -> Florence -> Venice -> Milan -> (France) Lyon -> Paris -> Bordeaux -> ( Spain ) Barcelona -> Valencia -> Madrid .

it looks like i would have like 3 days to stay in each city. should i cut some of the cities so i can stay longer in other city? if so, which ones should i cut? so far im thinking about Milan. and maybe paris ( been to paris ).

hi!

Italy:
I would go Sienna (near Florence) instead of Milan and , basically stay in Tuscany as long as possible.
Rome and Florence really need at least 3 days of stay, but Sienna is small and absolutelly charming, 1 day is enough. Venice in November could be unpleasant because of weather. Also Venice could be seen at 1 day.
Milan is lovely, but it's not "must" for 1st visit.
You have endless list of places to visit in Italy, especially in the area of Tuscany.

France:
Paris dont need my recommedations, but if you have been there, ur right, u can miss it this time and have more time for other cities.

Spain:
Barcelona is adorable! not that big but also needs at least 3 days.

Dont forget that road is never predictable - it could get longer then you plan, or you could change your plan a bit.
so, plan, but be ready be flexible.
+/- 10 days in every country - sounds nice
enjoy your trip!

You are really trying to cram in too much. As a rule you need about 5 days for cities like Madrid, Paris, Rome and Florence and 2-3 weeks per country.

If I was you I would essentially cut out one county. Given the time you are travelling I would skip France and fly with a budget flight from Italy to Spain. Saves you value travel time and money - it takes a long time to get from Italy to Spain by train and the train tickets cost an arm and a leg.

And instead of only travelling Barcelona -> Valencia -> Madrid I would add Sevilla, Granada and Cordoba to this.

See here why: http://looklex.com/spain/index.htm

Bordeaux isn't really that nice in November and I cannot fathom what you want in Lyon in the first place. It is better to go to Andalucia instead.

yeah, somehow i felt that is too much for 1 month.
i think might be best if i just stick with only 1 country.
is the weather better in Spain out of all 3 countries in Nov?

by the way, is this a good price?
http://www.eurail.com/ 3 countries 5 days in 2 months pass. $505 USD.

Hmm, 30 days in just one country might be overdoing it too. I've done it, but then you really need to have an interest in this particular country.

You are going in November, absolutely the worst time to go (apart from Feb/March) to Spain or Italy. You essentially got the choice between bad weather and shitty wheather, especially in the north. Best places for a decent chance of some warm weather and some sunshine are Southern Spain and Sicily.

If you went in summer chances would be at least one or two of your travel days would be spent on the beach. Or the famous Amalfi coast in Italy - really worth seeing when everything is in bloom in May/June, but not half as good on cool and wet November day when all plants have long dried up.

Regarding the Eurail pass: If you do the maths it works out to about 69 EUR per travel day. That is pretty high, especially in Italy. A train ticket from Palermo to Venice is approx. 90 EUR so if you are only going to Italy chances are high you are better off buying point to point. Plus 5 travel days aren't nearly enough, you'd have to buy additional tickets that all add up anyway.

Read Rick Steves' primer on Eurail passes, it will make things clearer for you:
http://www.ricksteves.com/rail/

oh man.. i guess i should just wait til summer. this way it gives me more time to do more homework about where i want to go. and i really enjoy nice sunny hot weathers.

Keep in mind that if you are interested in Southern Spain and Sicily July and August ist not a good time to go. Temps can easily reach over 40 C / 100 F during that time. April to June would be better. Another factor to take into account are flight prices. If you are from North America flights to Europe are relatively cheap during November and Feb/March.

BTW, could you please update your profile with info on citizenship and your background? Just a bit about yourself? If I can see from your profile that you are a tropical bird and like beach, party and booze I won't recommend going to Italy in winter to see all the art and the history.

[ Edit: Edited on Sep 23, 2008, at 4:42 PM by t_maia ]

i just updated my profile.

i have at least 2 weeks of vacation that's going to be expired on March next year. that's why i am trying to use it before march.

is the weather better in Spain out of all 3 countries in Nov?

I live in Rome, Italy. I can tell you that November is pretty cold in Southern Europe. The best times are May to September, even better June to mid September...
If you want to avoid the summer crowd, my advise is to pick June.

On where to go, and what to visit: It depends really what you want to do: get a general taste of the country, or go more in depth.

Having lived in Italy for the past 16 months, I have visited many different places in the country, and still see new things, learn new things every day.

When I travel, I start from somewhere, but do not plan anything except the first few days (to get the pressure off from looking for a hotel as soon as I arrive). E.g. in Italy, you could start in Sicily, and then work your way further north as far as you go. EVERY few kilometers, you will find some hidden treasures.

Peter