City Break recommendations.

jay phelan

Hey, Five year anniversary with the OH this year was thinking of surprising them with a break to somewhere in Europe in and around March-April. Does anyone have any recommendations of a nice cheap enough destination that would be nice for a couple.

Also which would be better to book with Aerlingus or Ryanair?

Thanks.

P. Breathnach

Five years? You're only starting! Perhaps you should institute a tradition of celebrating every anniversary with a city break: there are so many options.

You haven't said where you have already been, what your budget is ("cheap enough" isn't a very exact number), what your interests are, or how you feel about weather.

To my mind, the classic trip is Paris. How do you feel about going there?

NIMAN

Top cities I have done in my days:

Rome, Barcelona, Paris

jay phelan

Sorry should have elaborated.

I wouldn't mind going back to some places if it was reasonable priced but places I've been and don't really want to visit again soon is France, Belgium, Poland, UK but anywhere else in Europe is grand. Flights I would be budgeting on 150EUR but if I could get cheaper all the better.

I usually book my accommodation with Booking.com so any hotels/private hostel recommendations would be welcoming but again, I'd like it under the 150EUR mark also.

So around 300EUR between flights and accommodation. Ideally I'd like to travel from the 16th - 19th March but any advice on what dates would be better suited for countries is great. Doesn't have to be hot neither of us mind the cold. Somewhere with a few sites might be nice though.

Cheers guys hope I've given you enough.

P. Breathnach

There are a lot of good cities in France with direct flights from Dublin. It would be a pity to rule them all out. Maybe they should go on the list for next year or later.

I found Rome, Oslo, Stockholm, Venice, Bologna, and Copenhagen to be on the expensive side (but well worth visiting when your budget allows).

Berlin is surprisingly cheap for a major European capital, and there is lots to see and do. I particularly like Budapest, a city with a great variety of experiences. I like Prague, too, but don't rate it as high as Budapest (but it offers some great visual experiences). I didn't warm to Vienna, but I know plenty of people who like it - again, lots to see. But there is a possibility that these central European cities will be very cold in March.

How about Iberia? NIMAN has mentioned Barcelona, which is a good destination. Madrid is also interesting - particularly if you like fine art, because it has great galleries. One good place that doesn't get mentioned often enough is Lisbon, and I think March is not a bad time to go there (your euro goes a bit further in Portugal).

Tombo2000

Vienna.