Teach Me About: France/Paris,England,Italy

We have RCI for timeshare exchange- thinking of going to France end of the summer, but just read there is a highspeed train from Englad to Paris, and from England to Italy.

Should we go to England, take the train, has anyone done that?

Any travel suggestions, tips, BTDT?!

Thank you.

Re: Teach Me About: France/Paris,England,Italy

out of these 3 countries, I've only been to France (Paris) and I have been saying this to everyone since I got back - YOU MUST GO THERE!!! it was an unbelievable experience! what an absolutely incredible and GORGEOUS city!!!

I've already made a mental list of all the places I want to see and things I want to do when we go back.

Re: Teach Me About: France/Paris,England,Italy

I've been to all 3 places and they are all amazing and so different. I think it depends on how long you have as to how to best use your time b/c honestly I lived in England for 3 years and traveled several times to France and still haven't seen it all! And Italy I have been to twice and still have only seen the highlights. So if you only have say a week, you could definitely do a London/Paris trip and see the major sites. The high speed train from London to Paris is great and well worth the money. I would probably save Italy for a different trip.

Re: Teach Me About: France/Paris,England,Italy

I live in England, but all the way up in the North West....not down there in London. The Eurostar goes from London to Paris in like two hours, however I don't believe there is a high speed train going directly from England to Italy, you can take trains from England to Italy, but not directly like the Eurostar.

What can I say, of course I am going to say you should come to England. London is a great city to visit, there are tons to do and in the summer if the weather is good (and thats a big if) you can do lots of sight seeing and al fresco dining & drinking, the history is of course fantastic. And depending on how much time you have you could always do some day trips to Stonehenge, Brighton, Bath, Stratford upon Avon, its a beautiful country. And the exchange rate is soooo good at the moment....come and visit us!

Re: Teach Me About: France/Paris,England,Italy

I've been to all three countries and while all beautiful, my recommendation would be to at least include England in your itinerary. The exchange rate right now is better than it has been in a long time making it a great 'deal' for Americans to visit - it's more than 25 percent cheaper for us because of the exchange. The city is absolutely beautiful and although i've personally never visited, one of the country regions, called the cotswolds is declared an area of outstanding natural beauty. lots of small villages, very quaint, castles, etc. I've never been to paris but I have been to Nice, France (beautiful) and Italy (Venice). You can't go wrong with any of your choices but you'll get the best bang for your buck in England right now.

Re: Teach Me About: France/Paris,England,Italy

Re: Teach Me About: France/Paris,England,Italy

I've also been to all three (and going back to Italy tomorrow!) but I agree with the poster who recommended England right now.

the pound is at a level I would have LOVED to exchange when I was there, and since it's notoriously one of the higher exchange rates with the dollar, NOW would be the time to take in all the sites.

there is so much to see in Great Britain...there are 3 countries you could explore (England, Scotland, Wales) and so much history.

since you have the time share, no need to run around from country to country in one fell swoop...take your time each year in each one to really explore!!!

Re: Teach Me About: France/Paris,England,Italy

DH and I just recently spent four days in England and four days in Holland. We loved London, so much to see and so much history. We also did a full day tour to Stonehenge (I recommend the sunrise or sunset tour, its the only time you can go right up to the stones). The tour also went to Lacock, the oldest town in England, and to the Roman Baths. We had such an awesome time, it was such a beautiful drive on the tour.

Re: Teach Me About: France/Paris,England,Italy

I did the 3 countries in one trip 2 summers ago, it was about 2.5 weeks long and had a blast. I went with a bunch of friends. We went to London, Paris, Venice, Florence and then Rome, and let me tell you we needed a vacation after this vacation. It was the time of our lives but every detail of everyday was planned out. We saw and experienced a lot but I didn't get any of the down time that I love when exploring someplace new. I still feel I need to go back to each place we were again and see what we missed, people watch and do those little things tourists don't always get to do.

I would do London and Paris and save Italy for another trip.

Message edited 5/6/2009 12:47:01 PM.

Re: Teach Me About: France/Paris,England,Italy

Thank you for the great feedback! I really appreciate it.

Re: Teach Me About: France/Paris,England,Italy

I spent a month in Europe after college and went to all 3 countries. Cinque Terra was one of my favorite places in Italy, its 5 towns, all connected, on the Italian Riviera, absolutely beatuiful!

I also LOVED England (but Im also a huge English history nerd). There was sooo much to do, I didnt even get to do everything on my list so Im def going back! I was there in the summer and they were giving tours of Buckingham palace, so I woud check to see if they are still doing it.

Message edited 5/7/2009 11:01:50 AM.