London/Belgium/Copenhagen v Prague/Vienna/Salzburg/Hallstatt
Hi everyone — my wife and I are deciding between two potential trips for this summer, and we’d love some advice.
A little background on us/the trip:
- 12 full days
- Couple in our 30s living in a major metropolitan city
- Medium/high budget — not looking to spend $1,000+ per night on hotels, but happy to splurge on a few fine dining experiences, good hotels, etc.
- We enjoy nature, but we’re not huge hikers or particularly outdoorsy
- My wife isn’t currently pregnant, but we’re trying, so there’s a chance she may not be drinking by the time we travel
- Not really into clubs or nightlife; if she can drink, we’d be more interested in pubs, cocktail bars, wine bars, etc.
We’re mainly looking for beautiful cities, great sightseeing, excellent food, and a little nature mixed in. (For example, if we do the Salzburg route, we’d probably do the Sound of Music tour.)
Right now we’re torn between these two itineraries:
- London (5 days) / Bruges (1 day) / Ghent (1 day) / Copenhagen (4 days)
- Prague (4 days) / Vienna (3 days) / Salzburg (2 days) / Hallstatt (1 day), then flying home from Munich after one final night there
For context, we visited Amsterdam and Paris on our last Europe trip, which is why they’re not paired with London here.
On one hand, London feels like a trip we almost have to do at some point. Living in New York, it’s a relatively easy flight, and we’re surprised we’ve never been. Bruges and Ghent seem like fairytale towns where we’d eat a ridiculous amount of chocolate and waffles, and Copenhagen gives us somewhat of an Amsterdam vibe while also seeming like an incredible food city.
On the other hand, Prague and Vienna feel like more of a once-in-a-lifetime experience — beautiful, historic cities with a very different atmosphere from what we’re used to. Salzburg and Hallstatt seem smaller-scale, but they’d bring in some nature and are especially appealing since my wife is a huge Sound of Music fan. Ending with a night in Munich also sounds fun just to walk around, relax, and have some beers before flying home.
Would love to hear which route you’d recommend. We’re genuinely torn between both.