Europe trip, 1-2 months

[Imagination_landB]

Well the title says it all. I'll do a trip in Europe (all of its countries including Russia) for a period of 1 to 2 months and want to know where you guys have been and where would you recommend me to go, places that worth to go and take PICTURES.
I'll take a (almost)universal train pass so I can go everywhere.
Beautiful landscapes, train stations, cities, zoo's, library, castles,nice architecture,bridges,historicals sites, waterfalls,mountains,nice cruises.. as you might understand, everything that makes a nice photo is welcome in suggestions!
Even if you've never been into the old continent I want your ideas!
I'll bring all my important photo stuff(tripod,remote,8-16sigma,24-70 tamron,50 1.4 sigma,120-300 sigma.canon 60D) so no type of pictures is excluded.
Thaaank you.

 

[Gman]

Barcelona, Genova, Sevile, and Florence Venice if you can put up with thousands of tourists dumped everyday by those obscene cruise liners. Of course one must not forget Rome and finally one's home neck of the woods, Lisbon and nearby Sintra.
Enjoy your trip.

 

[MarcPool]

Brugge, Ghent and Brussels in Belgium. Wonderful city’s and the best beer in the world.

Amsterdam, it’s more than the red light district and legal to get high. It’s a beautiful old city.

In France I would go to Aix en Provance, very nice city. And the Provance is one of the most beautiful areas in Europe. Also go to Bordeaux (wine district, very nice! and Paris (duh)

In the UK don’t just do London, but also go to the Scottish Highlands.

Iceland, amazing landscapes, not much more and very expensive.

 

[kentandersen]

There is alot of places I could recomend.

If you want to see mountains. The highest and most dramatic ones are at the border between France, Switzerland and Italy. You can take a train all the way up to Zermat in Switzerland.

If you are going by car, I would recomend you to take the time to drive the Grossglockner High Alpin Road in Austria. It has an amazing view, and you are driving the car up to around 3000m. It is one of the most specktacular roads in European alps. This is the alps at is best.

I would also recomend Avignon in France. An historical city, where the pope was held in prison for a years and years. There is lots of cheep hotels in that town.

If you like castles, I would recomend you to take a look at the northern alp region. The combination of mountains and castles are definently unbeatable. Schloss Neuschwanstein in Bavarian alps (Füssen), is the model of the Disney castle.

Salzburg is definently one of the most beautiful cities in Europe. There is a reason why every Japanese that are visiting Europe makes a stop there. And, the extreme green grass in "the sound of music" is real. You find it in Salzburg Alps. If you are staying in Europe untill December, Salzburg has a remarkable christmas marked. This is an old fashioned marked, in the old city center.

I would also recomend you to take a look at the north atlantic coast. Both the coast of Schotland and the northern coast of Denmark has some encredible light. If youre budget allow you, I would also recomend the coast of Norway. The combinatioin of some of the longest fjords in the world, ocean and high mountain is amazing. Bergen, in Norway, is by no doubt worth an visit. The west coast train ends there. It has much of the same beauty as Salzburg. Further North in Norway you will find the artic landscape... but to see that will cost you a fortune. If you are not planing to visit Narvik, wich is reachable with train. From there you can go by boat to Lofoten, wich has an unique nature. The beauty of Lofoten is a mixture of high mountain landscape, starting at sea level, the big ocean, lots and lots of small islands, with small fishing villages spread around in the landscape.



Anyhow, every part of Europe has its beauty.

 

[tomscott]

Europe isnt a strip mall. You could spend a two months traveling Britain.... its a big place.

But you have to hit Cumbria, England. One of the most beautiful places in the world.


Ulswater, Cumbria, Winter 2010 by tom_scott88, on Flickr


Ulswater, Cumbria, Winter 2010 by tom_scott88, on Flickr


Ulswater Steamer, Cumbria, Winter 2010 by tom_scott88, on Flickr


Hallin Fell, Ulswater, Cumbria, Aug 2012 by tom_scott88, on Flickr


Hallin Fell, Ulswater, Cumbria Aug 2012 by tom_scott88, on Flickr


IMG_4751-Edit by tom_scott88, on Flickr


Ulswater Boat House by tom_scott88, on Flickr


Ullswater May 2012 by tom_scott88, on Flickr


Conison Water Feb 2012 by tom_scott88, on Flickr

 

[Hillsilly]

I assume you're ok with the major cities / attraction. Some other interesting places that I've come across: -

Glastonbury Tor, UK - while you're there, check out the Abbey (King Arthurs is buried there) and Chalice Well. If you have a car, Glastonbury is a good base for exploring the region - Stonehenge, Wells, Bath, the coast, Exmoor, Cheddar etc.

The Red Lion Pub, Avebury - the only pub inside a stone circle

Arbor Low, Peak District, UK - its a stone circle in the middle of some guy's farm.

Nine Ladies Stone Circle, Peak District - very photogenic at sunset. BTW, if you're heading to the Peak District, spend at least one night at Chatsworth House (ie Cavendish Hotel). Girls will be very impressed. In fact, spend a week there - its a good base for exploring the area and there are a lot of interesting and scenic walks, towns etc.

Tintagel, Cornwall, UK - King Arthur used to live there and its got a cool looking post office.

(If you're detecting a King Arthur, Stone circle theme, you're right - I've done several trips searching for the holy grail and my wife is a tarot card reader...)

The "Jurassic Coast", Uk - just watch out for dinosaurs!

The Abbey at Whitby, UK (and surrounding beaches) - great in the late afternoon.

York - if you like trains, vikings and walled cities, this is the place to be

Take a Boat Cruise on Loch Lomond, Scotland

Glencoe, Scotland

There are a lot of waterfalls in Scotland...

Stirling Castle, Scotland - where you can get a great shot of the Wallace Monument. The staff are very good - If they don't offer, ask them to take your picture in the King / Queen's seat.

Basilica di San Miniato al Monte, Florence - a bit of a walk out of town, but you get a nice view.

Anywhere in Tuscany

Rome - my favourite place in Europe. If you're even half considering going to Europe and not visiting Rome, slap yourself a few times until you come to your senses.

 

[pulsiv]

If you should decide to come to germany, I strongly suggest you visit the so called "saxon switzerland" in eastern germany, close to the czech border. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Saxon_Switzerland

the obvious choices would be scotland, norway and maybe tuscany or the alps...
anyway... have a nice trip!

 

[Enrico]

Well, Europe isn't exactly a small place... Im not sure whether I would go once for 2 months or twice for 1 month each and try to divide it into Norther Europe and Southern...

I think you will find that most of the cities, countries etc has alot to offer from a historical point of view. For each city I would do my research and pick carefully. There has been so much going on in Europe the past 2000 years so there's just too many things to see, castles, landscapes, places with an historical impact...

Ideas:

- "Hurtigrutten" - a 4 day boattrip following the Norweigian coastline, fjords, mountains, ocean

- Rome

- Venice

- Florence

- The Alps

- Stockholm, Sweden, beautiful city with lots of water, archipelago and amazingly good looking women

- Anywhere in Northern Scandinavia to be able to see and capture "the Northern Light"

- Scottish highlands (start in Edinburgh perhaps)

- Paris and perhaps the beaches of Normandy (D-Day you know...)

- Moscow

- Prague and Warzaw

- Croatian archipelago

- Greece, perhaps Athens and then visit some of the nice islands

- Amsterdam

- Barcelona

Good luck, have fun!

 

[Deva]

On your Southern leg:

Venice. Totally unique - there's a reason why 20 million tourists go there every year. Stay a night (or two), and see the city without the day trippers. Book a hotel in advance, and make sure it's one on the island and not the mainland.

Florence, for the architecture, especially the Duomo, and the Uffizi gallery.

Rome - the Colosseum, the Capitoline Hill, the Pantheon, and the Vatican is another day in itself. For something different, visit the Catacombs.

After Rome, take the opportunity to slip down to Naples (the underground tunnels in the UNESCO-heritage old city are worth a look-see, especially when they give you a candle to light your way down a 100m tunnel you can only get down sideways...) and see Pompeii and/or Herculaeneum - and take a trip to the top of Vesuvius.

From Naples, take the train to Brindisi, and then the ferry across to Greece (it may be covered by your rail pass). Obviously Athens has the Parthenon, and from there you can catch a ferry out to some of the islands. If you've only got time for one, try Mykonos - a quintessentially Greek town designed to confuse raiding pirates that you'll get totally lost in.

On your Northern leg:
Paris - the Eiffel Tower, the Louvre, Montmartre, Notre Dame, the Arc de Triomphe - photography heaven.

Amsterdam - different architecture again, some great museums (e.g. Rijksmuseum), the Anne Frank house, and all those canals.

Stockholm - the Vasa museum is unique in the world (and Scandinavia's most visited museum). Scandinavians also go in for open-air museums, and I believe Stockholm has one of the oldest.

Edinburgh - the Castle, the Royal Mile, the different culture again.

 

[kaihp]

+1 on the Norwegian fjords. Lysefjorden is very accessible from Stavanger with Prekestolen (The preacher's pulpit) and Kjeragbolten among the highlights. Can be done in 1 day. If you're lucky the ferry will stop for watching the basejumpers near Kjeragbolten.
Not so accessible, but quite as beautiful: Geiranger. There's a reason why we're using a Norwegian word for fjords.

If you want to see some spectacular waterfalls, go to Norway as well.

As others say, there are plenty to see in Europe. First decide what you want to focus on, like nature or cities.

 

[charliewphotos]

If you're UK leg is only a couple of days, chances are you'll end up in London, if you want nature and wildlife e.t.c and don't want to stray too far from London Richmond Park early in the morning is good for deer/wildlife. If you're looking to go a bit further afield but not too far you should look at the Norfolk Broads, boat trips, scenerey and an impressive array of wildlife and less that 3 hours from the center of London.

If you're staying longer, definietly check out Scotland, Edinburgh is one of the most beautiful cities in the world!

 

[Imagination_landB]

Thank you all!
i'm starting to plan the trip, it's gonna be from april trough may, since it's the least expensive season and there's less tourists(even tough I know there will a lot anyway).
I know this is not a long trip for all Europe but I will choose the places(cities and countries) I will go to (with my girlfriend) by looking where there's more opportunity to take picture and have wonderful memories. So for sure I will miss a lot of stuff, but I want to enjoy every place I will go.

 

[Deva]

Given the timing of your trip, you should think about Spain or Italy for Easter - these strongly Catholic countries do some fantastic Easter festivals and parades, which are very photogenic.

 

[webexpert]

Don't forget Greece is one of the best places to visit for photographs as well as for vacations. The greek islands like santorini, crete, paros etc offer unique opportunities for photos of landscapes, social themes and architecture. Also in the mainland the city of navpliois fantastic, beautiful vilages like papigo and historical places are also strongly recommended. I would suggest to be in greece during the orthodox easter which is the most important event in the Greek calendar. The weather will be good (sunny and you might be able to swim in the southern parts) and don't forget that the Greeks have a tradition with hospitality. There is less danger for theft, and the costs are much lower compared to the rest of EE (except portugal and ex eastern countries).
So whatever place you choose we wait for your photos.

 

[Jotho]

Didn't see Ireland among tips. Very beautiful and friendly. Spain the same but with fantastic food and wine. Of course Italy. England Scotland of course, Wales Atlantic coast is awesome. Why. not Eastern Europe? Prague! Amywhere in France. Certainly Scandinavia. Stockholm is one of the most beautiful cities in the world. 2 month is impossible to cover Europe as it would also be for USA.

 

[bornshooter]

Well the title says it all. I'll do a trip in Europe (all of its countries including Russia) for a period of 1 to 2 months and want to know where you guys have been and where would you recommend me to go, places that worth to go and take PICTURES.
I'll take a (almost)universal train pass so I can go everywhere.
Beautiful landscapes, train stations, cities, zoo's, library, castles,nice architecture,bridges,historicals sites, waterfalls,mountains,nice cruises.. as you might understand, everything that makes a nice photo is welcome in suggestions!
Even if you've never been into the old continent I want your ideas!
I'll bring all my important photo stuff(tripod,remote,8-16sigma,24-70 tamron,50 1.4 sigma,120-300 sigma.canon 60D) so no type of pictures is excluded.
Thaaank you.

if you only have one body i highly recommend getting another if your body fails you dont need to me to tell you how bad that would be on a photography trip.you could always pick one up in europe should that happen though.

 

[stephan00]

If you're already passing through Austria, visit the Salzkammergut (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Salzkammergut), especially Hallstatt (not for nothing did they build a 1:1 copy in China). Naturally I would be tempted to suggest Vienna (Salzburg has already been mentioned), but to be honest, any of the towns from the times of the old monarchy is definitely worth visiting: Vienna, Budapest, Bratislava, Prague, Triest,

 

[7enderbender]

Well the title says it all. I'll do a trip in Europe (all of its countries including Russia) for a period of 1 to 2 months and want to know where you guys have been and where would you recommend me to go, places that worth to go and take PICTURES.
I'll take a (almost)universal train pass so I can go everywhere.
Beautiful landscapes, train stations, cities, zoo's, library, castles,nice architecture,bridges,historicals sites, waterfalls,mountains,nice cruises.. as you might understand, everything that makes a nice photo is welcome in suggestions!
Even if you've never been into the old continent I want your ideas!
I'll bring all my important photo stuff(tripod,remote,8-16sigma,24-70 tamron,50 1.4 sigma,120-300 sigma.canon 60D) so no type of pictures is excluded.
Thaaank you.

While 4-8 weeks seems like a long period of time you are looking at decent size continent that probably couldn't be more diverse. It's kind of the same question that you get from Europeans traveling to the US. They often do the same thing where they either drive cross country (without much time to actually see and experience much) or criss cross from coast to coast to check of the stereotypical tourist attractions from their list.

If that's what you want people have given you the list already. And I'm not saying that Paris and Zermatt aren't worth visiting. Quite to the contrary. Only I would stick to 2, maybe 3 places that really interest you and get to know them better and beyond recreating the pictures and mental images that you already find at your local travel agent or on "Rick Steve's Europe" show.

To me traveling has always been about learning how places tick and where they're coming from. And I personally have a thing for putting things into historical contexts to understand the world a bit better. The one time I did one of those "20 countries in 10 days" undertakings with two very good friends we actually followed the path of one of the crusades with the added bonus of one of the friends being quite the expert on this subject. Not that the local food, drink and girls were dismissed along the way...Those were the days...

And I would stick to the 50 and the 24-70 and leave the rest at home.

Favorite places, some obvious, others maybe not so much:

Zermatt, Switzerland
Saas Fee, Switzerland
Florence
Paris
London and many towns along the Southern England shore
Delft, Netherlands
Amsterdam and towns along the Northern Shore
Hamburg, Germany
Cologne, Germany
Munster, Germany
Ploen lake region, Germany
Some of the smaller, less known islands of the coast of Athens
Istanbul

 

[vlim]

In France "château de la Loire" like Chambord and Chenonceau, the Alps, Mont Saint Michel, Beauval zoo (in the top ten of the Times magazine), Paris of course and so many other places !

 

[Imagination_landB]

While 4-8 weeks seems like a long period of time you are looking at decent size continent that probably couldn't be more diverse. It's kind of the same question that you get from Europeans traveling to the US. They often do the same thing where they either drive cross country (without much time to actually see and experience much) or criss cross from coast to coast to check of the stereotypical tourist attractions from their list.

If that's what you want people have given you the list already. And I'm not saying that Paris and Zermatt aren't worth visiting. Quite to the contrary. Only I would stick to 2, maybe 3 places that really interest you and get to know them better and beyond recreating the pictures and mental images that you already find at your local travel agent or on "Rick Steve's Europe" show.

To me traveling has always been about learning how places tick and where they're coming from. And I personally have a thing for putting things into historical contexts to understand the world a bit better. The one time I did one of those "20 countries in 10 days" undertakings with two very good friends we actually followed the path of one of the crusades with the added bonus of one of the friends being quite the expert on this subject. Not that the local food, drink and girls were dismissed along the way...Those were the days...

And I would stick to the 50 and the 24-70 and leave the rest at home.

I understand what you mean but, i'm only 20 and will be 21 when I'll star the trip so I will have a looooot of time (I hope so haha) to do it again.. I'll try to choose maybe 10-15(max) places with my Girlfriend to have enough time enjoying it. And for the gear, I'll bring the 8-16 because of the unique perspective it can achieve,for landscapes I'll do some panos with the 24-70, and the 120-300 is a Huge lens I know, but considering the 24-70 as my second longuest focal, I can't not bring the 120-300 because if I miss some long shots, i'll be a little mad at myself