To ask you for help planning a 50th birthday trip in Jan

[Axlcat]

Help! I’m so last minute (for a number of reasons I won’t bore you with!) It’s my partners 50th in early Jan - looking for ideas short haul for 3 nights. Budget up to 600 per person. Flying out from Manchester.

Initially looked at a glacier express trip in Switzerland but the flight times are insane and it’s too much travelling between places so it’s fallen through and I’m now desperate.

Now considering Iceland or potentially Venice. Has none been to either in Jan? Would you recommend? I am desperate at this point just really need some help with ideas so open to any other suggestions!

I think Iceland would be tricky on a budget.

Budapest and Riga are both beautiful and could be done very very well on your budget!

Ooh yes, great idea. I went in Feb and it was lovely and warm, again perfect for a mooch. We did a street tour with a local guide, we explored the Jardin Majorelle, LOTS of food, hammam. There are lots of beautiful Roads to stay in. I have a great recommendation for a hidden authentic Moroccan restaurant OP.

Or alternatively if you're keen on the outdoors and a mountainous theme, you could do a trip featuring the Atlas Mountains, we didn't make it that far but it's wonderful from what I've heard

RIADS not roads

EasyJet holiday from Manchester
5th to Athens
6th to Geneva - staying there or get the train to Annecy or chamonix
7th to Paris or Marrakesh

or Ryanair have cheap flights on those dates. I loved Prague although it’d be cold! Or Malaga is great.

Another vote for Budapest

I’ve seen a few deals for around the 500 mark! Secret escapes etc

Be mindful with last minute deals sites, a lot of the time you're stuck in an airport hotel on the edge of a runway, or way out of town. I think your best bet is to DIY to save costs or maybe pop into an independent travel agent if you have one nearby.

Or alternatively you could just totally wing it and book a mystery holiday: www.journeetrips.com

What about Berlin. We have had 2 splendid holidays there. Plenty to do.

Not Venice, likely under water, it's really not nice there in winter.

Prague, Budapest, Ljubljana, Vienna ... all great in January. Budapest I've done myself in January and even the outdoor spa is open and hot!

Iceland will be very expensive. I really enjoyed Prague and Paris in January, less busy and lots of interesting things to see. Also like Bruges and Strasbourg if you prefer smaller towns.

I took my DH to Lucerne for this 30th, the hotel was Chateau Gutsch. We flew to Zurich and then took the train to Lucerne, very easy overall.

I’m now looking at Malaga. Cordoba and Seville are appealing. Flights look very cheap! I wonder if it’s too much to think I could do all that in 3 nights?

Yes, too much I think. You could get the train to one of those and stay (or Granada which I absolutely love at that time of year as the Sierra Nevada should have snow on them).

But Malaga itself is really worth a couple of days or 3. Great museums, lovely shops, lovely places to stay, great food. It's a really classy city.

The other place that is great for a weekend is Palma on Mallorca - you could get the steam train out to Soller - lovely trip. Food and hotels in Palma is very nice indeed.

Thanks so much some great ideas! I sort of wondered if I could stay in cordoba maybe for 2 nights as it looks like its only 1 hour from Malaga and then 1 hour from Seville the other way. I’ll check out Granada too as hadn’t thought about that and also palma. Thanks again.

I think there’s enough to fill a few nights in all those places! With travel time I wouldn’t try and do more than 2.

I stayed in the most budget accommodation I could find, so I won’t recommend that! But basically everything. It is like being in a sci-fi world where the green fields are made of rock, and there is hot water in the ground, and the night skies are pink and green and blue. The food is weird but wonderful. Go to Thingvellir and see the gap between two actual tectonic plates.

Take your warmest clothes.

I’d stay in one place OP - travel adds to the budget and consumes a big % of the trip just travelling and panicking about connections.

Pick somewhere cheap to get to and cheap to eat, and book a lovely hotel and a lovely restaurant. A spa day in Budapest if that is DP’s thing would be very memorable.

What kind of trips has he liked in the past?

Did you consider a UK destination? A gorgeous room in a luxury hotel including food might be well priced in January and just as relaxing and special

Florence gets my vote

This is such good advice and is the reason I’ve ended up in this position - I had seen a trip doing the glacier express and stopping at a few places but the travel time in between places was insane! And flight times crazy so meant little time to enjoy. We love good food, culture and music. I’m now leaning towards Seville or Granada. It looks like flights are relatively cheap and plentiful and it would ticks the box for food and music and culture. Now just need to decide which one.

I am not keen on UK as want it to feel like we’ve been somewhere really different and special after what has been a pretty rubbish year

Granada is really nice and you can do a big day out to see Alhambra. There’s lots of lovely little bars that give generous tapas when you buy a drink.
Its feeezing though in the evening and at night time.

Bruges

Or Edinburgh

What about Bergen? I've never been in January (might be a bit chilly) but lots to do and see. Could be a good alternative to The Glacier Express or Iceland. Granada is lovely but Morocco might be a better bet at that time of year. Istanbul is also a fabulous city for a weekend. So much to see, amazing hotels and delicious food. Too many choices!

Don't try to do them all in 3 nights. I'd say spend it in Seville, and you could do a side trip to Cordoba on the train quite easily. I was there in September, and we spent 3 days Seville, 2 days Cordoba, 3 days Granada, 2 days Malaga. (Flew into Malaga, and out of Seville. All travel by train between cities.)

Vilnius