Inspiration for 4/5 night break in mid September

[RosaMoline]

Evening!

My friend (and usual travel companion) usually go away once a year together.
We both love Mijas Pueblo, but I’ve been there a few times in recent years and fancy a change.
We’re both mid 50s, love beautiful scenery, nice wine and good food. We also quite like having our own facilities, so you can eat in a few times.
We like culture and sightseeing but also relaxation.
I would love to go to Palermo in Sicily (always wanted to go to the catacombs) but it’s sooooo expensive 😔
So far, I’ve looked into Dubrovnik (that could be a possibility, also a day trip to Mostar)
Any other suggestions? Spain? Portugal?
Has anyone been to Romania? We would quite like to take a trip to Transylvania.
Thank you ☺️

We went to Dubrovnik for a few nights and then onto Montenegro to the bay of Kotor and it was just the best thing ever

Greek islands would be glorious then I reckon and the scenery is jaw dropping

I’m on my way to Avignon which ticks all your boxes.

Thanks for these tips! I’m looking at Dubrovnik or Montenegro, but certainly will have a look at Avignon. I’ve always fancied Rouen too.

I'm going to Palermo for May Bank Holiday, not expensive at all. We're staying in a 2 bed apartment near the beach in Mondello, 20 mins outside Palermo so will do day trips. The apt is €180 a night and sleeps 4, is beside the beach and has aircon, a terrace and garden. My friend is there at the moment and food, cocktails, wine all good value. And fantastic!!

I really want to see Palermo & the catacombs too, how is it coming out as too expensive? Because it would obvously tick all your boxes! We've been to the east coast 4 times now, literally can't get enough of Sicily! Can you not find a cheaper way of doing it?

If you like Mijas Pueblo, then I'm guessing you're not adverse to a little bit of travelling to meet the sea.
Sorrento is amazing, and with lots to see in the town itself, as well as easy access to Amalfi, Pompeii and Capri. However it's bloody expensive! BUT the trains in that area are efficient and cheap, as are the buses, so you could easily stay 30 minutes either side of Sorrento.

I always suggest Seville in threads like this one! Such a brilliant place for a group of friends to go to. I went as a group of four at end of September, beautiful weather, delicious food, gorgeous city with lots to do!

Seville’s been on my list for a while! Thank you for the reminder ♥️

Sorrento - go to Naples and see the underground grotto?

www.napolisotterranea.org/en/

Lake Maggiore? We’re going to Munich for the vibe.

Romania! We go twice a year. The new airport has opened in Brasov, so you can fly direct from Luton but the flights are at odd times. You could certainly base yourself in brasov, spend a day or two in the town and do a trip to bran castle and another to peles and you could finish with with a couple of days in Bucharest or Sibiu. Or you could fly into Bucharest, get the train to Brasov, another train to Sibiu and fly out from there.

Ljubljana is gorgeous, with maybe a day in Lake Bled?

Porto....I always recommend it on these threads. I went alone in September. Beautiful weather, great food, friendly people and very safe.

I've just done this trip too, it was completely heavenly. Go here op!

Where can you fly from?

Any London airport.

I went to Avignon mid-September last year. Wonderful weather, town is lovely.

If you want a sight of the sea you could go to Marseille on a day trip while there. Train connections are good.

Visited Orange, Arles and Saint Remy while there - all very interesting.

Have a look at San Sebastian - great food and lovely coastline. Some wonderful surrounding countryside.

You can also get the Euskotren from San Sebastian to stop Aia-Orio. It's actually Orio it stops in - which is a lovely little town in itself - and the tourist office will give you a booklet full of lovely walks including to Aia (three miles of breathtaking scenery). If walking back seems like too much stress then there is a bus although it's not very frequent.

And this is what it all looks like:

https://www.alamy.com/aia-village-pagoeta-natural-park-gipuzkoa-basque-country-spain-europe-image338490173.html

An easy to get to, and very enjoyable two centre trip is firstly Seville and then by train (less than one hour direct) to the equally lovely small city of Cordoba.

I am slightly older than you and my sister and I did this last year, but added a bit more on! It was so enjoyable and so easy. We did it all ourselves from start to finish and thoroughly enjoyed it. We did Seville, Cordoba, Granada, Malaga. Flew into Seville and home from Malaga.

So so inexpensive too I found. Could not spend our money, which was a fantastic bonus!

Anyway, there are lots of great suggestions here (some of which I'm snagging for myself!), so enjoy the trip whatever you decide.

Thanks everyone! I think Seville is the one for me. And I like the suggestion of a day trip to Cordoba ♥️

You will love Seville! I feel inspired to go again now!