City break in October?

[TeacherMcTeacherface]

It's my 20th wedding anniversary this year and I've persuaded DH that we should go somewhere exciting for a few days in Oct half term.

We're on a budget so Rome is out of the question.

I've suggested either Paris or Amsterdam (never been to either)

Any recommendations for which one you'd choose? Or somewhere I haven't even thought of?

Loads of great ideas here, Lisbon would also be lovely in October.

Of those two, I’d choose Amsterdam. It’s just a great city.

OH and I have enjoyed several city breaks in October (our anniversary is end of Oct). We’ve been to (and loved): Lisbon, Santorini, Marrakech and Seville. Not sure if all or any of those are in budget. Great weather in all at that time of year.

Is Amsterdam really working out cheaper than Rome?
My vote is Lisbon, such a nice city at any time of the year.

I think Budapest knocks the socks off Prague (where I've been twice, and liked it, but didn't love it).

But to your brief, I'd go to Porto (or maybe Lisbon). Really good value, nice small city, easy access to the beach (for a nice lazy afternoon drinking Sangria), and you will still have nice weather in October.

Budapest

Porto

Agree with all the others- Amsterdam is really £££.

If you want to do eurostar then Brussels, Lille or Antwerp are also a good shout. You have to change trains in Brussels for Antwerp but it's really easy and none should be mega expensive in October.

Sorry, just realised Santorini is the odd one out in my post as it isn’t a city 😂 Absolutely beautiful place though and much quieter in Oct than summer season so you don’t get crazy amounts of cruise ship passengers which I’ve heard makes things pretty cramped in the summer.

Also been to Budapest and loved it. What about Dubrovnik? I’ve been there for a longer holiday but I don’t see why you couldn’t do a long weekend there.

Oooh, and Florence! Might be pricey though, it’s a few years since I visited.

Paris over Amsterdam. However, Seville, Valencia, Vienna, Prague, Budapest would be choices for me.

Den Hague rather than Amsterdam.

Budapest is an amazing city. Loved the outdoor steam baths and the ruin bars.

Tallin or Krakow also worth a look.

Istanbul too

Amsterdam. Porto. Valletta. Luxembourg. Strasbourg.

Oh yes lisbon too. Although early as possible in October for the weather

I ran the marathon in Lisbon, in mid October. It was 35c! That was slightly freakish, but would easily expect low/mid 20s in mid Oct.

Perhaps you could check out where the cheapest flights are ? Likely to be premium prices for half term .

I've enjoyed Valencia, Palma and Budapest. Lisbon is on my list .

I do know that some of the Spanish cities (Valencia, Seville, Madrid) don't have frequent flights to and from Birmingham - although that may be dependent on the time of year.

Krakow is probably the best city break I've ever had and ridiculously cheap

Marseille or Montpelier? Still get France but cheaper than Paris and more chance of mild weather.

Marseille is pretty rough and tumble in places but I love it.

Ljubljana. It's almost unknown in the UK, but we loved it and I've never heard of anyone who's also been having anything other than a great experience.

Another vote for Krakow. The salt mines are amazing. You can visit Auschwitz-Birkenau, harrowing obviously but important. Restaurant Cyrano de Bergerac is fab.

We flew Birmingham to Verona in October, it was lovely and we did a day trip to Venice (very busy - so glad it was just a day!).

Verona was beautiful.

Tallinn is a fantastic city and under rated . You can get a ferry across to Helsinki for the day as well - only a 2 hour crossing and around 28 euros each for a return trip

Luca near Florence. We flew to Pisa and then got a cheapish bus there. Loads to do for 2-3 days, can even visit Florence for the day.
I’ve noticed that flights are much more expensive post covid. We’ve ended up booking a city break with Easy jet to Krakow next April. Probably more expensive but less faff.

I would go Seville, Lisbon or Porto. All will still have pleasant weather and are better value than a lot of other European cities.

How big is your budget?
Paris is amazing but expensive, for cheaper options I would look at Istanbul, Budapest amd Vienna

Naples, good weather in October and you can visit Capri, Pompéi and Vesuvius, the amalfi coast. Not too expensive.