October half term city break. Where shall I go?

[Glitterbiscuits]

I want to take my older teenagers/ young adults away.
Last week of October for 3/4 days maximum.
Riga?
Athens?
Prague?
Lisbon?

I haven’t been to any of these places.
We won’t have a car so walkable is a priority and we need to cater for vegetarians too.

Any reviews of these places or suggestions? Thanks!

I've enjoyed them all. Lisbon was the best food (although all pretty similar standard.) I'm not vegetarian though so that's maybe not too helpful. All similar prices (Athens was a long time ago.) Prague has a good indoor water park if you want to do that type of thing. Lisbon and Prague are the handiest to get to city centre from airport.

Id probably just pick whatever has the best flight times and if it's still a draw, look on Ticketmaster or StubHub and pick the one which has a concert or football match you would enjoy.

Just thought of something else. This obviously doesn't have universal appeal....but if you would like to (and are old enough) to do a shooting experience Prague and Riga can offer that. My husband has done it in one and I've done it in the other. We enjoyed it as a one off.

Lisbon is on my list of places to go to. I keep seeing nice photos on fb from people I know who have been.

I would have thought Riga and Prague would be quite cold but Lisbon and Athens still have the possibility of warm weather if that matters.

I'd also be looking to see which place had sensibly priced and timed flights from my nearest airport.

Lisbon is great! Barcelona too.
marrakech could be fun with a trip into the Atlas Mountains camel riding etc

Lisbon and Prague from that list. Can I add Porto to that list? Had a great time away there between Christmas and new year. It was warm during the day and we got a bus to the beach on one of the days.
Athens is about a 4 hour flight. Riga would start to become cold and miserable in October/November time.

I’d pick Prague from your list.

Lisbon is on my list and my suggestion is Budapest. Went to Budapest in May and loved it, we saw loads and there is still more to visit, we do plan on returning.

It’s a great dilemma to have.
I also could add Krakow.

I loved Lisbon - went on my own for 4 days in late March, it was lovely and sunny but not too hot - suspect that would be similar in October.

And I could eat pastel de nata for breakfast, lunch and dinner, so win win!

Don't go to Lisbon in October expecting sun. It's liable to be damp. Krakow for the Auswitz tour is a must do if you like history. If you don't then leave it for a snowy winter break.

Given its an October trip I would choose Lisbon.

Not on your list but Seville is amazing.

Would add Gdansk to the list. Although not sure on weather that time of year. We did go in a snowstorm and it was still wonderful.

Not on your list, but we went to Malaga in October with late teens a few years ago, still warm, plenty to do, day trips if you want them, very walkable.

I did Valencia or Seville. Both lovely.

Definitely recommend Lisbon.

I’d also consider Valencia. We are off there in September!

Not considered Spain. It’s a bit narrow minded of me but I like to tick off a new country. While I’ve not been to Seville or Valencia I have been to a few other Spanish places.

@Twirlywirly25Please tell me all about Gdansk when you have a moment.

How about Vienna? Lovely city with plenty to see. We had four days there and we're on foot/ public transport all the time

My teens have enjoyed Barcelona, Krakow and Budapest. Best without transport is Budapest but all easy.

Budapest. Very walkable, had some good veggie meals, river trips, museums, market, opera/ballet (book in advance from UK), shopping

I used to live in Athens (admittedly a long time ago). It's not the best bit of Greece by a long way. It's a place you go through to get to somewhere nicer.

I've been to Gdansk, we went between Christmas and New Year of 2023, it was chosen by me primarily due to cheap direct flights from our local airport. Gdansk is very pretty, but it's been completely rebuilt after all the bombing during the war, so it looks old but it's not really if that makes sense. There are a few small museums and churches in the old town, just out of the old town is the second world war museum, this was good and would take 4+ hours if you really read everything. There is also the solidarity museum near the ship yards, I didn't mind this museum, but the rest of my family subsequently said they were not fans. Montownia food hall is nearby the solidarity centre if you find yourself there and need to eat, the museum restaurants were all shut when we visited. On our 3rd day we did a day trip by train to Malbork castle, which is a UNESCO world heritage site. I enjoyed our visit, but if you've not been to Athens or Lisbon, I would do that over Gdansk. I would also argue Krakow should be visited above Gdansk if you are only going to go to one Polish city.

We had a lovely time there a few years ago. We stayed in a hotel just outside the city centre next to a train station and shopping centre. This was handy. We took trips to Sopot (like a polish Brighton) and also Malbork castle. Gdansk is touristy but not as much as Krakow. We also went to the Philharmonic orchestra. The tickets were about £10. Lots of museums and great if you like history.