STYLETHREAD -- LET'S TALK SHOP!

tara t · Marc Jacobs

france and italy suggestions?

gingembre1 · Kate Spade

I've lived in France twice, so I could answer any questions you might have. I've also been to Italy, but just Florence and Venice.

What time of year are you planning on going? That makes a big difference on where I'd recommend that you go...

Maddie · Coach

I lived in Paris for a summer a few years ago, so I basically remember nothing. But I would personally love to go to Greece! Everyone I know who's been loves it.

bex · Chanel

i lived in paris for 6 months during college.

i remember wishing the whole time that i had someone special to share it with... and when i met my BF who lived in London for a year, he said the same thing about Paris and Rome. I didn't go to Rome so other than what he says, I have no idea!

i remember walking down the Champs Elysee on Valentine's day and there were couples EVERYWHERE and all the girls had flowers and everyone looked so in love *sigh* i went to sephora and bought a load of make up to make myself feel better

eta: i loved venice too tara t.... its very romantic too...

-- Edited by bex at 11:02, 2006-01-13

cc · Marc Jacobs

I think France, Italy or Greece all sound wonderful. When would you be going? That will probably help you decide on a location. I love Venice and think it is really romantic but I've only been in the winter when it isn't very crowded and has can have an awesome spooky feeling. I don't know how romantic I would find it during the summer when it is filled with tourists and according to some people the canals get a bit stinky. Barcelona and Paris are fabulous too. Maybe you could combine a major city with a few days in a smaller city or town.

tara t · Marc Jacobs

we will be going in october.

do you have any hotel recs?

wonder if it would be difficult to go to paris and venice? we could stay for about 4 days each..

i'm so lost.

Tara · Dooney & Bourke

tara t wrote:

we will be going in october. do you have any hotel recs? wonder if it would be difficult to go to paris and venice? we could stay for about 4 days each.. i'm so lost.

I was in paris this past October and it was perfect. The weather was amazing. I was there for 5 days (3 of which I was working), and I think 4 days in Paris is a perfect amount of time to do the major sights as well as relax and enjoy the lifestyle.

I stayed in a small hotel in arrondissement 7, which I loved. The area was heavily residential so it was quiet and romantic. And public transit in Paris is amazing. You can get anywhere very very easily (and I speak extremely minimal French).

Oh, and my only other suggestion is to get a Falafel in the Jewish Quarter. Seriously - BEST thing I have EVER EVER eaten - and cheap, like 4 Euros.

Oh, I am jealous! Sounds great!

Michibanana · BCBG

Tara, I was in France and Italy for three weeks this past April with my bff, so I would be happy to give you any help you need. In France, we stayed in Paris and Lyon and in Italy, we were in Rome, Florence, and Venice. I don't think it would be unrealistic to consider doing four days in Paris and four days in Venice. You would probably want to have an extra day for travelling from one city to the next. Venice is, IMO, perfect for a honeymoon because it's very romantic and not as crowded as you might expect (especially comared to Rome and Florence, which I visited first). Most of the city is made up of small alleyways and pathways along the canals, and there are also some beautiful islands off the coast (we visited Murano, famous for its glass blowing, and Burano, famous for its lace, both of which I would highly recommend). Paris is also a gorgeous city to visit with a significant other. I would also highly recommend Lyon, especially if you want to just pick one country to stay in for the duration of your honeymoon - Paris and Lyon might be a good alternative to Paris and Venice. Lyon is a small city in the south of France that's considered the gastronomic capital of the world. It's very rustic and historic, and there are amazing things to eat and do. Unfortunately, I can't recommend any accomodations because I was on a students' budget, and we stayed in hostels the whole time. However, I can recommend places to visit, and if you like just walking and taking in the sights, I can recommend places you can go walking, too. I still have all my maps and info from the trip, and it should still all be current because it was less than a year ago. Feel free to PM me if you want to talk more.

cc · Marc Jacobs

Paris and Venice is definitely doable in one trip. I think I spent a total of around 5-6 days in Paris and I managed to see a lot even though my bf and I spent a lot of time picnicing. And Venice is tiny! I've taken two 2-week trips there and haven't seen everything but I know lots of people who say 3 days there is enough.

I've actually been investigating this because I'd like to go somewhere outside of France the next time I visit my bf and we'd be leaving from Paris. I've found flights on Travelocity for $134 one way but I'm sure there must be low-cost carriers that flight this route. Unfortunately I haven't found one yet. The site attitudetravel.com is a really good source for cheap flights within Europe but it's kind of annoying to sift through.

There is an overnight train from Paris to Venice which takes 12-13 hours. My coworker has taken it before and I think he was just in 2nd class and he said it was fine but if I were on my honeymoon I'd probably want to get a private sleeping car, which is pretty expensive - according to raileurope.com it's around $200 per person. I think it seems like it could be cool, but I guess it could also be horrendous (like that ep of SATC when they took the cross-country train). And it's obviously cheaper and much faster to fly. You could look into open jaw tickets which might cost a bit more but would save you some travel time since you wouldn't have to get yourselves back to Paris for your flight home.

Unfortunately I am no help when it comes to hotels because I usually stay in cheapo places.