<p>We haven’t had a real vacation in well over a year… my dad got very ill and I was just afraid to leave him. He seems a bit more stable right now so we were thinking of possibly taking a trip to Europe in December when our son is off from college.</p>
<p>From your experiences, is there any destination there (we haven’t been there at all so any destination will be new and exciting to us) that could be reasonably warm at that time of the year?</p>
<p>Thanks very much.</p>
<p>Emily.</p>
<p>Barcelona wouldn’t be warm warm, but shouldn’t be too cold. It’s a city that has so much to offer - museums, cool architecture, old, new, the Med. sea, great food, great wine.</p>
<p>^^Pretty much everything said about Barcelona could also apply to Rome except with even more museums and a lot of ancient Roman ruins too.</p>
<p>If you prefer France to Italy or Spain, Marseille could also work.</p>
<p>I second Italy, both Rome and Venice. We have been there in winter and it was quite pleasant.</p>
<p>I agree with the above posts to stay south. I worked for a Dutch company and Amsterdam is cold, dark & dreary in December. The sun doesn’t rise until 8:30 and its pitch black by 4:30. Stockholm is worse - it’s dark by 3pm and feels like dusk all day as the sun is so low in the sky.</p>
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<p>Good point…due to the time of year, there is going to be less daylight generally than if you went in the summer. One eats dinner quite late (by American standards) in both Rome and Barcelona, so the streets are buzzing well into the night…you will have a reason to be out and about vs. “in for the night” by 7 pm.</p>
<p>I was in Venice for a few weeks early one January. It snowed. There is nothing more beautiful than Venice covered with a light dusting of white. It was my favorite trip to Italy…absolutely magical.</p>
<p>One nice thing about a December trip is that unlike in the summer when the natives take their long vacations it won’t be mostly other tourists around. You’ll see it in a more business as usual way. Possibly less waiting for attractions too. I’ve been to both London and Paris in the winter, and I can recommend either.</p>
<p>Maybe consider Greece or Portugal…</p>
<p>The only place that is genuinely warm really are the canary islands. These are islands off the coast of Africa that belong to Spain. The main islands are Tenerife, Lanzarote (which is a huge volcano) and Gran Canaria. You have never heard of them, but they are highly developed tourist resorts with millions of visitors every year. Pensioners from across Europe escape the winter in the islands. You can fly there from any European capital (and most smaller airports as well).</p>
<p>I know you asked about reasonably warm destinations but since you’ve never been there I encourage you to not worry too much about that and visit the areas you want - maybe the areas you’ve heard about your whole life and want to see. </p>
<p>You can still see London that time of year. It’ll be colder than in the summer but likely not terribly colder since it has a fairly temperate climate although on the cool, overcast, and rainy side.</p>
<p>Paris, Germany, Switzerland, etc. will obviously be colder and there could be some snow but the Eiffel tower, Louvre, Rhine, castles, cathedrals, mountains, lakes, etc. are all still there. The restaurants won’t have the nice outside tables but will still be serving indoors - perhaps with a cozy fire in the fireplace. I was in Germany on business once in the winter and spent an extra day seeing some castles along the Rhine. I still enjoyed them.</p>
<p>I once had some business to do in Switzerland in the winter and had a few days free so I headed to Davos and went skiing. It was very nice. A friend made a trip to Zermatt (where the Matterhorn is) in the winter and went skiing there. I’ve only been to Zermatt in the summer, and it’s very nice then, but I’ll bet it’d be very nice and picturesque in the winter as well (actually, there was a recent ‘The Amazing Race’ there in the winter - it looked great).</p>
<p>The southern areas are obviously not as cold as the northern areas but again, consider that this is your chance to see some of the cities and areas you’ve thought about for a long time so just make sure you have a coat and umbrella, which you’d probably need regardless of where you go anyway, and head where you want.</p>
<p>I am more than likely going to be in Vienna for the Christmas holidays. Granted, I live in a warm climate and snow is a novelty…but I can’t wait!! I have already scoped out an apartment with a fireplace and a grand piano. wooohooo!</p>
<p>^^ It seems like the Vienna area would be beautiful around that time of year - especially if there’s some snow. I was in Innsbruck in the winter once and the mountains were covered in white - really nice. Novelties, like snow, can be fun (especially if kept as a novelty).</p>
<p>It might be fun to be there specifically during the Christmas holidays to see how they do the holiday.</p>
<p>Well, I’ve spent Christmas in Munich before and it was spectacular. I am really looking forward to the Christmas markets and the Christmas church concerts. I have not yet bought my ticket but I am crossing my fingers. Fly into Prague, a few days there, then Vienna for a week and then home. Here’s hoping.</p>
<p>Thank you so much everyone for your recommendations. You gave us some great ideas to explore!</p>
<p>I knew some British People who would go to the Canary Islands to be warm in winter. They also sometimes went to southern Portugal for the same reason.</p>
<p>But the Canary Islands really isn’t ‘Europe’. If you just want a warm island vacation you could go to Hawaii or the Caribbean for probably much less.</p>
<p>Canary Islands are not the Europe you are seeking. Pretty much anywhere in Europe except the Northern areas will give you an incredible experience with less tourists than other months and a unique local Xmas celebration,lights etc.</p>
<p>Reminder - days will be very short. We loved Europe (especially Barcelona) in early May. I’m sure we’d find other charms in December, including fewer tourists. But we liked May.</p>
<p>Don’t mean to hijack the thread, but what are the prices for flights like from the east coast to Europe around December?</p>