How does one make the best out of a trip to Europe?

Go to museums.
Try foods you wouldn’t normally like.
Remember that when you’re travelling abroad, you are an ambassador of your country. Others will be judged by how you carry youself.
Don’t get frustrated if you have a difficult time communicating with someone. If your friendly and kind people will go out of their way to help you.

Lastly, take pictures. Take a lot of pictures. You will have a story to tell for each one.

Have a great time! I did when I went but I regret not spending more time there. 4 days was only enough to leave me wanting more.

In general, I’d say to get a good guide book, try to learn a little of the languages, and set aside about 50% of your time to explore the non-touristy areas.

Get off the beaten path. Eat where the locals eat.

Just spend all your time in Amsterdam.

Also you know I got off the beaten path in new york and ate where the locals ate, it was scary as hell cause it was a mafia owned Russian cafe… but it was def pretty cool.

Do a little reading beforehand—not just a good travel guide such as Rick Steves’ but a little something (doesn’t have to be a lot) about the history of the area and its people. For example, why do they speak two languages in Belgium? Who are some great Flemish and Dutch artists? What is a polder? What is it about the chocolate?

Just a little advance exploration about the places you are visiting will probably lead you into some things that you become curious about or touch on interests you already have. Do you love traditional Irish music? Would you like to see some well-preserved medieval villages? How about a castle dungeon or the place where Joan of Arc was put to death? Would you rather tour cathedrals or breweries, great art museums or fabulous landscapes and seascapes?

Even if you have thought of only a half dozen things you really, really want to see or do—take a boat ride on a canal in Bruges, see the Rosetta stone, visit Anne Frank’s house, see the jewels in the Tower of London, dance by the Seine with the Parisians on a Saturday night—having some specific object or aim will give your visit a shape and sense of purpose that will make it that much more enjoyable.

whatever you do will be fun
good choice of countries for starters
3 weeks is not enough anyway, but you’ll get a pretty good feel of things

just try do be inconspicuous if you can and nobody will mug you

this means NOT shouting “so how much is that in dollars?” everytime you see a price tag

Hubby did it by extensive research on the internet. He copied maps and read internet reviews of the places he wished to visit. He had a wonderful three week tour. His thing was saving money and not sticking exclusively to the ‘tourist’ places. He stayed in youth hostels, traveled by train and ate in local restaurants that he simply happened upon. He carried all his belongings in one back pack, and purchased some items along the way.

One other thing I found really helpful: take a half-day bus tour with a guide on your first morning in each city. You may see in that brief view places you know you want to go back to, such as the Louvre or Dam Square. If not, you’ll have hit all the tourist high spots in about three hours, and then you can zero in on your own special destinations.

You’ll also gain a feel for the place, a sense of the layout of the city, and a rough measure of the distances between things. And you can ask questions that will help you later, such as “Where’s a good place near the city center to go for dinner?” and “Where do you go for live traditional music?”

I went to Europe and visited a load of granite and marble suppliers.

I combined a holiday with business and learned a lot too…

Ciao ciao

is this how you became The Granite Guru?

Don’t forget to remind everyone you meet that if not for you, they’d be speaking German. It’s a great way to make new friends fast.