Frequent europe travellers, help please! Ok, our entire June trip is 18/19 days long. Our favourite thing is food, wine, and beach. Greece is a non negotiable. Is this trip too busy? We have not been to any of these places but we are only doing one city in our first three countries.
3 Nights London England (to attempt catching a soccer game thats sold out, see main tourist sites, and meet friends who will be here during these dates)
3 Nights Lisbon portugal (to beach and eat)
3 Nights Glasgow Scotland (to actually watch the soccer game as we have only been able to get uefa tickets for this game)
9 Nights greece (1 athens, 3 santorini, 3 mykonos, 2 crete)
I understand glasgow is near london but there is a 7 day gap between the soccer games.. I fear we will miss the beach for too long. What would you cut or do you think its fun like this?

How are you traveling?

What main tourist sites are you wanting to see in London? Some of them could take a whole day. And did you factor in travel time? You will be spending a lot of time on trains/planes/waiting in airports...

I got this pass from Costco for 3 days in London, it did save me a lot of money: https://www.costco.ca/-4-day-London-Pass-with-Hop-on-Hop... , also ordered the local UK SIM card to be sent to my canadian address: https://www.giffgaff.com/freesim-international , you can use it in Europe too

That can be a lot depending on your travel time and who is with you. I did London alone with a day in Paris over 7 nights and didn’t see everything I wanted or all the sites. I had more flexibility being alone.

I would switch Lisbon for Porto. You can rent a bike and ride to the beach just outside town. It has wine and some of the best food. We did both and Porto was incredible.

April how far apart is Porto and Lisbon

April I have heart multiple times Porto is better than Lisbon

Glasgow is not "near" London, depending upon your definition of near tho. Are you planning to drive between, or fly?

3 days in london is never enough but still a good amount of time. 3 in lisbon is good as well

We are probably planning on flying since flights are less than 100 to most destinations. It’s me and my spouse and we have no kids.

I think you should skip Lisbon. Spend 4 days in London and then 6 in Scotland, before flying to a Greece.

Greece is stunning we were there for 2 weeks last summer ... happy to share a list of things to see and do ...

Would highly recommend luxury sunset catamaran sailing and snorkeling tour in Santorini ... by far the most amazing experience with food wine sun and sail

Sent you a pm...

I would definitely do the London and then Glasgow closer together because it’ll be closer and less stress and then move further south. For Athens, make sure you’re staying in accommodation closer ish to the sites to see if you’re there for only a day. Because there’s a lot of history and stuff to see you wouldn’t want to miss it! Also I felt a lot safer in that area versus being deep into the city.

I would take out one of either Portugal or Glasgow. Don’t try to do too much or you don’t have enough time to really see all that you might want to. If it was me, I would save Portugal and do it in another trip perhaps combined with Spain.

See Mykonos beaches by water taxi ... eat at aile e olio in Mykonos town ... visit windmills and lovely shops ...

In Mykonos eat breakfast and dinner at Pasaji Mykonos and rent day beds on the beach ... definitely try the homemade donuts they sell beachside

In Santorini eat dinner at seaside Santorini ... it was definitely one of our best meals in all of Greece

Glasgow is at least a 8 hour drive from London. 1 hour flight. Europe looks small, but it isn’t. How do you plan on getting to each of these places? Lisbon alone is a 2:45 hour flight from London.

In Athens get a short guided walking tour of the Acropolis... and tour the plaka on your own ...

If you have to skip anything, skip Lisbon. The people ruined the experience for us, not everyone of course but definitely a lot of rude people. Love Portugal, just not in the city

Cayla
I agree, Porto was much nicer or the Douro valley

We stayed in AMAZING accommodations in Santorini which included breakfast and the most beautiful suite with pool ... message me for more details ... in Athens we stayed in a gorgeous elegant air bnb apartment close to Acropolis and plaka which I would also highly recommend ...

Lisa Hi Lisa, could you please pm me with the links to where you stayed anywhere in Greece

We stayed in Mykonos for 5 nights and Santorini for 6 with day trips to Naxos and Ios

2 nights in Athens to reacclimate to jet lag

I personally wouldn’t go to Portugal and then back to Glasgow. It takes time to travel, and I’m assuming you’re flying. I’d maximize it and do the UK stuff first and then go to the EU. Keep in mind you have time changes between some of the countries too. Given you’ve not been to these places you may want to consult a travel agent.

Personally, I feel there is a lot of wasted “time” (meaning all the time you will spend in the Airports) a 2 hour flight will easily turn into 5 hours total. Now that the U.K. isn’t apart of the EU, more time is needed at the U.K. airports to clear customs either way.

David that makes absolutely no difference to a Canadian, UK was never part of the Schengen zone anyway so you would always have to come through international customs at the UK unless you had an EU passport.

It’s a lot of airport time. This includes travel to the airport, security lines, waiting, flying, disembarking. I’d drop the Portugal and embrace Europe for those three days. Maybe it’ll be warm and beautiful?

Lisbon really isn't the place to go for "beach" that would be south into the Algarve and you don't have time for that. I have covered most of Europe and you are definitely trying to pack too much in with a fair bit of "back and forth" you will be eating up a lot of time in airports. I would drop Portugal this time round.

Is there something specific you’re going to Crete for? You may want 3 nights there and drop a night in Mykonos.

Glasgow isn't close to London BTW...and "public transportation" and road ways are very long compared to our Canadian experience. So make sure you factor that in... so plan for alot more time coming and going out of British airports.
The other locations? Go where you want to go...but this is not going to be a relaxing trip!

It's too much. You'll be tired from figuring out the logistics every other day and getting to and from airports. You won't have time to relax.
Make the trip either all Greece (perhaps with Turkey), or U.K. with Portugal/Spain. That way you can spend five or six days at one beach place and then three or four days in two cities each.
Travel days are write-offs for sightseeing, getting enough sleep, eating and relaxation. You will take 2.5-3 hours getting to the airport, going through security, boarding, and taxiing. Once you land it's another 1.5-2 hours to get from your airplane seat through the airport to the ground transport to your lodging. Add another layer of planning if you're meeting with an airbnb host to be let into lodging or staying at a small hotel with limited reception hours.
If you go ahead with your proposed itinerary I strongly suggest traveling with only a small carry-on, preferably a small backpack you can empty out and use during the day while sightseeing. Check the dimensions of cabin bags allowed on the discount European airlines (e.g. ryanair, easyjet). Some are quite strict.
Lastly, check the typical weather for the places you're planning to visit. Greece can be unbearably hot with intense sun in June.

The first half sounds exhausting. There are beaches in the UK....

As others have said, that’s a lot of travel. Consider jet lag, plus London airports are very busy. Arriving 2 hours before check in may not be enough time to clear security. I’d use the time in the uk, there are some great beaches just have to pray for the weather
. Personally I’d skip London and head straight for Glasgow but I’m from there and maybe a little biased

Not sure of your age, but personally myself I'd skip Mykonos and spend more time on Crete. Mykonos is an extremely overpriced party town. If you're in your 20's you'll probably like it, but Crete was beautiful with stunning beaches, very inexpensive and wonderful people. We were there for a week and it wasn't enough time.

Glasgow is quite some distance from London - around 700km.

I was just going to say this

Croatia!!

Leah I am from Croatia actually and go there often. We are doing Croatia 2021 again but I wanted to see some other parts of Europe

So here’s a thought......fly in to London, and then fly out of Glasgow back to Calgary or vice versa. Don’t plan on a lot of time in Glasgow - in my opinion it is the least charming city in Scotland.
Greece is going to be very busy during the time you are planning on being there, so brace yourself. We went to Greece in January last year, and it was magical. We pretty much had Santorini all to ourselves.
I loved Lisbon. It’s “doable”, but kind of off the beaten path of your current schedule, and as others have pointed out, you might miss a lot if you try to sandwich too much in. If your heart isn’t set on it, maybe shelve it for the next trip and tag on Spain and Morocco!
If I were planning the trip, I would start with your football dates. I would add more days onto London, and save Lisbon for another trip. I would play with arrival and departure flights out of London or Glasgow to/from Calgary (air transat and westjet fly to both). If you need to get to/from Athens via Scotland, look into flights out of Edinburgh too. Scotrail has multiple trains between Glasgow and Edinburgh, and it is a short, reasonably priced train ride. There is also an airport bus in Edinburgh that goes from the central train station to the airport.
And yes, factor in jet lag! Out of your schedule, account for one day of travel (you will probably leave here in the evening and arrive in the am GMT, but plan on dragging your ass for the day you arrive).
Sounds like a fantastic trip. Enjoy!

Ok, you’ve had some good advice, forget Portugal and actually enjoy the UK, makes more sense to visit Edinburgh or the Highlands.
For Greece, Crete needs a minimum a week two is better. Santorini and Mykonos are super touristy. If you want great beaches just go to Crete, it will be the warmest in June.

Brenda, I agree. Only need a day or two in Santorini and Mykonos, but I would try to get more days in Crete. It is a big island and you will have so many beaches to choose from. I loved the south coast in Crete, but it takes longer to get to those areas, so you would want more time there. Check out Paleochora, Matela and Agia Galini.

They say Edinburgh is the pretty girl who doesn’t know how to have fun and Glasgow is the fat girl who knows how to party! I lived in Glasgow, it has so much charm because of the people there and the night life, but as a tourist I would not spend 3 nights there unless you do day trips out to Loch Lomond or Edinburgh(£9 bus round trip). I’d argue if you’re going to Scotland I would add a day, land in Edinburgh (sometimes cheaper) or Glasgow and rent a car and do a few nights in the highlands. Ive done a couple 4-5 day highland trips out of Glasgow- feel free to message me and I can give you rental info and my itineraries! Groupon UK has some amazing accommodation, food and activity deals as well!

Views from santos winery in Santorini were phenomenal but the wine itself was not very good ... definite go for the view and food though ... would not recommend 10 glass wine pairing none were good

For beaches you should visit Croatia honestly! Split, Zadar, Sibenik Makarska, Dubrovnik!

Ines I am from Croatia actually. And I take it you are from there or near by based on your last name. I go there frequently and thought this is the year to see a different part of Europe lol

Go to Croatia

Kristina, I know the pain of football travel! And the love of food wine & beach! Bless easyjet, you can make the match in Glasgow easily - the question is how much do you care about Glasgow? If you don’t care & want to get more of the warm weather & I’d stay longer in Lisbon. It’s a beautiful city packed with food & wine - I can’t say enough good about it! Plus the longer stop there will be nice.
Then, consider the trip back to Glasgow for the match as part of your travel to Greece - just quick in n out overnighter to watch the match. Leave your bags at the airport, only take a backpack into the city. Book a cheap accommodation by the airport, enjoy the match & pints n head back to fly out first thing in the morning!!

Wenda I love how easy going and simple this solution sounds!

I'd say Glasgow doesn't need 3 days. It's an industrial city, not a historic one. There are beautiful sights outside of Glasgow, but I recall covering them in one day. So, with a soccer game - 2 days should be plenty. Unless, of course, you are planning on going to Edinburgh as well.

Edin. is one city you need at least three days to see. Loved it.

Don’t miss Edinburgh!

Lisbon does not have fantastic food not like you get in France and Italy just an FYI

Lonneke interesting. Thanks for the tip! We do love to eat all day lol

I recommend “on the cliff” in Thira, Santorini. The view was amazing and free breakfast as well, we also have a private pool.

Sorry, we're having trouble playing this video.
Learn more

Lisbon is not beach and eat worthy on your trip for being so out of the way of everywhere else. I would beach in Greece instead. And if you want to do another trip one day of Spain and Portugal that would be an option.

I'm not sure if thia means you've been to Santorini before.
Along with most touristy things the bakeries are amazing. Take lots of water if you are walking. Right in the plaka area in Fira ( sp) there is a restaurant that is higher up and faced the ocean. Truly the best food of my 2 week vacation was there.

Spend a few more days on Crete and forget Lisbon. was on Crete for 5 days and so much to see and do. Beaches on libean sea side are wonderful

Agulha no palheiro in Alfama, Lisbon was a good spot to eat, went twice during our 3 day stay. I would recommend going to Porto instead of Lisbon

Agree with Porto. Nicer city

I am with the folks that say skip Lisbon. I would find this to be way too much time in airports and transiting btwn airports and cities. A London Pass is great for 4-6 days...Tower of London, Tower Bridge, the Shard, Westminster Abby, Whitehall, Buckingham Palace, Windsor castle/Hampton Court, Tate Modern, British Museum, national gallery, portrait gallery, Victoria and albert museum, camden market, theater....Herrods....I could go on and on...such a fun city ....I prefer to see a place really well rather than just ticking a box but that is not everyone else's style...we spent 9 days in London last year and still didn't see it all.