When I bought my Depeche Mode concert ticket last fall, the only thing I knew for sure was that I was going to be in Amsterdam on May 18th.

As for the rest, well, I just had to figure it out.

When I go on trips I try to visit new countries rather than going to places I’ve been before.   Going to Amsterdam in the Netherlands was a good way to tick off some European countries I had yet to visit.

Along with the Netherlands, I also haven’t visited a handful of countries in the neighboring area.   Well, I’m knocking them off the list after this trip.

After a few days in the Netherlands, I’ll be heading south to Belgium with a day trip to Luxembourg before finishing off in Copenhagen, Denmark.

So, let’s break down the trip…

Netherlands

I’ll be spending 6 days in the Netherlands where I’ll visit Amsterdam, The Hague, Rotterdam, and Utrecht.

I know, I know… that’s alot of cities to visit in such a short time, but hear me out.

I’m going to be staying in the city of Haarlem for my entire stay in the Netherlands.   It’s a smaller town about 30 minutes outside of Amsterdam.   Not only is it much cheaper than Amsterdam, the vibe won’t be so crazy as what you’d get from staying in a major city like Amsterdam.

During my 6 days based out of Haarlem, I’ll be doing day trips to each of the cities I listed.

Each city is an hour or less away by train so I can leave mid morning in time to go on a walking tour in each city.   It’ll be a great way to learn about the city and see everything I should see.   After the tour ends, I can grab some lunch and explore on my own before heading back to my home base in Haarlem.

I figure it’s a good way to see a few different cities without picking up and going to new hostel every night.   It also gives me the option of calling an audible and changing things up if something else comes up.

Belgium

In Belgium, I’ll be staying in Bruges for one night before setting up camp for the remaining 4 days in Belgium in the city of Antwerp.

My one night in Bruges is so I can leave early in the morning the next day on a Flanders Field Tour.   After the tour, I’m going to head to Antwerp, where, like in Haarlem, I’ll make it my home base as I do day trips to other Belgium cities.

Along with Antwerp, I’ll also be visiting Brussels and Ghent.

Luxembourg

I won’t actually be staying in Luxembourg.   Instead I’ll be doing a day trip from Belgium to spend the afternoon there.

There are a couple options for visiting Luxembourg.   I can either go on a guided tour bus based out of Brussels for about 80€ or do it on my own by traveling by train in early morning and back again in the evening.

I’ve never been one for guided tours (except for the free walking tours) but when you consider the cost of the train there and back, the tour is actually great value for 80€.

I still haven’t decided which way I’m going to go and probably will only figure it out when I’m in Belgium.   Who knows, maybe I’ll meet other people who also want to go to Luxembourg and we’ll go together…

Budapest?

Yup, Budapest!

I’ve already been to Budapest on a previous trip, but I’m actually going to be spending one evening here.

Why, you may ask?

Good question!

I mean, when you look at a map, Budapest is clear cross the continent from where I’m traveling and my next stop is Copenhagen which is straight back across again.

So, why am I flying across the continent to spend a few hours in Budapest before flying the next morning back across the continent to go to Copenhagen?

Well, when I was looking up flights from Brussels to Copenhagen, I came across a glitch in the matrix.

There was a direct flight but it only left at 9pm arriving just after midnight and was $260.

I started to look at other alternatives, and after a few searches I came across this gem:

-Brussels to Budapest ($90) at 2pm, landing at 4pm
-Budapest to Copenhagen ($75) at 8am the next morning, landing at 10am

Yup, it’s actually cheaper to fly cross continent TWICE than it is to fly direct to Copenhagen!

Also, by doing it this way, I get to spend an entire evening in Budapest and I won’t miss out on any of my time in Copenhagen because, let’s face it, the other flight was landing after midnight and I’d just head to the hostel and sleep.

So, one night to get some good Hungarian Goulash is on my list!

Copenhagen

My final stop will be Copenhagen, Denmark.

I only have a couple days there but it should be enough time to eat some amazing food, go on a walking tour and explore what this beautiful Nordic country has to offer.

After two full days, I’ll be flying back home to Vancouver where I’ll arrive at 10pm, just in time to get some sleep before going back to work the very next day.

So, yeah, that’s the plan.   The flights and hostels are booked and I’m raring to go!

Just 27 days to go!