EuropeVacation

Inspired by our upcoming Europe vacation, I put together a collage of books set in the cities we will be traveling to in June: #London, #Paris, and #Rome. I had the most trouble finding newer novels set in Rome.

Have you read any of these books? Do you have any recommendations for books set in any of the cities we will be traveling?

#EuropeVacation #FiveYearAnniversaryTrip #Celebrate #CheerstoFiveYears #UK #France #Italy #Vacation

BooksForEmpathy How FUN!! And romantic! And just exciting!!! 7y

CSeydel Maybe

Beautiful Ruins (Turtleback School & Library)

Ruthiella I liked Beautiful Ruins too.Tom Rachman‘s debut The Imperfectionists is set mostly in Rome. You could also go waaaay back in time, if you like mysteries, and try one of John Maddox Roberts SPQR books. Not Rome but Italy in spring: Enchanted April by Elizabeth von Arnim was lovely (it is a sweet film too).😀 (edited) 7y

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vlwelser Angels and Demons by Dan Brown is my favorite modern book about Rome. I read it with a city map open. I didn't really care for his other books. 7y

britt_brooke The Paris Wife is really good! 7y

britt_brooke I #reread The Da Vinci Code before we went to Paris then Angels & Demons before Rome. Lots of art and architecture references in both, plus they‘re page-turners. But I‘m a sucker for Dan Brown‘s books so it all depends on if you like his stories. 7y

VelvetSpade I really liked Kate Quinn‘s Mistress of Rome but it‘s set in Gladiator times 🤗

Mistress of Rome

cariashley Oooh what a great trip! A fluffy light read set in Paris that I enjoyed a lot was

Anna and the French Kiss

lauraodom Try “ French Kids Eat Everything”. Really interesting read on how people there view food/eating differently than Americans. 7y

Jess7 I have read The Da Vinci Code, and I don‘t think I could do it again 😂 I am not a fan of Dan Brown‘s writing. But I know what you mean about the architectural references. I‘m going to check out The Paris Wife that you mentioned. @britt_brooke 7y

Jess7 That sounds really interesting @lauraodom 7y

Jess7 Thanks @VelvetSpade @cariashley @vlwelser @Ruthiella @CSeydel and @BooksForEmpathy - I‘ll have to look into the ones you mentioned. I‘m not a fan of Dan Brown, but my husband who is going loves his books so maybe he can share with me any of the really good architectural references in Angels and Demons 7y

britt_brooke @Jess7 It‘s true, Dan Brown is a pretty mediocre writer as far as technique. 😆 7y

Jess7 Have you read The Italian Teacher @britt_brooke ? I feel like I must own it because the cover is sooooo pretty! 🤷🏻‍♀️😂 7y

britt_brooke @Jess7 I haven‘t, but it is really pretty! 7y

rwmg Well, there is Iain Peters Art Crime series at least some of which are set in Rome and may give you ideas for off the beaten track art to see. 7y

MinDea They do a da Vinci code tour.. have you ever read those books? 7y

Jess7 Yes, I‘ve read The Da Vinci Code (but not the others in the series, T has. Unfortunately — I‘m not a fan of Dan Brown. I really dislike his writing and writing style 😞 T likes him though so he might into that sort of thing. @MinDea 7y

Jess7 Thanks @rwmg 7y

BarbaraBB About Paris I can recommend

So Much Blue: A Novel

BarbaraBB I haven‘t read The Italian teacher but did read this one by Rachman, which is very good and situated in modern Rome:

The Imperfectionists: A Novel

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Jess7

Europe: An Intimate Journey | Jan Morris

Calling all European Littens AND Littens that have VISITED #London, #Paris, or #Rome!! 🙋🏻‍♀️ I am planning a five-year wedding anniversary #vacation with my husband for nine days (3 days in each city) in mid/late June 2018. Neither of us have been to Europe, and we could use all the inside travel info, tips, or tricks you can give us!🤷🏻‍♀️#England #France #Rome

#Vacation - #ReadingResolutions (bookish bc I‘ll read on the long flights😉)

Jess7

Jess7 @britt_brooke - thanks for the sight-seeing suggestions you made on my last post. I decided to make another one bc I don‘t think many saw the travel tips question and we could really use some help figuring out what to try to fit in on which day and whether to do the hop on hop off bus tours etc - and maybe even whether the areas we are staying are close to what we want to do! Any other tips or info you have - please add! Thank you again!! 7y

TrishB Paris - definitely visit Shakespeare and Co bookshop 😁 7y

Jess7 Thanks! @TrishB - have you ever done the hop on /hop off tour buses? Trying to decide which activities to prebook with the vacation package too. 7y

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britt_brooke @Jess7 We didn‘t take any tours, just planned each day ourselves (hubby is a meticulous planner; I blame the army, lol), but we took 2 separate trips about 2 years apart and spent 5-6 days in each place. A planned bus tour might be a really good idea especially since you‘re hitting 3 major cities. Sounds like a fun trip! 7y

Jess7 @LitsyHappenings - would you mind reposting this for me? I could really use some help reaching our European Littens that might have some great info for us - including but not limited to, dos and donts, things to see, any cool bookstores, whether to do the hop on and off bus tours etc. #HelpWanted #EuropeVacation #LitsyHappenings - @Avanders @MrBook @BookBabe - Thank you!!! I really appreciate it! 😀😀 7y

LA_Mead Go see a play as a groundling at Shakespeare‘s Globe! It was only 5 pounds last time we were there and you get right up close to the stage! 7y

xicanti I'm tentatively planning a London trip too, and my mother pointed me towards the London Pass. It gives you admission to a whole bunch of key attractions, and you can skip to the front of the loooooooong lines that form at these places. That could be a real help when you've only got three days to see a city. 7y

Emilymdxn I‘m from just outside London and have been to Paris and Rome! I don‘t know much about tourist attractions in London as I‘ve never really been to them but Hampstead Heath has some of the best views of the city, the Thames South Bank near waterloo for river views, Daunt Books may well be my fave bookshop of all time so you have to go there! Queues are insane for anything royal-related, worth deciding how long you‘re prepared to queue for those 7y

buecherwurm I have been to London and Paris. We spend in both towns about 3 days. If you are interested I can send you my London itinary. It's not very elaborate but it includes a whole day at bookstores😉 Specifically for London I recommend you to pay attention to how far from your hotel the airport is and wether the shuttle/train stopps close it. We travelled on a budget so for a cheap view over London I recommend the One New Change Shopping Mall. 7y

TrishB We did the Seine cruise in Paris rather than bus. Got on at Notre Dame after you‘ve been to the bookshop 😁 in London the on/off your buses are great! Definitely would recommend. Never been to Rome though. 7y

buecherwurm We didn't use the London Pass since we didn't visit too many museums but depending on the location of your hotel I recommend to get the oyster card. We went to the British Museum and I just remember that it was really cheap and we got a free guided tour for one of their exhibitions. 7y

buecherwurm For Paris you should be aware that while most museums are free for EU citizens till the age of 25? I found them really expensive for everyone else. I were not a huge fan of the Louvre, I liked the Rijksmuseum in Amsterdam far more. I can also highly recommend the Shakespeare&Co. bookstore. In general we walked a lot in Paris and a bought seperate tickets every time we used the metro. 7y

smilingshelves Eat as much gelato as you can when you're in Rome! 🍦😀 7y

jenniferw88 For London and Rome - definitely do the buses! We tend to pick a route, go round it once in it's entirety and then choose where we want to get off on the second trip around. 7y

jenniferw88 For the London bus - there's one company that does a trip on the Thames as well with the bus ticket 7y

jenniferw88 Also for London, if you can, check the weather out and book a trip on the London Eye if it looks to be sunny. You could try on the day but the queues tend to be huge. 7y

jenniferw88 London again! If you like seeing plays/musical theatre you can try theatre box offices on the day - they often have last minute ticket sales on offer. 7y

Jess7 @jenniferw88 - if we do the buses should we get the 3 day pass or just a one day? Just curious how useful it is for getting to/from places once you have done the tour - like does it take longer bc it‘s a tour and we‘d be better of using some other type of transportation once we have done the tour once? The cost diff between 1-3 days isn‘t much on the ones I‘ve seen but some buses include admission into places and some don‘t. Which one do you rec? 7y

Jess7 Also - We‘re only in each country for three days before flying to the next so I know we can‘t see everything.. I found a suggested iternary online for each place when you‘re only there for three days, but not sure about what‘s best for getting around especially since we have never been and for Paris and Rome we don‘t speak French or Italian @Jennifer3 7y

jenniferw88 @Jess7 probably get the 3 day one - you may not need it for the third day but there's enough on the main routes to interest you for at least two days. 7y

Jess7 Does it take awhile to get to place to place with it since it‘s a tour? @jenniferw88 7y

jenniferw88 @Jess7 I recommend this company for London - the yellow and blue routes are ones I think will be of most use https://www.theoriginaltour.com/p/tickets/the-original-tour 7y

jenniferw88 @Jess7 not that I can remember but it's several years since I went on it (same for Rome) 7y

jenniferw88 @Jess7 ps the company website I've posted is the one with the boat cruise included, if you're interested in that bit of the tour. 7y

Jess7 Yeah we are. Also curious about any passes that include admission into and/or skip the line type passes for some of the popular destinations. Do you have any info about this? Which ones to avoid or which ones to use? @jenniferw88 7y

Jess7 That would be great @buecherwurm !!! My email is Jess7.litsy at gmail dot com 7y

Jess7 Thanks @TrishB - there is just so much to figure out! How did you primarily get around between attractions? Did you use the seine river just for the tour or as your means of transportation like a hop on hop off kind of thing? I‘m nervous bc we don‘t speak French so trying to figure out a lot of it and which stuff to add on when we book or figure out after? 7y

jenniferw88 @Jess7 not that I can think of at the moment but you'll probably have to get off at the stop before the popular attraction & walk to the next bus stop that you're interested in. Hope that makes sense! 7y

Jess7 Good to know @Emilymdxn - I‘m sure I‘ll have more questions once I get a few things situated. Do you know the areas well? We selected our hotels for each of these cities and tried to make sure they were close to certain things, but not sure what to choose for transportation and also what to use for transportation from the airports to the hotels etc - we are flying out of the us into London and then flights between London, paris and Rome then US 7y

Jess7 Thanks @xicanti - I would be interested in talking to you about your itinerary and things you book etc. when is your trip planned for? 7y

Emilymdxn I know London really well and I‘ve only been to Paris a few times and Rome once so not as much help there. London is really easy transport wise, the buses and tubes are reliable and easy to use so you can get all over the city very easily. Depending on your airport you‘ll be able to get a v direct train into the city centre! 7y

xicanti @Jess7 it's still REALLY tentative. I'm going with my parents as a sort of memorial for my grandma, who was born in London. We'd hoped to go in April, but it doesn't look like that's gonna pan out so we're recalibrating for sometime after the wedding. 7y

CouronneDhiver We had a really great experience with our London City Passes last year! Going back in the fall 7y

catsuit_mango For Paris, I would use the metro depending on where you are staying. Or walk. If you want to get into Le Louvre or Musée d'Orsay. The advance tickets are really good to cut in the amount of queueing. One thing to know is that your bag will be searched in public places like museums. I've lived close to Paris and as a tourist too plus done Roma and end up in London every 2 years lately... So hit me with any questions @magali.value on Gmail :) 7y

StillLookingForCarmenSanDiego Paris: for a literary experience, go to Pere Lachaise Cemetery where you can visit Oscar Wilde's tomb (and also Jim Morrison). The Paris catacombs are meant to be very interesting. There is an observation deck a top Tour Montparnasse. Great view of the city and Eiffle tower. 7y

Jess7 Thank you for the info - I‘ll email you @catsuit_mango 7y

TheBookStacker In Rome make sure to have dinner in the Trastavere best food in the whole city there. (edited) 7y

StillLookingForCarmenSanDiego Rome: Must see the Colosseum 100%. We showed up and booked a tour from a guy outside. It was Great, very informative. Then at the end they offered tours of the Vatican for the next day. I recommend that. You can prolly get in for free, but the lineups are crazy long. We skipped ahead and had a great tour guide. Eat all the food!!!! 😍🍕🍝🍷 7y

StillLookingForCarmenSanDiego London: the usual stuff, parliament/big Ben, Buckingham palace, the London Eye. The British Museum is a good museum and it's free. I also enjoyed visiting Camden Market. 7y

StillLookingForCarmenSanDiego You may also want to look up all three cities on TripAdvisor. There are reviews and rankings of attractions. Since you have limited time There, thus could help you narrow down some ideas, and choose what is worthwhile to see. 7y

Oryx Saw you asking about bus tours, the London ones are good, but I've done the Paris one too and I wasn't impressed. In Paris, best to just walk about and get the metro. 7y

Oryx Fave thing in London is to walk along South bank from Westminster to Tower Bridge. You'll see lots of sights. Tate Modern is cool. St Paul's Cathedral is stunning, with views of the city. Paris, the catacombs are interesting. Rome, I've only been to the Coliseum, but it was incredible to see so recommend that (plus eat lots of carbonara) 7y

mrozzz Oh DEFINITELY see Westminster Abbey in London! And walk/boat the Seine in Paris 😄 You‘re going to have a great time! 7y

britt_brooke If you have time to take the Vatican catacomb tour, do it. It‘s super interesting! Honestly, I think the Vatican might have been my favorite part of our Rome trip. I mean, the Sistine Chapel is hard to beat! The basilica is truly amazing, too. 7y

britt_brooke @Jess7 Also, pretty much everyone in the tourist areas speak English so don‘t worry too much about not knowing French or Italian. You‘ll be able to communicate just fine. 7y

britt_brooke @jess7 If you want to see our photos, I have an album for each trip on fb (they are some of my older albums so keep scrolling down). 7y

Jennifer3 I‘ve never been abroad! But I wish I could get something planned for 2020! 7y

janeycanuck Get a Roma pass in Rome - and use the free entry at the Colosseum so that you can skip the line. If you‘re thinking of the Vatican, book a tour - the lines are insane. My last one got me in an hour before the public, we could actually see things instead of just people‘s heads. For Paris, if you‘re a museum person, get the pass. We loved d‘Orsay and the lmuseum under Notre Dame! I blog about my travels at janeycanuck.com if you want details. 7y

janeycanuck Oh! And go into the Louvre trough the subway entrance. Lines are way shorter. 7y

Avanders So exciting!! Bath, England -- go to Mr B's Book Emporium and Sally Lund House. Mmmm 🤤 7y

BeckyK For London - totally agree with @Oryx about South Bank. If you get a travel pass they‘re always good! If you get a multi zone one it‘s like a card and you can use it all tubes and buses, so you don‘t need to worry about paying for one or the other. Sometimes one works out best but the other might not. Rent a bike and cycle in as many parks as possible! If you have chance then go to Borough Market - YUMMY food. 7y

BeckyK For Paris - obviously Shakespeare and Co 😍 I‘d recommend going to any little cafe in St Michel and getting breakfast. The bread is so fresh and the coffee and tea are delish (anywheres great, I just like St Michel). I‘d recommend Roomies - it‘s a burger place where you build your own burger. Staff are wonderful too! Pre book the Eiffel Tower if you go. If you love chocolate then go to Angelina‘s, it‘s near the Louvre. The hot chocolate is insane! 7y

BeckyK Never been to Rome but would like to in the next 18 months. Have an amazing time! 7y

KennedyBooks For something a little different there is a wine bar called Gordon‘s which is by Enbankment in London- it‘s based underground in old arches of the former sewer system and is something quite different and Very British! Great selection of cheese as well! 7y

Ingerella In Rome, if you are planning walking to all of the attractions, don't stay near the Vatican. It's walkable but far from the rest! Stay closer to the Pantheon/Piazza Navona area, it's more central. Also, you can walk everywhere! Get your Collusseum tickets online before you go. That's how you can skip the line. It's worth doing the tour. 7y

Ingerella In London, consider getting the 7 day travelers card. You get it from the train station at the window (not the tube) and it gives you unlimited bus and tube travel all over London. It also gives you Two for One deals to the big sites. Also, in London sit in on a session at Parliament. SO interesting!! 7y

Ingerella You can use trains, buses and the tube to get to most anywhere. We took the train to Windsor castle, Hampton Court and Bath. From Bath we took a bus tour to do Stonehenge. We ate at M&S A LOT! I love that place! It's like a little market of already made food. We packed skinny bullet sandwiches and ate picnic style. 7y

Ingerella I'm happy to help if you have other questions. It's probably my favorite topic outside of books!! 7y

Jess7 #JPEurope #JPVacation (edited) 6y

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