Suggest you look into adding Krakow. Also Budapest. Also Rovinj and Istrian Peninsula between Split and Venice.

How long to stay in Prague? - People usualy come for 3-4 days. It is enough when you just want to walk around. If you are interested in galeries etc. and you do not want to feel rushed I would recommend you to stay a week. Then you have enough time to walk around, climbe up Prague towers to have an amazing view, visit churches, monasteries, galeries etc.

I agree with Julia1 that you should visit Krakow; it's beautiful! Also visit the Weiliczka Salt Mines. I recommend at least 3 days in Krakow. For Prague I recommend at least 4 days to see the sights, walk around & not rush. If you have the time, other nice towns to visit in the Czech Republic are Cesky Krumlov, Telc, & Karlovey Vary.

I suggest spending 2-3 days in Budapest as it's beautiful. If you hire a driver, you can visit Lake Balaton on your way to Croatia. It's the largest inland lake in Central Europe and has some nice resorts with full spas and thermal baths that might appeal to you.

If you are into musuems - have you considered Vienna? It was the capital of the Empire for hundreds of years and has a lot of wonderful musuems, palaces, and great music venues.

Are you willing to drive? Croatia is better seen by car (and boat). It's not a place for museums so much, more for physical beauty and assorted ruins. And an easy lifestyle. Do you not want to go to Dubrovnik? It's a living museum.

You could fly into Dubrovnik and work your way north. There's a Jadrolinija coastal ferry that goes north from Dubrovnik, stopping at islands. This boat runs only certain days. As a rule, check the ferry schedules very carefully when planning a trip to Croatia, especially out of the high season. www.jadrolinija.hr

There's another boat that goes from the Istrian peninsula to Venice but you might be too late in the season for it. www.venezialines.com

Also maybe more than 2 nights for Venice. It's a uniquely beautiful place. Another living museum. Venice requires walking but it's easy walking. And you can see a lot by boat. Make a note of the traghetto crossings. These are gondolas that cross the Grand Canal at certain points, acting as foot ferries. If you get tired, you can take a traghetto as a shortcut.

Why Marseille? Consider Nice. A beautiful city with several museums.

Thanks everyone for your great ideas and responses. I will do some more research.

To add my two cents....would also consider a few nights in Krakow. We were in Warsaw for 3 nights, Krakow 4 nights and Prague 3 nights in September. We've been to Prague twice before so felt 3 nights was sufficient but you may think about 5 nights on your first visit. We enjoyed Warsaw but very much enjoyed Krakow, great cafe ambience and easily walkable. Enjoy your travels where ever they take you.

Thanks Wunderbar, Krakow was on/then off my list but I will put it back on again.

I'll be reading your ideas. I just got the idea to maybe go to Croatia for a quick smaller trip (1-2 weeks).

We went to Prague last year, and I would agree 3-4 days is about it.

Thanks. I will keep you up to date on what we narrow it down to. We always seem to try to cram in too much and then I get exhausted. I dont want to miss anything but have to realize that sometimes less is better.

Getting from Sofia to Dubrovnik seems a challange so will look into renting a car and then dropping it off in FLorence perhaps as I would like a car in both Croatia and Tuscany.

Here's our 28-day trip report (with photos) that included Czech Republic, Poland, Austria, Croatia, Slovenia and Venice. Perhaps this can give you a few ideas.

http://www.travelswithmaitaitom.com/Tom_%26_Tracy_Home/Central_Europe_%26_Venice_2008/Central_Europe_%26_Venice_2008.html

maitaitom - thanks for the link! I always enjoy reading about your travels!

I'd also add in Lodz, you can get train from either Krakow or Warsaw. It has the most amazing museum. See the history below, it's one of the first modern art museums in the world:

http://msl.org.pl/en/strony/_history/

I have been reading this actually, I saw it on another report Maitaitom. Thanks, I am enjoying it.

> This is what we are thinking. Prague/ Warsaw/ Bucharest/ Sofia Hungary and then on to Croatia near Split for at least a week to see some of the islands.
Venice for two nights. Florence, Tuscany for a week, Marseille for a couple of nights on our way to Barcelona for two nights before our cruise

From your interests, and your desire to travel at a pace that isn't too rushed, I think this plan is ambitious even with two full months to travel. I haven't been to a number of these destinations yet, but for the ones I have visited, my timing included:
4 days in Prague - would have loved another day!
2+ days in Warsaw - enough for me
(2+ days in Krakow - would love to have more time there! Definitely worth adding!!)
21 days in Croatia, including about a week in and around Split - not enough time!
4 days in Venice - more would have been nice, but not necessary for my interests
5 days in Florence - would love more, and that didn't include any time elsewhere in Tuscany
And by the way, I travel HARD, sightseeing basically from the time I'm ready to leave my lodging in the morning until there is nothing else open, and then a long walk before or after dinner.

The good news is that you'll see some wonderful places! Hope this helps

Thanks kja. That is the way I used to travel, hit the ground running until I collapsed in the evening. It is going to be very hard for me to slow down and pace myself which is what one of my problems is with planning this trip. My mornings are great, I have tons of energy so plan to do most things before 2PM and then slow down in the afternoons.

I appreciate your itinerary. We wont be spending 21 days in Croatia, nice as it would be, but great to see what you wanted more for.

Patty you and I did Burma around the same time earlier this year and kja we did Turkey around the same time in June.
Great minds think alike!

When in Croatia, you absolutely have to go to Plitvice Lakes. Try to stay for the night, so you can be there in the morning, when it is less crowded.
Then, Sept-Oct is truffle season in Istria pen in Croatia. My mouth still waters when I'm thinking about the pasta with truffle sauce we had in a very small restaurant (only 2 tables outside and 2 inside), in the middle of nowhere, where the lady of the house did not speak any English, but the food was absolutely delicious.

We spent 2 weeks in Croatia, and it was not enough. 4 days in Prague and 3-4 in Budapest, sounds about right. I would skip Bucharest/Sofia and spend more time in Croatia, going all the way down to Dubrovnik.

Happy travels, sounds like a great trip.

Thanks xyz99

Hello Again.
We are starting to concentrate more on this trip in September now.

Regarding Poland: Just a thought. Would you suggest that to save time we forget Warsaw and just go to Krakow?

We would be leaving by train from Prague where we have booked 5 nights. The first day there we will be wiped from our flight so it only leaves us 4 full days in Prague.

Warsaw is the opposite direction to where we are heading, which is south.

Any imput is appreciated from those who have been to both.

> Would you suggest that to save time we forget Warsaw and just go to Krakow?

I found Warsaw a bit less interesting than the other places I've visited that you are considering. And as you say, it is a bit out of the way.

Krakow is absolutely delightful, as is Prague.

I agree to skip Warsaw in favor of Krakow which is one of my favorite cities. I think 4 days there would be a good amount of time as there is lots to see. Warsaw is not a pretty city and is quite spread out and I did not find the sights interesting, except the Uprising Museum.

It's a long train ride from Prague to Krakow, 7 to 8 hours. If you are going directly you might consider flying.

I hope you're not bringing large luggage as the Czech trains I've taken have been compartment trains so the only place for your bags is an overhead rack. Nothing larger than a 24" would fit.