My feeling would be to go somewhere you've not been. Have you been to Barcelona? You can easily do a week there. Or Amsterdam? Venice?

It's not silly at all to return to a place you love. Many people go to the same vacation spot year after year.

I struggle with this choice as well - some place new or an old favorite. Lately I've been exploring new places while I'm still youngish so the new places will become familiar and easier to return to when I'm older.

How long is your trip? If at least a week or more I vote for Paris and someplace else. Definitely a day trip to Chartres, if you haven't been there. If you also go to Antwerp, continue on to Brugge but try for mid week rather than Brugge on the week end when it's busier.

In April I would choose cities or some place warm and not rainy in the countryside. I'd leave Orvieto et. al. for a bit later in the year - May is great in that area.

Enjoy your birthday trip!

I have been to Amsterdam and to Venice. I am unsure why but Spain does not draw me (I was there once, in 1977). I have been to Brugge.
I was in Tuscany in early April 2011 and the weather was wonderful but weather is always a crap shoot - no guarantees.

If you are considering a US destination and perhaps having to go alone, I highly recommend Red Mountain Resort in Utah. It is a delightful place, in a beautiful location. It has a top notch spa and has a great set up for single travelers. I went alone last May for 5 days and had a terrific time. Lots of activities are included in room price, excellent food (included) and they have community tables IF you don't want to eat alone ( you can if you want to, of course).

http://www.redmountainresort.com/

If your instinct tells you that Paris is the place then I would follow your inner voice. My last trip to Paris the weather was very hot and killed my sightseeing desires. I choose a different area each day and leisurely walked around with no particular destination. It's amazing the things I noticed - small gardens, fountains on walls, sundials carved into buildings. I explored lots of places/museums I had not seen before and I enjoyed the week. I also discovered the best bakery for lemon tarts!

My dear husband and I returned to Paris several times and never tired of returning to favorite spots or running out of new things to see each time.

Our favorites to see again each time: Ste. Chappelle; Rodin Museum; Louvre; Orsay; and Versailles

We enjoyed day trips (some by tour others by train or bus) to Versailles, Brugges, Chartres, Loire valley - 3 chateaux

Never got to Bois de Bologne, Dijon, Giverny, Reims or La Defense (among others).

Keep returning to this place you love.

ps-we did go to the south in September and in March--click on my name if you want to see TRs

Go with your heart!

I would never suggest that traveling on one's own for any reason is a bad idea. I've been doing it my entire adult life. However, as I get older I'm finding that it isn't as nice on my own as it once was. I've celebrated recent birthdays alone, one in Paris, and I confess I was lonely. There, I said it.

Can you go to another place for your birthday where you can enjoy the company of a friend? Possibly closer, hence more affordable? That would be my choice, the company of someone I love rather than a place just this once. Paris will be there for you whenever you want it.

I'm not disagreeing with you MmdPerdu. I've taken 2 solo trips since my husband died and have mixed feelings. I loved setting my own agenda and taking my time as I desired. There were, however, times when I wanted to share an OMG! about something I'd seen.

I often did that OMG! aloud which either caused conversation with others or a turning away by them!

Eating alone kind of bothers me so I write in my notebook or carry a small book to read. The notebook can make folks think I'm a food editor so I get pretty good service!

I wont' actually be there for my birthday which is in Nov.
I travel alone much of the time, although not all of the time. With the right travel companion, it is definitely more fun with someone (I usually pick someone who likes to have me do the planning, which I love, and is happy to do whatever). What is nice about traveling alone is that I can cover more ground and of course please myself. What I miss is someone to take my picture, and I really don't like to eat dinner at a nice restaurant alone (lunch is ok). Then again I'm not really a foodie anyway. And yes, if I get very tired then I do get kind of homesick if alone. I do like to get dressed up and have a drink somewhere like the Four Seasons George V or similar. That is also not that much fun alone.
Not being married I'm not really used to being with a partner

Just checked and if I fly to Nice around May 7th (before the film festival) I can get air for around $1077, hotels under $200 in Cannes and Nice (the ones I want). Will it be warm enough to sunbathe and swim? Or would Sept definitely be better?

I would think warm enough to sunbathe but chilly water. Check temps at weatherbase.com. I vote for Nice - Paris is great but I love Nice and that area too. There are ALOT of easy daytrips by the 1E (I think) bus so you should not have trouble filling the time with new adventures. Be sure to go to Villa Euphrisi - drop dead gorgeous gardens and a beautiful villa with an entertaining audio-guide. Weather will certainly warm enough to enjoy cafe sitting and al fresco dining. I would probably just stay at one hotel - getting around is very easy so no need to pack up and move.

Hi V,

>is it silly to go somewhere for a 6th time ...<

Not when it is Paris.

Enjoy your birthday visit.


Who is a Scorpio

in April I would go to Andalucia.

it will be full of flowers, wonderful food and architecture, and it will be warm. Malaga, Seville and Granada would be just lovely and would make a great 60th birthday trip.

I understand what Mme Perdu is saying, and it is the fact that it is your birthday. So that could create different feelings than just taking a trip alone.

If it were me, I'd go someplace else. You say you plan to go to France in September, anyway, so why go twice in one year when you have other places you want to see? You can easily stop off a few days in Paris while en route to/from the Riviera.

Of course you should do whatever you really want to do the most, but it sounds like you are just picking that because it is easier. Which is your choice, or course.

I continue to return to Paris every year because I love it more than anywhere. I always stay in a different arrondissment, so it's always a new trip. This year, I stayed in the 14th and think it's my favorite. I was 10 minute walking distance to the Luxembourg gardens, which I thought was perfect. Here's the place I stayed and I highly recommend it: http://www.vrbo.com/209147 Read my review on the site for more info.
But, if I was forced to go somewhere else, my choice would be Barcelona.

Hi Vicky,

It often is warm enough to sunbathe and swim in the Riviera in early May, but not always. Before Sept 21 is the safer bet.

I just came across an interesting travel quote today from Hilaire Belloc, which is:

"I have wandered all my life, and I have traveled; the difference between the two being this, that we wander for distraction, but we travel for fulfillment.”

I am the same way, and when I go wandering, I prefer to do it in places that I already know (even my hometown). I go to new places to fulfill desires that I have reason to think I can only or at least best satisfy there.

I pass along the quote thinking maybe it might aid in making a choice.

Hi, my vote is for a new destination, so much still to explore!

I am going to the French riviera.. At the start of season may be nicer experience than at end of season - not so full, service people rested . Spending time in Cannes and nice with fat trips to mougins and st Paul de Venice . Friend is excited to go and will try to find the money

Sorry that's day trips