3 Countries in 6 Days
In recognition of a good friend’s milestone birthday, we celebrated with an international girls trip to Frankfurt, Paris, and London. With only two days in each city, there was a lot to see within a limited amount of time.
First stop: Frankfurt. Full disclosure: I had no desire to visit Frankfurt, and therefore, I had zero expectations. Nothing against Frankfurt, or Germany for that matter, it’s just not a location that’s been on my bucket list. After 10+ hours of travel, I made it to Frankfurt Airport and met up with the crew. We checked into our rooms at the Le Meridien and after a quick clean up and outfit change, we headed out for our sightseeing cruise on the Main River. The cruise offered a nice opportunity to catch my breath and take in views of some prominent Frankfurt landmarks.
Feeling a little more rested post cruise, we walked around Romerberg Square. The popular old town square is a time capsule in the middle of a city. It looks like an amusement park rendition of Germany, but it’s real and holds real history. We passed on the bountiful beer options (I know, I know) and had dinner and a nice walk back to the hotel to round out our first evening.
The next two days were a struggle. My body refused to embrace Central European Time and decided to remain firmly on Pacific Standard Time. So, I had about two hours of sleep on the first night. Luckily, the morning activity included a long car ride to Heidelberg Castle and the village of Heidelberg. I’m convinced the Willy Wonka factory is located somewhere in this adorable little village filled with beautiful bakeries, coffee shops, and restaurants. While I could barely stay awake during dinner at the Le Meridien, my second night was just as sleep deprived as the first…argh!
Although I came to Frankfurt with zero expectations, I enjoyed my time in Frankfurt. The hotel was nice and conveniently located, and if you’re a Marriott Bonvoy member…points! Frankfurt is not a repeatable destination for me, but it was a great start on this European vacay.
Next stop: Paris. For the next leg of the trip, I went from zero expectations to low expectations. Why low expectations? Well, leading up to my trip, I watched too many Tik Tok videos showing a dirty, smelly Paris. And three seasons of Emily in Paris didn’t help with my impression of Parisians.
The train ride to Paris from Frankfurt was not exactly what I was expecting. I was thinking our own private car, a dining car with a bar, and lush window curtains. I had a whole train outfit picked out! Instead, it was more commuter train than Orient Express. Despite the unassuming atmosphere, we had a blast during the 3 1/2 hour ride playing games, catching up, reminiscing, snacking, and napping.
Low expectations didn’t keep me from feeling super excited once when we arrived at the train station. Walking out of the station and into the Parisian streets was surreal. The buildings look exactly like you imagined and have seen in movies. Wrought iron balconies, tall windows, angled roofs, and chimneys. The area around the station is crowed and grimey. But, I happily dragged my very heavy suitcase through the tree-lined streets of Paris and sweated out my train outfit on the walk to our hotel.
Our Parisian accommodations at the Avalon Cosy were TIGHT. So tight that my roommate and I couldn’t open our suitcases at the same time! With check in complete and no need for unpacking, we decided to do a little shopping and walked to the magnificent Galleries Lafayette. It’s gorgeous, it’s massive, and it’s a must see. Don’t forget to bring your passport for the tax refund! Tired but still excited, we headed to Jungle Palace, the adult version of the Rainforest Cafe, for dinner.
We ended our evening with a visit to the Eiffel Tower. I’m so glad we chose a night visit. The Eiffel Tower is a landmark that lives up to all expectations. The warm, golden glow and the sparkles against the night sky — you simply can’t take a bad picture. The only drawback to the experience were the swarms of street hustlers aggressively pushing their souvenirs and photo shoots.
Day two started with a unique experience at a perfume workshop. I learned a lot about the process to develop a scent as well as what notes I like most. And we all left with the best souvenir, our own personally created bottle of parfum, made in Paris. The rest of the day included walking along the Champs-Élysées for shopping and dining.
Final stop: London. Before we boarded the train to London, we woke early for a Paris walking tour. I highly recommend a walking tour of Paris. We did a lot of walking on our own the day prior, but the tour guide provided so many great stories and historical details. And the guide was able to map out a route that allowed us to maximize our time and see a lot of the must see sites.
The second train ride wasn’t as nice as the first. It was very crowed and felt a lot like rapid transit in Chicago or NYC. We arrived in London in the afternoon and rode in a classic black cab to our hotel. The nhow London definitely ranks at the top of the list for accommodations on this trip. The hotel’s eclectic design mixed with iconic London imagery provided a cool vibe for our stay.
After we got settled in our rooms, we were all ready for dinner which did not include fish and chips, bangers and mash, or any quintessential London cuisine. I had my usual salad and salmon (I know, I know). I have to say I was less than impressed with the Uber drivers in London. On the way back from dinner, our driver was ready to put us out even though our hotel was nowhere in sight. He kept telling us “this is your location.” We basically had to pull out our phones and help him navigate and find our hotel. A safe arrival back ended day one in London.
Day two in London, and the final day of the girls trip, started with a ride on the London Eye. We were originally scheduled to take a sightseeing cruise on the Thames River, but another Uber snafu caused us to miss our boat. The ride sharing issue also led us to ditch the Uber in favor of a ride on the Underground, so it wasn’t a total fail. Using the Underground was something I wanted to do, but I didn’t think we’d have time for it.
The London Eye ate up a lot of time while looking at the same view. Cool experience, but a pass if you’re on a tight schedule. We departed the ferris wheel for afternoon tea at Oblix at The Shard. I had to do something quintessentially British! The views were epic, even though it was cloudy. And the assortment of teas, sandwiches, pantries, and scones were beautifully presented and equally delicious. Shopping on Bond Street was next where I found my new favorite cardigan. Because England is no longer a part of the EU, the tax refund enjoyed across the rest of Europe doesn’t apply.
Manteca was the location for our last dinner. The share concept restaurant was a perfect way to eat and discuss our trip. We also played a couple rounds of Heads Up while we waited for our food — a highly recommended hilarious way to pass time. The restaurant is in a cool neighborhood called Shoreditch that kinda reminds me of some areas on the Northside of Chicago.
Vacay recap: Frankfurt was nice. Probably really cool during Christmas, but not a repeatable visit for me. Paris was better than expected, and I would go back again. I’d love to see Paris in the Spring or Winter. I don’t think I saw enough of London, so I definitely plan to go back. Overall, the international girls trip was a success! Next trip…
