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Doctor Malaver posted:Plitvice to Split shouldn't be more than 3 hours. No teleporters but highway is decent. What season are we talking about? And why Mostar, it should be the first destination to drop. Really? Well I wouldn't say 2 nights, probably 1 night. I thought Mostar was one of those "beautiful cities" that you had to visit? Pretty sure a few people on here said it's great too. The train from Sarajevo to Ploce goes via there so it'd be a shame not to stop off.... Why would you drop it?
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Mar 25, 2011 00:15
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Hmm... I have to admit I haven't been there, but my experience with other people is the opposite. I've never heard anyone say Wow you gotta check out Mostar! Maybe it's different for the people from the region. When I think of Mostar the first two things that spring to mind is that the Old bridge was destroyed so it's a copy now, and that the town is ethnically fiercely divided. That shouldn't bother you so go ahead I guess? Still, if you'll travel in summertime, I'd choose a day on the coast over a day in Bosnia. Also although Dubrovnik is beautiful, it has a rich old people vibe. Not being able to afford fancy restaurants, I got bored there after 3 days. There was like one club with generic music.
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Mar 25, 2011 01:34
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Doctor Malaver posted:Hmm... I have to admit I haven't been there, but my experience with other people is the opposite. I've never heard anyone say Wow you gotta check out Mostar! Maybe it's different for the people from the region. When I think of Mostar the first two things that spring to mind is that the Old bridge was destroyed so it's a copy now, and that the town is ethnically fiercely divided. That shouldn't bother you so go ahead I guess? Still, if you'll travel in summertime, I'd choose a day on the coast over a day in Bosnia. In my opinion, Mostar is the most beautiful city in the world; the shade of the water is just a spectacle unmatched in natural beauty anywhere, and the city itself is small but very nice. Sarajevo is my favorite city in the world, but Mostar is absolutely gorgeous, especially in the summer. Dubrovnik is very upscale and touristy, and Split and Zadar are definitely heading that way as well. I assume he's going to sightsee and not necessarily to party and go clubbing, though. BogginHarry, I've basically done the same itinerary as you planned during one trip through the Western Balkans and it worked out just fine. Belgrade probably isn't worth seeing. Just a warning though, trains in Bosnia are piss poor and you're better off taking a bus anywhere. HeroOfTheRevolution fucked around with this message at 18:03 on Mar 26, 2011 |
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Mar 26, 2011 17:36
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Barcelona tomorrow for ~17 days. Exciting times. Thanks to suggestions in this thread I'm staying in Be Sound hostel. If anyone's around in the city maybe we can have a beer (unless you're an awkward goon and want to talk about forums)
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Mar 27, 2011 18:57
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I'm an American that will be moving to Marseille to get my masters. What do I need to know? I speak Spanish, German and English but very little French (my school is in English).
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Mar 27, 2011 21:02
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MentosMan posted:Does anyone know of some good festivals/events taking place in June this year over in Europe that you would recommend? Several friends an I are going to do a post-college graduation Euro trip, and basically have a month to travel around Germany, France, Czech Republic, Benelux and Spain. We don't really have any set dates that we want to be anywhere, so I'm looking for any events or festivals we could anchor our trip with instead of us just arbitrarily going from city to city to see the sights. It would certainly help if you would tell us what music you guys like. But have some german festivals: Immergut - 27.05.2011- 28.05.2011 - Neustrelitz - Rock, Indie, Alternative - supposed to be pretty brilliant Atomsmasher - 03.06.2011- 04.06.2011 - Dresden - Punkrock Rock am Ring - 03.06.2011- 05.06.2011 - Nürburg - Rock (pretty international) Rock im Park - 03.06.2011- 05.06.2011 - Nürnberg - the same as Rock am Ring Berlin Summer Rave - 04.06.2011 - Berlin - It's a rave in a city that is the epitome of german electronic music Gahlen Moscht - 09.06.2011- 13.06.2011 - Casel-Göritz - Metal Bam In Your Face Fest - 11.06.2011 - Pößneck - Metal - never heard of it but I love the name Hurricane - 17.06.2011 - 19.06.2011 - Scheeßel - Rock, Indie, Alternative and pretty much everything else, this thing is massive and along with Rock am Ring/im Park a staple in german festival culture Fusion - 30.06.2011 - 03.07.2011 - Neustrelitz - similar to the Hurricane but despite 55.000 visitors considered underground... yeah I don't get it either. If you want to have a shot at the bigger ones you should buy your tickets immediately if there are any left.
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Mar 27, 2011 21:47
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Enigma89 posted:I'm an American that will be moving to Marseille to get my masters. What do I need to know? I speak Spanish, German and English but very little French (my school is in English). Just buy a Marseille soccer jersey. You still might want to pickup some French... which shouldn't be to hard since you know Spanish.
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Mar 28, 2011 01:56
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hankor posted:It would certainly help if you would tell us what music you guys like. When I said festivals, I was actually thinking more of local culture events, not music festivals, but after looking at that list, some of those look awesome. Concerts didn't really cross my mind until now. Does anyone know of any local festivals though? Something along the lines of Running of the Bulls/Tomato Fight/etc. Obviously not those, since they do not fall in our time frame are at this point aren't particularly local, but the gist of those events. Other concerts that I should attempt to hit are welcome as well. We're travelling all over Western Europe from May 21-June 21
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Mar 28, 2011 06:04
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Omits-Bagels posted:Just buy a Marseille soccer jersey. You still might want to pickup some French... which shouldn't be to hard since you know Spanish. He might also want to scar up his pretty face and learn how to curse in Arabic too. Then learn how to steal a car. E: I hear it does have some up-sides, but I've always been warned by French to stay away from there, kind of like Italians and Naples. Probably it's exaggerated if you have common sense and don't walk around at night. The countryside north of Marseilles (up in Provence) is beautiful. People rave about Aix-en-Provence but I didn't really get the appeal when I was there. Spanish and German aren't going to help at all, and English won't help very much. You'll have to learn French to do anything, but if you speak Spanish fluently then it should be pretty easy. If you speak high school Spanish, it probably won't be that easy. Saladman fucked around with this message at 07:41 on Mar 28, 2011 |
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Mar 28, 2011 07:35
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HeroOfTheRevolution posted:Belgrade probably isn't worth seeing.
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Mar 28, 2011 08:45
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It really can't be overstated how sketchy and run-down Marseilles feels in comparison with the rest of Southern France. I was only there for a fairly short time, but it's just so much drearier than any other town around it. I'm sure the experience is better if you're there for a while and get more of a chance to explore. In the worst case, the surrounding region is absolutely beautiful down there, with lots of places to see in a relatively small area.
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Mar 28, 2011 12:21
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Samopsa posted:Anyone know of a good hostel in Budapest for this summer? Going to Sziget with a group, about 6 guys. Found so much stuff, can't pick! We need a place where it's no problem to come in drunk and tired at night/morning. My 3 friends and I stayed at Boomerang Hostel. It was pretty centrally located (near the Basilica) and they offer a pickup service from the airport. The manager is American and he looks like Phillip Seymour Hoffman... I don't know if he still works there but he was there in January 2009.
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Mar 28, 2011 15:24
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There is a great budapest hostel called the backpackers hostel. http://www.backpackbudapest.hu/ The place is really cool and chill. Sorta ran by hippies, but they aren't sticky and smelly. Just some really cool and nice people.
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Mar 29, 2011 16:34
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Anyone have any experience with Battlefield Touring programs like http://www.battlefields.co.uk/index.php Basically I'm going to Europe for about a week some time this summer and I want to visit these places. Are those programs worth paying the extra money rather than going alone?
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Mar 30, 2011 06:05
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schoenfelder posted:While I agree that with BogginHarry's itinerary it doesn't make sense to take the detour to Belgrade (it's like 8 hours on the bus from Sarajevo), I just wanted to clarify that generally speaking Belgrade is very much worth seeing. Granted, I may be biased but any city that was voted the best place in the world to party the night away (Lonely Planet about Belgrade in their 2010 ranking) should be on a young person's must-see list. And that doesn't even take into account history, culture and cultural life (the avantgarde arts scene in Belgrade is fantastic, the number of festivals is astounding etc.) Not only is it 8 hours on the bus from Sarajevo, you have to take a bus from the real sketchy Lukavica neighborhood in East Sarajevo. Belgrade's okay, but I've never found it any more interesting than any other big, gray Balkan capital. I guess it's marginally better than Sofia, but so is just about anything. I certainly wouldn't give up a few days on the Dalmatian Coast to go to Serbia. I don't really trust Lonely Planet rankings; they had Albania as 2011's #1 place to visit and Albania is like the sketchiest place in Europe. Bulgaria was like #8 and Bulgaria is super boring. I know, I live here.
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Mar 30, 2011 19:01
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I am going to be in Wroclaw, Poland for two or three days in April. The guidebooks I have only cover the larger Polish cities (Warsaw, Krakow) so I was wondering if anyone had been here? I was hoping to find a good hostel to stay in, see the sights in town and in the surrounding area and drinking Polish beer. Any recommendations?
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Apr 1, 2011 01:21
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Cascadia Pirate posted:I am going to be in Wroclaw, Poland for two or three days in April. The guidebooks I have only cover the larger Polish cities (Warsaw, Krakow) so I was wondering if anyone had been here? I was hoping to find a good hostel to stay in, see the sights in town and in the surrounding area and drinking Polish beer. Any recommendations? Check hostelworld for a good hostel. You might find this guide helpful... http://www.inyourpocket.com/poland/wroclaw
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Apr 1, 2011 03:08
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Assumed like an idiot that it'd be easy to find a hotel in Amsterdam, but it looks like everything is booked or above our budget ($90-$120 per night). If anybody is familiar with a good hotel in Amsterdam that has vacancies (either 3 single rooms or one three-bed room), please let me know 
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Apr 1, 2011 07:28
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Not Dutch/no leads, but are those $90-120 per person or total?
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Apr 1, 2011 10:19
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If you want cheap in Amsterdam, your best bet is to stay outside the city and take a train in. The commuter train system is pretty amazing, and you can get into the city from as far as like Eindhoven in an hour. It's obviously not ideal, but Amsterdam is a pricey place, probably one of the worst in Europe.
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Apr 1, 2011 10:56
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kissekatt posted:Not Dutch/no leads, but are those $90-120 per person or total? I read it as "in total" in which case he'll either have to get a hostel or sleep on a bench. Staying outside the city is a very non-ideal solution since you'll then have to pay for the train for 3 people twice per day (plus the time you lose on your vacation). Plus even outside the city, you'll have a hard time getting a 3 person room for under €100... If it's "per person" and he can't find a hotel room in Amsterdam for between $270 and $360 a night, then he should try looking at hotels that aren't five stars. VV VV That "B&B" is more like a hostel; take a look at the reviews. That's a nice site though. (Also it tells me $70 for a triple? I guess I'm getting screwed :/.) Saladman fucked around with this message at 14:17 on Apr 1, 2011 |
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Apr 1, 2011 11:08
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Oh, I didn't notice that he said hotel and not hostel. Yeah, if you're trying to find a hotel from for $90-120 pretty much anywhere in Holland you're going to have a tough time. That's even a fairly small budget for a hostel in Amsterdam, but I think dorm sleeping is the only way this is going to work for you.
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Apr 1, 2011 11:19
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Check this out: triple room in a b&b within walking distance of city centre for 50 euro a night http://www.hotelclub.com/directhotel.asp?id=51019&checkin=2011-04-04&checkout=2011-04-09&hasSuburb= Actually ratestogo.com is a very useful site, I use it all the time. edit: Jesus, it's gone already  I still recommend ratestogo.com though
Pookah fucked around with this message at 13:39 on Apr 1, 2011 |
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Apr 1, 2011 13:37
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B&Bs/guesthouses and hostels that function as such rather than giant backpacker hotels are really amazing and I generally try to stay in them when I have the chance. They're usually cheaper than hotels with similar amenities, and the service and experience is often unbeatable because the employees have a vested interest in you having a good one. I'm sure there are bad ones out there, like the classic B&B run by the old crazy cat woman, but I've yet to have a problem.
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Apr 1, 2011 16:19
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Suntory BOSS posted:Assumed like an idiot that it'd be easy to find a hotel in Amsterdam, but it looks like everything is booked or above our budget ($90-$120 per night). Try http://www.airbnb.com/
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Apr 2, 2011 01:12
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Ok, it is about 36 hours until my flight into Athens, my first time out of the country since I was about 11. I'm armed with a 3-month global Eurail pass, and my return flight is about 14 weeks from now. I've got my (one, carry-on sized) bag packed and I think I've covered most of my bases, but I'm still nervous. So, experienced travelers, is there anything that I should make sure to do before going? Something that you regretted not doing before leaving on a long trip? Speak now or forever hold your peace.
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Apr 2, 2011 09:27
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enki42 posted:If you want cheap in Amsterdam, your best bet is to stay outside the city and take a train in. The commuter train system is pretty amazing, and you can get into the city from as far as like Eindhoven in an hour. It's obviously not ideal, but Amsterdam is a pricey place, probably one of the worst in Europe. Eindhoven-Amsterdam is more like 90 minutes and costs €34 for a roundtrip. Might want to stick within a 30-40 kilometer radius of Amsterdam if you want sane travel costs and time. Maybe Schiphol or Utrecht, that's a pretty short train ride to Amsterdam.
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Apr 2, 2011 15:36
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Magic Underwear posted:Ok, it is about 36 hours until my flight into Athens, my first time out of the country since I was about 11. I'm armed with a 3-month global Eurail pass, and my return flight is about 14 weeks from now. I've got my (one, carry-on sized) bag packed and I think I've covered most of my bases, but I'm still nervous. Read my website: https://www.thesavvybackpacker.com
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Apr 2, 2011 16:17
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Magic Underwear posted:Ok, it is about 36 hours until my flight into Athens, my first time out of the country since I was about 11. I'm armed with a 3-month global Eurail pass, and my return flight is about 14 weeks from now. I've got my (one, carry-on sized) bag packed and I think I've covered most of my bases, but I'm still nervous. Make sure you have your passport. Take half the baggage that you planned to and also take twice the money.
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Apr 2, 2011 17:31
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NihilismNow posted:Eindhoven-Amsterdam is more like 90 minutes and costs €34 for a roundtrip. Might want to stick within a 30-40 kilometer radius of Amsterdam if you want sane travel costs and time. Maybe Schiphol or Utrecht, that's a pretty short train ride to Amsterdam. Yeah, I should have been clearer that I meant Eindhoven more as the "complete extreme" end of where you could stay and still visit Amsterdam, there's much saner options closer.
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Apr 2, 2011 17:58
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My gf and I are going to on a bit of a jaunt through italy this spring, but we are interested in going to Spain. The lady is in love with Barcelona, so that is a must. I do ask, if we don't go to Madrid, will we be missing out? I ask, because I really know nothing about the city. For reference we will be spending 6-9 days in Spain. In Italy we basically be on the move trying to see all we can, so I wouldn't mind if Spain was more of a relaxed period of the vacation. That's why I worry that going to Madrid would be trying to spread it a little thin. TL:DR - we are going to spain for Barcelona. What would we be missing out on if we blew off Madrid?
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Apr 3, 2011 01:47
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Matty D posted:My gf and I are going to on a bit of a jaunt through italy this spring, but we are interested in going to Spain. The lady is in love with Barcelona, so that is a must. I do ask, if we don't go to Madrid, will we be missing out? I ask, because I really know nothing about the city. Probably not. We did nearly every city in Spain and it wasn't as good as many others. We went to Madrid first so didn't have previous examples to go off but I dont think theres anything in Madrid that you HAVE to see. Barcelona is nicer as far as restaurants/bars anyway. Madrid was a bit grungier. There are things I like about it though. I'd go to Granada over either of them though 
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Apr 3, 2011 04:51
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Matty D posted:My gf and I are going to on a bit of a jaunt through italy this spring, but we are interested in going to Spain. The lady is in love with Barcelona, so that is a must. I do ask, if we don't go to Madrid, will we be missing out? I ask, because I really know nothing about the city. The girlfriend and I spent over a week in Barcelona and Madrid last year. Of all the European cities we've visited, Madrid is our least favorite and Barcelona is near the top. Barcelona is a very international city, it's a boiling pot of cultures. On the other hand, Madrid is a very Spanish city with a ton of Spanish culture which wasn't our cup of tea. Take it as you will. When we go back, we'd like to re-visit Barcelona and then go south to Andalusia.
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Apr 3, 2011 05:19
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Madrid has some really first-class museums (especially the Prado) and a few cool monuments, but it's definitely not as across-the-board cool as Barcelona. Granada and even Cordoba or Seville are going to probably be more interesting - Madrid's historical areas are impressive but smallish, and it is kind of a grungy city. European megathread people, I am going to London in two weeks and I have no idea what the gently caress I'm doing, or how I'm getting to France afterwards. Is there any cheap option that I can book more or less on the spot? Travel time isn't an issue - I've got scads of time.
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Apr 3, 2011 05:52
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One thing that Barcelona doesn't have that'd I'd be interested in seeing is a bullfight. Morality aside, I think it'd be an experience to remember. Has anyone been to one? If so, is there anywhere around Barcelona that has them? EDIT: I looked further into it, and it seems like outside of Madrid..you would have to go way south to places like Ronda and Seville. Matty D fucked around with this message at 07:25 on Apr 3, 2011 |
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Apr 3, 2011 07:09
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Omits-Bagels posted:Read my website: https://www.thesavvybackpacker.com This is totally great, thank you! How necessary do you guys view a product like this: http://astore.amazon.com/thesav02-20/detail/B0009U7RCK I live and work in Chicago and seeing tourists use these has been generally met with rolling eyes, mostly at how blatant it stamps the "I'M A TOURIST WHAT'S GOING ON" label on their forehead. At the same time I don't want to get robbed blind. Matty D fucked around with this message at 10:15 on Apr 3, 2011 |
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Apr 3, 2011 08:01
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I assure you that you can travel the world without a fanny pack. Just try not to keep your wallet in the back pocket of your trousers.
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Apr 3, 2011 11:01
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Matty D posted:This is totally great, thank you! If you get one, you should never use it in public. It's for hiding money/passports on your person. If you take it out in a shop, you're just telegraphing that you've got a bunch of cash on you.
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Apr 3, 2011 11:47
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duralict posted:
Yo - http://forums.somethingawful.com/showthread.php?threadid=3032504 this is basically a London thread. As for France, booking on the spot I guess is going to be crazy expensive as is any last minute travel decision but you're better off checking in the thread. What sort of poo poo do you want to do in London - give us a few pointers.
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Apr 3, 2011 14:27
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duralict posted:European megathread people, I am going to London in two weeks and I have no idea what the gently caress I'm doing, or how I'm getting to France afterwards. Is there any cheap option that I can book more or less on the spot? Travel time isn't an issue - I've got scads of time. This site has a pretty good run-down of the options you have. Booking on the spot will make sure it will be fairly expensive though I think. Coach is probably your best bet if you can actually book that on the spot, if not its probably train+ferry+train.
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Apr 3, 2011 14:30
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