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Matty D posted:This is totally great, thank you! I never used a money belt. They are just a pain in the rear end. I kept my really important stuff locked up in the hostel and my cash/credit cards in my wallet.
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Apr 3, 2011 16:28
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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. Buying any type if last minute transportation in Europe is going to cost a fortune. You can actually get some good rates on Eurostar tickets from London to Paris if you buy a month+ in advance. I was able to get a ticket for about the same price as a budget airline ticket. Buy your ticket from a brithsh or french rail site. Sometimes it will redirect you to the N. American version but don't let it (you'll get charged extra).
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Apr 3, 2011 16:48
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Matty D posted: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? Catalonia, the providence Barcelona is in, banned bullfighting this past year. You'd have to look around Madrid
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Apr 3, 2011 20:09
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Omits-Bagels posted:I never used a money belt. They are just a pain in the rear end. I kept my really important stuff locked up in the hostel and my cash/credit cards in my wallet. Did you keep your passport locked up? I suppose I could walk around with a photocopy of it just in case.
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Apr 3, 2011 22:01
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Matty D posted:Did you keep your passport locked up? I suppose I could walk around with a photocopy of it just in case. I never felt any reason to carry my passport.
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Apr 4, 2011 02:05
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Matty D posted:Did you keep your passport locked up? I suppose I could walk around with a photocopy of it just in case. I just keep my passport locked up at the hostels. Also, I always scan in a copy of the important pages of my passport and email them to myself. Then if I need that in order to get a new one from the embassy etc., I can go and print it out as necessary.
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Apr 4, 2011 02:18
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Well, I got the Eurail pass, so in theory I can do some last-minute moving around without shelling out much extra, right? I gather there are surcharges and such in France and Italy and that it doesn't cover the Eurostar lines, though, and when I looked up Eurostar prices I was pretty amazed at what they charge for a 2 hour train trip. I guess I don't have much choice, though, and I should pretty much buy it right now? It looks like I'll be spending 3-4 days in London. I like museums and historical sites, and London has no shortage of those, but I don't really know much about them or how far apart they are. I'm flying there first mainly because the flight was $250, I didn't do much research on London itself before booking it. Also I haven't gotten any of my couchsurfing requests responded to yet, so if yall know of a decent hostel that would be very helpful too. Thanks for the thread and parislogue links, I will poke through them!
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Apr 4, 2011 02:24
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duralict posted:Well, I got the Eurail pass, so in theory I can do some last-minute moving around without shelling out much extra, right? I gather there are surcharges and such in France and Italy and that it doesn't cover the Eurostar lines, though, and when I looked up Eurostar prices I was pretty amazed at what they charge for a 2 hour train trip. I guess I don't have much choice, though, and I should pretty much buy it right now? Theres a bunch of decent museums in South Kensington which are all right next door to each other. The natural history musueum is quite impressive IMO. Think Charles Darwin. Or the science if thats more your thing. I really enjoyed the history of medical science part. We pretty much blazed through there as we didn't have enough time to see all of it. Then most of the art museums are walking distance from the city. National gallery, tate modern etc. British museum is the other one. I forget where it is... I think near tottenham court road station? This is more your egyptian artefacts kind of thing. Elgin marbles (from the pantheon) and stuff are all there. Either way all of them are a few tube stops away and its not likely you'll be cramming in 3 or 4 in a single day. Go to the tower of london as well. Very well worth it.
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Apr 4, 2011 02:33
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duralict posted:Well, I got the Eurail pass, so in theory I can do some last-minute moving around without shelling out much extra, right? I gather there are surcharges and such in France and Italy and that it doesn't cover the Eurostar lines, though, and when I looked up Eurostar prices I was pretty amazed at what they charge for a 2 hour train trip. I guess I don't have much choice, though, and I should pretty much buy it right now? What kind of eurostar ticket prices are you seeing? I think I paid 41 Euros for a one way ticket. What are your travel dates?
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Apr 4, 2011 05:47
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Matty D posted:How necessary do you guys view a product like this: http://astore.amazon.com/thesav02-20/detail/B0009U7RCK I used money belts for a while until I realized it was weird to be reaching into my crotch to pay people at stores. I switched back to using a wallet and have no problems.
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Apr 4, 2011 07:47
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duralict posted:Well, I got the Eurail pass, so in theory I can do some last-minute moving around without shelling out much extra, right? I gather there are surcharges and such in France and Italy and that it doesn't cover the Eurostar lines, though, and when I looked up Eurostar prices I was pretty amazed at what they charge for a 2 hour train trip. I guess I don't have much choice, though, and I should pretty much buy it right now? The Eurostar isn't covered by the Eurail pass because the UK isn't covered by the Eurail at all. We have a separate Britrail pass, but since you are staying in London its pretty useless. Eurostar gets more expensive the later you leave it. I have a trip to Paris in 3 weeks and I booked the tickets in February to get them for like £50 each way. A quick look at tickets in 2 weeks time shows that they are pretty much all over £100 now. It may only be 2 hours but you are travelling at 186mph! From a quick look, you best bet it to make you way to Dover by other means, taking a ferry over, then using the Eurail pass once you get to Calais. The slow trains from Charing Cross station to Dover priory will cost £29.40 no matter what, taking around 2 hours to get there, and then the ferry charge on top. If you book a eurolines coach to Calais in advance it seems to be about £25. This is probably the cheapest option. I have no idea what the prices would be if you jsut turned up. I'm not sure if you can even do that with them? I've only ever booked in advance. National express coaches to Dover ferry port seem to be about £15 booking for in 2 weeks time. Again I don't know what the prices will do closer to the time.
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Apr 4, 2011 13:06
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Matty D posted: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? I saw one in Ronda about 7 years ago thinking the same thing. I guess if you have no problem with bullfighting it can be a fun experience. I didn't enjoy it and wouldn't ever go to another one.
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Apr 4, 2011 14:16
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duralict posted: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. This is how I feel too. Madrid is cool and worth the trip, but if I could only choose one I'd go to Barcelona for just the atmosphere. Matty D posted:This is totally great, thank you! You're probably on a plane or have landed by now but these things are stupid. I live in Germany and use a wallet that I keep in my back pocket most of the time and move to the front when I walk through crowds or get on public transport. I also have my passport with me all the time and that stays in a pocket in my messenger bag.
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Apr 4, 2011 15:46
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I sometimes use a small money belt but I never, ever dig into it in public. It's mainly for my passport/travel docs in countries that are strict about that sort of thing.
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Apr 4, 2011 16:49
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Is the general concensus that Eurail tickets for traveling among countries (specifically France, Spain, Germany, Czech Republic and Benelux) the way to go? Its looking like $475 for a 2 month pass of 9 travel days for those 5 countries, which is plenty of travelling for us, but I'm worried we're going to discover a whole bunch of hidden fees along the way.
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Apr 4, 2011 17:18
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Not sure if this has already been brought up in this thread, sorry if it has, but does anyone have any experience with doing a tour of Chernobyl? From looking at this link http://wikitravel.org/en/Chernobyl there seems to be a few tour operators to choose from, but I have no idea how reputable any of them are. If anyone has toured Chernobyl, who did you go with and how did you find the tour? Thanks.
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Apr 5, 2011 03:25
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Fists Up posted: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. I love Barcelona and I hate Madrid, but I don't think anybody would dare to say Barcelona has better bars than Madrid. It's just that Barcelona is more tourist friendly when it comes to finding places to go because everything is around the centre. MentosMan posted:Catalonia, the providence Barcelona is in, banned bullfighting this past year. You'd have to look around Madrid The ban won't apply until 2012, he still has plenty of time.
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Apr 5, 2011 10:03
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From my understanding the ban was in 2010, and didn't apply until 2011.
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Apr 5, 2011 19:17
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Hello! Got an 11 day trip to Greece coming up in the end of May and start of June. The trip will involve several days on the Greek island of Milos where my crazy British uncle lives. We will likely be holding some ridiculous birthday bash where we grill disgusting amounts of meat for only a handful of people. The rest of the time, however, is really up in the air. We will likely have a few days in Athens to see the really obvious tourist stuff such as the Acropolis. However after that what should be on the list? A few of us have been to Athens before and we basically walked around and wandered into a few Archaeology museums. Also the gyros and slovaki were terrible, it was like eating beef jerky due to overcooking, so any dining recommendations would be welcome. Since Milos is in the Cyclades any travel suggestions for that area would be welcome. Has anyone been to Crete? Is Crete worth a stop? If so did you visit and how accessible is Knossos? Any other Islands that are a must see? Finally the return trip features an overnight 16 hour layover in Frankfurt, Germany. So I suppose we will have to exit the airport and find something to do with ourselves for much of the evening. A previous friend suggested we just head downtown and walk around. Are there any must sees if we have that little time? Any dinning recommendations for dinner? Would we have to get a visa for such a short stay? Thanks for any and all suggestions. Dr. Fraiser Chain fucked around with this message at 07:30 on Apr 6, 2011 |
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Apr 5, 2011 20:37
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I went to Santorini last year, and had a great time. It's very close to Milos, and if I recall correctly there's a ferry between the islands. Maybe the Athens ferry stops both places, I can't really remember. Santorini is the place with those white churches with the blue roofs you see on every other post card in Greece. Weather on Santorini was extremely hot when I went in July (at least for a Scandinavian), but should be a bit more on the comfortable side in May. Everyone on Santorini rents either scooters, quads or cars, as it can be a bit of a hassle depending on the bus. Plus, it's dirt cheap. We rented a Smart Car and zoomed around for 4 days. It's a great way to get all around the island, including the big rear end hill/mountiain in the middle. That's an especially interesting ride when you're in a little poo poo can car, on a 2 meter wide road with extreme gusts of wind. The bus is entirely doable, I'm told, but car/quad is so much more fun. Plus, stopping on the top having lunch and being able to see the entire island and the planes landing at the airstrip is pretty cool. If you're willing to stay in a dorm room in a hostel, like I did, you can get of paying like 10€ a night, which is really cheap for a tourist island like that. This was in Perissa which has a very nice beach, and a bit of nightlife. If you stay in Fira, which is the biggest town, you should also be able to find a hostel and lots of hotels, I think. Ia, which is the tourist capital of the island and home to a very famous view, is a lot more expensive, but also absolutely gorgeous. If you're into partying and hanging around on the common porch with strangers, looking at eachother without speaking because you can't hear poo poo from all the scooters, then the hostel in Perissa is for you. It's also a lot of fun and people are nice. Hotels in Ia look awesome, but expensive. I don't now for sure though. Fiskenbob fucked around with this message at 00:31 on Apr 6, 2011 |
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Apr 6, 2011 00:27
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Matty D posted:From my understanding the ban was in 2010, and didn't apply until 2011. The law passed in 2010, but won't apply until 2012.
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Apr 6, 2011 07:46
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Goodpancakes posted:A few of us have been to Athens before and we basically walked around and wandered into a few Archaeology museums. Also the gyros and slovaki were terrible, it was like eating beef jerky due to overcooking, so any dining recommendations would be welcome. What kind of food do you want to eat in Athens? I can tell you about awesome souvlaki joints but if you don't want to eat this type of food ever again I guess you could go to less known traditional restaurants (I wouldn't call them restaurants if I could think of another word because they're really informal, simple and plain-looking) that will be less tourist-y and way cheaper but you will probably have to go a bit out of your way. They're not precisely on the busy tourist streets but there are many in the centre of Athens... the centre is pretty big and I think a reasonable time-radius would be something like 45 minutes by bus, 30 minutes by car (I wouldn't suggest a car, you'll have trouble parking if you don't know the correct streets) so you would have to take a bus from, say, Acropolis to get to them. This is a pretty awesome place: Ladokola (they bring the food in sheets of paper instead of plates) http://maps.google.com/maps?q=%CE%A...4,0.077162&z=14 site in greek http://www.ladokola.eu/ladokola/ I don't know, what kind of dining recommendations do you seek?
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Apr 6, 2011 16:19
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tourgon posted:What kind of food do you want to eat in Athens? I can tell you about awesome souvlaki joints but if you don't want to eat this type of food ever again I guess you could go to less known traditional restaurants (I wouldn't call them restaurants if I could think of another word because they're really informal, simple and plain-looking) that will be less tourist-y and way cheaper but you will probably have to go a bit out of your way. They're not precisely on the busy tourist streets but there are many in the centre of Athens... the centre is pretty big and I think a reasonable time-radius would be something like 45 minutes by bus, 30 minutes by car (I wouldn't suggest a car, you'll have trouble parking if you don't know the correct streets) so you would have to take a bus from, say, Acropolis to get to them. Thanks for the reply! I actually normally really enjoy slovaki and gyros, which was why my experience with them in Athens was so disappointing. I would definitely be up for some great slovaki if you can list a few exceptional places. In general I am looking for stuff within walking distance of Omonia, I am not sure how comfortable my travel companions will be about using public transit. That said on my previous trip my Uncle said there are some foods the Greeks do very well and some not so well. If you find this is true, what type of food would you suggest in sniffing out? I would am all for traditional food if it can be found in that area. I think last time one of the better meals I had was in what I assume was a local place near piraeus and it was fantastic.
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Apr 7, 2011 20:29
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Sheizerbrick posted:Not sure if this has already been brought up in this thread, sorry if it has, but does anyone have any experience with doing a tour of Chernobyl? Bit of a late reply, but since no-one else in the thread has commented: I went with SoloEast Travel (http://www.tourkiev.com/). They're pretty reputable and a lot of reporters have gone with them (Lonely Planet, BBC...). I know that several other goons have also used SoloEast with no trouble. The tour itself is pretty fascinating, but you should definitely go on a day when other people have booked. The price starts at approximately 500 euro if it's just you and the guide, but drops down to around 150 in a decently sized group.
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Apr 8, 2011 11:58
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Goodpancakes posted:Thanks for the reply! Most of the best ones are pretty far from Omonia but there are some that are close. One called "Ta Agrafa" (map from Omonia http://maps.google.com/maps?f=d&sou...1,0.009645&z=17) is nice, the souvlaki is pretty good. No gyros, though. For a kebab, the best one in Athens and pretty close to Omonia is "Thanasis" (map http://maps.google.com/maps?f=d&sou...63,0.01929&z=16) which is basically on the Monastiraki Square which is close to ancient stuff so it could be convenient. It has so many customers, though, that if you're unlucky you might get some portion of meat which is gonna be pretty poo poo (like the last few slices that are usually harder to bite and perhaps with bones) so sorry if that happens. Now for gyro and the more classic souvlaki, the only one I'm certain is good because I eat there often is "Savvas". It is a bit dirty, though, but that's how a good souvlaki should be. (map http://maps.google.com/maps?f=d&sou...1,0.009645&z=17). I would suggest that if you decide to go there you go during the day and try not to go to this neighborhood at night because some rear end in a top hat might see that you're tourists and rob you. During the day it's a cool place, though. Actually, this is also true for Omonia Square (with the difference that it's never a cool place), try to avoid it at night. Goodpancakes posted:That said on my previous trip my Uncle said there are some foods the Greeks do very well and some not so well. If you find this is true, what type of food would you suggest in sniffing out? I would am all for traditional food if it can be found in that area. I think last time one of the better meals I had was in what I assume was a local place near piraeus and it was fantastic. That is true in general, and it's especially true for restaurants. In general, anything outside the standard "greek cuisine" set of dishes (souvlaki, gyros, lamb with potatoes, meatballs, burgers meaning big meatballs called bifteki, rooster, rabbit, I would also include steaks, mousakas, pastitsio, sausages, etc.) will probably be poo poo if you go to a traditional place. So don't order things like pasta (pasta with minced meat is ok but no italian recipes) or meat with white sauces and other french stuff. First, a good rule of thumb is "if you can't see the sea, don't eat fish (at a restaurant)". It will probably not be fresh. Also, if you don't know the place and have no guarantees about the quality, try to order things that will have to be cooked on the spot. That includes all the types of meat that are roasted and does not include food that will have to be slowly boiled etc. because they will probably get you something old. We call this type of meat (that they'll have to cook at the spot) "of the hour" and I'm sure they will understand if you tell them that. By all means if you're at Piraeus or something (and islands of course), eat fish! I try to avoid Piraeus, though, so not much advise there from me. Hope this helps!
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Apr 8, 2011 15:09
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Goodpancakes posted:Finally the return trip features an overnight 16 hour layover in Frankfurt, Germany. So I suppose we will have to exit the airport and find something to do with ourselves for much of the evening. A previous friend suggested we just head downtown and walk around. Are there any must sees if we have that little time? Any dinning recommendations for dinner? Would we have to get a visa for such a short stay? You probably won't need any additional visa if you're flying in from a Schengen state(Greece), unless you'll stay in Greece for 90 days(=maximum length of tourist visa to the Schengen states). I'd recommend going to Sachsenhausen, the part of Frankfurt south of the Main river. It's a quite touristy area, that is famous for it's "Ebbelwoi"(apple cider) pubs, which generally have a nice atmosphere (and are used to anglo tourists (and GIs)).I'm not sure about the dinner though, as far as I remember you can get typical hessian food there, but that may not be to everyones taste. Also in Sachsenhausen is the Museumsufer (museum shore) with a bunch of maybe not world-renowned, but quite decent museums and you'll get a nice view of the only european skyline worth mentioning. Hanging out on the riverbanks of the Main can also be nice, depending on the weather. You can get to Sachsenhausen from the airport by train (15 minute ride) to the train station "Frankfurt Sudbahnhof" or "Schweizer Strasse". What may also be interesting is the "Bahnhofsviertel"(train station quarter) near the "Hauptbahnhof", there is a lot of international cuisine, as nearly two thirds of the inhabitants are immigrants. In its northern part is the redlight district, which may also be able to help some young fellas to spend the night (nudge-nudge)(prostitution is legal in Germany btw.). Of course it's also the part of Frankfurt with the highest crime rate (which means pickpockets, not gang-shootouts). Btw., it's souvlaky (or souflaky), "slovaki" is a central european country missing an "a". 
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Apr 10, 2011 21:07
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tourgon posted:Good stuff Tourgon you've been a great help! I'll likely hit that kebab place since I am pretty sure I know exactly where that is. Lastly where are the places I should avoid in general, and how safe is it walking around after dark? goethe42 posted:Also great stuff Thanks for the great suggestions. Any restaurant I should frequent to get the best of what Germany has to offer?
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Apr 11, 2011 06:24
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My wife and I are looking to plan a trip to Europe sometime in September/October this year. We are thinking about trying to do 3 cities: Dublin, London, Paris, probably in a 10-ish day time frame. We'd like to see castles and the countryside, and hit the highlights of each city. I know 3 days in each city isn't long enough to really experience them (especially if we want to head out to see castles and ruins, etc), but is this a doable itinerary for our first trip to Europe? Also, can anyone recommend a tour agency or something similar that puts together package deals with hotels, etc for these areas?
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Apr 11, 2011 18:42
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geera posted:My wife and I are looking to plan a trip to Europe sometime in September/October this year. We are thinking about trying to do 3 cities: Dublin, London, Paris, probably in a 10-ish day time frame. We'd like to see castles and the countryside, and hit the highlights of each city. It is technically enough but you will absolutely feel rushed; I'd seriously consider just hitting two of those three. (Other people here will probably recommend one.) Five days is enough time to rush through most of the 'must see' sights in the center London and Paris. Three days means you will for sure miss out on something one of you really wanted to see (e.g. for Paris, pick any 4 of the following max for 3 days: Louvre, Les Invalides, Eiffel Tower, Sacre Coeur, Arc de Triomphe, and Versailles).* Just book everything yourself unless money is not an issue for you two and you're going to stay in 5* hotels. Look on PriceLine.com or similar for hotels, and stay in downtown center for all of the cities. On a short trip it's not worth saving money by staying somewhere farther away and cheaper, especially for your first European trip and, presumably, first experience with jetlag. *Of course, one could spend all 10 days in London or Paris and not see everything one wanted to see.
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Apr 11, 2011 19:31
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Goodpancakes posted:Lastly where are the places I should avoid in general, and how safe is it walking around after dark? Avoid going inside (or passing through) Omonoia Square, it's full of junkies, undercover cops and robbers. Also avoid the small streets surrounding Omonoia and especially the streets perpendicular to Athenas Street since they're full of very poor illegal immigrants, whores, dealers etc. You should probably avoid the Eksarheia neighborhood just to be safe. It's a cool neighborhood and quite picturesque (in a gritty decadent way), though, so if you can recognize danger and pay a bit of attention when walking around, you could go there. Anyway, you're not missing too much if you don't go there to be honest, and for a tourist the risks (riots-no police-pickpockets-junkies) probably outweigh the benefits. edit: Oh i forgot the second part of the question. Just be careful, if you have a bag keep an eye on it and if you wear jeans don't keep your wallet in the back pocket (where it's very easy to steal from) but in one of the side pockets. There are also people on motorcycles snatching women's bags (not very often but it happens) so be careful of that too. In general, I would say that if you stay out of the dangerous parts of Athens, walking around after dark is pretty safe as long as you are careful and if you see someone that seems dangerous you try to go to a place where there are people and you/your group won't be alone. tourgon fucked around with this message at 20:39 on Apr 11, 2011 |
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Apr 11, 2011 20:22
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Saladman posted:It is technically enough but you will absolutely feel rushed; I'd seriously consider just hitting two of those three. (Other people here will probably recommend one.) Five days is enough time to rush through most of the 'must see' sights in the center London and Paris. Three days means you will for sure miss out on something one of you really wanted to see (e.g. for Paris, pick any 4 of the following max for 3 days: Louvre, Les Invalides, Eiffel Tower, Sacre Coeur, Arc de Triomphe, and Versailles).* quote:Just book everything yourself unless money is not an issue for you two and you're going to stay in 5* hotels. Look on PriceLine.com or similar for hotels, and stay in downtown center for all of the cities. On a short trip it's not worth saving money by staying somewhere farther away and cheaper, especially for your first European trip and, presumably, first experience with jetlag. This actually started as a plan to go on a cruise of the Mediterranean (which I liked, since all we have to do is fly ourselves to Barcelona and the cruise line takes care of everything else from there), but we didn't want to spend our whole time in Europe on a boat, and she also really wants to see castles and the English countryside. This is all in the early planning stages -- we basically know we want to go to Europe, but haven't nailed down exactly where, how long, and what our budget is going to be.
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Apr 11, 2011 20:30
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As always, would strongly, strongly urge you to skip Dublin and see some of the west coast of Ireland. Dublin, in my view, is such a grey flavourless tourist-let-down over priced part of Ireland. I grew up on the South West coast and you couldn't do better, in my view, than to rent a car and drive around Cork and Kerry - seriously, it's unbelievably gorgeous.
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Apr 11, 2011 20:41
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Neris posted:As always, would strongly, strongly urge you to skip Dublin and see some of the west coast of Ireland. Dublin, in my view, is such a grey flavourless tourist-let-down over priced part of Ireland. I grew up on the South West coast and you couldn't do better, in my view, than to rent a car and drive around Cork and Kerry - seriously, it's unbelievably gorgeous. Agreed. Dublin just isn't that great, there are loads of much nicer, more irishy places to see - Like Kilkenny; great castle, nice town, lovely riverwalks. Kerry is great except it's full of Kerrymen (little butty fellas in mauldy aul tweed jackets and trousers held up with string), The scenery is wonderful though. Galway is great too - a small and vibrant city with a very distinct feel to it. Plus driving through the south from Cork over to Waterford is great because there are lots of ruined Norman (800+ years old) castles along the way to look at.
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Apr 11, 2011 20:59
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geera posted:
I don't see any use for renting a car on such a short trip. Really, you'll have plenty of stuff to do in London and Paris alone without traveling more than 10 subway stations away from your hotel. And the eurostar takes you directly from the center of London to the center of Paris, it's almost like riding the subway. Except maybe if you hate reading travel guides, planning a trip like this is a no-brainer, and you'll have much more freedom if you do it yourself.
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Apr 11, 2011 23:52
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geera posted:Yeah that's what I figured. So of the three cities I mentioned, you would drop Dublin/Ireland in general? Why? Europe isn't that complicated. Have you even flown in a plane in the US? Perfect, you've acquired all the skills you need to navigate Europe. But seriously, millions of people each year travel between the cities you've listed so the transportation links are well established. I really recommend that you stick to two locations. People really underestimate how much time transportation eats into your travel time. If you Booking a hotel isn't difficult... everything is online. Just check out trip adviser. Also, forget renting a car. You don't need one and they are expensive. Just take trains and/or planes (they're super easy to use. Honest). Plus, driving in any major city is going to be wayyy more difficult than using public transportation. But if you want to keep it simple then just do London and Paris. Book your hotels ahead of time and use the subways to get around the city. Easy. I'm more than willing to help if you have more questions.
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Apr 12, 2011 03:51
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Has anyone flown Virgin Atlantic lately? Their carry-on rules are pretty strict on their website [1 piece only, 6kg max] but do they really enforce it?
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Apr 12, 2011 04:49
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AbDomen posted:Bit of a late reply, but since no-one else in the thread has commented: I went with SoloEast Travel (http://www.tourkiev.com/). They're pretty reputable and a lot of reporters have gone with them (Lonely Planet, BBC...). I know that several other goons have also used SoloEast with no trouble. Thanks for that, I'll check em out. There'll be 3 or 4 of us going, so pricing should be OK I guess.
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Apr 13, 2011 02:11
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I'm trying to hire a camepervan (RV) to drive from Barcelona to Florence and back again in June. The terms for all the rental companies I can find seem pretty onerous - they want payment in full 52 days before I pick up the vehicle. Can anyone recommend a good rental company? Any tips you have on this whole process would be really appreciated.
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Apr 13, 2011 11:48
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I'm heading to Amsterdam tomorrow, 5th time there, looking to see some of the more out of the way sites. Also, I'm going for as long as I can manage, if anyone is nearby (I'm planning on visiting Berlin, but beyond that am up for just about anything cheap) and wants a travelling partner let me know: martin . peel @ gmail .com
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Apr 13, 2011 13:10
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Desdinova posted:I'm heading to Amsterdam tomorrow, 5th time there, looking to see some of the more out of the way sites. Also, I'm going for as long as I can manage, if anyone is nearby (I'm planning on visiting Berlin, but beyond that am up for just about anything cheap) and wants a travelling partner let me know: martin . peel @ gmail .com 1. IJburg Newest borough in Amsterdam. Build on reclaimed land with lots of houses that were designed with complete freedom by their occupants like the canal ring buildings five centuries ago.  Take tram 26 from central station 2. Betondorp Early 1920's experimental living quarter designed as a dream village for the proletariat. One side of the neighborhood is quite ordinary (bricks), the other is entirely concrete.  Take tram 9 from central station and get out at Brinkstraat 3. Huis te vraag Overgrown out-of-use cemetary with small paths that's being cared for by two artists and their cats. Public till 17.00  Take tram 2 from central station and get out at Hoofddorpplein, walk south. 4. Landelijk Noord (rural north) Amsterdam still has some farmland within its borders, including some tiny villages. Holysloot is probably the most visited by Amsterdammers.  These are best accesible by bike, but you can also take the pont from CS to Meeuwenlaan, take bus 38 and get out at Buikslotermeerplein where you take bus 30. Most of these aren't open or don't have open cafes/restaurants on sunday.
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Apr 13, 2011 14:32
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