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Farecoal posted:How expensive would a week-long trip to Italy (around Rome) probably be for a family of five from the U.S., assuming they stay in mid-range hotels? Kind of tricky to say, you're biggest expense will be airfare though. Budget 200€ per night for a decent hotel (you'll probably not pay this but Italy in high season is pricey), and then another 40-50€ per day per person for food and transport.
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Mar 12, 2012 07:58
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Landsknecht posted:Kind of tricky to say, you're biggest expense will be airfare though. Budget 200€ per night for a decent hotel (you'll probably not pay this but Italy in high season is pricey), and then another 40-50€ per day per person for food and transport. He might have problems being a family of five? A lot of hotels 'max' out at four people per room. This depends how old your kids are though, if they're little then it won't matter; if they're all teenage I'd worry about Italian hoteliers being dicks. No personal experience with this though, we were always four... The other option, if you're staying in one town and not moving around, is to rent an apartment on something like https://www.vrbo.com or airbnb.com . If you were staying IN Rome, you could budget maybe €1000 using an apartment rental in summer, if you're lucky, so it's a bit cheaper than hotels, particularly since you can save a little on food by cooking in for dinner a couple times. (Obviously if you cook in every night, you're missing out on one of the biggest perks of being in Italy, but OTOH it's tiring to go to a restaurant every day.)
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Mar 12, 2012 17:23
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So, me and two of my friends will be doing pretty much exactly what the OP told not to do. InterRail across Europe in 22 days. Our first 11 days have been planned, but we still got 11 more to spend in France and Netherlands. France is still very up in the air. We were thinking about going along the south coast for a while, visit Nice, and then go up to Paris for a few days before hitting Netherlands. Any suggestions on where we could stop by on our way? What about our tiny (2-3) day stay in Paris? Also, the Amsterdam post was very helpful, but if anyone has something to add, I'll be glad to listen. Lastly, we will stay in London for an extra four days, before flying back home just as the Olympics begin.
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Mar 14, 2012 20:50
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Triangle posted:France is still very up in the air. We were thinking about going along the south coast for a while, visit Nice, and then go up to Paris for a few days before hitting Netherlands. Any suggestions on where we could stop by on our way? What about our tiny (2-3) day stay in Paris? Depends on what you wanna do. For a bigger city you should check out Lyon, or maybe even Marseille if that floats your boat (Lyon is more your typical refined french city, Marseille is very working class and multicultural); they're both on the train line from Nice to Paris. For roman ruins there are Nîmes, Arles, Orange. There is also the huge papal palace in Avignon, if you like medieval castles. Further up you have nice small cities like Dijon or Troyes, and also the Burgundy wine region. Otherwise Paris is very dense compared to other cities, so using the metro (fastest way to go around, really) in 2-3 days you are able to visit the larger landmarks, stroll around a bit and dine in some nice restaurants. You wont have time for larger museums (you would need days to visit all of the Louvre), exploring all the alleyways of the Quartier Latin or stuff that lies further away, like Versailles. Also, be careful of pickpockets (often gypsy kids pretending to need for help or illegal street vendors aggressively selling their stuff ("Hey, try that thing on! Okay, now pay 20€!")) and lunatics in the metro, when you're in Paris for the first time you don't expect it that much and as a tourist you are easy pray. Just keep aware that you're still in a huge metropolis, even if it seems nice and small and pretty, and you shouldn't have much trouble.
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Mar 14, 2012 23:38
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Quick question that I haven't seen addressed, so I apologize if I missed it. I am looking to go from Munich to Paris on May 5th. Looking at prices I think the train makes much more sense than flying. However, I was considering just renting a car. I won't be in any hurry and figure seeing the countryside could be fun. I have a shitload of Hertz points so I would only have to pay for gas. Any thoughts?
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Mar 15, 2012 19:13
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Thoguh posted:Quick question that I haven't seen addressed, so I apologize if I missed it. I am looking to go from Munich to Paris on May 5th. Looking at prices I think the train makes much more sense than flying. However, I was considering just renting a car. I won't be in any hurry and figure seeing the countryside could be fun. I have a shitload of Hertz points so I would only have to pay for gas. Any thoughts? French motorway tolls will probably run you about €40, maybe more. You can do fine on the national roads if you've got enough time. They're much more interesting anyway. Also, you could run into trouble if you want to drop the car off in Paris.
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Mar 15, 2012 22:20
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Paris is a drivers nightmare and you shouldn't expect to see much countryside if you stay on the highways. But it still seems like a nice plan!
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Mar 15, 2012 22:44
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Rojkir posted:Paris is a drivers nightmare and you shouldn't expect to see much countryside if you stay on the highways. But it still seems like a nice plan! Nowhere are a man's driving skills, patience and sanity tested like the Place d'Étoile during rush hour.
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Mar 15, 2012 23:18
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Triangle posted:So, me and two of my friends will be doing pretty much exactly what the OP told not to do. InterRail across Europe in 22 days. Our first 11 days have been planned, but we still got 11 more to spend in France and Netherlands. About the Netherlands as far as cities go I recommend Nijmegen, Maastricht and Scheveningen. They're less touristy then Amsterdam and have quite a different feeling to them but I am personally very fond of them. Eindhoven might also be nice to check out for a day or so and it has a very fun bar district called Stratums eind, But i'm slightly biased seeing how I live there. If you want some recommendations for restaurants or something in Eindhoven just pm me. There is also Valkenburg which is almost in belgium but it has nice ruins. and a cave system that has a lot of fun stuff to do, Like biking through the caves, wallclimbing, restaurant, tours etc. as far as generally doing other stuff in the country there's the Hun beds you can go see and if you're fond of nature the north-eastern part of the country is very nice to walk/bike around in. Lots of open nature there.
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Mar 15, 2012 23:50
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greazeball posted:French motorway tolls will probably run you about €40, maybe more. You can do fine on the national roads if you've got enough time. They're much more interesting anyway. Not only for dropping it off, but even getting it in; greater Paris is a clusterfuck, and driving there with all the Frenchmen (especially Parisians) around is a nightmare. Just fyi 
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Mar 16, 2012 00:17
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Sounds like I'll just stick with the train.
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Mar 16, 2012 04:44
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I may be getting a Work and Travel visa to visit France next year and I had quite a few questions more to do with the "moving there/living/working" bits than the touristy stuff. Should I just go ahead and ask them here, or would it be better if I made a thread about it in Travel/Ask/Tell?
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Mar 16, 2012 18:35
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Planning on spending a couple weeks in Italy and don't fee like taking a guided tour. What's the feasibility of just taking a train from let's say Rome to Florence and just finding a hotel? Does Lonely planet have hotels listed and their locations?
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Mar 17, 2012 18:34
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Bum the Sad posted:Planning on spending a couple weeks in Italy and don't fee like taking a guided tour. What's the feasibility of just taking a train from let's say Rome to Florence and just finding a hotel? Does Lonely planet have hotels listed and their locations? just go on tripadvisor and find the top rated ones within your pricerange and book them online or whatever. You can take trains everywhere as most of the stations are centrally located.
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Mar 17, 2012 19:16
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Landsknecht posted:just go on tripadvisor and find the top rated ones within your pricerange and book them online or whatever. You can take trains everywhere as most of the stations are centrally located. What'd be the best way to do that while there? Gonna need web access.
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Mar 18, 2012 18:14
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That's gonna be a problem, because there is no internet here in Europe.
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Mar 18, 2012 20:10
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Rojkir posted:That's gonna be a problem, because there is no internet here in Europe. Well now to be fair, we have Teletext, and I'm pretty sure the Kings of France, Germany and Ireland have a 28.8k modem.
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Mar 18, 2012 20:32
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The Viper posted:Well now to be fair, we have Teletext, and I'm pretty sure the Kings of France, Germany and Ireland have a 28.8k modem. Nope. Ireland's king only has a fax machine. And it's put of paper  .
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Mar 18, 2012 20:41
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I am going to be spending two days in Berlin next week with a friend - what are some cool things to do while there? A few of the museums look pretty great, so I'd like to spend maybe half a day doing that. Also, what are good locations to stay?
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Mar 18, 2012 22:23
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Bum the Sad posted:Planning on spending a couple weeks in Italy and don't fee like taking a guided tour. What's the feasibility of just taking a train from let's say Rome to Florence and just finding a hotel? Does Lonely planet have hotels listed and their locations? If you're not going in summer or over the Easter weekend (April 8-12) and you're not that fussed about getting THE absolute BEST deal then it should be pretty drat easy. Any guide book will have hotels listed by price, rated and include phone numbers and addresses and maps. I'm partial to Rough Guide myself but they're all pretty much the same. edit: even in summer it's feasible, but you could probably just walk up in these other times. But you should call ahead anyway so they will offer you a good price instead of the "you're here so where else are you going to go?" price. greazeball fucked around with this message at 22:34 on Mar 18, 2012 |
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Mar 18, 2012 22:32
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Ani posted:I am going to be spending two days in Berlin next week with a friend - what are some cool things to do while there? A few of the museums look pretty great, so I'd like to spend maybe half a day doing that. Also, what are good locations to stay? I stayed in Friedrichshain the last time I was there which worked out really well. It's a couple of stops from the centre of town but the area has got a really nice and laid-back feel. Good number of pubs, restaurants, markets and a park in the area, and the prices were reasonable. Also easy access to Kreuzberg! Also do the fat tire bike tour, especially if you only have two days. It'll take you half a day and you will get a really good overview of the city. It's by ar the most fun way to get around. Oh and eat at Monsieur Young!
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Mar 18, 2012 23:07
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Yuh, eat at Monsieur Vyongs!
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Mar 18, 2012 23:15
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Rojkir posted:That's gonna be a problem, because there is no internet here in Europe. Yes gonna bring my desktop and drag a coax cable from Texas to italy. Seriously though is there a fair amount of free wifi where I could use my iPhone as a browser? Will I have to hunt down web cafes? Its a valid question.
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Mar 18, 2012 23:36
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Quick question...is it possible to just go to the Rome airport and sleep in the airport for a night before my flight leaves or will I get hassled? I'm staying in Orvieto and I leave from Rome in the morning. I'd rather not spend money, even on a hostel, for half of a night.
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Mar 18, 2012 23:52
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Those are already far more valid questions than your initial one (how would you react if I'd ask you if there's easy web acces in the states?). You've displayed a fair amount of lazyness so far in this topic and this just got on the wrong side of me. Yes, of course there is a huge amount of web access. Hotels, coffee bars, hostels, bars, open routers, internet cafe's, just like home really. Most touristic areas are so popular because they cater to tourist needs. You'll be fine. Though it can't hurt to read tripadvisor, wikitravel or a guidebook in advance so you can write down some useful stuff about places you want to stay. e; ^^ http://www.sleepinginairports.net/europe/rome.htm might be helpful Rojkir fucked around with this message at 23:59 on Mar 18, 2012 |
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Mar 18, 2012 23:55
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Rojkir posted:
That site is great. Hours of fun.
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Mar 19, 2012 00:11
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Rojkir posted:Those are already far more valid questions than your initial one (how would you react if I'd ask you if there's easy web acces in the states?). You've displayed a fair amount of lazyness so far in this topic and this just got on the wrong side of me. Well in Texas I'd say hunt down a star bucks and bring your own device because web cafes are rare as poo poo. There's not too many public options.
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Mar 19, 2012 00:13
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Bum the Sad posted:Well in Texas I'd say hunt down a star bucks and bring your own device because web cafes are rare as poo poo. There's not too many public options. I don't remember how Italy is, but McDonalds offers free wifi in most countries. SOMETIMES they require you to have a phone number of [country you're in], e.g. Switzerland requires a Swiss phone to get WiFi at McD's. This is because they send an SMS for your access code, so you could probably just ask someone nearby too. Also a lot of cafes have free wifi for customers, frequently advertised at the door, as well as many hostels and low-end hotels. (High end hotels will frequently charge you like $20 for the privilege of WiFi). It won't be hard to get Internet, but you will have basically zero chance of randomly finding 100% unsecured WiFi. And as Bum the Sad said, you will basically never find a web café by chance, although they do exist, and I doubt most hoteliers could even point you in the direction of one. Hostel owners might know, I guess.
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Mar 19, 2012 01:20
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Bum the Sad posted:Yes gonna bring my desktop and drag a coax cable from Texas to italy. Seriously though is there a fair amount of free wifi where I could use my iPhone as a browser? Will I have to hunt down web cafes? Its a valid question. Why not just buy a prepaid sim card, and use it for data? Last time I was in Europe (2010), it was cheap as hell for data on a prepaid sim.
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Mar 19, 2012 02:45
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SeaTard posted:Why not just buy a prepaid sim card, and use it for data? Last time I was in Europe (2010), it was cheap as hell for data on a prepaid sim. Speaking of, does anyone have recommendations for companies to get a cell phone/SIM for Europe? I want to get one before I leave.
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Mar 19, 2012 06:17
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Marxist Glue posted:Speaking of, does anyone have recommendations for companies to get a cell phone/SIM for Europe? I want to get one before I leave. Seconding this, I need sim cards with good data prices for Germany, Austria and Turkey. I know there must be some cheap Turkish plan I can buy in Germany. http://www.phone-guide-germany.com/overview-prepaid-plans-germany/4299/ This is the best site I've found so-far for Germany.
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Mar 19, 2012 06:33
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I suppose I should be specific. I will only need the phone in Italy, as that is where I'll be staying for 6 weeks.
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Mar 19, 2012 06:48
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Marxist Glue posted:Quick question...is it possible to just go to the Rome airport and sleep in the airport for a night before my flight leaves or will I get hassled? I'm staying in Orvieto and I leave from Rome in the morning. I'd rather not spend money, even on a hostel, for half of a night. Which airport? There's two, Fiumicino is the main airport, Ciampino is the one used almost exclusively by Ryanair. I've been to both. I've never slept overnight there, but I wouldn't expect any problems with Fiumicino, although I'm sure Ciampino shuts overnight and has extremely minimal facilities. Below are links to both airports with details on sleeping overnight in them (it's a good website overall for this kind of question, fyi). http://www.sleepinginairports.net/europe/rome.htm http://www.sleepinginairports.net/europe/rome_ciampino.htm
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Mar 19, 2012 07:53
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Edmond Dantes posted:I may be getting a Work and Travel visa to visit France next year and I had quite a few questions more to do with the "moving there/living/working" bits than the touristy stuff. Should I just go ahead and ask them here, or would it be better if I made a thread about it in Travel/Ask/Tell? Go ahead and make a thread here. It's what I did a year ago, and I got some helpful responses about France. Bon courage.
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Mar 21, 2012 00:16
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Marxist Glue posted:I suppose I should be specific. I will only need the phone in Italy, as that is where I'll be staying for 6 weeks. http://prepaidwithdata.wikia.com/wiki/Prepaid_SIM_with_data I just found that one, I guess its data oriented-but there is info about many providers.
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Mar 21, 2012 07:37
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Understeer posted:Go ahead and make a thread here. It's what I did a year ago, and I got some helpful responses about France. Bon courage. Merci, mon ami.  I'll try writing something up and post it. Everything's still in the "maybe" phase, but I'd rather start now and adjust my plans later than start trying to gather information a week before leaving. Thanks again.
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Mar 21, 2012 13:36
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sweek0 posted:I stayed in Friedrichshain the last time I was there which worked out really well. It's a couple of stops from the centre of town but the area has got a really nice and laid-back feel. Good number of pubs, restaurants, markets and a park in the area, and the prices were reasonable. Also easy access to Kreuzberg!
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Mar 21, 2012 14:01
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Ani posted:Thanks! Any suggestions for good hostels? Should I just go on hostelbookers and find one that's highly rated? Wombats is the only answer... This is a hostel where the receptionist stopped me on the way out at 6am and marked out on a map a good run for me around the city. Wombats all the way.
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Mar 21, 2012 14:49
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The Viper posted:Wombats is the only answer... This is a hostel where the receptionist stopped me on the way out at 6am and marked out on a map a good run for me around the city. Wombats all the way. Seconding Wombats, just keep in mind that its more of a party hostel and when I stayed there were plenty of australian teenagers on their first holiday .This may be a good or bad thing for you. I've also been recommended Heart of Gold, but I've never stayed there.
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Mar 21, 2012 17:24
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At the end of April I have a round trip to Madrid, Spain. I'll be in Europe for a total of 6.5 weeks. I enjoy beaches, bike rides, history, partying, hiking, vistas, and im not really a foody. I have a few questions for you as I will be traveling alone and I'm not sure how to spend my time. I have all these places in Spain/Portugal I want to go: San Sebastian, Lisbon, Lagos, Porto, Sevilla, Granada, Cadiz, Barcelona. I know that in six weeks I will have plenty of time to visit all of these places but am I going to get burnt out on Spain? Should I just pick a few of these, say Lisbon, Sevilla, Barcelona then head for Italy or Croatia? I have about $3900 USD after airfare to spend.
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Mar 23, 2012 01:42
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