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For the best savings, especially on the UK train network, make sure you buy your tickets in utero.
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Feb 26, 2012 23:09
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Red7 posted:For the best savings, especially on the UK train network, make sure you buy your tickets in utero. This isn't actually true. All you really need to do is have your parents buy your tickets right before they have sex and conceive you. Worked for me and I saved 25€.
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Feb 27, 2012 09:18
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Rojkir posted:In advance. International train tickets tend to get more expensive as the train fils up. Okay, thanks everybody, I will buy them today. Is there a site that is recommended? I checked this site, https://www.tgv-europe.com and the price is about €65, does that seem about right? Unfortunately, we must travel on a Friday, which seems to jack up the price a lot. Is there a cheaper site out there? Also, we are leaving Amsterdam after 4 nights and wanted to ride our bikes to Rotterdam, are there any spots between the two cities that are nice to check out? Cheers!
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Feb 27, 2012 17:56
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jet sanchEz posted:Okay, thanks everybody, I will buy them today. Is there a site that is recommended? I checked this site, https://www.tgv-europe.com and the price is about €65, does that seem about right? Unfortunately, we must travel on a Friday, which seems to jack up the price a lot. Is there a cheaper site out there?
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Feb 27, 2012 18:20
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I'm going out of the country for the first time in my life...to London! Woo hoo!! That said, I could use some help. My mom, sister and I are planning to stay for five days and are wondering what area would be best to find a hotel in. My mom was looking in Central London but it seems the hotels she was looking for were already booked for the weekend we will be there. Any recommendations on what area of London to stay in that is good for tourists? Also, my mom just realized she planned the trip over Good Friday and Easter and such (we'll be there from the 3rd to the 9th). Is London going to be crazy because of the holiday? Any advice regarding this would be awesome. Actually, any advice on what I have to see in London would be really awesome too. Thanks all!
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Feb 28, 2012 02:02
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Designertoast posted:I'm going out of the country for the first time in my life...to London! Woo hoo!! Stay in Central London, it's by far the best for tourists. I can't imagine all the hotels are booked, but you could also try renting an apartment (e.g. via vrbo.com or airbnb.com). Basically everything on "must see tourist destinations top 10 London" lists is awesome except the wax museum. Don't go there. VVV: I initially wrote "also the London Eye" then deleted it. I thought it was OK but not great—it has a cool view of London that nothing else offers, but it's kind of expensive and tedious after you get to the top. When The Shard viewing deck opens (May? June?), I imagine the Eye is going to see a precipitous drop in customers. OTOH I've literally never heard anyone who liked the Wax Museum--I have no idea how it's still open. Saladman fucked around with this message at 17:24 on Feb 28, 2012 |
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Feb 28, 2012 13:04
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Saladman posted:Basically everything on "must see tourist destinations top 10 London" lists is awesome except the wax museum. Don't go there. Designertoast, we stayed near Russell Square and that was a pretty good location -- walkable to some of the museums and shopping areas/nightlife (Covent Garden, Leicester Square, Chinatown). It's also right off the Piccadilly line, which is the one that runs to and from Heathrow. It's probably a little too far from city center to walk there, but the tube is pretty easy to use to get around.
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Feb 28, 2012 15:25
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I have absolutely no idea what you'd consider the city centre of London - Oxford St? Kings Cross? Trafalgar Sq? I loved the Eye as well. Places I often take people who visit me are the South Bank, Covent Garden, Camden Market, Borough Market, Tate Britain, Tate Modern, Brick Lane, National Gallery... any of that sound up your alley?
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Feb 28, 2012 15:54
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The Science Museum was amazing, I thought.
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Feb 28, 2012 15:59
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So, I have a layover in London from 10:00am-3:00pm this summer on my way back home. Is that enough time/worth it to leave the airport and do something for a few hours, or am I doomed to wander Heathrow for 5 hours?
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Feb 28, 2012 17:27
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Marxist Glue posted:So, I have a layover in London from 10:00am-3:00pm this summer on my way back home. Is that enough time/worth it to leave the airport and do something for a few hours, or am I doomed to wander Heathrow for 5 hours? Don't even think above leaving the airport, even more strongly so if you are changing terminals.
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Feb 28, 2012 21:06
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jet sanchEz posted:Also, we are leaving Amsterdam after 4 nights and wanted to ride our bikes to Rotterdam, are there any spots between the two cities that are nice to check out? Oh you know, just the entire Randstad. Look at that route on a map. Millions upon millions of people live in that area. The Hague, Leiden, Delft would be pretty good places to stop. But there is also "groene hart" area that isn't allowed to be built up and has some of the old style polders and artificial lakes due to peat digging in the past. It really depends on what kind of things you like and how much of a detour you can make. My guess is the shortest route is about 80 kilometers (50 miles) with a few detours it could easily add up to 120 kilometers.
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Feb 28, 2012 23:42
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NihilismNow posted:Oh you know, just the entire Randstad. Yeah seconding this. It so much depends on what you like or don't like in a bike ride. If you want you'll visit many towns, if you follow the st jacobsroute (for example) you'll skip some of them (it's a pelgrimsroute between Haarlem and Santiago). For most tourists going around Rotterdam to visit the mills at Kinderdijk(http://www.kinderdijk.nl/) might be a big option, but it's also a long way round. I actually recommend picking up the st jacobsroute from where ever you can and then take a right turn into rotterdam when at kinderdijk, but that totally depends on what bikes you're on and if you like cycling cause it's a serious detour.
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Feb 29, 2012 00:04
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Thanks for the replies, Viper, Neris, geera and Saladman! Definitely gave me some good ideas for planning out our days and where to continue looking for places to stay. I think I got twice as excited as I already was...
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Feb 29, 2012 01:00
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Rojkir posted:I actually recommend picking up the st jacobsroute from where ever you can and then take a right turn into rotterdam when at kinderdijk, but that totally depends on what bikes you're on and if you like cycling cause it's a serious detour. Or you could cheat and take the water bus (with the bikes) from Alblasserdam right into Rotterdam. Costs about €5.
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Feb 29, 2012 01:21
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Maybe an odd question, I'll be traveling around May day (1st). I'm trying to decide whether to stay in Vienna, be in Istanbul or pick the 1st to travel from Vienna to Istanbul. Does anyone know if either city does anything interesting/exciting for may day? I'm not planning to protest but it might be interesting to watch an organized protest that day. Alternatively, will there be a significant risk to air travel that day?
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Feb 29, 2012 06:58
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Masturbatory Manatee posted:Maybe an odd question, I'll be traveling around May day (1st). I'm trying to decide whether to stay in Vienna, be in Istanbul or pick the 1st to travel from Vienna to Istanbul. I don't think I know any city doing something special for May 1st, it's more of a day off for most people than anything else. You get some protest marches in bigger cities by left-wing parties (mainly retirees and college kids) that can be quite impressive but are ultimately peaceful, and there really is no risk to your physical integrity, except maybe if you go to Athens right now; "red terror" has been dead for more than 20 years. No risk traveling by plane as well. Also, Vienna and Istanbul are two very different cities... Vienna is more of a relaxed city with lots of baroque architecture, and Istanbul is a bustling metropolis of 15 million people. The journey from Vienna to Istanbul (via Budapest, Belgrade) can be very interesting but you need a lot of time to do it, and there's really a lot to see: Istanbul can keep you busy for at least a week if not more, the other cities for several days too.
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Feb 29, 2012 11:34
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Chikimiki posted:You get some protest marches in bigger cities by left-wing parties (mainly retirees and college kids) that can be quite impressive but are ultimately peaceful, and there really is no risk to your physical integrity, except maybe if you go to Athens right now; *may not apply to Hamburg and/or Berlin
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Feb 29, 2012 11:52
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elwood posted:* Yeah that's two exceptions to the general rule  Is May 1st in Berlin still as rough as it was some years ago?
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Feb 29, 2012 18:51
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NihilismNow posted:Oh you know, just the entire Randstad. Thank you and thank you also, Rojkir. Yes, we are only worried that there will be too much to see and so that is why I asked. I guess we will play it by ear and stop whenever or wherever we like. 80kms is the route that we have planned but now I am thinking maybe we should stop in one of the little towns and spend the night there in a B&B or something. Also, a lot will depend on the weather, which I don't expect to be anything but wet----that makes sense since we are traveling in early April, right?
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Feb 29, 2012 19:39
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I'll be spending more than 1 day in both cities, Vienna and Istanbul but plan to travel between them on the 1st plus/minus a day or so. If there's no difference in terms of entertaining protests between Istanbul and Vienna then I'll just decide based on schedule.
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Feb 29, 2012 20:05
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jet sanchEz posted:Also, a lot will depend on the weather, which I don't expect to be anything but wet----that makes sense since we are traveling in early April, right? The weather is entirely unpredictable, could be pooring rain or a sunny 20C.
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Feb 29, 2012 20:41
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I'm planning to travel to Europe for around two weeks (17 days total) next July. I have two options right now; it's between travelling Paris->Brussels->Amsterdam->Bonn->Frankfurt->Paris or doing Munich->Vienna->Budapest->Belgrade->Zagreb->Munich. Maybe I'll try to visit a couple of cities close to some of those if I have the chance, but I think both lists are good enough. So, option 1 or option 2? Opinions would be really helpful.
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Mar 1, 2012 04:55
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Any particular reason why you want to visit Bonn and Frankfurt?
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Mar 1, 2012 07:19
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Talas posted:I'm planning to travel to Europe for around two weeks (17 days total) next July. I have two options right now; it's between travelling Paris->Brussels->Amsterdam->Bonn->Frankfurt->Paris or doing Munich->Vienna->Budapest->Belgrade->Zagreb->Munich. Maybe I'll try to visit a couple of cities close to some of those if I have the chance, but I think both lists are good enough. Your two options are very different. To be honest all of the cities in option 1 are fairly overrated (admitted I haven't been to Bonn) and very touristy. That being said Paris and Amsterdam are obviously quintessential tourist experiences for obvious reasons. I didn't think much of Brussels or Frankfurt, there's fair nicer places to see. I'd much prefer option 2, Eastern/Central Europe is fascinating and will probably deliver a more adventurous experience. I can't emphasize enough how touristy places like Paris and Amsterdam are. They're excellent for a day or so, but you'll be sharing your experience with so many others, especially in July! You should probably give us some more information about what you want to get out of your European trip. Going in July will give you lots of options, whether you wish to focus on history, museums, parties, beaches, sport, architecture, women or even food (or all of the above).
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Mar 1, 2012 11:23
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Talas posted:I'm planning to travel to Europe for around two weeks (17 days total) next July. I have two options right now; it's between travelling Paris->Brussels->Amsterdam->Bonn->Frankfurt->Paris or doing Munich->Vienna->Budapest->Belgrade->Zagreb->Munich. Maybe I'll try to visit a couple of cities close to some of those if I have the chance, but I think both lists are good enough. I visited Frankfurt and you should skip it.
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Mar 1, 2012 19:45
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Drei posted:Can I get some suggestions on where to go in Italy? ** Besides the archaeological sites, ** Day 4-6: Arrive in Rome
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Mar 1, 2012 22:23
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Talas posted:I'm planning to travel to Europe for around two weeks (17 days total) next July. I have two options right now; it's between travelling Paris->Brussels->Amsterdam->Bonn->Frankfurt->Paris or doing Munich->Vienna->Budapest->Belgrade->Zagreb->Munich. Maybe I'll try to visit a couple of cities close to some of those if I have the chance, but I think both lists are good enough. And you will be traveling how? If you can modify the second route I would advise to skip Zagreb for something more interesting - either Sarajevo or some coastal town like Split. Zagreb is all right but it can't offer anything special compared to Belgrade and Budapest.
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Mar 2, 2012 00:55
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Doctor Malaver posted:And you will be traveling how? If you can modify the second route I would advise to skip Zagreb for something more interesting - either Sarajevo or some coastal town like Split. Zagreb is all right but it can't offer anything special compared to Belgrade and Budapest. Agreed, but I'd go farther and say Zagreb is not all right. It's boring and industrial-ey. Sarajevo all the way.
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Mar 2, 2012 02:03
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Pablo Bluth posted:A bit late responding to this, but for anyone visiting any of the archaeology in Rome, I highly recommend Rome: An Oxford Archaeological Guide (Oxford Archaeological Guides). Cool thanks - I'll check that out. I've decided to cut any Florence/Tuscany side trips out (I'd rather go some other time, when my Bolognian friends are there too), so it's just gonna be Venice-Rome-Naples with an overnight train back to Milan for the flight home.
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Mar 2, 2012 03:37
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Okay, here's our current itinerary: 3 nights Paris 3 nights Dublin (with Newgrange) 3 nights Doolin, Ireland (Aran Islands, Cliffs of Moher daytrips) 1 night back in Dublin before we catch the next plane 7 nights Budapest 3 nights Vienna 5 nights Prague (day trip to Kutná Hora) Would it be worth it, you think, to cut a few days off Budapest and Prague and go to Amsterdam? Or would that make our trip too fast-paced?
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Mar 2, 2012 03:45
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Saeku posted:Okay, here's our current itinerary: 7 days in Budapest and 5 days in Prague is a fair amount of time. They're both beautiful cities but you've planned for a bit too long there I think. Budapest is easily enjoyed in 2-3 days, as is the same with Prague. You can fly with Easyjet between Prague and Amsterdam for fairly cheap depending on the time of year. Are you travelling with a rail pass or just by air? I've heard Bratislava in Slovakia is amazingly good and definitely worth a look. The plus-side of this is that it's pretty much bang in between Budapest and Prague (and only 50 miles or so from Vienna!) from what I remember. Another option, if you have time, would be to get a train (I think this is doable) to Krakow in Poland. An absolutely beautiful city and well worth the time. You could get a pretty good circle going on if you went Vienna > Bratislava > Budapest > Krakow > Prague (or something like it). If you want to go to Amsterdam, you should. It's a cool city but not worth more than 2 days unless you're really into getting high and/or prostitutes.
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Mar 2, 2012 04:54
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Drei posted:Cool thanks - I'll check that out. Just FYI, in my opinion Florence is a much better destination than Naples.
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Mar 2, 2012 04:56
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elwood posted:Any particular reason why you want to visit Bonn and Frankfurt? PaoFerro posted:You should probably give us some more information about what you want to get out of your European trip. Going in July will give you lots of options, whether you wish to focus on history, museums, parties, beaches, sport, architecture, women or even food (or all of the above). Doctor Malaver posted:And you will be traveling how? If you can modify the second route I would advise to skip Zagreb for something more interesting - either Sarajevo or some coastal town like Split. Zagreb is all right but it can't offer anything special compared to Belgrade and Budapest. I'm inclining for route 2, now it's time to find a cheap flight 
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Mar 2, 2012 05:48
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Talas posted:
Rome, Florence and Barcelona are a must then. Do you enjoy Gaudi architecture? Even if you don't Barcelona is an amazing city with beautiful women and easily connected to all major European cities with the budget airlines. Amsterdam is very cool for architecture and women of course.
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Mar 2, 2012 06:14
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Saeku posted:Okay, here's our current itinerary: As someone who has lived in Dublin my whole life, that's probably too long to spend in Dublin. Spend a day or two in Cork instead, it's only 4 hours on a cheap bus (or three on a train) and for my money it's a more interesting city in many ways.
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Mar 2, 2012 12:38
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Yeah, seriously. I lived in Ireland for 11 years and I am so not impressed with Dublin. Also recommending Dingle on the South West coast where I grew up, lovely seaside town, loads of pubs and bars and restaurants, and our local celebrity Fungi the dolphin, who you can get a boat out to see which is so fun. I have been quite a few times! Insanely beautiful countryside surroundings too, which I guess you're into if you're checking out Aran and the cliffs.
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Mar 2, 2012 13:59
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PaoFerro posted:Rome, Florence and Barcelona are a must then. Do you enjoy Gaudi architecture? Even if you don't Barcelona is an amazing city with beautiful women and easily connected to all major European cities with the budget airlines. Amsterdam is very cool for architecture and women of course.
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Mar 2, 2012 14:25
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Neris posted:Yeah, seriously. I lived in Ireland for 11 years and I am so not impressed with Dublin. Also recommending Dingle on the South West coast where I grew up, lovely seaside town, loads of pubs and bars and restaurants, and our local celebrity Fungi the dolphin, who you can get a boat out to see which is so fun. I have been quite a few times! Yup, Dingle and the rest of Kerry is extremely lovely. Seconded.
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Mar 2, 2012 19:34
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The Viper posted:As someone who has lived in Dublin my whole life, that's probably too long to spend in Dublin. Spend a day or two in Cork instead, it's only 4 hours on a cheap bus (or three on a train) and for my money it's a more interesting city in many ways. As someone who has never been abroad, except for 4 nights in Dublin, I found that I didn't have the time to check out half the places I wanted. Of course, one evening was spent at Croke Park listening to U2 and a day was spent on a tourist trip to Wicklow but still.
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Mar 2, 2012 22:22
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