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duralict posted:I would strongly advise not buying much in advance on a trip this long, because you should leave the option open to dive more into a particular country (or even city) if it draws you in. I did a very similar trip and I did plenty of jumping around but I also ended up spending a full month of my 3-month Schengen visa just on northern Italy because I liked it so much. Yes, this too, of course. If you're really, really worried about not having a place to stay, you can always book a week or two in advance, but you should try and leave your schedule at least somewhat open during your first trip to Europe.
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Jan 8, 2013 18:52
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Thanks for the opinions. I haven't really planned that much of my trip out. Really all I have so far is the first week in Scotland somewhat planned out. I think I am going to expand past my first few countries and maybe into the Balkans so I don't go over my time in Schengen. I guess I initially thought of going to all the major cities and towns and finding things to do and see instead of finding things I wanted to do and see first and then plan on the route. To be honest all I've actually bought in advance is a plane ticket to Glasgow. Hopefully I didn't give the impression I've planned it all out because in reality I've only planned the first week. (And even that is pretty rudimentary).
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Jan 8, 2013 19:42
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djf posted:Going to Budapest for 4 days at the end of February and looking for suggestions for things that shouldn't be missed. Going to be a group of 5 guys in our mid-twenties. Appreciate that the timing is probably not the best and that it's going to be pretty chilly but it is what it is. Open to any ideas be they cultural or alcohol based. I went with some friends a couple of years ago. It's a great city and there's loads to do so the weather shouldn't hinder you too much. I found that a good place to start a night out is Select bar which is a cool dive bar with some hallucinogenic decor (think giant winged owl/cat hybrid statues with tits and arcs of taxidermied bunnies). Most of the the night life and downtown seemed to be based nearish an underground station called octagon so if you haven't booked a place yet it might be worth looking there. Budapest is pretty famous for its baths, I liked the old fashioned one in the park near hero square but there is one on an island in the Danube that was recommended to me that is a lot bigger. It was shut for maintenance when I was in Budapest so I can't tell you for sure but it didn't look as 'nice' imo when I went to the island. The underground system for Budapest is pretty old fashioned but awesome to get around the city and it is a lot cheaper to get a book of tickets from a kiosk than buying them at the station. Also if you are feeling brave and/or skint you can get a few journeys out of one ticket. As for scams the airport taxi is, as typical, a massive ripoff so you may be better off calling a cab firm and waiting as the rest of the cabs are cheap and the operators on the phone speak good English. If you are coming from the uk my friend goes there once a year and the exchange rate from Sterling to Hungarian is always better in Hungary. Also in my experience it seemed that every time I ordered chicken I was served turkey to the point that I was sure that I had eaten at a KFT while I was there. madey fucked around with this message at 09:27 on Jan 9, 2013 |
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Jan 9, 2013 01:31
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I just got back from a 3 week trip and spent 4 nights in Budapest. It is an awesome city and the people there seem to really like americans/american culture. I had at least 4-5 people stop on the street and help me when I was clearly lost/looking for something. You should definitely check out the baths, they are awesome and super relaxing. If you can, try and go to one of their night time parties they throw before they change the water out. These occur pretty infrequently but they are awesome. I extended a night just to go to the big one at Szechnyi and it was incredible. Definitely recommended. Like madey said, alot of nightlife and such is centered around the 'Octagon' which is a stop on the metro. Its pretty much the city center. Also the metro is quick and easy but be careful riding for free, they usually have old rail security posted at the entrances of busier stations and they will make sure you punch your ticket into the machine. It isnt super serious and i honestly got through by just pretending to do it a few times. However make sure you always have at least one old ticket on you because they do check on the trains sometimes but a quick flash of your orange ticket will usually be enough to get them out of your face. I dont know where you are staying but I will definitely recommend avoiding both the Carpe Noctem Hostel and Retox. If you want me to go into more details I will but i will just say that both places are run by very immature staff who basically use the hostel as one big gently caress party with no regards to the guests. Kind of annoying. a creepy colon fucked around with this message at 16:02 on Jan 9, 2013 |
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Jan 9, 2013 15:59
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I'd aso appreciate some Budapest advice, we're going in 10 days time for 4 nights, Thurs - Mon. We live in the UK and often take city trips in winter due to it being nice and cheap, so are prepared for the cold. We're both in our 20's (well actually its my other half's 30th while we're there!) aren't going to drink/party, more to eat good food and see lots of awesome stuff 
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Jan 14, 2013 21:08
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I will be staying in Slovakia for 6 weeks for an internship. After my 6 weeks are up I will be traveling to: Berlin 10 days Rome 7 days Paris 10 days My main question is how easy will it be for me to get from Berlin to Rome, then Rome to Paris? I've heard Ryanair is horrible, but I am not opposed to going by train. I have plenty of time to kill.
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Jan 15, 2013 00:40
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I did Paris to Rome then Rome to Berlin in the spring of last year. We flew because gently caress being on a train for like 14 hours. Don't fly RyanAir into Paris, they go through the third airport whose name I can't even remember (it starts with a C!) but is like 3 hours outside of Paris and public transport doesn't go to it. We took Air Berlin for the Rome-Berlin part and they were really good. We took EasyJet from Paris to Rome, who were ok, but not as good. They were like $300 cheaper than the next tickets that weren't EasyJet though, so there's that. If you fly, I personally find CDG a way better airport to get to and navigate than Orly in Paris, so try and get an airline that flies out of CDG.
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Jan 15, 2013 01:29
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HookShot posted:
Good to hear. I'm pretty sure I'll be taking EasyJet from Schiphol to Prague as they seem to be the only airline that actually makes that route.
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Jan 15, 2013 08:42
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HookShot posted:I did Paris to Rome then Rome to Berlin in the spring of last year. We flew because gently caress being on a train for like 14 hours. It can be fun in the right circumstances. Also sometimes the scenery is worth going through. My record is around 30 hours on a train. I hope someday I will beat that on the Transmongolian railway. sleepy gary fucked around with this message at 11:29 on Jan 15, 2013 |
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Jan 15, 2013 11:27
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See that's what I like about the train is being able to sit, relax and enjoy the scenery. I don't see myself going on trains from Berlin to Rome but maybe Rome to Paris.
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Jan 15, 2013 11:31
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Anyone ever drive up from Lisbon to Galicia? We just booked two weeks to Lisbon but beyond that don't have any hard plans. The primary idea is to rent a car and spend one of the weeks exploring the towns and cities of Galicia (Santiago, Vigo, Lugo, Oerense...) or some combination thereof. Or we could take the train. The train apparently has several transfers, which is fin since those would function as our stops to explore. Our primary interest is food and wine. Any thoughts? (Also, we would need a quick lesson in driving manual, but assuming the roads in this region are ok I don't think we'd be in over our depth. Anyone know how the roads are?)
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Jan 15, 2013 12:10
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Going to Europe for the first time in late may for for just over 7 weeks. One of those weeks is visiting friends and so will be separate. The must hits on our list are: London, Berlin, Venice, Florence, Rome, Paris, Brussels, Amsterdam I would also like to throw in Munich but I don't know if I'm already stretching it thin. So I guess what I'm asking is: Is this too much travelling already for six weeks or is Munich worth adding in? We mostly like to look around great cities, not too interested in the nightlife or outdoorsy adventures. Is the order I put those cities in a decent way to do it? I'm trying to sort out transport and there are so many options, if going a different way is better/cheaper/easier we are happy to change the order. edit: not that we don't enjoy some good clubbing, but we can do that at home. Caedes fucked around with this message at 13:44 on Jan 15, 2013 |
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Jan 15, 2013 13:03
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Caedes posted:Going to Europe for the first time in late may for for just over 7 weeks. One of those weeks is visiting friends and so will be separate. The must hits on our list are: There's a train that goes straight from London to Paris, and another that goes straight from London to Brussels. So it would make the most sense to have one of those cities be second if you're flying into London.
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Jan 15, 2013 15:08
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Caedes posted:Going to Europe for the first time in late may for for just over 7 weeks. One of those weeks is visiting friends and so will be separate. The must hits on our list are: That looks doable, you should still have a few whole days in each city. If you feel that 3 or 4 days in a city is enough to do what you want there, adding Munich could be a decent idea. If not, then you still have a varied list that you're unlikely to get bored with. quote:Is the order I put those cities in a decent way to do it? I'm trying to sort out transport and there are so many options, if going a different way is better/cheaper/easier we are happy to change the order. Depends on how you're planning on travelling between cities. If you're flying, the order shouldn't matter much, but if you want to take trains (or drive) (which could be a good idea for London-Brussels-Amsterdam at least) then obviously minimizing the distance traveled would be in your interests. Unless you intend to go to Italy by train, I'd also recommend going to Rome before Venice and Florence, since it would probably give you more options to work with if you're flying.
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Jan 15, 2013 15:12
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Thanks for the info both above.Waci posted:Depends on how you're planning on travelling between cities. If you're flying, the order shouldn't matter much, but if you want to take trains (or drive) (which could be a good idea for London-Brussels-Amsterdam at least) then obviously minimizing the distance traveled would be in your interests. Unless you intend to go to Italy by train, I'd also recommend going to Rome before Venice and Florence, since it would probably give you more options to work with if you're flying. This seems like a better idea, as we were thinking about taking a sleeper train from Venice to Paris. Is getting from Munich to Rome going to be a hassle? Otherwise we will fly from Berlin to Rome.
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Jan 15, 2013 16:02
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maxnmona posted:There's a train that goes straight from London to Paris, and another that goes straight from London to Brussels. So it would make the most sense to have one of those cities be second if you're flying into London. We were planning to fly from London to Berlin, as it's so cheap compared to the train as far as I can tell, is that not advised? Caedes fucked around with this message at 16:08 on Jan 15, 2013 |
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Jan 15, 2013 16:05
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Caedes posted:We were planning to fly from London to Berlin, as it's so cheap compared to the train as far as I can tell, is that not advised? If you're flying everywhere, then it matters a lot less the order. It makes more sense to order it based on cheapest airfare dates instead of geographical location in that case.
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Jan 15, 2013 16:19
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maxnmona posted:If you're flying everywhere, then it matters a lot less the order. It makes more sense to order it based on cheapest airfare dates instead of geographical location in that case. I can't believe this didn't even occur to me. I was hung up on trying to make a nice loop of the places we wanted to go. Makes perfect sense.
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Jan 15, 2013 16:28
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If you were taking trains a nice loop would be essential but like everyone said if you're just flying everywhere try to do it as cheap as possible. Do you plan on flying into Rome and taking the trains to Venice/Florence? Personally if I was you I would fly into London, then fly into Paris, then fly into Rome from there and take trains the rest of the trip. This would give you alot more flexibility in your trip and allow you to add/subtract destinations much easier. ie you could stop in Vienna/Bratislava when you leave Italy, and make another stop in Munich on your way to Berlin. The train rides in southern Germany/Austria/Czech Republic are simply beautiful. Just my opinion but 7 weeks is plenty of time for some extra stops. Also, might want to read about the current situation in Venice right now because I know they had 3 very serious floods in November in which many parts of the city were closed/inaccessible. The situation might not be much better right now. a creepy colon fucked around with this message at 17:07 on Jan 15, 2013 |
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Jan 15, 2013 17:05
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Limastock posted:If you were taking trains a nice loop would be essential but like everyone said if you're just flying everywhere try to do it as cheap as possible. Do you plan on flying into Rome and taking the trains to Venice/Florence? This is a great idea, I'll have to look into the Eurail passes. Wasn't aware of the Venice situation, hopefully it's not too bad. The initial decider to see Europe was to get to Venice in case it becomes inaccessible in the future.
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Jan 15, 2013 17:29
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If you're leaving in late May, I would maybe also hit the Italian cities ASAP, unless you really like the heat. We were there in early May and sometimes the mid-20s temperatures were getting to be pretty bad, since for a lot of the thing you'll do in Rome you'll be outside the entire time.
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Jan 15, 2013 19:06
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London, Paris, Brussels and Amsterdam are a lot closer together than you might realize. The train through the Channel gets pretty pricey if you buy it late, but you should really train these legs if you can. (Venice, Florence and Rome aren't much farther apart, but the trains are a lot slower in Italy.) Personally I'd use Rome and London as end points and take the train the rest of the way, that way your only long train rides will be to and from Berlin where it's all ICE (very very fast trains). You should really try to connect Italy and Berlin on the train, pretty much no matter which specific path you take that whole area is gorgeous train rides. (And you should consider stopping somewhere in Austria, Switzerland or southern Germany, because that's also by far the longest train ride you'd be looking at and you'd be going straight through huge draws like Vienna or Munich anyway.) I was in Italy in June and July and it was very pleasantly warm, but then I said the same thing about Egypt and Jordan in the middle of August, so take that with a grain of salt.
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Jan 15, 2013 23:35
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Hi guys, I land in London around 5am in a couple of weeks. I figure it'll take at least an hour to get out of heathrow then I'm catching a train to arsenal station to drop my stuff off at a friends place before they head to work. I'll be coming from Australian summer so after dropping off my luggage I'll need to get some warm clothing. Any suggestions for wear I should get a warm coat and have a nice relaxing day in London half asleep?
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Jan 16, 2013 10:33
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I think giving it an hour to get out of Heathrow is sensible, then yeah just take the Piccadilly line straight to Arsenal station - it will take over an hour to get over there. Normally with loads of luggage at rush hour this might be a bit of a pain but you get on at the start of the line just before the real crush starts up for the day. If you are arriving on a Sunday the trains won't even leave until 6am. If you are arriving on a weekday the journey will be quite expensive at that time of day, either a £5 single on an Oyster card or you can get the £16.40 travelcard for the day. Prices are £3/£8.90 on a weekend/after 9.30am Weather wise we seem to be in a bit of a cold spell right now with temperatures hovering around 0C all the time. This could go away by February though, usually the temperature is more like 5C. So yes a nice warm coat will be needed, but you shouldn't need an entire new wardrobe. There probably won't be any snow, its more likely you will need to simply keep yourself dry. Is it definitely easier to buy a coat over here? I mean otherwise there are countless places to get a coat, I wouldn't know where to start. As for what to do for a relaxing day, we are gonna need more info on what kind of things you might be interested in.
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Jan 16, 2013 18:29
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So I'm thinking about heading to Spain to do this tour: http://www.imtbike.com/tours/gp-catalunya-tour/ in June, and I'd probably aim to spend another couple of days in Barcelona either before or after the tour kicks off. I'm trying to sort out a budget to see if I can afford it, how expensive is Spain? Accomodation and breakfast/dinner is included, but will need to be paying for lunch and petrol (would probably use somewhere in the range of 100-120 litres) for the 10 days. How much would be a reasonable amount to cover that, plus, say, 3 nights accommodation and meals in Barcelona? (I'd probably budget something like 500Euros as other spending money on top) Plus, is June summer holidays, or do they start later in July/August?
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Jan 20, 2013 15:09
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Limastock posted:
Ha, I think I stayed at the Carpe Noctem Hostel when I visited Budapest in like 2006. I seem to remember that one of the workers hooked up with a guest. But everyone seemed friendly and helpful. I seem to remember that the layout of the hostel was pretty cool.
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Jan 21, 2013 11:47
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The layout is ok, and it isnt even that I dont like the 'apartment style' hostel. I love greg and tom in krakow and it was a similar set up. I just didnt like the lack of personal space at carpe noctem and the fact that their nightly events were kind of a rip off. ie. take 12 residents of the hostel to another hostel with a bar and charge them 30$ for 'all you can drink' when all the drinks are either piss water hungarian equivalent of miller light or some watered down margarita mix. Some of the employees were helpful but it was just a bad bad vibe in there.
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Jan 21, 2013 16:52
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sewersider posted:Hi guys, I land in London around 5am in a couple of weeks. I figure it'll take at least an hour to get out of heathrow then I'm catching a train to arsenal station to drop my stuff off at a friends place before they head to work. I'll be coming from Australian summer so after dropping off my luggage I'll need to get some warm clothing. Any suggestions for wear I should get a warm coat and have a nice relaxing day in London half asleep? You don't even necessarily need to buy a coat, layering works too. A light jacket worn with two pullovers and a t-shirt will give just as much insulation as a heavy winter jacket.
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Jan 22, 2013 04:02
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Yeah I should be ok, it'll be interesting going from 34 in Sydney to 0 in London. But I've camped in the snow with the gear I got so I should be ok. A tour through the tube (Heathrow to Arsenal) at peak hour will be balls though.
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Jan 22, 2013 04:39
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Fun thread, I read the first ten pages and the last ten pages. I remember there use to be a thread called "ask me about Germany" but have trouble finding it (I do have archives). Fun thread, I read the first ten pages and the last ten pages. Finally the German thread, cross posting: Hi Goons, China goon here and I will be going to Berlin for 1 week this coming June for work. It will be in a large convention centre called Messe? but luckily the company will grant me a few days of holiday to go sight seeing. I have been to Berlin over 10 years ago before the age of smart phones, city wifi, internet, and look forward going again. Berlin is my favourite European city, the wide streets, the architecture, the new modern feeling  And the font for signs. Sorry to be Berlin specific but if someone can answer a few questions that would be great.
Thanks again everyone! And is there a Berlin goon group or goon meet? That would be fun if someone wants to meet a Chinese guy who grew up in Canada yet paid  Meeting locals/expats for a night would be awesome. You guys would probably know your way around a lot more than a tourist like me. Plus that means I won't get robbed. Perhaps a kidney stolen but I'm cool  And if you guys have any requests for Chinese food, souvenirs or items I can gladly bring. Most overseas goons I have met are a really fun bunch. If someone can host for me I would definitely set up a Hong Kong welcome party  caberham fucked around with this message at 05:17 on Jan 23, 2013 |
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Jan 22, 2013 08:51
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caberham posted:Fun thread, I read the first ten pages and the last ten pages. I remember there use to be a thread called "ask me about Germany" but have trouble finding it (I do have archives). http://forums.somethingawful.com/showthread.php?threadid=3205129
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Jan 22, 2013 13:14
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maxnmona posted:For those interested in the full plan, with transits. Also in writing it all out I realized I had skipped a date, so I actually have 9 days in Spain instead of 8 to split between the two cities: I've since cut my plan down even more by cutting out Innsbruck (probably not a great destination in winter anyway) and Milan (only going for the airport, and I realized I could just go straight from the train to the airport the day of my flight). New plan: 1/28 morning - 1/31 evening London (4 days) Night ferry to Amsterdam 2/1 morning - 2/4 evening Amsterdam (4 days) Night train to Prague 2/5 morning to 2/9 morning Prague (4 days) Bus or train to Munich 2/9 noon to 2/13 night Munich (4.5 days) Night train to Venice 2/14 morning to 2/17 morning Venice (3 days) 2/17: Travel day. Train to Milan, flight from Milan to Barcelona landing that evening. 2/17 evening to 2/22 morning Barcelona (4 days) Train to Madrid 2/22 morning to 2/27 morning Madrid (5 days, including day trip to Toledo) Flight to Paris 2/27 morning to 3/4 morning Paris (5 days) Fly home Now I'm spending 4 days in most cities except 3 in Venice and 5 in Madrid (or Barcelona if I like it a lot) and Paris. maxnmona fucked around with this message at 18:08 on Jan 22, 2013 |
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Jan 22, 2013 18:05
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If you're going through Milan anyway, try to time it so you have 3-4 hours there. It has an epic cathedral and a cool old fortress/palace thing that was at one point a major seat of government, and they're both worth at least a pass-through. (Also they're like 4 blocks apart.)
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Jan 23, 2013 04:17
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ah double post sorry  Europe is awesome.
caberham fucked around with this message at 05:17 on Jan 23, 2013 |
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Jan 23, 2013 05:04
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Europe is awesome and I'll finally be going back after a 4 year hiatus! We'll be in Paris for 8 full days in mid May. I have been before but for only a couple days. I'm excited to take the time to fully explore the city with a trip to Versailles. We're also considering doing a quick trip outside the region. So where should I go for a one or two day trip from Paris? Current options include (but aren't limited to)...
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Jan 25, 2013 21:35
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Go to Versailles when the Notre Dame market is open, it's a whole outdoor market made entirely of ancient French specialty food stands. You can easily spend the whole day lounging around in the palace gardens with some fancy cheese and wine. Don't try to see London or get to Switzerland and back in a day trip, that's crazy. In fact with just 8 days (and one already reserved for Versailles), are you sure you want to leave Paris at all? Don't overbook yourself.
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Jan 26, 2013 02:22
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A nice one or two-day trip might be going south (by train) to around Limoges, rent a car there ( or in Paris and drive) and just drive around the region. They have lots of great local food and wine down south. Orleans is along the way, but I find that kind of boring and average, no redeeming qualities and like everything that's remotely close to Paris it's poo poo, because Paris is where it happens in France. If you're willing to go further you can think about Lyon or Amsterdam. Both totally different from each other and Paris. But book train tickets early, so you get them at a reasonable price.
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Jan 26, 2013 02:33
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duralict posted:Don't try to see London or get to Switzerland and back in a day trip, that's crazy. In fact with just 8 days (and one already reserved for Versailles), are you sure you want to leave Paris at all? Don't overbook yourself. I agree with this. Eight days is a good length for a trip to Paris in my opinion, and Versailles is pretty much a day trip all on its own. If you had two weeks, sure, go elsewhere, but don't do it if you've only got eight days.
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Jan 26, 2013 03:17
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Me and my girl friend  are going to Barcelona this Easter (28th of March - 1st of April). We're staying in a hotel in the old town.Any good restaurants which also serve vegetarian food? (Of course there are, but some names would be cool) Any nice museums/art galleries that most tourists normally miss? Also looking to find some interesting outdoor markets and record shops.
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Jan 31, 2013 17:53
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If anyone is going to Scotland or thinking of going to Scotland as part of a longer European trip, I can thoroughly recommend the conservation weeks run by these guys https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tgWmuJwOjJY You will be doing good solid work planting trees on a hill or making fences, plus it's loads of fun, and you get to experience the highlands in a very different way than most tourists or trekkers.
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Feb 2, 2013 21:36
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