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Morocco is a wonderful country to visit and the longer you can do the better! If you have around a week you could check out Fez for a day or two (I actually prefer Marrakech to Fez but it's further south so takes longer to get to from Spain) and the small town of Chefchauen is probably my favourite place in the country. It's a small blue-painted town in the Rif mountains and is very beautiful, with friendly people and incredible hiking amongst the mountains. It's less touristy than most cities and a great chilled out place that's awesome to explore.
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Mar 21, 2013 21:43
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This is probably the most related thread to what I want to know: Going to Ireland for two semesters, January to December as part of my university degree. This surrounds the "summer" break, such as it is (coming from Australia), is it going to be an issue if I want to maybe see the rest of the British Isles? How freely can I travel between the countries - do I need to organise this at the same time as I'm organising the main Irish trip, or can I do it once I'm over there, or can I just head over the border no questions asked? And while I'm here, might as well ask: What are some things that I should definitely see through the year? I'll be based in Limerick, but I'm used to long travel times, so a day or two anywhere in Ireland, or a few more anywhere else is fair game for me. This is the first time I've been independently overseas (the only other time I've been OS was in year 9 for a few weeks with a school trip), so tips and pitfalls around that would be very welcome too.
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Mar 22, 2013 10:04
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Thanks for the info on Morocco, very helpful. One more question. What is the deal with alcohol there? It's legal for foreigners, but not always available? I'm not expecting to find crazy clubs but what kind of places are there for drinking? Do you just end up hanging out with other tourists?
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Mar 23, 2013 13:54
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Kase Im Licht posted:Thanks for the info on Morocco, very helpful. One more question. Morocco is quite chill for alcohol, you can buy it in super markets and any restaurants much like in Europe. Even locals drink, although they tend to hide it from their relatives.
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Mar 23, 2013 19:04
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Konig posted:This is probably the most related thread to what I want to know: Going to Ireland for two semesters, January to December as part of my university degree. This surrounds the "summer" break, such as it is (coming from Australia), is it going to be an issue if I want to maybe see the rest of the British Isles? How freely can I travel between the countries - do I need to organise this at the same time as I'm organising the main Irish trip, or can I do it once I'm over there, or can I just head over the border no questions asked? I believe you can be in the UK for up to 6 months without needing any kind of visa. You just need your passport.
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Mar 23, 2013 19:13
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Kase Im Licht posted:Thanks for the info on Morocco, very helpful. One more question. Others have addressed this already, but just to add to what has been said, I remember in Marrakech near the hostel there was this one small boarded up shop with newspapers in the windows, which was kind of a secret off licence. It felt pretty shady. If you get friendly with any locals some of them will drink with you (depending on how devoutly religious they are I guess), I got smashed on whiskey with a Berber guy around a campfire. And marijuana is prevalent as it's grown there but you need to be careful if you choose to buy that.
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Mar 23, 2013 19:31
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Hey guys! I am hoping that you can help me out with something that's been stressing the hell out of me. I will be traveling to Europe for about 2 and a half months. My journey starts in Vienna where I will be staying only a few days. Once that my 2 days are up I am then heading to Bratislava where I will be doing my internship for 6 weeks. My problem starts after my internship is done... I will be leaving from Bratislava to Prague by train and staying at Plus Hostel for 3 days. After that it's Berlin for 5. So far so easy.. My big f-up is Berlin to Rome then Florence to Paris. I have a Eurail pass and it seems that some of the trains I need to reserve before I can get on. However the reservation systems online are a complete pain in the rear end. Most of them can't make the reservation. My question is how likely am I to get a ticket by showing up at the station with the pass. I know the pass holders have limited seating on some trains. The reason why I'm a bit stressed is because all my hotels/hostels have been booked ahead of time and while it's O.K. I miss maybe a day I just don't want to miss 3 or 4 days and risk having to pay for another hostel or hotel while I wait for the next train. I also compared prices online for individual tickets vs the pass and the prices go over the pass even with the reservation costs (For the ones I could find). I also liked the fact that if I'm not able to reserve a high speed train I can just simply take local trains and make my way to the next destination. It would take a bit longer but like I said, I don't mind missing a day at the pre booked hostels and/or hotels. This is my itinerary (After my internship is done) if it helps. Bratislava to Prague Check-in: 16/06/13 Check-out: 19/06/13 Prague to Berlin Check-in: 19/06/13 Check-out: 24/06/13 Berlin to Rome Check-in: 24(25)/06/13 Check-out: 30/06/13 Rome to Florence Check-in: 30/06/13 Check-out: 05/07/13 Florence to Paris Check-in: 05/07/13 Check-out: 10/07/13 (Goodbye Europe) Kolta fucked around with this message at 05:28 on Mar 25, 2013 |
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Mar 25, 2013 05:25
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Rome for a weekend in April. Any tips for making the best use of my time? I'm pretty much going to hit all of the typical tourist attractions listed on Wikitravel. Which museums are must dos? I'm more interested in sculptures, tools, history, etc. What about saving money? When I was in Paris I was surprised that a lot of attractions were free of charge for EU/EEA citizens. Is there anything similar in Rome? (Tip for the Louvre regarding free entrance: in the courtyard there's gonna be two lines, one for ticket holders, and the other for people without tickets. If you're a citizen of the EU/EEA countries then you can just go to the line for ticket holders and walk past the extremely long line of non–ticket holders, and then once you get inside just walk straight up to one of the entrance wings and show the people your ID. No need to wait in line at the ticket booth because they won't give you a ticket and instead just tell you to show your ID.)
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Mar 25, 2013 10:29
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Kolta posted:Hey guys! I am hoping that you can help me out with something that's been stressing the hell out of me. I will be traveling to Europe for about 2 and a half months. My journey starts in Vienna where I will be staying only a few days. Once that my 2 days are up I am then heading to Bratislava where I will be doing my internship for 6 weeks. My problem starts after my internship is done... Don't worry about the train reservations too much. There will be a ticket office in all of the train stations who can help you. Just go to the station one afternoon while you're in Bratislava and get it all done there.
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Mar 25, 2013 11:50
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Doctor Malaver posted:Snow in late March is rare. According to weather reports, "true spring" will begin next week. If you're up for a drink or need specific help/advice, you can PM me. I've never seen a goon IRL. Rare but it happened/is happening!  I just got in on Saturday afternoon. Have been staying with a friend who lives here... despite the snow, it's been a really fun learning experience so far. It feels like I'm an alien having peanut butter explained to them... been to other parts of Europe, never to the Balkans. My friend said everyone speaks English, which seems true to some extent, but it feels like people are really put off when they discover the only Croatian I know is simple stuff like "bok", "prostite", and "hvala" haha. I've been keeping journals of everything but there's just so much I'm taking in that it's impossible to write it all down I'm always game to meet fellow goons. I'll send you a PM!
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Mar 25, 2013 13:59
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Boris Galerkin posted:Rome for a weekend in April. There might be a youth discount on a few things, but you're not going to get free entry to anything, because Italy isn't France. France is one of the only countries that does that free access to almost everything of national importance thing. Also your info about EU citizens at the Louvre (and many other Paris sites of importance) isn't completely correct, you have to be under 26 to get the free entry.
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Mar 25, 2013 17:00
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HookShot posted:If you've only got a weekend, do the Colloseum/Forum one day and the Vatican Museum/St Peter's the next. You're not really going to have time for much more, if you do happen to have time though, the National Museum I thought was pretty good. Honestly though, I'd probably visit a few of the major churches before going to see museums. The museums are cool and all, but Rome is all about being IMMERSED in the history, rather than reading about it. It's unlike any other city I've ever visited that way. Seconding this. To add one more: Galleria Borghese is amazing if you manage to get some tickets in advance. Like a mini cosmos of all that is relevant in classic art. It's small but spectacular wall to wall; the best Bernini statues, fascinating Caravaggio's, thrown together in a crazy opulent building. Also: go in the morning, include a morning walk through the gardens surrounding it. Be on time, they'll kick you out if you stay too long... Tickets over here, be sure to bring a printout of your online reservation: http://www.galleriaborghese.it/borghese/en/einfo.htm
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Mar 25, 2013 19:50
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Has anyone ever stayed in the Plus Hostels? I got them book for Prague, Berlin, Rome and Florence. I heard they offer tours and shuttles to some of the major landmarks and the staff is stellar. Any experiences from fellow goons with Plus Hostel?
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Mar 25, 2013 21:41
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Kolta posted:Has anyone ever stayed in the Plus Hostels? I got them book for Prague, Berlin, Rome and Florence. I heard they offer tours and shuttles to some of the major landmarks and the staff is stellar. Any experiences from fellow goons with Plus Hostel? I looked up the Prague location. It looks like any other modern chain hostel. I'm sure it will be pleasant. Don't worry about it.
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Mar 25, 2013 22:15
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From early May to mid June I'm planning to backpack from Prague to Istanbul, taking about 40-ish days or so. I'm basically thinking of trying to hit most of the capitals of countries along the way - Vienna, Budapest, Zagreb, Sarajevo, Belgrade, Bucharest, Sofia, Skopje, and then like Thessaloniki or something before Istanbul. Any places along the way I should make sure to hit? Places from that list to avoid or not spend much time in? Advice in general?
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Mar 26, 2013 00:59
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Bucharest and especially Sofia are both among the least interesting places in their respective countries. Bulgaria is a surprisingly excellent place for food, especially if you like elaborate salads. Go to Veliko Turnovo (Bulgaria) and try to get out to Buzludja if you can. Buzludja is an abandoned Soviet monument that looks like something straight out of a Fallout game, built on top of a remote hill. It may or may not be available because you're basically trespassing when you go there and the government occasionally makes halfhearted efforts to close it up.  Plan ahead for international connections. While domestic bus and train service is usually pretty comprehensive, your options for transit across national borders are much more limited and usually only go through major hubs.
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Mar 26, 2013 02:44
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Im planning a trip to La tomatina festival in spain this year and was wondering if anyone has any recommendations on any day bus tours from valencia. Were looking for something thats not super sketchy that can get us there and back
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Mar 26, 2013 04:57
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Kolta posted:Has anyone ever stayed in the Plus Hostels? I got them book for Prague, Berlin, Rome and Florence. I heard they offer tours and shuttles to some of the major landmarks and the staff is stellar. Any experiences from fellow goons with Plus Hostel? I stayed at the PLUS Berlin. It was cheap, clean, and pretty drat modern. It's also creepy as gently caress because when I went because it had recently opened (?), so it was mostly empty, the walls are some crazy rear end purple color and smelled of fresh paint, and the ceiling was freakishly tall. I honestly felt like I was wandering around in some crazy fun-house at times. I'll dig up some pictures if I can. I don't think they offered tours/shuttles, at least I was there, but the staff was great and told us all the nice clubs/bars/etc to see. They also gave us some vouchers for the Matrix club that is right across the street. Which also by the way, gets noisy as poo poo so be prepared to be staying up listening to lots of drunk people, seeing drunk people pissing everywhere, and loud music. I also highly recommend going to the club though because it was so god drat fun.
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Mar 26, 2013 07:35
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Xaris posted:I stayed at the PLUS Berlin. It was cheap, clean, and pretty drat modern. It's also creepy as gently caress because when I went because it had recently opened (?), so it was mostly empty, the walls are some crazy rear end purple color and smelled of fresh paint, and the ceiling was freakishly tall. I honestly felt like I was wandering around in some crazy fun-house at times. I'll dig up some pictures if I can. That's cool. I'll be staying from Kolta fucked around with this message at 13:47 on Mar 26, 2013 |
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Mar 26, 2013 13:42
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Konig posted:And while I'm here, might as well ask: What are some things that I should definitely see through the year? I'll be based in Limerick, but I'm used to long travel times, so a day or two anywhere in Ireland, or a few more anywhere else is fair game for me. This is the first time I've been independently overseas (the only other time I've been OS was in year 9 for a few weeks with a school trip), so tips and pitfalls around that would be very welcome too. Just giving you a heads up, Limerick is known for being a bit grim (although not in a terrible way but it's not the lush rolling greenery and leprechaun vibe other places have - see the Rubber Bandits for more ) but there is a shitload of gorgeous stuff near you. Primarily I usually recommend Dingle where I grew up as an ideal tourist desination in this thread, you see here I've written about it. Also, Killarney national park is absolutely beautiful, and Cork city is a really nice place too.
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Mar 26, 2013 14:39
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Kolta posted:Hey guys! I am hoping that you can help me out with something that's been stressing the hell out of me. I will be traveling to Europe for about 2 and a half months. My journey starts in Vienna where I will be staying only a few days. Once that my 2 days are up I am then heading to Bratislava where I will be doing my internship for 6 weeks. My problem starts after my internship is done... Hey there! If you want to grab a beer or whatever while you're in Bratislava, PM me (or send an e-mail to my username at gmail dot com).
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Mar 27, 2013 16:28
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vetinari100 posted:Hey there! If you want to grab a beer or whatever while you're in Bratislava, PM me (or send an e-mail to my username at gmail dot com). Yeah that sounds good! I'll be doing my internship in Nitra but I do plan on traveling between Nitra and Bratislava often. I will send off an email to ya soon to start something up!
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Mar 28, 2013 02:48
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I just booked a flight from London to Prague for late November, and one from Budapest back to London about 3 weeks later. I want to hit up Austria on my way between the two countries. I'm mostly going for the Christmas markets, but what is some other stuff to do in Czech Republic/Austria/Hungary for 3ish weeks between Nov 24 and Dec 16. This is way early to ask, but I had to take advantage of 20 pound flights.
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Mar 28, 2013 15:19
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quote:I just booked a flight from London to Prague for late November, and one from Budapest back to London about 3 weeks later. I want to hit up Austria on my way between the two countries. Melk is a pretty cool daytrip from Vienna, and if you can take some time to do some exploring in the small towns up the Donau, all the better. Try to find a Heuriger around that area - they're Austrian wine bars that serve local wine and awesome charcuterie-type stuff, and the stuff in the Donau valley is way better than the ones you'll find near Vienna. The Melk monastery is pretty great too, if you're into the whole old, ridiculously baroque palace type thing. It's a pretty obvious spot, but don't leave Budapest without checking out the baths - preferably the morning after a long night of drinking. If you want something a little bigger than a daytrip, both Hallstatt and Innsbruck are pretty incredible for scenery. Hallstatt does shut down quite a bit during the winter though. On the eve of St. Nicholas' day they have a pretty big market / celebration with Krampuses (it's insane, go research it) running around the town. enki42 fucked around with this message at 16:05 on Mar 28, 2013 |
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Mar 28, 2013 16:03
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enki42 posted:Melk is a pretty cool daytrip from Vienna, and if you can take some time to do some exploring in the small towns up the Donau, all the better. Try to find a Heuriger around that area - they're Austrian wine bars that serve local wine and awesome charcuterie-type stuff, and the stuff in the Donau valley is way better than the ones you'll find near Vienna. I recently moved to Vienna and I was really disappointed that Krampus isn't a big deal here. I think this year I want to go one of the smaller towns where they go all out for it.
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Mar 28, 2013 16:38
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AKA Pseudonym posted:If you're in the mood for more Swiss food Cafe Bourg-de-Four has great Rostis (Very similar to hash-browns but cook slightly differently and usually topped with cheese or eggs or something) and on the same street Cafe Navy Bar has very good Raclette (Melted cheese you spread on potatoes) I'm flying from Singapore to Geneva on the 14th through the 19th of April, so if anyone wants to kick about for an evening (or show me how to try to have fun in Geneva) I'll be there. Few beers anyone?
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Mar 28, 2013 19:43
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enki42 posted:Melk is a pretty cool daytrip from Vienna, and if you can take some time to do some exploring in the small towns up the Donau, all the better. Try to find a Heuriger around that area - they're Austrian wine bars that serve local wine and awesome charcuterie-type stuff, and the stuff in the Donau valley is way better than the ones you'll find near Vienna. Fantastic, this is the sort of thing I was after. Thanks!
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Mar 28, 2013 23:02
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Commodore 64 posted:They're playing at the Black Isle Showgrounds and they have tickets packages that include travel to/from pretty much anywhere in Scotland. I've been looking at Edinburgh since that's the big city (no offense to Glasgow) and everything happens there. Bumping my question from last page and I've got a few more. For phone service; who's got the best coverage/lowest cost prepaid plan? I've got a Nexus 4 and I'd be looking for a lot of data since I'll be using that for my map/PC/phone service over GrooveIP. Would anyone recommend a tour from either MacBackpackers or Haggis Adventures or would I be better off trying to find my own way up north? I think I can manage the cities, but getting through the countryside would be a problem if I want to see Skye and the north.
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Mar 29, 2013 06:25
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Is it even worth exploring a potential trip to Austria and Germany for late May of this year? The flight selection seems quite limited, and what is available is expensive. I don't know if there's any specific airport in either country (or even neighboring country that is a rail pass train ride away) that I should be concentrating on in terms of having a better selection of flights that originate in the U.S., but if so I'd appreciate any suggestions. I realize this isn't an ideal method of trip planning but let's say that the cost of the trip is covered if I can find a reasonable flight, should I explore the options or forget it?
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Mar 29, 2013 16:56
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Sand Monster posted:Is it even worth exploring a potential trip to Austria and Germany for late May of this year? The flight selection seems quite limited, and what is available is expensive. I don't know if there's any specific airport in either country (or even neighboring country that is a rail pass train ride away) that I should be concentrating on in terms of having a better selection of flights that originate in the U.S., but if so I'd appreciate any suggestions. I realize this isn't an ideal method of trip planning but let's say that the cost of the trip is covered if I can find a reasonable flight, should I explore the options or forget it? Also try Bratislava. It's about an hour from Vienna by train. Something like 15 euros one way I think.
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Mar 29, 2013 16:58
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Did you try skyscanner with a broad search? Like US -> Germany with flexible dates. Cause i just hit some random dates in there and it gives me flights for around 650 euro which is very reasonable.
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Mar 29, 2013 17:04
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Rojkir posted:Did you try skyscanner with a broad search? Like US -> Germany with flexible dates. Cause i just hit some random dates in there and it gives me flights for around 650 euro which is very reasonable. I hadn't done that, but it seems like there are a lot of options, just nothing particularly great for my origin airport. I think I'll explore some "multi-city" options. Anyone have recommendations for an east coast airport that I should try to look at? Shorter duration for the trans-Atlantic portion is highly preferred.
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Mar 29, 2013 17:47
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The farther north/east, the shorter the flight duration. But they'll all be within like a 30-45 minute window. Boston, Newark and JFK are the main hubs for trans-atlantic, and I've found Boston is consistently $100-200 cheaper than the New York airports.
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Mar 29, 2013 17:53
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Aimee posted:Rare but it happened/is happening! I'm really enjoying the blog! Having said that out loud I'm gonna send you some PM comments as this thread seems to be more about travel technicalities than culture discussion.
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Mar 30, 2013 00:00
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kru posted:I'm flying from Singapore to Geneva on the 14th through the 19th of April, so if anyone wants to kick about for an evening (or show me how to try to have fun in Geneva) I'll be there. Few beers anyone? Gonna be going into work early that week so I'm only available for so much fun. But a few beers wouldn't hurt a bit. Where are you planning on staying?
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Mar 30, 2013 01:20
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I'm NH Airport or Movenpick - I'm working out about 5/10 mins from CERN. Down for a beer/coffee though, agreed on nothing serious - my meetings will be hard going too.
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Mar 30, 2013 03:59
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I'll be flying into Catania, Sicily from London for a long weekend at the end of May, and I'm trying to figure out what to do with myself. I arrive the Thursday morning, and leave the Tuesday morning, so I basically have 4.5 days. I was thinking of staying in Catania, and doing day trips to Syracuse and somewhere else (maybe Taromina, but it looks a bit swish for my taste?). I'm really open to suggestions and ideas, though!
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Mar 31, 2013 16:22
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For those with Paris travel experience: What is the best way to pick up a Visite Pass and any suggestions of which to buy would also be appreciated. Also, what cellphone company usually has the best reception throughout the city?
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Apr 1, 2013 00:04
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net work error posted:For those with Paris travel experience: What is the best way to pick up a Visite Pass and any suggestions of which to buy would also be appreciated. Also, what cellphone company usually has the best reception throughout the city? Where are you coming from? I found out that I could buy them in the St. Pancras rail station before the train left London. The 1 day Visite passes were 10 Euro there. If you're not buying there, from what I've read the self service ticket machines in Paris require an embedded computer chip if you're paying with a credit card, something American card companies don't seem to have, so be aware before you go. Cacafuego fucked around with this message at 01:55 on Apr 2, 2013 |
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Apr 1, 2013 02:33
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I got another question that hopefully some goons can shed some light on. How hard/easy is it going to be for me to figure out the public transport system. I know every country is going to be different but for example, when I get to the Vienna International Airport and want to take a bus to my hotel, how do I go about doing this? Is it going to be obvious and easy, or am I going to go insane and find myself at total opposite ends of the country. Also anyone ever take a bus from Vienna to Bratislava and or Nitra? I figure it's pretty easy to figure out once you find the bus terminal.
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Apr 1, 2013 09:12
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