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Thanks for answering my questions duralict. I've only been to Europe once before, when I did a talk in Amsterdam. Such an awesome experience, one night I had 4 really friendly dutch dudes high out of their mind on ecstasy buy me 200$ at least worth of fancy whiskey, and I'm a dude. So excited for this tripduralict posted:Romania does have dangerous stray dogs but they're not literally maneaters roving the street in packs. They're no more a hazard to Romanian tourists than bears are to campers, you only get in trouble if you do stupid things to antagonize or attract them. You mean like this guy? quote:AW - Detroit, USA 13 March 2011 Searching Romanian stray dogs in google is hilarious. They wait at crosswalks? Thats wild. Watching some youtube videos I now feel pretty sad for those dogs Genderman fucked around with this message at 03:10 on Apr 4, 2013 |
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Apr 4, 2013 03:01
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Can't speak for Berlin/anywhere in Austria, but I feel like both Prague and Florence can each be done in four days or so. Rome is definitely worth more than a day, so you might want to consider cutting back on those two spots to see more of Rome. If you're thinking somewhere in Eastern Europe somewhat near the Czech Republic/Austria, definitely consider Poland. I spent a few days in Krakow a few years back, and it was incredible (I also went in the dead of winter; a summer trip should be a lot more enjoyable)
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Apr 4, 2013 04:38
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Genderman posted:Searching Romanian stray dogs in google is hilarious. They wait at crosswalks? Thats wild. I witnessed this in Bucharest and it blew my mind. Lots of cities have stray cat/dog issues (Rome, Bucharest, Sofia, Marrakesh come immediately to my mind) but I've never seen any aggression personally. I'm by no means an authority on the matter though.
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Apr 4, 2013 04:42
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xcdude24 posted:Can't speak for Berlin/anywhere in Austria, but I feel like both Prague and Florence can each be done in four days or so. Rome is definitely worth more than a day, so you might want to consider cutting back on those two spots to see more of Rome. My eurorail pass can only go up to 4 countries before it gets super expensive I think. edit: Actually sort of important question about eurorail... how strict are they about the age brackets? I'm one year older than youth, can I get away with the youth pass or will they check my ID? Whats the difference between 1st and second class? double edit: and theres also no 2nd class adult tickets? What the hell I want to save 200$ Genderman fucked around with this message at 05:45 on Apr 4, 2013 |
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Apr 4, 2013 05:18
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Genderman posted:My eurorail pass can only go up to 4 countries before it gets super expensive I think. Eurail is really kind of a scam unless you plan on travelling within one or two countries a LOT. If you're going to multiple countries and/or only going to 1 or 2 cities within each country, it's going to be cheaper and more convenient to just buy your tickets at the station. Eurail is great for "I have a month and want to SEE ITALY" but pretty useless for it's typical use in "I have a month and want to SEE EUROPE." Re age brackets: I could imagine them checking in Austria and possibly Germany. No personal experience. If you're really worried, make a photocopy of your passport when you've photoshopped your DOB to make it a year earlier, or alternately an edited scan on your iPad to show to them. NB: this is illegal so make sure border police (if they check your train) don't see it, even though I'm sure they wouldn't notice the changed DOB.
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Apr 4, 2013 07:36
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Saladman posted:Eurail is really kind of a scam unless you plan on travelling within one or two countries a LOT. If you're going to multiple countries and/or only going to 1 or 2 cities within each country, it's going to be cheaper and more convenient to just buy your tickets at the station. I checked out the tickets and it seems that Eurail is still cheaper for my 4 country 5 trips thing. Maybe I'm looking at the wrong places?
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Apr 4, 2013 07:42
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Hog Obituary posted:Okay, I've got 2 full days left (i.e. sleeping 3 more nights) in Barcelona before I leave for Paris. I've done the main touristy things I care about - Montjuic, Sagrada Familia, Parc Guell, Picasso Museum, City History Museum, walked around Las Ramblas and Barri Gotic, and the Gothic Cathedral. Dali Museum in Figueres?
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Apr 4, 2013 08:10
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Captain Apollo posted:On the point about your night trains, it's possible for couples to sleep together, right? My fiance keeps reading about how women have to sleep with other women and shes not comfortable doing that. Well they aren't sleeping with each other as in mandatory lesbianism, at least I don't think so  If you pay for a whole cabin you can fill it however you want, but not all trains offer double cabins only the relatively luxurious ones. The shared cabins are separated by sex, but everyone gets their own bunk. It's really not any different from sleeping in a backpacker hostel or in the army.
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Apr 4, 2013 09:38
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peak debt posted:The shared cabins are separated by sex, but everyone gets their own bunk. It's really not any different from sleeping in a backpacker hostel or in the army. Shared cabins aren't usually separated by sex, if they're ever like that. I've never taken a night train going to/from Spain, but they're certainly not separate anywhere else in Europe. Maybe you can (I guess) specifically request separated ones but it's not default anywhere in Western Europe in my experience or even AFAIK. Where do you take sleeper trains, Peak Debt?
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Apr 4, 2013 11:26
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I've never seen or heard of segregated-sex sleepers on European trains, but I wouldn't be surprised to hear there are some optional girls-only ones.
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Apr 4, 2013 11:29
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Genderman posted:I checked out the tickets and it seems that Eurail is still cheaper for my 4 country 5 trips thing. Maybe I'm looking at the wrong places? Eurail is usually a better deal when Germany is involved than buying individual tickets. It's less worth it in countries where the trains are conspicuously cheaper (like Italy), but even then it's rarely significantly more expensive than the cheapest available. The real value of Eurails is that you can pick trains on a whim and you never have to wait in line (except in Germany where they still usually make you go in and buy a reservation). peak debt posted:The shared cabins are separated by sex, but everyone gets their own bunk. It's really not any different from sleeping in a backpacker hostel or in the army. I can't speak to the army but I can definitely say for certain that gender-designated shared sleeping areas are uncommon in hostels. I've never even heard of it on sleeper trains.
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Apr 4, 2013 11:44
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Genderman posted:I checked out the tickets and it seems that Eurail is still cheaper for my 4 country 5 trips thing. Maybe I'm looking at the wrong places? Probably you're looking at the wrong things? Berlin -> Prague : €66 Prague -> Vienna (don't go to Linz): €60 Vienna -> Florence: €52 Florence -> Rome: €20 For a grand total of €198, which is probably about 1/3rd of the price of the Eurail you're looking at. You could probably even get better deals if you book in advance; I was booking all these trains assuming I was leaving tomorrow, i.e. getting the full-price fare for all tickets.
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Apr 4, 2013 11:45
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One interesting thing about the Eurail is that it's incredibly trivial to abuse, because there's really nothing stopping you from changing the numbers you wrote down in the little boxes.
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Apr 4, 2013 12:22
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I got a Global Eurail pass for 10 days. I'll be traveling in Slovakia, Czech, Germany, Italy and France and compared to individual pricing I've saved a lot. On that note. Has anyone ever taken a train from Berlin to Rome? I know we'd have to stop in Munich.
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Apr 4, 2013 16:36
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duralict posted:One interesting thing about the Eurail is that it's incredibly trivial to abuse, because there's really nothing stopping you from changing the numbers you wrote down in the little boxes. Go on...
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Apr 4, 2013 19:18
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Kolta posted:On that note. Has anyone ever taken a train from Berlin to Rome? I know we'd have to stop in Munich.
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Apr 4, 2013 19:25
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schoenfelder posted:There is no direct train from Berlin to Rome. You would have to change trains one to six times. Why you would want to do that is beyond me as it's a huge hassle and will take somewhere between 17 and > 24 hours. A flight will get you there in less than two hours. I'm thinking of stopping in Munich for maybe a couple days. So technically Munich to Rome afterwards. Another question now would be Florence to Paris? What's that like.
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Apr 4, 2013 20:06
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Kolta posted:I'm thinking of stopping in Munich for maybe a couple days. So technically Munich to Rome afterwards. Another question now would be Florence to Paris? What's that like. You can use any national rail website to query schedules like http://fahrplan.sbb.ch/bin/query.exe/en Seems to take around 10 hours through either Geneva and Turin and there's a night train even.
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Apr 5, 2013 10:34
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How much fun can you have in Paris in rainy spring, without much money and without knowing the language? I wasn't particularly interested in it but I have a chance to stay with a friend (not a local) for free for a week. I'm a generalist, so interested in some culture, some partying, some food, etc. Maybe I'm crazy (it's Paris!), maybe I'm tired of traveling, maybe the constant rain here is making me depressed. I just don't feel like waiting in long lines under umbrella to pay €€€ to be let into Notre Dame / Eiffel Tower / Louvre...
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Apr 5, 2013 16:42
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Doctor Malaver posted:How much fun can you have in Paris in rainy spring, without much money and without knowing the language? I wasn't particularly interested in it but I have a chance to stay with a friend (not a local) for free for a week. I'm a generalist, so interested in some culture, some partying, some food, etc. I went under similar circumstances and there was loads to do. You don't need to speak any actual French as long as you initially address everyone in it (bonjuor, parlais-vous anglais?). If you're on a really tight budget, you'll need to be selective about things (I didn't go inside the Tower, for example) but as long as you can get your hands on a student ID you can afford most of the admission prices even on an ultra-budget. Don't get your hopes up about eating much restaurant food, though, even the bad places in Paris are going to be pretty rough on your wallet. Definitely do whatever you can to get ahold of a student ID, it'll easily cut your costs in half (France has amazingly generous student pricing).
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Apr 5, 2013 17:31
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duralict posted:I went under similar circumstances and there was loads to do. You don't need to speak any actual French as long as you initially address everyone in it (bonjuor, parlais-vous anglais?). If you're on a really tight budget, you'll need to be selective about things (I didn't go inside the Tower, for example) but as long as you can get your hands on a student ID you can afford most of the admission prices even on an ultra-budget. Don't get your hopes up about eating much restaurant food, though, even the bad places in Paris are going to be pretty rough on your wallet. Definitely do whatever you can to get ahold of a student ID, it'll easily cut your costs in half (France has amazingly generous student pricing). What about an out of Europe student ID (In French, O'Canada)? Would that help?
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Apr 5, 2013 17:58
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Kolta posted:What about an out of Europe student ID (In French, O'Canada)? Would that help? No, it has to be European Union, Liechtenstein, or Norway. (European and non-Swiss, mainly. Even Liechtenstein for some reason--assholes.) It'll make the Louvre free and everything else cheaper. Alternately with a Canadian ID card you could try the Louvre anyway, the Louvre is going to be the easiest to "fake it." With a valid student ID you do not need a ticket for the Louvre; just simply walk in one of the entrances and show your ID card to the guard. If they notice you're Canadian, just try one of the other 3 entrances. All under the "Pyramid" main entrance, which is just a metal detector. Again: do not go to the ticket counters at the Louvre, just try your student ID with the guards, at least one of them won't give a poo poo. This technique unfortunately won't work anywhere else IME, but also a lot of places don't check very carefully and you'll only get rejected 1 out of like 10 tries (at least with Swiss-French student IDs). Saladman fucked around with this message at 18:09 on Apr 5, 2013 |
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Apr 5, 2013 18:05
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duralict posted:
That's what I mean! I just don't know what's a must-see/do/eat, and what could be cool if I have extra time. But yeah, point taken about winging it. Long weekends always seem like they merit a bit more planning than a 3 month backpacking extravaganza.
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Apr 5, 2013 18:46
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Kolta posted:What about an out of Europe student ID (In French, O'Canada)? Would that help? My ID is from Massachusetts but it doesn't actually say that on the card. I just smiled a lot and said I was Irish, the few times anyone asked. As long as you're nice to them and plausibly truthful, few people will put up much resistance about it. It'll be harder to bluff since your ID's in French but you'll probably get away with just saying things like "well yeah, I'm dual citizen" if anyone challenges you. As long as you act like that settles it, it probably will. You can always just pay full price if they insist on seeing EU documents. Dana Mania posted:That's what I mean! I just don't know what's a must-see/do/eat, and what could be cool if I have extra time. But yeah, point taken about winging it. Long weekends always seem like they merit a bit more planning than a 3 month backpacking extravaganza. It's funny how that works, considering it's pretty counterintuitive. But yeah, the more time you have the less planning you have to do.
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Apr 5, 2013 18:52
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So far this thread has been extremely helpful. I was wondering on packing. I'm in Europe a total of 2 and a half months. 6 weeks of that is a marketing work internship. After that I'm traveling with my fiance. We have medium luggage but wanna cut down to maybe a couple carry on duffle bags and a few slim backpacks. Any suggestions? Air Canada says we can bring 1 carry on and 1 personal item. Which seems to mean 2 carry ons. Shampoo, razors etc. Will be bought over there.
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Apr 5, 2013 19:16
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I've got 11 days in Berlin, Krakow, Warsaw, and Gdansk coming up this Monday. Anything that I should know?
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Apr 5, 2013 20:49
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Doctor Malaver posted:How much fun can you have in Paris in rainy spring, without much money and without knowing the language? I wasn't particularly interested in it but I have a chance to stay with a friend (not a local) for free for a week. I'm a generalist, so interested in some culture, some partying, some food, etc. There is an 8.50 Euro charge to see the towers at Notre Dame, but you can go into the cathedral itself for free and look around. On the main floor, I believe you only have to pay for the audio tour if you want it. Don't miss it. Also, I believe we only paid 8.50 Euro to take the steps up to the second level of the Eiffel Tower. There was no line for the walk up the steps tickets, but a long one for the lifts (this was a couple weeks ago, so not peak tourist season) and the view was beautiful. Those won't break the bank. Also, the Arc de Triomphe is free to see, the only cost is if you want to look around from the top. I speak very minimal French (enough to say Bonjour and maybe order food) and we did fine. As duralict said above, as long as you can say hello and ask if they speak English, you should be fine.
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Apr 5, 2013 23:48
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Kolta posted:So far this thread has been extremely helpful. I was wondering on packing. I'm in Europe a total of 2 and a half months. 6 weeks of that is a marketing work internship. After that I'm traveling with my fiance. We have medium luggage but wanna cut down to maybe a couple carry on duffle bags and a few slim backpacks. Any suggestions? One backpack each. You are going to really regret having duffel bags to carry around when you're traveling. I recommend http://www.ebags.com/product/ebags/mother-lode-tls-weekender-convertible/143101?productid=10150072
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Apr 6, 2013 01:48
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DNova posted:One backpack each. You are going to really regret having duffel bags to carry around when you're traveling. I recommend http://www.ebags.com/product/ebags/mother-lode-tls-weekender-convertible/143101?productid=10150072 That's awesome! I will check into it. One thing I should mention though is that most of the time the duffel bags aren't going to be with us but either locked up at the hostel or hotel. They are bother under 20 lbs. Kolta fucked around with this message at 02:39 on Apr 6, 2013 |
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Apr 6, 2013 02:28
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Kolta posted:That's awesome! I will check into it. Still, you're not going to want duffel bags. If you have to, get a small suitcase with roller wheels instead.
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Apr 6, 2013 03:08
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Well I've looked into it and I think I'm going to bring my small suitcase with rollers (Carry on) and a slim backpack (Personal item). Both can be up to 22 lbs. The suitcase will carry all my clothes and random items (Med kit, Tylenol, etc.) and my backpack will carry my tablet and work documents. I feel much more comfortable with this set up. Cause I tried the duffel bag and backpack combo and I can see it becoming a major pain in the rear end. It's also worth mentioning that I won't need to check-in anything which saves me from having to chase for bags. Kolta fucked around with this message at 04:55 on Apr 6, 2013 |
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Apr 6, 2013 04:50
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Why not bring a big backpack and just put your carryon inside of it when you have to carry them at the same time?
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Apr 6, 2013 07:40
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How expensive are smokes in Germany? Should I try to buy a carton at the duty-free?
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Apr 7, 2013 06:06
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Alright, I'm in GVA from the 14th till the 19th, arriving at 11am. So if someone wants to kick about on the Sunday, do shout. 
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Apr 7, 2013 09:12
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Genderman posted:How expensive are smokes in Germany? Should I try to buy a carton at the duty-free? Around 5 euros a pack.
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Apr 7, 2013 10:53
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Alright I'm in Paris for a week. If anybody wants to hang out send me a PM or email to hogobituary at gmail.
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Apr 7, 2013 18:20
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HighClassSwankyTime posted:Around 5 euros a pack. Not bad, way better than Canada at least. I'm gonna guess they only get cheaper the further east you go as well.
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Apr 7, 2013 22:17
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Well I caved and bought this. http://www.mec.ca/AST/ShopMEC/Packs/TravelPacks/TravelPacks/PRD~5024-855/mec-wayfarer-travel-pack.jsp Thoughts?
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Apr 7, 2013 23:18
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Genderman posted:Not bad, way better than Canada at least. I'm gonna guess they only get cheaper the further east you go as well. Everything's cheaper behind the old iron curtain!
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Apr 8, 2013 08:25
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Anyone here ever play any golf in Ireland? I'll be there next month and really want to play one of the nice courses like Old Head or Ballybunion. The thing is, I've only been playing golf for a few years now and I'm horrible. Not comically bad but I will definitely slice a majority of the time off the tee. Occasional mishit as well. So the question is, am I good enough for these courses? Should I pick something a little less famous?
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Apr 8, 2013 13:31
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