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Hello Europe. My wife and will be in Amsterdam for a few days in two weeks. We want to check out the hot tulip action, and were considering taking a bus out to Haarlem, renting a bike, and riding down to the Keukenhof Gardens. I've seen people say you can see the Keukenhof in a few hours, so then we'd ride back up to Haarlem and return the bikes and go back to Amsterdam. My concern is that my wife is in her second trimester of pregnancy, and I'm not sure we're going to feel up to another hour of bike riding after the hour down and walking around the gardens. Is it possible to take bikes on a bus, if we weren't feeling up to the ride back to Haarlem? Is this a bad idea? Should we just bus straight to the Keukenhof and rent there, biking around some shorter distances if we feel like it? Also, any other general recommendations for Amsterdam in mid-April?
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Apr 3, 2017 02:35
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You cannot take bikes onto buses unless they're foldable bikes. And I don't think those are easy to rent. What you could theoretically do is rent a bike in Haarlem, bike to the Keukenhof, then on the way back bike to the closest train station, that seems to be Hillegom. You can take bikes along on the train for 6.10 EUR per bike per day. However, if you go for that path, make sure to figure out the Dutch train system ahead of time - I've heard lots of stories of Dutch train ticket machines not accepting foreign cards, and most stations are unmanned these days, so you could easily get stuck that way (getting on a train without a ticket will get you heavily fined). Another option would be to rent e-bikes. E-bikes are bicycles that make cycling much easier because they have a small electric motor pushing you along, and those have gained a lot of popularity in the Netherlands. I'd guess quite a few rental places have a couple for rent, although I'm not 100% on that. I'm not sure if there's any place near the Keukenhof that rents bikes. Of course, you could take a bus there, then take a bus to some decently-sized town and rent a bike there for a shorter distance. Something like that would probably be the safest option. There is a lot to see in Amsterdam itself, so it's hard to give recommendations without knowing what you're interested in. If you like art and history museums, the Rijksmuseum is always a good visit. Just be aware that it's big - you'll probably won't be able to see everything in one day. If you just want to see the historic city, a canal boat tour is probably the best way. And if you want a good view of the city, there's the recently opened lookout on the A'dam Tower. I'm not actually from Amsterdam, so there's probably people here who can give you more and better recommendations. There's also plenty of interesting and cool places to visit just outside the city, which I can tell you about if you're interested. E: Oh, and for things in Amsterdam that require tickets - see if you can get them in advance, either online or from any tourist information point in Amsterdam. Ticket lines can get very long. Carbon dioxide fucked around with this message at 07:10 on Apr 3, 2017 |
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Apr 3, 2017 07:04
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I absolutely loved the canal museum - it's very good. I didn't rent a bike but we walked a lot while in there - the city center isn't that big but if you want to see something like the vondelpark you'll walk/ride a bit. The tram system is great though, so you should just take that
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Apr 3, 2017 16:23
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I'll be in England for a few weeks. Can anyone recommend a good cell phone with data plan? Basically I'd like to just purchase some type of phone plan for a single month, but I'm not very familiar with phone plans and especially plans in England. Thanks
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Apr 3, 2017 17:27
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Giffgaff. See if you can get the sim mailed to you now.
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Apr 3, 2017 17:31
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drat this looks perfect. Can I buy these when I get there? I may not have time to get it mailed to me since I'll be leaving on the 13th.
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Apr 3, 2017 17:38
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I use this wiki for find what the prepaid options are when I travel. Covers major carriers + MVNOs, their plans, where to get them, and how to recharge.
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Apr 3, 2017 18:15
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ALFbrot posted:Also, any other general recommendations for Amsterdam in mid-April? Presumably your wife won't be drinking, but if you have an interest in beer and she doesn't mind you having a couple, I can recommend the Brouwerij 't IJ brewery tour - it's in an old bathhouse near a windmill and the beer is good. The Kattenkabinet is a fun way to spend a couple of hours for something like 5 euro. Electric Lady Land is a bizarre and wonderful way to spend an afternoon, and it's perfectly located for having a nice stroll before/after. Amsterdam Noord is just over the water (it's a free boat ride from the train station) and mostly has an arty event space, but on a sunny day it's really lovely to wander round. Cute houses and a bit of greenery, that sort of thing. For proper Dutch fare, pay a visit to Moeders - it's a quirky little restaurant that serves tasty food in the style of Dutch mothers. I took some American friends and they really liked it. If you fancy another day trip, Den Haag isn't far on a train from Amsterdam and is a nice city. It has the Escher museum set in one of the royal palaces, which is pretty cool.
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Apr 3, 2017 21:26
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Bollock Monkey posted:It depends what you like, but the Vondelpark is pleasant to wander around. The Tropenmuseum is my favourite museum in Europe, it's an anthropological museum with superb special exhibitions. Worth the ticket price just for those, in my opinion. I'm Dutch and I didn't know about most of those places! Cool stuff, thanks. If you have any more hidden gems, please tell.
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Apr 3, 2017 21:59
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Bollock Monkey posted:Presumably your wife won't be drinking, but if you have an interest in beer and she doesn't mind you having a couple, I can recommend the Brouwerij 't IJ brewery tour - it's in an old bathhouse near a windmill and the beer is good. Bollock Monkey posted:Amsterdam Noord is just over the water (it's a free boat ride from the train station) and mostly has an arty event space, but on a sunny day it's really lovely to wander round. Cute houses and a bit of greenery, that sort of thing. Bollock Monkey posted:For proper Dutch fare, pay a visit to Moeders - it's a quirky little restaurant that serves tasty food in the style of Dutch mothers. I took some American friends and they really liked it. Bollock Monkey posted:If you fancy another day trip, Den Haag isn't far on a train from Amsterdam and is a nice city. It has the Escher museum set in one of the royal palaces, which is pretty cool.
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Apr 3, 2017 22:16
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ALFbrot posted:Also, any other general recommendations for Amsterdam in mid-April? A sturdy umbrella and a good coat.
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Apr 4, 2017 00:11
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PT6A posted:A sturdy umbrella and a good coat. Or a t-shirt and sunglasses. In April it's mostly sunny with 15-20C, with the occassional rainy day. Also, if you're still there by April 27th, well I hope you like crowds. 
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Apr 4, 2017 06:45
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I'm flying in to Paris tomorrow and will be spending a few days there and then a few days in Ghent with a friend. After that, from April 11th-27th I pretty much have an open itinerary. I have some ideas in mind but nothing is set in stone and I'm definitely open to suggestions on what to hit up. I will probably head up to the Netherlands for the tulips and stay for a bit in Amsterdam after Ghent/Antwerp. I took some notes of the things that were mentioned earlier on this page but I'd like to branch out a bit more too. I'm not a big fan of large museums or anything indoors really unless its quirky poo poo like the above mentioned Electric Ladyland. I enjoy historical sites, architecture, and active, outdoorsy type stuff especially. Beer and wine tastings are always great and I really like sours so if any of you have recommendations for Belgian breweries that would be cool. Also, any good coastal spots to check out? Rocky shores and cliffs are always great although it seems I may need to head back to France for that. I asked a bit back about renting a car and someone talked about different regulations for different countries but would staying in the Benelux be ok? Alternatively, I might just head back to France and rent a car there after Ghent and explore the countryside/head over to the French Alps. How likely am I to be bothered by the police for sleeping in my car across any of these regions? punch drunk fucked around with this message at 08:20 on Apr 4, 2017 |
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Apr 4, 2017 07:49
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Also, to anyone that's considering visiting Lisbon - do it. The city's been under a lot of construction work and I have to say - it's drat beautiful now. You can take a bike and do this route: Campo Grande - Av. da República - Saldanha - Marques de Pombal - Baixa - Cais do Sodré - Belém And it's incredible how charming it is. I did this with my girlfriend last Sunday on our car and it was crazy the thousands of people that were in the street and parks, sunbathing by the river, drinking beer in groups, just chilling with live music playing everywhere Lisbon is really beautiful right now  A video from march: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Jtbeg1XwnaA Sintra Palace: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E_VESlF5Pb4 We also have great street art (check everything by Vhils too): https://www.google.pt/search?q=imag...et+art+lisboa&* Vhils' artwork is built with a mix of paint and explosions: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t6FU1Fvn9Nk And there's actually a street art app for Android: https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.twistag.lisbonstreetart&hl=pt_PT I hope some of you choose to come here, it's really great. orange sky fucked around with this message at 10:17 on Apr 4, 2017 |
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Apr 4, 2017 10:13
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punch drunk posted:I'm flying in to Paris tomorrow and will be spending a few days there and then a few days in Ghent with a friend. After that, from April 11th-27th I pretty much have an open itinerary. I have some ideas in mind but nothing is set in stone and I'm definitely open to suggestions on what to hit up. I will probably head up to the Netherlands for the tulips and stay for a bit in Amsterdam after Ghent/Antwerp. I took some notes of the things that were mentioned earlier on this page but I'd like to branch out a bit more too. You could visit an old fortified town in the Netherlands like Elburg or Bourtange or maybe something closer to Amsterdam. There are also castles like Muiderslot. You could rent a boat in Giethoorn and go around the village and the lake (it's a village with canals instead of roads, though quite touristy). For beers, you could go to Brouwerij de Molen in Bodegraven. There are many national parks where outdoorsy things can be done, but don't expect any extreme landscapes besides maybe extreme swampiness (though the Hoge Veluwe has actual hills!) As for the coast, we have lots of that, but no rocks or cliffs. There is something called the Oudemirdum "cliffs" but it's just a hill next to water, and that water is no longer even the sea. The whole Dutch coast is sandy beach or dikes. You could go to the Kennemerland national park near Haarlem for dunes, or maybe up north near Schoorl for the biggest, most impressive dunes. One of the Wadden Sea islands would also be a nice trip, though they are a bit remote (as far as anything in the Netherlands can be remote). They are small so you can easily bike around them, or even walk (for Schiermonnikoog). They usually have a few villages and lots of beach and dunes. Vlieland and Schiermonnikoog are probably the easiest ones to explore, the others are a big bigger and things are more spead out. The Belgian coast sucks, they built tall concrete hotels and flats all along it. Capitalism! For sours you're better off in Belgium. You can go to Drie Fonteinen in Beersel which is all about the sours, and I think they have a new place called the Lambiek-o-droom or something, but I have not been there. Also, Cantillon in Brussels. Entropist fucked around with this message at 13:25 on Apr 4, 2017 |
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Apr 4, 2017 13:19
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Carbon dioxide posted:Or a t-shirt and sunglasses. In April it's mostly sunny with 15-20C, with the occassional rainy day. I guess I just got super unlucky then. For the whole time I was there, it varied between "slightly rainy and cold" and "extremely rainy and cold."
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Apr 4, 2017 13:38
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Entropist posted:The Belgian coast sucks, they built tall concrete hotels and flats all along it. Capitalism! Ugh, Ostende. The beaches there are reasonably-nice sand, but there's definitely nothing to draw you there in April as it's probably not warm enough to actually enjoy sitting there, and the scenery is unremarkable. Punch Drunk, you have to go pretty far along the coast towards France until you get to remarkable coastal cliffs and rocky shores -- like all the way to Dieppe (Etretat) -- unless you are super easily impressed.
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Apr 4, 2017 13:46
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PT6A posted:I guess I just got super unlucky then. For the whole time I was there, it varied between "slightly rainy and cold" and "extremely rainy and cold." Probably it depends on what you're used to. When 20°C is the high here now (and sunny) I break out the shorts and start sweating, but when I moved here from the south of the US almost 10 years ago, if the high was only 20°C, it meant I should wear a sweater and scarf to avoid freezing to death. E: Also surprisingly, according to Wikipedia, April seems to be Amsterdam's least rainy month by a fair margin (20% less than the next least rainy month and half as rainy as the average! https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Amsterdam#Climate)
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Apr 4, 2017 13:47
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The main characteristic of the Dutch weather is that it is extremely random, so be prepared for anything. If it's sunny and warm in the morning it might be cold and rainy a few hours later. Or sometimes we have weather where it switches between rain and sun every 15 minutes. In the longer term, it rarely stays the same for more than a few days so if it's not warm enough, just wait!  Saladman posted:Punch Drunk, you have to go pretty far along the coast towards France until you get to remarkable coastal cliffs and rocky shores -- like all the way to Dieppe (Etretat) -- unless you are super easily impressed. Entropist fucked around with this message at 13:54 on Apr 4, 2017 |
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Apr 4, 2017 13:47
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Entropist posted:The main characteristic of the Dutch weather is that it is extremely random, so be prepared for anything. If it's sunny and warm in the morning it might be cold and rainy a few hours later. Or sometimes we have weather where it switches between rain and sun every 15 minutes. In the longer term, it rarely stays the same for more than a few days so if it's not warm enough, just wait! This really applies to all of Northern Europe, though every country takes special pride in it.
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Apr 4, 2017 14:07
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Entropist posted:The De Prael taproom is also a nice place to hang out in the evening while having good local beer. Or Het Arendsnest to try various Dutch beers. Golem Proeflokaal on the Overtoom is another good beer place, and I can second the Arendsnest suggestion! They have tables on the canal, which is a lovely place to chill after a day exploring. I also love In De Wildeman but it can get pretty busy. They have board games if you want to kill a couple of hours hiding from rain or crowds.
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Apr 4, 2017 14:28
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Entropist posted:The main characteristic of the Dutch weather is that it is extremely random, so be prepared for anything. If it's sunny and warm in the morning it might be cold and rainy a few hours later. Or sometimes we have weather where it switches between rain and sun every 15 minutes. In the longer term, it rarely stays the same for more than a few days so if it's not warm enough, just wait! Well, we're from Florida, so we're definitely used to that. Dang, thanks everyone! I really appreciate the recommendations. A visit with our doctor this morning told us that she probably shouldn't be biking anyway, so I guess that's a moot point.
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Apr 4, 2017 18:49
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On my trip to Rotterdam, the locals thanked me for bringing nice weather from back home (20C in late September). I didn't have the heart to tell them what Seattle weather is really like. Anyway, work is sending me to Italy and I get to spend a few days in Rome along the way. A lot of museums are closed the first two days I'm there (Easter Sunday and Monday) so I thought I'd do a guided bike tour of either the Appian Way or Rome itself through an outfit like TopBike. Is this actually a good way to see the sights or am I going to spend the entire time fearing for my life and wishing I'd just walked? Is there anything special to do on Easter Sunday or Monday other than going to mass?
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Apr 4, 2017 19:23
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Has anyone taken a trip from Tbilisi to Kazbegi in Georgia before?
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Apr 4, 2017 21:28
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Ras Het posted:This really applies to all of Northern Europe, though every country takes special pride in it.
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Apr 4, 2017 22:08
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Saladman posted:Probably it depends on what you're used to. When 20°C is the high here now (and sunny) I break out the shorts and start sweating, but when I moved here from the south of the US almost 10 years ago, if the high was only 20°C, it meant I should wear a sweater and scarf to avoid freezing to death. I'm from Calgary, so while I can handle cold very well, I hate rain quite a lot and am not used to it (we usually either get snow, or, in the summer, intense but short-lived periods of rain that are easily avoided). And I think I may have visited in May, which I would've assumed would be less rainy on average, but apparently I was incorrect.
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Apr 4, 2017 22:43
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ALFbrot posted:Dang, thanks everyone! I really appreciate the recommendations. A visit with our doctor this morning told us that she probably shouldn't be biking anyway, so I guess that's a moot point. Well don't say that here! (unless there are particular medical conditions). My mother was still biking to the store to get groceries a few days before I was born.
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Apr 5, 2017 01:26
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Entropist posted:Well don't say that here! (unless there are particular medical conditions). My mother was still biking to the store to get groceries a few days before I was born. Yeah, but then she gave birth to a goon....
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Apr 5, 2017 15:12
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webmeister posted:Yeah, but then she gave birth to a goon.... Seems like that would only make it more difficult!
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Apr 5, 2017 17:01
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Well Lisbon was great, kinda regretting I didn't plan one or two extra days. Orange sky do you know what's the weird superposed city bus installation under the April 25th bridge on the Lisbon side ? I only noticed it on the way back from Cascais today. Also what's the deal with all the pushy dealers in the center ? They're way too obvious and annoying to be legit I think ?
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Apr 5, 2017 21:25
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Hah, the dealers... Their demographic targeting was quite interesting! I was there with a diverse group of people. The young wide dudes got targeted the most, like 20-30 times in a few days, while the Asian ladies scored the lowest with maybe 0-2 attempts at selling drugs to them. I haven't seen anything like this level of attention from drug dealers in any other European city I've visited (quite a few), so it indeed seems suspicious...
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Apr 5, 2017 21:44
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Entropist posted:Well don't say that here! (unless there are particular medical conditions). My mother was still biking to the store to get groceries a few days before I was born. The issue is the risk of a fall.
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Apr 5, 2017 21:45
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Entropist posted:Hah, the dealers... Their demographic targeting was quite interesting! I was there with a diverse group of people. The young wide dudes got targeted the most, like 20-30 times in a few days, while the Asian ladies scored the lowest with maybe 0-2 attempts at selling drugs to them. I'm not an expert, but it's because weed possession isn't a criminal offence in Portugal, right? It's still technically illegal, but if you've only got a small amount you can just pay a fine or go to rehab rather than jail? Funnily enough, I notice people smoking weed way more here in Spain (particularly northern Spain) than in Portugal.
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Apr 5, 2017 21:58
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webmeister posted:I'm not an expert, but it's because weed possession isn't a criminal offence in Portugal, right? It's still technically illegal, but if you've only got a small amount you can just pay a fine or go to rehab rather than jail? Porros! Porros! Y despues, mas porros! They love their blunts up north.
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Apr 6, 2017 04:38
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unpacked robinhood posted:Well Lisbon was great, kinda regretting I didn't plan one or two extra days. I believe you mean this  I don't really know much about it besides being a artsy place where artists do artsy stuff. About the dealers. They can be annoying but are mostly harmless. They only carry with them a minimal amount of individual doses to avoid being busted for trafficking. The police could easily stop them by confiscating their drugs (drugs are decriminalized but not legal) but then it would probably lead to more serious criminal activity.
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Apr 6, 2017 19:32
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I went to Serbia, Belgrade for one week, all my internet friends told me i would get stabbed(on the account of being arab/muslim). But that never happened, country was very friendly in general. I was warned to book a taxi when i can or ask either the hotel or the closest shop to do it. Pirate taxis are the only risk i noticed, generally though it was pretty safe. Food was hard to navigate, lots of it is ground meat that could have pork inside and i was warned before hand if something had pork in it by the waiter. Managed to try pleskavica without pork in it though! Hopefully its not taboo. Lots of historical places to visit, Kalmegdan fortress doubled as a park and had an outdoor and indoor museum with some ww2 stuff. St. Sava temple was apparentlly being renovated but the basement was some really beautiful neo-byzantine sorta golden room with lots of orthodox iconography. Also visited the yugoslav museum which had like a plethora of things, like regular civilian life, and a museum with artifacts gifted to tito and also in a grave called the house of flowers. The museum also had a large collection of batons with socialist symbology and was gifted to tito by civilians, military or other personalities. Interesting place in general. Also went to the danube, and avala, which was some sort of mountain range but really cool for natural tourism. I loved every minute of it. Fizzil fucked around with this message at 21:46 on Apr 6, 2017 |
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Apr 6, 2017 21:18
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Fizzil posted:Managed to try pleskavica without pork in it though! Hopefully its not taboo. This is originally a Turkish dish so it's supposed to be halal. I'm saying supposed because pljeskavica is typically made out of ground beef but you can never be sure that the butcher hasn't "padded out" the ground beef mixture with some mystery meat. There was a lot of hurf-durf a few years ago when it was discovered that one butcher was putting literal roadkill in his ćevapi and then selling it to the kids.
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Apr 7, 2017 21:13
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Hello, I'm looking to take yet another European trip. The plan this time is Italy - Venice, Florence and Rome in that order by train. However since I do like train travel, and since there are several major hubs that are within a 6-7 hour train ride from Venice, I was thinking about flying either to Zurich (in which case I would take the train to Venice through Milan) or to Munich and then take the train to Venice by going directly south. The Zurich one appeals to me a bit more because it looks like it would be really scenic. Here is the route (Florence to Rome not shown). Thoughts? I would be going in late September or early October to avoid the biggest tourist season, and to get a bit cooler weather.
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Apr 8, 2017 17:56
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ALFbrot posted:Hello Europe. Haarlem is gorgeous, I did a day trip there and just walked around and it was very pleasant. I also did the Escher Museum in The Hague, though there's not much else in that city that appealed to me. For Amsterdam I would check out Anne Frank house (duh, and there's a place with giant pancakes just a couple blocks north), the museum plein (however you spell it, it has the Van Gogh and Rembrandt museums), and of course do the canal tour. The library next to the train station is also pretty cool and gives great views of the city.
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Apr 8, 2017 17:59
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There was actually a police operation this week regarding the dealers, but it was aimed at people - "don't buy from these dealers it's pressed bay leaves not hash!" I'm not even joking our police did that. Thing is since it's not drugs they're peddling they get away with it.
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Apr 8, 2017 18:54
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