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Putting together some rough plans for a vacation next spring (under the big assumption that things get back to normal faster next year after winter). Not booking anything yet, just sketching out some ideas on paper. My employer is taking the experiences we made doing WFH over the last year and a half and switching us permanently to a hybrid working model that may allow for 100% remote work. My husband and I visited some friends in southern Jutland before the pandemic and were really interested in the possibility of moving to Denmark permanently for various reasons. We'd like to spend some vacation time to get to know the country better, start looking at potential areas that we might want to move to, etc. So long story short.... a tour of Denmark seems to be in order for us. I just sketched out an extremely rough itinerary on the back of a virtual bar napkin, and am wondering what people who have more experience with the country think... bearing in mind that the purpose of the trip isn't just to have a cool vacation, but also to potentially scope out places to live:
Is this too much/too little? Anything that could be skipped or reasonably combined, given most of the cities are relatively close together? The goal is to see a good amount of the country so that we can decide which region to focus our attention on when it comes time to move, but also like... I dunno how samey a lot of these smaller cities are going to be. Aarhus and Aalborg are probably quite similar but we have friends in both that we'd like to visit so  .Edit: or for Jutland would it make sense to just have the hotel in one reasonably central city and use that to branch out on day trips? Drone fucked around with this message at 16:10 on Jun 22, 2021 |
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Jun 22, 2021 15:52
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For Denmark, I've only been to Copenhagen and I spent a week there. Near the end I kinda ran out of things I wanted to do in the city proper, so I just rented a bicycle for cheap and went to check out some places in the country side. Danish bicycle infrastructure is mostly good, so it's a convenient way to get around.
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Jun 22, 2021 16:29
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I couldn't figure out from your post - do you plan to keep your current job and work remotely while switching countries? You might want to check in with your employer, tax stuff and different worker laws might not really allow for that.
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Jun 22, 2021 22:56
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mmkay posted:I couldn't figure out from your post - do you plan to keep your current job and work remotely while switching countries? You might want to check in with your employer, tax stuff and different worker laws might not really allow for that. We have a Danish subsidiary and my employment contract would be transferred over, so that's no issue. I'm not really asking for help on the logistics of moving (yet).
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Jun 23, 2021 06:55
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Everyone in Denmark speaks English, but I'm not sure if I'd want to live anywhere except Copenhagen if I didn't speak Danish, or didn't seriously intend (and actually knew I would do it) to learn Danish. Which if you're married to a Danish speaker might work, but otherwise people tend to never actually end up learning the language in places like Netherlands, Denmark, etc. After living in Zurich for 5 years without really speaking German (B1) – not enough to go to a play or do a lot of cultural stuff or even have a conversation in a loud location like a bar – I personally said I'd never again move to a country where I don't speak the general daily street language. YMMV but I've moved four times to countries where I didn't know the language, and I only learned 1.5 of those languages by the time I'd left (French, 1/2 German). I'd move back to Zurich but I definitely wouldn't move anywhere in say, the Netherlands except maybe Amsterdam, or Copenhagen for Denmark. Your itinerary makes sense. Make sure to rent an AirBnB and not a hotel, and rent it in a neighborhood that would be in your price range to buy or rent. Don't get a fancy penthouse AirBnB downtown overlooking the sea or whatever to make things seem better than your actual living situation would allow, unless you're super rich and could actually buy/rent such a place.
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Jun 23, 2021 08:49
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If you want to move permanently it's a good idea to learn the language, yes. Being able to pass a (relatively basic) language test is often even a requirement for citizenship in many countries.
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Jun 23, 2021 11:15
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I live just outside of Aalborg myself, and it's a lovely city. Granted, I grew up in a gnat's shitstain that barely registers as a village, so YMMV if you're used to larger cities. Anyway, I'd say 2-3 days is just fine for Aalborg. There's not all that much to see past the bridge over Limfjorden; it's mostly just farms and villages stuffed to the brim with retirees. I've never been to Odense or Aarhus, except to stretch my legs when the trains've broken down, so I can't help you there 
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Jun 23, 2021 12:43
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I just bought tickets to Madrid, I was planning on staying in the city for a few days and then going to Andalusia. Is it easy to get around Andalusia by train or should I rent a car?
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Jun 26, 2021 04:13
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The X-man cometh posted:I just bought tickets to Madrid, I was planning on staying in the city for a few days and then going to Andalusia. Is it easy to get around Andalusia by train or should I rent a car? When are you planning to go?  Analusia is one of the very few places in Europe right now that is completely blocked from travel from outside, possibly because of a delta variant outbreak. Note, these maps which give a general travel advice map created by the European Commission, are posted here and updated weekly. https://www.ecdc.europa.eu/en/covid-19/situation-updates/weekly-maps-coordinated-restriction-free-movement They are not enough by themselves because individual countries may set different rules but they give a good general picture of how things are going.
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Jun 26, 2021 07:45
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Just an FYI if anyone is wondering why data for Ireland is unavailable, it's because the health service system got hacked and ransom-wared, in early May and they are still working on getting things back to normal. Fortunately the vaccine rollout was running on an entirely separate system so it wasn't affected. Data about the current state of covid in Ireland is available here: https://www.hpsc.ie/a-z/respiratory/coronavirus/novelcoronavirus/surveillance/covid-1914-dayepidemiologyreports/
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Jun 26, 2021 11:04
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Carbon dioxide posted:When are you planning to go? July LOL. I'll go to Catalonia and the Basque country instead.
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Jun 26, 2021 13:23
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The X-man cometh posted:July LOL. I'll go to Catalonia and the Basque country instead. Note I'm not actually sure what the Spanish rules on regional travel are. All I know is any rules can change at a moment's notice so see if you can find a Spanish government website or something listing it.
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Jun 26, 2021 18:09
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If you're coming from the US there are now no restrictions basically, at least you don't have to prove you were vaccinated. Tourist season is definitely kicking off here (Barcelona) already. Edit: rules vary greatly between regions though, do your research. I don't think there are any inter-regional mobility restrictions but within some regions there may be (not Catalonia). Edit2: I don't know if it's just caused by the cutoff used but the scale but Valencia looks the safest and it's a good place to visit too. SurgicalOntologist fucked around with this message at 19:15 on Jun 26, 2021 |
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Jun 26, 2021 19:10
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The X-man cometh posted:July LOL. I'll go to Catalonia and the Basque country instead. Catalonia you say?  Please don't plan to come here next, I don't like the red.
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Jul 1, 2021 18:07
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It's a great time to make complicated plans with little chance of a refund!
Fitzy Fitz fucked around with this message at 20:06 on Jul 1, 2021 |
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Jul 1, 2021 18:23
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yeah I know people absolutely want to travel as soon as possible but covid is not yet done, like at all
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Jul 1, 2021 18:48
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I've largely resigned to not being able to leave the country until 2022 at best.
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Jul 1, 2021 20:34
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If you plan everything less than two weeks in advance it has mostly been fine this whole year, since it takes about 6-8 weeks for case numbers to go from "plateau seems to be ending" to "huge jump and travel restrictions or lockdown elements re-enabled". Almost all major government decisions since last June have been telegraphed or leaked a week or two in advance too, and some things you know won't happen (e.g. the US will not mandate staying in government quarantine centers for returning citizens/residents). I fully expect Europe to have high case rates again by mid August, like how it is in Portugal now or the UK a month ago. It's also possible that governments largely won't lockdown again though, since the death and hospitalization rates of COVID now are pretty negligible even for countries like the UK with very high case rates per capita.
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Jul 1, 2021 20:48
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So uh, my wife and I just bought tickets to Madrid (too, it looks like) for the first week of November. We were planning on sticking primarily to the Madrid area, and maybe doing some day/overnight trips to Toledo, Seville, Segovia, and/or Cordoba. It's our first time in Spain. We were planning on skipping Barcelona this trip as that seems like too much. Does anyone have thoughts on good itineraries/things to see in a week? We're both in our mid 30s, no kids, and down for some walking during the day. Some suggestions for interesting food/dining would be great too. Residency Evil fucked around with this message at 15:31 on Jul 8, 2021 |
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Jul 8, 2021 15:28
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Seville is big enough (and far enough) that I would leave it for a separate trip, a 1D/1N would be tiring if you're only in Madrid for a week (8-9 days?). Cordoba is also easy to get to on the high speed train but it kind of sucks except for the fantastically unique cathedral, so maybe I'd leave that out for a later visit in life to southern Spain where you can hit up Granada, Cordoba, Seville, etc., more easily and just go there in passing. The cathedral of Cordoba is awesomely unique and definitely worth a visit at some point, but just the rest of the town is meh, including the "Roman style" bridge (which is so repaired and renovated it looks like it was built in 2015, albeit on an ancient Roman design). Segovia is really neat, just make sure that you know that the high speed train station is not in the city. There is a Segovia station in the center, but only for low-speed trains. We got that mixed up once and it was quite a hassle. Probably a full week in Madrid + daytrips would be nicest assuming you like museums, palaces, and choices of restaurants. I've spent a fair amount of time in Madrid all together (2-3 weeks?) but not in several years and only as a student, so I can't really point out any good restaurants or whatever, or anything specific to see that's not highlighted on WikiVoyage.
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Jul 8, 2021 16:17
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Saladman posted:Seville is big enough (and far enough) that I would leave it for a separate trip, a 1D/1N would be tiring if you're only in Madrid for a week (8-9 days?). Cordoba is also easy to get to on the high speed train but it kind of sucks except for the fantastically unique cathedral, so maybe I'd leave that out for a later visit in life to southern Spain where you can hit up Granada, Cordoba, Seville, etc., more easily and just go there in passing. The cathedral of Cordoba is awesomely unique and definitely worth a visit at some point, but just the rest of the town is meh, including the "Roman style" bridge (which is so repaired and renovated it looks like it was built in 2015, albeit on an ancient Roman design). That's super helpful, thanks. Our flight gets in at 745am on Saturday and we're flying out the following Saturday afternoon. It sounds like maybe doing a day in Toledo, Segovia, and spending the rest of the time in Madrid might be the way to go?
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Jul 8, 2021 18:04
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I would recommend Valencia! beautiful city.  It is, however, more of a summer destination, what with a TON of beach areas and poo poo
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Jul 8, 2021 19:52
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Residency Evil posted:That's super helpful, thanks. Our flight gets in at 745am on Saturday and we're flying out the following Saturday afternoon. It sounds like maybe doing a day in Toledo, Segovia, and spending the rest of the time in Madrid might be the way to go? Kinda depends on how you like to travel, if you're the type of person who would spend a week in say, Lisbon or Berlin, or if you'd be looking for elsewhere to move on after 3-4 days. Segovia and Toledo are easy day trips, as are Aranjuez and El Escorial if you like giant palaces. I'm not sure if El Escorial and Segovia can be combined on a daytrip if you're going by public transport - it looks like the answer is "not really" - but it's easy to do both in a long day if you rent a car for like 3 days of that trip (not that I'd necessarily recommend getting a car). Avila is also really neat, it has a really stunning city wall, probably the best I've ever seen, but looks like it's far by public transport (~2 hr train, ~1 hr drive). It looks like the train to Avila goes through El Escorial, so if you do an overnight stay in El Escorial I guess that would be reasonable if you don't rent a car. With only 7 full nights including jetlag I'd guess that Segovia+Toledo+3-4 days in Madrid+maybe 1 other place would be a pretty full schedule.
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Jul 8, 2021 20:21
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Saladman posted:Kinda depends on how you like to travel, if you're the type of person who would spend a week in say, Lisbon or Berlin, or if you'd be looking for elsewhere to move on after 3-4 days. Segovia and Toledo are easy day trips, as are Aranjuez and El Escorial if you like giant palaces. I'm not sure if El Escorial and Segovia can be combined on a daytrip if you're going by public transport - it looks like the answer is "not really" - but it's easy to do both in a long day if you rent a car for like 3 days of that trip (not that I'd necessarily recommend getting a car). Avila is also really neat, it has a really stunning city wall, probably the best I've ever seen, but looks like it's far by public transport (~2 hr train, ~1 hr drive). It looks like the train to Avila goes through El Escorial, so if you do an overnight stay in El Escorial I guess that would be reasonable if you don't rent a car. I used to be a "see as much as you can" type of person, but we spent a week in Paris a few years back and I changed my approach. A week in Paris was still barely scratching the surface, but I'm seeing all of these week long itineraries in Spain having people visit Madrid and Barcelona and feel like it might be a bit much, so I think limiting it to day trips out of Madrid seems the most reasonable.
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Jul 8, 2021 22:26
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Yeah I think it tends to be like that as people get older / have travelled more. Having "been to" every European country doesn't mean very much if you spent 2 days in Paris, 2 days in Rome, 2 days in Berlin, etc. I remember kind of being like that at like 22 too, "I'd rather to go to Malta instead of Sicily because I've already been to Italy", which in retrospect was asinine when I'd never been anywhere in Italy south of Rome. Malta was cool though so I guess it doesn't really matter. Although I saw one post on TripAdvisor recently of a guy who from context of having teen kids must have been in his 40s, and he had "been to Basel, so why would they go hiking in the Swiss Alps when he's already been to Switzerland, and he'd rather go to a new country", so apparently some people still take lists of "number of countries they've been too" way too seriously.
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Jul 9, 2021 09:37
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Saladman posted:Yeah I think it tends to be like that as people get older / have travelled more. Having "been to" every European country doesn't mean very much if you spent 2 days in Paris, 2 days in Rome, 2 days in Berlin, etc. I remember kind of being like that at like 22 too, "I'd rather to go to Malta instead of Sicily because I've already been to Italy", which in retrospect was asinine when I'd never been anywhere in Italy south of Rome. Malta was cool though so I guess it doesn't really matter. You are right, but to be fair, "I won't go to Switzerland again next year because I'm out of money from my visit there last year" is a reasonable decision. Well, Switzerland is actually quite doable price-wise if you stay away from the most touristy areas.
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Jul 9, 2021 11:23
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Carbon dioxide posted:Well, Switzerland is actually quite doable price-wise if you stay away
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Jul 9, 2021 11:26
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The /travel subreddit is hilarious for this kind of thing. An awful lot of people have their user flair showing how many countries they’ve been to (and it’s never an actual impressive number), and posts with scratch-off wall maps or whatever where you scratch off the countries you’ve been to, always end up with thousands of upvotes.
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Jul 9, 2021 11:33
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I was an art history major with a focus in Italian Renaissance but went to Rome and Florence and promised the people I was with that I wouldn't drag them to a bunch of sightseeing destinations and just played it cool. I don't at all regret missing certain things and instead treasure the relaxed two weeks we had just wandering in to places and experiences. Not only does it make me want to go back to those cities but the memories don't feel rushed or panicked trying to hit everything. Recommend. Also got hooked up at a winery that was closed for the day about 45 minutes north of Florence and ended up spending the day drinking and eating with the family that runs it. I'll gladly take that memory over waiting in line at the Academy to see Michelangelo's David. Besides, it isn't going anywhere.
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Jul 9, 2021 16:24
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https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MoDSK3NThCk
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Jul 9, 2021 17:02
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I've just bit the bullet and booked a 2 week trip from Canada for mid to late August. I was going to go to the States, but it's unclear if the border will even be open by then (for land travel) so I've switched to Europe as things are looking good in the areas I'm going to. Is there anyone that can comment on what the crowds have been looking like recently and perhaps guess what they'll look like in mid-August? Plan is: - 2 days Venice - 4 days Ljubljana - 4 days Salzburg - 4 days Vienna Kept Venice short because I've been there 3 times already and using it just for the cheap flight from Toronto. Any thoughts on good day trips from Ljubljana and Salzburg would be welcome. From Ljubljana I'm planning on renting a car for a few days and seeing Bled, Triglav Park, Postjona Caves and/or Skocjan Caves (should I see both or are they very similar?) And then from Salzburg, I'm looking at Hallstatt and then not sure - maybe Innsbruck?
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Jul 10, 2021 17:09
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In Ljubljana take a day to just explore the old town and go up the castle. It's a really beautiful city. Also, go up to the castle at Lake Bled, too, when you're there.
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Jul 10, 2021 23:12
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Hallstatt is very nice, good call on that. Innsbruck doesn't have many touristic sites, other than having beautiful architecture and being in a narrow valley with towering mountains. There's nothing like that in Canada or the States. I lived 1-2 hours to the south in Bolzano and regret not going there more. Berchtesgaden if you're into seeing a place where Hitler was a few times, although there is beautiful scenery to take in while hiking there. The Herrenchiemsee Palace if you haven't seen enough palaces in your life yet. Any of the small towns/lakes in the Salzkammergut that aren't Hallstatt. Ferdinand Bardamu fucked around with this message at 01:16 on Jul 11, 2021 |
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Jul 11, 2021 01:09
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If you’re not staying in Hallstatt be sure to get there early, like 7am type early. I dunno what it’s like now, but back in the Before Times it was rammed full of people by 9am and kind of unpleasant since the area is so small. Also make sure you take a little boat out on the lake, it gives you a different perspective on the town which is really cool.
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Jul 11, 2021 04:45
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Innsbruck looks like the city from Frozen turned real. I could have spent the entire winter there
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Jul 11, 2021 20:44
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MagicCube posted:
I went to Skocjan and it was quite an impressive visit, really felt like walking through the mines of Moria. Didn't go to Postjona, from what I've heard it seems to be a bit more tacky/touristy.
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Jul 12, 2021 09:13
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Yeah we made the same decision a few years ago and only went to Skocjan which was really neat. The wild sinkhole entrance alone was worth it... and is actually the only part of it I distinctly remember now, having been to enough large caves that many of them kind of blend together in my memory. Predjama Castle is kind of neat too and on the way, it's built into a cave like a some of the Middle Eastern Christian monasteries (e.g. Sumela Monastery).
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Jul 12, 2021 10:57
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Entropist posted:Catalonia you say? What's up with Spain and Coronavirus? It's part of Greece and Italy re-opening... and Delta is sending my flyers that I should come on over!
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Jul 12, 2021 18:02
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Thanks all for the suggestions on Austria and Slovenia. Much appreciated!Chikimiki posted:I went to Skocjan and it was quite an impressive visit, really felt like walking through the mines of Moria. Didn't go to Postjona, from what I've heard it seems to be a bit more tacky/touristy. Saladman posted:Yeah we made the same decision a few years ago and only went to Skocjan which was really neat. The wild sinkhole entrance alone was worth it... and is actually the only part of it I distinctly remember now, having been to enough large caves that many of them kind of blend together in my memory. Predjama Castle is kind of neat too and on the way, it's built into a cave like a some of the Middle Eastern Christian monasteries (e.g. Sumela Monastery). Postojna was my initial choice because its much closer to Predjama Castle which is on my list. Unfortunately, it looks like it's closed for renovations so it might just be a quick stop to see it and then head to Skocjan. WaryWarren posted:Hallstatt is very nice, good call on that. Had thought about the Eagle's Nest too, but my last Europe trip including Nuremburg and Dachau and I've burned myself out on Nazi/WW2 history for the time being. Looking at Werfen and Eisriesenwelt now, but feel like this trip is looking a little cave-heavy! Would love to see Innsbruck too, but not sure if I'll be able to on this trip - might be better to save for a winter one anyways/
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Jul 12, 2021 18:23
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Residency Evil posted:I used to be a "see as much as you can" type of person, but we spent a week in Paris a few years back and I changed my approach. A week in Paris was still barely scratching the surface, but I'm seeing all of these week long itineraries in Spain having people visit Madrid and Barcelona and feel like it might be a bit much, so I think limiting it to day trips out of Madrid seems the most reasonable. If you're interested in Cordoba, also look into Medina Azahara, which is close'ish to the center, and Castillo Almodovar del Rio, which is further out. If you happen to have a car, there's also some cool mountains to explore just north of the city. I used to live in Cordoba for a bit years ago, and I found it cosier than Sevilla and Valencia.
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Jul 19, 2021 08:58
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