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is next week a good time to go to ireland, or should i wait for a specific season?
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Jun 26, 2017 00:09
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Hey Belgians, speaking of SIM cards, I'll be in Belgium for two weeks. Is there a pre-paid SIM card you recommend? I doubt I'll use much data, want it more for texting & a bit of calling.
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Jun 26, 2017 07:00
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Abel Wingnut posted:is next week a good time to go to ireland, or should i wait for a specific season? The only bad time to go to Ireland is Good Friday (alcohol sales are banned nationwide). The rain doesn't really follow seasons and while it usually rains less in the summer, it's not unusual for it to rain a little bit almost every day year-round. Otherwise, the nights are real long and there are lots of nice beer gardens and if it's raining you just drink inside! 
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Jun 26, 2017 07:26
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you missed a hot spell and a lot of very sunburnt Irish people but yeah, no reason you shouldn't come now
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Jun 26, 2017 08:07
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Abel Wingnut posted:is next week a good time to go to ireland, or should i wait for a specific season? I'll be there next week, so I hope it's a good time!
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Jun 26, 2017 08:58
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Let me ask while we are on the topic of sim cards and ask, what is the best one for 10 days in Spain and a few days in Budapest + Netherlands?
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Jun 26, 2017 11:44
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CharlesM posted:Hey Belgians, speaking of SIM cards, I'll be in Belgium for two weeks. Is there a pre-paid SIM card you recommend? I doubt I'll use much data, want it more for texting & a bit of calling. Due to new anti terrorism laws I'm pretty sure it's impossible to get a sim card without having a Belgian bank account. At least, mine got blocked for that reason. Before that, Mobile Vikings had the best deals. Due to the new EU roaming laws you can use a card from any EU county though.
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Jun 26, 2017 14:11
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nervana posted:Let me ask while we are on the topic of sim cards and ask, what is the best one for 10 days in Spain and a few days in Budapest + Netherlands? Just grab a Vodafone one in Spain, though you'll need your passport for ID. Use that to roam in Hungary and Netherlands
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Jun 26, 2017 14:38
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I always used Orange in Spain, because it seemed like they had the most stores and booths in train stations and airports. Never had a problem with them, and they have a very good pre-paid plan for tourists called Tu Mundo, that focuses on data.
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Jun 26, 2017 15:38
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Entropist posted:Due to new anti terrorism laws I'm pretty sure it's impossible to get a sim card without having a Belgian bank account. At least, mine got blocked for that reason. Before that, Mobile Vikings had the best deals. Due to the new EU roaming laws you can use a card from any EU county though. Yeah but if you're visiting belgium what can you do then besides take a day trip to France/Lu/NL? And you can't even get a prepaid? That sounds like UK levels of unnecessarily paranoid.
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Jun 26, 2017 15:57
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Saladman posted:Yeah but if you're visiting belgium what can you do then besides take a day trip to France/Lu/NL? And you can't even get a prepaid? That sounds like UK levels of unnecessarily paranoid. I had a look around and apparently if you buy it in a shop you can meet the requirement by identifying yourself with a passport. But some carriers like Mobile Vikings don't have shops, so it's impossible to get those. It should still be possible to get a Lebara card at a phone store, then.
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Jun 26, 2017 16:35
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On that same note, then, which would be the best to use in France for two weeks? If my previous trips are like anything, I'll be using a fair bit of data.
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Jun 26, 2017 18:13
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I'm flying from the US to Budapest via Frankfurt. I only have 80 minutes to get to my next plane. Is that enough? I've only had domestic connections on my international flights. Do I have to go through customs in Frankfurt before I connect to Budapest?
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Jun 26, 2017 19:07
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mcwalbucks posted:I'm flying from the US to Budapest via Frankfurt. I only have 80 minutes to get to my next plane. Is that enough? I've only had domestic connections on my international flights. Do I have to go through customs in Frankfurt before I connect to Budapest? Yes, you will go through customs in Frankfurt. I think 80 minutes is okay, though.
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Jun 26, 2017 19:09
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mcwalbucks posted:I'm flying from the US to Budapest via Frankfurt. I only have 80 minutes to get to my next plane. Is that enough? I've only had domestic connections on my international flights. Do I have to go through customs in Frankfurt before I connect to Budapest? Yes. Yes.
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Jun 26, 2017 19:10
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mojo1701a posted:On that same note, then, which would be the best to use in France for two weeks? If my previous trips are like anything, I'll be using a fair bit of data. Since everything changed recently, probably the best advice is to walk into an Orange/Vodafone store, or any of those millions of kiosks selling Lebara or Lycamobile, etc SIMs, and see what they have to offer. You will probably a drat hard time finding up-to-date information on the Internet without going directly to operator's websites, which will probably largely only be in French, which may or may not work for you. I'm headed to Marseille in 2 weeks and will figure it out myself then, so alternately you can wait here and look for a Trip Report (or ask, since I'll probably forget unless SIM cards are still the hot topic in this thread by then).
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Jun 26, 2017 21:05
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Saladman posted:Since everything changed recently, probably the best advice is to walk into an Orange/Vodafone store, or any of those millions of kiosks selling Lebara or Lycamobile, etc SIMs, and see what they have to offer. You will probably a drat hard time finding up-to-date information on the Internet without going directly to operator's websites, which will probably largely only be in French, which may or may not work for you. I'll probably ask you, then. I'm still in the planning stages of my trip, but since I know that I'm going on specific dates, I'm already booking my flight this week. On an unrelated question: I'm still new to it, but would it be better for me to AirBnB it for a whole week, or should I just look at a hotel? I don't really need the extra room, but if it saves a few bucks, I'm at least interested.
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Jun 26, 2017 22:10
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For me the advantage of AirBnB is that you actually have a liveable space to stay in. Hotel rooms (especially cheap ones in France) are small and lovely and usually have one uncomfortable chair and the bed. So there's nothing to do except sleep or lie uncomfortably and watch the TV that's mounted too high on the wall. AirBnBs or apartment rental places at least give you normal things like a couch and a kitchen, so you have a place to chill out without hating every second of it. You'll save money on breakfast cos you can just go to a bakery and get fresh bread and bring it home and if you're jetlagged or just don't want to go out on an evening you don't have to. YMMV but I really hate hotels.
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Jun 26, 2017 23:33
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greazeball posted:For me the advantage of AirBnB is that you actually have a liveable space to stay in. Hotel rooms (especially cheap ones in France) are small and lovely and usually have one uncomfortable chair and the bed. So there's nothing to do except sleep or lie uncomfortably and watch the TV that's mounted too high on the wall. AirBnBs or apartment rental places at least give you normal things like a couch and a kitchen, so you have a place to chill out without hating every second of it. You'll save money on breakfast cos you can just go to a bakery and get fresh bread and bring it home and if you're jetlagged or just don't want to go out on an evening you don't have to. Yeah, hotel rooms loving suck, especially in Europe. And the shittiness of a hotel room is directly proportional to how touristy the city is, so Paris will most likely suck hardcore. For all the complaints about how AirBnB is ruining housing markets (which I don't necessarily disagree with), hotel operators seem to miss the point that it's not just about price. Or even mainly about price, in a lot of cases.
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Jun 27, 2017 00:18
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Yeah that seems to be my primary takeaway from this. I was originally planning on going to Poland so I wasn't sweating prices on lodging, but Western Europe is different. Does the same hold for the rest of France or would a hotel be more reliable to get a hotel? Seems like public transportation out there is ok.
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Jun 27, 2017 02:01
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mojo1701a posted:Yeah that seems to be my primary takeaway from this. I was originally planning on going to Poland so I wasn't sweating prices on lodging, but Western Europe is different. It's probably less of an issue in smaller cities, but I'd still lean toward AirBnB. I've never done it in France, but in Spain the only places I really regretted taking an actual hotel room were the big cities. In smaller cities the hotel rooms were half the price and twice as big as in Madrid -- AirBnB might yet have been better, but not to the same degree as in Madrid. Also, in smaller cities, for the same price, you can get a hotel that's ideally located, compared to an AirBnB that often isn't quite as convenient. In a big, touristy city, there's no way to afford a well-located hotel anyway unless you're especially rich (or, as it happened one time for me, the hotel was under extensive renovation).
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Jun 27, 2017 02:29
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Definitely get an AirBNB in Paris, and don't get a Lebara SIM card if you care about data at all, I was getting 2G coverage all over the city centre last time which was ridiculous.
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Jun 27, 2017 05:25
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AirBnB is better than hotels everywhere, at least in western and Central Europe. The only times I stay in hotels now are if its a one night stay (then the cleaning fees etc usually make it more than a nice hotel for one night) or if it's for work trips that will only pre book hotels and not reimburse AirBnBs. E: if you're staying in a really small town for some reason then you might need a hotel, I guess, since the only AirBnBs may be further out or require you to have a car. Same deal if you need to book for more than 4 people, Airbnb can sometimes be hard in smaller areas and you might need to go with hotels. This has been an issue for us in smaller places in Italy, eg. Saladman fucked around with this message at 08:01 on Jun 27, 2017 |
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Jun 27, 2017 07:59
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mojo1701a posted:On that same note, then, which would be the best to use in France for two weeks? If my previous trips are like anything, I'll be using a fair bit of data. Lycamobile offers 3GB for 10€ (plus unlimited calls and texts within France), or 6GB for 15€. This wiki page might also be worth perusing.
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Jun 27, 2017 08:37
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I'm booked, I'll be there from August 24 to September 7. Seems like AirBnB's the best bet for a week in Paris, but I'm not too sure about what to do after. Alsace sounded really nice, but I was hoping to get some more info about anything related to the world wars (eg. old trenches). I was hoping to visit something south of Paris for a few days, too, but it seems weird to slingshot past Paris from the North just to go back again. Seems like Paris for a week -> Strasbourg (or something in the area) for 2-3 days -> Calais (or something in the area) for 2-3 days -> Paris for another night or two seems like the best bet. Bourricot posted:Lycamobile offers 3GB for 10€ (plus unlimited calls and texts within France), or 6GB for 15€. This wiki page might also be worth perusing. Just clicked the link available to Lycamobile's website, and the thing that seems weird is that all their plans say "national text," which doesn't sound like I can text home.
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Jun 27, 2017 16:24
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For WW1 stuff I did a driving day trip from Paris to Vimy Ridge, Ypres, and Passchendaele (latter two in Belgium). Vimy Ridge has intact trenches and as a Canadian it was also a very moving experience. For WW2 stuff I took a bus to Juno Beach from Caen. Again, it was a very surreal experience standing on the beach looking in as I have relatives who fought there during WW2. I would have loved to gone to a couple more landing beaches in Normandy but the buses were very infrequent and I didn't have too much time.
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Jun 27, 2017 16:44
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mojo1701a posted:I'm booked, I'll be there from August 24 to September 7. Seems like AirBnB's the best bet for a week in Paris, but I'm not too sure about what to do after. Alsace sounded really nice, but I was hoping to get some more info about anything related to the world wars (eg. old trenches). For Alsace, look into Colmar too. Apparently the food and wine is super top-notch, and all the pictures I've seen look gorgeous.
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Jun 27, 2017 19:02
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I got stung by a loving jellyfish swimming on the beach in Normandy when I was like 12.
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Jun 27, 2017 19:44
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I don't like travelling too much, so I may just stick with a few regions. I'll probably save Normandy and some other area for another trip.PT6A posted:For Alsace, look into Colmar too. Apparently the food and wine is super top-notch, and all the pictures I've seen look gorgeous. I just looked it up on Wikipedia, and it looks super-nice. I just hope immersing myself in a smaller Alsatian city doesn't wreak havoc with my knowledge of French 
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Jun 27, 2017 20:17
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mojo1701a posted:I'm booked, I'll be there from August 24 to September 7. Seems like AirBnB's the best bet for a week in Paris, but I'm not too sure about what to do after. Alsace sounded really nice, but I was hoping to get some more info about anything related to the world wars (eg. old trenches). Since Alsace was German during WW1, most of the fighting happened along the Vosges or in the southern part: for example, the Hartmannswillerkopf (Vieil Armand in French) is a two hour drive from Strasbourg. Much closer (an half hour drive) is the Mutzig Fortress, built by the Germans pre-WW1. For WW2 stuff, I think the Struthof-Natwiller concentration camp is worth a visit, but it's hardly an happy place. And I concur with PT6A, Colmar is really nice, but also pretty small so a day trip from Strasbourg should cover it. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=K0i84GAGDD4 quote:Just clicked the link available to Lycamobile's website, and the thing that seems weird is that all their plans say "national text," which doesn't sound like I can text home.
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Jun 27, 2017 20:22
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mojo1701a posted:I'm booked, I'll be there from August 24 to September 7. Seems like AirBnB's the best bet for a week in Paris
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Jun 27, 2017 23:47
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mojo1701a posted:Does the same hold for the rest of France or would a hotel be more reliable to get a hotel? Seems like public transportation out there is ok. If you're interested in WW1/WW2 memorials, keep in mind that public transportation to the countryside is pretty terrible. Getting from Paris to Strasbourg or whatever? Fine. Getting to Omaha beach? Good luck, there are probably like 6 buses a day, or zero on Sundays. If a city / area you want to go to is not on a train line, you might as well consider that it has no public transportation available. Even small places on train lines are probably served at least once every 2 hours by trains, but I would 100% recommend renting a car for a few days if you want to go around Normandy. If you do that, then the cliffs at Étretat are amazing and worth checking out if you go towards the Dieppe area. I would not consider trying to do anything on the maginot line without a car either, although I'm sure there are organized bus tours available if that's up your alley.
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Jun 28, 2017 11:01
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Christ, just shop around for both hotels and private rentals before you book. Will depend on the area, season and just what happens to be available. In Europe AirBnB is sometimes better than hotels, sometimes worse.
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Jun 28, 2017 13:47
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Saladman posted:If you're interested in WW1/WW2 memorials, keep in mind that public transportation to the countryside is pretty terrible. Getting from Paris to Strasbourg or whatever? Fine. Getting to Omaha beach? Good luck, there are probably like 6 buses a day, or zero on Sundays. If a city / area you want to go to is not on a train line, you might as well consider that it has no public transportation available. Even small places on train lines are probably served at least once every 2 hours by trains, but I would 100% recommend renting a car for a few days if you want to go around Normandy. If you do that, then the cliffs at Étretat are amazing and worth checking out if you go towards the Dieppe area. I would not consider trying to do anything on the maginot line without a car either, although I'm sure there are organized bus tours available if that's up your alley. Yeah, I'm looking up some organized tours. Most seem to do day tours to the various sites which seems best. Probably a better idea then to book over a week in Paris just to give myself some time to relax from travel in the meantime. Seems like I might just give myself a few days in Strasbourg, then. I'm still up for other suggestions.
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Jun 28, 2017 15:55
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Thoughts on renting a motorcycle for a day in august in the Bernese Oberland? Also any reputable shops come to mind?
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Jun 30, 2017 15:24
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Any recommendations for restaurants in Oslo? No dietary restrictions, not sure about budget as there's a lot of us, but it's for multiple birthdays so I think we can afford a good one that isn't absurd levels of expensive. Edit: checked with them, we can afford a lower priced Michelin star restaurant or two, if any exist Argue fucked around with this message at 09:34 on Jul 1, 2017 |
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Jul 1, 2017 09:04
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FAT CURES MUSCLES posted:Thoughts on renting a motorcycle for a day in august in the Bernese Oberland? Also any reputable shops come to mind? Sounds like that would be super fun, but no idea where you can rent a motorcycle. I don't think I've ever seen any at the normal rental agencies here (Sixt, Europcar, whatever) although I'm sure it exists.
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Jul 1, 2017 10:12
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Argue posted:Any recommendations for restaurants in Oslo? No dietary restrictions, not sure about budget as there's a lot of us, but it's for multiple birthdays so I think we can afford a good one that isn't absurd levels of expensive. I was just there and got a lot of good tips ITT! FAT CURES MUSCLES posted:Thoughts on renting a motorcycle for a day in august in the Bernese Oberland? Also any reputable shops come to mind? This does sound like a great day out but I've just checked a couple of websites and it seems like they want a Swiss motorcycle license to rent to you. It also seems like they're ~$150-200/day
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Jul 1, 2017 10:34
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greazeball posted:I was just there and got a lot of good tips ITT! Jeez, you can rent a Maserati from Sixt, and probably other companies too, for barely more than that. Assuming you're at least 30 years old.
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Jul 1, 2017 13:17
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Me and my future wife are leaving for a week's holiday to Bruges, Belgium for our honeymoon in two and a half weeks and are looking for recommendations on what to do when we're there. We have a hotel booked in Bruges and the plan is to do some day trips, maybe to Ghent and Antwerp. We enjoy comfort, food, beer and nature so the travel plan so far leans quite heavily on restaurants, cafés and general sightseeing. Also, I hear there's a decent zoo in Antwerp so we'll look into that. Besides all this, is there anything special worth seeing around the area?
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Jul 3, 2017 16:05
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