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Kaddish posted: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. My brother in law is terrible at golf, and he went golfing at St Andrews once. After a little while he was respectfully asked if he wouldn't be more at home inside with a coffee, instead of on the green. Granted, it's Scotland and not Ireland, but take it as you will.
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Apr 8, 2013 17:28
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Oh god. That's exactly what I would be afraid of. That would be a nightmare.
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Apr 8, 2013 18:44
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Aw cock. I booked a train ticket from Paris to Cologne that arrives at 3:15pm, but every single car rental place at the Cologne main train station closes at 3:00 on Saturdays. There's one that stays open later about 4km away. I could try changing my train ticket, but it looks like my only other option leaves at 8am, and I'd really prefer not to rush to make that one. Is it easy to just grab a taxi at Cologne Hbf? My public transit options look... complicated and indirect.
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Apr 9, 2013 22:15
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Hog Obituary posted:Aw cock. I booked a train ticket from Paris to Cologne that arrives at 3:15pm, but every single car rental place at the Cologne main train station closes at 3:00 on Saturdays. There's one that stays open later about 4km away. I could try changing my train ticket, but it looks like my only other option leaves at 8am, and I'd really prefer not to rush to make that one. There's going to be literally hundreds of taxis waiting outside the station. Take the exit to the Dom square and look for light beige Mercedeses. See Google Maps for what I mean: http://goo.gl/maps/Zu8g2 I don't know on what kind of day Google took these pictures, but in my experience this number of taxis is very common for Cologne.
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Apr 9, 2013 23:28
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Hey goons, I have about a day layover in Paris built into a trip this August (so that I can see the sights). I know nothing in Paris is cheap but could anyone recommend a place to stay that is reasonable and near CDG airport?
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Apr 10, 2013 13:15
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Would Rijeka make a good base to explore Croatia for a week from?
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Apr 10, 2013 20:46
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So I took advice from this ever so helpful thread and I've booked 2 nights in Zurich as a stop over from Berlin while on my way to Rome. I'll be shacking up in a Ramada. So what should I do in Zurich! ADDED: Being that I will be staying in and around the major cities: Zurich, Berlin, Rome, Florence etc. I won't need to rent a car would I? I can solely depend on public buses and/or trams to get around and to and from airports/train stations I figure? Kolta fucked around with this message at 02:51 on Apr 11, 2013 |
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Apr 10, 2013 21:55
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Kolta posted:So I took advice from this ever so helpful thread and I've booked 2 nights in Zurich as a stop over from Berlin while on my way to Rome. I'll be shacking up in a Ramada. So what should I do in Zurich! No need for a car in general you can get to places quicker with public transport. Things you may want to see in Zurich are churches like Grossmünster and Fraumünster, the Landesmuseum if you like historical museums, the Urania observatory if you like astronomy. You may want to take a trip to Berne for its historic center, it's frankly more interesting than the Zurich one and the Einstein museum is quite nice. Aside from that the swiss cities suffer a bit in that they have interesting things to see but don't really compare with Berlin and Rome so they will be a bit pale if you visit them in quick succession. But the mountains are just a 2-3 hour trip away from Zurich so you can easily take a day trip to Jungfraujoch, Zermatt, Titlis or Säntis and see something you won't see in one of the other cities. The first two destinations are cooler but more expensive while the second two are more budget. Zermatt is more weather independant than Jungfraujoch though.
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Apr 11, 2013 09:02
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peak debt posted:
Rigi is closer and the views are stunning from the top, although of course not '4000m high stunning' but nevertheless well worth going to. You could also go to Luzern, take the boat across the lake and go up Pilatus http://www.pilatus.ch/en/ Luzern is a cool little city. If you do Zurich start at Hauptbahnhof and walk down Bahnhof strasse towards the lake, wander off to the left hand side to get lost in the little alleys. When you reach the lake cross the bridge and head towards the church, you can now walk up Niederdorf and again wander around the little alleys. Head back to Hauptbahnhof and you have done a pretty nice circle tour of Zurich.
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Apr 11, 2013 13:54
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Tonton Macoute posted:Would Rijeka make a good base to explore Croatia for a week from? Yes. You have Istra peninsula on the west, Brijuni islands, Pula amphitheater. Losinj and Krk islands on the south. Plitvice Lakes are not far either and you can even visit the capital if you feel like it.
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Apr 11, 2013 15:55
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Alright guys, I'm gonna need some help. I will be backpacking in Europe for about 4 and a half weeks. I want to go Spain, France, UK, Prague, Italy, the Netherlands and possibly more but it seems like I won't have the time according to this thread. How do you whittle it down and where should I go! I don't know what to do. Italy is a must as that's where my friends seem to want to go the most and I want to go to Spain. Any tips on where to fly into and if we should fly out of separate airports? Would it be a better idea to start in Spain and end in Italy?
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Apr 11, 2013 22:18
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jimmydean posted:Alright guys, I'm gonna need some help. I will be backpacking in Europe for about 4 and a half weeks. I want to go Spain, France, UK, Prague, Italy, the Netherlands and possibly more but it seems like I won't have the time according to this thread. How do you whittle it down and where should I go! I don't know what to do. Italy is a must as that's where my friends seem to want to go the most and I want to go to Spain. Any tips on where to fly into and if we should fly out of separate airports? Would it be a better idea to start in Spain and end in Italy? Talk about cities and not countries for a start. You could spend a month backpacking just in one of those countries (OK maybe not the Netherlands) if you wanted to. Then, do you want a party holiday/sightseeing holiday/off the beaten path holiday/adventure holiday/mega-chill holiday?
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Apr 11, 2013 23:05
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Honestly, I don't know where I want to go. I think Barcelona would be cool, Paris and Rome are a must, and I think Germany/Berlin is a must as well (due to other people). Amsterdam would be nice and so would Prague. Is this too many cities/places? For me personally it's Barcelona, why?, I have no idea.
jimmydean fucked around with this message at 00:02 on Apr 12, 2013 |
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Apr 11, 2013 23:59
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Both spain and italy are so loving awesome, why not just keep it there. In Italy, hit the major tourist spots, Rome, (maybe Naples, I'm not sure never been there) Florence, Venice, etc. You should be halfway your holiday on those three including travel time. Then in spain, rent a car and just go hogwild, so many amazing villages and cities around there I can't even begin, especially in the south. Grenada, Malaga, Sevilla etc. all pretty great. I could spend 4 weeks backpacking either country
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Apr 12, 2013 00:06
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I can't do that because there are 4 other people who each have their own place they NEED to see. Do you think it would be OK if we did 4 countries max or should I try to keep it at three?
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Apr 12, 2013 01:47
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Are there any events over the summer that I can't miss?
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Apr 12, 2013 02:32
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Europe only has one event over the summer and it was last week sorry 
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Apr 12, 2013 04:19
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But really, go to Sonar - http://www.sonar.es/en/2013/ Kraftwerk are playing!
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Apr 12, 2013 04:20
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Its more of a sightseeing, adventure, party holiday I guess. Either way thanks for answering my questions. I'll start figuring some stuff out.
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Apr 12, 2013 06:19
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jimmydean posted:Honestly, I don't know where I want to go. I think Barcelona would be cool, Paris and Rome are a must, and I think Germany/Berlin is a must as well (due to other people). Amsterdam would be nice and so would Prague. Is this too many cities/places? For me personally it's Barcelona, why?, I have no idea. Chaining all those capital cities is going to feel a bit redundant. There's old buildings in some of them, parties in others but other than that the only big difference between Amsterdam, Prague and Barcelona is going to be a different native language that you don't understand. Plus, once you're done with all those cities your 4 weeks will be pretty much over. So unless everyone really hates nature I'd mix it up a little with some Cinque Terre, Loire Valley, Schwarzwald or Polders.
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Apr 12, 2013 09:08
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A while back someone posted a link to some kind of Umbrian foodie tour, if you're still reading the thread I'd love to know how it went. My parents are going to Italy next month and it's the kind of thing they'd love.jimmydean posted:Honestly, I don't know where I want to go. I think Barcelona would be cool, Paris and Rome are a must, and I think Germany/Berlin is a must as well (due to other people). Amsterdam would be nice and so would Prague. Is this too many cities/places? For me personally it's Barcelona, why?, I have no idea. No, that's doable. You really shouldn't be looking to add anything more to that, though. Budget way over the recommendations we've given before, too, because those are all massive tourist draws (so significantly pricier accommodation) and every single one of those is hella far away from every other one so you're pretty much going to have to fly.
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Apr 12, 2013 11:15
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Help. I have 3 weeks of vacation coming up pretty soon (I leave April 25). The first week I'm going to be in London. The second two weeks... ????? I had originally planned to take a train up to Scotland and hang out for 5-6 days, ferry over to Northern Ireland for a few days, train down to Ireland for a bit, ferry back over to Wales, and then wrap the whole thing up with a couple more nights in London. But suddenly I find myself kind of resistant to that idea, like I think I'm going to end up hanging out in generic tourist towns by myself or something. So. Does anyone have any other suggestions for what I could do for two weeks? For example, I was most recently looking at maybe crossing the Channel over to Brittany or something. A few things: 1) I'll be a woman traveling solo 2) I'm trying to avoid flying anywhere (I know it's often cheaper than ferries/trains, but I really hate flying) 3) It's not like money is no object, but I don't need to be super cheap 4) My job has been incredibly stressful, so if anyone has any suggestions like "rent a cottage on the coast, there's really nothing to do there but it's pretty and there are two decent restaurants", that's totally fine. 5) I've been to Dublin a couple of times, where else would be an interesting place to base myself out of in Ireland, if I were to do that? Galway, maybe? Argh, I need to get this planning going.
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Apr 13, 2013 15:18
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pamchenko posted:Help. If relaxation is your thing and money is not, I definitely recommend spending at least 4-5 days in each place and renting an apartment (e.g. via vrbo.com). They start off at about the same price as a 2* hotel (and go all the way up) and they're infinitely nicer at the same pricepoint. You could also couchsurf if you're into that kind of thing and want to meet people and not just be alone the whole time. E: I'm like a broken record, recommending this to everyone who's not on a backpacker budget.
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Apr 13, 2013 16:34
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I'm not quite sure why you found yourself resistant to the idea of going up to Scotland and then Ireland, it seems like a good idea to me and it would be different enough from London. I don't think anyone would describe Edinburgh (or anywhere else you were gonna go) as a "generic tourist town", it's one of the more interesting cities that the world has to offer - lots of things to do and look at. I guess what would help is if you could say what you meant exactly by a "generic tourist town", as right now I'm not sure what alternatives to offer. Really your initial trip seemed quite good to me if you are trying to see what the UK and Ireland has to offer, though maybe you could visit somewhere in the north of England like York as well. I'm guessing you have no internal transport booked or anything if you are having second thoughts now; because trains in the UK can get really expensive if you don't book in advance, e.g. a single to Edinburgh from London costs Ł39.50 on the 2nd May if you book it today (and even cheaper the further out you get), but costs Ł125 on the day. I was going to suggest an easy trip on the Eurostar to Paris but this would be quite expensive trying to book so close to your trip. Scotland to Ireland via Rail & Sail (and coach) is a single fixed cost ticket though so you don't need to worry about that, though the Dublin to London SailRail tickets can be booked in advance for discounts. If you have already been to Dublin a few times already it maybe makes sense to see the rest of Ireland this time, but I don't think Ireland has very good public transport for that sort of trip (though I'm not that familiar) so you would probably need to think about hiring a car. Similarly if you are looking at any quiet rural cottage type thing anywhere on your trip rather than doing city sightseeing you should think about a car. Maybe earlier I actually misunderstood when you said Scotland and you actually wanted to see rural Scotland, and maybe with Wales as well? If you are then you would really need a hire car to do this properly. I don't know anything about Brittany, but you would have a chance to look around Portsmouth before you get on the overnight ferry which has a historical naval dockyard museum thing and a few other things if you are interested in an historic naval town. Really I dunno what to suggest because it seems like you could do almost anything. I do think that it would be way too late in the day to be able to rent out any cottage or house anywhere that was decent, so I'm guessing you would be 'stuck' with hotels. I could be wrong though!
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Apr 13, 2013 16:44
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I definitely did not mean to imply that anywhere like Edinburgh would be generic or touristy. I think I had in mind some "ideal" of going to small towns and just chilling out, but then started thinking that I would get incredibly bored on my own with no car. Also, my mother wants to take a trip to the UK next year, and I think something in my mind tripped and didn't want to do the "same trip" two years in a row, even though I know perfectly well that just because it's the same country, it's not necessarily the same trip. Also, I know exactly what she wants to do (York and maybe the Lake District), so I'm going to avoid that. (I'm rambling a bit; I blame work.) Anyway, so I'm open to ideas and I realize that things are getting expensive this close to my dates. Since there's nothing to be done on that score, I'm willing to fork out a bit. I still think I'd like to do something a bit more rural at least for part of the trip, but I may be just as happy being in a bigger city and able to take day trips out somewhere to do some walks or hiking. (Preferably on public transport.)
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Apr 13, 2013 17:05
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Looking for hostel recommendations in: London- Preferably close to Fulham/Chelsea if possible Paris- I have absolutely no idea what I'm doing here. What part should I be staying in as an 18 year old male with my 24 year old sister on a relatively tight budget? Should I look into the bed and breakfast options? Berlin- Any other recommendations besides Jetpack Alternative in case it's booked? For reference, I'll be staying at the Flying Pig in Amsterdam and Fusion in Prague.
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Apr 14, 2013 09:43
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I'm looking for some advice about Iceland. A friend and I have decided that we want to visit the country. - We've got about 7-8 days - Late June/Early July - We want to rent a car - He wants to visit out of general interest, me for the amazing landscapes. The plan looks like spending a few days in Reykjavik + doing the golden circle and then... honestly, no specific idea. Skaftafell and the environs? I'm trying to figure out what are the best places to visit considering our interests and time frame. e: Looking deeper into it, I think my main question is what are we able to do within 7-8 days? Because a plan like this: Reykjavik -> Ţingvellir National Park, Geysir, Gullfoss and Keriđ -> Back to Reykjavik Reykjavik -> Skaftafell (Vatnajökull National Park mow?), Seljalandsfoss, Vik, Skógar and Jökulsárlón -> Back to Reykjavik Would be pretty amazing. But it seems like a bit much for a week maybe? e2: I'd also like to know if any parts of the trip would require a car for F roads or if a bog standard one will suffice? Mango Polo fucked around with this message at 21:17 on Apr 14, 2013 |
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Apr 14, 2013 17:35
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What would be a medium daily budget for two people? With hostels.
Kolta fucked around with this message at 21:21 on Apr 14, 2013 |
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Apr 14, 2013 20:54
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Kolta posted:What would be a medium daily budget for two people? With hostels. I'd budget around US$100 day, assuming you stay in the cheapest hostels and usually eat grocery store food. The real per diems depend so much on the place. Zurich is going to be about US$60 per person for bare necessities -- a bed in a shared dorm and some groceries for breakfast, lunch, and dinner. Berlin will be more like US$30 per person minimum.
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Apr 14, 2013 21:28
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Saladman posted:I'd budget around US$100 day, assuming you stay in the cheapest hostels and usually eat grocery store food. The real per diems depend so much on the place. Zurich is going to be about US$60 per person for bare necessities -- a bed in a shared dorm and some groceries for breakfast, lunch, and dinner. Berlin will be more like US$30 per person minimum. So looking at it from what I have, if I'd factor in all the hotels and hostels as paid for I'd be able to swing a 60 $ a day budget. We're not looking at eating at restaurants and we're maybe going to take a few tours but that's about it.
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Apr 14, 2013 21:37
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Are you talking $60 a day for two people as spending money, after the hostels are already paid? That's fine, comfortable even. You won't have to be zealous about guarding your cash. Unless you go to Zurich or something, that's like three hot dogs there.
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Apr 15, 2013 01:13
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duralict posted:Are you talking $60 a day for two people as spending money, after the hostels are already paid? That's fine, comfortable even. You won't have to be zealous about guarding your cash. Yes exactly. Hostels paid. And thankfully I'm only in Zurich (Hotel paid) for 2 days. So I'll be sure to import some food from Berlin. Zurich is basically a stop over/relax spot for while we're on our way to Rome.
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Apr 15, 2013 01:19
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Mango Polo posted:I'm looking for some advice about Iceland. Honestly, this: Reykjavik -> Ţingvellir National Park, Geysir, Gullfoss and Keriđ -> Back to Reykjavik Can very easily be done in one day. My husband and I did it in about seven/eight hours, and we spent a lot longer at each location than any of the other tourists we saw did. This: Reykjavik -> Skaftafell (Vatnajökull National Park mow?), Seljalandsfoss, Vik, Skógar and Jökulsárlón -> Back to Reykjavik Is very easily done in your timeframe. I'd definitely go for this. You won't need a car for F roads, we did it all in a Chevy Aveo.
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Apr 15, 2013 04:18
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HookShot posted:Honestly, this: That's what I was hoping to hear, perfect! 
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Apr 15, 2013 13:04
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Mr.AARP posted:Looking for hostel recommendations in: Hostels in Pairs are all kind of crap. I'd just go to hostelworld and see what gets the best rating. I know there is a hostel in the 18th district http://www.hostelworld.com/hosteldetails.php/Square-Caulaincourt/Paris/2193 I stayed there like 5 years ago and I worked on that street when I lived in Pairs. The Neighborhood is cool. It is bit out of the city center though. No idea of the quality but these two hostels are probably in the best locations: http://www.hostelworld.com/hosteldetails.php/Hostel-des-2-Empereurs/Paris/63161 http://www.hostelworld.com/hosteldetails.php/Young-and-Happy/Paris/607 Here is a guide I wrote about staying in hostels. Feel free to check it out. http://thesavvybackpacker.com/hostels-in-europe-guide/
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Apr 16, 2013 03:44
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I've been sort of battling with my wife about our Ireland trip next month. I want to fit a round of golf in somewhere but with our itinerary I think I might be too tired. Is this totally crazy? Day 1 - (after long flight from Chicago). Drive immediately from Dublin to Belfast. Day 2 - Belfast/Giants Causeway Day 3 - Belfast to Donegal Day 4 - Donegal to Cong - Stopping in Sligo for whatever Day 5 - Cong to Newmarket on Fergus - Cliffs of Moher on the way Day 6 - Newmarket on Fergus to Killarney Finally some rest, right? Nope. Day 7 - Ring of Kerry Day 8 - Drive to Dingle then back to Killarney Day 9 - Killarney to Kinsale Day 10 - Kinsale Kilkenny Day 11 - Killkenny stuff Day 12 - Kilkenny to Dublin Day 13 - Dublin Day 14 - Fly home So its like 2000 miles in two weeks. Are we nuts?
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Apr 16, 2013 03:52
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Kaddish posted:I've been sort of battling with my wife about our Ireland trip next month. I want to fit a round of golf in somewhere but with our itinerary I think I might be too tired. Is this totally crazy? Yeah that's pretty nuts. Heck, I'm taking a two day break in Zurich cause taking a train from Berlin to Rome was too long. Try to stay for more than one day in some places. Cause all you're going to do is sleep, eat and drive. Kolta fucked around with this message at 03:58 on Apr 16, 2013 |
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Apr 16, 2013 03:56
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Kaddish posted:I've been sort of battling with my wife about our Ireland trip next month. I want to fit a round of golf in somewhere but with our itinerary I think I might be too tired. Is this totally crazy? Do you actually want to see those places or do you want to eat lunch in them before having to leave for the next?
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Apr 16, 2013 10:22
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Sweevo posted:Do you actually want to see those places or do you want to eat lunch in them before having to leave for the next? I think she really just wants to see Belfast, Killarney, Kilkenny, and Dublin. The other places are just rest points to get to those places. I agree though, in my opinion we should have cut out N. Ireland entirely. I tried to talk to her again and there is no changing her mind, though. This year is her pick and I'm basically along for the exhausting ride.
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Apr 16, 2013 12:51
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Sweevo posted:Do you actually want to see those places or do you want to eat lunch in them before having to leave for the next? Think of the money they'll save on hotels by sleeping in the car! Kaddish posted:I think she really just wants to see Belfast, Killarney, Kilkenny, and Dublin. The other places are just rest points to get to those places. I agree though, in my opinion we should have cut out N. Ireland entirely. I tried to talk to her again and there is no changing her mind, though. This year is her pick and I'm basically along for the exhausting ride. Seriously though, you're just going to spend the whole time in the car. Have you driven in Ireland before, do you know what it's like? Anything not marked "M" and a number on the map (ie, 95% of the roads in the country) is going to be a single lane in each direction and many times with stone walls and no shoulder. They're considerably narrower than US lanes, as well. The roads also go through the center of every village along the way so your average speed across the country will be 35-40mph if you're lucky. There are also basically no lights at night in the country. It's not that I wouldn't recommend driving on your holiday, but it's going to be a lot more taxing than driving similar distances on US roads. Why not spend a couple nights in Dublin first so you can rest up a bit before hitting the road so dramatically? Also, Kilkenny? Dear god, why? (family?) Why not choose a couple places to stay so you don't have to pack up your suitcases every morning? Like, just take those towns you mentioned and book a hotel for 3 nights each (or whatever), that'll give you the option of just taking a drat day off (or maybe golfing, but don't tell the wife) if you're sick of being in the car all the time. You can just use these as bases for day trips and let you maybe actually talk to some Irish people instead of just arriving at hotels after dinner and leaving before breakfast.
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Apr 16, 2013 13:12
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