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It may also depend on whether or not the state of issue for your American driver's license has a reciprocal agreement with the country you're going to be in. If you come from a state that does have a full reciprocal agreement, I'm sure renting a car without the IDL is no issue, but if you happen to come from one of the states that don't, the IDL may make the process a bit smoother? Not really sure myself, to be honest.
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Aug 11, 2015 07:33
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Going to be in Barcelona for a week on business in the near future. How's the beer, and is there anything local and good I should keep an eye out for (either at bars or at the supermarket)?
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Sep 26, 2017 13:27
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CaptainScraps posted:poo poo. God I hope so, I need to fly there on Thursday for work, and will be staying until Tuesday. My boss has been there since Saturday though and has been posting nonstop photos on Facebook about how quiet everything is near where we'll be staying. I'm not as concerned about safety as I am about getting in and out.
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Oct 3, 2017 19:09
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Cacator posted:Ditto. Flying in to Barcelona on the 15th and then flying from Barcelona to Seville on the 18th. My hotel is two blocks from Plaça de Catalunya I'm at Plaça d'Espanya right now and things are pretty completely normal. Will see if it stays that way... theyve been saying Catalonia will be declaring independence (whatever that really even means) on Monday.
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Oct 5, 2017 19:01
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birds posted:Hey guys, I recently asked about Provence. I'm still going there but I am now doing a larger Europe trip so I have a few more questions. I'll be starting in Munich and with the very early arrival of my flight, I think I can manage to do 1 night in Munich and hit up 2 or 3 things plus the Beer Hall on my first night, and 1 thing in the morning before I take the train or drive a rental car to Triberg. Am I not giving Munich enough time? Munich's lovely, but I would highly, highly recommend choosing one of the beer halls that aren't as well-known abroad (read: avoid Hofbräuhaus like the plague unless you go during off-hours). I visited last year in mid-December (not exactly prime tourist season) and tried to wander in there with some friends. We got about ten feet into the place before we had to leave, it was just a mass of humanity and the inside was hot, sticky, and there was no ventilation whatsoever. Not really a true beer hall, but Schneider Weisse has a nice Bräuhaus. It also gets packed, but it was very manageable compared to Hofbräu. Hacker-Pschorr was full of old people and had pretty awful service.
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Oct 23, 2017 17:49
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AmericanGeeksta posted:RE: Beer Hall alternatives in Munich, Ive visited three times and at the advice of a friend who lives just outside, I've always gone to Augustiner. Never set foot in Hofbrau and I don't feel like I'm missing anything to be honest. Ah yeah, Augustiner is good too.
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Oct 24, 2017 10:23
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Amsterdam.
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Oct 24, 2017 20:28
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webmeister posted:No offence dude but this is kind of a ridiculous question. He asked the same one a month ago and was at least a tiny bit more detailed in that post, but never followed up on it: Cheesemaster200 posted:Whats a good place to visit in Europe in January; skiing excepted? I think I may do a few days skiing in Switzerland or Austria, and then a couple days in a city in that area. Flights are real cheap from the mid-atlantic right now. I mean, it sounds like he's answered his own question. The answer is: somewhere near to the skiing. Vienna, Salzburg, Zürich, Lucerne, Turin....
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Nov 2, 2017 13:00
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Cheesemaster200 posted:maybe Portugal Lisbon to Porto I can't speak from personal experience, but my boss took her family to Lisbon last February and loved it. The water's obviously still too cold to go in in February, but she was super impressed with the city itself and recommends it to just about anyone. I've added it to my list.
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Nov 3, 2017 11:33
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nwiniwn posted:So...what's the difference between all of these? It's hard to tell exactly what the itineraries look like from that screenshot (click "Details" and it'll show you all of the connections, if you need to transfer trains/bus, etc.) What I can tell though is:
Drone fucked around with this message at 08:01 on Nov 15, 2017 |
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Nov 15, 2017 07:57
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Has anyone in the thread done any of the Christmas market stuff in Strasbourg? My mom is going to probably be visiting us here in southern Hesse over Christmas (for my wedding), and I was thinking that taking a little day-trip over to France might be fun, and I've heard really good things about Strasbourg itself. Should we look into staying overnight? It's around a 2.5 or 3 hour train ride from where we live.
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Nov 28, 2017 13:49
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nwiniwn posted:For exchange rates (Coming from the U.S., visiting Munich, Prague, and Salzburg), what are my best bets? I don't have any fees for using my credit card overseas, but I might need Euros or Korunas in hand for some places, I've heard. I do get charged 1% of each ATM withdrawl, but that's not too bad. Check your bank's website to see if they have any partnerships with foreign banks that allow you to pull cash from the ATM for a smaller fee. 1% is already pretty much nothing, but it's worth a shot. But yeah, just use ATMs like everyone else does. By no means should you go to one of the exchange agents at the airport, they're a huge ripoff. It's a good idea to have cash on hand regardless, especially if you're in certain EU countries where card use for everyday expenses is still not the most common form of payment (like Germany, which has an unusually high amount of places that don't accept bank/credit cards).
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Dec 7, 2017 07:07
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nwiniwn posted:2) there was no one checking our tickets at all...does that just run on the honor system that you will pay the correct amount for the train you want? In Boston when we use the trains, it is much more regulated with a conductor coming along and verifying you bought the right ticket (or that you even have one). Yeah, I can count on the fingers of one hand the number of times I've had a ticket checked on an U-Bahn/S-Bahn in Germany (Berlin, Frankfurt, or Munich). Still though, buy the ticket, because the fees for getting caught without one are pretty high. And yep, it's Sunday (and the third Advent), pretty much everything is closed. Cafes might be 50/50, but pretty much all restaurants will be open. If you're still here next week, beware: pretty much everything will be closed from Sunday to Wednesday. In Germany, both the 25th and the 26th are Christmas Day. This is probably similar in most of the continent.
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Dec 17, 2017 15:25
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nwiniwn posted:Edit: and one other thing-are we supposed to tip at restaurants and taverns? As Entropist said, waitstaff already make a living wage, and tipping isn't expected. Usually you just round it up to the next Euro, or if the rounding would only mean they get like 20 cents or something tiny, I'll go a Euro beyond that.
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Dec 17, 2017 15:56
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Just take out cash if you’re feeling unsure about it.
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Dec 18, 2017 12:50
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I’ve lived in Germany for five years and have never even -seen- a 200 or a 500. Are the 500’s like A5 sized or something?
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Dec 18, 2017 14:31
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Vaguely recall people in this thread strongly advising against going to the Hofbräuhaus...
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Dec 20, 2017 21:38
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nwiniwn posted:I like credit cards because: "When in Rome..."
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Dec 21, 2017 09:35
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Julio Cruz posted:Am I the only one who doesn't mind sitting in an airport for a few hours? I'd much rather get there early with plenty of time spare than deal with the stress of having to make it last-minute. Plus, after you've checked out you don't want to be sightseeing with your luggage in tow so it's not like you're missing out on much. I have a habit of getting through security with at least 60-90 minutes before boarding begins. I don't mind hanging out at the airport when I travel... I usually just find a bar and nurse a drink while reading a book until it's time to get to my gate. Depends on the airport though, some airports are shittier than others for just chilling out in. Frankfurt Terminal 2 is stupidly boring.
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Dec 29, 2017 21:04
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You're going to be sorely disappointed if all you see in Berlin during your 1 day there is the Brandenburg Gate and Checkpoint Charlie. Skip Checkpoint Charlie altogether imo.
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Jan 8, 2018 11:51
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If you're at the Brandenburg Gate / Reichstag building, definitely also go to the Holocaust Memorial. It's right behind the American embassy (which is to the left of the Brandenburg Gate as you're looking at it from Unter den Linden ... it looks like a fortress, you can't miss it).
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Jan 8, 2018 20:29
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Checkpoint Charlie will be a huge disappointment. If you -really- must, you can breeze by it in about two minutes and see literally all there is to see. Pictures are better than the real thing, because nowadays it's literally just two people wearing unconvincing costumes standing in front of a fake little shack and holding flags. Brandenburg Gate and the surrounding area can occupy you for a fair bit. You'll get the Gate itself, the Reichstag is a three minute walk away, as is the Holocaust Memorial. You can also walk through Tiergarten, but since it's January I'm not really sure how nice that will be. There are also a few monuments on Straße des 17. Juni (the big street going from the Brandenburg Gate toward the victory column) that are neat to see -- just beware that it's a long-rear end walk -- as well as Schloss Bellevue (the residential palace of the president of Germany). In the opposite direction from the Brandenburg Gate is Unter den Linden, a famous boulevard down the middle of Berlin and home to a bunch of embassies and hotels. The Russian embassy is a really cool building and worth a look if you like architecture. Just off of Unter den Linden is a crap-ton of shopping and food on Friedrichstraße. You can also walk to Museum Island from there, or over towards the Fernsehturm (the bigass TV tower) and the Rotes Rathaus (the Berlin City Hall). The Berlin Cathedral is near there as well. Hackescher Markt is a pretty great little shopping/food/nightlife area right next to that. Berlin-Mitte is very walkable, just bring a comfortable pair of shoes. It's a shame you only have a day in Berlin though, otherwise I'd recommend shopping on Ku'damm or going to the Zoo.
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Jan 9, 2018 09:55
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StealthBus posted:For any of you guys living in Europe, if you'd never been before and had 14 days in January, where would you go ? Are you restricted to one city/country for budget reasons, or are your options wide open? With 14 days I'd say probably pick 3-4 cities tops, which gives you enough time in each to see some of the major stuff. Have you been to Europe before? A triangle between Paris/London/Amsterdam would probably be the best assuming you've got the budget for it, just bear in mind that the weather in January is gonna be poo poo no matter where you are (though in southern Europe it'll obviously be less poo poo).
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Jan 22, 2018 08:10
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StealthBus posted:I hadn't really considered London because I think I'd rather see stuff that's a bit more different than here. I'd still recommend it. London is really a unique city. Of course "different from here" probably depends heavily on where in Australia you're from I guess. In that case, Paris/Amsterdam are definitely still on the list. You could go to Bruges or somewhere in Belgium and round out that bit of the continent, or go a bit farther afield for Munich or Berlin.
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Jan 22, 2018 08:22
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StealthBus posted:What about Barcelona as a replacement city ? Friend went a year ago and took lots of awesome photos of public art. Barcelona is fantastic. I was there on a work trip in October and unfortunately didn't get to see much of it, but what I did see places it in my top cities in Europe so far. People are great, food is great, the sights are great, the architecture is great, the weather is great, the beer is great. The only downside is that the political situation is... not great. But that's not likely to impact you at all.
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Jan 22, 2018 08:28
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webmeister posted:If you're keen on the Rijksmuseum, the Van Gogh Museum or Anne Frank's House then book in advance, otherwise you'll spend half of your trip waiting in line. I lucked out and was able to get into the Rijksmuseum with my group of three people without any wait at all in the middle of the high season. Your mileage may vary but booking in advance can't hurt. It's definitely worth it. The Anne Frank House was a total no-go though, the line to get in was like 500 meters long. I'd also recommend the National Maritime Museum, which (when I went) was pretty empty of people. It's not going to be interesting if you don't already kinda like boats though, but it goes pretty deep into the Netherlands' history as a naval and commercial power, and the maritime art section is huge and impressive.
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Feb 2, 2018 09:18
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duck trucker posted:we've seen Paris at least once. That's the thing though. You won't really be able to say that. Sure, you may be able to train in -> get a photo in front of the Eiffel Tower -> train out again, but you won't really be able to see or do or experience anything else. It's just a step above saying "I've been to New York because I had a connector flight through JFK once!"
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Feb 2, 2018 15:41
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yeah I eat rear end posted:Well that doesn't sound very german. Why did I agree to go there instead of just going to munich? I mean, you can get beer and sauerkraut and schnitzel just fine down there in Baden-Württemberg. Why would you look for the same experience when travelling elsewhere, especially to a city as unique as Berlin?
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Feb 23, 2018 07:47
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Whorelord posted:Visiting Amsterdam and want to try some Indonesian/Surinamese food, but my mate who I'm visiting is a tight gently caress/perma skint so he never eats out. Any recommendations for hole in the wall places that won't break the bank? Last time I was in Amsterdam, it was raining like crazy on one of the days, so we didn't venture too terribly far from our hotel. We wound up at a place called Indrapura on Rembrandtplein that turned out to have a pretty decent rijsttafel. Not a place that I would necessarily recommend you go out of your way for, but it's pretty well-rated on Google, and I remember the food being quite good (though it was more on the expensive side). If it matters though, my husband (who grew up in Indonesia and whose parents still live there) had never heard of a rijsttafel before in his entire life... it's a colonial-era thing that the Dutch just made up to suit local tastes back in the metropole.
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Mar 9, 2018 09:12
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sean10mm posted:I'm going to Amsterdam from America on a short notice business trip. Unsurprisingly, I speak zero Dutch. I've been to Germany, France and the UK but could not possibly know less about the Netherlands and would like to limit how much I look like an idiot. Any suggestions? The Dutch speak better English than native English speakers do (a bit of an exaggeration but it honestly might as well be true... the Netherlands is probably the most English-saturated country in Europe outside of the UK and Ireland). Don't worry about not speaking Dutch. If it's a business trip, how much free time will you have?
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Mar 21, 2018 15:21
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Wandering is a pretty great start, especially if you aren't really the museum type (though you should be, Amsterdam has a ton of really good ones). Definitely eat some pancakes, some Indonesian food, and some  if you're so inclined. Amsterdam is a city that's kinda difficult to describe and is probably best experienced spontaneously.Edit: oh and even though they're still lovely mass-produced boring pisswater beers, try a Heineken or an Amstel while you're there. They're both actually drinkable on this side of the Atlantic, unlike in the US where they both just taste like skunk.
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Mar 21, 2018 15:56
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Saladman posted:Is that actually based on something, or is it one of those things like how Coke tastes better in Mexico because somehow people can tell the difference between sugar and HFCS (maybe some people really can tell), or how Guinness tastes better in Ireland because of the Mystery of the Leprechaun or whatever reason people make up? I drink Heineken fairly regularly and as far as I can tell it's the same watery piss in Switzerland and France as it is in the US. Like other mass produced lagers, it's great when it's ice-cold and you're sitting in the sun though. Like, scientifically? I dunno. But Heineken isn't helped by being stored in green bottles, which generally allow more UV light through and can cause the "skunking" effect in a beer that isn't properly stored. The effect is definitely more pronounced by Guinness, which DOES taste legit different in Europe than in the US.
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Mar 21, 2018 16:23
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Carbon dioxide posted:Seriously, someone is going to Amsterdam and you're recommending they try some of the worst beers made in Europe? If you want to try beer, get either a quality Dutch beer like Hertog Jan, some Belgian beer, or one of the many many many different kinds of local microbrewery beers. Read the post again. I explicitly mention that they’re both piss, and I think it was clear that I meant it as an exercise in comparison. By all means drink actual good beer while you’re there, and don’t drink exclusively one thing or another.
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Mar 21, 2018 20:49
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Ras Het posted:It's a really dumb and classist thing to say that foreigners speak "better English" than people whose dialect you don't like fyi Even if that includes myself? 
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Mar 22, 2018 11:02
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Saladman posted:Like 99% of portable electronics are dual voltage so I really doubt you need a converter unless you’re taking like a water boiler and a microwave with you. The only thing I've ever had issues with were cheap grooming electronics. I've lost several crappy beard trimmers during trips across the pond. But that's probably mostly my fault for buying cheap poo poo I guess.
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Apr 8, 2018 10:31
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I used to hang out a bit at The Local's forums for Germany... not sure how the Spanish ones are. I imagine it's probably 90% retirees from Britain, but you never know, might be useful: https://www.thelocal.es/
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Apr 16, 2018 17:14
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Pablo Bluth posted:Book a hotel in London for a week. The only caveat that I'd add is if you're unfamiliar with London, definitely don't just book a hotel willy-nilly without figuring out if the part of the city you'll be in is relatively central. London is sprawling and it's super easy to book a cheap hotel out at like Gatwick and have a 30 minute commute to Victoria Station to look forward to when you want to do sightseeing (and then another 30 minutes back when you're done for the day).
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Apr 19, 2018 17:24
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I'd just use a debit card in an ATM instead of a credit card. Most major US banks will have established partnerships with major banks in Europe that allows you to use their ATMs for a reduced fee. Check with your bank in the US and see which ATM's you'd be best using.
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Apr 24, 2018 06:53
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Maybe more of a Germany-specific question, but has anyone tried out Flixbus's new rail service (Flixtrain)? Was looking at a weekend ticket from Frankfurt to Berlin and it's like half the price of an equivalent ticket with Deutsche Bahn, and also offers direct service without any transfers in between.
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Apr 25, 2018 15:53
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mojo1701a posted:Wouldn't this also be illegal? I mean, you're using equipment that's not yours in a manner that is not agreed upon. It's also almost certainly fake.
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May 14, 2018 18:28
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