Stronzo
Hall of Famer
I hope some of the people that have asked for advice here, will return with some good stories to tell us.
Travel EUROPE: Travel Tips & Tricks
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00Stinger
100 - 7
4 nights in Venice is way too long imo
Your trip looks awesome and I am jealous.
Venice is the one that stands out as to where I'm staying too long. But the issue is my 2 mates will be arriving anywhere between a 4-day period in Venice. And to be honest, I'll have just come off a 4 week USA contiki and Ive booked a place in Venice for 4 nights only $15 p/n on the mainland so I reckon just a few relaxing days not doing much might be alright.
Yeah exactly we do, the Amalfi Coast tour goes for 3 days, then we've got 2 spare days after that so they sound like good ideas.
I wouldn't mind Scotland at all, but I guess it's more about allocating time. Start in London, I've had Liverpool recommended by a couple mates who have just recently gone, and if push came to shove I think I'd rather see Ireland than Scotland.
Yep, that was basically my thoughts, that I might fly from Budapest to Amsterdam, and then just work sorta backwards South-West to Germany, Paris and then finally back to Zurich.
Appreciate the help and insights mate, yeah looking forward to it as you could imagine I'm sure haha.
thekelvin
Club Legend
Hi mate,
You're trip looks like it will be fun. I've spent the last 13 months in Europe, and have been to a lot of those places.
The only problem I see with your trip is contikis rush you through all the good places!!!
Amsterdam, Berlin, Prague, Munich and Paris are some of the greatest cities in the world!!!! You need a lot longer.
With that in mind. Here is some advice of things I found really fun.
Amsterdam, with it liberal drug laws is a super fun place. You're not going to struggle to find cool places to go out. Obviously there is coffee shops everywhere and a general smell of weed in the air always... super fun place. That aside, with it's canals and slanted buildings it's a beautiful city to walk around in. I highly recommend going to the Heineken Factory (the Heineken experience) and taking the tour. Great facilities, super interacting and informative and you get well drunk too.
Berlin is incredible for it's WW2 history. Take a walking tour. There is some really big nightclubs in Berlin and they can go all day and night. I forgot the names, but everyone knows of them. Won't be hard to find.
Prague is one of the most beautiful cities in the world. Beer is cheaper than water. They have their own currency, but the cost of a pint of quality Czech beer in bars and clubs is the equivalent of 1-1,5€ Also the local food is ridic and super cheap. Have a good time! Also it's another important city from WW2. Take a tour. (I happen to be very interested in the war, and find these tours interesting A.F)
Munich, in Bavaria, the south of Germany, looks very different to other German cities. Very pretty. Also the beginnings of Nazism started there (take a tour). You must go to Bavarian beers Halls, the famous one is the very large HoftbrauHaus (might have mispelled that). Go there and drink quality bavarian beer by the litre, in there very beer hall where Adolf Hitler started to become a popular speaker.
Paris, is my home-town and the greatest city in the world. It's also the most beautiful. The whole city is a museum and a week is not even close to enough time to see "everything". Start from St-Michel (notre dame) and walk down the beautiful Seine in the direction of the Eiffel Tower, on the way you will pass: the louvre, place de la concorde, grand palais, Orsay. Later on check out Champs-Elysées (the most expensive blvd in the world) and the Arc de Triomph.
A good night out can be found in places like Bastille, Chatelet, St Michel, St Germain des Près. But really there is awesome places all over town. Like Mix Club in Montparnasse, which is probably my favourite club. I think it's the biggest in Paris too. Make sure you arrive with hot girls. You won't get in otherwise.
Hope this helps. Good luck! Travelling is the greatest.
00Stinger
100 - 7
Two things.
The mainland in Venice is a dump, so don't expect to be doing much.
Also unless you are going to the soccer in Liverpool, I would give it a miss. Think Geelong, but shitter and no beach, with more interesting characters.
Liverpool is good if you are with mates and want to party, other than that the place is a hole
Fantastic mate, appreciate the response and details. I agree looking at it, the three places I reckon I'll want to spend more time are Amsterdam, Germany and Paris, so I'd say that will see the majority of the 2 extra weeks. I'm also pretty interested in history and WWII, fortunately the contiki does cover bits of it, such as the Berlin walking tour.
I know it's probably not long enough, but in your opinion if you had 10 days to split between Amsterdam/Germany/Paris, how would you divide it?
Yeah I'm not expecting too much from mainland Venice to be honest. It's only 4 days, and as I said I may be after a bit of a rest for a day or 2, and the place I'm staying has a pool and bar, so should be right. Also they said they do a shuttle onto the island of Venice each day - it is probably too long, but I'm assuming I'll find a way to kill a bit of time.
Fair call on Liverpool, the mates that recommended it to me definitely would've been about it for the nightlife.
thekelvin
Club Legend
It really depends where you go. Paris has heaps going on so you could easily spend 5 days there without seeing much. Amsterdam is cool place to smoke up and party, its a beautiful city, but it doesnt have a whole lot of massive tourist attractions (red light district however). Though there is some museums if you're into that kind of thing.
Personally in Germany I really loved Munich much more than Berlin or Hamburg or Dresden. Cologne is nice too. But again you'd be moving too much. A really tough one.
Id probably say something like: Paris 4/5 days, Lyon 2, Munich 3 and Prague for 3. That kind of route follows a nice line. But could be re jumbled to fit in amsterdam instead. Always so tough not knowing the schedule exactly. But maybe have a read up. Those places are personally some of my favourites.
Personally in Germany I really loved Munich much more than Berlin or Hamburg or Dresden. Cologne is nice too. But again you'd be moving too much. A really tough one.
Id probably say something like: Paris 4/5 days, Lyon 2, Munich 3 and Prague for 3. That kind of route follows a nice line. But could be re jumbled to fit in amsterdam instead. Always so tough not knowing the schedule exactly. But maybe have a read up. Those places are personally some of my favourites.
00Stinger
100 - 7
The bus trip would take between 15 and 25 mins depending on where you are in the mainland
Stronzo
Hall of Famer
You can always return to Europe another time. Don't rush around too much.
Dagless
Hall of Famer
Yeah I actively skipped most of the Balkans and Greece because there's always another time.
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Liverpool is a nice enough city, but not worth it unless you're heavily into the Beatles or Liverpool/Everton. Manchester is a better night out, but again lacking in attractions (as are most larger UK cities).
Is Pripyat accessible to public tourists?
Stronzo
Hall of Famer
Bristol and Bath are good.
Liverpool is worth a day trip at most if you are staying in Manchester.
Nice enough city as you said, although I thought the Beatles museum kind of sucked, was expecting something a bit better - tourist trap.
If you've got 2 weeks in the UK i'd definitely try to get away from the cities, if only for a few days. While nice enough and good for a night out, cities like Liverpool and Manchester probably aren't the places to be spending your time if you've got a limited trip. In my opinion what makes England what it is is the country. In a world where nearly every country now has more people living in cities than the country, England is one country which is contrasting this trend and the village culture is really admirable I think. When you look that England is vastly more populated than Australia, it is stupidly surprising that their second biggest city (Birmingham) has a population similar to Adelaide. Having a small town with a local pub or two, how you know everyone in town without it being a shithole like Australian small towns can be. I've just spent a few days, for example, in the lake district, and it is a fantastic getaway down the windy English roads for a couple of nights to differ from your city centric tour of Europe. Cottswolds is also an excellent area, aswell as southern seaside towns (although possibly a little touristy). Plenty of good hiking if you're into it.
I'm on the Berlin side of things with the Berlin v Munich debate, just couldn't get enough of it. On top of the usuals, check out spreepark. It's an abandoned amusement park which has little security, so it's easy to jump the fence and wander around. Worth it for its uniqueness, won't take up too much time though (pictured below). Might want to book in advance to enter the Reichstag building, excellent trip. Also Teufelsberg (thanks Google for the spelling) is a US spy tower turned street art building in a forest about a 30 minute train ride from town, pretty cool and get to comprehend a little the cold war. Going out also cool, but can be hard. Wear your worst clothes to act like you'll dance all night and try your hardest to not look like a tourist. Going with your contiki group will not get you into anywhere good, nor would going with any group at all. Best way is to go in dribs of 2-3 at most, try to get chatting to some Germans as this will help your cause greatly.
Can't think of much more to add that others havn't said, other than your trip sounds great and echo thoughts on Venice. I didn't get to it but Cinque terra (cbf googling spelling) is meant to be a great place to rest off those couple of days according to some friends i was with in Italy.
I'm on the Berlin side of things with the Berlin v Munich debate, just couldn't get enough of it. On top of the usuals, check out spreepark. It's an abandoned amusement park which has little security, so it's easy to jump the fence and wander around. Worth it for its uniqueness, won't take up too much time though (pictured below). Might want to book in advance to enter the Reichstag building, excellent trip. Also Teufelsberg (thanks Google for the spelling) is a US spy tower turned street art building in a forest about a 30 minute train ride from town, pretty cool and get to comprehend a little the cold war. Going out also cool, but can be hard. Wear your worst clothes to act like you'll dance all night and try your hardest to not look like a tourist. Going with your contiki group will not get you into anywhere good, nor would going with any group at all. Best way is to go in dribs of 2-3 at most, try to get chatting to some Germans as this will help your cause greatly.
Can't think of much more to add that others havn't said, other than your trip sounds great and echo thoughts on Venice. I didn't get to it but Cinque terra (cbf googling spelling) is meant to be a great place to rest off those couple of days according to some friends i was with in Italy.
My wife and I are living in Antibes, pretty much right between Cannes and Nice. It's our 1 year wedding anniversary next month and I'll have only 2 days off work to take her somewhere. The 2 places I'm thinking are Cinque Terre and the other is Tuscany. Both are about a 3-4 hour drive(we have a car). Another further(5-6 hour drive) is Lake Annecy as an alternative.
Anyone been to all and have a personal reccomendation?
Anyone been to all and have a personal reccomendation?
Can't speak for Cinque Terre (although have only heard good things) but Tuscany and the San Gimniano (sp?) area was unreal when I visited. Got some amazing countryside views and the wine is delicious.
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I'll be heading to Europe for the first time in two months. I'm going over by myself, coming back by myself, but I've got some friends with couches and some mates passing through at the time.
I'll probably fly to Copenhagen (got a mate and a couch there) on May 29 and return from (potentially London) on Monday July 20. I'll be in London from the 17th-ish to the 21ist-ish for The Strokes' and Blur's shows. That's all the definite I have now. But I've naturally got some queries, though.
• How many countries and cities do you think it's possible to see in this timeframe? England (not just London), Berlin, Copenhagen, France are my absolutes at this stage
• What is the best 'shape' to travel in with this in mind? I'm considering going from Sweden, to Norway, to Copenhagen, to Berlin, to London and then flying from London to Amsterdam and going to southern and western Europe
• How much am I looking at for these countries, for this time? Aside from flights and a Eurail
• Speaking of Eurail: worth it?
• How easy is it to get a hostel three or four days before going to a city?
Cheers. Plenty of knowledge in here.
I'll probably fly to Copenhagen (got a mate and a couch there) on May 29 and return from (potentially London) on Monday July 20. I'll be in London from the 17th-ish to the 21ist-ish for The Strokes' and Blur's shows. That's all the definite I have now. But I've naturally got some queries, though.
• How many countries and cities do you think it's possible to see in this timeframe? England (not just London), Berlin, Copenhagen, France are my absolutes at this stage
• What is the best 'shape' to travel in with this in mind? I'm considering going from Sweden, to Norway, to Copenhagen, to Berlin, to London and then flying from London to Amsterdam and going to southern and western Europe
• How much am I looking at for these countries, for this time? Aside from flights and a Eurail
• Speaking of Eurail: worth it?
• How easy is it to get a hostel three or four days before going to a city?
Cheers. Plenty of knowledge in here.
Stronzo
Hall of Famer
You shouldn't have a problem with the hostels, eurail passes are a bit of a rip off - the bus, plane, hire car and ferry are all option you should keep in mind. The How much question is subjective - research your potential hostel costs, the your travel costs then work out a reasonable budget for food and drinks per day, allowing yourself a bit of leeway for unplanned things you might do.
Dagless
Hall of Famer
If you preplan about 2-3 legs of your trip and the train rides required, and actually buy those tickets, eu rail becomes a completely valueless purchase. Some trips on the fly will cost quite a bit so if you get cheap tickets now, you're golden.
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Can't like this enough it will be the difference between a 18€ ticket and an 80€ ticket. Also check the websites of the rail providers in each country (departing and arriving) prices might be different.
Stronzo
Hall of Famer
You can also potentially save money on trains if you break it into two tickets instead of 1. For example, a ticket from Milan to Paris can be cheaper if it's a ticket from Milan to Lausanne, then Lausanne to Paris. It might mean you have to change seats part way through the journey, but can save you a bit.
The Eurail passes also have hidden costs like extra for night and high speed trains.
The Eurail passes also have hidden costs like extra for night and high speed trains.
00Stinger
100 - 7
I travelled on Eurail twice over in Europe this time last year. I purchased 2 first class tickets from Munich to Venice and Venice to Rome and they cost me about $250 AU for all four tickets. Pretty good value imo
