Going To Europe

[Crazy Flamer]

Originally posted by icarus+Jul 20 2005, 07:18 PM--></div><table border='0' align='center' width='95%' cellpadding='3' cellspacing='1'><tr><td>QUOTE (icarus @ Jul 20 2005, 07:18 PM)</td></tr><tr><td id='QUOTE'> <!--QuoteBegin-Crazy Flamer@Jul 20 2005, 07:11 PM
So A Eurail pass will get me onto farries, busses as well as trains?

I don't know that's just what she had written in her blog. I can ask her when she logs on. [/b][/quote]
Thanks, that would be great if you could!

[Nilson_26]

Originally posted by Crazy Flamer@Jul 20 2005, 12:17 PM
Some more question. So I gether it would be better to bring a backpack instead of a siutcase if I'm going to be traveling arounds lots. Also, can anyone recommend any hostels, or places with cheap hotels?

I'm a fan of the backpack route, but don't cheap out like I did because you will notice the quality difference.

If you have any specific hostel questions pm me, I am a hostel pro by now, lol.

[icarus]

Because I wish I was still in Europe, I will steal Incogneto's format and do my own for the places I have visited (although I was in different places at different times over the past 10 years). In no particular order, (well the order I visited I guess):

Greece
1. Athens: 7.5. Exciting place, the Acropolis is really cool. But smoggy and dirty.
2. The Greek Islands: 8.5. Beautiful, every island is fun to explore and party at.
3. Delphi: 9. My fave place in Greece, one of the most beautiful places I've been.
4. The Peloponesian: 5.5. Some cool sites (Olympia for one), but gets old quick.
Germany
5. Munich: 8. Cool place, a beer drinker's paradise.
6. Bavaria: 8. More to see and do than you think. Lots of fun.
7. Stuttgart: 7. Not bad but nothing spectacular. See the Mercedes museum!
8. Baden-Baden: 7.5. Fancy spa and casino town, nice resort but small.
9. Strausbourg (France): 8. Cool blend of French and German, nifty cathedral.
10. Rothenburg: 8. Cool medieval walled city; the torture museum is hours of fun!
11. Hamburg: 4. Smells bad and there isn't much to see except the Reeperbahn.
12. Northern Germany: 6.5. Some neat places up here like Wismar but skip it.
13. Berlin: 8.5. My fave in Germany. Vibrant, historical, fun, artistic, interesting.
England
14. Oxford/Cambridge: 8.5. I'll put them together because they are very similar. Wonderful old architechture, and you feel smart just being there. History galore.
15. London: 8.5. Bloody expensive, but you'll never get bored.
16. Bath: 7.5. Georgian architechure, a rare nice English city, near Stonehenge.
17. Sussex: 8. As a whole worth seeing cool places such as Brighton, Battle, Rye.
Scotland
18. Glasgow: 7. A likable cosmopolitan place, the uni is the nicest sight.
19. Edinburgh: 9. Just a cool city: Looks cool, feels cool. Feels a bit dark but fun.
20. Northern Scotland: 8. Explore the whiskey trail, Loch Ness, friendly towns.
Holland
21. Eindhoven: 7. A young, modern city. Feels like one big Eau Claire.
22. Amsterdam: 9. The canals are nice, but the fun stuff is what makes this town!
23. The Hague: 7. See 21. A worthwhile stop if you go to the ICTY like I did.
Scandinavia
24.Uppsala: 7. University town, Linnaeus & Gustavus Adolphus buried here. Hot girls!
25. Stockholm: 9. Cool harbour town, interesting layout. Fun to explore. Hot girls!
26. Oslo: 8.5. Expensive and smaller, but the hills and fjords are very nice. Hot girls!
27. Copenhagen: 10. Maybe my fave place at the moment, lots to see and do. Hot girls!
Miscellaneous:
28. Paris: 9.5. I love Paris. I disagree with all the negative comments here (except for the beef one). Just my experience but I've spent about 10 days there and love it still.
29. Dublin: 8.5. A really fun place, the people are super nice and fun to drink with.
30. Geneva: 9.5. Expensive, but it is a luxury town. Every second car is a sports or luxury car. The lake and mountains are scenic, and all the diplomatic stuff is cool.
31. Rome: 9. I liked Rome. The Vatican and ancient sites are great, and the Spanish Steps and Trevi Fountain are fun to go drinking at overnight.

[Table 5]

well, thats no fun icarus. you love EVERYTHING! we want dirt, dammit.

[icarus]

Well I really haven't found any place in Europe that I thought was terrible. If I did I would let you know. I love travelling though... I can't really think of any places I have been to in my life that I've hated. Maybe Edmonton.

I forgot to mention that I completed a brewery hat trick this year. I visited:
1. Guinness Storehouse, Dublin
2. Heineken Experience, Amsterdam
3. Carlsberg Centre, Copenhagen
And I 'acquired' a pint glass from each (although my Carlsberg one shattered on the plane :angry: )

[moon]

I have been to Paris about 8-10 times and have not once enjoyed my time there. It is dirty and the people there are very rude. The sights are cool but the other stuff you put up with is crap and totally ruins the experience for me.

[icarus]

I don't find Paris dirty. It is much cleaner than London. Cleaner than Amsterdam also. An American friend who I was with in Paris commented how she had been told it was dirty and was surprised at how much cleaner than expected it was.

As for the people being very rude, I didn't experience that much either. They typically like to speak English less there than many other places in Europe, so perhaps that accounts for some of the perceived rudeness. I always spoke (or at least attempted to speak) French to the Parisians so maybe this has something to do with it. Some Parisienne girls lived in my building this year and initially they came across as rude to a number of people but once you got to know them it wasn't so bad. But in Europe I didn't find people in Paris noticeably more rude than those from anywhere else.

But I guess each person has his or her own experiences and expectations so I guess none of us is wrong.

[Phanuthier]

Originally posted by icarus+Jul 20 2005, 02:34 PM--></div><table border='0' align='center' width='95%' cellpadding='3' cellspacing='1'><tr><td>QUOTE (icarus @ Jul 20 2005, 02:34 PM)</td></tr><tr><td id='QUOTE'> <!--QuoteBegin-Nilson_26@Jul 20 2005, 07:17 AM
Paris was gross, IMO.# I was not impressed at all.# The whole place smells like urine.# It was the only city I went to that I didn't like at all.

Most people love Paris but some hate it. I've spent about 10 days there and have never found it to smell like urine, so I still love it. One of my favourite places in Europe. [/b][/quote]
Paris is just one of those cities you either love it so much you never want to leave, or you hate it and never want to go back.

[The Familia]

I have only been to Italy, but in Italy I did a 2 week cross country tour, basically hitting every city. I will do like the rest but only for cities in Italy.

Rome (9) - As remarkable as I thought it was gonna be. Seeing the coliseum and St.Peters basillica was awe inspiring. Stayed in a little hotel just outside Rome. awesome. Small little ice cream/bar just down the road. So you could eat your ice cream while having a shooter of sambuca!

Assisi (8) - Very nice little town. Home of St.Francis. Reminded me of a fortified little medeval town. Probably was.

Siena (7) - Not the most entertaining, but a couple very cool cathedrals. Nice clean and quiet.

Florence (10) - Amazing. Probably one of my favs. Very clean. Reminded me of a European Calgary for some reason. Some cool clubs and awesome little ice cream shops. It didn't hurt that a Ferrari dealership was down the street from our lodge.

Verona (8) - Took a bus/walking tour of Verona. Saw Juliets balcony. Very nice city. Was cold that day. Also some amazing shopping. Kind of like Rodeo drive. Louie Vuiton, Versace, Replay...alll the big brands all on a few streets. Also saw the preparations for a Paul McCartney concert in the oldest, largest amphitheater, a smaller coloseum still in use.

Venice (8) - Yes it did smell a bit funny, but can easily be over looked after some getting used to. Gondola ride a must. Amazing. Good shopping.

Rimini (6) - A party town to say the least. Pervert boys coming up to foreign girls. Girls beware! You will be stalked!

Sorrento (9) - My hotel was on top of a cliff over looking the meditteranian sea. How awesome was that? Watch the sunset. The town is built into a cliff/mountain.

Pompei (9) - A ancient city burried under ash, seeing mummies, nuff said.

Naples (7) - Not as ghetto as it used to be. Huge clean up projects trying to restore the city. Good sights, nice beach.

That was my trip. Obviously I'm biased toward everything cause Im Italian and I can't bash the homeland ha, but non the less Italy is a must see on any European tour!

[icarus]

Originally posted by The Familia@Jul 21 2005, 03:15 AM
Assisi (8) - Very nice little town. Home of St.Francis. Reminded me of a fortified little medeval town. Probably was.

LOL

[FireInTheHole]

Backpack vs. suitcase - if you will be travelling lots, definately the backpack is the way to go. I got mine from MEC, and spent around $150. You can spend a lot more - but it really depends on just how much walking you plan to do with all of your gear. I was more concerned with going from hotel/hostel to train station to hotel/hostel. The one time we ventured out into the city with the big backpacks was to do a quick photo in Pisa, then back on the train to Florence. It made for a longer day to carry everything around but I couldn't even imagine doing that with suitcases.

As for places to visit - if you are going to Amsterdam you may want to hop over to Berlin. We were in Europe for 3 weeks in May, and Berlin was my favorite. If you go, I really highly recommend taking an all-day walking tour. It was packed with so much interesting information and sites it was mind boggling. Here is a link: http://www.brewersberlintours.com/

In Berlin we stayed at a hostel called The Circus. Very clean, pretty cool place, and not expensive at all. Here's a link: http://www.circus-berlin.de/

If you decide to go with the Eurail pass, you can take ICE trains in Germany, which were the best way to go. Very fast, very efficient, very comfortable.

Hope you have a great trip!!!

[icarus]

Everyone who goes to Berlin raves about the walking tour. I did one a long time ago. How does everyone end up on this walking tour though? Seems like the number one thing to do there.

[kermitology]

If you can manage any other time in England I'd highly recommend Glastonbury. It's rich in folk-lore, supposidly the burial place of King Arthur and Guenivere. There's also lots of other stuff that is really cool around that place. When I go back to England I'm definately going back there.

[Jagger]

Being that I'm originally from the UK I've travelled extensively in Europe and have lots of favourite places. There's just so much to see. I like seeing a lot of stuff in a short time so to me you seem to be taking it very slowly on your journey! No problem fitting in what you want to do in three weeks. Not that there's anything wrong with that approach. You will get to savour the atmosphere of the different places very well.

Call this a pet peeve of mine but it does bug me when people go to London and think that they've done the UK. This could not be further from the truth. I understand that there are time constraints but imo London is not close to being the best the UK can offer. Yes, there's lots to see and do and you must go there but you really need to get out and see more than the expensive capital.

My favourite places in the UK are: The Lake District in the North West of England, North Wales (Amazing 12 Century Castles there), anywhere in Scotland but especially the Highlands, Isle of Skye, and Edinburgh, Cornwall, York, Chester, Liverpool (cos I'm biased), Northumberland.

However, I do understand that time constraints are an issue for you here but I just wanted to point out that there is more to see than London.

My wife and I have done two major train trips through Europe and that's the way I would recommend travelling to anyone. The Eurail pass is well worth the money. We found that by sleeping on the night trains we arrived in a new city or country first thing in the morning, ready to go.

Our favourite places are Paris (Must see. Great place to hang out and take in the sights), Budapest, Athens, Greek islands, Venice, Munich, Toledo, Barcelona, Southern Spain, Monaco, Helsinki, Stockholm, Copenhagen, French and Swiss Alps, Morocco (not Europe but included in the train pass on our first trip).
Not too fond of Rome even though there are some amazing sights there. We were robbed there and that left a sour taste that still lasts over ten years later.

Whatever you end up doing you'll no doubt have a great time. Make sure you go to Paris though and give it a fair shot. It's my favourite 'big' city in the World (so far!) I think we've visted there seven or eight times now which I guess says a lot.

Good luck and have a great trip

(Sorry for the London rant.....)

[Flame Of Liberty]

Originally posted by InCoGnEtO@Jul 20 2005, 07:47 PM
I got back on Saturday from a 12 week tour of Europe. Here is where I went, and how I would rate them, 1 being terrible, 10 being a can't miss.

1. London - 7.5. Very Expensive, but you will never run out of things to do
2. Prague - 9. One of my favorite cities. I got drunk for $7 Cdn.
3. Czesky Krumlov - 8. Nice, quiet place.
4. Salzberg - 8. One of the nicest cities on the planet
5. Innsbruck - 5. Quiet. Nah!
6. Munich - 8. Great City. Great Atmosphere. Great Beer.
7. Zurich - 6. Nice to see, but expensive.
8. Paris - 7. Great sites. 2 days is enough. Not as dirty as I expected.
9. Nice - 7. Nice itself would be a 4, but Monaco, and Cannes are truly unique.
10. Cinquo Terra - 9.5. Absolutly amazing experience.
11. Rome - 2. WORST PLACE ON EARTH. The sites are amazing, but it isn't worth it with that city!
12. Ancona - 1. Don't bother.
13-18. Croatia - 10!!!!!! DO NOT MISS CROATIA! Bol, Croatia is Heaven on Earth, Dubrovnik is one of the nicest cities in Europe. Lonely Planet predicts that Croatia will be the #1 travel destination in 5 years. Zegrab is not worth it. Stick to the Dalmation Coast.
19. Mostar, Bosnia - 3. V. Interesting, but not 'comfortable'.
20. Sarajevo - 6.5. Truly a unique city. Young, Vibrant, and still recovering.
21. Siofuk, Hungary. If you want Night life, this is your place.
22. Budapest - 8. Like Prague, but a little more expensive, and less busy.
23. Bratislava - 6. Quiet. Cool. Only stayed there to take daytrips to....
24. Vienna - VERY Beautiful. Expensive, but wow, I was shocked with its beauty.
25. Krakow - 10. DO NOT MISS KRAKOW, AND DO IT NOW! 5 years from now, it will be like Prague is now...BUSY! Right now, Hottest chicks, coolest sights, and EVERYONE should have to see Auschwitz.
26. Wroclaw - 4. Spend more time in Krakow.
27. Berlin - 7. Big, New City. Spend more time in Krakow.
28. Hamburg - 5. SKIP!
29. Glasgow - 4. City. Shopping. Nothing Special.
30. Edinbrough - 10. DO NOT MISS!!! City Blew me away!!!! Sights are amazing, and St. Andrews was a dream come true.
31. Scotish Highlands - 8. Took a 3 day tour to the Isle of Sky. Very cool!!

These are just my $0.02. I am a true tourist, and love travelling. if you have any other questions, feel free to PM me.

I have visited most of those places (save a few like Scotland or Sarajevo) and I gotta agree with you and especially about Croatia. I spent many weeks in north Croatia (mainly Istrija) and its a heaven on Earth. Most beatuful beaches ever. I have never visited Dubrovnik (it wasnt safe back then) but thats my number one place to visit in near future. Maybe next year. Everyone who has seen Dubrovnik loved it. Cant wait.

Good to see you had a great time in Europe!

[Rubber Ducky]

Jagger, sorry to hear that you got robbed in Rome.

But that brings up a related point - is it dangerous to travel through Europe? I've heard there's a ton of scams, gypsy kids with magical fingers and so on.

Are overnight trains safe? And how about hostels vs hotels?

Just curious - I'm living in Japan now, and I'm sure I could leave my wallet on the street and it would be there tomorrow morning. B-)

[ratech]

Don't mean to hijack, but I didn't want to start a new thread. Anyway, I am planning a vacation to the Maldives, but have never heard any personal accounts of the place. Anybody been there?

[sbailey924]

København!

I studied in Copenhagen during the last Spring semester. It is very beautiful and has a ton of stuff to do, whatever your interest is in. It can be a bit expensive, but if you know the right places to go, it can be cheap. I don't know if Tivoli would be open then, I get the feeling it wouldn't, but it's an awesome place. I know where some dives are that can get you 15 DKK beers and 10 DKK shots of Jaeger (down the street from my school). Beer is much cheaper in stores, though, as the discount beer is just 1,50 DKK (and you get a 1 DKK refund for the bottle when you recycle).

General suggestions:
-Spend more than just a couple of days in cities, because things lose significance the more places you cram in
-Do "touristy" things all on one or two days, and then see the real city the rest of the time
-Bigger cities are not always better (case in point, the island of Bornholm in Denmark was unbelievable)
-If you only are visiting a few cities, try and go for something different in each (Berlin = history, Munich = beer, Black Forest = outdoors, etc.)
-Night Trains SUCK when you don't have a bed

[Sylvanfan]

DO NOT BRING A SUITCASE!!!!!!!

Nothing looks worse than some poor sap trying to lug around a suitcase to a Youth Hostel. Even when I did the Contiki Tour I brought a back pack and laughed at everyone else who was carrying an armoire sized suitcase. Even when I travel with me wife I feel like an idiot lugging her suit case. Unless your budget is like $800 a day and you have to wear suits everywhere you're far better off with the backpack.

As for Eurail, I don't know about the busses, but you could take ferries to places like Scandinavia, Greece, and Ireland with it. When I had mine it wasn't valid in the UK, but in places like France, Germany, Austria, Belgium, Holland, Italy, Switzerland, Spain, Hungary, Denmark, and many more it was. I imagine places like Czech Republic and Poland may be on board now too. I've got a site for rail Europe, so check that out, it probably has a lot of good info. I didn't mind Paris, but I can speak French, so Canadian flag, plus knowing French and the people treated me great. It was the Italians and Germans that I clashed with, but nothing that was terrible.

[icarus]

Originally posted by sbailey924@Jul 22 2005, 12:12 AM
København!

I studied in Copenhagen during the last Spring semester.

What did you study? I have some friends study there. In fact, I stayed at the university.