Confessions of a YYC Travel Junkie

[bagofpucks]

Originally Posted by CroFlames

What are the best things to do in Barcelona, besides the Sagrada?

Some good posts already, but I’ll add my 2 cents:
- sagrada is absolutely amazing. Do your research on how to make the most of your visit and bypass the crazy lines. There are also some other old historic churches that are kind of cool.
- all the Gaudi stuff was really cool and I don’t usually enjoy that kind of stuff.
- Parc Guel was only ok, but we were also fighting some jet lag that might have influenced our mood that day.
- tapas and sangrias are amazing everywhere.
- we enjoyed spending lots of time walking the beach and finding different places for food or drink.
- I know everyone seems to love La Ramblas, but it was just too busy for us.
- we did a cava wine tour and that was really cool and a nice relaxing day.
- someone else mentioned pick pockets and yah, it’s a big problem. It was common to see bags or purses cut and thrown on the ground.
- public transit was amazing. We used the transit system for everything and only took a cab once when we ran out of steam.

[Fuzz]

Palau de la Música Catalana is worth going in for the stained glass ceiling(the glow worm). I think we paid for a tour.



https://www.google.ca/maps/place/Pal...sbTI?entry=ttu

[DeluxeMoustache]

+1 for the Tapas

Even the simple stuff that are everywhere like where they give you tomatoes to smush on the lightly toasted bread, or patatas bravas

So good

[Torture]

Originally Posted by DeluxeMoustache

+1 for the Tapas

Even the simple stuff that are everywhere like where they give you tomatoes to smush on the lightly toasted bread, or patatas bravas

So good

Fresh tomatoes, bread, deli meats. Everywhere and delicious. *drool*

[brocoli]

With the high cost of flights and it seeming to only go up. Anyone have any ideas for decent flights to London in October? Or is it a buy now b/c sales are mostly done for that time of year now?

[cmyden]

Originally Posted by brocoli

With the high cost of flights and it seeming to only go up. Anyone have any ideas for decent flights to London in October? Or is it a buy now b/c sales are mostly done for that time of year now?

The YYC-LGW nonstop flights currently found with WestJet in the high $700s CAD roundtrip in October started appearing a few weeks ago (along with some lower end of season prices for Dublin and Paris). This is the lowest they've dropped in a long time (other than errors).

https://www.google.ca/travel/flights...IASIA&curr=CAD

In years gone by, and even last year, these flights have occasionally dropped into the $500s CAD roundtrip.

The last time that happened was in May of 2022, 14 months ago.

High $600s to low $700s feels like it could be the bottom seen this year, but impossible to say for certain.

[Winsor_Pilates]

Originally Posted by cmyden

The YYC-LGW nonstop flights currently found with WestJet in the high $700s CAD roundtrip in October started appearing a few weeks ago (along with some lower end of season prices for Dublin and Paris). This is the lowest they've dropped in a long time (other than errors).

https://www.google.ca/travel/flights...IASIA&curr=CAD

In years gone by, and even last year, these flights have occasionally dropped into the $500s CAD roundtrip.

The last time that happened was in May of 2022, 14 months ago.

High $600s to low $700s feels like it could be the bottom seen this year, but impossible to say for certain.

We're trying to book for London around Sept 11/12 and back about 3 weeks later.
The prices are crazy high. Do you think these sales may get extended to earlier dates or is it unlikely we'll see any improvement from what we have now?

[soulchoice]

I just got back from a trip to both Prague and Croatia(various cities/islands). Wow, both places I would highly recommend. I truly like travelling to central and Eastern Europe countries (Latvia was also wonderful). If you get a chance, do it!

[btimbit]

Going to London and then the Canary Islands in February, planning to spend a week in each location. Any recommendations for either? All I have planned so far is two museums in the London area, then basically just walk around and look at stuff. Might jet off to Dublin for a day or two, but keeping in mind it's likely going to be 5 degrees and raining every day, not so sure what else to do

[Fuzz]

Originally Posted by btimbit

Going to London and then the Canary Islands in February, planning to spend a week in each location. Any recommendations for either? All I have planned so far is two museums in the London area, then basically just walk around and look at stuff. Might jet off to Dublin for a day or two, but keeping in mind it's likely going to be 5 degrees and raining every day, not so sure what else to do

You could hop a train to Brighton, though the beaches may not be great in Feb. You can also get to Stonehenge and back in a day(or add an overnighter and see Bath, too). You have to train it to Salisbury, then hop a bus. But it gives you a chance to go in the massive cathedral there and see the Magna Carta.



In London if you care to pay the 20 or so pounds Westminster is pretty cool, lots of famous dead people buried there, anyway.

[btimbit]

Originally Posted by Fuzz

You could hop a train to Brighton, though the beaches may not be great in Feb. You can also get to Stonehenge and back in a day(or add an overnighter and see Bath, too). You have to train it to Salisbury, then hop a bus. But it gives you a chance to go in the massive cathedral there and see the Magna Carta.



In London if you care to pay the 20 or so pounds Westminster is pretty cool, lots of famous dead people buried there, anyway.

Stonehenge, now there's a good idea. One of the Museums I want to check out is just south of there, maybe I will turn that into an overnighter and see both

[Fuzz]

Stonehenge is pretty quick as a stop, no more than an hour, and I think the bus ran frequently. We stayed in a B&B once in Salisbury, it's a neat little town and a good contrast to London. This is just across from the cathedral.



http://spire-house-bed-breakfast.wil...hotels.net/en/

[Slava]

The museums in London are excellent. The British National has so many amazing artifacts, and if you're interested in Egypt and Assyrian history it's really impressive. Overall, it's an amazing collection from around the world. Want to see huge pieces of the Parthenon? They have them. How about some of the oldest and first statues of the Buddha? They also house those. Probably the best museum I've been to.

If you like art, the National Gallery is also excellent. Even if you're not huge into art there are pieces you'll know and artists you'll recognize. And, if modern art (ie more off the wall) is your interest, the Tate Modern is worth a visit. There are some exhibits there that cost, but a lot is free. Depending on when you're going, there's a Hilma af Klint exhibition there. She was probably the first abstract artist, but not widely recognized as such because art was so dominated by men. I've been under not insignificant pressure to get my wife there for that!

I would also recommend a show. Last summer I saw The Book of Mormon and of course that was awesome. I just love London and it's so awesome. If you're really lucky and schedules coincide, you could try to get tickets to the glorious Tottenham Hotspur football club! I'm sure that's who Winsor Pilates is yearning to see as well!

[Fuzz]

Ya, the British National museum is absolutely worth the stop, they also have the Rosetta Stone.

[btimbit]

Alright, adding that one to the list for sure.

-British National
-Imperial War Museum
-Bovington Tank Museum


Not too into art, more-so history. Checking to see what's playing on the West End at the time is a great idea too. Please keep them coming!

And this is why the wife and her sister are just going straight to the Canary Islands and I'm meeting them there. They think the stuff I want to do is boring. Hah, losers

[Slava]

You might enjoy the Tower of London and I'd get a tour from a Yeoman Warder. I think that they run hourly, but I can't remember. It's a little pricey (in my opinion), but if you like history, it's a must-see I'd say.

[btimbit]

Tower of London was on the 'maybe' list, definitely something I want to go see but was unsure about actually stopping in. Royal Armouries there would be cool to check out but I know most of their collection is in Leeds now. Definitely want to go look at it at the least though, heading inside for a few hours is something I'll keep in mind for sure

[Fuzz]

It's about 2 hours to see most of it. Highly recommend hitting at opening if you can, and heading straight to the Crown Jewels. I think you can pre-purchase tickets to skip one of the lines, too.



I also seem to remember the British Museum being free entry. Probably because they'd feel guilty charging to see stolen stuff

[soreshins]

Was at the British Museum in May - it’s definitely free. Love it there - just so much to see.

I also spent a day just walking from Holborn down past St Pauls to Tower Bridge and then back along the Thames. Went into several ancient churches along the way. The site of St.Brides dates back 2000 years and they have a cool little museum in the basement. Stopped for a few pints on the south bank overlooking the Thames. Was a great day.

[Street Pharmacist]

Originally Posted by btimbit

Alright, adding that one to the list for sure.

-British National
-Imperial War Museum
-Bovington Tank Museum


Not too into art, more-so history. Checking to see what's playing on the West End at the time is a great idea too. Please keep them coming!

And this is why the wife and her sister are just going straight to the Canary Islands and I'm meeting them there. They think the stuff I want to do is boring. Hah, losers

I'm not art guy either but after getting a good tour guide in Italy I've found that the best history museums I've done in Europe were at galleries because they're essentially a photographic history that's much more intimate than a war piece or a coin. I wouldn't bother doing any art stuff without at least a Rick Steeves self guided tour though. Hearing someone tell you about what the painter was capturing and why is fascinating