Travel EUROPE: Travel Tips & Tricks

[danielsk]

Anyone visited Slovakia and/or Slovenia? How did you like it?
Do you think it is necessary to rent a car there or is it possible travel around using public transport only?
If i decide to rent a car, it is written i need a vignette, anyone knows if that is official website https://slovakiavignette.eu? Should i get it in advance or is it possible to get it on some petrol stations for example?

 

[The Dice Man]

Anyone visited Slovakia and/or Slovenia?
Hw did you like it?

Spent 3 days in Bratislava about 7 years ago. Was the furtherest I've travelled into eastern Europe and certainly started to look different. It was ok, I cant remember too much specifically about it except I remember the beers were big and strong, and an autumn afternoon walking around Bratislava castle was quite beautiful. I enjoyed Budapest much more.

 

[Total Power]

Spent 3 days in Bratislava about 7 years ago. Was the furtherest I've travelled into eastern Europe and certainly started to look different. It was ok, I cant remember too much specifically about it except I remember the beers were big and strong, and an autumn afternoon walking around Bratislava castle was quite beautiful. I enjoyed Budapest much more.

Budapest is the bomb, i just can't get enough! now that summer is coming i will avoid it as it will be full of tourists but gee, i was there in Feb, it was empty, quite warm and absolutely stunning. Stay in the IC right next to the chain bridge with the river view is a dream.

 

[The Dice Man]

Budapest is the bomb, i just can't get enough! now that summer is coming i will avoid it as it will be full of tourists but gee, i was there in Feb, it was empty, quite warm and absolutely stunning. Stay in the IC right next to the chain bridge with the river view is a dream.

I have some great B&W photos of my wife and I on that bridge.. If I had to go back through my photos, Budapest might just have the best and most unique images.

 

[revival_mode]

Anyone visited Slovakia and/or Slovenia?
Hw did you like it?

dropped in to Slovenia for a short time a couple of years ago, didnt get to Ljuljana we were just based around lake Bled for a few days.
quite liked it, the area was pretty and laid back. went whitewater rafting in the alps and did some hiking. would like to have spent more time in the country and explored the city and some different regions.
was cheap too from memory. would recommend

 

[revival_mode]

off for 6 weeks starting June yeah i know its peak time - not my doing

• 2 weeks road tripping around Norway's west coast
• Amsterdam then Berlin (probably a week total)
• 1 week haven't organised yet
• two weeks in northern Italy

should go ok

fly out next week - mentally i am already there. bad time to be my job lol
added a couple of days in Dubai on the way over, ended up splitting the rest of the unknown week between the places above

**** i hate the plane trip over though. dreading it.

 

[Great8]

Anyone visited Slovakia and/or Slovenia?
Hw did you like it?

Have driven around both several times and loved it. Slovenia especially has some absolutely stunning scenery, is easy to get around and the hospitality is superb. Amazing food that won’t even put a small dent in your wallet. Just don’t make the mistake and go to Lake Bled anytime around school holidays, weekends etc in spring/summer as the traffic queues stretch for miles and not a lot of parking

 

[darcytiger]

I spent 3 days in Bucharest and 2 in Sofia on the way over to the UK this year. Bucharest is great, amazing architecture, really interesting history. Had a nice buzz just walking around town.

Sofia, pretty pox. Not in any rush to go back there. Not much interesting to see.

 

[revo333]

Budapest is the bomb, i just can't get enough! now that summer is coming i will avoid it as it will be full of tourists but gee,

Went last year in the summer and it was brutal, didn't enjoy it at all!

 

[BStaff17]

dropped in to Slovenia for a short time a couple of years ago, didnt get to Ljuljana we were just based around lake Bled for a few days.
quite liked it, the area was pretty and laid back. went whitewater rafting in the alps and did some hiking. would like to have spent more time in the country and explored the city and some different regions.
was cheap too from memory. would recommend

You don't have to pay to go to a public toilet in Ljubljana either

 

[raskolnikov]

Anyone visited Slovakia and/or Slovenia?
Hw did you like it?

I went to Slovenia in 2018. Loved it. Ljubljana is an amazing city. Lake Bled is also really nice and worth a visit.

 

[raskolnikov]

I spent 3 days in Bucharest and 2 in Sofia on the way over to the UK this year. Bucharest is great, amazing architecture, really interesting history. Had a nice buzz just walking around town.

Sofia, pretty pox. Not in any rush to go back there. Not much interesting to see.

I didn't like Bucharest at all. I loved the rest of Romania though.

 

[Total Power]

I didn't like Bucharest at all. I loved the rest of Romania though.

Same. It's just like me living in Sofia, there's not much to do (but i ain't complaining, it's the cheapest place in the EU) but the rest of Bulgaria is so awesome and very underrated. Went skiing in Borovetz, way better than Bansko.

 

[Seeds]

Yes and Israel and Kazakhstan aren't in Asia.

Asia? They are on the european side of the middle east. And even the asia side of the middle is not asia. Its the Middle East.

 

[.Shotties.]

Same. It's just like me living in Sofia, there's not much to do (but i ain't complaining, it's the cheapest place in the EU) but the rest of Bulgaria is so awesome and very underrated. Went skiing in Borovetz, way better than Bansko

I went to Bansko a few years ago and didn't mind it at all. It was a coin flip between it and Borovetz. What does Borovetz do better?

 

[Total Power]

I went to Bansko a few years ago and didn't mind it at all. It was a coin flip between it and Borovetz. What does Borovetz do better?

They are different experiences. For starters Borovets is a pretty small resort, and it's for beginners and more advanced skiiers, nothing for the intermediates.. I have been skiing since 2006 so i enjoy it more cause i don't have to queue up and wait for my turn again. Bansko is way too commercial, it feels like being in St Moritz in Switzerland as opposed to Grindelwald. Borovetz is like Bansko when i first arrived back in 2007, feels more like rural Switzerland. Bansko is full of tourist traps and overpriced ***** restaurants abd bars and now it's a resort town. Also prices are cheaper, you can get a pint for 1.5 euros, which is impossible there. Also almost no nightlife, festivals etc which is a common theme in Bansko.

Although the restaurant selection is terrible in Borovets but we usually eat at the hotel, which offers a decent choice.

 

[MrsBlueSky]

Has anyone taken the long and cheapest way to get to Europe from Perth. Instead of 17hrs it's well into day 2 via anywhere like China, Japan with three stops instead of none which could save $2000.
Or is it the case if I can't afford the airfare then I shouldn't be going?

 

[revo333]

Protests in Barcelona and Athens over too many tourists.

 

[The Dice Man]

Protests in Barcelona and Athens over too many tourists.

Simple solution. Ban Catalans and Greeks from international travel.

 

[raskolnikov]

Has anyone taken the long and cheapest way to get to Europe from Perth. Instead of 17hrs it's well into day 2 via anywhere like China, Japan with three stops instead of none which could save $2000.
Or is it the case if I can't afford the airfare then I shouldn't be going?

I've done it. Not worth the savings IMO. A long time waiting around airports and if you're going to pay for a hotel anywhere you may as well pay for the quicker trip. I had a long layover in Beijing. Got there at 6am and didn't leave until 11 at night. I did get to do a tour of the Great Wall however so that was one bonus. But I was back at the airport by 5 and had to wait another 6 hours for my flight. I wouldn't do it again.

When I went to Europe last year I flew Scoot to Singapore then Emirates to Munich. Worked out a lot cheaper. I did have a day in Singapore. My flight arrived around 6 and left around 6. Singapore is a great place to spend a day so it wasn't bad at all.

 

[HirdsTheWord]

Protests in Barcelona and Athens over too many tourists.

it's ironic that both of those cities would in the absolute toilet without tourism and many of the people protesting likely wouldn't have jobs.

 

[revival_mode]

hired a car & drove around western norway/fjordland for 2 weeks at the start of june

• amazing scenery, like just wow everywhere
• driving around was a breeze. norway drivers were super chill & courteous, the roads were really well maintained, tunnels from one fjord to another everywhere & frequent ferries on main routes. a lot of slow roads though just due to the windiness & amount of space - lots of single lane roads so going say 200km might take twice as long as the countryside here.
• towns were pretty but all the real attractions are outdoors. awesome hikes etc. trolltunga, preikstolen & kjieragbolten must do hikes
• bergen a great base and really nice town

bloody loved it & would recommend for anyone outdoorsy

amsterdam & berlin same as i remembered them. not really top of my list but had a good time.

northern italy for 3 weeks starting last week of june - main tourist season beginning so pretty busy

• bologna, didnt rate tbh. good food though
• florence was packed but beautiful city. ufizzi and top of the duomo were standouts. also the sandwiches/panini - my god give me them all. i'm not even a sanga person in general.
• lake como full of influencers/influenzas. nice looking place but not my thing. lake garda similar but replace the inlfuencers with italian familes.
• hired a car for another 10 days for the italian dolomites. similar to norway in that the scenery is legit amazing everywhere in the alps. basically just hiked every day. defs need a car and defs need to start every day early before carparks and trails fill up.
• driving was fine. italians are dicks though and drive pretty aggressively but just need to be a bit more aware and reactive to what others are doing eg they will just merge and cut in with no indication but its all good and they let you do the same. wasnt as bad as i thought it was going to be

 

[Spirit Level]

Heading out next week for a bit of a mixed bag:

• Manchester
• Leeds
• Dublin
• Belfast
• Copenhagen
• Hamburg
• Milan

Thought I'd try the direct to London for once, but got the email yesterday that they're re-routing through Singapore due to the situation in the middle east, doesn't make sense though as the direct flight today didn't need to change route.

Can those ****en idiots stop blowing each other up

 

[raskolnikov]

Heading out next week for a bit of a mixed bag:

• Manchester
• Leeds
• Dublin
• Belfast
• Copenhagen
• Hamburg
• Milan

Thought I'd try the direct to London for once, but got the email yesterday that they're re-routing through Singapore due to the situation in the middle east, doesn't make sense though as the direct flight today didn't need to change route.

Can those ****en idiots stop blowing each other up

Why Leeds? I've been there a couple of times as my dad was born there. It's not a bad city but there are a lot better jn the UK.

 

[Spirit Level]

Why Leeds? I've been there a couple of times as my dad was born there. It's not a bad city but there are a lot better jn the UK.

Going there for a gig mostly, I'm thinking of either staying there after for a few days or heading down to London for a bit before heading to the mainland.

Been to London before though