Travel EUROPE: Travel Tips & Tricks

[errant bounce]

How far can I realistically stretch 14-20 days holiday in Europe.

UK - London stuff, Stone Henge, Sheffield (Snooker world champs possibly quarter finals), OR cricket depending on time of the year, or F1 wherever it's on at the time.
Ireland - Dublin (all the distillery stuff)

Europe??? What could I realistically do. I want to minimalise photography so I can absorb more of the atmosphere and not just tick off boxes of where I've been.
I want to see the nice sites and landmarks, but also sit back and chill in nice places such as Mykonos.

For example if I did a mediterranean tour could I realistically hit Portugal, Spain, Greece, France and Italy?

Could I hit Germany, Poland, Austria, Switzerland

Denmark, Norway, Sweden, Finland

Two weeks to three weeks is best done with with five cities in one or two countries or five days in three (well connected) cities.

If I only had that long I'd probably go to London for a few days and stick to a strip of coast or an island for the other 10 days. maybe get two sets of five night stays along the same train line and just do day trips.

Travelling all the time is a massive pain in the arse unless you're 21.

 

[raskolnikov]

Worst airport I've ever been through I recon, especially the underground passages to get between terminals.

I was in CPH 3 weeks ago! Amazing city!

Frankfurt airport gave me PTSD and I've got to do it again on the way back.

 

[raskolnikov]

Just spent 10 days in the Baltics. Now at Tallinn airport waiting to fly to Amsterdam. My ranking of the three Baltic capitals.

1. Vilnius - amazing little city
2. Riga - took me a while to like it after Vilnius but in the end it was good
3. Tallinn - was ok but nothing unique about it.

 

[Spirit Level]

Frankfurt airport gave me PTSD and I've got to do it again on the way back.

Horrendous, although I also think Heathrow gives it a run for it's money

 

[Great8]

Horrendous, although I also think Heathrow gives it a run for it's money

As someone who has flown through European airports far too much I still have CDG as my most hated but somehow I find myself having to go back through it. Another 5 times this year and no doubt many more to come next year

 

[Spirit Level]

Ok friends, planning a 3 week honeymoon in July centering on Portugal and Northern Spain.

The must dos are Lisbon, Porto and San Sebastian, would also like to spend a few nights at a resort on the beach somewhere just sitting on beach/by the pool doing nothing,

Is there any other must dos? Looking at places like Faro, Lagos and Bilbao.

 

[Neese]

I loved Bilbao. Very pretty city and some great art. Ask the locals where to get some authentic stews and food.

 

[errant bounce]

Ok friends, planning a 3 week honeymoon in July centering on Portugal and Northern Spain.

The must dos are Lisbon, Porto and San Sebastian, would also like to spend a few nights at a resort on the beach somewhere just sitting on beach/by the pool doing nothing,

Is there any other must dos? Looking at places like Faro, Lagos and Bilbao.

I honestly don't rate Lisbon. it's got a real coldness to it, it feels like everyone there is a tourist but they're also just walking around wondering what to look at. the people seem resigned to tourism and things are more expensive, though it had some really really outstanding restaurants. expensive, a little more upmarket, but really good food. but the place itself feels empty. it's almost like the whole place revolves around its main shopping hub. also has a bit of a scummy local population, the kids there will constantly ask if you want to buy weed.

Porto though is sick. it feels way more diverse, you can walk around all day and end up in a neighbourhood that looks nothing like the next one but they're all equally as stimulating. beautiful buildings, the tiles, the port, there's parks everywhere, you're just always surrounded by these beautiful sights. it's also vibrant because of the uni and clearly has locals who are really dedicated to their city, people really care about the place: the hospitality is really accomodating, people will also point out things to see, and I don't think you are but if you like bars and clubbing there are some sick spots to have a beer or places like Plano B that feel like the coolest places in the world.

It's just this relaxing place, you walk around all day and find a new little nook, pop into some little cafe for lunch, sit in the park and people watch, there's also this viewpoint everyone sits up at sunset and has a few beers on. forget what it's called but everyone there knows what it is.

If you're from Freo or surrounds as well it's interesting as a port city too obviously.

imo don't bother going that far south and don't bother with Faro. it's alright. the Algarve isn't as spectacular as Italian, Greek, or Turkish beaches. sands a bit shit and it seems to always be ****ing windy and the sun never seems to stay out that long. iirc transport suddenly becomes a lot less regular and comfortable there too.

Go to Aveiro instead. it's like a Dutch or Danish city, all based along the river. it's also a bit different because there's a focus on museums and galleries there. it's one of those cities that is really really worthwhile to have a walking tour in.

Honestly the beaches in that area a bit shit, they're not very well contained and are always blustery and a real prick to get to, there isn't much going on (and not in a quaint way, a lot of these places have a couple of small shops and that's it). no clue on a resort.

I really really love those 'secondary' cities though like Lyon, Ghent, Manchester though and that's my thing and isn't everyone's.

 

[Spirit Level]

I honestly don't rate Lisbon. it's got a real coldness to it, it feels like everyone there is a tourist but they're also just walking around wondering what to look at. the people seem resigned to tourism and things are more expensive, though it had some really really outstanding restaurants. expensive, a little more upmarket, but really good food. but the place itself feels empty. it's almost like the whole place revolves around its main shopping hub. also has a bit of a scummy local population, the kids there will constantly ask if you want to buy weed.

Porto though is sick. it feels way more diverse, you can walk around all day and end up in a neighbourhood that looks nothing like the next one but they're all equally as stimulating. beautiful buildings, the tiles, the port, there's parks everywhere, you're just always surrounded by these beautiful sights. it's also vibrant because of the uni and clearly has locals who are really dedicated to their city, people really care about the place: the hospitality is really accomodating, people will also point out things to see, and I don't think you are but if you like bars and clubbing there are some sick spots to have a beer or places like Plano B that feel like the coolest places in the world.

It's just this relaxing place, you walk around all day and find a new little nook, pop into some little cafe for lunch, sit in the park and people watch, there's also this viewpoint everyone sits up at sunset and has a few beers on. forget what it's called but everyone there knows what it is.

If you're from Freo or surrounds as well it's interesting as a port city too obviously.

imo don't bother going that far south and don't bother with Faro. it's alright. the Algarve isn't as spectacular as Italian, Greek, or Turkish beaches. sands a bit shit and it seems to always be ****ing windy and the sun never seems to stay out that long. iirc transport suddenly becomes a lot less regular and comfortable there too.

Go to Aveiro instead. it's like a Dutch or Danish city, all based along the river. it's also a bit different because there's a focus on museums and galleries there. it's one of those cities that is really really worthwhile to have a walking tour in.

Honestly the beaches in that area a bit shit, they're not very well contained and are always blustery and a real prick to get to, there isn't much going on (and not in a quaint way, a lot of these places have a couple of small shops and that's it). no clue on a resort.

I really really love those 'secondary' cities though like Lyon, Ghent, Manchester though and that's my thing and isn't everyone's.

Yeah thinking of ditching the beach resort bit and staying somewhere in the Douro valley instead, should get enought beach in the North.

Agree on secondary cities thing, Manchester is the best city in England (IMO), Hamburg, Aarhus, Florence ect