Going to Europe this summer, fly in to London on May 21st, and head back home on July 6th. Heading from London making a big loop all the way around western Europe, Paris > Copenhagen > Berlin > Athens > Rome > Barcelona > and back to Paris while seeing a lot in-between. Just planning on staying in hostels throughout, and visiting friends.
One of the big hassles my friend and I are finding is the eurorail. Prices appear to be about $800 for just a month of travel for the global pass, which is what we would need.
Is there something cheaper or are we looking at it wrong? Seems somewhat expensive to do that.
That is our biggest concern, any other tips you can offer?
Prague-Krakow-Budapest-Vienna.
You should just stick your US passport on your forehead and you would get all the east euro girls you want. :contract:
Good boy for not doing this for an entire year. :hug:
If you just want to travel between cities, I'd suggest you look at cheap flights (e.g. skyscanner.net). If you get good flights, $800 should allow you to visit quite a few places. You could always look for busses instead of rail.
I don't even want to imagine a train from Berlin to Athens anyway. That must take ages.
Quote from: Zanza2 on April 04, 2011, 01:53:42 PM
I don't even want to imagine a train from Berlin to Athens anyway. That must take ages.
... and go through Balkans :P
Lowest prices for flights in June: London - Copenhagen 38€, Copenhagen - Berlin 25€, Berlin - Athens 62€, Athens - Rome 48€, Rom - Barcelona 22€ ...
Say whaaaat.
Vienna Languish meet? :hmm:
Quote from: szmik on April 04, 2011, 01:58:57 PM
... and go through Balkans :P
I would love to go through the Balkans.
At the head of a Crusade, preferably. :menace:
A good way of getting to Greece is to get the ferry from Venice to Igoumenitsa - from a mere 27 euros :cool:
Or several hundred if you eschew the deck and fancy a luxury cabin :D
http://www.greekferries.gr/minoan-en/minoan.htm
From Igoumenitsa you can use entertaining Greek rural buses to get to further destinations :cool:
Well maybe we will fly then, we were kind of floored by the price of the rail.
My actual route is going to be :London >Paris> Antwerp > Amsterdam(area, Ive heard Amsterdam is kind of crap, but surrounding cities in the Netherlands are nice) > Cologne ( to see a friend) > Copenhagen > Berlin > Dresden > Prague > Munich > Vienna > Budapest > Athens > Venice > Rome > Milan > Marseille > Barcelona > back to london for flight out.
I would honestly love to meet all of you, so if you want to do a Vienna meet or we can just stop by at a pub or something if you live nearby any of these cities while I'm going through, that would be cool. :cheers:
Sounds like an awesome trip at any rate.
We've been talking about a Vienna meet this summer anyway, since I'd planned on taking a roadtrip from Berlin to Vienna and back. Tamas and Syt were more or less confirmed as I recall. Marti was talking about joining.
Hell, with your plans in mind, we could probably even carpool Berlin>Prague>Vienna. :D
Yeah, we don't really have set dates, trying to keep it loose for the most part to allow flexibility. Assume 1-2 days in most places, obviously longer in places like berlin, prague, vienna and Athens.
Way back in the late 20th century when I did my jaunt the Eurail pass didn't cover the UK. Maybe your global is more than you need?
One thing handy about train vs. plane is you can take a night train and sack, save the hostel money.
Copenhagen? Why?
When looking at it, for two people it was cheaper to rent a car then get Eurorail passes (which don't even cover all of Europe anyways).
The days of Eurorail passes being the cheap way to see Europe are, I believe, long gone. If you are taking the train, you're better off to buy individual tickets.
Quote from: Tamas on April 04, 2011, 01:52:16 PM
You should just stick your US passport on your forehead and you would get all the east euro girls you want. :contract:
I'm curious, is this based on received folk wisdom or personal observation? Have you been in bars or night clubs where Americans walk in and all the hotties start humping their legs?
Agreed on flights, they're pretty cheap from ryan air and easy jet if you buy in advance.
And Paris > Copenhagen.
...
Missing out something in between there you think? Amsterdam?
And totally skipping Eastern Europe is a mistake, you really should check out Krakow or Prague at least.
I have it on good authority that Athens sucks.
edit- aha, seen your second post.
Amsterdam isn't crap no. The foreign tourists on the trail of drugs kind of ruin it but really, Utretcht and co. have nothing on the Dam.
Antwerp is nothing special from what I've heard. Brugge though...
Quote from: Admiral Yi on April 04, 2011, 02:48:06 PM
Quote from: Tamas on April 04, 2011, 01:52:16 PM
You should just stick your US passport on your forehead and you would get all the east euro girls you want. :contract:
I'm curious, is this based on received folk wisdom or personal observation? Have you been in bars or night clubs where Americans walk in and all the hotties start humping their legs?
Sorry. 4 inches minimum. :contract:
Quote from: Tyr on April 04, 2011, 02:56:38 PM
Missing out something in between there you think? Amsterdam?
Alcibiades is a GI. A doughboy. No hemp for our boys in green.
Quote from: Admiral Yi on April 04, 2011, 02:59:59 PM
Quote from: Tyr on April 04, 2011, 02:56:38 PM
Missing out something in between there you think? Amsterdam?
Alcibiades is a GI. A doughboy. No hemp for our boys in green.
I'm not a big drug user, still think Amsterdam is a wonderful city. My parents (totally not drug users) agree.
Quote from: The Brain on April 04, 2011, 02:59:05 PM
Sorry. 4 inches minimum. :contract:
Soft or hard?
Is the deal once you get to four inches all the hotties hump your leg at the door, or is it only a few at four and each additional unit gets you more hotties humping?
:hmm:
Quote from: Alcibiades on April 04, 2011, 02:13:48 PM
Well maybe we will fly then, we were kind of floored by the price of the rail.
My actual route is going to be :London > Antwerp > Amsterdam(area, Ive heard Amsterdam is kind of crap, but surrounding cities in the Netherlands are nice) > Cologne ( to see a friend) > Copenhagen > Berlin > Dresden > Prague > Munich > Vienna > Budapest > Athens > Venice > Rome > Milan > Marseille > Barcelona > back to london for flight out.
I would honestly love to meet all of you, so if you want to do a Vienna meet or we can just stop by at a pub or something if you live nearby any of these cities while I'm going through, that would be cool. :cheers:
I'd skip a few of those cities as I don't think they're really worthy of a visit if you want to cover so much territory. I'd cross Copenhagen, Athens, Milan and Marseille from that list. Also, not visiting Florence or Venice is a crime, unless you'd include that in the in-between places to visit. Also, no Paris? I guess I must have slipped a post or two.
Quote from: Admiral Yi on April 04, 2011, 02:48:06 PM
Quote from: Tamas on April 04, 2011, 01:52:16 PM
You should just stick your US passport on your forehead and you would get all the east euro girls you want. :contract:
I'm curious, is this based on received folk wisdom or personal observation? Have you been in bars or night clubs where Americans walk in and all the hotties start humping their legs?
:lol:
Personal assumption.
When the office I work at was new, it was a subsidiary of a German one. I heard tales of at least 2 or 3 of the Hungarian women working at our office nailing German husbands via persistence, and at least one which was a "regular". Germans new to town would literally just arrive in the office and ask for her whereabouts.
And these were German IT people FFS.
Quote from: Alcibiades on April 04, 2011, 02:21:49 PM
Yeah, we don't really have set dates, trying to keep it loose for the most part to allow flexibility. Assume 1-2 days in most places, obviously longer in places like berlin, prague, vienna and Athens.
Athens is a dump. If you want to go to that area, go to Istanbul.
Yeah sorry, left Paris out by accident. Will be there for a couple of days.
Sell me on Brugge over Antwerp if you will, had planned on visiting twerp for maybe 6 hours on the way to amsterdam.
And in regards to flights - a lot of the cities we planned on visiting arent covered by ryan air, and flights are prohibitively expensive a lot of the time. And it will always be last minute.
Venice is in the trip, was in what you're quoted. Will add Florence, though, and cut out Marseilles.
This Vienna meet sounds like a neat idea.
Quote from: Alcibiades on April 04, 2011, 03:09:04 PM
Yeah sorry, left Paris out by accident. Will be there for a couple of days.
Sell me on Brugge over Antwerp if you will, had planned on visiting twerp for maybe 6 hours on the way to amsterdam.
And in regards to flights - a lot of the cities we planned on visiting arent covered by ryan air, and flights are prohibitively expensive a lot of the time. And it will always be last minute.
Venice is in the trip, was in what you're quoted. Will add Florence, though, and cut out Marseilles.
For Italy, calculate at least 3 days for Rome, and 2 for Florence and Venice. Milan can be seen in a couple of hours, it's not really a touristic city. I see that for the Iberian peninsula you only plan on Barcelona. I know it's the summer and it'll be hot, but maybe you could hop to Madrid and/or Lisbon as well.
The problem there, Larch, is that once you go to Madrid and Lisbon you may as well go to Santiago, Salamanca, Seville and Granada...........and from Granada it would be a shame not to hop over to Morocco :lol:
Larchman: to understand the pull of Barcelona on the American male psyche you really need to watch the movie by the same title. By the same guy (mostly the same cast) who did Metropolitan and The Last Days of Disco.
Quote from: Admiral Yi on April 04, 2011, 03:22:29 PM
Larchman: to understand the pull of Barcelona on the American male psyche you really need to watch the movie by the same title. By the same guy (mostly the same cast) who did Metropolitan and The Last Days of Disco.
I know Barcelona has a fancier pull for furriners, and it's indeed a must for backpackers and the like. I was only mentioning that other cities in the area also deserve to be visited.
Also, Alci, forget about Interail unless you have an European passport. You'll have to check Eurail: http://www.eurail.com/home (http://www.eurail.com/home)
Rail is cheaper than flying and much cheaper than driving, it allows you to just get up and go, and it is a good way to meet people and see the countryside. London to Copenhagen may be dirt cheap to fly, but unless you want to fly back and forth between London and Copenhagen you are going branch out to places that aren't major western european capital cities where the costs are much higher.
Yeah it's looking like its going to have to be rail, which is going to be rough considering its 800$ for a month.
Think we are going to cut Copenhagen out.
Quote from: Alcibiades on April 04, 2011, 03:44:31 PM
Yeah it's looking like its going to have to be rail, which is going to be rough considering its 800$ for a month.
Think we are going to cut Copenhagen out.
$800 is not that much. How much is your flight to Europe going to cost? And that just gets you there--a train pass is a month of travel.
Quote from: Tyr on April 04, 2011, 03:01:11 PM
I'm not a big drug user, still think Amsterdam is a wonderful city. My parents (totally not drug users) agree.
Yeah, I regrettably have to agree with Jos.
@Alci - What a great opportunity.
Quote from: alfred russel on April 04, 2011, 03:49:56 PM
Quote from: Alcibiades on April 04, 2011, 03:44:31 PM
Yeah it's looking like its going to have to be rail, which is going to be rough considering its 800$ for a month.
Think we are going to cut Copenhagen out.
$800 is not that much. How much is your flight to Europe going to cost? And that just gets you there--a train pass is a month of travel.
Flight is $772, as much as my flight was to Hawaii. So think I got pretty lucky there, even if I do have to stop in Canada for a couple of hours on the way there. :P
Yeah definitely planning on spending a couple of days in Amsterdam, but trying to not over-plan the trip where I feel like I'm constantly on a time-plan.
Given the itinerary I suspect that the $800 might prove to be a bargain; it just looks big as an upfront cost. Overnight trains can also save on accomodation costs; useful for young people who can sleep anywhere and are short of cash :)
I live 30 kms from Venice :shifty:
L.
Quote from: Tamas on April 04, 2011, 01:52:16 PM
Prague-Krakow-Budapest-Vienna.
You should just stick your US passport on your forehead and you would get all the east euro girls you want. :contract:
Is that true? Czech girls are hot as shit in intraweb porn.
Quote from: Admiral Yi on April 04, 2011, 03:22:29 PM
Larchman: to understand the pull of Barcelona on the American male psyche you really need to watch the movie by the same title. By the same guy (mostly the same cast) who did Metropolitan and The Last Days of Disco.
But I don't want to see Alci get shot. He's neither Navy nor obnoxious.
Quote from: CountDeMoney on April 05, 2011, 05:46:53 AM
Quote from: Tamas on April 04, 2011, 01:52:16 PM
Prague-Krakow-Budapest-Vienna.
You should just stick your US passport on your forehead and you would get all the east euro girls you want. :contract:
Is that true? Czech girls are hot as shit in intraweb porn.
They must put something in the water in that area. Girls are so hot it's ridiculous.
Quote from: CountDeMoney on April 05, 2011, 05:46:53 AM
Quote from: Tamas on April 04, 2011, 01:52:16 PM
Prague-Krakow-Budapest-Vienna.
You should just stick your US passport on your forehead and you would get all the east euro girls you want. :contract:
Is that true? Czech girls are hot as shit in intraweb porn.
In reality they are thoroughly meh.
And I doubt that's true these days, maybe 20 years ago. Seems weird.
Quote from: Pedrito on April 05, 2011, 03:03:42 AM
I live 30 kms from Venice :shifty:
:hmm: For some reason I thought you lived in Calabria...
Quote from: Caliga on April 05, 2011, 07:46:36 AM
Quote from: Pedrito on April 05, 2011, 03:03:42 AM
I live 30 kms from Venice :shifty:
:hmm: For some reason I thought you lived in Calabria...
No mobsters in my family!
At least, not that I know of :hmm:
L.
Before we moved down here, Princesca had an Italian boss (she was originally from Umbria, I think) and her husband was from Calabria. Perhaps I'm confusing you with him in terms of place of origin. :blush:
I could manage a beer in London :bowler:
Quote from: Tamas on April 04, 2011, 03:11:41 PM
This Vienna meet sounds like a neat idea.
If you guys meet in Vienna, I might join you. It's not that far from where I live.
Quote from: Tyr on April 05, 2011, 06:02:47 AM
Quote from: CountDeMoney on April 05, 2011, 05:46:53 AM
Quote from: Tamas on April 04, 2011, 01:52:16 PM
Prague-Krakow-Budapest-Vienna.
You should just stick your US passport on your forehead and you would get all the east euro girls you want. :contract:
Is that true? Czech girls are hot as shit in intraweb porn.
In reality they are thoroughly meh.
And I doubt that's true these days, maybe 20 years ago. Seems weird.
I thought they (and POlish) girls were pretty damn hot.
I mean it's of course somewhat foolish to try and categorize an entire country full of women, but on average... :perv:
Quote from: Tyr on April 04, 2011, 02:56:38 PM
Antwerp is nothing special from what I've heard. Brugge though...
Gent. The center is just as pretty as Brugge and there's something else than the endless tourist-trap chocolate-shops of Brugge.
Crazy Ivan is right. Gent is a much nicer place to visit.
Totally not biased by the fact I live there.
Quote from: barkdreg on April 06, 2011, 09:43:53 AM
Crazy Ivan is right. Gent is a much nicer place to visit.
Totally not biased by the fact I live there.
same here :p
Brazen - If you would like to potentially meet up the night of May 20th or maybe the 21st ( we may be leaving late afternoon on the 21st) that would be cool, though we will likely be quite jetlagged and lost. :D
Larch - It actually looks like I'll have enough time to do a lot of Spain and Lisbon. So maybe we can coordinate something? It looks like my friend has to leave June 22nd, so I'll be solo and probably bored for the last 2 weeks, starved of human contact. :contract:
Well maybe we'll chose Gent over antwerp or Brugge if you guys wanted to do a quick meetup by chance? Would assume its going to be around May 25th-26thish.
Quote from: Alcibiades on April 06, 2011, 11:40:13 AMLarch - It actually looks like I'll have enough time to do a lot of Spain and Lisbon. So maybe we can coordinate something? It looks like my friend has to leave June 22nd, so I'll be solo and probably bored for the last 2 weeks, starved of human contact. :contract:
That sounds slightly gay... :ph34r: :P
Now seriously, June is traditionally a very busy time of the year in my job, so I'm not sure if I can commit to anything more than weekends right now. We can get back on this when we're closer to those dates, though. :cheers:
Quote from: Alcibiades on April 06, 2011, 11:40:13 AM
Brazen - If you would like to potentially meet up the night of May 20th or maybe the 21st ( we may be leaving late afternoon on the 21st) that would be cool, though we will likely be quite jetlagged and lost. :D
There's a good chance I could do either of those dates. And I'm used to meeting jet-lagged Languishites and feeding them overpriced London beer :P Prepare yourself - £3.30 a pint even in the suburbs now! :bleeding:
Looks like you'll be in Paris over Easter weekend. Beware that some shops will be shut Sunday and Monday (though the attractions remain open) and it might be heaving with tourists.
Quote from: Brazen on April 07, 2011, 04:31:59 AM
And I'm used to meeting jet-lagged Languishites and feeding them overpriced London beer :P Prepare yourself - £3.30 a pint even in the suburbs now! :bleeding:
Not much different then what i have to pay for good beer here. :mellow:
Quote from: Brazen on April 05, 2011, 09:41:03 AM
I could manage a beer in London :bowler:
So could I. :bowler:
Quote from: Brazen on April 07, 2011, 04:31:59 AM
Quote from: Alcibiades on April 06, 2011, 11:40:13 AM
Brazen - If you would like to potentially meet up the night of May 20th or maybe the 21st ( we may be leaving late afternoon on the 21st) that would be cool, though we will likely be quite jetlagged and lost. :D
There's a good chance I could do either of those dates. And I'm used to meeting jet-lagged Languishites and feeding them overpriced London beer :P Prepare yourself - £3.30 a pint even in the suburbs now! :bleeding:
Looks like you'll be in Paris over Easter weekend. Beware that some shops will be shut Sunday and Monday (though the attractions remain open) and it might be heaving with tourists.
They celebrate Easter in May in France? Huh, always thought it was the same for everyone. But the prices sound fine, my friend loves trying good beer.
Quote from: jamesww on April 07, 2011, 09:49:35 AM
Quote from: Brazen on April 05, 2011, 09:41:03 AM
I could manage a beer in London :bowler:
So could I. :bowler:
Sounds good, I'm generally leaning towards May 21st, I believe it is a Saturday. Flight gets in at 1130 local time, so any time that day should work well.
Quote from: The Larch on April 07, 2011, 03:57:08 AM
That sounds slightly gay... :ph34r: :P
Now seriously, June is traditionally a very busy time of the year in my job, so I'm not sure if I can commit to anything more than weekends right now. We can get back on this when we're closer to those dates, though. :cheers:
Yeah a little bit. :Embarrass:
I'm actually hoping to run into people in the hostels that I can tag along with for the last leg of my trip, keep things interesting.
How much lingo you got GI?
Quote from: Admiral Yi on April 07, 2011, 12:26:23 PM
How much lingo you got GI?
Extremely rusty German....and I can use every swear word in Spanish? :XD:
Spanish-speaking people like being called pendejo, Chong. It means "brother". :)
And Maricon.
Quote from: katmai on April 07, 2011, 12:41:50 PM
And Maricon.
I will make sure I throw this word around liberally whilst in Spain, for I wish to spread American Good-will as much as I can. :bowler:
Mainly when you see Marcin.
Quote from: Alcibiades on April 07, 2011, 02:16:29 PM
Quote from: katmai on April 07, 2011, 12:41:50 PM
And Maricon.
I will make sure I throw this word around liberally whilst in Spain, for I wish to spread American Good-will as much as I can. :bowler:
Wear an 'Airborne... DEATH FROM ABOVE' T-shirt over there.
:)
Quote from: Alcibiades on April 04, 2011, 03:44:31 PMThink we are going to cut Copenhagen out.
Pity. It's a nice town. Depending when you're there, I might be able to grab a pint with you as well.
If you're flying, Copenhagen is connected with through all the cheap flights as everywhere else; it's the air-traffic transit hub for Scandinavia.
EDIT: Okay, so now I read the rest of your post and more of the thread. No flying, and you're there after I've left, so never mind about meeting up.
Quote from: Jacob on April 07, 2011, 03:04:24 PM
Quote from: Alcibiades on April 04, 2011, 03:44:31 PMThink we are going to cut Copenhagen out.
Pity. It's a nice town. Depending when you're there, I might be able to grab a pint with you as well.
If you're flying, Copenhagen is connected with through all the cheap flights as everywhere else; it's the air-traffic transit hub for Scandinavia.
EDIT: Okay, so now I read the rest of your post and more of the thread. No flying, and you're there after I've left, so never mind about meeting up.
I could perhaps come down for a beer or two. :sleep:
Quote from: Alcibiades on April 07, 2011, 12:12:54 PM
Quote from: The Larch on April 07, 2011, 03:57:08 AM
That sounds slightly gay... :ph34r: :P
Now seriously, June is traditionally a very busy time of the year in my job, so I'm not sure if I can commit to anything more than weekends right now. We can get back on this when we're closer to those dates, though. :cheers:
Yeah a little bit. :Embarrass:
I'm actually hoping to run into people in the hostels that I can tag along with for the last leg of my trip, keep things interesting.
Ok, anyway if you want to swing by the NW corner of the peninsula, you're more than welcome. :cheers: That time of the year is usually blessed with gorgeous weather, so you could chill at our magnificent beaches for a few days.
(https://languish.org/forums/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fapontevella.com%2Ffiles%2F2007%2F09%2Fpraia-de-rodas.jpg&hash=283494e4438e2f29228d200238f961446783be3b)
Just don't get into the water. :ph34r:
U-boats? :(
Quote from: Caliga on April 08, 2011, 07:01:25 AM
U-boats? :(
Nope, it's just frikkin' cold.
Edit: Although we had U-boats around back in the day, as they used to refuel here. In fact my hometown appears in Das Boot as the city where the submarine stops on their way to Gibraltar.
Is Larchie from: The Groyne?
Quote from: Slargos on April 07, 2011, 03:22:00 PMI could perhaps come down for a beer or two. :sleep:
Maybe we can work something out....
Quote from: Jacob on April 08, 2011, 04:20:30 PM
Quote from: Slargos on April 07, 2011, 03:22:00 PMI could perhaps come down for a beer or two. :sleep:
Maybe we can work something out....
:hmm:
I want to die on my own terms, as far as it's possible to control it.
Quote from: Alcibiades on April 07, 2011, 12:12:54 PM
Quote from: Brazen on April 07, 2011, 04:31:59 AM
Quote from: Alcibiades on April 06, 2011, 11:40:13 AM
Brazen - If you would like to potentially meet up the night of May 20th or maybe the 21st ( we may be leaving late afternoon on the 21st) that would be cool, though we will likely be quite jetlagged and lost. :D
There's a good chance I could do either of those dates. And I'm used to meeting jet-lagged Languishites and feeding them overpriced London beer :P Prepare yourself - £3.30 a pint even in the suburbs now! :bleeding:
Looks like you'll be in Paris over Easter weekend. Beware that some shops will be shut Sunday and Monday (though the attractions remain open) and it might be heaving with tourists.
They celebrate Easter in May in France? Huh, always thought it was the same for everyone. But the prices sound fine, my friend loves trying good beer.
Quote from: jamesww on April 07, 2011, 09:49:35 AM
Quote from: Brazen on April 05, 2011, 09:41:03 AM
I could manage a beer in London :bowler:
So could I. :bowler:
Sounds good, I'm generally leaning towards May 21st, I believe it is a Saturday. Flight gets in at 1130 local time, so any time that day should work well.
Quote from: The Larch on April 07, 2011, 03:57:08 AM
That sounds slightly gay... :ph34r: :P
Now seriously, June is traditionally a very busy time of the year in my job, so I'm not sure if I can commit to anything more than weekends right now. We can get back on this when we're closer to those dates, though. :cheers:
Yeah a little bit. :Embarrass:
I'm actually hoping to run into people in the hostels that I can tag along with for the last leg of my trip, keep things interesting.
So is this still on ?
Are you still leaning towards the 21st May ?
There will be a City Festival in Prague on the 23rd of June. Will you: be there?
Quote from: Tamas on May 13, 2011, 09:36:33 AM
There will be a City Festival in Prague on the 23rd of June. Will you: be there?
So Alci isn't coming to London ?
I understood that he was flying into London on May 21st.
Quote from: merithyn on May 13, 2011, 06:35:54 PM
I understood that he was flying into London on May 21st.
:hmm:
I'm in London on the Sunday, 22nd; will anyone still be around ?