I didn't pay for either of the 2 cruises I went on. They were short, get on the boat on a Friday morning and off on a Monday morning. As I said my older brother is on a river cruise on the Danube right now. I think they have done about 3 of them. They say they are really nice.
I didn't pay for either of the 2 cruises I went on. They were short, get on the boat on a Friday morning and off on a Monday morning. As I said my older brother is on a river cruise on the Danube right now. I think they have done about 3 of them. They say they are really nice.
I like planning trips also. she is terrible at it. She is too cheap to plan trips. Even her short weekend things are crappy. I planned a weekend to go to San Fran for here birthday a couple of years ago that she loved. She took me to a hot spring in the middle of eastern Oregon for a night for my birthday this year. If you have never been to Burns Oregon you have no idea what I am talking about. They wouldn't even let us drink in the pool.
Scarlet Overkill
Well-known member
Mind you it was 1984, but I thought Sweden was outstanding.
Now, how I got there was just as interesting -- coming from Germany by train. Go look at your world map - you can't get from Germany to Sweden by train ... or can you? Yes, when you put the whole train on a ferry, you can get there by train.
Mierin
Well-known member
I haven't left the country yet but I want to go lots of places. I'm planning a trip for England/Scotland and Ukraine in 2020 and China/Japan in 2022 or 2023. And Turkey would be next on my list but that kind of depends on what's going on in that area 7 years from now.
@NM11046 What are some can't miss things to see in Scotland? That's where we're going to be spending about 2/3 the trip. I have a plan but I like hearing from people who have been there. We're kinda gonna do a loop starting with 3-4 days in Edinburgh, then driving up to Orkney Islands, then to Skye, Glasgow, and back to Edinburgh.
My favorite places in the U.S. so far are Mesa Verde and Carlsbad Caverns. The problem with Carlsbad is it's in the middle of nowhere, so I probably won't go see it for a 2nd time even though it's amazing. I'm going to Yellowstone for the first time this summer.
I've just discovered that if I go to the Chelsea Flower Show in London, Judi Dench will be there free of charge.
@NM11046 What are some can't miss things to see in Scotland? That's where we're going to be spending about 2/3 the trip. I have a plan but I like hearing from people who have been there. We're kinda gonna do a loop starting with 3-4 days in Edinburgh, then driving up to Orkney Islands, then to Skye, Glasgow, and back to Edinburgh.
My favorite places in the U.S. so far are Mesa Verde and Carlsbad Caverns. The problem with Carlsbad is it's in the middle of nowhere, so I probably won't go see it for a 2nd time even though it's amazing. I'm going to Yellowstone for the first time this summer.
I've just discovered that if I go to the Chelsea Flower Show in London, Judi Dench will be there free of charge.
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JJ Husker
Well-known member
I've been to Venezuela (pre Hugo Chavez days). It was pretty neat but also a bit scary. Military check points on the highways, water that supposedly hadn't killed anybody in ten years, tons of bars on Windows and fences because of all the property crime...stuff like that. I bring it up because our host/main contact there had been carjacked by Columbian drug guys a few years before we went. He said he thought they were going to kill him for sure but they just drove him out and left him in the jungle and stole his SUV. I have no first-hand knowledge but I'm guessing even if Columbia is now better than it ever has been, it's probably still dangerous and a serious culture shock from living here. Our neighbors husband is from Venezuela and he won't even travel there right now.
Big Red 40
Well-known member
Good info . I’ve heard French , Italians, and Spaniards can be pretty rude , and not cordial to Americans , but I never thought of Swedes .
NM11046
Well-known member
And my experience is that Spain is the most welcoming, wonderful place (been twice) and Italy is fine - have been a couple times but spent most of my time in northwestern part and Florence and the people there are lovely. (Venice is indeed an arm pit as someone mentioned above, but you have to see it before it floats away - 2 days max there) - I haven't been to Rome.
Will let you know about Paris/France, I head there this summer.
NM11046
Well-known member
@Moiraine how long is your trip in total? I like to identify a central spot and then live there, get to know locals, see everything there is to see in the city and drive or take tours outside it - seeing what I can get to from there. So for me Skye is it's own trip someday. It's a more than a half day drive from Edinburgh and then you have to catch a ferry and bus or drive over. Depending on the time of year these run only at certain times. They say you should spend a couple days there roaming around - so in my mind that's 4 days min on it's own. Orkany Islands is even further and harder to get to - most people fly there. That too would be a separate trip for me. I'd couple it with Inverness probably, and see Culloden while I was up there.
I spent a week in Edinburgh and the surrounding areas. After doing my research, there just wasn't anything special I wanted to see in Glasgow so that wasn't on my list. There's lot of architecture and art there if you're into that. Honestly, if you don't stop you could maybe accomplish some of what you've listed but unless you've got 2+ weeks in Scotland alone I think it's too ambitious. The roads are windy and you can't estimate drive mile per hour drives. Lots of one/two lane, rotary etc.
- Depending on when you go you might be able to get to a Highland Games - it was one of the coolest things I did.
- You def need to plan on a day at St Andrews and the drive up from Edinburgh allows you to see Fife (you'll go through Crail, Anstruther (where you HAVE to get fish and chips on the pier - I don't much like fish & chips and this was great, it's where the royal family goes)
- In Edinburgh you could easily do 2-3 days in town. There's the castle of course, but also just tons of stuff - if you're a Harry Potter fan it was written here and there are lots of landmarks to see (I'm not so didn't care, but 98% of tourists were locked in on that).
- I did a food walking tour in Edinburgh that was great (only way I'd have tried Haggis and other "delicacies". (believe me, I'm the least brave eater but felt it had to be done, and it wasn't bad!)
- I also spent a day in Stirling to go to the castle and etc. My relatives come from Balquidder, so I went there to do some looking around and to see Rob Roys' grave.
- I spend a day in Pitlochery, it is a village near Perth where I caught the Games, but also it's known for Heathergems which I was interested in, and Queen Victoria spend time there so there are look outs nearby that are worth hiking around - really beautiful.
So I guess it depends on why you're going and what you're into. I was there to meet some relatives and spend some time in the area my people came from and do all history stuff. I did a cheesy whisky tour in town because I didn't want to be responsible for driving after a distillary tour but I did want to understand it. On my walking food tour we did go to a private whisky club to do a tasting so I feel like I got the right exposure to that. So I did a week based in Edinburgh, and spent 3 days on the road. I had Oban on my list of to do's but just couldn't fit it in.
One other travel guru recommends the following based on length of trip:
- 3 days: Edinburgh
- 5 days, add: Glasgow, Stirling
- 7 days, add: Oban, Glencoe
- 9 days, add: Inverness, Loch Ness, Culloden
- 11 days, add: Isle of Skye
- 13 days, add: St. Andrews, Mull/Iona/Staffa
- 15 days, add: Your choice of sights near Stirling or in Eastern Scotland
- 17 days, add: Orkney
- 21 days, add: More sights near Stirling, Wester Ross and the north coast, and slow down
BigRedBuster
International Man of Mystery
One of my dream trips is to spend at least a month in Europe. I would pack fairly light and buy the Europass for the trains. I would like to have sort of a plan, but be very flexible. Visit a city, if I like it, stay a while. If I don't, hop on the train and get to the next one. If I don't like a country, hop on the train to another one. Admittedly, this is the type of trip that would work better doing it alone, (Which I would be perfectly fine with). But, I'm sure I will be with the wife and she would want more planning.
My wife is very good at planning trips. My problem with her is she doesn't think big enough. Her idea of a trip is a weekend in Denver. Now, I can have fun in Denver, but it's not like spending a week touring Napa Valley.
My wife is very good at planning trips. My problem with her is she doesn't think big enough. Her idea of a trip is a weekend in Denver. Now, I can have fun in Denver, but it's not like spending a week touring Napa Valley.
Mierin
Well-known member
@NM11046
Thanks a lot for the input. I'll read it again when I get home. Was already plannining on seeing one of the Highland games events. We will be in the UK for 16 days but I wanted to spend 3-4 days in London before going to Scotland.
They built a bridge to Skye about 5-10 years ago so it's faster and more convenient to get to now. (Although that probably means more tourists). My heart is pretty set on Orkney but I could plan on going back again. I used to play a video game when I was a kid that had a town based on the Skara Brae ruins
Thanks a lot for the input. I'll read it again when I get home. Was already plannining on seeing one of the Highland games events. We will be in the UK for 16 days but I wanted to spend 3-4 days in London before going to Scotland.
They built a bridge to Skye about 5-10 years ago so it's faster and more convenient to get to now. (Although that probably means more tourists). My heart is pretty set on Orkney but I could plan on going back again. I used to play a video game when I was a kid that had a town based on the Skara Brae ruins
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BigRedBuster
International Man of Mystery
[No message]
Doing something like this would be a lot of fun. This type of traveling would really suit my wife. She just wants to have a general idea of what we are doing and go from there. I do like to have a little planning. I want to have a place to stay at least. I would love to bum around Europe for 5-6 weeks like this. I am not sure I would ever get my wife to be gone that long. She is usually ready to come home after we have been gone for 7-10 days.
jaws
Well-known member
After traveling a few places overseas, having phone service through Project Fi has been wonderful for me. My phone just works when I am out of the country (So far - Haiti, Bahamas, Mexico, Jamaica, and Canada) and the data is the same price as it is in the US.
Having a credit card that doesn't charge you for foreign processing is also a huge bonus.
Having a credit card that doesn't charge you for foreign processing is also a huge bonus.
BigRedBuster
International Man of Mystery
We call people through Facebook when out of the country.
F
Fru
Guest
Thanks for the insight. I think part of the fun would kind of being in that "danger zone." Maybe a little sadist, but that region has just intrigued me so much over the last few years.