Topic: Vacations 2014

[huota]

Summary of 2014 summer vacation trip: 2680 km, driving time 37 hours, avg speed 77 km/h. Was a little bit shocked to see the total hours as it didn't feel that much.

[Noto]

Summary of 2014 summer vacation trip: 2680 km, driving time 37 hours, avg speed 77 km/h. Was a little bit shocked to see the total hours as it didn't feel that much.

You still haven't adopted me.  What gives?!

My cousin and I are thinking of going to Amsterdam, Munich, Berlin, and Prague at the end of September, into October.
What are some things to do for two 25 y/o single males?

1) Don't fly within Europe.  The train is cheap, reliable, and fantastic.  Plus, no customs, limits on what you can bring, etc.  So much better.
2) Amsterdam is good enough if you have one full day.  We took a red-eye flight in back in May, arrived at 6:45am, took the train to the Centraal station, dropped our bags in luggage storage (cheap), and then walked.  We left the next morning on the 7:18am train to Brussels.  Honestly, we did everything in 24 hours there.  Walk, drink, smoke, whatever - I recommend finding some nice bars/cafes, buy pesto gouda cheese/bread and sit by a canal and eat it for lunch - my favourite memory.  Maybe rent a bike - but it's not necessary.  GO TO VONDELPARK - it's wonderful.

I haven't been to any of the other places, so can't help you there.

Three more days until we leave for the drive to Cape Canaveral...then Disney Cruise! The countdown is on.

SO JEALOUS!!!  HAVE A WONDERFUL TIME!!!


On my own note, I just got back from 4 days in NYC.
Friday - walked around Times Square, got $40 tickets to see Les Miserables at TKTS for that night (row L, just off centre).  MON DIEU, great show.
Saturday - Lady Noto's bus arrived at 7am, so after a brief reunion cuddle, we were off to all the major sites, including the Statue of Liberty (kind of a long process, I wouldn't recommend going to the island), then got tickets to see Phantom of the Opera ($80, not as good seats, and the show was not nearly as good as Les Mis...sorry, Lady Noto!).  Went to Beer Authority after for a rooftop evening of drunken shenanigans.
Sunday - went to the last few sites we hadn't done, then subwayed up to Yankee Stadium to cheer on the Jays.  Clearly, only with our help, they finally beat the Yanks!  Then Lady Noto got on her bus back home while I went to the Comedy Cellar and walked around Washington Park while the locals played music for me.  Bliss.
Monday - walked the Brooklin Bridge, ate Grimaldi's pizza, went through central park and the Museum of Art, and caught an evening flight home.

Nice weekend.  Sorry, no pics (none to post - I was too into the weekend to take any!).

[Ex-airbalancer]

1) Don't fly within Europe.  The train is cheap, reliable, and fantastic.  Plus, no customs, limits on what you can bring, etc.  So much better.

It really depends on how far you have go
Airfare in Euroland is very cheap

[quadzilla]

1) Don't fly within Europe.  The train is cheap, reliable, and fantastic.  Plus, no customs, limits on what you can bring, etc.  So much better.

It really depends on how far you have go
Airfare in Euroland is very cheap

+1

We were gong to take a train from Barcelona to London as I wanted to ride on a high speed rail but found it out was cheaper to fly and of course even faster. I imagine for short routes the train is the better option.

[Solstice2006]

1) Don't fly within Europe.  The train is cheap, reliable, and fantastic.  Plus, no customs, limits on what you can bring, etc.  So much better.

It really depends on how far you have go
Airfare in Euroland is very cheap

+1

We were gong to take a train from Barcelona to London as I wanted to ride on a high speed rail but found it out was cheaper to fly and of course even faster. I imagine for short routes the train is the better option.

I recommend the train as well, but sometimes the air is better.  Taking the ferry from Barcelona to Menorca is slow too.

[huota]

Google maps can be a handy tool when trying to figure out whether to fly or take the train, f.ex. Amsterdam - Munich: https://goo.gl/maps/eQ9xO.

[Scaerio]

Berghain regulars:

http://www.mixmag.net/words/news/berghain-photos

[2JDM]

Thanks for the information everyone. I looked up flights from Prague to Amsterdam, and they're only $64 one way! We will be looking into prices more closely, depending on time constraints.

And the Berghain regulars... 

[EV-Light]

1) Don't fly within Europe.  The train is cheap, reliable, and fantastic.  Plus, no customs, limits on what you can bring, etc.  So much better.

It really depends on how far you have go
Airfare in Euroland is very cheap

I've always chosen to fly on my trips to Europe...my latest was in January-February. I flew to AMS and then within Europe to Berlin, Brussels and London and then back to AMS. Tickets were about the same as if I had taken the train @ around EUR99 per trip. Got everywhere much faster and didn't have to deal with the ultra confusing metro/train system.

[Noto]

Got everywhere much faster and didn't have to deal with the ultra confusing metro/train system.

I found that the trains were faster in every case (didn't have security, checked luggage, or a need to arrive hours early - and train stations are closer to city centres than airports).  Plus, remember that checked luggage is an extra fee on airlines, whereas it's free on trains.  Second class on the train is fancy enough - no need for 1st, at all.

Metro/Train confusing?  It was super simple.

[HeliDriver]

Got everywhere much faster and didn't have to deal with the ultra confusing metro/train system.

I found that the trains were faster in every case (didn't have security, checked luggage, or a need to arrive hours early - and train stations are closer to city centres than airports).  Plus, remember that checked luggage is an extra fee on airlines, whereas it's free on trains.  Second class on the train is fancy enough - no need for 1st, at all.

Metro/Train confusing?  It was super simple.

Just flew back from Edinburgh on Monday. Walked through the door of the airport on our way to check in and my heart sank - absolutely massive lineup snaking all the way around and almost blocking the entrance. Thought to myself, "FFS, I hate flying."

Then I noticed that the lineup was for Ryanair. Glanced over to the BA check in (ours) and saw it was totally clear. Whew.

I don't care how cheap the Euro discount airlines are, I don't think I could put up with the hassle. Trains are the civilized way to travel, IMO.

[Bubba]

We were gong to take a train from Barcelona to London

[Ex-airbalancer]

- Travelling to Europe? Check your passport!
[Jul 30, 2014]
Notice to passengers travelling to Belgium, the Czech Republic, France, Germany, Greece, Italy, the Netherlands, Portugal, Spain and Switzerland:

The European Union requires a passport that must be valid for at least three (3) months beyond the expected date of return. Passengers without valid travel documents will be refused boarding or entry into the destination country. Other countries have similar requirements. For all destinations, it is the responsibility of passengers to ensure they possess the necessary travel documents.

[tpl]

- Travelling to Europe? Check your passport!
[Jul 30, 2014]
Notice to passengers travelling to Belgium, the Czech Republic, France, Germany, Greece, Italy, the Netherlands, Portugal, Spain and Switzerland:

The European Union requires a passport that must be valid for at least three (3) months beyond the expected date of return. Passengers without valid travel documents will be refused boarding or entry into the destination country. Other countries have similar requirements. For all destinations, it is the responsibility of passengers to ensure they possess the necessary travel documents.

And don't forget. Traveling into the Schengen area of the EU (mostly the countries above) on a non EU passport you must ensure you get your passport stamped when you first enter the EU...which the immigration guy may not do unless you ask.   If you cross an intra EU border without that stamp it is an offence and you theoretically could be refused entry.    Unlikely but possible.   I have seen the French frontiers police  checking on Spanish registered rental cars a few km inside France... a friend of mine got given a hard time trying to persuade them that a Sask  birth certificate was as good as his Cdn passport.

[Ex-airbalancer]

- Travelling to Europe? Check your passport!
[Jul 30, 2014]
Notice to passengers travelling to Belgium, the Czech Republic, France, Germany, Greece, Italy, the Netherlands, Portugal, Spain and Switzerland:

The European Union requires a passport that must be valid for at least three (3) months beyond the expected date of return. Passengers without valid travel documents will be refused boarding or entry into the destination country. Other countries have similar requirements. For all destinations, it is the responsibility of passengers to ensure they possess the necessary travel documents.

And don't forget. Traveling into the Schengen area of the EU (mostly the countries above) on a non EU passport you must ensure you get your passport stamped when you first enter the EU...which the immigration guy may not do unless you ask.   If you cross an intra EU border without that stamp it is an offence and you theoretically could be refused entry.    Unlikely but possible.   I have seen the French frontiers police  checking on Spanish registered rental cars a few km inside France... a friend of mine got given a hard time trying to persuade them that a Sask  birth certificate was as good as his Cdn passport.

I have heard some people traveling  to Europe on transatlantic have had problem since they do not stamp passports are any of the ports when you get there

[Noto]

The European Union requires a passport that must be valid for at least three (3) months beyond the expected date of return.

Pretty irrelevant given that Canada won't let you travel (leave the country, that is) if your passport expires within 6 months of your expected date of return.

I have heard some people traveling  to Europe on transatlantic have had problem since they do not stamp passports are any of the ports when you get there

They stamped mine on arrival in Barcelona, Spain, and in Harwich, England.

On my recent trip to the EU, however, I flew into AMS, had my passport stamped, and then it wasn't stamped again for the remainder of the trip despite going (by train) to Belgium, France, and Switzerland.  Come to think of it, I didn't see a single customs agent for the remainder of the trip, either.

[random006]

Today is my last day of work for two weeks!  Yay!  Doesn't hurt that it's a half day (we work only 4 hours on Friday during the summer).

I leave for Maine next week.  We have planned a short 4 day trip down to the Berwicks area (just a bit inland from Ogunquit, Moody, Wells, ...).  Looking forward to a bit of beach time, a bit of walking, a bit of touring in the car, etc.

Pics to follow, assuming they are post-worthy.

[KD]

The European Union requires a passport that must be valid for at least three (3) months beyond the expected date of return.

Pretty irrelevant given that Canada won't let you travel (leave the country, that is) if your passport expires within 6 months of your expected date of return.

A friend of mine was stuck in hong kong for over a week last year in a $600/night hotel after being denied entry into indonesia because her pp was expiring within 6 months, so I wouldn't say irrelevant.   

[Noto]

The European Union requires a passport that must be valid for at least three (3) months beyond the expected date of return.

Pretty irrelevant given that Canada won't let you travel (leave the country, that is) if your passport expires within 6 months of your expected date of return.

A friend of mine was stuck in hong kong for over a week last year in a $600/night hotel after being denied entry into indonesia because her pp was expiring within 6 months, so I wouldn't say irrelevant.

You misunderstand - airbalancer's POST re: 3 months is irrelevant given that Canada requires 6.  Point is that you need 6 months, so EU's lesser requirements are moot because you can't leave Canada unless you satisfy the more rigorous requirement of 6 months.

[Hannibalsmith]

Arrived in Cape Canaveral, cruise tomorrow!

As an added bonus, an Atlas rocket is scheduled for launch tonight...the stars have aligned.