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Post by cnlneenan on Jan 30, 2004 12:34:30 GMT -5
Hi Ray (or whoever else may be "in the know" ) My wife and I are going to be in Prague for about 4-5 days around the end of March this spring. I have a couple questions about Prague that I'm sure would enhance our experience there. * First, most obvious, question: Where should we stay? I know our currency goes a lot further there so we're very willing to boost the quality of our accomodation for this bit of our trip. As far as hostels go (as a backup): what do you think of Sir Toby's? How about some nicer hotels or even b&bs? Our price range can go as high as $80 US a night but I'm sure we won't come near that. * Any truly must see places we gotta get to? We're not picky, museums, galleries, parks, historical stuff, architecture, partying, all that (we're in our early 20's so there's plenty of fun to be had). Just some suggestions (even just names, we can do all the extra research for address and such). * Being there 4-5 days, we probably will want to do a day trip or two...any that you highly recommend? Again, open to anything. * Last one: we're traveling there by train and out by train...any suggestions or tips to some english-only speakers? I have a feeling the Czech Republic will be the most challenging as far as language goes...but that just makes it that much more fun, right!? Let me know if there's any sort of guide or cheat sheet for words we should get prior to going so we can find our way a little better (or if there's enough english-speaking helpers). Sorry for the long winded post Ray, but we certainly appreciate the info. What you're doing out there is remarkable! We love the posts, we've even considered staying in Europe (as a far-fetched dream, but who knows), it's cool to hear there's something like teaching that can make it happen (and teaching something we know inside and out at that!). Take your time answering this one (even in multiple posts), we won't be leaving for London until March 10, and probably won't get into Prague until March 26 or 27 I think. Take Care, Chris and Leah
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Post by cnlneenan on Jan 7, 2004 10:53:23 GMT -5
Hey Everyone,
We're looking for our first hostel to stay at in Amsterdam and we're thinking about the Stadsdoelen Amsterdam. We've read great reviews about it so far, I just wanted to check and see if anyone here has stayed there or knows anything about it and would recommend it or not. Also, since it's an HI hostel, I'm not sure if they have mixed dorms, so if anyone has stayed there let me know if you remember if they did or not (very important!). Thanks!
Chris and Leah
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Post by cnlneenan on Jan 3, 2004 23:38:20 GMT -5
Well, this thread is over a year old...but who cares?! I'll bring it back to life as it certainly pertains to our situation.
We are a couple travelling for 3 months and would prefer to stay closely as much as possible. Due to funds, we're most likely going to have to stick with Hostels, but will try at some private rooms too. Are there any good sites we can check that are a great resource for independant hostels that have mixed accomidations?
Key places we'll be visiting if you have any specific suggestions (B&B's welcome too!): UK, Netherlands, Belgium, Germany, Switz, Czech, Greece, Italy, Spain, Portugal, France, Ireland.
Thanks!
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Post by cnlneenan on Feb 1, 2004 11:48:20 GMT -5
Go Denver! I must say, we've been very tempted at multiple times to move to Canada (BC area), but Denver just won't let us go. At least we can go to Europe!! Any Canadians who want to try out a new place in the US, try Denver as it's quite similar to Canada (plenty of mountains and skiing in winter) but the weather is great...that is, when you're not going overseas, of course.
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Post by cnlneenan on Jan 3, 2004 21:06:51 GMT -5
Hey Everyone,
We've been reading the message boards and content on this amazing site for the last 2-3 weeks or so and felt I finally should come out and join in the discussions.
My wife and I (not oldies, 23 and 22 respectively) are going on a 3 month trip in March. We're doing lots of thought and planning (and certainly working and saving!) right now and we're completely psyched.
We've both from Denver, Colorado in the States and have never been to Europe, this'll be the first.
I just wanted to introduce us to all of you and prepare you all for questions and ideas as we get ready!!
Chris and Leah
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Post by cnlneenan on Jan 20, 2004 15:35:28 GMT -5
Have you thought about scratching Budapest altogether and going somewhere else that's very inexpensive? I'm not sure if it would fit into your plan (and maybe even more complicated and expensive for traveling), but I hear Lagos (Portugal) is a great little beach city and from what I've looked at is quite cheap. I hear also that Prague is also very cheap. Is your girlfriend against going to Prague for the week? That would probably work out pretty nicely too if you were doing your loop starting and ending in Prague, right?
Just some thoughts.
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Post by cnlneenan on Jan 22, 2004 15:32:21 GMT -5
We're thinking about taking 10-12 days out of our 3 month trip to spend exploring the south of France. We're already considering Nice, Marseilles, Avignon, Lyon, but are pretty much stuck there.
We're basically looking for great places to relax, do some walking and a little sight-seeing, but mostly looking to enjoy great food and excellent wine. Let me know which cities you all think would be "must not misses" or day trips as well.
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Post by cnlneenan on Jan 20, 2004 15:37:25 GMT -5
The desire to smoke trees legally is usually one of the most powerful forces driving people to Amsterdam. Of course, the canals and museums and all that give it other reasons too. If you don't smoke and you can't stand it, it probably wouldn't be worth it to you. If you're indifferent to it, you'll probably have a blast here.
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Greece
Jan 9, 2004 12:21:57 GMT -5
Post by cnlneenan on Jan 9, 2004 12:21:57 GMT -5
Secondary question on this...has anyone gone from Athens up through the Balkans an to Vienna or a major city like that? Is Athens pretty much a place that a train is not a likely or convenient transportation method?
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Greece
Jan 8, 2004 18:20:43 GMT -5
Post by cnlneenan on Jan 8, 2004 18:20:43 GMT -5
Hey all,
Big question about Greece. Is it worth it? We'll have the time and the money, but is it worth the hassle to get from Italy to Greece to stay in Athens and the Islands. We'll also be doing plenty of beaches and nice places along the Mediterranean a la Italy, France and Spain. Basically, if we're going to see the beaches of Italy, France and Spain, is it worth it to ALSO go to Greece (worth either the time taken up by the ferry, or worth the cost of any plane tickets)??
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Post by cnlneenan on Jan 25, 2004 20:31:01 GMT -5
Alright, so after some more research and planning we've revised our itinerary (slightly). Tell me, anyone, what you think of it and if you'd recommend any alternate cities or number of days in each. (the number of nights in parenthesis) Heregoes:
London (2) Amsterdam (5) Bruges (2) Paris (3) Berlin (3) Prague (4) Vienna (3) Munich (4) Strasbourg (3) Gimmelwald (3) Venice (3) Manarola (3) Florence (6) Rome (5) To Athens (Ferry) (1) Athens (1) Greek Islands (7) Rome (1) Nice (4) Marseille (4) Barcelona (5) Ibiza (2) Madrid (3) Lagos (4) Amsterdam (3) Paris (3) London (1) Dublin (4) Edinburgh (4) London (1)
We're wondering if Marseille is worth the trip or if somewhere else in Southern France would be better (like maybe Avignon, Lyons, etc.). Let us know. All comments PLEASE!!!
Chris and Leah
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Post by cnlneenan on Jan 12, 2004 14:59:49 GMT -5
Oh yeah, don't forget Lagos, plenty of beach time in Lagos towards the end of May and early June.
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Post by cnlneenan on Jan 12, 2004 14:58:57 GMT -5
We're honestly thinking about saving ourselves the $400 in travel expense and the weeks of travel and take out Athens and the Greek Islands. We figure between Nice, Marseille, Barcelona and Possibly Ibiza we'll get enough beach time, right? Let me know if you think we're wrong in doing this and should just take the ferry (if it's a must-not miss!). Thanks, all input is greatly appreciated!
Chris and Leah
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Post by cnlneenan on Jan 9, 2004 14:42:27 GMT -5
Where did you find that $220 US flight? Everywhere I've looked (expedia, cheaptickets) starts around 360!!
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Post by cnlneenan on Jan 9, 2004 12:00:08 GMT -5
The only reason Corfu is on there is because of our journey to Athens. Isn't Corfu where the ferry from Italy takes you to? I suppose if we take an overnight ferry and land in Corfu in the morning (probably early morning I imagine) it probably wouldn't take much to go straight to Athens, huh?
We had no desire to stay in Corfu for any reason specifically, merely because we thought it would be more convenient to break up the long journey to Athens. If not, consider it STRICKEN FROM THE LIST!!
How about the amount of days though? Any of those look like we may want to stay shorter or longer? I'll probably leave about 10 days open anyway (plan as if it were an 88 day trip) so if we want to stay an extra night somewhere (or two) or if at the end we want to go back to our favorite place, we can.
There were a few places that we've been pondering but wouldn't mind some feedback. Would it be worth it to go to Lagos while we're in Portugal? Is it much different from Lisbon or will the experience be roughly the same? Also, what about going down to Morrocco? I have hear that many people make that trip down and some even go to Casablanca. Is that worth the trip or would we be happier with spending more time in each of our current choices?
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