Who's been through Europe?
02-24-2009, 07:40 PM
#41
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You might save up the money and rent a car in Stuttgart and drive to Munich on the Autobahn (about 2 hrs) if you've ever dreamed about it. That's a nice stretch of road through there.
Ulm is a medium sized city that has a stunning cathedral within walking distance of the train station, and is on the rail line between Stuttgart and Munich. Worth a look if you are near.
1) If I were in your shoes, I wouldn't go to Germany if I could not drive a fast car in an Autobahn. Try it; you won't regret it!
2) About Ulm; if you decide to go, pm me, A really close friend of mine lives there (BTW, he's an Audi engineer; German but he lived here for sometime).
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02-24-2009, 07:48 PM
#43
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Hi, I've spent some time in most countries in Europe, and to be honest your list of places to go seems ok to me, in truth you'll never get to all the countries in "Euroland"
so just concentrate on the ones you really do want to visit.
London is well worth a weekend visit at least, the London Eye is a pretty cool ride. Paris is also pretty awesome, there's just so much cultural venues to visit. In Germany I'd definately stop off in Berlin, and a night in Hamburg is a good experience, especially if you visit the Reeperbahn
Amsterdam is pretty, has some nice bars & cafes
and the red light area if you fell like blowing your $100 a day budget
I've just come back from a weekend in Prague and can say that it is like a fairytale city, simply stunning, the castle, charles bridge, the old town & Jewish quarter, the Czech beer & the slivovic. It's also a small & compact city, so easy to get around by foot, or the public transport (Metro, trams,bus) is superb and very cheap too. There's something about eastern Europe that I quite like....
As has been said already, try to speak even just a few words of the local language, wherever you are, I find most people are more willing to go out of their way to assist you if you do... even if like me you end up making a complete *****-up of it
Anyway, just a few ideas for you, and good luck on your Eurotrip!
so just concentrate on the ones you really do want to visit.London is well worth a weekend visit at least, the London Eye is a pretty cool ride. Paris is also pretty awesome, there's just so much cultural venues to visit. In Germany I'd definately stop off in Berlin, and a night in Hamburg is a good experience, especially if you visit the Reeperbahn
Amsterdam is pretty, has some nice bars & cafes
and the red light area if you fell like blowing your $100 a day budgetI've just come back from a weekend in Prague and can say that it is like a fairytale city, simply stunning, the castle, charles bridge, the old town & Jewish quarter, the Czech beer & the slivovic. It's also a small & compact city, so easy to get around by foot, or the public transport (Metro, trams,bus) is superb and very cheap too. There's something about eastern Europe that I quite like....
As has been said already, try to speak even just a few words of the local language, wherever you are, I find most people are more willing to go out of their way to assist you if you do... even if like me you end up making a complete *****-up of it
Anyway, just a few ideas for you, and good luck on your Eurotrip!
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02-24-2009, 08:58 PM
#44
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Wow, talk about a good turnout for my thread. Thanks for all the info, I'm going to go through it all write a ton of it down to see what I can include in my trip and see what I think I can make up in form of an itinerary for everyones criticism. I'll just start going through everyones info, reply how I can and try to make the most of everyones efforts in informing me.
Big thanks to sixshooter for typing all that up too.
Now I need to try and absorb all of this.
Big thanks to sixshooter for typing all that up too.
Now I need to try and absorb all of this.
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02-24-2009, 09:55 PM
#46
Again I will endorse the Europe through the backdoor method of travel. B&B's in Europe are very different from here. They are people that have an extra room or two and let them out for a little extra money. Very affordable and you avoid the party til 3am hostel atmosphere. Hostels are great for what they are but don't plan on getting much sleep at some of them. Much prefer the intimacy of the B&B.
Use the trains for sleeping by doing your long travel at night.
To me, english speaking countries like the UK are a waste of time. You are going for exotic and new experiences. You might as well go to eastern Canada as go to England. I really agree with a lot of Johndoe's advice.
Who are you traveling with by the way?
Use the trains for sleeping by doing your long travel at night.
To me, english speaking countries like the UK are a waste of time. You are going for exotic and new experiences. You might as well go to eastern Canada as go to England. I really agree with a lot of Johndoe's advice.
Who are you traveling with by the way?
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02-25-2009, 12:39 AM
#48
London is a cool town too, and there is a lot to see. If you go you may want to try and make it out to the Tate modern art gallery, or just stroll along the Thames, its a great walk.
Italy's countryside is stunning, and the history in all of their towns is rich.
I have no problems with the French people either, Paris is such a great place, but it will be really hard to stay under $100 per day there, especially if you keep on finding great food. If you end up there check out the Bastille district, its less touristy and has some charming cafes.
I envy you this trip! It sounds like no matter where you go it will be unforgettable. I hope to try the same kind of thing at some point, but maybe ship my car over there and do a driving tour to the ring.
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02-26-2009, 02:48 AM
#50
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I'll be traveling alone, making new friends along the way. No one I know has the time or money to go and I like the idea of doing what i want when i want.
You guys have me really considering a couple day trip to prague, we'll see.
I'm definitely trying to budget for a car so I drive the autobahn and possibly the ring. I have some friends that went over recently that rented from a company that didn't care if you took the car to the ring whereas many others utilize photographers as spotters and will tear you a new ******* if they find out you tracked their car.
I'll keep your Ulm and London connections in mind and let you know what I end up doing.
Thanks again everyone.
Great advice on this whole sixshooter post but I wanted to highlight these 2 paragraphs.
1) If I were in your shoes, I wouldn't go to Germany if I could not drive a fast car in an Autobahn. Try it; you won't regret it!
2) About Ulm; if you decide to go, pm me, A really close friend of mine lives there (BTW, he's an Audi engineer; German but he lived here for sometime).
1) If I were in your shoes, I wouldn't go to Germany if I could not drive a fast car in an Autobahn. Try it; you won't regret it!
2) About Ulm; if you decide to go, pm me, A really close friend of mine lives there (BTW, he's an Audi engineer; German but he lived here for sometime).
I'll keep your Ulm and London connections in mind and let you know what I end up doing.
Thanks again everyone.
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02-26-2009, 03:25 AM
#51
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Driving The Ring is an experience, but you should also consider signing up for a ring-taxi or similar. Nurburgring has a good webpage (also in English) where you can check it out. And of course, book plenty of time for just hanging out, looking at cars and buying stickers for your own car.
And when you do go to the ring you need to book a room at hotel Blaue Ecke (hotel “blue corner”). It is a nice little place in Nurburg (the building is blue and in a corner… imagine that!) packed with history. This is the little hotel all the famous race drivers stayed and stays in!
The area around Nurburg is full of mountains and mountain roads with speed limits you as an American will find liberal. Fun enough to make a dog be sick in the back seat of a BMW, in fact. There are also some nice old castles and stuff worth seeing if you are already there.
On the autobahn: Maxing out a rental car is not that big of an experience. Sorry, but it just isn't.
And when you do go to the ring you need to book a room at hotel Blaue Ecke (hotel “blue corner”). It is a nice little place in Nurburg (the building is blue and in a corner… imagine that!) packed with history. This is the little hotel all the famous race drivers stayed and stays in!
The area around Nurburg is full of mountains and mountain roads with speed limits you as an American will find liberal. Fun enough to make a dog be sick in the back seat of a BMW, in fact. There are also some nice old castles and stuff worth seeing if you are already there.
On the autobahn: Maxing out a rental car is not that big of an experience. Sorry, but it just isn't.
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03-03-2009, 02:17 AM
#52
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Got my ticket today. $474 roundtrip Nashville, TN to Frankfurt. Locked in now.
Any recommendations on backpacks?
I also plan to bring my SLR camera, I hate point and shoots and feel that I will be really disappointed if I don't bring the SLR. Any blatant reason to leave it at home?
Any recommendations on backpacks?
I also plan to bring my SLR camera, I hate point and shoots and feel that I will be really disappointed if I don't bring the SLR. Any blatant reason to leave it at home?
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03-03-2009, 10:08 PM
#54
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Theft, esp. if you are in a hostel or most hotels. BTW, I always made use of the pay lockers at the train station when I was day-tripping around a town. Cheap, secure, and usually pretty darn convenient. I hated lugging all of my **** around. I felt like I was a target for pickpockets and thugs when I was loaded down with too much crap. And it would wear your *** out.
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03-03-2009, 10:30 PM
#55
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Congrats!
Theft, esp. if you are in a hostel or most hotels. BTW, I always made use of the pay lockers at the train station when I was day-tripping around a town. Cheap, secure, and usually pretty darn convenient. I hated lugging all of my **** around. I felt like I was a target for pickpockets and thugs when I was loaded down with too much crap. And it would wear your *** out.
Theft, esp. if you are in a hostel or most hotels. BTW, I always made use of the pay lockers at the train station when I was day-tripping around a town. Cheap, secure, and usually pretty darn convenient. I hated lugging all of my **** around. I felt like I was a target for pickpockets and thugs when I was loaded down with too much crap. And it would wear your *** out.
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03-20-2009, 07:37 PM
#56
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What do you guys do for bedding when you travel? I see most hostels offer sheets/bedding for rent though that could add up over a period of a month. I'm considering a light sleeping bag with compression sack to put in the bottom of my bag. Indoors it would be plenty.
I'm also checking this out: CouchSurfing - Participate in Creating a Better World, One Couch At A Time
I'm also checking this out: CouchSurfing - Participate in Creating a Better World, One Couch At A Time
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03-20-2009, 07:47 PM
#57
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I'm also checking this out: CouchSurfing - Participate in Creating a Better World, One Couch At A Time
That sounds good.
BTW, shooter's advice on taking a locker at the train station is a win!
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03-20-2009, 08:16 PM
#58
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What do you guys do for bedding when you travel? I see most hostels offer sheets/bedding for rent though that could add up over a period of a month. I'm considering a light sleeping bag with compression sack to put in the bottom of my bag. Indoors it would be plenty.
I'm also checking this out: CouchSurfing - Participate in Creating a Better World, One Couch At A Time
I'm also checking this out: CouchSurfing - Participate in Creating a Better World, One Couch At A Time
Specifically, the hostel forum - Hostels - Backpackers Ultimate Guide
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