The New Travel Thread: Now with write ups in the OP

Discussion in 'The Mainboard' started by Jax Teller, Apr 8, 2015.

  1. ohhaithur

    ohhaithur e-Batman
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    Yes but if you want more specific answers we can help in the cc thread or you can pm me
     
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  2. ohhaithur

    ohhaithur e-Batman
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    I can help too but you do know you can get the Barclays AA card and get 60,000 for one purchase + $99 right? That might be better
     
  3. BayouMafia

    BayouMafia Thought Leader in Posting
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    8k miles is $236 if you buy from AA.com. Why would you pay $100 to share plus trade something away rather than simply buy them yourself?

    Edit: or get another credit card as ohhaithur suggested
     
  4. ohhaithur

    ohhaithur e-Batman
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    He can also sign up for a year subscription to The Motley Fool for $99 through the AA portal for 7,400 miles that will basically get him there. Paired with the Economist's $12 for 1,500 miles and he's set
     
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  5. Super tRUper

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    Going to Dublin in March for St Patty's day. Any recommendations for day trips, restaurants or things to do around the city? Going from Friday to Wednesday.
     
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  6. Hugo Boss

    Hugo Boss The poster formerly known as CarolinaRPh
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    Don't kiss the blarney stone
     
  7. mc415

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    Besides the usual stuff take a day trip to Belfast, I found learning more about “The Troubles” to be quite interesting
     
  8. Jimmy the Saint

    Jimmy the Saint The future is a benevolent black hole
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    Cliffs of Moher/Galway. L’Ecrivain if you want to drop some money on dinner.
     
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  9. PJP3

    PJP3 Well-Known Member
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    For one, don't refer to it at St. Patty's while there. It's Paddy's and the Irish hate it when people get it wrong.
     
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  10. 941Gator

    941Gator TMB's resident beach bum
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  11. Nug

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    I went a few years ago for the same thing. Will get a write up this AM
     
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  12. Nug

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    Super tRUper

    I did the same trip in 2014 or 15. We tried to get to Galway/Cliffs of Moher, but it'll be difficult with your tight schedule (we went about the same amount of time), so I'd skip it. It's a good 4-5 hour train ride each way.

    St. Paddys was fun as shit, the whole city shuts down. Obviously, their culture and social scene revolves entirely around pubs. They have some super nice ones that are fun as shit:
    • O'Donoghue's Pub -- right by St. Stephen's Green, we spent most of St Paddys here. Very traditional spot, they'll likely have some live folk music playing. Can go walk around St Stephens (awesome) and then go straight here. It's downtown and centrally located, too.
    • Stag's Head -- awesome pub, probably my favorite we went to. Mounts of huge, exotic animals on the wall, and downstairs turns into a dance party/club late night. We went 2-3 times--definitely go here.
    • The Long Hall -- another awesome pub, kind of fancy. Also highly recommend.
    • McDaid's -- fun pub, more low-key/traditional than the previous two. Near O'Donoghue's
    • The Brazen Head -- oldest bar in Ireland, from the 1100s. It was our first stop, wish we would've gone back. Very cool spot, OLDDD building, supposed to be fun as shit late night
    • Temple Bar -- sucks. You'll see this at the top of every internet list, so I guess go for a bit to experience it, but we went just one night and did not want to go back. Touristy as shit, super young crowd (I barely noticed anyone in their 20s), and just overall a tourist trap. The whole Temple Bar area kind of sucks, from my experience. Very similar to Bourbon Street in New Orleans -- touristy, kind of gross, but you want to go so that you've been. Don't spend too much time here
    • Mulligan's -- alright spot, near Temple Bar area. Could walk around Temple Bar, see what it's like, then keep walking a few blocks here
    Other:
    • Trinity College -- awesome, definitely walk around campus. The library is amazing. Doesn't take long, though
    • Winding Stair -- only good meal we had while there (the rest was just street food/cheap meals). Overlooks the Liffey, would recommend. I'm sure there are some awesome food spots, we just didn't seek them out. But this was really good
    • St Paddys Parade -- meh. Nothing special. Would rather be drinking on the patio of a pub
    Around Dublin -- even though you probably won't be able to make it to Galway, definitely explore around Dublin. They have the DART train ("Dublin Area Rapid Transit") that's easy as shit to use on the east side of the country. Some spots we went:
    • County Wicklow -- area south of the city, awesome hiking if you're into that. Even if not, probably the best scenery around Dublin. Would just go for a few hours to check out
    • Dun Laoghaire -- my buddy was sick as shit, so I checked this out by myself. Interesting, sleepy fishing village about 45 min - 1 hour south of Dublin. Had a few drinks, nothing special.
    • Howth / Dublin Bay Prawn Festival -- this was one of my favorite days of the trip. Howth is about 1 hour northeast of the city, right on a big peninsula, surrounded by water. Easy ride on the DART. Every year during the days surrounding St Paddys, they have a huge seafood festival. http://dublinbayprawnfestival.ie/ -- If you take one piece of advice, try to make it here. It was a blast, and the food was excellent. Would be perfect either Saturday before Paddys or the Monday after to soak up your hangover.
     
  13. Jimmy the Saint

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    Yea, Temple Bar is very tourist-trappy. I'd go to check it out briefly but don't waste a lot of time there.
     
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  14. Gin Buckets

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    I did this a few years back. It was pretty wild. Not a ton of Irish folk, but loads of Welsh and French were all over the place in Temple Bar area.

    Edit: I was in the area for work and just flew in a couple days early to party in Dublin on St Patty’s which fell on the weekend that year. Think I only stayed 2 nights.
     
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  15. Why?Pokes

    Why?Pokes Take me back to the kine
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    Howth is a really cool spot and easy to get to from Dublin. Highly recommend the cliff trail for some great views of the Irish coast too.
     
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  16. Super tRUper

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    This is awesome! You guys have never let me down before. Still thinking about doing Cliffs of Moher. It'll be tight but I'm thinking it'll be worth the trek.
     
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  17. Arkadin

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  18. Gin Buckets

    Gin Buckets Well-Known Member
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    This write-up feels more guide-like than most of my reports. There were a lot of things I'd like to have known or would have been helpful to know before going -- on this trip way more than most. I also found the research pretty daunting before going as well, so I hope it helps anyone trying to go in the future.


    Nairobi:
    Tips:
    - I'd imagine if you came here, you'll be doing a proper safari, but if it's not in the cards or whatever, it's possible to do game drives from Nairobi as well. Ask your hotel, and they can set it up. They have a national park with all of the big 5 (buffalo, elephant, rhino, leopard, and lion) literally across the street from the airport.
    - It's important to have a driver in Nairobi. For us, this became easy through our hotel. We had them schedule a driver to pick us up from the airport, and then we stuck with him for pretty much everything the remainder of our time in Nairobi.
    - It's very easy to do the elephant orphanage and giraffe center in one day through your driver, and you'll be done by lunch. Pro tip: LEAVE the elephants about 10-15 minutes early and head straight to the giraffe center. This is because the elephant orphanage is only open to tourists for 1 hour every day, and everyone that is at the elephant orphanage heads to the giraffe center once that hour is done. Get a jump on the rush -- we did this thanks to our driver, and I'm so freaking happy we did. When we got to the giraffe center there was probably 10 tourists or less there. We got great pics, fed the shit out of all the giraffes, and were basically ready to go when most of the elephant center folks were still in cars waiting to get in. Those that didn't get the jump will have to wait around forever for the crowd to clear or probably never got many good pictures or opportunities to feed the giraffes.
    - Another popular attraction in Nairobi is the Karen Blixen museum, but we didn't go. That lady's influence is felt heavily there, her name (Karen) is literally everywhere. If you don't know who she is watch Out of Africa with Meryl Streep and Robert Redford. Streep plays her. I watched it on the trip and am still not quite sure why she's such a big deal, but she is.

    Accommodation:
    - City Centre (also called CBD or Central Business District): We stayed at the Intercontinental here, and it was a great hotel. That said, the location is good for getting to the primary attractions (Elephant Orphanage and Giraffe Center) as it's very close, and it's literally across the street from all of the government buildings, but there's not much more than that.
    - Westlands: If I went back to Nairobi this is the neighborhood I'd stay in. This is where most of the best restaurants and nightlife is located.
    - Giraffe Manor: If you're going on a honey moon and your girl really wants to stay here, book this place immediately. It books up a year and a half or more in advance, and is wildly expensive. It's probably not worth it to actually sleep there, so if it's an imperative, try to work with the hotel to schedule breakfast or lunch there without actually sleeping there. Also, this is where the Giraffe Center is, so if you'll feed these giraffes the same way as you see in the pictures there, but you just won't be in a manor.
    - Karen: It's a suburb, and has some great restaurants.

    From Nairobi, we took a shuttle to Arusha for $30/person. Almost everyone does this since it only takes about 6 hours, so you're not saving much time by flying while saving tons of money. There are a couple shuttle companies which do this, but Riverside Shuttle is the main one. We scheduled through our hotel and was picked up there. Visas to Tanzania are easy, but cost $100 USD (for Americans, $50 for most other citizens :mad:) so have that in cash before embarking on that ridiculous bus ride. Last thing, make sure you get your Yellow Fever vaccinations before going, otherwise you won't be allowed to go to the Tanzania mainland. We met too many people on Zanzibar who missed out on mainland Tanzania for this reason. If you're worried about actually getting yellow fever make sure you get the vaccine 3-4 weeks before traveling (that's how long it takes to be effective). We didn't do this, we got a few days before, just to have the certificate and were fine.


    Arusha:
    - This is city hub/airport if you want to go to Kilimanjaro, and it's also the starting place of almost every safari option.
    - Mount Meru is nearby, and apparently amazing. We didn't go, or do much research on it beforehand, but saw a lot about it after we got there. Maybe look into it if it piques your interest.
    - We stayed at the Zawadi House Lodge. If you're just trying to hang out at the hotel before your safari, this place is great because the staff was amazing. You also have basically your own personal cook and bar to hang out at.
    - That said, it might be worth doing a little research about Arusha prior to going. If you have the time/energy, there are things to eat there, we just didn't check them out. What held us back was not wanting to get someone drive us somewhere when we didn't really know where to go. That, and something feels wrong for getting a taxi to take you less than a mile away. (Despite it being quite cheap).
    - There are 2 airports -- Kilimanjaro and Arusha. Arusha is obviously closer to the city center, so shoot for that one if that's where you're staying, but it's a the smaller airport of the two and doesn't have international flights.


    Safari:
    - We used Simba Adventures. It was about $1000/person after tips, taxes, and everything else. We did Tarangire, Serengeti, and Ngorrogorro crater. Most of their safaris are 4 nights, and go to Lake Manyara on the last day (best for seeing birds), and my GF worked it out to where we were done after Ngorrogorro. 3 nights was great, not too long and definitely not too short. I'm certainly not mad about missing lake Manyara, but could have definitely spent another day in the Serengeti (this may have a lot to do with our guide which I'll get into below).
    - It also helped that we had a group of 6 in our safari jeep. Us, an argentinian couple on an extended post uni gap year, and 2 Danish retired nurses -- everyone was amazing, and everyone helped look for animals. The other jeeps that had only 1 or 2 people looked so empty and lonely in our opinions.
    - If you use Simba Adventures, I hope you get Emmanuel as your guide -- he was incredible. Most guides are terrific spotters, but what made Emmanuel great was that he knew the Serengeti roads incredibly well. We'd be out driving around where no other safari jeeps were (and there were a LOT in the Serengeti), which meant we could literally drive up next to the animals. When you stay with the main roads, you can't get nearly as close, and everything you see is with like 6 other jeeps. Most people we spoke to prior to going on this safari said they liked Ngorrogorro Crater the most, and while it's great, no one in our group said that. The reason people love Ngorrogorro Crater is because of how close you can get to the animals, but since we'd been so close to so many more animals in the Serengeti (because of Emanuel) it was far less exciting to the people in our group.
    - You can camp or stay at a lodge for a safari, and we camped -- I couldn't recommend it more. In the Serengeti, I felt a little uneasy when I woke up to pee, but then heard hyenas literally JUST outside of my tent, pretty sure I heard a lion as well. The hyenas were there all night, so I just held it, and waited for daylight. When we camped at Ngorrogorro crater, I heard zebras just outside the door of my tent. I waited until I couldn't hear them, and then when I got out of my tent they were laying down just next to it. It was pretty amazing. Then there was also an elephant feeding near the entrance to the bathroom. It was surreal. The camping conditions are pretty basic--2 person tent, sleeping bag. Bathrooms with a flush toilet, but not every campsite had showers. But it was definitely a great experience.

    Lastly:
    - Bring your own binoculars. The guide has them, but it'd be awesome to have your own as well. Obviously, the better the binoculars the better the experience.
    - Bring ski googles if you have them. Sounds silly, but they act as shades and the amount of dust that gets in your eyes is unbearable at times -- particularly in the Serengeti, so you cant really look out the open window. I wish someone had told me this beforehand.
    - Bring a bandana. As mentioned, the dust is bad, so putting it over your mouth old west bandit style, will help keep it out of your mouth and nose.
    - The bugs aren't as bad in the Serengeti as other places, keep this in mind when you're packing. We bought bug spray at a grocery store in Arusha just before leaving for the safari.
    - Pack a bathing suit -- our first campsite had a pool.
    - There is downtime around/after meal times, so bring a travel game to play with your group or have something to keep you entertained. We didn't break out my "For Sale" travel game until the last night, and I kind of regretted it because everyone played and loved it.


    Zanzibar:
    Stone Town:
    - Watch Anthony Bourdain's Parts Unkown on Tanzania BEFORE going. Parts Unknown is not available on Netflix in either country we were in, though on return I'm seeing that they apparently recently removed Season 4 anyway. The Tanzania episode is S04E05 -- you can buy the episode for $2.99 by using THIS link.
    - I say spend a day here and then get to one of the beaches.
    - My GF enjoyed Stone Town more than I did. She thought it was a great city to walk around in. It has interesting architecture and tons of little alleys/small streets (kind of like Venice). There are a dozen different ways to walk from any one location to another.
    -Stone Town is a good place to do shopping for souvenirs/gifts
    - We stayed at the Tembo House. GREAT location. Highly recommend if you want to stay here, but they do not sell alcohol if that's something that matters to you. But there are bars next door. The pool was great and the breakfast was great, and the location is unbeatable.
    - Eat at Fordhani market. Probably the best food I had in Zanzibar was at that night market. The place was amazing. Sugar Cane juice, Zanibarri Pizza, and the octopus, my mouth is watering thinking about it.
    - I had the best Tandoori Chicken I've had at a place called Muhky's. We ate outside on a plastic table. It's not a real restaurant, but more like a food stall and they only sell Tandoori Chicken and fries.
    - Sunset Bar (I think that was it) had a cool western vibe if that's what you're looking for. Good food. Great view. Good drinks. Good music. If I wanted to go out, this is the place I'd likely start my night.
    - The Tea Room is a great experience with pretty decent food. It's the top rated restaurant in Stone Town, but definitely not the best food we had. I'd put it below the others I've mentioned. The menu changes every night--it's a set 3 course menu. So, I'm sure some nights are better.
    - The hustlers in Stone Town are relentless -- be ready.

    Beaches:
    - This write-up is so much longer than I'd thought it would be already, so I'm keeping this part short. Use this blog to pick which beach fits your fancy:
    https://migrationology.com/zanzibar...gC1ruqcGSnHNfoJJUCI-IFB_Z284841gGbS8xZ8nU8OAw
    - We stayed at the Blue Reef Fish and Sport Lodge on Jambiani, and I couldn't recommend this place enough. The staff is next level excellent, the rooms are great, the atmosphere is amazing, and I couldn't be happier that we chose this place. It had 2 bars (and 2 locations for rooms, about a 3 minute walk on the beach apart from one another). The staff even took us out with locals one night in Jambiani and it was something I won't soon forget. I think the reason I liked it so much was because it had a hostel (aka social) atmosphere, but more my speed with amenities. The other people staying were also late 20s/early 30s for the most part as well (and no kids). They also have such great lounging options and good food.
    - Kite surfing seems like a ripoff, but if you want to do it set aside 2 days, because the instructors won't let you actually try to kite surf the first day. We spoke to one guy that tried to do it, and he paid for 3 days, but only got like 30 minutes in the water on a board.
    - The Rock Restaurant was very good. Recommend. Lots of young tourists were there, and many looked like they were starting a big night out there. I'm not sure what other lists it's on, but I found it through this one: https://www.buzzfeed.com/hotbarchick/20-bars-to-drink-in-before-you-die-onu7


    Things I didn't have a place to mention, but might be helpful to anyone considering a trip to East Africa:
    - Kenya coast is apparently amazing, but we didn't get a chance to go. When researching this trip everything we read, and everything we heard was that Lamu was amazing.
    - If you want to go to Lamu, try to work it into your schedule beforehand. It's really hard to get there from Zanzibar -- we learned this the hard way. You can't get there in one day from Zanzibar basically, you have to fly from Zanzibar to a city that flies there.
    - Other beaches of note in Kenya worth looking into are Diani Beach and Malindi.
    - Other beaches of note in Tanzania worth looking into are Pemba Island (check out the underwater hotel room if you're doing something romantic)
    - If you scuba dive, Mafia Island in Tanzania is apparently world class. (I don't scuba)
    - Samburu National Reserve is another awesome national park that is less known
    - Ruaha is Tanzania's biggest national park
    - You'll be nearby gorillas. If that's something you really want to do/see, it's best done through Uganda or Rwanda (word on the street that Rwanda is overwhelmingly the best option). This is a VERY expensive trip, so be ready. You can also only spend 1 hour a day actually watching the Gorillas, after that you have to move on for safety and conservation reasons.
    - Folks who thought the gorilla costs were limiting said a more economical option (half the price) is to do a chimpanzee trek instead.
    - Plan to use cash for pretty much everything. Hotels and some nicer/larger restaurants will take card (but often with a card fee), otherwise cash is definitely your best bet. Everywhere and everyone takes USD. So, that's what we used until we ran out and had to go to the ATM (make sure you go to the ATM in stone town before heading to the beaches).
    - 2 out of 4 hotels we stayed didn't have doors for the bathrooms in our room. Instead, they had curtains (one of them was just a bead curtain that you could see right through), so there's not a lot of privacy. I'm sure we could have found hotels/rooms that had real doors, but we didn't even know it was a thing we needed to ask for. It ended up not being a problem, but just a head's up as it might not be ideal for a new couple.
     
    #15418 Gin Buckets, Dec 6, 2018
    Last edited: Dec 6, 2018
  19. AptosDuck

    AptosDuck Pedantic Hausfrau
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    That's the first thing we did once we dropped our bags at the airbnb. Stayed between the Uffizi and Santa Croce, so it was a short walk across the river and up the hill. Not that crowded, since it was late November, hit San Miniato while we were up there (missed the Gregorian chants, unfortunately). The sun was already behind the hills by the time we got up there, but the evening cloud colors were spectacular. Didn't even mind the folk guitar rendition of Sweet Child o Mine that was being performed, loudly, on the little square below the main steps.

    Probably because it's recently seared in her memory (last Sunday), but wife says she doesn't want to fly economy anymore. Lufthansa's A380 from Munich to SFO was pretty smooth, but packed, and it's hard to deal with so little room and an uncomfortable seat for 11 hours. Hard to turn down a $560 round trip fare to/from Rome, though, as opposed to whatever business or first class would cost for a family of five.
     
  20. Room 15

    Room 15 Mi equipo esta Los Tigres
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    Purposely skipping that write up so I don’t immediately book flights to Kenya
     
  21. Nug

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    Good shit. Zanzibar/Mozambique is high on my list, really want to check it out.

    Re: gorillas, I looked into it a lot before deciding on Ethiopia. You're correct that Rwanda >> Uganda, and it's going to cost about $3-4K just for the trek itself. The hike to see the gorillas (which you're right, is about a one hour viewing period) can last anywhere from a few hours to a full day, depending on where they are on that day. Also, you're trekking through the Bwindi Impenetrable Forest, which shares a border with the DRC...so yea.
     
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  22. Gin Buckets

    Gin Buckets Well-Known Member
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    Yep. I didn't speak to anyone who actually did it -- just too expensive.

    My biggest regret is spending too much time in Nairobi, and not making it to Lamu, or any Kenyan beach for that matter. I also think we wasted too much time in Stone Town, but my GF loved it so whatever.

    Edit: And not bringing ski googles, binoculars, and a bandana on the safari with me. The ski goggles would have been so nice in The Serengeti.
     
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  23. BP

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    Anyone been to Cuba yet? Going to Puerto Rico with a few locals and was contemplating skipping over to Havana for a few days. Not sure if that would create a problem on my PP.
     
  24. mc415

    mc415 Well-Known Member
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    I went in 2004 illegally via México City, it was pretty easy. Not sure what the process is like now, but basically in Cuba they give you a Visa Card that they stamp when u arrive and stamp when u leave along with a small fee so they don’t actually stamp your passport. On the Cuban end they make it pretty easy since they want ur business
     
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  25. rezy

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    Korean air first class is incredible, just landed in Korea and have a few hours before I fly to Saigon. 14 hour flight felt like it went by faster than a 4 hour domestic coach flight
     
  26. PJP3

    PJP3 Well-Known Member
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    Never done their first, but have flown their business and I think its underrated and actually one of my favorite international business classes.
     
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  27. Whammy

    Whammy Donde es
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    Said I was going to translate write-ups from my blog but am too lazy...am just going to include them here. Best read in sequential order, but feel free to move around

    Amritsar, India - Part 1...The Wagah Border
    https://foshthoughts.wordpress.com/2015/04/20/amritsar-part-1-of-3-the-border/

    Amritsar, India - Part 2.... JALLIANWALA Massacre
    https://foshthoughts.wordpress.com/2015/04/20/amritsar-part-2-of-3-jallianwala-bagh-massacre/

    Amritsar Part 3....Golden Temple and Sikh Religion
    https://foshthoughts.wordpress.com/...art-3-of-3-golden-temple-and-the-sikh-people/

    Taking Overnight Trains in India
    https://foshthoughts.wordpress.com/2015/04/14/murphys-law-is-alive-and-well-in-india/

    Taj Mahal
    https://foshthoughts.wordpress.com/2015/04/20/the-incomparable-taj-mahal/

    Dubai
    https://foshthoughts.wordpress.com/2015/04/28/dubai-and-the-united-arab-emirates/

    Musandam Peninsula (North of Dubai)
    https://foshthoughts.wordpress.com/2015/04/29/sultanate-of-oman-and-the-musandam-peninsula/

    Sheik Zayed Grand Mosque - Abu Dhabi....comparable to the Taj to be honest
    https://foshthoughts.wordpress.com/2015/04/29/sheikh-zayed-grand-mosque-abu-dhabi/
     
  28. Nug

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    Only read these two, some random comments:

    -I fucking loved trains in India, took 3-4 overnight rides. They're crazy, but it's all party of the journey. Only worrisome part had was from Hyderabad to Hampi, had to spend an hour or two on sketchy platform outside of Hyderabad waiting for the train at 3-4 AM. Lots of inquisitive looks.
    -We did the same route -- Varanasi to Agra, then from Agra to Jaipur -- what'd you think of Varanasi? One of the most interesting places I've ever been, but pretty damn intense
    -agree about the Taj--didn't have high expectations, but it's just mathematically perfect in every way. Really impressive, blew me away.
     
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  29. Whammy

    Whammy Donde es
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    We had only ourselves to blame for the train situation, got to the station 5 minutes before it departed like a bunch of morons....would do again, the trains themselves were fine

    Your characterizations on Varanasi are spot on - INTENSE...dead bodies in the river, human excrement in the street. Just the wildest place I've ever been. It was also April and yet about 105 degrees. Strange fact: apparently Goldie Hawn visits Varanasi every year and is somewhat of a celebrity there

    I didn't include my write-ups on Varanasi because the second one comes off kind of bratty, but shit why not

    Positive Review: https://foshthoughts.wordpress.com/2015/04/14/what-i-liked-about-varanasi/

    Negative Review: https://foshthoughts.wordpress.com/2015/04/14/what-i-did-not-like-about-varanasi/
     
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  30. Nug

    Nug MexicanNug
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    Looks like you stayed at BunkedUp Hostel, exact same place we stayed. Rooftop was legit
     
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  31. 941Gator

    941Gator TMB's resident beach bum
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    Florida Gators

    #TeamFosh
     
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  32. BayouMafia

    BayouMafia Thought Leader in Posting
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    I’m on record as hating all 13 of my trips to India, but I always tell people that the Taj pretty much single-handedly makes all the rest worthwhile. It took my breath away.
     
  33. Whammy

    Whammy Donde es
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    Well said....hard to explain until you see it. Candidly the Sheik Zayed Mosque is the closest thing I've seen to the Taj, but the fact it was built almost 400 years later just doesn't make it as impressive (still amazing though, nothing like it in the US).
     
    #15433 Whammy, Dec 6, 2018
    Last edited: Dec 6, 2018
  34. Why?Pokes

    Why?Pokes Take me back to the kine
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    The Taj is less than 400 yrs old.
     
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  35. Whammy

    Whammy Donde es
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    Derp - my bad...was thinking 1232, not 1632 for some reason. Political science major :bzzzz:
     
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  36. rezy

    rezy Member
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    Yeah I can see their business class being really nice too, it was really cool being one of only 6 people in the front and I think I had like 3 different people taking care of me
     
  37. PJP3

    PJP3 Well-Known Member
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    What airplane did you fly? I know some of their planes the first and business class seats are exactly the same and only the service is different while some of their planes have better seats in first class.
     
  38. rezy

    rezy Member
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    My second flight was definitely the case. First plane was a 747-8 next one was a 330-300. Slept for most of the second flight though and it was only 4.5 hours
     
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  39. NC Wolfpack

    NC Wolfpack Go Pack Go
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    Our rough plan is to stay in Canggu, Ubud, and Uluwatu for 3 nights each, but they are all about 1.5-2 hrs apart. Ive read that they do have Uber in Bali, but the local taxi community can be a pain the ass if you try and use it. Any suggestions on the transportation between areas?
     
  40. PJP3

    PJP3 Well-Known Member
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    I feel like thats a lot of traveling. Especially bc up to and back from ubud is a 2 lane road and can get crazy traffic. It was supposed to be 1.5 hours for us between hotels and it was almost 3 with traffic. It was bumper to bumper and sucks. Id cut either Canggu or Uluwatu since they are both beach locations and probably offer a similar vibe. That way you have more time to relax. For transport we just had our hotel arrange taxis. It was very smooth and nice air con vans. I cant remember exact cost, but I think it was somewhere between $50-100 between our hotel in Jimbaran and Ubud. I didn’t want to rely on uber as I had heard half the time you can’t find one, especially up in ubud.
     
  41. Arkadin

    Arkadin inefficiently efficent and unclearly clear
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    TO:

    Amsterdam (AMS)
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    Cologne (CGN)
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    Dublin (DUB)
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    FROM:

    Atlanta (ATL) - $451
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    Burbank (BUR) - $481
    Charlotte (CLT) - $492
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    Philadelphia (PHL) - $450
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    Toronto (YYZ) - $593 CAD
    Washington DC (DCA) - $452
    Washington DC (IAD) - $449
    West Palm Beach (PBI) - $505
    WHEN: Varies depending on route. Generally January through April 2019. Some routes do have a more limited availability.
     
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  42. NC Wolfpack

    NC Wolfpack Go Pack Go
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    Definitely hear you on it being a lot of traveling, but I am concerned we would find ourselves sitting around the last day or two if we only did Uluwatu and Ubud. I suppose it depends on the individuals, but is there plenty to do in each location?
     
  43. PJP3

    PJP3 Well-Known Member
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    I feel Bali is generally mostly sitting around though. There’s some adventure stuff to do like rafting and ziplining, but most of it is eating/drinking and laying by the beach/pool. Ubud has some more spiritual/temple type stuff. Fwiw I had a friend who spent more time than me there and Changgu was his favorite place. Said it was great surfing. If I went back I’d consider that over Uluwatu.
     
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  44. Gin Buckets

    Gin Buckets Well-Known Member
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    Sofia would be a nice jump off place for a very nice trip. Lots of routes to take and still go to places I've never been. If I literally didn't just get back from a trip, I would seriously look into it.
     
  45. Lyrtch

    Lyrtch My second favorite meat is hamburger
    Staff Donor

    convoluted but booked Delta flights a few months ago (~1200), yesterday they changed the schedule including a 2 hour later arrival home, flights are now ~800, think I can leverage the timing change into allowing me to change flights and if yes do they credit you the price difference when it works in your favor?
     
  46. Arkadin

    Arkadin inefficiently efficent and unclearly clear
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    I'd be really surprised if they gave you any money back
     
  47. Arkadin

    Arkadin inefficiently efficent and unclearly clear
    Donor

    But they'd probably switch the flight if there are seats yeah
     
  48. Lyrtch

    Lyrtch My second favorite meat is hamburger
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    usually they include in the rules that you can cancel without fee which would be my leverage to get money back, or I could literally just do that

    won't have a chance to call until tuesday so wasn't sure if someone had done it here
     
  49. Arkadin

    Arkadin inefficiently efficent and unclearly clear
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    I've gotten the flights changed because of changes. It's usually pretty simple if the agent your speaking to isn't either a dick or an idiot or both
     
  50. Lyrtch

    Lyrtch My second favorite meat is hamburger
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    any recs on international power adapters