Honestly, not that flush for this one. I'm taking my mom to Japan for two weeks in April and then going to Thailand with my GF (might propose on the trip) at Christmas, though those two are mostly on points. I just happened to see direct flights on Delta for $500 and I'm Platinum so I get free Delta Comfort + so I couldn't pass it up, especially because I already have 7/3 and 7/4 off so I only need to take 3 PTO days. Switzerland is already expensive so I'm don't have a huge budget for this trip. I've seen some awesome "private room" airbnbs hosted by Hans and Jülia for under $100/night. I figure that would be a cool experience, especially since we'll be out hiking all day.
Yeah I'm sure there are some beautiful airbnbs. I really don't like hotels that much but everytime I see pictures of that place I remind myself I need to go at some point
It's insanely expensive. Sit down meal will be $50 or more a person. Fast food is gonna be $15-20 a person. It's awesome tho. Beautiful scenery. My wife broke her leg skiing there, hospitals are great
We went to Lucerne btw. Beautiful area. We were planning on seeing more but her injury happened the first day so we ended up in the hospital. I was eating alone that whole time which is why I know how much fast food costs. McDonald's is delicious there
How many nights would you do in Lucerne? I'm thinking that we'll do 2 or 3 nights in Lucerne to see the town and do some day trips, and then go down to Interlaken and do day trips up to Grindewalk, Merren, Lauterbrunnen, etc.
We had planned on three. Ended up being like five because of the hospital stay. At any rate I think three would be enough. I recommend the Rick steves book on Switzerland btw, covers the whole country.
I've been to Switzerland a few times, my parents live in Zurich. It's a really beautiful country but there's not a ton to do for 8 days unless you're a skier. Interlaken is a popular destination. Lucerne is nice, it has a casino if you're interested in that. I've never been to Lauterbrunnen but I've heard good things. Can confirm it is insanely expensive. If I were you I would use it as an opportunity to go to some other places in Europe. You can get to Munich or Milan by train in 4 hours iirc. Or just take a short flight to wherever you want for pretty cheap.
Yes. Highly recommend. Also enjoyed staying in Manorola for the night. It was cool to be there after all the tourists had left for the day and only the locals were around.
It seems like there's a ton to do in the Interlaken/Jungfrau area. Seems like you could do a different hike each day for a month and never repeat the same thing. I figured we'd do two days up each valley - take the cable car to the top and mountain bike down, and then do a long hike the next day.
Yeah that's true. I was saying more just in terms of typical tourist attractions. If you're interested in doing a lot of hiking and what not that should be an awesome time.
Couple of off the beaten path Paris spots I loved: Le Bubar, literally a hole in the wall wine bar...with no website. Ha. Chez Alain Miam Miam. It's a sandwich spot in a farmers market. Also, no website.
Big Apple Duck did you get any shots/vaccines before India? I usually don't but probably going to for this trip.
Yeah, we did. We got shots for Tetanus and some other stuff (TDAP vaccination, which you need every few years), took thyphoid pills before we went, and Malaria when we were there. The Malaria drugs out today are much better than the old ones - I had absolutely zero side effects. If you're going to get off the beaten path at all, I'd recommend doing it. It's super easy - your normal doc can do it - and there aren't any side effects.
That's good to know re: malaria shots. I've heard nothing but awful things about that stuff, namely hyper-realistic terrifying nightmares.
It was a pill that I took every day that I was over there. I had heard about the dreams too but I didn't experience any of that. Also ask your doctor for odanzitron or another type of anti-nausea medicine. If you get sick, you'll be glad you have it. Gin-gins (the ginger candy) were clutch when we were there. Every time my tummy started to feel a bit off, I'd suck on one and the ginger would settle me. Whatever you do, do not consume any tap water. Use bottled water for everything, even brushing your teeth.
I've done it a couple times, it's pretty awesome. Mount Ka'ala is my favorite Oahu hike. I'm flying out to Hawaii march 1st, then to New Zealand, and then out to Bali. Will update itt.
If you're a fan of off the beaten path places, this thread is for you. Particularly in picking places to visit the next time you're in Europe.
Bali was prior. Thanks to the book Eat. Pray. Love. Every girl who has read it wants to go there, and find the perfect mix of meditation and enjoyment. (That being said, Bali still kicks ass, just commenting on a huge part of it's current popularity)
Wife and I have decided on Argentina for vacation this summer, for no reason other than that neither of us have ever been to South America. We're just starting to plan, and since it's a big country we're not sure what we want to do. Probably going for 8-10 days so would like to keep it to 3 stops or so. We want to go to Iguazu Falls and presumably will fly in/out of B.A., but not sure other than that. Any suggestions? Our biggest priorities on vacation are typically hiking and other outdoor stuff like rafting/rappelling, beach is a plus but not a must. thanks
Found a flight from Atlanta to Paris then return flight from Amsterdam for 381/RT. Found it on my own toying around on Kayak. Early May. Thinking about pulling trigger and hitting up Paris, Brussels and Amsterdam
I lived in BA for 4 months and am now traveling the entire country. When I get to a computer I can give advice but happy to answer any questions as well.
I can't recommend Buenos Aires enough, loved it. I'm sure Room 15 can probably provide more details, though. IIRC, it's pretty damn expensive traveling within Argentina via plane, similar to a cross-country flight in the US. Re: Iguazu, you don't really need more than 2 days, and definitely see both sides (Argentina and Brazil side). I actually preferred the Brazilian side better, which I think is the minority opinion. Fly in one morning, see Argentina side, stay in Puerto Iguazu, wake up early and see Brazilian side (or vice-versa), fly back to BA that evening. Make sure to keep your flights between BA and Iguazu domestic within Argentina, it's like 5x the price of you do international (the Brazilian and ARG airport are really close and both named something re: Iguazu). It's super easy to travel b/w the Arg and Brazil side re: bus.
If yall are there for 8-10 days, I would think: -5/6 in Buenos Aires (includes 2 days in Iguazu) -3/4 in Bariloche or somewhere else. Bariloche is supposed to be amazing. When in Iguazu Falls, definitely stay in Puerto Iguazu on the Argentina side. Cool little city, and you can walk to the river that serves as the border between Brazil/Argentina/Paraguay.
No, you can do Visa on arrival. On second thought, double check that, because they waived a bunch of Visa stuff while I was down there in preparation for the Olympics. It might be different since that has passed.
in 2014 when I went there was no visa on arrival for Brazil. Had to get it ahead of time. Leads to a lot of people just seeing the argentine side. You do have to pay a reciprocal entry fee ahead of time for argentina as well, but its not technically a visa. You can just do it online. Not sure if its worth getting a Brazilian visa just to see that side of the falls.
If it's like $100 (x2 with your wife) or so for a visa into Brazil, I'd agree it's probably not worth it.
There's a post on Reddit about a guy booking on southwest so he can go to the lounge and then he cancels his flight
I thought I saw something like that a while back. Guy buys an evening refundable business class ticket. Spends all day in the lounge eating/drinking for free and working using their wifi. Then cancels the ticket right before the flight and goes home.
Yeah. United has some technology to catch repeat offenders and there was even some case where a dude got taken to court for it
is flying the right choice generally if it is faster/cheaper? Just imagine myself getting confused in a Paris airport trying to fly to Berlin when the train might be easier.
The airports have english everywhere and everyone, especially at Charles de Gaule, will speak English. As far as flying vs. train, it just depends on the flight schedule and how much time you have. If you can find a night train you don't lose time during the day traveling. Based on your post: If going from Paris --> Brussels --> Amsterdam, I'd 100% take the train. I took the train straight from Paris --> Amsterdam and it wasn't bad at all. Further, train stations drop you off in the center of the city, whereas airports are generally a good hike away.
noted. Brussels is flexible. Thinking of replacing it with a flight to Berlin from Paris, then Berlin to Amsterdam. I'll be there for a good amount of time to hit 3 major cities. Direct flight from Paris to Berlin for 50 bucks seems like the move. Berlin to Amsterdam would likely be night train.
The only annoying thing about flying is having to be there early and that most airports are outside the city centres. But a 2hr flight is still better than a 7 hr train ride for example.
A childhood friend moved to Sweden a long time ago. She's doing a destination wedding because she moved a lot and knows people all over the world. She will be there for a month or more (so jealous of that European vacation time). I'll only be there 10 days.
My best friend from Texas---who moved to the VIs to start a yoga company, who I visited last New Years Eve for Jost, etc---recently moved from St. Thomas to Bali about 2 months ago. She loves its, but I've been talking to her a lot and it's not exactly what she expected; very commercialized. From what she's told me, Bali's getting pretty overrun with tourists, but is still a top-tier destination. Still amazing scenery with some of the absolute best beaches and water in the entire world. I think it's losing some of it's authentic appeal, though. She had planned on working/trying to do her SUP yoga thing over there, but the competition is ridiculous. She sees more Westerners than Indonesians most days, but I imagine that's typical for most places that popular.
The visa for Brazil is definitely not waived anymore, and it's over 100 but I don't remember the exact cost. I will say someone told me that you could get something at the border of just going for the day but never confirmed it. Maybe worth looking into online on TripAdvisor or something.