Maybe it will be better flying within the Schengen zone as I think that is a different terminal/entry point. Still, the airport is poorly marked, the people who work there give you wrong information and the international terminal was so overcrowded that not only was there nowhere to sit in the entire terminal, but there was no space on the ground to sit down. There was, I think, 1 food option for a grab n go sandwich type thing, and again, it was so overcrowded that people would be randomly standing in a spot where people were actively boarding another plane. Total unorganized zoo.
This girl I hooked up with in Valparaiso is going to SE Asia and asked for recommendations. I said I've never been but I could send her a few write ups. Start reading BamaNug s and it's like a hookup highlight reel. Definitely not editing, I look forward to the reaction.
Room 15 BamaNug Hostel recs for BA? BamaNug your rundown from last July has me pumped. Do you recommend the Eco Pampa that you stayed at?
I'll readily admit that I don't have much 'game,' but for whatever reason when I'm out of the country I'm able to hook up with a ton of girls---I don't have nearly as much success when I'm back home. Hostel lifestyle + stunning good looks + the most cultured man in South Alabama Yea, I'd absolutely recommend Eco Pampa. If you're not about that dorm life, I'd probably get a private room--the dorms are loud and very average. A guy I met was staying in a private room and said it was legit, I would've done that if I knew beforehand. A lot of people may tell you to stay at Millhouse (I think that's the name of it), which is supposed to be a pretty famous party hostel. However, it's really far out of the way---you want to stay in Palermo, it's where almost everything is. Eco Pampa's location is perfect, and you can party in the lobby all night/don't have to be quiet and sneak in when you get back. Make friends with the staff, they're awesome (assuming some are the same).
Thanks man. I'm sorta similar in the first part, my travel buddy looks like Goebbels' wet dream so I'm pretty sure he's going to crush it there. I'll be chasing what's left. I'm 24 and he's 23, so I think we can handle the dorm life.
In short, it's completely overcrowded and lacking in amenities. Visually it's not bad, outside of security at least.
I stayed for a week in Eco Pampa as well, solid spot. Yea Millhouse is a big rager from all accounts, lots of drugs, but not in the best part of town. Definitely stay in Palermo.
Also if you want to book through my referral link in exchange for all the awesome advice I haven't given you yet but I swear is coming, that'd be swell http://www.booking.com/index.html?aid=1192820
Definitely agree on staying in Palermo. We stayed at Millhouse one night and left to go back and stay in Palermo. Its a big party hostel, but its all just non Argentinian backpackers and there's not much nightlife outside of the hostel party in that area.
How old are y'all? Do you drink/party at all? How's your Spanish? If you're truly prioritizing outdoor activities then i might tell you to only spend 3 days in BA, the plan of Iguazu that BamaNug posted (he'll be the pro there, I still haven't been), and then 3-5 days closer to Patagonia, either in Bariloche or Calafate/El Chalten. I love BA, but it's a big metropolitan city, plenty of nice parks but nothing really in the way of hiking/rafting/etc (and all Argentine beaches suck, you'd need to go to Uruguay if you wanted a decent beach) My favorite day treks were in El Chalten, a tiny town based entirely on the trekking tourism about 2 hours north of Calafate. Beautiful hikes with stunning landscapes. You could do 2 days here and 1-2 days in Calafate (seeing Perito Moreno Glacier is the big driver here; huge and gorgeous). Bariloche would also be a really nice place for you to go. Many people compare it to a Swiss Mountain town. Nice city right on a huge lake, surrounded by green mountains. Lots of good hikes here, there would probably be more options for other adventure sports here as well. Here are two blogs I wrote on those two legs of my trip: http://www.loggingoff.work/logging-off/2017/1/14/bariloche-and-el-bolson http://www.loggingoff.work/logging-off/2017/1/21/el-chalten-and-el-calafate (and there's 4 months of posts on Buenos Aires if you care to read through any of that). I'm just now realizing that you said this summer which means winter, which may change some of my advice. I'll think through it. Just know the weather is pretty extreme in Southern Argentina so maybe look into the weather in those cities in winter (I haven't experienced it) and keep it in mind when deciding what y'all want to do. My general BA recommendations My favorite empanada place - Guimpi V, a tiny hole in the wall, it was my go to. Best choripan place - Nuestra Parilla (credit to BN for telling me about it) - maybe my parents favorite meal and really cheap. Pairs well with the San Telmo Market on Sundays if that lines up with your dates. Eat at a parilla - Don Julio, La Cabrera, Rio Alba are some popular top of the line ones. See tango of some sort...either free street performances, taking a lesson, or seeing a show. I can give recs based on what you'd want to do. Try some ice cream, it's incredible. Every Monday night, there's a performance by La Bomba Del Tiempo which is a 18 piece percussion group, pretty cool to do. Depending on your level of Spanish - English tours of some of the more famous monuments (Casa Rosada, Recoleta Cemetery, Congreso Nacional) are only on certain days/times so worth looking into. Also the BA tourism site is chock full of information. Kind of a brain dump, if I think of anything else I'll let you know, but shoot me any questions.
If you guys wanted to intentionally schedule a long layover in a certain city how do you go about doing it ?
I was thinking of Nuestra Parilla the other day. That's still some of the best meat I've ever tasted in my life. Strong homo. I've heard Don Julio is somewhat disappointing compared to the rest, but I'm also sure it'll be a top-tier steak. I went to La Cabrera and it was incredible, highly recommend. When in Puerto Iguazu (if that's where you decide to stay), I strongly recommend this place to stay. Real good hotel, and has an amazing restaurant in the center of it: Boutique De la Fonte -- https://www.tripadvisor.com/Restaur...erto_Iguazu_Province_of_Misiones_Litoral.html
I went to Don Julio and thoroughly enjoyed it. Tried sweetbreads for the first time there...not so much.
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I've messed around on clever lay over before. Sometimes with a kayak search I'll know who's routing through where and just figure it out that way with a long leg input filter
Got the first room booked for my 3 week Europe trip. Staying in Bad Schandau for two nights between Berlin and Prague to see Germany's biggest fortress and some neat nature in Saxon Switzerland. BamaNug you see any of this? Bad Schandau Konigstein Fortess Bastei
Negative, but I have a friend that spent significant time in Germany and he highly recommended the bottom 2. I was also there during the dead of winter, so I imagine it'll be much more enjoyable in the summer
I just turned 40 yesterday. We drink, but at this point in our lives we're not hitting clubs. A spot to get drunk and chill and/or listen to music is right up our alley though. Spanish is pretty poor. We're both fluent in French but have only a very basic knowledge of Spanish meaning we can figure out some signs but can't hold a conversation at all. I've been doing a few minutes a day on Duolingo for the past few weeks so if I keep that up over the next few months we'll see if that helps. Thanks for the awesome write-up. Will definitely read through your blog posts and may have a few other questions. I've figured the reverse seasons may work in our favor in Buenos Aires in giving us some pretty pleasant weather but yeah not sure if it will be too cold for more Southern or Mountain spots.
Did you find yourself using the daypack? I'm stuck between the farpoint 55 and deuter transit 50 which both have attached daypacks, and the porter 46.
I've only used it on one trip (over NYE), and I did not remove it, so I can't really comment. But I am planning on utilizing that feature during my next trip.
looking for a city to visit for a couple of nights during spring break with my girlfriend, any recommendations? we really only care about good beer and food
I'm in Texas so something preferably outside of it and I'm moving to Colorado in June so not really looking for an outdoorsy trip
That's pretty broad. I would put the dates you want into google flights and pull open the map and see where you can get a direct flight to for cheap. Might bring up a random place you wouldn't have thought of. I assume there's a lot of direct flights if you're near dallas or houston. Off hand I'd throw out San Diego, Vegas, New Orleans. All good for a weekend and good places to eat and drink. Also would be good weather in spring.
Yeah it is very broad, we're not really looking for anything particular..just somewhere to have fun for a couple of nights and eat some good local food. Not wanting to spend too much money of course..
I second NOLA, but check the dates. Spring Break and Mardi Gras overlap a lot. I think Mardi Gras is really early this year, though. Agree with just pull up a Google Flights map and see what you can get for cheap
Portland would also fit the bill. Gf and I went for 4 days/3 nights last June. We could've easily spent weeks there just eating and drinking.
I'd personally save portland for a time with better weather. Spring can still be pretty wet. It's amazing when its sunny during the summer though.
zachary I don't know where in Texas you live but Southwest Houston to Charleston has some easy direct options
Anybody done a Boat/Bike tour? I met some people in the Netherlands who were doing it and it seemed like a cool idea. Did some preliminary research on it today and it seemed like a really easy way to see a lot of out of the way places. I also like the idea of getting a good amount of exercise. Thinking about looking into it more seriously with the lady friend but would love to hear any experiences that others had. Just hoping its not too kitschy/touristy/Cruise-like.
Arkadin and I were just talking offline At what point does it make sense for you to do business over economy? I'm looking at a trip on AA for 40k economy or 60k business. That one seems easy. Where do you all value business?
Going to Thailand in early April. Lots of talk recently about it here. Planning on 10 days there. Was hoping for more, but piggy backing off wife's work trip to China. Arriving on April 1st. Hopefully in the early AM. Thinking.... Land April 1st in Bangkok. Stay for 2 nights April 3rd Fly to Chiang Mai Stay for 4 nights April 6th/7th fly to the Islands and stay 4 nights Sounds easily doable, yeah? Now have to figure out where to go in south Thailand....
Depends a lot on the length of the flight imo. If it's like NY to London or something I'd probably still do economy. Anything like 8+ hours I'd think a lot more about it.
Look at when the monsoon season is for the islands, it's different for Phuket and Phi Phi (West side) and Koa Tao/Samui (East side)