FAQs..................................................
When is the best time to go?
We had last been on the Continent in 2003 during the hottest summer in 57 years. The summer of 2006 was even hotter. We've decided that we should not be in Europe any later than the end of June. Also, all the other tourists come in July and August.
What's the best length of trip?
In 2003 our trip lasted six months. In 2006, four months. The problem with this is that you have to pack two wardrobes, one for the cool weather and one for the beastly hot weather. Too much luggage. We're thinking next time we'll go for a max of two months during one season.
What to pack?
Pack as little as possible. This is one thing that Rick Steves and I agree upon. Al ended up wearing his favorite pair of slacks and his two favorite shirts absolutely forever. I was the only one who was sick of seeing him in them. Remember that you can buy anything you need while you're there. Everything you take should be capable of being thrown into the same washerload and not looking too dingy. In other words, don't take white underwear and socks. (You shouldn't be wearing white socks anyway.) Everything should dry as quickly as possible because dryer time is very expensive. It cost us around eight or ten euros every time we did laundry. Don't plan on ironing anything.
Remember that in Europe, women do not wear shorts unless they are out hiking. Men in Spain don't wear shorts except at the beach. German men wear shorts whenever they are being tourists but not at home in the city. French men are more likely to wear shorts around their own town but not in Paris.
You don't need to take dressy clothes unless you are planning to go to a fancy restaurant in Paris or to some event where you would dress up in the US. Europeans are in general at least as casual as Americans. If you wear Levis or some other brand of jeans, you'll probably be just fine but they will cost a fortune to dry if you have to do laundry. For a man, wrinkle-resistant, no-iron chinos are better and polo shirts are better than T-shirts because you can wear them into a nice restaurant.
How do you pick a guidebook?
Because we went to so many countries, guidebooks were a major portion of our weight allowance. Next time, I wouldn't take one at all. Do enough research before you leave to have an idea of what's where, take advantage of the local tourist information offices to get details on sightseeing locations, and leave the guidebooks at home. You'll never find that wonderful restaurant they recommend anyway. Also, as I've mentioned elsewhere, guidebooks are written for the person who takes the train and the bus. If that's you, you don't need the extra weight anyway. If it's not you, then it won't be much use. An alternative is to copy or tear out pages from a book.
I used the internet as a source for ideas. The New York Times has travel articles that are often very useful and there are many country-specific sites.
I would, however, take a phrase book and/or dictionary unless you are fluent in the local language. Even though I complained that mine never quite had the information I needed, in truth I consulted them a lot.
Also buy maps before you leave. Looking at them helps fix relative locations in your mind and it's often a nuisance to find them on the road.
How do you find Internet access and how much does it cost?
The best place to find out where you can get access to the internet is to ask at the Tourist Information Office. There were a couple of times that we never did find the places that they sent us to and it was obvious in other cases that the place had gone out of business, so this isn't foolproof.
Sometimes hotels will have access but it is usually very expensive, although if you're just checking e-mails or your bank account, it's worth it not to have to hunt down a cheaper location. Our hotel in Paris had free access limited to 15 minutes and it was very busy but also very handy and it's interesting to chat with the other folks waiting. Our hotel in Nuremburg was expensive for the first hour, but I bought a card for five hours' worth for 9 euros which made it quite inexpensive and I was able to catch up on my blogging.
Sometimes you just won't have access and you'll have to cope with being cut off. Tough it out.
Would you make so many reservations again
This trip violated our cardinal rule against over-committing. We had made reservations for short periods at the beginning in mid-April, reservations in early June, reservations in mid-July, reservations at the end of July and reservations for early August.
In restrospect, only the reservations for the very beginning of the trip should have been made. By mid-July, we found ourselves constrained by the pre-paid reservations in Nuremburg and ended up having to kill some time instead of going where we really wanted to go. Bad idea.
The reservations at the end of the trip committed us to stay when it might have been better to have gone home since my knee was a major problem by that time.
Conclusion: Keep the reservations to a minimum unless you have a very limited time.
Would you do it again?
In a minute.
When is the best time to go?
We had last been on the Continent in 2003 during the hottest summer in 57 years. The summer of 2006 was even hotter. We've decided that we should not be in Europe any later than the end of June. Also, all the other tourists come in July and August.
What's the best length of trip?
In 2003 our trip lasted six months. In 2006, four months. The problem with this is that you have to pack two wardrobes, one for the cool weather and one for the beastly hot weather. Too much luggage. We're thinking next time we'll go for a max of two months during one season.
What to pack?
Pack as little as possible. This is one thing that Rick Steves and I agree upon. Al ended up wearing his favorite pair of slacks and his two favorite shirts absolutely forever. I was the only one who was sick of seeing him in them. Remember that you can buy anything you need while you're there. Everything you take should be capable of being thrown into the same washerload and not looking too dingy. In other words, don't take white underwear and socks. (You shouldn't be wearing white socks anyway.) Everything should dry as quickly as possible because dryer time is very expensive. It cost us around eight or ten euros every time we did laundry. Don't plan on ironing anything.
Remember that in Europe, women do not wear shorts unless they are out hiking. Men in Spain don't wear shorts except at the beach. German men wear shorts whenever they are being tourists but not at home in the city. French men are more likely to wear shorts around their own town but not in Paris.
You don't need to take dressy clothes unless you are planning to go to a fancy restaurant in Paris or to some event where you would dress up in the US. Europeans are in general at least as casual as Americans. If you wear Levis or some other brand of jeans, you'll probably be just fine but they will cost a fortune to dry if you have to do laundry. For a man, wrinkle-resistant, no-iron chinos are better and polo shirts are better than T-shirts because you can wear them into a nice restaurant.
How do you pick a guidebook?
Because we went to so many countries, guidebooks were a major portion of our weight allowance. Next time, I wouldn't take one at all. Do enough research before you leave to have an idea of what's where, take advantage of the local tourist information offices to get details on sightseeing locations, and leave the guidebooks at home. You'll never find that wonderful restaurant they recommend anyway. Also, as I've mentioned elsewhere, guidebooks are written for the person who takes the train and the bus. If that's you, you don't need the extra weight anyway. If it's not you, then it won't be much use. An alternative is to copy or tear out pages from a book.
I used the internet as a source for ideas. The New York Times has travel articles that are often very useful and there are many country-specific sites.
I would, however, take a phrase book and/or dictionary unless you are fluent in the local language. Even though I complained that mine never quite had the information I needed, in truth I consulted them a lot.
Also buy maps before you leave. Looking at them helps fix relative locations in your mind and it's often a nuisance to find them on the road.
How do you find Internet access and how much does it cost?
The best place to find out where you can get access to the internet is to ask at the Tourist Information Office. There were a couple of times that we never did find the places that they sent us to and it was obvious in other cases that the place had gone out of business, so this isn't foolproof.
Sometimes hotels will have access but it is usually very expensive, although if you're just checking e-mails or your bank account, it's worth it not to have to hunt down a cheaper location. Our hotel in Paris had free access limited to 15 minutes and it was very busy but also very handy and it's interesting to chat with the other folks waiting. Our hotel in Nuremburg was expensive for the first hour, but I bought a card for five hours' worth for 9 euros which made it quite inexpensive and I was able to catch up on my blogging.
Sometimes you just won't have access and you'll have to cope with being cut off. Tough it out.
Would you make so many reservations again
This trip violated our cardinal rule against over-committing. We had made reservations for short periods at the beginning in mid-April, reservations in early June, reservations in mid-July, reservations at the end of July and reservations for early August.
In restrospect, only the reservations for the very beginning of the trip should have been made. By mid-July, we found ourselves constrained by the pre-paid reservations in Nuremburg and ended up having to kill some time instead of going where we really wanted to go. Bad idea.
The reservations at the end of the trip committed us to stay when it might have been better to have gone home since my knee was a major problem by that time.
Conclusion: Keep the reservations to a minimum unless you have a very limited time.
Would you do it again?
In a minute.
posted by Al and Linda @ 3:50 PM
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