European tours

[vhanya]

^honeymoon sis kaya we have 1 month =) after that work work work na

[maribeth]

vhanya..sarap naman ng honeymoon mo. 1 month. Enjoy mo sis...

mama squeak! - tuloy na tuloy na iyang trip niyo ha. Ano, tuloy ka pa din dito sa pinsan sa The Hague?

[mama squeak!]

^^Oh! Congrats in advance, sis! Enjoy your trip!

^sis maribeth, yup! We got our tickets na for the Oberammergau Passion Play in Sep2010. After the show we'll be heading to Munich for the Oktoberfest. Punta ka?

Hopefully, if our tickets will be confirmed for Amsterdam we stay with my cousin otherwise we go straight to Frankfurt. Aside from Germany hubby and I are still deciding whether we go to Austria before we head off to France. Bahala na! Basta we'll try to keep it to max 3 countries lang para di nakakapagod.

 

[maribeth]

^sis, I don't think if we will be able to go to Munich. September na kasi iyon e tapos na ang school holidays ng mga bata, so hindi na kami makakapag-bakasyon, basta-basta. Mahirap kumuha ng day-off ng mga bata dito. Would you believe, hindi lang school nila ang maga-approve. Dapat may approval ang department of education nila dito...kaloka.

If your ticket is not confirmed for Amsterdam, it's always possible to take the train from Frankfurt/Munich to Amsterdam.

[vhanya]

mama squeak, go to austria! MY GOSH! vienna is one of the most beautiful cities in europe. dun nag start yung classical music. o baka ako lang me gusto pumunta dun? haha!

honesly, di ako excited sa paris, UK and nearby cities. mas excited ako sa budapest, prague, vienna, and belgium. im a history and old europe freak kasi!

[mama squeak!]

^^sis Maribeth, I know super higpit talaga schools in Europe. When we were in the UK hindi din kami basta basta maka-absent ng brother ko sa school.

^sis vhanya, yes I know I've been to Vienna already. Ganda 'no? Hubby and I were there for a week and a half. Him on business while ako pasyal and shopping to the max    It was specially nice because we were there in winter so we experienced their Christmas markets. 
This upcoming trip we're still trying to decide whether to go to Salzburg and the Salzkammergut area since it's just an hour's train ride away from Munich.

[badmonkey]

Malaki ba ang Zurich airport?

Magbobook na kasi ako ng flight ko to Finland and Zurich ang stop over ko. Ang worry ko kasi ang return flight ko 45mins lang ang pagitan. Ang dating ko ng Zurich ay 12 then 12:45 flight ko na ulit. Baka maiwan ako ng eroplano.

Additional question...

Anybody tried booking online sa SWISS Airlines? Wala ba kayong naging problem? Ayaw nya tanggapin ang credit card ko. I called the bank and wala naman daw problem on their end.

[Jurita]

hi badmonkey! yes malaki ang Zurich airport. they have trains inside the airport like Hongkong. So most probably you wiil need to take the train from arrival to departure gate. Sayang 45 minutes ka lang, ang daming shops and maganda talaga.

[Jurita]

ok thanks sis mama squeak =) i need 3 visas pala

1 schengen
1 UK
1 Swiss

Hi Vhanya, you will not need a Swiss visa anymore. Switzerland is a Schengen state as of last year.

[Jurita]

Wow! Thanks for sharing your stories and even tips. My family and I are planning to have our Euro trip if not next year, perhaps sometime in 2011. Ipon muna. Hehe.

Ang target naming visit:Paris (France), Barcelona and Madrid (Spain), Rome and Venice (Italy), Vatican City and Germany.

Medyo nagreresearch na rin ako kasi DIY tong gagawin namin. Ayaw kasi namin sa mga group tours. Nagtanda na kami sa mga packaged tours eh. Hehe. We might allot 3 days in each country. Mabilisan din pero at least visit lang namin yung mga gusto naming puntahan. April or May ang target namin.

May mga questions po ako so I hope you can answer them all. And medyo may pagka-elementary ang mga tanong ko so pasensiya na. 

1. Sakay kami ng train sana to go to the bordering countries. Nagresearch ako sa Eurail, meron silang Select pass. Four countries ang pick ko diba. Tapos meron dun yung good for 5 days, etc. Para kasi sulit ang pasyalan, balak namin mag night train. Nacheck ko na rin yung mga schedules nila. Kung overnight yun, kunwari byahe kami ng 7pm from let' say Paris tapos makakarating kami ng Barcelona by 10am, considered ba yun as 2 days na?

2. May mga websites po ba kayong alam for night trains kasi ala akong makita kahit sa Eurail or sa RailEurope? And any idea kung magkano?

3. Sa Germany kasi, gusto namin makakita ng castles. I've read na yung famous castle ni King Ludwig yung Neuschwanstein Castle is located ni Bavaria. Mukhang maganda rin kasi yung Romantic Road kung saan restored yung mga lumang bahay parang from Medieval times pa. Magkalapit lang ba tong Bavaria and Romantic Road? Do you also have any tips when it comes to castle tours kahit one day lang?

4. Sa Spain, siyempre we don't want to miss the bullfight. Sa Madrid, sa month of May pa yun diba? Gusto rin kasi namin mawitness (and if ever, makasama) sa takbuhan ng mga tao habang yung bull nasa likod nila. Eto yung patakbo ata sila sa ring. Meron kasi akong napanood sa TV na ganon. Kelan to and aside from Madrid, san pa kaya magandang manood ng bullfight?

5. Nacheck ko yung map ng Italy. Gusto kasi namin kahit magstop over sa Pisa, para picture taking lang sa famous leaning tower. According to my research, if we take a train from Rome, two hours pa ang biyahe. Worth it kaya to make a brief stop with all our luggage while en route to Venice?

6. Ang point of entry namin is Germany. I've read that Munich is the closest airport to Bavaria or pwede rin bang Frankfurt? Kelangan ba Germany din ang labas namin to go to the Philippines? Sabi kasi ng roommate ko, mas mura daw pag sa Germany ang flight.

Hay, pasensiya na ang hahaba pa ng mga explanations ko to support my questions. I'd really appreciate your replies. 

Hi rockONsaint, I hope this helps:

Question 1 - For country passes, you have to make a reservation before boarding the train. The problem here is that the country pass is not a priority when it comes to ticket reservations. For example, in France they will give you a slower train compared and not TGV.

Question 5 - Depends on how big your luggage is. Kasi from the Pisa train station, you have to take a bus which i think is 30 to 45 minutes travel. Also, there are slower trains that take 3 hours from Rome to Pisa.

Question 6 - If you want to go to Bavaria, Munich is the best airport. Sobrang layo ng Frankfurt. As to exiting the Schengen state, you can exit anywhere kahit hindi sa Germany. Your passport will be stamped by the last Schengen state you will visit. Why not try Amsterdam (KLM-airline), they have direct flights to Manila from Amsterdam and may times na mura talaga.

[mama squeak!]

^For Eurail passes, it is not a matter of priority. You can make seat reservations on special trains i.e. TGV, Thalys, sleeper trains at the train station or thru their call centers. There is a corresponding fee involved for these special trains.

But if one wants to save money, there are trains that don't require seat reservations therefore no additional fees. These are the slower, local trains.

[badmonkey]

I am in Finland now and soooobbrang lamig.

[vhanya]

thanks sis jurita =) menos gastos sa application din yunn =)

[rockONsaint]

Hello Jurita and mama squeak! 

Thanks sa mga replies niyo.  Kahit 2009 palang, plano na kami and todo research na rin.  Nabasa ko nga na merong seat reservations.  We prefer this kasi lalo na we want the couchettes kasi long train travel.  Kelangan ata talaga ng seat reservations sa mga ganito. 

Follow up question pala regarding sa Selectpass.  Kasi we will be using it to connect to each country: Germany, France, Spain and Italy.  Eh sa Italy kasi we plan to visit Venice and Rome (and Pisa na rin).  Pwede na rin ba namin gamitin yung Select pass or kailangan pa rin namin ng separate Italian pass?

Although merong mga tours na offered dun mismo sa mga destinations, parang gusto rin namin yung may sarili kaming tour guide and driver.  We know this is going to be expensive.  Pero nagawa namin kasi to nung nagpunta kami ng Beijing, and super comfortable and hassle-free kasi hindi na kami maghihintay sa ibang tourists and may sarili na kaming sasakyan which was a minivan.  Although may mga naresearch na rin ako na nag-ooffer ng ganito, baka may mga idea pa rin kayo kung aling agency ang dependable sa ganitong customized tours.

And sa sobrang excitement namin lalo na Mommy ko, tumitingin na rin ng coat.  Trench coat during spring time pwede na rin noh?  Kasi kung 15 degrees ang temp tapos windy pa, naku, hindi namin kaya yung lamig.  Kulang samin ang isang makapal na jacket lang.

Thanks again.

[badmonkey]

I just came from Finland. I know that November is the worst time to go there due to the long dark nights and gloomy weather. Still I manage to have a great time there and had a taste of Europe.

Yes, Zurich Airport is very big. Naiwanan ako ng flight ko kasi delayed ang flight from Finland. Ang daming trouble na nangyari pero marami pa din good people on earth and natulungan ako.

[angellove]

Its so cold now here in Paris, 8 am madilim pa, 5pm madilim na.  Naka DIY pa naman ako.  But its ok manageable naman.  Bad thing lang is that di ko pa napasok ang Louvre Museum kasi nakastrike ang staff nila.  Mukhang di ko man lang makikita si Mona Lisa.

[betty]

we wish to go there...hay kelan kaya?

[mama squeak!]

^^That's one of the problems talaga in France, the land of the strikes!    Mas lalo na pag around May to June when most of their of their transport industry people would go on strike. It's a way of life na sa kanila.

[mama squeak!]

^^^It's like that talaga. I remember in London I would go home from school at 2PM and hurry to the bus stop kasi ang dilim na! Hirap nang maiwanan. But pag summer naman, 11PM ang liwanag pa.

[maribeth]

^ha..ha..mama squeak! you are right. Kaya naman kaka-depressed talaga ang weather. Ang dilim na, ang lamig pa..di ba?