European Tours II

[mama squeak!]

@roquejo, CX won't come out on their website if there will be any deals during the expo. They will only announce their promos or any deals during the expo itself. Para naman there is an element of surprise and anticipation.

My experience with CX though is if they do come out with deals usually the travel period is during lean or non-peak months. Bihira lang sila mag-promo on peak season. I myself made tentative bookings on fare class V or L so I can earn Asia Miles/MPO points this coming May (peak season). I am hoping they will come out with at least a double miles promo during their expo. Di ko na expected ang lower fare kasi nga peak season ang alis ko.

[roquejo]

@roquejo, CX won't come out on their website if there will be any deals during the expo. They will only announce their promos or any deals during the expo itself. Para naman there is an element of surprise and anticipation.

My experience with CX though is if they do come out with deals usually the travel period is during lean or non-peak months. Bihira lang sila mag-promo on peak season. I myself made tentative bookings on fare class V or L so I can earn Asia Miles/MPO points this coming May (peak season). I am hoping they will come out with at least a double miles promo during their expo. Di ko na expected ang lower fare kasi nga peak season ang alis ko.

I also need those MPC points to maintain my status, kaya can't take PAL even if their rates are lower, sayang din yun CX lounge access in HK that comes with it.

I'm not sure if you can make tentative bookings online. I know I can by calling CX reservations, but they are using new fares already.

I purposely made plans in Sept coz its lean season, it shows coz the cheapest economy CX fare by sept goes down to $840.. before that the non miles earning fare there is $1,100!!

[m_lim]

yan ba yung PTAA expo sa SMX? so possible may discounted airfares doon to europe?

thanks in advance!

[mama squeak!]

^Yes 

[blythe07]

we might travel to dublin, ireland this apr-12.. any suggestions kung saan pang european country pwedeng pumunta na malapit lang sa dublin? sorry for the question, first time ko lang kasing magttravel sa europe.. 

[mama squeak!]

@roquejo, you're right you can't make tentative bookings online. You really have to call them up. Another option is to buy online then if you can get a deal during the expo refund the online purchase. You'll just have to pay USD50 for the refund charges I think. Pero if you'll be saving USD200 in exchange naman that should be okay na.

By the way, please avoid quoting posts directly above yours. You can use the ^ or @ sign.

 

[^Vain_Chiq^]

mama squeak I need your advice regarding our travel to Greece this coming may. Bf and I usually books all-inclusive tours on travel websites kasi mas nakakatipid kami. Anyway, I really want to go to visit Santorini but ang nakita namin na sulit na stay in Greece is in Crete. My question is, is it better na we book the hotel in Crete then just travel by ferry to Santorini for 1 day? or is worth it if we just book a hotel and flight to Santorini straight which costs the same lang naman? Which is more worth it ba to stay for a week? Crete Island or Santorini? My bf loves to walk around kasi so I'm thinking baka Santorini is a small island lang and 1 week is too long. Thanks.

[mama squeak!]

^sorry sis but I haven't been to Greece yet. It is in my bucket list of future travels. Surfing the net I found this: http://www.fodors.com/community/europe/santorini-or-crete-or-both.cfm
Hope it helps.

 

[^Vain_Chiq^]

^Thanks for the link mama squeak. I'm reading it already and it's very helpful. I think we should just stay in Crete and maybe take a ferry to Santorini.

[little_princess]

^ i was in greece last year and went to santorini and mykonos. inter island travel can be done by ferry and it is cheaper however from athens to the islands, better take a domestic flight. santorini is best explored over a few days, we were there for 3 days and i wish we could have stayed longer.

anyone been to sicily? is a day trip enough coming from malta? we're planning our 2 week long honeymoon.

[mama squeak!]

I just cancelled our schengen visa application interview this February since our travel plans changed. Wala pa rin lumalabas na approved VL si hubby for April. Hay am getting frustrated na. I am hoping this coming September matuloy kami. Kaya in the meantime fine tuning our IT for France and Italy.

 

[t_r_i_c_i_a]

hello! i'm trying to figure out the best itinerary for our upcoming trip. first 7 nights would be Italy-Turkey-Greece cruise.

then for the land travel we intend to go to Italy, Spain, and France for another 7 days siguro

Here's my initial take:
Day 1 Rome
Day 2 Rome-Pisa-Florence
Day 3 Florence - Barcelona
Day 4 Barcelona
Day 5 Barcelona - Madrid
Day 6 Madrid - Paris
Day 7 Paris

I would like to seek advice lang on what mode of transpo do we take and the timings? Also want to seek your opinion if doable yung proposed itinerary.

Thanks in advance

[melodymedley]

@mama squeak: Hope your Italy plans will push through soon! I know you've been cooking that IT up for quite some time.

@t_r_i_c_i_a: Amazing Race! I believe it is not doable because 1) you are spending one day in each city and 2) to accomplish that, you will also spend half the time traveling.   

Not sure if your last stop in the cruise would be Greece. If so, I believe you should stay there and explore the country. I have a rough plan of my Greece adventure and I think I will spend 5-7 days there. If Italy is your last stop, just enjoy Italy! If you have 7 days in Italy, I suggest go for Rome and Venice (4-5 hours train ride). Or Florence because it is closer to Rome. Or stay in Rome and do daytrips from Rome.

Moreover, to travel across those cities you mentioned, you have to fly or it will take you too much time riding the train. For me, as a standard, I suggest to allot 3 full days in each city. Pero it depends pa rin which city you choose.  I was in Paris for 6 days and kulang pa rin yung time.

Lots of really good tips in this thread and the previous thread. I was able to do my own EU IT because of GT. 

[m_lim]

Hi tricia! ano yang cruise niyo? yung start sa May11?

[t_r_i_c_i_a]

^parang last week of April ang start. Anong cruise line ninyo?

[mama squeak!]

^^^I know, sis! As in our itinerary is 90% complete na. I just need to finalize our hotel/apartment bookings and car rentals. We'll be spending 10 days in Italy and 12 days in France. I am really hoping and praying we'll find out soon kung ma-approve yung VL ni hubby. And hoping September or October ibigay sa kanya so the weather is already cool and better to go around since less tourists during those times.

In the meantime I'll go to the US muna to visit my siblings.    

[m_lim]

^tricia, hindi ko maalala yung cruise line! gift lang kasi ni MIL ko. balikan kita, tanungin ko muna sa SIL ko.

rome-turkey-greece rin kasi siya.

pag sa May ba nag cruise, pwede pa mag swim niyan? hindi ba malamig??

[lesters_gal]

mga sis help..im here again..this time we're planning to go to spain this august.barcelona and spain..any ideas how much is the train from barcelona to madrid?what are the places to visit in barcelona and spain...thanks mga sis..

[mama squeak!]

@m_lim, sis anlamig pa nyan! It will start getting warm around end June to August. Those are the summer months in Europe.

@lesters_gal, you can check the official Spanish train co. website

http://www.renfe.com/EN/viajeros/index.html

 

[m_lim]

^ oohh! mabuti naman at ayaw kong mag swimsuit. lol!! thanks, mama squeak! sana matuloy kayo ng hubby mo.