European Tours Thread 3

[lesters_gal]

Sis pacopy ng iti ha! Hehe!

Is Spain your main destination? I'm wondering so you stayed more in Spain? Bec we are applying for our schengen visa in Spain next week.

What airline did you flew in from which schengen state? And where did you stayed na rin? Sorry many many questions

yes sis sa spain lang talaga ang main destination namin.we are based here in Rome so dito kami nanggaling. ryanair ang airlines na kinuha namin kasi mura sha. we stayed sa house ng friend ko who is base in barcelona kaya no need for hotel na...

[Mhoirae]

@lesters gal, where yung mga outlets ng mango and zara sa barcelona?
Plan to do all out shopping in barcelona kasi it's our last stop and i've heard that there is a LBC there , where you can send balikbayan box back to the philippines.

[lesters_gal]

^sis eto yung address ng mango outlet na pinuntahan namin.
Carrer de Girona, 37, 08010 Barcelona Spagna.hindi na rin kami pumunta sa outlet ng zara kasi ang dami pang sale sa mga main stores nila drop to 5euro..

hindi ko alam yung sa balikbayan box eh.tatanong ko sa kakilala ko...

[^Vain_Chiq^]

@mama squeak - Nope we didn't take the river cruise in Petite France, my partner is more into cycling and walking kasi and also with the abundance of canals in the Netherlands, I don't think he still wants to take a river cruise. Hehe. The Tourism Office of Strasbourg is just in front of the Notre Dame de Strasbourg. Where will you be staying in Strasbourg?By the way, I already replied in the Amsterdam thread.  

[little_princess]

anybody been to sicily? we're staying 6 days there and staying mainly on taorimina and syracuse. any tips and where to stay?

also, is there an international airport in sicily? so that we don't have to go back to malta na.

[mama squeak!]

^^sis, thanks for the reply sa Amsterdam thread 

We won't be staying in Strasbourg but at Riquewihr and Eguisheim. Four and two nights respectively. Sa Strasbourg kami dadating via the TGV then pick up namin rental car. We get in at 10AM but our rental pick up time is 4PM so makaka-ikot pa kami ni hubby dun.

Lapit lang ba the tourism office from the train station? Can we walk it or better take public transpo? Thanks again! 

[Mhoirae]

@lesters_gal, which hop on hop off tour did you take?
I saw in the internet kasi that there are quite a few tour operators.

[lesters_gal]

^barcelona bus turistic sis...24 euro for 1 day.and 31 euro for 2 days

[summer_princess]

Wow sis thanks so much for this! Super appreciate it ngayon Lang nagka bearing ang itis ko lol.

Yeah, all itis are supposed to be via air. But would you reco an overnight train? Esp from Paris-BCN?

Did I get it right mas expensive ang overnight train vs an airfare? 


Post modified. Please refrain from quoting long posts and use the ^ or @ sign instead.

[mama squeak!]

^It's a toss up between air and train. Depends kasi saan pasok sa IT mo. Marami din considerations kasi before choosing any mode of transportation. Like my upcoming trip, we opted to take overnight trains instead of flying. It would have been a little cheaper sana to fly kaso mo the timings are not optimal to our IT. Mas binigyan ko ng priority kasi yung ma-maximise ko oras namin.

For your Paris to BCN leg, check mo if an overnight train is available on this route. Then compare mo the overnight train fare as against airfare X 2 pax (dalawa lang ba kayo?) plus one night hotel stay. The more kayo the cheaper the train fare comes out. There are 4 bunk bed compartments and 6 bunk bed compartments. Since our AMS to Prague and Prague to Strasbourg legs are at least 13 hours long, hubby and I opted to travel in a little comfort so we got the 2 bed deluxe compartment with our own shower/WC.

If no overnight trains are available then it's a choice between the TGV (France's fast trains) and connect with Spain's local train or flying. Compare mo na lang saan mas okay sa IT ninyo.

 

[cassidy02]

any ongoing airline sales to EU?

[melvel]

Does anyone have suggestions for hotels in London?  Location is our priority (so if near a tube station, better).

[mama squeak!]

^Tip ko sis (this is what I always do when getting hotels), get a hold of a tube map then google earth it. Pin the locations then check for any hotels/lodgings in the vicinity of your pins. Then last check mo the reviews in tripadvisor.

 

[little_princess]

^^ we stayed in Hilton Islington. It has lots of restaurants and shops around, very yuppie and young yung place. angel tube is about 3mins walk away and central na location niya. we didn't book it though the site but either through hotels.com or agoda.com, super mura

[foxymom]

i'm so happy! hubby agreed to a day trip to paris from london since the train is just 2hrs! wooohooo!!! so we will be in paris right after new year just for 1 day! thanks for the tips here

mama squeak, can't wait for your tips on prague

@melvel: we are looking at apex hotel chains and hilton tower bridge a friend also recommended base2stay kensington but the hotel is very basic with no lift, good location though

[mama squeak!]

Don't forget if you're staying for 3 or more nights you have the option of renting an apartment or staying at a B&B. The UK is very big with B&Bs!

 

@foxymom, so excited na nga with Prague! Mega-research ako since walang masyadong nag-popost ng trip experiences nila there. It's just your typical run of the mill package tour scenario!  Iba talaga pag DIY since you get to discover these places on your own time and phase.

 

[^Vain_Chiq^]

^Hi mama squeak. Sorry now lang me nakareply. I don't know about the central trainstation of Strasbourg but trams yes meron sa centre and a few minutes walk lang sa Notre Dame.

[mama squeak!]

^Hi ^Vain_Chiq^, no worries! Thanks for your tips, really appreciate it. Guess what? We get an extra day in Amsterdam! So I had to move everything, well the hotel and air tickets lang naman. We now have 4 whole days to see the city. At least hindi na kami nagmamadali 

Question please only if you're familiar, since we'll be there in late September is it worth it to visit Keukenhof gardens? Meron pa kaya this late in season na mga blooms?

Lastly, have you ever tried their coffee shops?   

[^Vain_Chiq^]

^Keukenhof is closed until October 18 mama squeak! There's a certain period lang na open sila because the tulips have a short life span but it really is a must-see. Regarding coffeeshops, they're everywhere but I haven't really tried going into one. Sa tapat nga lang ng house me coffeeshop na but I'm not really into it. Minsan nga amoy hanggang labas yung smoke pag napapadaan ako in that area . Punta rin kayo dito sa Utrecht sis. It's also one of the major cities in Holland.

[byutijunkie]

an italian close friend of my dad's has invited us to go to italy, as in tickets lang daw ang kailangan namin and he'll take care of everything for us.  my parents have already been there twice before.  the thing is, i have 2 kids aged 4 and 7 now and since my whole family is going and my mother-in-law is too old na, it seems i have no choice but to bring my kids along.  question is, will the kids enjoy italy kaya?  we'll be staying mostly in battipaglia and probably go to rome and other cities too.  hope to get some insight from you guys.  thanks!