vacation advice superthread

[mike lowrey]

antwerp/brussels fits all your needs, cost of living is relatively reasonable and they have fashion for miles. if you go to italy in august, it will likely be crazy hot and a lot of people shut down business to go on holiday to other places that aren't hot.

I find brussels a bit boring, definately wouldn't rank it among top suggestions in europe. Antwerp I havent been to but I think its quite a bit more fresh, especially if you're into fashion.

[Tyro1]

Paris, is definately worth seeing,

brussles I wouldnt really bother with.

Barcelona is an awesome city, would reccomend it.

Prague is good and cheap, but you dont need to stay there for too long,

Italy i can kind of take it or leave...

Germany is really good, would go to berlin,

I would go to france, belgium (antwerp), Holland, and germany, and see too or three cities in each.

[mojinho]

I'd say both Dutch and German cuisines are equally mediocre. The thing is though.. nobody eats Dutch food in Amsterdam. It's the most culturally diverse city in the world in terms of nationalities.

i loved Amsterdam when i went there (twice) but really? that's quite an assertion for a european capital.

anyway i agree that amsterdam is probably your best choice. fucking cool vibe in that city.

never been to antwerp, but brussels is only worth hitting up for the food/beer. relatively inexpensive city (the dollar exchange rate isn't helping things lately, though). you could go to paris/amsterdam and take the train up for a night or two.

[readytoignite]

i agree that brussels is a bit boring but they have some stuff that you can't get in antwerp (esp shopping) and is like 45 min away by train. so the recommendation would be stay in antwerp and daytrip to brussels (or paris for that matter)

[Tisswat]

i loved Amsterdam when i went there (twice) but really? that's quite an assertion for a european capital.

According to official figures, Amsterdam counted 177 nationalities last year. Antwerp has 164 and New York City has 150. Still, the number of people per nationality in a city like London or NYC is probably much larger.

Amsterdam is nowhere near as big as London, Paris or even Berlin. It has about 800.000 inhabitants (1 to 1.5 mln if you include the adjacent suburbs). It's tiny compared to its European counterparts. To some this is actually a plus, but it might come across as an oversized village instead of a metropolitan. If I was a tourist, I wouldn't spend a week here. If I was visiting Paris for the first time, perhaps I would.

Again, it's all just personal preference.

[Lucas]

wzcuBbztn-0

5GharErIGmM

[Divo]

If you'd like to make a trip through 3-4 different countries, I could recommend you to visit the following places (both from a cultural and geographically advantageous point of view)

The Netherlands: Amsterdam (do I need to say more?!), Utrecht, The Hague (as Tisswat already mentioned, you could complete the Amsterdam sightseeing within 2 days and the latter within 1 day)

Than traveling down to......

Belgium: Antwerp, Brussels (in comparison to others, I have been living there the past year, and I absolutely love the historical sites, art scene and the way "carpe diem" is integrated within its people's thoughts and lifestyle), Brugge (which is the most amazing medieval village/city I have ever visited: not cheap but definitely worth a penny)

From Brussels only 1.5 hours to Paris by Thalys.....

France: Lille, Paris, Rennes

Good train connections (i.e. Thalys or TGV) between Paris and the Ruhrgebied in Germany

Germany: Frankfurt, Cologne, Dusseldorf

Might you decide to visit e.g. The Netherlands and Belgium, than don't hesitate to contact me for sightseeing,- shopping and other useful tips.

Cheers

Divo

[Clockwork_killa]

i agree that brussels is a bit boring but they have some stuff that you can't get in antwerp (esp shopping) and is like 45 min away by train. so the recommendation would be stay in antwerp and daytrip to brussels (or paris for that matter)

I have to agree on this one, having lived in Brussels for 18 years, it isnt the most exciting of places, but its still worth going to see. If you stay in Antwerp, brusssels is only 45 minutes on the train and its hardly expensive. Also if you stay in Antwerp, Ansterdam is only 2 hours away, and paris and london are also both easily doable, Cologne is also only a few hours on the thalys (fast TGV train). Basically, Antwerp would make a really good base of operations. Its also worth mentioning that Jet 2 fly out of schiphol airport (amtserdam), meaning you can get super cheap flights to the UK and all over europe.

[enatoka]

france,and scandanavia, this is probably more of where i want to visit, but its my suggestion to you.

[horriblyjollyjinx]

Berlin, London, Copenhagen, Stockholm, Helsinki, FUCK SOUTHERN EUROPE(this includes the terrible country France)!!!!!

[mike lowrey]

Germany: Frankfurt, Cologne, Dusseldorf

seriously?

out of the 100 or so european cities I've been to, Frankfurt has to be the most depressing one. shady people, ugly buildings and streets, not that much to see compared to other big european cities.. I could go on, but it has to be one of the worst picks. going to germany and skipping Berlin is also extremely awkward.

[Divo]

Mike,

I think I might have not fully clarified myself: Frakfurt, Dusseldorf and Cologne are all located within 100 km from each other and worth to visit. Berlin is - as I agree with you - a league on its own but located on the other side of the country....

So from a convenience point of view, I dont think these picks are too bad after all...

[Ahlvahroe]

bump.

im thinking of taking a week off next month to check reykjavik out. what is the best areas to stay at? also is it really that expensive or are people just blowing things out of proportion.

i have done very little personal research so i still dont know very much except that i really want to go.

[mojinho]

you SHOULD want to go, the place rules. it is super small and you can walk everyywhere so don't necessarily worry about where you're staying. as long as it's in the "center" or downtown area or whatever.

Lonely Planet has a great Iceland guide.

it was really expensive when i was there (2000) so i assume it's still expensive what with the weak dollar and all. but totally worth it.

[Ahlvahroe]

im planning on going alone, i feel like getting away from it all. is there anything to be worried about.

[mojinho]

i can't imagine a safer place

[Ahlvahroe]

ok pretty much a last minute question but, if anyone knows, are the clubs more dressed up, or could i get away with t-shirts and tennis shoes. i hella underpacked when i went to buenos aires so i dont want to feel underdressed.

[Swych]

isdenn has reykjavik nailed.

When i went i stayed at the hotel leifur eriksson (maybe bad spelling, google it). its right across the hallgrimskirkja cathedral and very walkable to the main street for shopping and clubbing. it was a 30 euros a night (through travel agent) and the room was basic but everything was clean. i think itsj ust icelandic hygiene standards- even a shitty 2 star room is satisfactory, unlike nyc.

i spent 5 days in iceland. 1 in reykjavik is plenty during the day. the other 3 i used on tours. there isn't much to buy but the nightlife is good and relaxed. people really just hang around off the street generally, like a more refined version of highschool drinking. i'd just dress casual- definitely not a place for buttoned up shirts.

This is a fairly common itinerary for iceland (i went alone to shoot some photos in march- still snowy):

day 1: get off plane, visit blue lagoon spa on teh way to reykjavik, get to hotel in evening. all shops closed so wait for nightlife.

day 2/day 3. super jeep tours:

tour of southern coast for coastal features. like volcanic beaches, stacks and caves etc. an extended tour is availbe from may to december for the glacial lagoon which i missed and really wanted to see (its further along the path on the south coast, so add an extra day if u decide to venture out there)

'golden circle tour' for the inland mountain and spring features like waterfalls and geysers and mountain ranges etc

day 4- reykjavik wandering.

if you go to iceland dont miss out on the stuff outside. thats where trip truly made an impression. i can't stress how impressive and grand the whole nature thing is (i'm normally just a city rat).

day 5- fly out

[Handlethevibe]

Alright, I'll be going to Europe next month, and I'm still trying decide where my last stops will be. My sisters been going to school there for awhile so I'm just going to meet up with her, and subsequently she's planning a lot of the trip since I don't know jack shit. She's given me some suggestions for the last leg of the trip.

1.) Heading down from Paris to Provence (Avignon) followed quickly by the Cote d'Azur (Nice, Antibes, St-Tropez) and then hitting one or two Italian stops

2.) Flying from Paris to Naples and spending like 5 nights in that region seeing Sorrento, Pompeii, Mt Vesuvius, Caserta, the Amalfi Coast, and even Capri/Ischia if we have time

What would you do? I don't care too much about shopping and whatnot in these areas, as I'll be going to Berlin, Paris, etc, as well.

[horriblyjollyjinx]

Not Welcome

[dutchxoven]

Ok, so im trying to decide where i want to go with two friends come december for a trip...i need some help.

we were thinking of South America or maybe Mexico.

what are some places we should check out in SA that are relatively inexpensive and alot of fun...amazing beachs? i know this is such a broad question.

or if anyone can recommend somewhere that is amazing in late December that is alot of fun and fairly inexpensive.

[bblodge]

playa del carmen mexico, trendy young scene, good eats, beautiful beaches and destination style resorts.

I stay at the tides when i go, its incredible

[bigsteve101]

I am also looking to go to mexico or the carribean in december...where do you guys go to book relateively cheap yet still awesome (i am a student) vacation packages??

[dutchxoven]

has anyone ever been to Roatan before? its that little island off the coast of Honduras.

and what are some beaches i should maybe check out in central america as well...maybe some islands as well.

thanks.

[c.r.e.a.m.]

hey i used to live guadalajara mexico for about 10 years... one of my fav places. extremely good eats, and pretty cool scene. night life is huge in guadalajara. alot of cool malls and night clubs. guadalajara is probably the 2nd or 3rd biggest city in mexico after mexico city. for beaches, puerto vallarta. a big tourist scene, but its still alot of fun. id look into the mayan palace in puerto vallarta. its one of my favorite resorts. close to puerto vallarta is a small town called punta de mita. this is more of a surf town, but you can find a room for about 20 usd a night. idk if your looking for more of an authentic stay or a touristy stay. ive never been to honduras, but i do know that honduras is not very western cultured. hope this helped

[pauker]

oooh man im excited to be gone for a about a month and a half...

by any means can someone help me out w/ localc hotspots in Singapore and Philippines?

i've been to Philippines a couple of times but does anyone know any good shoe stores who carry Nike accounts and some crazy ass clothing store?

thanks

[beautyfake]

learn some singlish

[todesengel]

la 23456789

[jf30]

I have the opportunity to do a semester abroad and am wondering if anyone has been to or knows anything about the Rotterdam school of management (Erasmus U) or Copenhagen business school.

If you don't know anything about the schools but know the cities, which city would you prefer to live in for 6 months? I don't know anything about these cities.

[Tisswat]

In a nutshell, I'd say Copenhagen in itself would be more fun. But R'dam is 45 minutes from Amsterdam, 1.5 hours from Antwerp, 4 hours from Paris and a very cheap 80-minute flight from London.