Not in Europe and if not outright impossible to use the points to get flight and hotel(s) covered, it would use up a lot more points and we would either have a shorter trip or have to spend a lot more of our own money. Neither option is particularly appealing.
For anyone that likes to traveling to sparsely populated areas, taking in lovely views, wind surfing, climbing and hiking, etc. I highly recommend a visit to the Hebrides (I particularly like Tiree).
As for pyramids, I'm really interested in the Aztec and Maya-style stuff, although those aren't in Europe.
We could do Central America/South America and see a few Ziggurats. It is something to consider depending on climates at that time of year and what else the region has to offer.
I'm currently heading west across Europe starting at Vladivostok. So far I can give the following advice. Vladivostok is not a tourist town, and I wouldn't recommend it unless you're doing the Trans-Siberian. St Petersburg is great, plus you can overdose on art at the Hermitage. Moscow was also good, but there was a lot more hustle and bustle on the streets. Standing in Red Square was awesome. Kiev is nice but didn't excite me that much.
I'm also interested in suggestions. The general plan is to head south to Istanbul, then west along the med until I get to Portugal.
Slovenia is pretty, very pretty. You can stay in the Ljubljana and do everything from there, from trips to the mountains and lakes in the north to a day trip to Postjna Caves. The prices aren't too bad for a country on the Euro either. Also to the person who recommended Leeds, not that bad of a thought since it would give you great access to the East Coast (like Whitby, and it's a abbey not a castle ), the Yorkshire Dales, Sheffield and Manchester are all within an hours travel.
But if you are wanting Yorkshire and the East Coast, York itself is the nicest city by far. Culturally there is less happening than Leeds, but historically it is almost limitless. Slovenia is indeed very pretty and very pleasant. And cheap. However, there isn't a huge amount going on (from my experience).
For our summer trips we have our rough destinations decided for us, as we always go to the European Juggling Convention. We normally combine it with three extra weeks of road trip travel. A few years ago it was in Ireland, then Greece, then Germany (so we went to the Czech Republic).
This year the convention is in northern Spain, so my girlfriend and I have a three week road trip to Spain and Portugal booked. We have no idea what we're going to do yet, but we have a campervan and make our journey up as we go along.
Next year the convention is somewhere in the east of Finland, so our road trip will go: Germany, Denmark, Sweden, Norway, up to the very top bit of Europe, then down through Finland, do the convention, then across to Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania (in whatever order they are actually in north to south), through Poland and home to Berlin. We are expecting the awesome to be unbounded. I've yet to go to those last four countries, so I'm really excited.
Spain, for the record, will also be one of the friendliest places you'll ever visit. You might get called a turista or a gringa, but its all in good fun and people won't really look down on you. Most people in the cities speak a bit of English, and if you play your cards right, they'll definitely tell you about their favorite bar/music club/back-alley curio place/etc. We're a pretty proud people, and hospitable as well.
Iceland is a possibility. We may have a winner!! ^_^ Luke, when you were there before, did you just rent a vehicle and go to the points of call on your own or did you use excursion tour packages like Gray Line?
But if you are wanting Yorkshire and the East Coast, York itself is the nicest city by far. Culturally there is less happening than Leeds, but historically it is almost limitless.
That's true, but I can't speak for york, since I've never been there.
Leeds is far more user friendly than York though, transport wise and for variety of places to eat and drink ect.
transport wise and for variety of places to eat and drink ect.
I'm highly dubious of that statement for a variety of reasons.
Well, I can't say the public transport is friendly, however, the public transport is pretty high quality, and the variety of places to eat and drink is really very good. Within walking distance of my house, I can almost "Eat around the world" so to speak. But, if you're really that dubious, I doubt that I'll be able to sway your opinion that much without actually showing you the place.
transport wise and for variety of places to eat and drink ect.
I'm highly dubious of that statement for a variety of reasons.
Why are you dubious? I really want to hear this since I live in Leeds and have been to York on many many occasions.
Leeds is far more user friendly than York though, transport wise and for variety of places to eat and drink ect.
True. But seriously, for the only trip to Europe for the next few years, and with free tickets to any country or city on the continent.... Leeds?
Hell no, personally I would go to Italy or Germany, they were my favorite places on my travels, although I wouldn't recommend Dresden like someone did, you can do that city in a day. I was just saying that if a person wanted to visit Yorkshire, then Leeds would be a good place to base themselves.
Why are you dubious? I really want to hear this since I live in Leeds and have been to York on many many occasions.
I'm not saying that Leeds isn't awesome. I'm saying that there is no way it can compare to New York City in terms of "variety of places to eat and drink." More people live in The Bronx than Leeds, almost twice as many. The city as a whole has more than ten times the population of Leeds, not counting the daily commuters. The size, scale, and density of New York City are such that few places on earth can provide a similar variety of food, drink, and entertainment.
Why are you dubious? I really want to hear this since I live in Leeds and have been to York on many many occasions.
Wait, What? So do I, At the moment, as does Omnutia.
Why are you dubious? I really want to hear this since I live in Leeds and have been to York on many many occasions.
I'm not saying that Leeds isn't awesome. I'm saying that there is no way it can compare to New York City in terms of "variety of places to eat and drink." More people live inThe Bronxthan Leeds, almost twice as many. The city as a whole has more thanten timesthe population of Leeds, not counting the daily commuters. The size, scale, and density of New York City are such that few places on earth can provide a similar variety of food, drink, and entertainment.
That's why I'm dubious. ^_~
There is very little that compares to New York, in this case, it's bringing a nuclear weapon to a knife fight - the entire nation of Australia only has roughly 2-4 million more people than New York. Before I decided upon England because of a woman(Long story) it was between "Somewhere in England" and NY. The thing is, if you moved every place in NY you could eat to Leeds, without counting street vendors, You would run out of places in Leeds to put them before you ran out of places to eat in NY. However, while it's but a flea compared to the elephant of new york, among cities of a similar size, It's extremely good for diverse dining and entertainment options.
Why are you dubious? I really want to hear this since I live in Leeds and have been to York on many many occasions.
I'm not saying that Leeds isn't awesome. I'm saying that there is no way it can compare to New York City in terms of "variety of places to eat and drink." More people live inThe Bronxthan Leeds, almost twice as many. The city as a whole has more thanten timesthe population of Leeds, not counting the daily commuters. The size, scale, and density of New York City are such that few places on earth can provide a similar variety of food, drink, and entertainment.
That's why I'm dubious. ^_~
Yeah but does New York have Vikings ? Like the proper York does.
Nice one, Rym. New York is so called because there is an "old" York back in England. It is about 30 minutes drive from Leeds. Comparatively Leeds has more diverse dining and better transport connections than York.
I mentioned Dresden, but only as a city to visit as part of a Berlin, Dresden, Prague, Vienna trip.
@ Luke Burrage and anyone that has been to Iceland: You said you traveled to Iceland before, yes? While you were there, did you just rent a vehicle and go to the points of call on your own or did you use excursion tour packages like those offered at Gray Line?
@ Luke Burrage and anyone that has been to Iceland: You said you traveled to Iceland before, yes? While you were there, did you just rent a vehicle and go to the points of call on your own or did you use excursion tour packages like those offered at Gray Line?
Pola and I were there while working on a cruise ship, which meant that between ports we were on the QE2. At the start of the trip we were had the same question... should we head out on our own or book an excursion? In the end the only excursion we liked from the selection was the most expensive: trip in a truck to see glaciers and waterfalls and wild hills and rivers and shit.
This kind of excursion, one of the highlights of anyone's trip to Iceland, is almost impossible to do by yourself. The reason is simple. This is the vehicle we needed to use do that trip:
Even if you found someone willing to rent out such a truck, would you be up for driving it? And if you were, would you know where to drive? I know I'd rather just spend a few hundred dollars and let the professionals do all the work, be a tour guide, provide a fantastic dinner and drop me off at the hotel at the end of the day.
That said, there was a bus service that followed ran up the same valley, but it only runs once a day (and delivers mail and supplies) and once you get to the campsite at the top you have to walk to see the sights. But we only had a day for our trip, so if we were doing a week long trip to Iceland we'd probably take this slower option. But I'd also like to do another big truck trip. A normal car would be good to get from place to place on normal roads, as the bus won't stop at every waterfall you pass, but to really see what makes the interior of Iceland so attractive you need off road skills and a suitable vehicle.
The other days in Iceland we didn't do any excursions, we just looked around the towns and went walking.
@ LB: Thanks, that is really helpful. We will probably keep to the excursions. There are so many that look so great. Do you recall what company offered your trip?
Also, before I set my mind to Iceland (though it is 3/4 of the way made up), we can use the points to go on a number of cruises. Since you work cruises, do you recommend them? Are there certain kinds of cruises you recommend over others? My impression of them has always been that they are floating resorts and you have limited time to enjoy/explore ports of call. Is this the case?
@ LB: Thanks, that is really helpful. We will probably keep to the excursions. There are so many that look so great. Do you recall what company offered your trip?
Also, before I set my mind to Iceland (though it is 3/4 of the way made up), we can use the points to go on a number of cruises. Since you work cruises, do you recommend them? Are there certain kinds of cruises you recommend over others? My impression of them has always been that they are floating resorts and you have limited time to enjoy/explore ports of call. Is this the case?
If you really love to travel to see places and get to know them well, don't go on a cruise. If you want an actual holiday where you can relax and not pack and unpack every day and sleep in the same bed every night... but where you also wake up in a different city every morning, go on a cruise.
Type of cruise I'd recommend: The Mediterranean if you want to see 5 major cities in 7 days, but only to get a flavor of each. A Baltic cruise too if you want to see all the Scandinavian capitals, plus St. Petersberg and Tallinn. Antarctica as it is the only way to see the damn place if you're not a scientist. A "crossing" if you want to cross the Atlantic in style and have a week to spare (if you get a good deal it can cost less than a transatlantic flight). Norwegian fjord cruising, as traveling up the coast of Norway on roads means you miss most of the best views.
I can't remember the company we used in Iceland, it was booked through the cruise excursions office.
Yeah, I was thinking that cruises wouldn't be to my taste - at least not for this vacation. I will talk it over with Mr. MacRoss, though. Thanks for the information!
Comments
For anyone that likes to traveling to sparsely populated areas, taking in lovely views, wind surfing, climbing and hiking, etc. I highly recommend a visit to the Hebrides (I particularly like Tiree).
I'm also interested in suggestions. The general plan is to head south to Istanbul, then west along the med until I get to Portugal.
Also to the person who recommended Leeds, not that bad of a thought since it would give you great access to the East Coast (like Whitby, and it's a abbey not a castle
For our summer trips we have our rough destinations decided for us, as we always go to the European Juggling Convention. We normally combine it with three extra weeks of road trip travel. A few years ago it was in Ireland, then Greece, then Germany (so we went to the Czech Republic).
This year the convention is in northern Spain, so my girlfriend and I have a three week road trip to Spain and Portugal booked. We have no idea what we're going to do yet, but we have a campervan and make our journey up as we go along.
Next year the convention is somewhere in the east of Finland, so our road trip will go: Germany, Denmark, Sweden, Norway, up to the very top bit of Europe, then down through Finland, do the convention, then across to Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania (in whatever order they are actually in north to south), through Poland and home to Berlin. We are expecting the awesome to be unbounded. I've yet to go to those last four countries, so I'm really excited.
Luke, when you were there before, did you just rent a vehicle and go to the points of call on your own or did you use excursion tour packages like Gray Line?
Within walking distance of my house, I can almost "Eat around the world" so to speak.
But, if you're really that dubious, I doubt that I'll be able to sway your opinion that much without actually showing you the place.
That's why I'm dubious. ^_~
I mentioned Dresden, but only as a city to visit as part of a Berlin, Dresden, Prague, Vienna trip.
This kind of excursion, one of the highlights of anyone's trip to Iceland, is almost impossible to do by yourself. The reason is simple. This is the vehicle we needed to use do that trip:
Even if you found someone willing to rent out such a truck, would you be up for driving it? And if you were, would you know where to drive? I know I'd rather just spend a few hundred dollars and let the professionals do all the work, be a tour guide, provide a fantastic dinner and drop me off at the hotel at the end of the day.
That said, there was a bus service that followed ran up the same valley, but it only runs once a day (and delivers mail and supplies) and once you get to the campsite at the top you have to walk to see the sights. But we only had a day for our trip, so if we were doing a week long trip to Iceland we'd probably take this slower option. But I'd also like to do another big truck trip. A normal car would be good to get from place to place on normal roads, as the bus won't stop at every waterfall you pass, but to really see what makes the interior of Iceland so attractive you need off road skills and a suitable vehicle.
The other days in Iceland we didn't do any excursions, we just looked around the towns and went walking.
Hope this helps.
Also, before I set my mind to Iceland (though it is 3/4 of the way made up), we can use the points to go on a number of cruises. Since you work cruises, do you recommend them? Are there certain kinds of cruises you recommend over others? My impression of them has always been that they are floating resorts and you have limited time to enjoy/explore ports of call. Is this the case?
Type of cruise I'd recommend: The Mediterranean if you want to see 5 major cities in 7 days, but only to get a flavor of each. A Baltic cruise too if you want to see all the Scandinavian capitals, plus St. Petersberg and Tallinn. Antarctica as it is the only way to see the damn place if you're not a scientist. A "crossing" if you want to cross the Atlantic in style and have a week to spare (if you get a good deal it can cost less than a transatlantic flight). Norwegian fjord cruising, as traveling up the coast of Norway on roads means you miss most of the best views.
I can't remember the company we used in Iceland, it was booked through the cruise excursions office.