yep.ghettoperson wrote:
Italy. Lots of good stuff around that area.
Rome.
Rome.
epic i reckon 27 is onto something here.1927 wrote:
Cardiff -> Barry IslandCameronPoe wrote:
A subset of:
Barcelona -> Paris -> Amsterdam -> Berlin -> Prague -> Vienna -> Venice -> Rome
Ive also heard prague is lovely, hoping i can ge there this year.
But with NY, Belguim, Silverstone and Riga. Think the chances are slim :S
No.1927 wrote:
Cardiff -> Barry Island
What exactly are your objectives?
See nice buildings, historical sites, eat good food, what?
Last edited by Dilbert_X (2010-02-23 05:05:31)
Русский военный корабль, иди на хуй!
I can definitely recommend Vienna, Austria. I fell in love with this city as soon as I moved here.
There is TON to do for tourists and the hostels are all nice. I worked at one and you got quite a bit for your money at only €25/night and there were only 2-3 beds to a room, so it's not like sleeping in a barracks.
Public transport in Vienna is one of the best in Europe and it will get you to all the parts of the city you could possibly want to see. It's good that you're coming in the late summer, that's when a lot of the festivals start. There is a HUGE wine country in the north of the city that is easily reachable by bus/tram with a lot of nature trails and it's all on a mountain side, so you can look out over the entire city.
The center of the city has been beautifully preserved and it's fun walking through all the old, narrow streets. I did that for weeks when I first got here and found all kinds of neat shops and eateries that typically only locals know about. The night life is also pretty banging and because the center is small and public transport abundant, it's easy to get around. In all honesty, though, you can walk wherever you need to go 9/10 (in the center).
The Danube River cuts through the city and has a couple of nice canals and the Danube Island is awesome if you want to chill out and take in some water sports. Also lots of cocktail bars along the bank that are always nice to have dinner and a drink at and sit outside and watch the sunset.
The museums are also all free/cheap, so there's that. Public transport is dirt cheap, too. There are also the two large palaces (look up Schönbrunn or Belvedere) that have extensive tours. The first one is the old Imperial residence and has a very nice tour with a free audio guide and the second is (iirc) free to go into and has been converted into essentially a constantly changing art exhibit. Belvedere also has large botanical gardens (I think that has a small entrance fee, but I can't remember) that are very beautiful. At Schönbrunn, there is also the zoo that is pretty neat and there's a large hill behind the palace that you can go to the top of and look out at the city from the south (the mountain being in the north).
Since you're coming in August, there will be the film festival going on at city hall, too. This is one of the highlights of Vienna in the summer - the entire square is turned into a free, open-air movie theater encircled by the various international restaurants of the city (everything from Chinese to Indian to Iranian to Latin). The show starts at sundown and they also have the city brewery serving beer out there, so it makes for a great way to cool off after a day in the city.
Another cool part about Vienna is the location: It's a 45 bus ride (only €5.50/ticket) to Bratislava, with short hops to Budapest or Prague that are all relatively cheap. Seeing as how you only have a week (you need two to get stuff done in Europe), it might only be worth it for a trip to one of the cities, but either way, it's cheap and Vienna is an excellent jumping off point to the rest of Europe.
Wow, this post turned out much longer than I had originally planned, haha. Ah well.
There is TON to do for tourists and the hostels are all nice. I worked at one and you got quite a bit for your money at only €25/night and there were only 2-3 beds to a room, so it's not like sleeping in a barracks.
Public transport in Vienna is one of the best in Europe and it will get you to all the parts of the city you could possibly want to see. It's good that you're coming in the late summer, that's when a lot of the festivals start. There is a HUGE wine country in the north of the city that is easily reachable by bus/tram with a lot of nature trails and it's all on a mountain side, so you can look out over the entire city.
The center of the city has been beautifully preserved and it's fun walking through all the old, narrow streets. I did that for weeks when I first got here and found all kinds of neat shops and eateries that typically only locals know about. The night life is also pretty banging and because the center is small and public transport abundant, it's easy to get around. In all honesty, though, you can walk wherever you need to go 9/10 (in the center).
The Danube River cuts through the city and has a couple of nice canals and the Danube Island is awesome if you want to chill out and take in some water sports. Also lots of cocktail bars along the bank that are always nice to have dinner and a drink at and sit outside and watch the sunset.
The museums are also all free/cheap, so there's that. Public transport is dirt cheap, too. There are also the two large palaces (look up Schönbrunn or Belvedere) that have extensive tours. The first one is the old Imperial residence and has a very nice tour with a free audio guide and the second is (iirc) free to go into and has been converted into essentially a constantly changing art exhibit. Belvedere also has large botanical gardens (I think that has a small entrance fee, but I can't remember) that are very beautiful. At Schönbrunn, there is also the zoo that is pretty neat and there's a large hill behind the palace that you can go to the top of and look out at the city from the south (the mountain being in the north).
Since you're coming in August, there will be the film festival going on at city hall, too. This is one of the highlights of Vienna in the summer - the entire square is turned into a free, open-air movie theater encircled by the various international restaurants of the city (everything from Chinese to Indian to Iranian to Latin). The show starts at sundown and they also have the city brewery serving beer out there, so it makes for a great way to cool off after a day in the city.
Another cool part about Vienna is the location: It's a 45 bus ride (only €5.50/ticket) to Bratislava, with short hops to Budapest or Prague that are all relatively cheap. Seeing as how you only have a week (you need two to get stuff done in Europe), it might only be worth it for a trip to one of the cities, but either way, it's cheap and Vienna is an excellent jumping off point to the rest of Europe.
Wow, this post turned out much longer than I had originally planned, haha. Ah well.
http://www.wien.info/en
There's the official tourism website for the city.
Just found this: http://events.wien.info/english/EventDe … entID=2337 it's €45, but you get a 4 course dinner and unlimited wine and some great, traditional Austrian music. I'll probably be buying tickets myself.
There's the official tourism website for the city.
Just found this: http://events.wien.info/english/EventDe … entID=2337 it's €45, but you get a 4 course dinner and unlimited wine and some great, traditional Austrian music. I'll probably be buying tickets myself.
Last edited by CapnNismo (2010-02-23 05:13:58)
As many of the above as possible. As I said before, there really is no area we're particularly interested in, we're really just trying to make the most of a week. Whichever city/combo of cities offers the best all-around experience, we'll visit.Dilbert_X wrote:
What exactly are your objectives?1927 wrote:
Cardiff -> Barry Island
See nice buildings, historical sites, eat good food, what?
@ Cap- Sounds amazing! I'll definitely bring up Vienna and see what the others think.
The shape of an eye in front of the ocean, digging for stones and throwing them against its window pane. Take it down dreamer, take it down deep. - Other Families
You have to go to Berlin... no matter what the cost.
It was the best place out of Europe when I went (mind you I was 14 at the time, nearly 15 haaha). I went on a free walking tour of Berlin, which was bloody fantastic. They ask for donations at the end of it, but even giving the tour guide (I got some Aussie chick from Adelaide, it was awesome) 20 Euros would be awesome. I then went on a paid tour, which was alright, but it was still pretty freaking awesome. They basically take you through all of the touristy areas of Berlin such as the Brandenburg gate, Unter den Linden, then the Holocaust memorial, general cool shit like that. You could spend a few days easily there if you're going for just a week.
Another suggestion I would make (from my limited experience) would be Italy. Rome and Florence are alright cities, dont get me wrong. But when I went, I found going to museums consecutively for about a week did get rather annoying. Definitely see the Colosseum. Personally, I'd skip Venice. My family and I spend a night there and left the next day. I guess you wouldn't call it very family-ish, but rather for romantics and shit like that. Plus when I went, I got maccas for dinner, and it ended up costing 15 euros, which equated (at the time) to $30 AU. This was for 2 meals. At that price, I could have bought at least 4 meals back at home. I also ended up spilling both my brothers and my drinkings when tripping up the stairs at said mcdonalds (although it might have been Prague, cant remember).
Speaking of which, Prague was an absolutely awesome place to go. Architecture and shit like that is just stunning. I went to that museum type place or something and found it to be quite interesting. Although I dont know if you would include it in a week-long holiday to Europe though.
I'd also mention Poland was freaking amazing. Warsaw was alright - the only thing I did there was see my uncle but if you're passing by, definitely go to Krakow and go to Auschwitz. It was ..... a unique experience walking through the camp in the afternoon snow. Although I'm not sure if you'd go there in a 1-week holiday.
Paris, I thought was actually quite dirty, but it may have just been the hotel where we were staying. If you find a nice place, definitely go. The Louvre is massive, and you can easily find yourself lost in the depths of all the stuff they have there. Plus the Eiffel Tower is there, I mean, come on.
Budapest was awesome. Although I think it might be a bit out of the way for a week-long trip. The House of Terror was absolutely brilliant.
Vienna was awesome, although I cant really remember specifics. The only real experience from there was some punk/skinhead dude with a radical purple mo-hawk wearing black clothes coming up to me and speaking this insanely fast German at me. I only really knew a few words of German, so all I could say was 'nein' when he was finished speaking ahahahah.
As for the rest, I cant really say.
It was the best place out of Europe when I went (mind you I was 14 at the time, nearly 15 haaha). I went on a free walking tour of Berlin, which was bloody fantastic. They ask for donations at the end of it, but even giving the tour guide (I got some Aussie chick from Adelaide, it was awesome) 20 Euros would be awesome. I then went on a paid tour, which was alright, but it was still pretty freaking awesome. They basically take you through all of the touristy areas of Berlin such as the Brandenburg gate, Unter den Linden, then the Holocaust memorial, general cool shit like that. You could spend a few days easily there if you're going for just a week.
Another suggestion I would make (from my limited experience) would be Italy. Rome and Florence are alright cities, dont get me wrong. But when I went, I found going to museums consecutively for about a week did get rather annoying. Definitely see the Colosseum. Personally, I'd skip Venice. My family and I spend a night there and left the next day. I guess you wouldn't call it very family-ish, but rather for romantics and shit like that. Plus when I went, I got maccas for dinner, and it ended up costing 15 euros, which equated (at the time) to $30 AU. This was for 2 meals. At that price, I could have bought at least 4 meals back at home. I also ended up spilling both my brothers and my drinkings when tripping up the stairs at said mcdonalds (although it might have been Prague, cant remember).
Speaking of which, Prague was an absolutely awesome place to go. Architecture and shit like that is just stunning. I went to that museum type place or something and found it to be quite interesting. Although I dont know if you would include it in a week-long holiday to Europe though.
I'd also mention Poland was freaking amazing. Warsaw was alright - the only thing I did there was see my uncle but if you're passing by, definitely go to Krakow and go to Auschwitz. It was ..... a unique experience walking through the camp in the afternoon snow. Although I'm not sure if you'd go there in a 1-week holiday.
Paris, I thought was actually quite dirty, but it may have just been the hotel where we were staying. If you find a nice place, definitely go. The Louvre is massive, and you can easily find yourself lost in the depths of all the stuff they have there. Plus the Eiffel Tower is there, I mean, come on.
Budapest was awesome. Although I think it might be a bit out of the way for a week-long trip. The House of Terror was absolutely brilliant.
Vienna was awesome, although I cant really remember specifics. The only real experience from there was some punk/skinhead dude with a radical purple mo-hawk wearing black clothes coming up to me and speaking this insanely fast German at me. I only really knew a few words of German, so all I could say was 'nein' when he was finished speaking ahahahah.
As for the rest, I cant really say.
noice 
Berlin was cool. Expensive, though, because nothing there is free. You have to pay to do everything there. Great city, however. If you go, make sure you visit the Mauermuseum (Wall Museum). It's probably one of the best things to see in Berlin, IMO. Also try to go to the Alliertenmuseum (Allied Museum). As far as I know, there is no bus stop or public transport near it, so you might have to get a taxi.