Europe tips?

[jacinda]

Going through the gallery I see there are quite a few Sweet Shoppers that either live in, or have been to Europe. I'm in the middle of planning a Europe trip with the family (eek! ) and thought I'd ask here for your tips and tricks.



We want to start with a 7 day Mediterranean cruise (Barcelona, Tunis, Palermo, Naples, Pisa, Marseille, Barcelona) then we'll spend 3-4 days at the following places each:
Rome
Switzerland
Munich
Paris
And lastly a day or two in London before flying home.
Then our bank will be empty

It'll likely be late June/early July, so super hot I'm sure.

How do you manage all the different currencies? Is WISE the best card? Will we still need cash for anything? Is tipping a thing in Europe? (It's not here in NZ so I never know about anywhere else)

Our exchange rate in New Zealand is horrendous for Europe and the UK, so any budget saving ideas will be gratefully received. There'll be 4 of us travelling and we'll mostly be using the trains or flying between cities, though have decided to hire a car just for the Switzerland portion.

Ahhh so much to plan and decide on. We never thought we'd make it to Europe, but I figure the world is just getting more and more volatile - we should travel while we still can!

[nietis]

Ohhhh such an exciting trip to plan, Jacinda! I'd love to travel Europe too, one day. When I was in UK for 10 years, I was just a poor student with budgets, so I couldn't really travel.
In London/UK, I loved to stay in Travelodge, as the room is spacious, clean and affordable. I am not sure if they still exist though, but it's worth checking.

[Romajo]

Wow, sounds like an awesome trip to plan, but overwhelming as well!

As for currencies: most of the countries your visit have the Euro, except for Switzerland (Swis Franks) and UK (Pound Sterling).
Germany and France are more leaning towards cash, for most other countries a credit card is enough (make sure it is set te be used in Europe and/or Worldwide).
Tipping is not a thing here in Europe as it is in the USA. Your choice to leave some coins on the table, make the total amount a round number (e.g. if you have to pay € 3,85 for a coffee you can make it € 4,00. Also note, we use a comma before the last 2 numbers in a currency), add a set amount (e.g. € 5,00 per person) or give 10% of the bill. This is mostly at restaurants.
If you have a tour guide a tip € 5,00 to € 10,00 per person is appreciated. Tipping your taxi driver or bell boy might be different in every country you visit (check before you go).

Munich isn't a big city, so more than 2 days is too much (unless you want to visit the Bavarian Alps).
As for places to stay: the more in the centre of a city, the more expensive it will be. Check for public transport options and try to read some experiences. You might want to use sites as booking.com or trivago to search for hotels.
Travelodge, like Sheryll mentioned, can still be found in the UK, but is not as cheap as they used to be. Last year we stayed at a Campanile hotel in Dartford, but it was still an hour commute into London's city centre.

Anyway, have fun with all your preperations.
And know you can always save money by just walking around a city and taking in all the sights.

[bienejen]

Check out Pariswith Flo https://www.facebook.com/pariswith.flo on Facebook. Flo is an incredible guide in Paris who does virtual tours of different sections of Paris each Saturday. These are a great way to get an overview of the different areas so you can decide what you want to see when you're there. He has tons of knowledge!!!

[Robin Carlton]

So Adriaan and I spent 3 weeks in Europe back in 2016. We were originally going to do a cruise too and decided the time in each city would have been too limited so ended up deciding on which cities we wanted to see and do 3-4 days in each over the 3 weeks.

We did Venice, Rome, Barcelona, South of France (Nimes / Marseille), Amsterdam and Paris. We changed cities every 3-4 days and it was a LOT. If we had to do it again (and we definitely will someday), we'd stay longer in fewer cities and would skip Paris entirely... we hated Paris, but that could be because at the end of 3 weeks and changing cities every few days, we were too tired to really enjoy it. If it had been the first city, would we have enjoyed it more? We'll never know because we won't go back haha

Romajo gave you lots of great info on currencies... yay for that! I was gonna say that I thought most would be euros aside from the British pound, but I didn't think about the Swiss Frank.

We booked airbnbs for all of our stays. They were insanely beautiful but we weren't really thinking budget at the time, so I'm no help there really. Though I think you can still get good deals on airbnbs in europe and they have so much space and personality compared to hotel rooms which I love.

I will say we didn't "plan" a lot of activities throughout our trip because Europe is just so so sooo different than the U.S. it was wonderful to just wander and experience and be in the moment.

Traveling between cities is a breeze! We flew into Venice, took a train to Rome, flew to Barcelona, train to Nimes, plane to Amsterdam and then train to Paris and flew home from Paris. EasyJet / RyanAir are your friend for budget flights around Europe. They're no frill, but soo soooo cheap! Book all of your flights / trains / etc on the carrier's websites directly if you can.

You're going to have a wonderful time! If you want any restaurant recommendations or any standout spots from any of our overlapping cities, just lmk! I'd be happy to share <3

I think our next big BIG trip is going to be Tokyo / Kyoto next year sometime once Emily graduates from Uni. We were supposed to go for her high school grad but Covid ruined that plan.

[LeeAndra]

I don't have any tips but it sounds exciting, Jacinda!

We are going to Spain this summer to dogsit for a friend for a couple weeks (and stay in his beautiful new apartment for free -- yippee!) but it will be my first international trip. I've spent a lot of time Googling and reading travel blogs for info.

[Romajo]

Robin has some great points as well.
I can understand why she didn't like Paris, but it is a city you have to visit once to know why it's a tourist trap. We like London so much better.

Here are links for booking your hotels: Booking.com and Trivago.com can really be helpful to compare hotels or appartments in the different cities.

Something you might want to consider for travelling around is getting a train pass. You can find different options for non-European residents here.

Hope this is helpful as well. If you want more tips about what to see/do, you can always ask. I have been to most places, except for Spain and Switserland.
If you don't want an extra currency (Swiss Franks) you can skip Switserland and go to Austria instead if you want to see the Alps (probably makes travelling to Munich even easier).
Also, just realised that during your cruise you are going to Tunis, which is not part of Europe. I have no idea what currency they have there.

[bienejen]

If you're not set on Paris, Amsterdam or Bruges would be great alternatives on your way to London.

[aussiegirl]

That sounds amazing! Excited to live out your adventures through you in the gallery!

[renatasluis]

We have euro's in most countries, but you can pay with credit card.
Imostly do in the other countries.
We only tip here when service and food in restaurants is good.
A few euros.

[lovely1m]

In 2016, I went to Italy and the Czech Republic. I went to Naples, Rome, and the Amalfi Coast along with Prague. I love every one of these places. Amalfi is the most beautiful place I have been. Prague is amazing and I would go back in a heartbeat. We took a discount airline between the two places which was cheap and train in Italy. My cousin was living in Naples so only when we left were we touristy.

In June (your big trips always seem to line up at almost the same time I am in a place, too), I am going to UK and France on a tour of World War 2 sites with a tour group. I have never done anything like this before so I am exciting to see if I enjoy that way of traveling. We are planning to go back next year also as my son has always wanted to see the United Kingdom and I promised for his graduation that would be his present. We will likely also do Ireland then. I need to decide if we will do a tour or on our own.

That's going to be an amazing trip for you!

[jacinda]

Mari, the WW2 tour sounds amazing. We'd love to do something like that. We're going to visit Dachau Concentration Camp and will book a tour to see Hitler's Eagles Nest when we're in Munich.

Thanks everyone for the tips. We're watching so many YouTube videos on the places we're going, to pick up ideas, do's and don'ts and traveller tips. It's a little overwhelming, but it will eventually come together.

[Route66]

Originally Posted by Robin Carlton

So Adriaan and I spent 3 weeks in Europe back in 2016. We were originally going to do a cruise too and decided the time in each city would have been too limited so ended up deciding on which cities we wanted to see and do 3-4 days in each over the 3 weeks.

We did Venice, Rome, Barcelona, South of France (Nimes / Marseille), Amsterdam and Paris. We changed cities every 3-4 days and it was a LOT. If we had to do it again (and we definitely will someday), we'd stay longer in fewer cities and would skip Paris entirely... we hated Paris, but that could be because at the end of 3 weeks and changing cities every few days, we were too tired to really enjoy it. If it had been the first city, would we have enjoyed it more? We'll never know because we won't go back haha

Romajo gave you lots of great info on currencies... yay for that! I was gonna say that I thought most would be euros aside from the British pound, but I didn't think about the Swiss Frank.

We booked airbnbs for all of our stays. They were insanely beautiful but we weren't really thinking budget at the time, so I'm no help there really. Though I think you can still get good deals on airbnbs in europe and they have so much space and personality compared to hotel rooms which I love.

I will say we didn't "plan" a lot of activities throughout our trip because Europe is just so so sooo different than the U.S. it was wonderful to just wander and experience and be in the moment.

Traveling between cities is a breeze! We flew into Venice, took a train to Rome, flew to Barcelona, train to Nimes, plane to Amsterdam and then train to Paris and flew home from Paris. EasyJet / RyanAir are your friend for budget flights around Europe. They're no frill, but soo soooo cheap! Book all of your flights / trains / etc on the carrier's websites directly if you can.

You're going to have a wonderful time! If you want any restaurant recommendations or any standout spots from any of our overlapping cities, just lmk! I'd be happy to share <3

I think our next big BIG trip is going to be Tokyo / Kyoto next year sometime once Emily graduates from Uni. We were supposed to go for her high school grad but Covid ruined that plan.

Robin, I have been to both Tokyo & Kyoto and they truly are beautiful places to visit. Take a lot of time to embrace in the culture, it is heartwarming and humble. I came home with a different spiritual outlook on life. Kyoto was my favorite!

[Route66]

I was in Europe in April/May 2023 and it was the best of times. I would suggest planning your day in advance due to the time it takes to get to where you want to be, subway, buses and such. I had a birthday surprise with my son taking me to Fortnum & Mason for high tea. If that is your sort of thing, I highly recommend it! Take some time to visit the nature in Wales and Scotland. We did 3 day tours in both places hosted by Rabbies tours, wonderful & knowledgeable hosts and you can just sit back and enjoy! Try a bed & breakfast in Wales, they are so quaint and a must see place is the Cotswold, absolutely charming!

[Route66]

Originally Posted by jacinda

Mari, the WW2 tour sounds amazing. We'd love to do something like that. We're going to visit Dachau Concentration Camp and will book a tour to see Hitler's Eagles Nest when we're in Munich.

Thanks everyone for the tips. We're watching so many YouTube videos on the places we're going, to pick up ideas, do's and don'ts and traveler tips. It's a little overwhelming, but it will eventually come together.

When I was in France, I planned to visit Vimy Ridge Memorial where my great uncle is. Unfortunately we did not pre-book and missed out due to no transportation being available. When I got home, I ordered the memorial page and just received it, priceless piece of family history. I hope to get back there one day to see it in person and honor his sacrifice.