Help on what to do in Europe

[UNH '00]

Hey everyone,

Thanks again for the help on Hawaii but it looks like the honeymoon is going the other way...

We're spending a few days in Barcelona and then on a cruise that stops in Rome (ITA), Florence (ITA), Nice (FRA) and Toulon (FRA).

If you have been to Italy, France or Spain and have a favorite restaurant, meal, site, tour, memory, etc etc... share!!!

Also have a quick layover in Zurich (SUI)... so close to the German border I can probably get a good beer there, no? Let me know how you killed time there if you've been.... staying long enough to do something at the airport but not long enough to leave and come back.

 

[bigmrg74]

Re: Help on what to do in Europe

Hey everyone,

Thanks again for the help on Hawaii but it looks like the honeymoon is going the other way...

We're spending a few days in Barcelona and then on a cruise that stops in Rome (ITA), Florence (ITA), Nice (FRA) and Toulon (FRA).

If you have been to Italy, France or Spain and have a favorite restaurant, meal, site, tour, memory, etc etc... share!!!

Also have a quick layover in Zurich (SUI)... so close to the German border I can probably get a good beer there, no? Let me know how you killed time there if you've been.... staying long enough to do something at the airport but not long enough to leave and come back.

Walking around Zurick there should be fun enough. There's Lake Zurick there that you could take a quick tour of on a boat. I don't remember exactly how long it is, want to say like about two hours prehaps. Good way to kill an afternoon. Also, don't knock the local brew there either. Can't remember exactly what it was called there, but there is this bock beer thats been brewed in the Zurich area since the 1550's that is really awesome. I'm pretty sure you would be able to find it.

 

[Puck Swami]

Re: Help on what to do in Europe

Hey everyone,

Thanks again for the help on Hawaii but it looks like the honeymoon is going the other way...

We're spending a few days in Barcelona and then on a cruise that stops in Rome (ITA), Florence (ITA), Nice (FRA) and Toulon (FRA).

If you have been to Italy, France or Spain and have a favorite restaurant, meal, site, tour, memory, etc etc... share!!!

Also have a quick layover in Zurich (SUI)... so close to the German border I can probably get a good beer there, no? Let me know how you killed time there if you've been.... staying long enough to do something at the airport but not long enough to leave and come back.

You are going to some fantastic cities...

Barcelona tips:

1. The "Ramblas" is the heart of the city - a pedestrian promenade full of cafes, markets and people watching. The Picasso Museum is short walk off the Ramblas in the gothic quarter and is worth seeing.

2. The beach promenade built for the 1992 Olympics has good seafood restaurants, sleek hotels and lots of topless sunbathing on the beach itself. Great hangout - bring sunglasses!

3. Barcelona is all about Antoni Gaudi - see his architecture at Casa Mila, Park Guell and the unifinished Sagrada Familia Cathedral. Amazing.

4. Catch the cable car up to Montjuic and see the 1992 Olympic facilities. There is also Miro Museum up there too.

5. If you are a soccer fan, you might want to check out Camp Nou, the FC Barclona stadium complex and museum. Both are impressive. Better yet, see a game there if you can...

5. People there eat dinner at 10:00 pm so be ready...

Rome:

Don't miss the Coliseum, and the nearby Forum/Palatine Hill to get your ancient Roman ruins fix. If you need more ruins, Ancient Ostia and Hadrian's Villa are good close day trips from Rome.

St. Peters and the Vatican Museums are incredible. Get there early.

As as sports fan, I also enjoyed tooling around the 1960 Olympic Stadium and the adjacent facilities built for the 1960 games.

Florence:

The Uffizi Museum, Brunnelschi's dome, the Ponte Vecchio and seeing Michaelangelo's David in the Academia are the big attractions, but the whole city is really beautful. Just wander around and discover...

Nice:

Haven't spent much time here, but its a very attractive capital of the French Riviera, with a number of beaches. There are also a number of good art museums if you are into it. Monaco (Monte Carlo) is also only 20 minutes away and has its upscale gambling, beach, yachts, etc - you can add a another country to your list.

Zurich Airport has airportbus tours that take you to some cool areas to watch planes land and take off up close... The roof deck at Terminal E is also a good spot if the tours don't fit you schedule.

Info here:
http://www.zurich-airport.com/desktopdefault.aspx/tabid-213/

 

[Kepler]

Re: Help on what to do in Europe

Don't go to Florence on Monday, all the museums are closed that day. We found this out the hard way. Go to Ponte Vecchio while you're there, but hold on to your wallet (this is good advice everywhere in Italy) -- Dickensian bands of toddler thieves roam freely. If you have the time I HIGHLY recommend a side trip to Sienna and the Piazza del Campo.

Wear comfortable shoes and clothes for the Palatine ruins. My wife nearly broke her ankle with the bad footing. Hover and listen to a couple tour guides before picking yours -- there is great variance. Have lunch at a cafe in the heart of the city, but be forewarned that after watching the women of Rome your life is in decline.

Everywhere in Italy, go out at dusk and walk around -- it's the best time to people watch, entire families walk around, kids are playing, singles are flirting, old married couples are bickering. It's an amazing example of convivial city life before progress crushed humanity into alienated atoms.

Eat at one of the (literal) Mom and Pop restaurants in Nice -- it's the best food you'll get in France. Many places just throw out a table cloth and serve whoever stops by; it's a local tradition. I wasn't impressed by the Nice beachfront -- it's like Atlantic City with pale German tourists.

You're going to love your trip -- Rome, Florence and Sienna are the best places I have ever visited.

 

[alfablue]

Re: Help on what to do in Europe

You are going to some fantastic cities...

Barcelona tips:

1. The "Ramblas" is the heart of the city - a pedestrian promenade full of cafes, markets and people watching. The Picasso Museum is short walk off the Ramblas in the gothic quarter and is worth seeing.

2. The beach promenade built for the 1992 Olympics has good seafood restaurants, sleek hotels and lots of topless sunbathing on the beach itself. Great hangout - bring sunglasses!

3. Barcelona is all about Antoni Gaudi - see his architecture at Casa Mila, Park Guell and the unifinished Sagrada Familia Cathedral. Amazing.

4. Catch the cable car up to Montjuic and see the 1992 Olympic facilities. There is also Miro Museum up there too.

5. If you are a soccer fan, you might want to check out Camp Nou, the FC Barclona stadium complex and museum. Both are impressive. Better yet, see a game there if you can...

5. People there eat dinner at 10:00 pm so be ready...

Rome:

Don't miss the Coliseum, and the nearby Forum/Palatine Hill to get your ancient Roman ruins fix. If you need more ruins, Ancient Ostia and Hadrian's Villa are good close day trips from Rome.

St. Peters and the Vatican Museums are incredible. Get there early.

As as sports fan, I also enjoyed tooling around the 1960 Olympic Stadium and the adjacent facilities built for the 1960 games.

Florence:

The Uffizi Museum, Brunnelschi's dome, the Ponte Vecchio and seeing Michaelangelo's David in the Academia are the big attractions, but the whole city is really beautful. Just wander around and discover...

Nice:

Haven't spent much time here, but its a very attractive capital of the French Riviera, with a number of beaches. There are also a number of good art museums if you are into it. Monaco (Monte Carlo) is also only 20 minutes away and has its upscale gambling, beach, yachts, etc - you can add a another country to your list.

Zurich Airport has airportbus tours that take you to some cool areas to watch planes land and take off up close... The roof deck at Terminal E is also a good spot if the tours don't fit you schedule.

Info here:
http://www.zurich-airport.com/desktopdefault.aspx/tabid-213/

+1 on everything but Nice and Zurich- since I've not been there.

Loved walking around Barcelona- and eating late is a major past time there- but you can pick up a few tapas while wondering. Hard to choose a place to eat-but my wife loves using tripadvisor.com + just wandering around the web for suggestions.

We are returning to Italy after 15 years this year, too- but will be doing a different trip- spending a week in the Piedmont area.

Have a great trip- Europe for a honeymoon rocks.

 

[jmh]

Re: Help on what to do in Europe

Barcelona rules, I've got some pointers for you there. Can't offer you much about your other destinations.

If you don't have your BCN lodgings booked yet, I had a good experience at Hotel Praktik Rambla (which was called Hostal Palacios when I stayed there a couple of years ago, FWIW), might be something to look into if you're not planning to spend big stacks of cash on a hotel. Rooms aren't huge but they're nicely appointed, service was wonderful, and the location is incredible.

I missed out on this one, but you really should check out the Parc Güell. A bunch of cool Gaudi architecture and sculpture, and a great view back over the city and out to the harbor. Along similar lines, you could take the funicular up to Tibidabo, a mountain overlooking the city that also has a really cool view from the top. (Cool panorama view here if you have the Quicktime plugin.)

If you and your fiancee like sports, try to go to a match at the Camp Nou; if not, then you're not missing much if you don't.

Food-wise, I was there by myself so I didn't wind up doing a whole lot of interesting dining, but I've heard good things about Bar Inopia by Albert Adria, brother of Ferran Adria of El Bulli (where presumably you're not going).

In the nightlife department, there's great people-watching, restaurants, bars and clubs around the Placa Reial just off Las Ramblas. (Las Ramblas itself I found to be a bit overly touristy, to be honest, like walking through Times Square, but maybe that's just me. I prefer the Placa de Catalunya, personally.)

Edit to add: Oh sure, of COURSE Swami responded first and said a lot of the same things.

 

[dxmnkd316]

Re: Help on what to do in Europe

Lucerne, Switzerland (specifically Mt. Pilatus). The most beautiful place on earth.

 

[bigmrg74]

Re: Help on what to do in Europe

Don't go to Florence on Monday, all the museums are closed that day. We found this out the hard way. Go to Ponte Vecchio while you're there, but hold on to your wallet (this is good advice everywhere in Italy) -- Dickensian bands of toddler thieves roam freely. If you have the time I HIGHLY recommend a side trip to Sienna and the Piazza del Campo.

Yeah, you're going to run into the problem of museums and other attractions being closed on mondays. Wouldn't hurt on planning those in for just down days, where you could just chill out a bit, or maybe even treat yourselves to a day at the spa perhaps. Odds are you're going to be doing a lot of walking there, and I'm sure you'll both thank yourselves if you stop in somewhere and get a good foot rub.

 

[St. Clown]

Re: Help on what to do in Europe

It's been ten years, but when I was in Europe, my route took me from Paris (spent less than a day) to Nice, then on to Rome, then Florence, Venice, Milan, Innsbruck, and then back to Paris for my flight home.

Nice was a very relaxing spot. Unfortunately it was also at the beginning of my trip. The beaches Nice are white stone, not a nice sand, but Mediterranean is the most amazing shade of blue (Cote' de Azur, Coast of Blue, is the general region). My buddy and I chose Nice over other selections in the Riviera simply due to cost. We heard Cannes is much like Nice, only with nicer beaches, sand beaches. The one thing I really did admire about Nice, though, that you never hear much about, is the dramatic land scenery around the area. To the east side of town, there are these large bluffs jutting out into the sea. I didn't get a chance to find my way up them, but they gave off a sense of wonderment from the main town.

Unlike what you hear about with the French, the people in the French Riviera were really quite pleasant. They realize that tourism makes their economy, and they're mostly quite receptive of American travelers.

In Rome, like has already been said, make sure to watch your wallet. Gypsies got mine in only a couple hours from when I departed my train at the Termini, and I keep my wallet in my front pocket. In my case it was a roving band of children, but a trio of women, one either pregnant or using a very convincing prop. Just don't let anyone touch your arms, and immediately grab your wallet should anyone try.

That said, I loved my time in Rome. I stayed at a Pensione, which is essentially a room rented out by a family within their home, cheaper than a traditional hotel. It's a bit odd and off-putting at first, but then you realize it's the norm, and just go with it. When checking into get our room, the family working that day were very helpful with tips about the city, modes of transport and the best times to visit the sites. (Only if they had warned me about the Gypsies then...) I'd highly recommend a walking tour. The guide I had gave a lot of good background of the various monuments and sites, and you will see a lot of things within a short couple hours. Tip accordingly.

When we left Rome, it was a late afternoon train, and thus arrived in Florence late evening - when the hotels' front desks were all either shutdown or informing us of no vacancies. That said, Florence was a beautiful city at night, and the sunrise was absolutely gorgeous as we were along the path to Michelangelo's grave site. It's at the top of a hill to the SE corner of the city. We saw the city in this dreamy, early morning state of silence while a passing shower hit the far side of the Arno River valley. The entire city is just covered in art, like Rome. Walking along the street, you'll just come random pieces of art lining city streets.

In Venice it's important to remember that even though all the ticket windows for the canal taxis are closed for business, the Policia will still fine you 9200 Lira - or double that if your buddy just ran out of cash...even if you're on the way to catch the train out of town at that very moment.

Otherwise, the city is quite nice. I'd suggest walking around the town, finding all the footbridges that you can. Each one is unique, and you'll come across a part of the area that you just don't expect, away from the standard tourist areas. I remember thinking it odd when I came across a small hardware shop that sold an electric Toro lawnmower, seeing as how the entire city was paved in brick and stone. Plus you'll find a restaurant that caters more towards the locals, so the food's that much better.

The gondoliers will offer you a special price for being an American. At least that's what their sales pitches were to me and my buddy. For some reason they thought two guys fresh out of college would want a freaking romantic ride through the canals on a gondola. Their collective assessment of their target audience was off by a bit. Yeesh.

Skip Milan. I wasn't impressed at all. I think part of it was that it's considered the Italian city that most mimics an American city, and that there was a baggage handler strike, so the trains weren't operating on time there. People around there made it sound as if the baggage handlers were on strike one day every other week, give or take.

Innsbruck is easily the most beautiful city I've ever been in. The view of the Alps is amazing, postcard quality really. And the view from the top of the Alps - easily accomplished - is even more so. They even have wild peacock you can come across when walking along the outskirts of town. Add to that the locals were simply the nicest people I met my entire time in Europe. I can't say enough about them - except for the guy running the ice cream stand across the street from the train station. **** him. I speak just a little German, and he seemed all the more cross for it. I warned the cute Mexican girls about him, but they had to find out for themselves. They too were unimpressed.

Just one warning about tipping customs in Austria - unlike in France and Italy, tipping is encouraged, but it's in a bit unusual way. Giving coin is considered a major faux pas; a tip should only be given by using a bill of greater denomination than the cost of the meal. Otherwise it's an insult. I learned the hard way, and the waitress clued me in on the custom after I deposited some considerable coin onto the table. I then apologized and I hope she didn't take offense after the conversation. Plus she was really hot.

 

[dxmnkd316]

Re: Help on what to do in Europe

Good point on tipping. If you can, do some research on tipping for EACH country you intend to visit. I can't remember which country we were in, but we did like 20%. The waitress came running after us and basically explained in broken english that we paid too much. Once we said it was her tip (as best we could) she was quite happy.

Regarding wallets, this is going to sound silly, but use a neck wallet. nearly impossible to steal without your knowing. Also, don't leave ANYTHING unattended. Think of it like a constant tornado. Anything not bolted down will disappear before you even know it. Not just your wallet.

 

[The Rube]

Re: Help on what to do in Europe

Just one warning about tipping customs in Austria - unlike in France and Italy, tipping is encouraged, but it's in a bit unusual way. Giving coin is considered a major faux pas; a tip should only be given by using a bill of greater denomination than the cost of the meal. Otherwise it's an insult. I learned the hard way, and the waitress clued me in on the custom after I deposited some considerable coin onto the table. I then apologized and I hope she didn't take offense after the conversation. Plus she was really hot.

So I know I'm reading this wrong, or you're not explaining quite right....you have to pay more in tip than your meal??

 

[dxmnkd316]

Re: Help on what to do in Europe

So I know I'm reading this wrong, or you're not explaining quite right....you have to pay more in tip than your meal??

Round it up is what he means.

 

[Beer Pong Horn]

Re: Help on what to do in Europe

Regarding wallets, this is going to sound silly, but use a neck wallet. nearly impossible to steal without your knowing. Also, don't leave ANYTHING unattended. Think of it like a constant tornado. Anything not bolted down will disappear before you even know it. Not just your wallet.

Seconded - and spring for a good one that won't chafe against your body.

So I know I'm reading this wrong, or you're not explaining quite right....you have to pay more in tip than your meal??

I wonder what sort of "meal" she was serving

EDIT: dx sounds like he has the right idea.

 

[The Rube]

Re: Help on what to do in Europe

Round it up is what he means.

Got it. Thanks.

 

[St. Clown]

Re: Help on what to do in Europe

So I know I'm reading this wrong, or you're not explaining quite right....you have to pay more in tip than your meal??

Round it up is what he means.

Sort of. Using US$ as an example, if the bill came to $19.59 I could leave a $50 bill and that would have been acceptable as payment and a tip. But leaving $40 would have been seen as rude, not because of the lesser value of the tip, but because I grabbed a second bill to make the tip.

What's good to note is that Europeans use coins to much larger denominations that we do here. So when I was pulling out change, it wasn't just some paltry amount.

 

[The Rube]

Re: Help on what to do in Europe

Sort of. Using US$ as an example, if the bill came to $19.59 I could leave a $50 bill and that would have been acceptable as payment and a tip. But leaving $40 would have been seen as rude, not because of the lesser value of the tip, but because I grabbed a second bill to make the tip.

What's good to note is that Europeans use coins to much larger denominations that we do here. So when I was pulling out change, it wasn't just some paltry amount.

Note to self: either never go to Austria, or get use to insulting a lot of people.


That's just messed up.

 

[dxmnkd316]

Re: Help on what to do in Europe

Sort of. Using US$ as an example, if the bill came to $19.59 I could leave a $50 bill and that would have been acceptable as payment and a tip. But leaving $40 would have been seen as rude, not because of the lesser value of the tip, but because I grabbed a second bill to make the tip.

What's good to note is that Europeans use coins to much larger denominations that we do here. So when I was pulling out change, it wasn't just some paltry amount.

Are you sure? Both times I was there I was told to round up to the nearest euro. And this was by someone who has been there probably 20-30 times.

 

[The Rube]

Re: Help on what to do in Europe

Are you sure? Both times I was there I was told to round up to the nearest euro. And this was by someone who has been there probably 20-30 times.

Yeah, I'm not tipping $30 on a $20 meal.

 

[ajoyce02]

Re: Help on what to do in Europe

Hey everyone,

Thanks again for the help on Hawaii but it looks like the honeymoon is going the other way...

We're spending a few days in Barcelona and then on a cruise that stops in Rome (ITA), Florence (ITA), Nice (FRA) and Toulon (FRA).

If you have been to Italy, France or Spain and have a favorite restaurant, meal, site, tour, memory, etc etc... share!!!

Also have a quick layover in Zurich (SUI)... so close to the German border I can probably get a good beer there, no? Let me know how you killed time there if you've been.... staying long enough to do something at the airport but not long enough to leave and come back.

My one piece of advice I always give is look for hole in the wall restaurants. I can't even begin to tell you how many places like this I've been to the from the outside might not look like the greatest places to eat, but once you try their food, you don't regret it.

Like here, a lot of places will have their menu outside to review, but I have not failed with this method yet.

 

[The Rube]

Re: Help on what to do in Europe

My one piece of advice I always give is look for hole in the wall restaurants. I can't even begin to tell you how many places like this I've been to the from the outside might not look like the greatest places to eat, but once you try their food, you don't regret it.

Like here, a lot of places will have their menu outside to review, but I have not failed with this method yet.

Watch any European episode of "Three Sheets." That should help, also.