General
WEBSITES TO HELP:
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www.statravel.com - a student-oriented travel website
www.hostels.com - cheaper than hotels, usually dormitory-tyle with occasional smaller or
private rooms. Sometimes separated-sex, sometimes mixed. Usually with free or cheap
breakfast.
www.lonelyplanet.com - the guides are worth their weight in gold
www.megabus.com - Coach Tickets for a mere £1? Who knew!
Budget airlines - http://www.easyjet.com/, http://www.ryanair.com/,
http://www.flybmi.com/, http://www.bmibaby.com/, http://www.gexx.de/,
germanwings.com, airberlin.com. Book in advance and flying between cities is often
cheaper than trains (especially Eurostar, which is not kind on the budget)
BASIC TRAVEL TIPS:
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Seems everyone agrees - the best way to eat cheap is to go to the local grocery store.
Also, you have way more fun looking for non-tourist, non-big-city places to go than doing
what the guides tell you to do.
"If you do decide to go on a pub crawl, show up ten minutes late and hang outside the
first bar. When the group leaves the first bar, blend in the with the rest of the people.
Saved me 15 bucks two nights, and you usually get a free drink in every bar, though
sometimes very watered down." -HungLikeAWoman
"Make sure you have the phone numbers of the hostels in the city you are visiting. Either
collect them before you go traveling or get them at the local tourist information point.
Then find the nearest payphone and start calling the hostels if there are free places.
Beats visiting every hostel to check if there are free places." –Fizz
"Just as a general note, when you arrive in europe, stay in a hotel and not a hostel.
Typically your going to be a little tired when you get there anyway and you'll be glad to
get some rest instead of being awakened in the middle of the night by some guys that
just got in from there trip to the bar." –spiralbrain
"Never pay for train tickets from an airport to the center of the city and never pay for
bus tickets anywhere. They never check the tickets and if you do get caught the fine will
be less expensive than all the tickets you didn't have to buy. Do pay for subway tickets.
(this information becomes rather controversial later in the thread, so either follow this
guy's advice if you're ballsy enough, or listen to EVERYONE ELSE if you're feeling
sheepish)
Learn to say excuse me, hello, do you speak English, thank you, good morning, good
evening, and good bye in the language of the country you are in. Even if your accent is
terrible showing a little effort will go along way with the locals.
If you are partying your way through Europe I recommend staying at these places if at
all possible (http://www.europefamoushostels.com). They cater to young backpackers
and almost all of them have a bar that serves the cheapest drinks in town. I myself
stayed at the Flying Pig, The Three Ducks and Hotel Alessandro and the hostels were all
in good locations with an awesome staff and best of all cheap.
If you are backpacking make sure and book lodging a few days before you arrive.
Nothing sucks more than arriving in Paris ay 3 am, and trying to find a place to sleep.
Consider flying between cities rather than taking trains. You can save yourself tons of
traveling time and best of all airlines like RyanAir and Virgin Express sometimes offer
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rates that are cheaper than train tickets. RyanAir flew me from Milan to Paris for 25 euro.
Most of Europse has a Value Added Tax of up to 30% on all sold goods (like a sales tax
basically). Save your receipts and you can get the money refunded to you at customs." Logik
"Also, if you're in Europe, don't bother to order a Coke or Pepsi, they cost something like
$4-8, depending on where you get it. Learn to love bottled water!" -Pyros
"In order to travel by rail cheaply in Europe look into Interrail passes. You're technically
supposed to live in the EU for 6 months or more before you're permitted to buy one. If
you speak the language of the country you're buying one in, you can often get one even
if you don't meet this requirement... I bought them no less than 4 or 5 times while I was
living in Austria.
Info on it can be found at: http://www.interrailnet.com
Read the info about it carefully, it's got some strange conditions, ie it's not valid in the
country you purchase it in, and for high speed trains you often have to pay supplements
(they're not very much though... usually 5-15 Euro on German ICE trains).
PACKING
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"Take twice the money and half the clothing you think you need." -Akvj1n
"get an erasable ink pen... worked just great for me ... took the train like a zillion times
with my 5 day [Eurorail] pass." -Dnatural
"Take lots of vitamins, FORCE yourself to drink a lot of water (to compensate for the
booze) and bring cold pills. Don't be afraid to act the tourist, ask people for help, go to
TI centres, BUY MAPS." -big dig
"If you plan on going out at night, bring some nice clothes. Europeans tend to dress up
much more than Americans. You will not convince an Italian chick, who doesn't
understand anything you say, to come home with you if you're wearing shorts, a tee shirt
and a hat." -Logik
GUIDES
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"my Protip for the whole journey - photocopy those maps at the back of your tourbook
before you go. It's SO much easier to whip out a little photocopied map from your pocket
than bringing out the entire book each time proclaiming "I am a tourist and I'm lost!".
This helped us muchly with our Bible-sized copy of Let's Go 1999." -squirrellypoo
UK:
General Info
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In the UK, "sales tax" is called "VAT" (Value Added Tax), runs at 17.5%, and the
government's guide to reclaiming it is here.
Advice for Accents: Don't be offended by someone talking to you in a bizzare accent, we
don't all speak like Lord Chistlewick Flanders and they are not being rude. The accent I
have the most difficulty with (And I'm English) is Scouser, but thats just because I find it
irritating.
Cabbies: Cabbies can be a real pain in the ass in England, as with most countries. Make
sure they give you an estimate of the cost of the journey before you hop in.
ENGLAND
London
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http://journeyplanner.tfl.gov.uk/ - Tell it where you're coming from and where you're
going to, and it will spit back all the different ways to get between the two, how long it
will take, and how much it will cost you. Absolutely fucking essential for those "How the
hell do I get home from Club X at 4am?" questions. Also great if you're arriving from
another country and want to know the best route to your hotel! (squirrellypoo)
www.londontown.com - It has all kinds of useful shit on it like street maps to various
locations, hotel guides, event listings, restaurant guides, and a bunch of other stuff. I'm
an American living in London and this site has made it much easier for me to find things
in this town. I'm sure others could find it useful too. (Risket)
http://www.the-generator.co.uk/ - recommended hostel (block51) its a really nice(as
hostels go) with £1 pints/mixed drinks up till 9 in their bar. (BigRedCat) It's a huge place,
but well run. Cheapest drinks you'll find in London, and cheap food. Has laundry, internet
etc. I enjoyed my time here, and it's pretty affordable, by London standards.
(LucasMedaffy)
GUTSHOT CASINO, NOT VICTORIA
I've stayed at the city of london and oxford street hostels, both very nice, no curfew,
guys and girls apart. Oxford St ones mostly 2 bedroom rooms, from about £25 a night,
city of london ranges from £15-30 depending on how many you have in your room.
(powertoiletduck)
Go to the funfair in leicester square [i think it's always there, london goons may prove
me wrong]. do not go on the eye, or eat in a garfunkels. (marwood)
Landmarks - Parliament, Buckingham Palace, the Tower of London, Admiralty Arch,
Trafalgar Square, Leicester Square are the ones I'd recommend. They're all pretty close
together so my advice is get a travelcard (which lets you use all of London's Public
transport all day for a flat fee) and get your friend to give you the tour in one day.
(Jamesface)
Museums - Definitely do the Tate Modern. Tate Britain is good too, as is the British
Museum. The Natural History Museum, The Victoria & Albert Museum and the Science
Museum are all next to each other, and all worth visiting. All of these museums are now
free to enter, luckily. (Jamesface)
London also has the Imperial War Museum, one of the larger museums dedicated to the
first world war. They have F.M. Montgomery's command car from North Africa and tons
upon tons of artifacts from all sides involved in the war, though their bookship is
somewhat (RandolH)
Absolute must-see is a little tiny museum near Holborn tube, Sir John Soane's house, on
Lincoln's Inn Fields. TRUST ME ON THIS. I've sent so many friends down there, and
everyone's loved it. And you've got nothing to lose as it's free (and there's a fantastic
pub from the 1400s right nearby, The Cittie Of Yorke, that serves real ale and cheap
food). (squirrellypoo)
Skip London Dungeon and the Tower of London. They're crowded, horrible, and
unbelievable overpriced. For history, take a couple hours in the British Museum or the
Museum of London. free free free weeeeeee! (squirrellypoo)
Science Museum - huge place, lots of really cool and interesting stuff. It may be worth
checking their website for more information, they sometimes have things set up for a few
weeks. Also very cheap (free I think actually) to get in. One of my favourite places in
London really. (FractionMan)
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Shops - Oxford Street, Regent Street, Carnaby Street and Tottenham Court Road are all
close together. If you can do Camden Market at the weekend definitely do. Harrods is
out of the way in Knightsbridge and not as special as it used to be, I wouldn't count it as
a target any more. (Jamesface) For up&coming cheap fashion, definitely go to
Spitalfields Market (near Liverpoool Street) on Sundays for moshpit crowds and very
quirky designer fashion for extremely cheap. (squirrellypoo)
Food - Soho is a good idea. Also try Borough Market and the West End as a whole.
(Jamesface) Brewer street in london has some great japanese restaurants. (jonnii) Pub
sunday lunch cannot be beaten, or pub lunch on anyday (roast beef and yorkshire
pudding) Spitfire rocks. (phikl)
Ale - As far as beers are concerned, you need to get some real ale inside you. Spitfire,
Abbot or Newcastle Brown come highly recommended...but head into any inner-city
Wetherspoons (a chain of pubs) and they'll do one or two weird-ass obscure ales. The
idea being to taste as many as humanly possible (gucci_piggy)
Pubs - If you want the real English Pub experience, I'd steer clear of Wetherspoons.
They're dead cheap, but there's no music, they're always packed with the pre-club crowd
and the beer is usually bloody awful. Anyone who thinks that Spitfire is a real ale hasn't
tried the genuine article. Try Theakstones, Eldridge Popes, Old Speckled Hen or London
Pride, all good quality falling-over juice.
A lot of British pubs are owned by big brewery companies, and tend to serve the same
range of Australian lagers, cheap bitters and overpriced bottled crap like Bacardi Breezer,
or "bitch piss" as it's affectionately known. They're OK if all you want is to get leathered,
but you'll be missing out on a the real heritage stuff.
Look for a sign saying "Free House", which usually means the pub is independently
owned and the landlord is free to stock whatever beers he wants. Either that, or stick to
pubs owned by small breweries. If you can find one that has a good range of real ales
and know how to keep them properly, then you've struck gold.
If you're going to be in London, I'd recommend The George, in George Inn Yard, SE1.
The place was built in the 1500's; Shakespeare and Dickens were both regulars. Also
good is Ye Olde Cheshire Cheese in Fleet Street, and the Prospect Of Whitby, Wapping
Wall E1 (a brewery pub, but one of London's oldest). (chromis)
If your looking for a cheap pub The Goose a block from the russel square tube station is
good, £3.95 for a burger(beef or chicken) and a pint, £2 double drinks + mixer.
(BigRedCat)
Activities - The London Eye will show you the whole city. You can also get waterbuses
down the Thames which I recommend. (Jamesface) The london eye is a total swiz; it's
very expensive, the queues around then will be insane and frankly it's not that great. do
a thames boat tour or get up a tall building instead, seriously. (marwood)
Races - go to http://www.wsgreyhound.co.uk/ on a saturday night. quality entertainment
at a great price. (aversion)
The prince charles cinema off leicester square is less then half the price of most london
cinemas, it shows rad movies like bundy that aren't on anywhere else and it's always full
of interesting drunks, drug addicts and good looking film fans like myself. (aversion)
London Underground: Ever seen American Werewolf in London? Well, the tube STILL
looks like that (Minus the Jubilee and parts opf the District and Circle lines). Its great fun
when quiet (Usually around 3-4PM ) and the best way to get about IMO. It's seperated
into zones, which is how payment is calculated - just get an allday travelcard for zones 13 and that should do for all your travel needs! (LordEvilElmo)
London Walks: Easy ones to do are around Westminster and St James' Park, South Bank
to Bankside to Tower Bridge, Baker Street through to Camden. All are easy enough and if
you ask for brief directions people will help out. I can provide you with a couple of maps
if you would like, with some notes on history etc. (LordEvilElmo)
Stonehenge
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If you're here on the 21st of june and want to get fucking wrecked, come to stonehenge,
an ancient stone circle in wiltshire, down douth. There's a big party on the summer
solstice, the shortest night of the year. it's an occult festival as well as a mash-up. The
police don't care about any drugs, and you're allowed to bring any un-amplified musical
instruments. The central stone circle is usually a huge column of bud smoke up to the
sky. It's well good. (SA-X)
Brighton
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The Singing Rocks - In front of Churchill Square (the mall), there are a series of circular
stone and bronze objects. If you place your ear at various places on them, you'll hear
different tones, which change as the solar exposure changes. Or they operate via the
devil. I'm not really sure, but damn do they sing! (squirrellypoo)
Lanes vs North Laines - they are not the same thing, despite what last week's idiotic
TimeOut writer may tell you. The Lanes are a very narrow maze of medieval streets
chock full of antique shops, designer boutiques, and restaurants. The North Laines are a
series of strees running paralell to Old Steine which is chock full of bars, cheap cafes,
record stores, and other counter-culture emporiums. (squirrellypoo)
Only old women swim in the sea. It's fucking freezing. Don't bring your suit expecting it
to be Ocean City Maryland. (squirrellypoo)
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The Palace Pier - They changed the sign in 2000 to say "Brighton Pier". Everyone will
think you're old skool Brightonian if you refer to it by it's rightful name. (squirrellypoo)
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Hove - Hove is the upmarket little sister to seedy Brighton. If someone says they're from
Hove, they will often follow it with the word "actually". This is a joke, laugh. The
unofficial name of Hove is "Hove, actually". (squirrellypoo)
Oxford
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Aside from exploring the different college quads, you can take a walk in the beautiful
Christ Church meadows, or further out through Port Meadow to enjoy a drink in the
Perch Inn by the river. Check out the Bodlean Library and Radcliffe Camera in particular
for some stunning architecture and errr a lot of books. You can find some nice places to
eat up by Little Clarendon Street, and the Turf Tavern in the centre of town is one of the
quaintest pubs in the UK, with an annual beer festival. Tip for exploring the colleges
quads: walk in like you belong there, casually and purposefully, otherwise the porters
sometimes try to stop you. (Redrazors)
Cambridge (all by cad)
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Cambridge is similar to Oxford regarding the University colleges so the advice there
should work. Avoid going at the end of Terms (December, March/April, & June) as exams
are on and the colleges will be closed to Tourists. Inside colleges NEVER walk on the
grass, it annoys the Porters.
Kings College Chapel is a must. It's the big church connected to King's College (King's
Parade). It dates from Henry VII's reign (1490s) and is the symbol of the City Council.
If you are going in the summer I suggest a visit to the Univerity's Botanic Gardens
(entrance on Bateman Street) as this is perhaps one of the most beautiful (and quiet)
parts of Cambridge. It's great anytime of year but especially in the Spring and Summer.
This, however, means they start charging for entrance (it's free in Winter).
The Fitzwilliam Museum (http://www.fitzmuseum.cam.ac.uk/) (Trumpington Street) is a
pretty big and impressive museum if you're into that sort of thing. Go down that street
anyway, it leads onto the Senate House which is worth seeing.
There are a number of interesting museums: The Cambridge Folk Museum
(http://www.folkmuseum.org.uk/ )(Castle Street), the Scott Polar Research Institute
(http://www.spri.cam.ac.uk/museum/) (Lensfield Road), which has a lot of Scott's
expedition equipment); and various University Museums
(http://www.cam.ac.uk/cambarea/events/museums.html).
Midsummer Common: this is still a common with grazing rights so you'll see cows on it
and sometimes they fall in the river. It is also home to Midsummer Fair (dating back to
1211) which is a massive funfair that takes place around Midsummer.
As in Oxford you can go punting, either down to Grantchester Meadow or through the
town. Punts leave from various places but the most common is the Anchor Pub (Silver
Street). Grantchester Meadow was made famous by the poet Robert Brooke, and a pub
named after him stands near the river so you can refresh yourself after punting down.
Grantchester is also home to the author, Peer of the Realm, and convicted perjury Jeffrey
Archer.
I'm sure I've left out loads of stuff. There is loads to do in Cambridgeshire, for instance.
Visit The Tourist Information Centre (http://www.visitcambridge.org/).
Birmingham, England (all by ChrisPBS)
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A lot of non-Brits don't know what Birmingham is or claim never to have heard of it, so
just to clarify: it's England's second city.
The same common sense rules apply for Birmingham as they do for London. Agree on a
price before using a cab, watch out for the exotic mushrooms (though they aren't as
common on the streets in Birmingham anyway) and of course, VAT still applies.
Accent: If you're not from Birmingham or the surrounding area, the Birmingham/Black
Country accent (nicknamed "Brummie" accent) can become extremely annoying or
frustrating.
Birmingham is excellent for shopping. The Bullring (http://www.bullring.co.uk/) is
probably the largest and most popular shopping centre around, and on weekends it's
always jam-packed. Home to many designer outlets such as FCUK, Miss Sixty, Gap and
Selfridges. Don't dine at Selfridges or Starbucks though, it's overpriced (as you probably
already know).
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Before the Bullring was renovated, the Pavillions was probably the busiest shopping
arcade. It's located right next to the Bullring, and holds a few more large outlets such as
HMV and Marks & Spencer.
There are other department stores around, such as Debenhams, Rackhams and Next.
Definitely worth a look.
Since the city centre is so large, it's easy to misplace stuff or have it stolen. Watch your
belongings. Common sense really.
Every other shop is a restaurant or some other place to eat. If you don't want fast food,
don't bother with the city centre. There are some nice restaurants on the border of the
centre if you're looking for something a little more classy, as well as numerous Chinese
and Indian restaurants.
If you've got time, go to the Big Wok (http://www.bigwok.co.uk/) on Wrottesley Street,
pretty much opposite the Hippodrome theatre. It's a cheap but good-quality all-you-caneat Chinese buffet restaurant, and it is absolutely awesome. If you can find it, wait in the
inevitable queue outside. It's definitely worth it.
WALES
Comedy "Swansea" Option (get here for £1 on Megabus, see above)
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Pubs: A fair few are crap, I mostly drink real ale so im going to suggest you the two
best, The Railway inn on the Gower road is probably the best, good selection of real ales,
usually about 6 or 7 at any one time and well condition, and the comany is really
friendly. The Next is the joiners arms at bishopston, home of the swansea brewing
company (originally started in our universitys chemistry labs), again a lot like the railway
and has a nice pub garden, around 5 good ales on at any time. Club wise there isnt
much, wine street in the city centre is quite good and a lot of places has drink offers on
most nights. Alternitive scene is crap apart from the Monkey House on Wine Street or
Escape on Fridays. (Starbucks)
Beaches: Dont fucking laugh, a lot of professional surfers would tell you that some
beaches along the gower coast is a lot better than that you would find at newquay, so its
good in that respect, also in summer around exam times expect lots of hot women
around. (Starbucks)
Touristy crap: Dillan Thomas Museum and the University Egyptology Museum (my
fiance works there, so i go there a lot) are the two places. I can also direct you to
Catherine Zeta Jones' place if you want to TP it. (Starbucks)
Llandudno
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Well, I guess you can't really miss what you need to do here - the Great Orme is a
fantastic way for a tourist to spend 3 hours or so. It's a huuuuge road going round a big
hill/small mountain (with no peak), and from there you can see across Llandudno and the
scenery around it, and also on the other side you can see the sea going north. Half way
there there's a nice restaurant type place where you can get something to eat and drink.
Watch out, though... it can be windy. The weather is usually lovely in summer though.
It's also very rewarding and satisfying as part of a bike ride too. Also, the pier and the
shops around that area are worth a look. There is a cool tram which will take you up to
the orme too. (Idioteque Dance)
Rhyl
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Well, don't have your expectations too high here. It's a pretty run-down town, but the
sea front makes for a good arcade, and if walking/cycling down next to the beach is your
thing then I recommend that. (Idioteque Dance)
Portmadog
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This place has a nice beach. It's much nicer than most beaches in the country - and is
big too. The town, I believe, is quite nice (usual north wales towns). (Idioteque Dance)
Final tip: if you want accomodation and would like to stay in a caravan park, do not
worry about finding one. Around the towns like these, they are everywhere. (Idioteque
Dance)
Snowdonia
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You forgot Snowdonia National Park - I climb those 7 mountains every year, they are
absolutely beautiful. Worth going to Wales just for those. http://www.snowdoniawales.net (LordEvilElmo)
NORTHERN IRELAND
Belfast
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The first question most people ask about visiting Belfast is "Will I get blown up?". The
short answer is no. Belfast has one of the lowest crime rates in the UK and outside the
contentious marching season (the first half of July) you aren't likely to find trouble. The
days of bombings are gone, as reflected by the huge amount of foreign investment in the
city. (Irish Bandit)
Belfast has enjoyed a lot of redevelopment in recent years with most of the stuff worth
seeing concentrated in the South of the city, particularly along the Lagan river. The
Odyssey Arena plays host to the Belfast Giants, the local ice hockey team. It also doubles
up as a venue for entertainment events (most recently the Harlem Globetrotters) and
contains two cinemas, one regular and one of the Imax variety. (Irish Bandit)
If you aren't coming to Belfast for that sort of thing and simply want to check out the
city, I would recommend finding the City Hall and walking in any direction that takes
your fancy from there. There are a lot of old buildings in Belfast that are architecturally
impressive and well worth taking a look at.
Many tourists come to Belfast to see the famous murals. I'd recommend Derry as well if
that is what you're after - it has better murals and a funky city wall to keep out the
Egyptians. (Irish Bandit)
On the northern coast of the province we have the Giant's Causeway. It is used in a lot
of tourism commercials but it is basically a lot of funny looking flat rocks. If you happen
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to wash up on the coast after getting ship wrecked, I'd recommend taking a look.
Otherwise don't expect anything too exciting. (Irish Bandit)
And most importantly, do not come to Belfast exclusively. As long as you are on this rock
you should visit the Republic because there is a lot more to do down there. If you
happen to be over in Britain consider spending a few days in Ireland - flights on Easyjet
or Ryanair are about £50 return from the major British airports. (Irish Bandit)
SCOTLAND
Stirling
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Stirling, Scotland:
There's the castle and the monument, which are touristy but nice. I recommend going to
the castle first and early in the day, because you'll want to get your money's worth - a
student ID gets you a £2 discount, but it's still £8, and the guided audio tour is £2
anyway. If you don't want to cough up the £2 for the audio set, there are tour guides
that leave from just inside the gates every half hour or hour or something. Spend several
hours there, take your time, and get your money's worth. (poetrywhore)
I spent about three hours in the Wallace Monument for a few reasons - one, because I
had to pay £4.50 and wanted to make them earn it. Two, I came here with my family
when I was a kid, and it was fun reminiscing. Three, my name's Wallace so I felt
obligated to take my time. Ignore the hideous, pathetic statue of Mel Gibson at the
bottom of the mountain and go straight up to the monument. There are side paths on
your way up the hill that are fun to explore, but don't yield much otherwise.
(poetrywhore)
There are only two clubs in Stirling worth partying at, and they're both something of a
let-down. Fubar is the one to go to if you want an older crowd and older music, Enigma
is the one to go to if you want a younger crowd and more recent music. If you feel like
going out to Bridge of Allan, which isn't far at all, the Beat is also good. Calling ahead to
one of these places and asking what you need to do to get on the guest list can be worth
it, especially since getting drunk in the UK costs an arm and a leg. I recommend buying a
bottle and either getting drunk ahead of time or drinking in the bathroom. (poetrywhore)
Look out for the "neds," a strange breed of youngsters that roam the town in track suits,
bumming "fags" off of smokers and picking fights with random people. Oh, and calling
every female "Darling." Avoid them at all costs. (poetrywhore)
The Willy Wallace Backpacker's Hostel is great. Great great. (poetrywhore)
Doune Castle - If you're a Monty Python fan, you may be interested in Doune Castle,
where the majority of Monty Python and the Holy Grail was filmed. It's actually a pretty
neat castle in its own right - unlike tourist destinations it's not been messed with much
which makes for lots of fun exploring. In addition its caretaker is a very nice guy who has
several sets of coconuts you can borrow for your visit. Getting there is fairly easy; from
Edinburgh we took the train to Stirling and then it was about a 10 minute bus ride to
Doune. From the bus stop it took about ten minutes to get to the castle.
Glasgow
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Do eat at Mondo's, don't stay at the Eurohostel, and that's all I have to say about my
terrible time in Glasgow. (poetrywhore)
Cheap Eurohostels, or PM me and I can give you a couch/floor for free. Cheap booze,
free galleries (Charlie Brown)
Ayrshire
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Nice beaches (in the summer), Land o' Burns (our national poet), some very nice
countryside and tourist attractions in Alloway, and Prestwick airport (very cheap travel
with Ryanair) (Charlie Brown)
Edinburgh
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The castle, some wonderful views, Arthur's Seat, Royal Mile, Cheap hostels (Charlie
Brown)
Travel Glasgow - Edinburgh for £1 with Megabus (Charlie Brown)
There are a bunch of adverts for ghost tours along the Royal Mile, but we chose the
Underground City Tour instead, which takes you through the tiny chambers, workshops,
and medieval houses underneath the city itself. very recommended. (squirrellypoo)
Arran
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Or any island, to be honest - Cheap ferry travel if you want to get away to anywhere
that's extremely quiet and very green, with nothing but grass and ocean (Charlie Brown)
REPUBLIC OF IRELAND
Dublin
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Youth Hostels: steer clear in Dublin.. IIRC there is one good one and 3 shitholes.
(Ataraxia)
The open to bus tour is worth it to give you sn overview of the sights around the city, as
a bonus the ticket lets you hop on and off the bus all day so you can spend some time in
one area if you like the look of it. (Ataraxia)
The Wicklow Mountains just south of Dublin are worth a visit for the beautiful scenery,
there's also a famous session pub called Johnny Fox's in the area. (Ataraxia)
I recommend Powerscourt in Wicklow. This place isn't called "the garden of Ireland" for nothing.
In fact a lot of the more hilly areas of the country offer breathtaking scenery. Areas around Cork
and Kerry are also spectacular. Someone mentioned Killarney as a tourist trap. It is, and it is well
deserved tourist trap.
Cork is another relatively large city in Ireland. The Cork humor is.... unique. You'll find the people
are more nationalistic than normal. Many Cork people refer to the place as "the real capital".
I don't know much about the west except that it's sparsely populated and hence very rural. It is
geologically quite rugged and if you're looking for "ye olde Irish charm" which translates into
thick rural accents and interesting country smells, then you're likely to find it in areas like Cavan
and Mayo.
Waterford is billed as the "shopping capital of the south east". It really isn't capital of much
except the most tourist traps in the country except for Killarney and Dublin. Most people take a
look at Reginalds tower and the Waterford Crystal centre. There is also some good night life in
the area. However the smarter people roll up thier windows and drive very fast through the area.
If you are down in Waterford you might be lucky to get a tour from yours truly.
Do the tour of Dublin Castle, see The Book of Kells, and St Patrick's Cathedral. You'll get more
than enough history in those three trips to last you a long while.
-DON'T DO THE GUINNESS HOPSTORE TOUR!!!11 It sucks balls and is outrageously
expensive. Sure, it's pimped by every tourist guide you'll read, but it's really not worth it. The
view from the sky bar is ok if you like looking at church spires, chimney stacks and cranes, but
the Guinness is probably the worst in the country outside of Temple Bar.
There are plenty of comparatively cheap places to eat. You just have to shop around a bit.
Always check the price lists on the door of any place before you go in. A good rule of thumb is if
there's a sign outside written in chalk offering specials, you're on to a winner. The expensive
places will never do this, and the cheaper but better restaurants rely on it. But to be honest, Pub
Grub is the way to go. Most larger city-center pubs will do carvery lunches, where you'll get a
plate stacked with meat, spuds and veg. Burger King over here is really surprisingly good. Order
an XL Big King and you'll know the meaning of a really big burger. If you're really drunk and
need grease, go to Abrakebabra and order a doner kebab. It's the messiest meal ever, and you
can only enjoy it if you're pissed, but well worth it. Plus the way the seating is layed out is very
good for sitting down beside random people and talking to them. You'll meet real Dublin people
there. Be, and agree with everything they say, and you'll get along famously. NEVER GO TO
ABREKEBABRA WHILE SOBER.
If you're here in the summer, try to see a Hurling match. It's an experience not to be missed.
You thought your sportsmen were tough? Pah!
A few things to note:
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Our transportation system is either a joke or a scandal. You decide. If you are travelling
up and down the country try and avoid CIE (semi-state transport company) unless you
absolutely must use them. Industrial action with this company is looming over the
summer, incidentally. Private coach companies such as http://www.jjkavanagh.ie/ offer
better value, albeit more limited service routes.
Nobody, except for people who live in very remote areas in the south and west of the
country, knows Irish. We are taught Irish in schools, and after that everyone promptly
forgets about it. If you go around saying stuff like "Go raibh maith agat" or "Cad is ainm
duit?" expect funny looks.
Yes, it is the middle of summer, but expect the weather to be shitty. It has been a good
summer (relatively speaking) so far. Don't hold your breath that it's going to continue
like this.
Kilkenny
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Don't go here if you want a tour of the kilkenny brewery - they don't do tours! I think
there is a whiskey distillery open to the public. The town itself is quite small with nice old
architecture. (Ataraxia)
Killarney
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Right in the south-west corner of Ireland, this is probably THE biggest tourist trap after
Dublin, and with good reason.. the area is beautiful and there is plenty to do. The Youth
hostels here are nice (one is practically a stately home) (Ataraxia)
GERMANY:
General Info
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Public transportation systems: Get a pass for 'em and use it. I find that they are fun
because it lets you experience how actual people move from A to B and usually is a lot
easier on the feet than walking all day every day in a city or wherever you are. It does
not make sense to get it all of the time though, think about what you are planning to
do/see in the city (Cptain Amazing)
State owned museums in Germany have free admission on either the first or last Sunday
of the month (I forget, it shouldn't be too hard to find). Many museums will also let you
in free if you explain to them that you are studying art history (it's not my major, but I
was studying it while taking classes in Europe). I know for a fact the Alte Pinaktotek
(sp?) in Munich will allow you in for free if you're an art history student. (PimpinTom)
Berlin
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The Generator (http://www.the-generator.co.uk/) - recommended hostel (block51)
Postdam - Go to Potsdam to the amazing palaces and art gallery. Potsdam is a short train
ride from Berlin, for a day when you don't want to travel a lot. (Cavaradossi)
Sachsenhausen Concentration Camp - Jesus that place was eerie. I cannot even begin to
describe the feeling I got when I walked through the pathology building. Seeing the
tables where they would "inspect" the dead bodies, remove fillings (for gold etc), and
determine cause of death was simply fucking awful. The basement was a cold storage
place where they would pile the bodies. If you ever get a chance, you must go to a
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concentration camp. Seeing it yourself really hits home a lot harder than reading about
it. (block51)
Tresor (club) - Despite being world famous, it still manages to be a cool and relatively
friendly & unpretentious place. Although I must admit I greatly prefer the upstairs which
technically is another club called Globus, playing mostly tech house or minimal, while
Tresor is just the little strobe-lit techno dungeon downstairs. Beats loud and fast enough
to make your ears bleed, but for hardcore mothafuckas I guess that's the appeal.
(la_guillotine)
Walking tour - They have a walking tour that you can take and theyll show you all the
major historical points of interest. It starts at the train station near the tiergarten and
goes through the brandenburg gate, the reichstag, the berlin wall and others.
(spiralbrain) "The Brewers Tour". Has nothing to do with beer. The guy that started the
tours is named Terry Brewer. Our tour guide's name was Preston. He made a big point of
pointing out anything that had to to with the Nazi's as there are hardly ANY signs around
Berlin. Apparently the government feels that it would attract Neo-Nazi's but his point is
that they are burrying the past in an attempt to forget it. (block51)
Circus hostel - we stayed at the one by Rosa-Luxembourg Platz and it was newly
refurbished with big rooms and internet access (squirrellypoo) Stayed at the Circus. Very
nice - very IKEA. It's the hostel that feels like a hotel basically. (LucasMedaffy)
Munich
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Gartens (Beer & otherwise) - Visit Marienplatz and Englishen Garten. Check out the
Botanishe Garten, and the area around Schloss Numphenburg. There's lots to do, and
some areas of the city are chock full of sex shops and other interesting touristy stuff.
(iMercenary)
Protip: The Hofbrau Haus has a back door. Don't stand in line at the main entrance by
the Planet Hollywood. Go around back, and walk straight in. Also, take a big backpack
along so you can steal some heowge mugs. don't be obvious about it but they really
don't care... (squirrellypoo)
4 U Munchen hostel - an eco-friendly hostel near the train station with big pine beds and
unbleached cotton bedding, and rather annoying "water saving" showers. Very friendly
staff. (squirrellypoo)
Deutsches Museum - The exhibits and displays were faded, dusty, and for the most part,
out of order. That it's the science & technology musem is either incredibly funny or
incredibly sad. (squirrellypoo)
Cleanest city that resembles downtown San Francisco (tall, clean buildings with lots of
internet cafes/coffee shops/computer stores). Less crackwhores and homeless though.
Great food and beer gardens. Affordable hotels, the cleanest of the entire trip, if devoid
of personality. (Mr. Sleep)
Also, probably because of the U.S.'s post-war involvement with their rebuilding, I've yet
to meet a single German in Munich who didn't speak almost flawless English. Definite
plus in my arrogant American book. (Mr. Sleep)
Heidelberg
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definitely see the Schloss to get photos next to the world's largest beer keg. for real! I'm
not giving anything more away... if you're feeling up to a nice hike at this point in your
bus journey, cross the bridge to the other side of the river and walk a bit of the
Philosophenweg trail. After the initial load of steps, the views are absolutely amazing.
(squirrellypoo)
Freiburg
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Restaurants: For lunch, take the tram to Bertholdsbrunnen and then go through
Martinstor to Laubfrosh. Whole pizzas, wonderfully tasting, for 1.50 to 3 Euros. If you
need food quick, there's any number of Doener Kebab places, which is one of the
healthiest and tastiest fast foods in the world. Make sure it's Yufka Doener. When you
visit Schlappen, order a Flammkuchen, you'll be glad you did- an Alsacian specialty, it's
like a thin pizza with a sour cream and onion topping. Tasty, filling, and a little sweet.
The other food there is also good. For dinner, go to Escholzstrasse and take a right, then
after a few blocks go to either Pinwand on your left or any of the restaurants on your
right. Pinwand is great for groups as their prices on schnitzel, especially the
Schnitzelturm for 4+ people, can't be beat. Bring hunger! In general, though, almost all
restaurants in Freiburg are great: just a little pricey.
Lodging: Freiburg has a bunch of Hotels and a few hostels, too many to name. I would
recommend first the hostel near the Schwabentor, whose name escapes me at the
moment, but is centrally located with clean beds starting at around 15 Euro. There's also
a good hostel on the eastern outskirts of Freiburg at Kartaeuserstr. 151 which has beds
at 12E/night including all you can eat breakfast and a great view, but it's a little
inconvenient. Camping is also available in the area, but you don't save much money by
doing it.
However, I am shocked, shocked, that you did not mention KTS. KTS is a great, great
club, if it can really be called a club. It's run by some sort of leftist collective that
basically occupies a building owned by the train company. (Apparently, they used to
operate out of there under some sort of agreement with the company, but that
agreement was somehow revoked and so they basically occupy the place.) The music
there is often live hardcore metal/industrial, but I know they also sometimes have
reggae, drum 'n bass, and other stuff as well. They bring in bands a lot from out of town,
I think the place has some sort of underground status), drinks are cheap (and free
water!) and the crowd is surprisingly cool and down-to-earth. I'm not even much of a fan
of hardcore music and I always loved to go there. It's the sort of club I imagined going
to when I initially came to Germany. However, it's a bit outside of the downtown (but not
too far,) my recommendation is to ask around for directions; everyone seems to know
where the place is. (Gail Wynand)
And about bars: Schlappen is a MUST. One of the best bars I have been to, anywhere.
Make sure to have some absinthe. There's also a new bar called KGB near the
Siegesdenkmal bus stop that is quite good, with a very nice selection of vodka and other
Russian drinks. Make sure to talk to the manager (who runs the bar most nights,) he's a
very sociable fellow and gives out lots of quality vodka on the house. (Gail Wynand)
Wetzlar
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Wetzlar is a lovely little town about an hour's train ride outside of Frankfurt. There are a
few ruins in the area that you can bike or walk up to. The place was almost untouched
during the war despite the close proximity of the Leitz-Wetzlar optics company and keeps
the original layout of the medieval town. There is a wonderful military antique store next
to the Lahnbrücke just up from the eisenmarkt. I purchased an issued '42 helmet there,
with the original decals and the guy had buckets of unissued bayonets from before the
Franco-Prussian war and all sorts of other crazy stuff. There are a number of small
bookshops and antique stores in the old part of the town but be prepared for very steep
grades along the roads there and slick roads if it's wet. The area down around the two
bridges over the Lahn is foot and bike traffic only. A little ways up the road is Gießen
where you can visit Stauffenberger castle and get a magnificent view of the Lahn river
valley. (RandolH)
AUSTRIA:
"Oh, and the single greatest place we stayed at was a tiny panzion (hostel, more or less) on the
edge of Salzburg, Austria called Panzion Elizabeth. It's in the Lonely Planet guide. Stay there if
you can, for serious. Lovely place, wonderful town."
"Go to Austria, find the village Fucking, and steal a road sign."
"Go for the hiking. Nothing beats hiking up to a hut up in some mountain and then relaxing with
a fresh lunch of Austrian specialities. Southern Austria is awesome." -ZeeBoi
Salzburg:
"Avoid Salzburg because it's a tourist trap. If you do go, don't buy stuff there (except the original
REAL Mozart Kugel!)." -ZeeBoi
Vienna
"In Vienna, enjoy a mix of old and new architecture (ugh... Jugendstil), see St. Stephen's and
generally check out the first district. Also check out the Hundertwasser House, Schönnbrunn, the
Vienna Woods, and surrounding areas of Vienna. Sitting outside at a restaurant, having some
fine wine or apple juice with mineral water, eating a real Schnitzel with potato salad or just
having some strudel with coffee is such a wonderful thing. Go see an opera or something, too. If
you have time, cycle or rollerblade past the Danube; you can rent those."
BELGIUM:
Brussels
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Horta Museum - An incredible house from one of the leaders in Art Nouveau design.
Incredibly difficult to find, but well worth the effort (squirrellypoo)
Atomium - the greatest building in Belgium (Vontransvaal)
chocolate - Buy as much Neuhaus chocolate as your credit card allows. It's sex in little
pieces. Their store faces L'hotel De Ville at the Grand Place. (F^2) Have some hot
chocolate at Godiva's in Le Grand Place, too. (Mommie Dearest)
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More chocolate - I've tried each of the seven(?) larger chocolatiers (which everyone
should do). The best was Pierre Marcolini. If you take chocolate from one place home,
make it Marcolini. I got a box that had pieces of nearly pure(75%) dark chocolate from
different cocoa growing regions. You can compare how Madagascar is different from
Venezuela. That's something I haven't seen anywhere else. (hexenhaus)
seafood - Brussels is known for its seafood, mussels in particular. So if you're going to
eat local cuisine in the places you visit, you should at the very least eat some Moules
Mariniere. And sweet jesus, are cold/raw seafood platters ever amazing (though stay
away from the raw sea urchins, they just taste like salt water)... (squirrellypoo) Also go
to Chez Leon for huge ass plates of raw mussels at 12 euros a plate. (F^2) Eat the
seafood and the waffles. So good. Also, drink the beer - you can get a pint of trappist ale
for 2.50 or 3 euros at any bar, and it will be the best beer that you will taste in your
lifetime. Lucky Belgian bastards. (surrender)
The modern art museum is simply awesome. It's small but the collection is first-rate.
(Mommie Dearest)
If you end up going to Brussels, make sure to MISS the "light show" at the Grand Place
at 11 pm.
Manneken Pis - that's the statue of the little boy peeing into the fountain. Sourrounding
sounvenir shops are worth a visit for sheer, glorious tackiness. (squirrellypoo) The
Manneken Pis is worth a visit, but avoid the stores in the area. They're full of overpriced
crap. (surrender)
Don't forget the belgian center of comic strip art. It is very cool. (peengers)
I'd advise against buying beer in the center of the city. A 750ml bottle of Chimay costs 67 euros there, while I found it for 4 euros in Spain. Try checking supermarkets outside of
the city centre. (surrender)
Bruges/Brugge
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Church of Our Lady - Bruges has a nice small fell to it. If you go there check out 'The
Church of our lady' early in the morning, they have the only Michelangelo to leave Italy
in his lifetime. (Mat_Drinks)
go for a drink in Charlie Rocket's, it's the coolest place ever. (LukeNukem)
The Passage hostel - small rooms, but it has an excellent restaurant/bar downstairs, and
is on a pretty little side street (squirellypoo)
Stayed at the Snuffle Sleep-In. I liked this hostel and it was cheap (11Euros / night). It
had free walking tours on certain nights and pretty cheap beer (with good variety).
Incidentally this is a gorgeous town; my favourite place on the trip. (LucasMedaffy)