Newbie is getting Nervous

[chandy]

Ok Wiser Punkers,

I leave in just 16 days to venture off with the husband. He has done nothing to research the trip. I have yet to really ask many questions. Or I do and forget where and never read the responses. I am rambling sorry. Questions are... I am going in the winter should I bring my hair dryer? I don't really give a shit about looks ( I am natrually cute) I am kidding. I just don't want frozen hair. Next Question. I am a little worried about getting from Shannon airport in Ireland to Dublin. We have a friend we are meeting up with in Dublin, but I don't know how to get there. (cheapest fastest way ) I have read some hostles won't let you bring your sleeping bags we are bringing ours so what do we do with them if they are not aloud. I am not throwing them away. We are only going around Europe for 16 days we have $2700.00 total usd that we are putting into an account and just using debit cards that seems to be the best advice from everyone on the boards. Do you think this is enough money for food, board, beer and sight seeing? We have Britrail and Eurail passes so I am sure somenights we will sleep on the train. I think it will be something like this each night Hostel then Triain etc. I don't think we are staying the same place two nights unless we just don't want to leave.Ok and last question we are going to these places tell me what we should skip and just do . we are really just winging it. We land in Ireland. so Dublin then make our way to London England, Then over to Beligum ( I think we will skip here and go on to Amsterdam then Munich to Innsbruck Austria and then we finish off with Rome, Florence we fly home from Venice. I am sorry if nothing I have asked makes since. I guess the last question is what is the best route and should we skip some of these places. We have already decided to ditch brussles. These are the places we have agreed on that we wanted to go. Thanks for any answers I guess I am worried about money . We are both big beer drinkers and love imported beer so we just want to drink . I told you I had Lots O questions.
Chandy

[omisan]

Hair dryer: Unless you already have one with a voltage switch, don't worry about bringing it... lest you purchase a voltage converter. Back when I had long hair, I simply bought a compact 220V model in England for £10 and always just took that one to Europe with me.

Shannon to Dublin: Your best bet is probably to catch an airport bus into Limerick and then take the train to Dublin. Alternately, you can go to Galway and then head to Dublin.

Sleeping bags: While many hostels won't allow you to use them, you can certainly have them with you. You just aren't supposed to use them on the beds, as it's one way for bed bugs to get around.

Money: $2700 should be enough for the two of you. The exchange rate is at an alltime low right now, though, so budget wisely and eat on the cheap!

There are a zillion various posts about things to do in the cities you're planning on hitting, so check out the Western Europe section to see what's cool and what people like....

In Dublin, since you're beer drinkers, you should definitely check out the Guinness Storehouse (brewery tour). Just don't buy anything at the giftshop, as it's overpriced, and you can get better deals on stuff online or in the Duty Free.

The Heineken Brewery Tour in Amsterdam is very worthwhile. You'll never get a fresher Heiny and it's relatively cheap, especially compared to Dublin.

London's another expensive one (damn the exchange rate!), but don't deny yourself the pleasure of having a few pints of cask ("real") ale at just about any pub. If you're staying in the Bayswater area, go to the Redan pub on Queensway for 2-for-1 meals and good cask.

Sorry, don't have any tips for Austria or Italy

[Corporal Canuck]

My understanding is that some hostels insist that you have a sleep sheet with you otherwise you have to rent one from them. That doesn't mean that you'll have to throw out your sleeping bags. I bring both so i'm covered no matter the situation (you'll definitely want sleeping bags in winter) and cuz many commercially available sleep sheets - like mine - are very compact and light (a good investment for frequent travellers i reckon).

i've never heard a backpacker complain that they didn't bring their hairdryer.
disclaimer: i'm a guy with an army haircut.

good call on skipping Brussels. no offense to Brussels but if i were you on a 16-day winter trip i would be pretty eager to get to rome, florence, etc. can't comment on belgian beer though.

$2700 sounds good to me, a bit on the high side but that's good as i'm sure you've heard, alcohol will cost you an arm and a leg in northern/western europe, but i think you're covered.

as for the route you should take, i wouldn't freak out about it too much. in my experience the route usually reveals itself once you're on the ground (through friendly suggestions from fellow travellers, enticing brochures, hospitable locals, coma induced visions, etc.). and if not i just take a leap of faith (eeny meeny meiny mo) and 9 times out of 10 things turn out swimmingly. that's my favourite part travel, not knowing where i'll be tomorrow, and having the freedom to choose.

having said that, i understand that you want atleast a general itinerary so i'll leave the more experienced punkers on the forum help you out there.

hope this helps. and have a great trip
alex

[TheWills]

Hey gal!
Dont worry about wingin it, that allows you the most flexibility and kudos on your hubby for not reserching lol. If your worried about it just run out and grab a lonely planet guide book. I was in Vancouver airport all ready too go to Australia and as Im standing in line too board the plane I ran too a bookshop and picked up SEA on a shoestring, and right there I guess I was going too asia. Just wing it, you'll have more fun that way

[chandy]

Wow! Thanks for responding so fast. I do feel better. I just went to the travel agent and picked up our passes maps etc. thanks for your answers and with my maps I really feel better about getting around. I think we will do fine. I have read of people going around for months on just a thousand. I guess you can just never have enough money. Thanks for the advice on the places to go as well. I feel as we are still winging it because I have yet to make any reservations. I will make one but only for the first night in Dublin. Any suggestions on the best place to stay? OH and as far as London I think we are really just going to walk around for 1 full day and stay the night. I really want to spend the most time in Holland and Italy. PS This truly is the best website I have been to. Chandy

[omisan]

I don't know how much of your total time you want to spend in Holland, but as for Amsterdam, I found that 4 days there is more than enough. It's also a bit pricey... Of course, there are other cities to check out like Den Haag, Utrecht, and Rotterdam, and the country's small enough to get around easily. One thing I highly recommend is checking out a countryside bike tour. I did one through Yellow Bike from Amsterdam, and it was phenomenal.. and the country's so flat, you don't need anything more than the single-speed cruisers they provide.

http://www.yellowbike.nl

I think there's a thread around here about Dublin hostels... I really really liked the one I stayed at (Barnacle's Temple Bar Hostel), but it's practically hotel-priced, especially when you're looking at lodging for two. I think it came out to about $35/night/person. Owch.. but still, it was niiiiiiice.

[Deadguy]

Originally posted by chandy@Jan 3 2005, 12:19 PM
We have already decided to ditch brussles.*

We are both big beer drinkers and love imported beer so we just want to drink .

That doesn't really make sense to me, if you are a big beer drink you should try to spent as much time in Belgium as possible.
Brussels has the Cantillon brewery which is absolute must visit for any fan of beer.

I'll be in Belgium drinking beer for the entire month of march.
I suggest trying to make it to this festival. Just a short train ride from antwerp.
http://www.beeradvocate.com/events/calenda...r.php?show=3372

I'll be there!

check out Beeradvocates six part series "Destination: Belgium"
http://www.beeradvocate.com/news/index.php?type=4
these really helped me in planning my trip!

I have some maps I've made with various bars and breweries in the Belgian cities I'll be staying in. drop me a line if you want them!

[TheWills]

you can check out Dublin hostels via the TravelPunk website, its really easy too do, also again like I said before grab a lonely planet of Europe and just read that during your flight and bus rides for your upcoming town thats all the reserch I did and got along fine
will

[chandy]

Thanks for all of the advice Deadguy! My husband wants to go to Brussels still, but I wanted to gain a couple of days and spend more time in Italy. I will have to talk to him about it again. We only have 14 days so I was trying to narrow down to what I have really only dreamed about seeing. To all responses... Thanks so much all of you have really given me a lot to think about. Has anyone been during the months of Jan and Feb? Is it still beautiful or ugly and gray?

[Andy47150]

God knows I need another brewery to visit.

Those links are blocked from my work, but I'll check them out when I get home. I had read about the brewery in Brussels but not much info on how to get there or anything.

Chandy is my wife and the one who pointed me in the direction of this forum. Everyone here has been a great help and very friendly.

Thanks