We travel a lot. I travel to watch sport and go to concerts, both interstate and overseas. We travel with and without luggage. I book day tours but mainly travel independently.So I should know what I'm doing.
But I don't.
We are off to Europe in April. I sorted all the flights and accommodation (fun fact, a lot of hotels in Amsterdam won't let you have 3 in a room, so a family of 5 requires 3 rooms - and let's not even hope for interconnecting...at least not in a hotel we can afford).1. 6 weeks in advance is not enough time to get you on a Harry Potter bus to the studio. And all the studio tickets are sold out, even if you make your own way there. I have managed to get 3 seats through a Swedish reseller, so I seriously hope that we don't turn up to discover it's all a ruse.
2. Ditto for shows. Did get tix to the show I wanted, but it has a rolling start so we are at 5.45, not the more civilised 7.30.
3. One month out is not enough time to get a prebooked ticket to Anne Frank's House - but is enough to pre book your Van Gogh Museum visit.4. In Belgium most museums are shut on Monday, so make sure when booking your trip you work out enough time to do what you want to do including 'not on a Monday'.
5. Public transport to sites can take more than double in a car, and also times can vary from 21 mins to 48 mins on a train to the same place (given there are no changes, I'm still trying to discover how this is possible??). So look carefully before deciding how you will get somewhere.
I am hoping there will not be more to add to this, but I'm sure there will be.
What did you learn the hard way?
Linking with#SkyWatch #GaleriaHimmelsblick just for the photos.
Wow, I don't think I knew any of this and we live in The Netherlands... Fingers crossed you don't have more to add to this list! #MondayEsapes
ReplyDeleteTell me about it!! I thought I was organised...but I'm not. And it's stressful!
DeleteIn France lots of independent shops are closed on Monday, and every day between 12-2pm for lunch. I am French so I should know, but I forget. In my defence I have been living abroad for 15 years. Good luck with your trip, I'm sure you'll have a brilliant time! x
ReplyDelete#MondayEscapes
I did not know shops were closed on Mondays! (I did know about the 12-2 - so civilised!)
Deleteit's the same here in Dubai, you have to book in advance if you want to go up the Burj Khalifa and we missed out on a tour to Robben Island in cape Town and Alcatraz in San Francisco as we weren't there long enough for their booking #MondayEscapes
ReplyDeleteHmmm... some of these are new to me too, Lydia. However I know that European hotels are very picky about how many people they allow in the room. It's their way of ripping you off. No surprise there. #TheWeeklyPostcard
ReplyDeleteyep have missed out on Robben Island through not booking ahead...got Alcatraz as was poised the day the tickets were available...and Harry Potter....well my daughter wanted to go for her 21st in April....we are going in June!!! A lot of museums shut on Mondays - planned our Italian holiday so we travelled Mondays...
ReplyDeleteNo matter how long you travel, you will always make mistakes. I have started to prebook all my stuff 90 days before a trip. I keep making money relate dmistakes too (those are painful). #TheWeeklyPostcard
ReplyDeleteDon't turn up at St Pancras railway station without a pre-purchased ticket and expect to get a reasonably priced ticket to France (especially regional France) that leaves within the hour! You will only be able to buy first class tickets at an extremely high price or wait for hours for a cheaper ticket in the terminal. Can I say 'I told you so'?! #TheWeeklyPostcard
ReplyDeleteSounds as if you are going to have a wonderful trip!
ReplyDeleteIt seems as the world gets smaller and easier to travel, other things just getting a little bit harder. What ever happened to just getting somewhere and finding things to do, maybe we should research and plan a little less and just enjoy it while we're there? My mother in law took a moped ride from the north of England to Greece in the 1960's there was no way to prebook and no internet to search things to do... Just a thought :)
ReplyDeleteExactly! When did travelling get so laborious! What about spontaneity!
Delete#practicalmondays
Yes, I think a lot of Museums in Europe close on a Monday particularly the free ones. And yes, public transport is slow as there are so many stops on the way. It's no help when you have a tight schedule and need to get around fast :( Thanks for sharing on #MondayEscapes. We all suffer travel bloopers!
ReplyDeleteFirst of all, sounds exciting! Now, 3 hotel rooms for one fam? Yikes! Even after living in Europe a few times, I missed that somehow. Each trip is a lesson (and adventure). Have fun!
ReplyDeletebooking ahead has become the most stressful thing about travel. You constantly have to worry how early is earlier than anyone else. It leaves little room for flexibility or spontaneity when you need to decide 6 months ahead what show you'll see or what museums you want to tour. oh well . enjoy your trip.
ReplyDeleteI think I am most surprised about Anne Frank house. We had planned to visit it a few years back and thought we were just going to walk up and get into the queue. We ended up not getting to Amsterdam, so I have no idea how that plan would have worked out.
ReplyDeleteThe last time we were in Europe we just bowled up to everything - that was a decade ago. Apparently things have changed - or Denmark, Paris and Sicilly are a less organised tourist.
DeleteThe hardest travel lesson we ever learnt was about missing a flight - but I am not even going there. I love Europe but I loved it a lot more thirty years ago when it wasn't so crowded. It is one of the reasons we go to the USA so much - no crowds.
ReplyDeleteI've done that three times. I now go to the airport so early or I get really stressed. And missing a connection while in the air makes me really anxious.
DeleteRestaurant reservations! If food is important to your travel experience, start researching your options and making reservations. You don't need quite as much of an advance plan as you would for Harry Potter Studios tour but you will need to book a table at least the day prior. Also, if there are more than two of you then renting a car becomes cheaper than public transportation (in many cases). But then you need to make sure your hotel has parking available.
ReplyDeleteNo matter how often you travel, I think you'll always make mistakes. We often need to do fairly last minute trips so sometimes booking far in advance isn't possible. Things you miss are good reasons to return!
ReplyDeleteSome really good tips and just shows how important to plan ahead to avoid disappointment. I don't always do it because I just think things are going to "work out" but as you mention sometimes you just have to learn the hard way! Thanks for sharing!
ReplyDeleteGreat travel tips! I find no matter how much preparation I do there are always things that throw me for a loop on every vacation.
ReplyDeleteGreat tips, it pays to do your research, however we are sure you'll have a fun time! Good to share so others are prepared. #feetdotravel
ReplyDeleteLike you, I try to be organized, but travel is fluid and I think I'll be bound to make mistakes on every trip abroad. Last fall I learned that to book train travel on the day of travel is far more expensive than booking even the day before. After one time paying a high price, I booked the next train on arrival in a city. Live and learn! And enjoy your trip!
ReplyDeleteI stopped doing that years ago after being stuck in a small city in the south of France for a few days longer than intended and then having to get a 6am train when I did want to go, because the civilised 10 am train was full!
DeleteAlbert Cuypmarkt is closed on Sundays and even if you have your online booking for the Van Gogh you may still need to queue to swap your receipt for the actual ticket. It was snowing when this happened to us so not a lot of fun, but worth it when we were inside. ;-)
ReplyDeleteOMG, we go to Europe in 2 weeks. I had better get a move on.
ReplyDeleteI knew some of this, but only after I learned the hard way that you need reservations to see the Last Supper in Milan, and walked away without seeing it... I've also traveled around 7000 miles to see a particular cave in Portugal only to find out that it was too windy to sail, and once we put gas in our diesel and missed an entire day in Ireland, but we've always managed to make lemonade out of these lemons and try our best to anticipate what might or might not be... Glad to know about the Harry Potter tip, as I hope to go there in December! Please do keep sharing, as you're helping the rest of us out! #farawayfiles
ReplyDeleteBest to book for the Harry Potter studios now, Hilary, then you'll be sure of getting the day and time you want. Xx
DeleteSo many useful pointers here. I find it really annoying that you have to book for things so far before you travel but it is worth knowing so much before you go. These kind of blog posts can be so helpful so thanks for sharing on #FarawayFiles
ReplyDeleteSome good things to know!! I'm so used to just showing up and assuming I'll be able to see what I want to see.
ReplyDeleteWe learned before one goes to a resort town for a long weekend during the off season, check how many restaurants are going to be open.
We had that in the Barossa, just after xmas. And more recently, in Tokyo a few days after New Years....
DeleteBeautiful plane silhouette photo. Yes, so much to know when traveling, and just when you think you know it, things change!
ReplyDelete