Thorn Tree travel forum

Western Europe FAQ thread

This branch covers: Western Europe.

I've made a start with a load of links. Please add to this if you've got some useful information that'll answer questions that come up again and again and again.

Here are some simple tips about looking for information:

1. Research before asking a question. It will help you get better, more detailed and useful answers from the community if you've already done some homework. It's also polite. The community is here to help, but we're not your personal search engine. Invest some preliminary time and we'll help you fill in the gaps.

2. Explore Lonely Planet's Destinations online, which has a wealth of key info and tips.

3. Have a good look around the Thorn Tree before asking your question - quite often your question (or one very similar to it) will have been asked and answered many times al... more »

Rome-Florence-Venice

Hi there. My friend and I are visiting Italy this coming 3rd week of January. Our first stop is Rome (5 days), then proceed to Florence (4 days) and end the trip in Venice (2 days). We already know the sites/places we want to see. Can you guys recommend a hotel in each area (max of 50 euro a night for a double bed) and preferably near the train station?

And speaking of trains, can we purchase a single ticket (like a pass) that can cover all the cities we plan to visit? Is it easy to purchase these tickets? And how much do they cost (the cheapest)? Will the train stations be opened in January in the first place? It is just right after the holidays so I don't know how things work in Italy.

Thanks in advance.

Caen / Ouistreham - Arriving by ferry - Shuttle Timings?

I am travelling to Paris for new year, leaving Portsmouth at 22:45 on the 30th Dec, arriving in Ouistreham at 06:45 on the 31st. I am then connecting with a train to Paris. On my return leg, I am taking the 23:00 ferry service to Portsmouth on Sunday evening.

The Brittany Ferries website says there is a shuttle bus service from the Ouistreham terminal to Caen, but that it doesnt meet the evening service. Does this mean it doesnt meet services ARRIVING in the evening? In which case I should be OK.

Also, does anyone know how long it takes to travel between Ouistreham and Caen on this shuttle? Im trying to work out what train connection I can make to Paris.

I am returning on a sunday, trying to connect with the return overnight ferry service to Portsmouth. Im assuming that the shuttle will not run to meet the evening departure? The boat leaves at 23:00

Any information is g... more »

House sitting in italy

Hello Everyone,

Myself and My boyfriend are travelling to italy in the next 2 days. We have work as au pairs starting from the 19th december. Before we had work our flights were booked hoping to have work as soon as we get there but as we don't we are looking for house sitting jobs or any cheep accommodation we can get as we are travelling on a very tight buggiest. Any suggestions,websites would be apreciated. If any one reading this is looking for a house sitter anywhere in italy we are both english,reliable,tidy,handy around the house and we love all animals.

Thankyou very much

Sami

Learn German in Basel

Hello,
I will be staying in Basel for a period of three months and would like to learn to speak German. Can anyone suggest me a good school with convinient price for a student?

Thanks a lot, Sebastjan

Hiking Coast near Santander and Bilbao

We will be in Santander and Bilbao in July 2010. I'm looking for short/moderate - 10 km or less- day hikes along the Atlantic coast nearby.

Germany by railway questions

Hi all

My wife and I are planning to visit Germany in June, and we're seriously thinking about getting a rail pass rather than taking a car.

We intend to go to the Mosel valley, to Bayern and go through Frankfurt heading back.

We're going for three weeks.

Question is, will a rail pass be adequate? We're particularly interested in visiting smaller towns and places where we can go on hiking day-trips and so forth.

Does the railway network get you such places, or is it better getting a car?

Any input appreciated :-)

Kind regards
Søren

How to spend a spare week in Spain - Morocco or Portugal?

Hi all,

I’m an Australia heading to Madrid for a conference in March and will have a spare week or so. Given I’ve already visited many of the bigger Spanish cities (Madrid, Barcelona, Valencia, Seville, Granda, Cordoba) in the past, I was thinking about spending a week in Portugal or Morocco. I’d love to see more of Spain one day, but given how rare it is that I get a chance to visit Europe, I’d like to experience in a different country.

Obviously time is short, so I’d only have time to visit a small section of each country. From reading through these forums, something along the lines of Marrakech and Fez in Morocco, or Lisbon and Porto in Portugal sound right for me.

Just for some context, i'm in my late 20s, married, and travelling by myself, looking for an interesting cultural experience

Any suggestions would be appreciated.

Thanks!

Mark

Edited by: mrpez more »