Comments on: Countdown to Europe: 6 months

By: Shelly

Shelly — Fri, 06 Nov 2009 20:08:54 +0000

We just got back from 3 weeks in Europe. We visited both London and Paris. 6 months out I’d start seriously looking at airfare. We booked our airfare about 5 months in advance. You just have to know what a good price is and then when you find that price, jump on it. I did quite a bit of searching and then went to the airlines website and booked directly with them.

You could also start looking at hotels. Many of the popular low cost places fill up quickly. The Rick Steves website and TripAdvisor.com are 2 of the best sites to find hotel accomodations. I’m not sure how long you are going for, but if you’ll be staying at least a week or so in each location you should check into renting apartments. They are much cheaper and you’ll be able to do some cooking in your apt. and save lots of money.

London and Paris are both very expensive. In London we ate lunches at Pret a Mangers – they are all over the place and have pre-made sandwiches and salads. The food is actually good and not too expensive. We usually took it outside and ate in the a nearby park and one day ate on the steps in Trafalgar Square.

In Paris everything is small and costs twice as much. By going to a deli type place or grocery store you can pick up stuff for a picnic (cheese, fruit and crackers) and eat it outside (on the Champs de Mars in front of the Eiffel Tower is a great setting)

As for guidebooks – if you haven’t picked up Rick Steves Introduction to Europe 101, I would suggest reading it. You can get it at your local library. Then go to his website and ask lots of questions. There are many experts there that can help you out. I purchase his Best of Europe book as well and then cut out the cities that we visited and brought it with us. He has great ideas on walking tours you can do on your own, places to eat, etc. One really great tip he gave us was a short cut out of the Sistine Chapel in the Vatican to get into St. Peter’s Basilica without having to wait in another line.

By: Cathy

Cathy — Fri, 06 Nov 2009 13:51:12 +0000

There is some great non-British food available in London, but you can’t beat some English favourites in a pub with a beer – definitely not an experience to be missed (am thinking steak pie, roasts, sausages and mash!). You could start having a look at what exhibitions will be on during your time in London and which you want to see, there’s normally some good ones at the museums or at the o2.

By: jonathanwthomas

jonathanwthomas — Fri, 06 Nov 2009 02:24:05 +0000

London is ridiculously expensive. The general rule of thumb is that the exchange rate is almost 2 to 1 but monetarily, everything costs the same. So, if you paid $20 for dinner here it would run you £20 there – which is almost $40. It’s painful. If you’re concerned about the exchange rate going up further – you can buy pounds in advance through Travelex.com and hedge your bets.

Six months out I would concentrate on getting a good airfare as that will be your biggest cost. Setup alerts on Kayak.com to send you daily reports of airfares to London and keep track of the trends – also sign up with British Airways as they will let you know about good deals. March/April/May is a good time to go as the airfares really start going up in June. Since you’ll be back in the area, it would probably be cheaper for your to fly out of O’hare rather than connect through Indy.

Hotels in London are also very pricey and you don’t get much for the price. Let me know when you start looking and I can give you some advice so you avoid the bedbug traps. We’ve had some pretty horrific hotel experiences…
jonathanwthomas´s last blog ..The Movie is Not Called Pirate Radio – It’s The Boat That Rocked

By: M

Thu, 05 Nov 2009 19:50:10 +0000

make sure you don’t plan too much. Half the fun of a trip like the one you are planning is just being able to be spontaneous and the joy of discovery.. don’t plan every detail..

By: The Non-Student

The Non-Student — Thu, 05 Nov 2009 19:30:53 +0000

I would also look into places to eat. Avoid the most touristy attractions where prices will be higher and probably won’t get the same authentic experience, especially in Paris. For London, I would stick with non-British food. :-)
The Non-Student´s last blog ..More than Roommates: Pulling Ourselves Out of a Comfortable Rut

By: roxie

roxie — Thu, 05 Nov 2009 13:12:04 +0000

Hi, I’m new here but thought I would add some interesting info I read about just this past week. Airbandb.com was mentioned in the NYT as a way to connect with some locals for accommodations. Might be worth checking out.

I’m in the planning stages of what will hopefully be a month-long stay in Greece with a side trip to Instanbul.