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European Vista

16 Jun 2008 gracesc said

Just got back from doing European Vista & had the most amazing time!
First off, I have to give a hand to our TM & driver, Anna & Derek. From the nightmare stories I read about some european TM's, they were amazing! Anna provided us with sheets before we got into every city with advice as to what to see, broken down into Culture, Shopping, Must-see's and "something different". The tip speech was just 5 minutes at the beginning of the tour & 5 minutes at the end of tour and believe me, they definitely deserved it!
I don't have my list of hotels handy, but for the most part, they were all fairly good. Some of the rooms were very small & some were very spacious, even within the same hotel; it was really just luck of the draw. Yes, some were a little far out of town but easily reachable by local transportation or if you wanted to, you could meet the coach at the designated time & meeting spot and catch it back to the hotel. Food at some of the hotels was pretty bad (rubbery chicken & fries for dinner in Rome) but you could always find local restaurants at more reasonable prices..I skipped the provided dinner in Nice and had an amazing dinner in Cannes that night instead. Breakfasts were always good, there was always bread & butter, yogurt, cereal, coffee & juice and some hotels had bacon, eggs, sausage, coldcuts, cheese etc, so you never were starving in the morning (pancakes in Hopfgarten were so yummy!!).
I did the majority of the optionals & did not regret doing any of them..the Mozart concert & dinner, Tuscan dinner & white water rafting were standouts.
I definitely reccomend doing Vista for one particular reason: you start in London and then go to Paris, Lucerne, Nice, Florence, Rome and so on (in that order) and believe me, you need the energy you have at the beginning of the tour to see these cities, especially Paris & Rome. Paris we did practically at a run! We managed to do a full tour of the Paris Opera House(so worth seeing!), Notre Dame Catherdral, Eiffel Tower (did not go up it tho'), Champs d'Elysee, Arc de Triomphe and the Palais before meeting the coach at 4 pm. Also, the tour ends in Amsterdam and considering the going on's of that city, it was definitely more fun with people I had been travelling around with for 3 weeks than a bunch of strangers! The days are crazy and the nights are crazier(if that's your thing), but you can always sleep on the coach which a lot of people did.
I was fortunate to have a really good group of tourmates; for the most part everyone got along and keep this in mind, even the most annoying people on your tour help make it fun as the are a constant source of entertainment! Age is irrelevant with the right attitude and I hung out with just about everyone. There is the party group and the group that wants to stay at the hotel and play cards (which can be a lot of fun; bull**** or asshole are great for any size group). Moving between the groups was not hard and no group was ever "closed" to people.
You will get sick; it is an unavoidable fact of the tour. Make sure to bring plenty of cold meds and get sleep when you can. The worst of it is the infamous contiki cough but don't let it slow you down, cough drops were my saving grace, especially during the mozart concert!
Advice to Anyone:
DO:
- keep an open mind..as Anna, our TM, said "It's not wrong, just different"
- keep your expectations on the low side and you will pleasantly surprised a lot of times
- leave the attitude at home..acting/thinking you are superior to other people on your tour will not gain you friends and you just might need them if you're ever stuck for any reason.
- bring "disposable" clothes, things you aren't afraid to lose/wreck as you will be shopping in europe (even the guys!).
- bring tissues. That was the one thing which helped a lot(even over hand sanitizer) for colds & allergies everyone gets, lack of toilet paper in public toilets, etc.
- try to do as much as you can! Anything from the optionals, weird food...you will be back at home soon enough after your vacation where everything is safe & normal and you don't want to regret missing out after the fact.
- use your common sense. Your night can get spoiled by drinking too much (& puking in public is never pretty anywhere in the world) or going off & not telling anyone where you're going.

That's all I can think of right now..still jet-lagged & back at work right now. If anyone has any questions about hotels, optionals or anything in general, don't hesitate to ask!!
Hope this helps!!

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Add to discussion 15 comments so far

30 Jun 2008 Aussie_Meghan21 said

hey, im looking into this trip atm for xmas time
just wondering, were there any solo travellers, as il be travelling by myself?
sounds like an amazing time =]

hey, im looking into this trip atm for xmas time just wondering, were there any solo travellers, as il be travelling by myself? sounds like an amazing time =] or Cancel
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30 Jun 2008 gracesc said

There were lots of solo travellers on our tour, about 60% of us (me included) that were travelling solo, so don’t worry about that. Roommate matching was pretty good, but don’t feel obligated to hang around them unless you want to. Vista is great for all the aforementioned reasons, plus I thought it ws the perfect amount of time to spend with a tour group…longer tours would just seem “dangerous”!

There were lots of solo travellers on our tour, about 60% of us (me included) that were travelling solo, so don't worry about that. Roommate matching was pretty good, but don't feel obligated to hang around them unless you want to. Vista is great for all the aforementioned reasons, plus I thought it ws the perfect amount of time to spend with a tour group...longer tours would just seem "dangerous"! or Cancel
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8 Jul 2008 *jadie* said

hi grace,

sounds like you had a blast on ur trip, a friend an i are goin on this trip start may 09. Vary excited theres goin to be so much to do and see.

wat clothing did u take for June? as will be goni in may so hopefully bit warm.

wat was ur fav country? where really looking forward to paris and rome.

anythign else u can think of that would be helpful would be great optionals etc

cheers

jade

hi grace, sounds like you had a blast on ur trip, a friend an i are goin on this trip start may 09. Vary excited theres goin to be so much to do and see. wat clothing did u take for June??? as will be goni in may so hopefully bit warm. wat was ur fav country??? where really looking forward to paris and rome. anythign else u can think of that would be helpful would be great optionals etc cheers jade or Cancel
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9 Jul 2008 Ry said

Hey,

I also just finished a European Vista tour on June 1st. I documented the whole trip and you can find out more information about it on my website here: www.pausethemoment.com.
You’ll find all 21 days of blogs, photos, and more. Enjoy!

Hey, I also just finished a European Vista tour on June 1st. I documented the whole trip and you can find out more information about it on my website here: <A HREF="http://www.pausethemoment.com" TARGET=_blank>www.pausethemoment.com</A>. You'll find all 21 days of blogs, photos, and more. Enjoy! or Cancel
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17 Jul 2008 Max said

Hey, Im thinking about doing this trip, in december this year, the 29th of nov – 19th of december. Thanks for the review looks like it should be an awesome experience

Hey, Im thinking about doing this trip, in december this year, the 29th of nov - 19th of december. Thanks for the review looks like it should be an awesome experience or Cancel
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24 Aug 2008 Teddib said

hey max,

that’s when i’m thinking about going as well. so who knows maybe we will be touring buddies

hey max, that's when i'm thinking about going as well. so who knows maybe we will be touring buddies or Cancel
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25 Oct 2008 Chloe said

quote:
Originally posted by Meghan_18:
hey, im looking into this trip atm for xmas time
just wondering, were there any solo travellers, as il be travelling by myself?
sounds like an amazing time =]

r u still looking @ tours? coz im on the european vista from 13th dec-2nd jan. Im 18, from australia (WA) and im travelling solo.

<BLOCKQUOTE class="ip-ubbcode-quote"><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-title">quote:</div><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-content">Originally posted by Meghan_18: hey, im looking into this trip atm for xmas time just wondering, were there any solo travellers, as il be travelling by myself? sounds like an amazing time =] </div></BLOCKQUOTE> r u still looking @ tours? coz im on the european vista from 13th dec-2nd jan. Im 18, from australia (WA) and im travelling solo. or Cancel
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15 Nov 2008 Traveller Tarnz said

Hey Gracesc, sounds like you had an amazing time.
Ive booked in for the European Vista (winter) tour departing on 24th of Jan 2009, got any tips or advise before i leave??

Anyone else planning to attend this tour?

Hey Gracesc, sounds like you had an amazing time. Ive booked in for the European Vista (winter) tour departing on 24th of Jan 2009, got any tips or advise before i leave?? Anyone else planning to attend this tour? or Cancel
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4 Mar 2009 MissPris said

Thanks for that information, that is awesome.

Thanks for that information, that is awesome. or Cancel
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15 Apr 2009 Elyce22 said

HI,

i have just booked the European Vista for this year departing Dec 5th – if anyone else is doing it, please let me know 
i’m from Perth, Australia and are travelling alone…

your review was great – thanks for everything 

HI, i have just booked the European Vista for this year departing Dec 5th - if anyone else is doing it, please let me know <img src="http://connect.contiki.com/groupee_common/emoticons/icon_smile.gif" alt="Smiler" width="15" height="15"> i'm from Perth, Australia and are travelling alone... your review was great - thanks for everything <img src="http://connect.contiki.com/groupee_common/emoticons/icon_smile.gif" alt="Smiler" width="15" height="15"> or Cancel
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19 May 2009 Courtney said

Hi!

A friend and i are planning on doing this tour mid june 2010. Can someone please tell me what the weather is like at that time of yr?

Thanks Courts

Hi! A friend and i are planning on doing this tour mid june 2010. Can someone please tell me what the weather is like at that time of yr? Thanks Courts or Cancel
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6 Dec 2009 Kelly&Ben said

quote:
Originally posted by Courtney:
Hi!

A friend and i are planning on doing this tour mid june 2010. Can someone please tell me what the weather is like at that time of yr?

Thanks Courts

My partner and I will be doing vista on 29th May, Im almost 100% its summer around the start of june, not sure what there summer is like but where i am from its summer all year round and our hottest days are up to 45 degrees! ouch.. let me know what tour you deceide on 

<BLOCKQUOTE class="ip-ubbcode-quote"><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-title">quote:</div><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-content">Originally posted by Courtney: Hi! A friend and i are planning on doing this tour mid june 2010. Can someone please tell me what the weather is like at that time of yr? Thanks Courts </div></BLOCKQUOTE> My partner and I will be doing vista on 29th May, Im almost 100% its summer around the start of june, not sure what there summer is like but where i am from its summer all year round and our hottest days are up to 45 degrees! ouch.. let me know what tour you deceide on <img src="http://connect.contiki.com/groupee_common/emoticons/icon_smile.gif" alt="Smiler" width="15" height="15"> or Cancel
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6 Dec 2009 Kelly&Ben said

quote:
Originally posted by jadie:
hi grace,

sounds like you had a blast on ur trip, a friend an i are goin on this trip start may 09. Vary excited theres goin to be so much to do and see.

wat clothing did u take for June? as will be goni in may so hopefully bit warm.

wat was ur fav country? where really looking forward to paris and rome.

anythign else u can think of that would be helpful would be great optionals etc

cheers

jade

Hi Jadie, my partner and I are departing 29 May for Vista, which one did you decide on?

<BLOCKQUOTE class="ip-ubbcode-quote"><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-title">quote:</div><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-content">Originally posted by *jadie*: hi grace, sounds like you had a blast on ur trip, a friend an i are goin on this trip start may 09. Vary excited theres goin to be so much to do and see. wat clothing did u take for June??? as will be goni in may so hopefully bit warm. wat was ur fav country??? where really looking forward to paris and rome. anythign else u can think of that would be helpful would be great optionals etc cheers jade </div></BLOCKQUOTE> Hi Jadie, my partner and I are departing 29 May for Vista, which one did you decide on? or Cancel
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18 Jul 2010 Katie said

hi,
Am looking at doing this vacation in the next 2 years..

Was wondering wether the summer or winter vacation is better? They seem to alter a little?

Im currently looking at the winter one, any suggestions??

hi, Am looking at doing this vacation in the next 2 years.. Was wondering wether the summer or winter vacation is better? They seem to alter a little? Im currently looking at the winter one, any suggestions?? or Cancel
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4 Sep 2010 Karina88 said

I’m doing the European Vista (Winter) on the 12th March 2011. Anyone done the winter one? Would love to hear some reviews 

I'm doing the European Vista (Winter) on the 12th March 2011. Anyone done the winter one? Would love to hear some reviews <img src="http://connect.contiki.com/groupee_common/emoticons/icon_smile.gif" alt="Smiler" width="15" height="15"> or Cancel
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