Question
What do you wish you'd known?
18 Jul 2007 ashleightara asked
For example,
Did you miss something in a town you wish you'd known about?
Did you pack something, and never used it?
Did you NEED something you didn't pack and had to go in search of it?
In particular, looking for different advice to what is already available on the board...share you experience so others can learn from you 'mistake'.
Thanks
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- travel advice
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24 May 2012 MattFoertsch said
Hey, I’m about to go on the European Panorama tour and just wondering about the hotels? I have been looking at reviews online of some of the hotels were going to stay at and some of the reviews are horrible! Dirty, smelly, bugs, in bad neighborhoods, etc.. What was everyone’s experience with the hotels in Europe? Thanks.
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25 May 2012 Sharna said
MattFoertsch……………. I am sorry if this offends u and its probably the Aussie coming out in me and how upfront we can be BUT……No matter where you stay there is always going to be someone who likes it and someone who doesnt…….. everyone has their own thoughts……. Contiki have been around for years and do their research to give us cheap but decent enough accomodation…… That way you can travel for a cheaper price……. STOP worrying about what peoples opinions and reviews are and just along for the ride………. I am about to do Ireland and European Horizon and I have also looked at my hotels and some of them aren’t the kind of places I would choose to stay at BUT its all part of the experience……… I know you’re just trying to find out what people thought but really……… just go with the flow……. and about the whole sleep thing u posted……. i’m sure u will get to sleep……… stop stressing and worrying about these things…….. just go along for the ride…….. party………. have fun! u sleep enough when ur dead anyways!!!!!!!!!! and if ur that worried about it all…….. maybe u should reconsider doing a tour where you’re on a bus and with a group of people and staying at hotels already picked for u.??? maybe do ur own tour and pick where u want to stay yourself..
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27 May 2012 TalissaB said
@JoJo you would be better off to take lighter clothes that you can layer up, i havnt been during that time, and im going in june/july/august, but considering they will be hitting autumn during that time, it will be quite cold, or at least getting colder.
Take light clothes to layers maybe one thermal piece and either take a jacket or buy one over there :)
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27 May 2012 TalissaB said
Duplicate :)
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27 May 2012 AlexG said
@jojo … ive been to spain and france during sept/oct and pack some summer clothes as well as when I went it was actually quite warm with a cool breeze :):)
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27 May 2012 Jezzcar said
Agreed, I went to France mid-september and the first day in Paris, and the week following was absolutely beautiful weather, and I was staying in the north near Belgium. I ended up wearing 3/4 jeans and a t-shirt on most days because it was mid-twenties and sunny.
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2 Jun 2012 Megan said
I did London & Paris plus Rome, and I have quite a few things to share!
- I wish I would have been better prepared for the weather. London and Paris are pretty chilly, even in mid May. I packed a lot of dresses and tank tops, but ended up wearing the same jacket every single day.
- I did a pretty good job of packing light, but I still had at least 4 shirts left over at the end that I never wore. I also didn’t take into account the fact that I’d be shopping and buying some new clothes, so it’s not necessary to bring something to wear every single day.
- I budgeted $2000 (US) and only ended up spending $1200. So now I know an approximate budget for my next trip.
- I’m really glad I didn’t bring a hairdryer, because I usually just ended up letting my hair air-dry and it would have taken up too much space.
- I saved a ton of money at the bar because I bought my own bottles of liquor duty-free at the airport, so I’d just have pre-drinks before going out.
- I’m glad I brought two cameras with me. One is big and quite nice, which I used to take photos while sightseeing during the day. The other is tiny and I would bring it out with me at night to take photos of me and my friends.
- I really REALLY wish I would have opened up and made friends sooner. Once I finally formed a “group” to hang out with, it was two days before the end of the tour and I had to say bye to them!
- I’m so glad I did the Moulin Rogue optional in Paris. It was totally worth the money – that was the best night of my tour.I’m sure there’s tons more, but those are just the things that popped into my head. Either way, my experience with Contiki was incredible and I can’t wait to do another tour!
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2 Jun 2012 AlexG said
thanks megan!! that was sooo helpful
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11 Jun 2012 kia88 said
I’m doing the Mediterranean Highlights in October and thinking about just bring a credit card. Is visa and mastercard accepted the same there? Is it suggested that I purchase cash(euros) when I arrive or bring some with me? I enjoyed reading the many posts, they have given me great ideas of how to prepare for my first trip. Thanks everyone
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13 Jun 2012 HN610 said
Hi everyone!
My friends and i are planning to book the simply italy tour for either july 24 or aug 04. i was just wondering what i should pack clothes wise. i know it’s going to be hot in italy during that time of year. should i pack more dresses to wear on a day to day bias or should i stick with shorts and a tank. i heard women in italy dress really nice so i don’t want to look out of place. thank you!- 0 people like this
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13 Jun 2012 Bambo01 said
Took a while to read all of the posts but what a great thread so helpful for first timers. Thanks heaps
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19 Jun 2012 trina said
Just got back from my European Magic tour about 2 weeks ago. It was AMAZING!
Some things I learned/would do or not do next time.
1) Check your city/museum passes. The London Pass is good for 1 day, not 24 hours. If you start using it at 4pm on the 1st day, you can’t use it the next day.
2) The stairs at Russell Station is about 175 steps up without rest stops. Use the elevator if you’re not sure you can do it. Long lines at the elevator, though.
3) Bring a sweater, hoodie, jacket. You never know when the whether will change on you. We had hail (yes, hail!) in Munich.
4) Definitely do ALL the optionals, especially bobsledding in Austria, the Munich bike tour, gondola ride in Venice, lake cruise and Mt. Pilatus in Lucerne. . . just do ALL OF THEM. You’ll thank me.
5) Venice is EXPENSIVE. We ate pizza and pasta at a restaurant near the Rialto Bridge. There was a 2-Euro sitdown fee per person for the pasta and a 2-Euro sitdown fee per person for the pizza. Even worse, our server told us “There is no free water in Venice” when we asked for water – their bottled water costs 5 Euros. Eat as far from tourist attractions as possible. On a happier note, their pizza, pasta and gelato are TO-DIE-FOR.
6) Try chocolates in Switzerland, coffee in Italy and pastries in Paris. You’re welcome.
7) The hotels were pretty good. Not amazing, but not too shabby. Except maybe for the Jail Hotel in Switzerland, which I guess was part of the ambience. It is, after all, a jail hotel. Haha.
8) You will wake up really early every morning and stay up really late every night. It’s okay. You’re in Europe! You can sleep on the bus since you will have looooong drives in between cities.
9) No one got the dreaded Contiki Cough in my tour group. Thank God. I did bring meds for every ailment imaginable to man. Haha.
10) There’s no time to see London during the actual tour, so fly in a few days early or stay a few days after if you want to see it. Definitely recommended.
11) Contrary to popular opinion, the front of the bus actually has the best seats. You see everything.
12) TAKE LOTS OF PICTURES. We had about 5000 pictures from our 2-week trip. Yes, excessive but we now have photos to go along with our great memories. Take extra batteries and memory cards. Lots of them.
13) Going up the Eiffel Tower is part of the Contiki tour. DO IT. If you have extra time in Paris, wait for the light show at night. It goes on for about 5 mins every hour on the hour when it gets dark. My favorite part of the trip.
14) If you want to get inside St. Mark’s Cathedral in Venice or the Louvre in Paris, there’s an insider secret so you don’t have to wait in line. Ask your TM.
15) Mingle. Don’t be afraid to start conversations. By the end of the trip, you’ll have a busload of new friends.
16) In Europe, you WALK everywhere. There are stairs EVERYWHERE. Cobblestone streets make it hard to walk in heels. Just go with it.
17) When your TM says “Stick to the group”, stick to the group. It sucks to get lost in an unknown place. If you’re traveling solo, make sure you have at least 1-2 phone numbers of your tourmates and always have your hotel list with you.
18) Contiki sticks to the schedule. When they say they’re leaving at a certain time, make sure you’re there or you WILL BE LEFT BEHIND. This said, always have your passport and some money with you, just in case. Haha.
19) Your tour manager and driver can make or break your trip. We were lucky to have Petula™ and Flash (TD) who were both amazing.
20) HAVE THE BEST TIME OF YOUR LIFE.Let me know if you have any other questions/concerns/violent reactions. HAVE A GREAT TRIP, Y’ALL! ; )
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20 Jun 2012 MELandJae said
i am going on the london to rome end of july and jsut wonder what optional extras people would reccomend or advise against – parisian dinner, novelle eve caboret, flamenco show, venice walking tour, gondala ride, group photo, tuscan meal, space eletric disco, vattican tour. also any extras people would reccomend that aren’t offered by contiki thanks
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25 Jun 2012 raj864 said
Hi MELandJae,
To be honest, my advice for you would be take them all on. How many times will you be in Europe in your life? On my tour i decided to do everything and i didnt regret it at all. The people who didnt come along on all of the optionals were the ones at the end of the day wishing they did it. soak it all in!
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25 Jun 2012 raj864 said
Hey all, I did the Winter Wanderer tour back in December 11, and I’m back again because I am looking at doing another tour in 2013. Heres a couple things I learnt on my first tour:
1. Remember to budget in your tips for your TM and driver for each day. Its usually about 2 euro each day for both. A lot of people on my tour forgot about it and had ran out of money, which was embarrassing for them at the end of the trip.
2. I packed for about 4 days worth of clothing. Unfortunately for me, I only got to wash 3 times through out my 24 day trip, which did leave me in some situations of wearing clothes twice. I learnt very quick to handwash clothing at night. Try to find a balance between packing light and overpacking, because you never know when you will get to wash. It takes up ALOT of your time too.
3. Watch out for gypsies. In winter we only had about 4-5 run ins with gypsies trying to scam us, but I was told they are every where in summer. Just remember to always have a money belt of some sort, because they strike quick. My friend managed to have her wallet stolen within 10 seconds of her turning around to pay for something. Luckily all her cards were on her. If you feel unsafe, always keep one hand on your bag. In saying that, most of the time I did feel safe, so its not too much of a worry. Just be prepared.
4. DO ALL THE OPTIONALS. I would much rather regret doing something I didn’t enjoy than regret not doing something I might’ve enjoyed. How many times will you be in Europe in your lifetime? Spend it up. It adds to the experience.
5. Stop. Take it all in for a minute. With all the rushing you do on the tour, the early mornings, the late nights, the long trips, you do sometimes forget to stop and think about where you are. Standing on top of the eiffel tower. Walking through the vatican city. Touching a part of the Berlin wall. When you stop and think, it really does blow your mind.
6. Sit at the front of the bus sometimes. It does call for some interesting conversations at times with your TM and driver, plus you get a beautiful view of the land from the front window.
7. Learn to sleep on the bus. I never used to be able to sleep in buses or cars, but during the trip I learnt. Some nights you might only get 3-4 hours sleep, and you wake up at 6am to pack and get on the bus. A good ipod is a must. By the end of the trip i would sleep pretty much the whole time between stops.
8. Use the restrooms at every stop. Even if you dont need to. Even if you have to pay. The toilet on the bus is emergency only, and even then, its only for number 1’s.
9. Be prepared to pay for things you wouldnt expect. Outside seating at restaurants is more expensive than inside. Water usually costs. Toilets cost. Just keep some loose change on you at all times.
10. Hand sanitizer.
11. If you are in a city over a holiday, expect things to be chaotic. I was in Venice over New Year’s, and not only were toilets 2 euro to use, there was pretty much only one public toilet on the whole island, and when everyone is drinking to celebrate, you do visit that toilet quite a bit. A group of us ended up going into a pub and used their toilets, however we did get abused in italian.
12. Take a camera everywhere. There is no such thing as not enough pictures. Also try to keep a diary, I started to, but I got lazy and I regret it. I also regret thinking to myself that i didnt need to take my camera absolutely all the time. There is some things I now fail to remember because I don’t have pictures.
13. Be social. You are all there for the same reason, so get in there and meet new people!
14. A smile always helps. Especially in Paris, people do assume parisians are rude, however we found by giving the locals a friendly aussie smile and attempting a bit of french, they were quite polite and helpful to us. They don’t mind helping someone from Australié.
15. Be adventurous. Sometimes the most spontaneous things are the best. My two favourite meals of the trip were a little cafe in St Michel near Notre Dame, which we popped into to get directions, and a little pizzeria/kebab shop we found in Venice in one of the little streets.Just remember, you are in Europe. Live it up and at the end of the day, the good memories will out last the bad ones!!
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26 Jun 2012 Clare85 said
Two tips that are not Contiki specific but relevant to Aussies traveling anywhere in the world:
1) 28 degrees credit card (MasterCard)
2) NAB Gold Visa debit card – okay scratch that, this card does not exist from June 8 2012! Go the 28 degrees one- google for info on how to use it for travel.
Trust me, you need no other form of currency if you have one or other of these cards. The 28 degrees card works like this – there is no annual fee – you preload money onto the card via bpay, and as long as you don’t withdraw more money than you put on, there is NO ATM fee and NO international transaction fee and NO currency conversion fee. Ie no fees at ALL! This card is also the best for shopping online when at home :) the NAB card is similar but costs $10/month flat rate unless you have your regular banking with NAB. No risk of accidentally having to pay a cash advance fee though as there could be with the 28 degrees card if you take out more money than you preloaded on.
Seriously guys, once you have one of these cards you will never bother with any of those travelex cards again :) enjoy!- 5 people like this
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1 Jul 2012 Larissathegreatest said
Reading this has been amazing and reminded me to take things I would have probably not worried about before. Has also been a good laugh at some comments.
I am doing the London to Athens then a 6 day Greek Island cruise in Sept 2012 and I have a couple of questions that may have been answered already but just wanting to confirm.- Are credit cards / debit cards accepted in most places through Europe as I’d prefer not to carry a lot of cash on me except for the things I need to use cash for.
- I am going in September so would I need a big coat or will it be warm enough for just light jackets etc. I am from Australia and do feel the cold more then most do but don’t want to be taking a lot of heavy winter clothes.
- Any suggestions of what type of suitcase is best – lightweight and easy to get around?I think I have a fair idea of what clothes to take and what not to take now, to definitely bring medication as I know myself my immune system is shocking so I WILL get sick, how much partying and drinking i’ll be doing so to have heaps of extra money and to do as many of the optional extras as possible.
Thanks! :)
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4 Jul 2012 ExplorerNicole91 said
Hey everyone,
This forum is sooo useful, so thank you to everyone who has contributed, I have made a nice list of things to take! My question is a little different – has anyone booked for their tour prior to it being definite departure? If so was it ok/how long did it take to go definite? We are booked in at the moment for London Paris + extension leaving the 20/12 and Simply Italy leaving 14/1 and neither are confirmed. I am just a little worried that we have planned our whole trip around these two tours, what if they are pulled? Thanks!!- 0 people like this
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10 Jul 2012 Clare85 said
Hi all, following on from my post above, now that NAB no longer offer the gold visa debit card, I think the best bet will be a Citibank Plus visa debit card (which I’ve just signed up for but haven’t yet received) and a 28 degrees MasterCard (which I’ve been happily using overseas for years). Both have no fees. Hope this advice is useful for someone! Dont get ripped off everyone!
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10 Jul 2012 Clare85 said
Oops apologies for double post!
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