- travel
- (28)
-
It's an hilarious Dublin guide filled with serious tips.
I had to arrange a 20-person minibus to take my group from Girona airport to our Barcelona hotel, and after looking around to find the best deal, I called an airport transfers company called Suntransfers - and I'm glad I did. The price was the cheapest I could find, and the British guy I dealt with (Bob, I think) couldn't have been more helpful. The minibus was modern and arrived on time, with the child seats I had asked for already installed. Recommended!
When booking Eurostar to Holland it's sometimes cheaper to book London to Brussels (actually valid to any Belgian station), rather than buying your onward ticket to Holland separately.
Down the south of Brussels about 20 miles away lays lovely town Waterloo, the famous battlefield, where Napoleon was finally defeated by Wellington.
Worthy to climb the Lion Hill or take the guided tour around the spot for five euros (especially the tour mirrors the battlefield spirit). Also maps are only 1.50 euros.
It is best to visit on a Sunday, as that's the day for the famous flea market in Waterloo (next to Careffour supermarket) with antiques and about 300 food stalls.
Waterloo is approachable by train (a return is only three euros on weekend) from central station, or by bus from Brussels.
When travelling around the city by a hopper ticket for four euros which entitles you to unlimited tram and metro travel for 24 hours enabling you to see the most of this beautiful city.
The number 44 tram takes you on a very pleasant journey from Art Nouveau Montgomery, in the east of the city centre, to suburban Tervuren, with wonderful parks and cafes, and its famous, controversial African museum.
The tram trundles along avenues of Art Nouveau mansions and impressive embassies, past parks, boating lakes (and Brussels tram museum!), and even through a forest all on its own, on a dedicated track away from all other traces of civilisation!
Buy the Amsterdam Pass which allows access to most attractions/museums either free or discounted.
Passes are for 24, 48 or 72 hours and include public transport to get around the many sights, and also gives you a free canal tour.
The best website for (inter)national rail travel is seat61.com. It is informative, user firendly and very helpful!
Romanian railways make a nominal surcharge for excess baggage. Its hard to define when a bag becomes excessive but the fine is 10% of ticket. They call it 'baggage voluminous'
When staying in Strasbourg over a weekend or public holiday, a great way to explore the region by train is by purchasing a "Pass Evasion" rover ticket at the railway station.
This allows unlimited travel throughout Alsace as well as Basle in Switzerland and parts of Lorraine.
It is available at the bargain price of 13.50 Euros per day and for parties of 2-5 travelling together it is exceptional value at 26.60 Euros for the whole group.
Use the boats on the river seine to travel the city. An easy way to travel.
Buy a RATP billet jour (day ticket) picking up a map of the Paris network and despite the excellent Metro use the bus to get out into the suburbs.
Particularly good is the contrast seen on the T1 tram from Bobigny to St Denys then take the bus to La Defense to look around (the view of central Paris is memorable).
Continue on Tram2 from La Defense the route of which hugs the south bank of the Seine to Issy - Val de Seine RER station whence you can return to central Paris by RER/Metro or by bus.
If in Palma, it’s worth an hour travelling north by train to the old town of Soller, with its lively markets, square and port, which is just down the road by old San Francisco tram.
But it’s the journey itself makes this a trip worth taking. As the vintage 1912 brass and mahogany carriages journey through the Sierra de Tramuntana mountains, olive groves are plentiful as are valleys that drop away from beneath the train as it climbs the terrain. A series of 13 tunnels add a spooky air of excitement as the old wooden carriages rattle through.
Make moving around easy by buying a 'jump' card for the metro.
Anyone foolish enough to visit Sunny Beach should jump on the first bus to Bourgas and thence to Sozopol.
Mercifully, relatively few Brits currently visit - but the number is increasing as word escapes re its laid back charms and excellent value-for-money restaurants. Sozopol - the Eternal City - has long been a favourite escape for artists and for the first ten days of September it hosts the acclaimed Apollonia international Arts Festival.
There is a good sprinkling of beaches and Kavatse has a particularly Bohemian character.
The Hotel Diamanti is one of the few hotels located in the historic Old Town and provides a great base for visits south to the semi-tropical Ropotomo River, ancient forests and nature reserves.
Visit this area before it too becomes spoiled.
An excellent source of info is bulgariacoast.info
Train tickets are sold from more than one ticket office, and hotels and hostels seem to have different sources.
So, if the tour/ticket desk where you're staying can't book you a ticket for the day or time you want to travel it's definitely worth asking at another hotel - they may find you the ticket you want from someone else.
Tourist desk in hotel / hostel foyers.
You will almost certainly be ripped off and/or not taken to where you want to be taken (especially if returning to a decent hotel) by the charmless and unpleasant local drivers.
They are everywhere
Tales of Asia is a website detailing independent overland travel to Cambodia. Regularly updated, it tells you how to makes this trip a viable option.
When you arrive at Charles de Gaulle airport you can get a train (RER) to the city centre. There are big queues for people buying tickets however there are automatic ticket dispensers. The only problem is that these machines only accept credit/debit cards with a chip or coins. The machines do not accept notes. So if you do not have a card with a chip or coins then expect to wait in a long queue for your ticket into Paris.
Charles de Gaulle airport
Head for central London and then take a bus, any double decker, head for the top deck and sit at the front. You'll see the intricacies of London architecture and street life that you wouldn't see at any other angle. I've heard that these buses are being phased out which is a huge shame. So do it now while you have the chance.
Send your feedback or queries to been.there@guardian.co.uk
Search Been there
