Sophia wrote on Mar 11
th, 2024 at 9:33am:
We are still looking at tours that are not rushed, plane trips not long and stop over in between (in 2001 we did a long flight of 24 hours, briefly stopping in Thailand I think it was, just to wait 2 hours for next plane to continue… honestly, by the time we got to Rome, then a train journey of 3 hours to destination where rellies were, I was well and truly jet lagged and had to rest for 2 days, had the runs, so since then, I’m adamant about shorter travel lengths!
So we may be combining 2 x tours so as not rushed, staying in England a bit more to see the sights.
I so want to see Switzerland. Just whizzing through places isn’t what I want. I like to stay a while, get a real feel of the place. Learn about the culture. This for me is how I remember geography best.
The beauty of cruises are we don’t have to lug luggage around, or check in or out of hotels, we go early in morning and spend whole day as we please, even with a booked excursion, without feeling travel lagged. My son, his wife and 2 friends are on a cruise ship now… from Sydney to Hobart. Oh the cakes photos on board were to die for! For International woman’s day … OMG piggy!
But to see inland Europe, it’s bus and rail.
So we are all checking out travel brochures and distances etc
If we are making an effort to go overseas, I don’t want to be rushed!
It looks as though that first tour I put up was a continual flight… I said to my friend whose only done half the time in flights, that’s why it was a cheaper tour… killer long flights… unless going business class in more comfort and space, forget it!
In 2019 we did go business class to Singapore… was a good special deal $800 each one way…
Had to do it… tick! Drinks included! And I do love Baileys on ice
Basing yourself in a town well connected by rail and bus and exploring the surrounding areas in day trips would be a suggestion.
Switerland is very expensive but if you found a room in Basel - itself an amazing city, home of Erasmus - and expolred switzerland, suthern Germany and eastern france from there you could see quite a lot.
In England, basing yourself somewhere like Winchester - just outside the commuter belt of London - would give you acces to the south of England, Cotswolds, Bath, Oxford, south coast etc as well as London. Buses are lot less expensive than rail in England.
https://www.nationalexpress.com/enBologna in Italy is an amazing place, the biggest well-preserved medieval city in Europe and the biggest rail junction in italy. Easy day trips to Florence, Modena, Mantova, Ferrara, Verona etc, etc along the Po valley.
From Aachen - the seat of Charlemaigne - or Cologne - a Roman colony - you could explore Holland, Belgium, North West Germany.
Youth Hostels - or just hostels - are quite different in Europe to their Australian versions. Not rowdy and not all dorms, catering to every age group, not just the young. You would meet lots oof interesting people of your age in those places.
https://www.omio.com/ https://www.rome2rio.com/ https://www.seat61.com/
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