Anyone got any travel planned?

[exnavynuke]

Southern Caribbean island hop Jan/Feb, with dive gear.

First Cozumel to dive known quantity/environment as we get accustomed to new gear. Then to new destinations of Barbados, St. Vincent/Grenadines (dive), Grenada, Tobago (dive), Aruba, and Curacao. Planning 7-10 days at B&Bs in each location, and possibly do a little diving even on the non-dive destinations if the right situation arises.

Not the leisurely island survey we were originally thinking of, but DW is looking forward to missing her least favorite time of year at home.

Enjoy! FWIW - I enjoyed the diving in Aruba, but there are lots of snorkeling opportunities as well as other water activities available. I did one catamaran sail/snorkeling thing that was a few hours long but had two snorkeling stops (including the Antilla wreck) and all drinks/snacks included for well under $100 (I don't remember exact price, but something like $60/person sounds about right).

Looking forward to hearing what you think of the trip and it's destinations. Your Caribbean trip sounds a lot like what I plan to do in SE Asia/etc when I finally retire.

 

[2017ish]

Have fun! If you can, do some diving in Bonaire. It's really nice diving there. Tobago Cays is also beautiful. Petit St. Vincent is a very nice private island resort in the Grenadines. Will be interested to hear a post-trip report.

Unfortunately, we have some stuff scheduled elsewhere in March, so had to limit the duration and didn't include Bonaire. Still can't believe we've yet to dive there, but now that we have more time to deal with the connections....

Will check out the other recs though.

 

[2017ish]

Enjoy! FWIW - I enjoyed the diving in Aruba, but there are lots of snorkeling opportunities as well as other water activities available. I did one catamaran sail/snorkeling thing that was a few hours long but had two snorkeling stops (including the Antilla wreck) and all drinks/snacks included for well under $100 (I don't remember exact price, but something like $60/person sounds about right).

Looking forward to hearing what you think of the trip and it's destinations. Your Caribbean trip sounds a lot like what I plan to do in SE Asia/etc when I finally retire.

I'll probably do an overview post like the one for Peru, but without the Undercurrent-level details!

 

[braumeister]

Tickets for the Edinburgh Tattoo went on sale this morning, so now I know where we'll be in August.

 

[frugal-one]

Recently bought the American Eagle brand rolling duffle carry on. The 20" that meets international carry on regs/size. Baught it because of the weight, fabric, and the great wheels.

Trying it out this week. Very pleased with it. It will be fine for our winter trip. Great improvement over my last carry on and seems to be very durable.

Where did you buy this? I would appreciate any info? Thanks!

 

[brett]

I live in Canada. I bought this on line at jetsetter. It is a US product.

https://www.jet-setter.ca/products/no-matter-what-carry-on-rolling-flatbed-duffel?variant=4392985284

They had a sale. It cost $171. CAD to my door. I narrowed the search down to either this brand or a similar Rick Steves unit (which my spouse has). I bought the 20" because we travel often in Europe and Asia. This is the international standard.

After ordering it, I found it in a store for slightly more money. I have used it on one trip, will be using it on another. Both one week. I plan to use it for our two month winter trip to SE Asia.

What I like: Great wheels (2 not 4 which is what I want). Light weight. Very well made, seems extremely durable and prove to be a great carry on.

Wish...it had an outside pocket but not a big deal for me since I usually take a very small backpack for my ipad.

 

[MuirWannabe]

I just returned from a week long trip through Northern Kentucky primarily to do the Bourbon Trail. It was a great trip. Learned more about bourbon than I thought possible and of course did many sampling’s. The trail includes 10 distilleries in a small triangle shaped area from Louisville to Bardstown to Lexington. We also toured an 11th distillery called Buffalo Trace that’s not officially on the Trail but is one of the oldest and most unique. All of it was great fun.

In addition, we toured the Kentucky Derby museum, the Louisville Slugger plant, Mammoth Cave NP, two horse farms (Claiborne farm and Taylor Made), and the Ark Encounters museum. All of these were very good. I especially enjoyed seeing where Secretariat was conceived, lived, and is buried at Claiborne Farm.

This area of Kentucky has a lot to offer. It was the off season for these tours which meant no crowds. Almost all our tours were exclusive. Although the scenery was still beautiful to me, it would certainly be much nicer in the spring.

I already enjoyed bourbon, but have an enhanced appreciation for it now. Will be trying various brands over the coming months to further my exploration. Ironically, while it was about exploring bourbon I actually discovered a deep enjoyment for rye whiskey. It’s very good and will give you a satisfying Kentucky hug [emoji847]

Muir

 

[braumeister]

In addition, we toured the Kentucky Derby museum, the Louisville Slugger plant, Mammoth Cave NP, two horse farms (Claiborne farm and Taylor Made), and the Ark Encounters museum.

My favorite in that area is Mammoth Cave. You could spend several days there.

Next time you're around, hit the Corvette Museum. More interesting than you might think. Since it's in that limestone area near Mammoth Cave, a sinkhole opened up under it a few years ago and swallowed eight classic Vettes. They have had their hands full recovering from that.

 

[Winemaker]

Bourbon +1
Buffalo Trace +1
Rye Whiskey +1
Carter Caves State Park +1

 

[txtig]

Kentucky Hug +1

 

[brett]

Going to a Cancun/Mayan Riviera AI for a week on Boxing Day.

Will miss all the post Christmas sales. What a shame....not.

 

[6miths]

Skiing in Killington, Vt this weekend. Nice start to the season. Cold but sunny.

 

[chris2008]

We have just finished the tour planning and hotel bookings for 5 weeks NZ, starting end of Feb. We can't wait.

 

[StephieJean]

European Travel much??

WE are planning a European vacation in October 2018 (15-17 days). we want to visit Versailles, Ireland, Amsterdam; however, we keep finding the cheapest air travel always comes back to Charles De Gould Airport. WE have been to Paris before, but wanted to have a little time to return to the Louve. We did want to see Stonehenge and thought it would be a quick trip from Paris, but not so much.
My question is, "is this itinerary too much, should we spend it all in Ireland. (we have never been to either Ireland or Amsterdam.
Thanks

 

[Nemo2]

.
My question is, "is this itinerary too much, should we spend it all in Ireland. (we have never been to either Ireland or Amsterdam.
Thanks

In 4 days it'll be 29 years since I left Saudi...I still say this, and I think it might well apply in your case........

 

[explanade]

WE are planning a European vacation in October 2018 (15-17 days). we want to visit Versailles, Ireland, Amsterdam; however, we keep finding the cheapest air travel always comes back to Charles De Gould Airport. WE have been to Paris before, but wanted to have a little time to return to the Louve. We did want to see Stonehenge and thought it would be a quick trip from Paris, but not so much.
My question is, "is this itinerary too much, should we spend it all in Ireland. (we have never been to either Ireland or Amsterdam.
Thanks

If it's mostly land travel, 3 countries in that time wouldn't be too bad. But you would have to fly between Ireland and Netherlands/France (although you could also go to London and take the Eurostar too).

Stonehenge is in England so you'd have to make your way there from Ireland or Netherlands or France, which would involve another crossing over water.

You can take the train between Netherlands and France as well.

It might be more relaxed to go to Ireland or England and then to Netherlands and France but both might be packing too much transit time into your schedule.

In October, you might get some rain and cloudy days, especially in Amsterdam and Ireland. So you want to allow time so you can wait for better weather to visit certain sites.

Same thing with Versailles. It's a bit of a trek from central Paris and you can spend most of the day there, especially the gardens, so you might want to increase odds of getting some sun by visiting Paris for 3-4 days as opposed to 1 or 2.

 

[Meadbh]

WE are planning a European vacation in October 2018 (15-17 days). we want to visit Versailles, Ireland, Amsterdam; however, we keep finding the cheapest air travel always comes back to Charles De Gould Airport. WE have been to Paris before, but wanted to have a little time to return to the Louve. We did want to see Stonehenge and thought it would be a quick trip from Paris, but not so much.
My question is, "is this itinerary too much, should we spend it all in Ireland. (we have never been to either Ireland or Amsterdam.
Thanks

You want to visit one country (Ireland) plus three specific locations in three other countries (UK, France and the Netherlands) only two of which (France and the Netherlands) are on a contiguous land mass.

It is certainly possible to do this economically using budget airlines such as Ryanair and Easyjet. You will need to check the airlines’ websites, as they may not show up on travel consolidators’ sites and travel agents may not offer them.

Sample itinerary:
Fly overnight to Dublin (1 night), spend 1 week (7 nights) in Ireland.
Fly to Amsterdam, spend 2 nights.
Fly or take a train to Paris, spend 3 nights.
Fly to LHR or LGW and make your way to Stonehenge (1 day).
How to Travel to Stonehenge, England | USA Today
Retrace your steps to LHR or LGW and fly home (1 day).

You could do this, but you would be missing out on so much while you race to catch the next plane, train or automobile. IMHO, you should do this only if you are putting notches on a stick. If you want to be a real traveller, prioritize and spend more time in fewer places.

 

[lwp2017]

Was planning a 2 week trip to London and Cotswolds middle of May. Trying to go before peak tourist season.

Talked to my daughter last night and she said, " how exciting that's when the Royal Wedding" will occur".

Reconsidering for the last 2 weeks of May..........

 

[lwp2017]

We have just finished the tour planning and hotel bookings for 5 weeks NZ, starting end of Feb. We can't wait.

Sightseeing or activity based?

 

[gayl]

WE are planning a European vacation in October 2018 (15-17 days). we want to visit Versailles, Ireland, Amsterdam; however, we keep finding the cheapest air travel always comes back to Charles De Gould Airport. WE have been to Paris before, but wanted to have a little time to return to the Louve. We did want to see Stonehenge and thought it would be a quick trip from Paris, but not so much.
My question is, "is this itinerary too much, should we spend it all in Ireland. (we have never been to either Ireland or Amsterdam.
Thanks

yes. Split Ireland / England and Amsterdam / Paris. I could easily spend 10 days in either ... got me thinking time to go back to Ireland .... maybe Ireland / London / Scotland (5-7 days each) or Paris / train to Avignon - Luberon (3 hrs) / up to Amsterdam side to Brugge (5-7 days each)

 

[SheitlQueen]

Just finished planning a two week trip. Driving to Sacramento for a three day course, then near Las Vegas for a four day course and to spend a couple of days at Red Rock Canyon and Death Valley. First time I will travel this much and do so much driving by myself. Not looking forward to the driving, but am to the trip.

 

[frugal-one]

Just finished planning a two week trip. Driving to Sacramento for a three day course, then near Las Vegas for a four day course and to spend a couple of days at Red Rock Canyon and Death Valley. First time I will travel this much and do so much driving by myself. Not looking forward to the driving, but am to the trip.

Just got back from Vegas and enjoyed Valley of Fire state park also.... cost $7.

 

[braumeister]

Alas, one of the coolest things in Death Valley is Scotty's Castle, which is presently closed until 2020. If/when they get it restored you should plan to go back.

Scotty's Castle Closed

Last time I was there I parked at Badwater Basin and walked out on the playa until my handheld GPS said I was at the lowest point around (roughly 282 feet below sea level). I scooped up a bit of sand/salt and still have it in a little test tube. Aside from visiting the Dead Sea you can't get much lower.

But there are quite a few things worth seeing in Death Valley. October is not a bad time to visit, although January is probably my preferred time.

 

[Mango1956]

Just finished planning a two week trip. Driving to Sacramento for a three day course, then near Las Vegas for a four day course and to spend a couple of days at Red Rock Canyon and Death Valley. First time I will travel this much and do so much driving by myself. Not looking forward to the driving, but am to the trip.

A great resource for Death Valley is the book “Hiking Death Valley” by Michael Digonnet. Lots of history on mining in the area, and some great canyons to explore.

 

[GoBears]

We will soon start planning a fall colors trip for late September, which will include a stop at Acadia National Park and Bar Harbor, ME. Intend to be gone 7-10 days. If you have suggestions, please chime in.