Anyone got any travel planned?

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What about socks which are easy to wash?

As for phones, you can now lease an unlocked iPhone from Apple.

I never tried these international data plans because they done seem to be enough data. Often hotel wifi is too slow for anything other than loading web pages so I try to get the most data I can for a reasonable price.

I had this Italian SIM which provided 10 GB. Over two weeks I used 7.2 GB. But I turned it on when I landed in Frankfurt. From the plane I did a speed test, downloaded my email.

Then tried a second speed test from my iPad and it was showing 35 Mbps and higher but then just aborted in the middle. Got a text saying I used up my daily 50 MB quota when roaming outside of Italy.

So a few hundred megabytes is nothing these days, even on a mobile device.
 
We haven't had trouble with data on mobile devices overseas. T-Mobile has unlimited data. The "catch" is that it's not high speed - usually 3G although sometimes 4G. But for emails, GPS maps, stock quotes and a few web pages that's just fine.

We've had quite good luck with wifi at hotels in Europe and do our more data intensive stuff there.

I've never run into multiple GB of cellphone data in a short period unless watching videos. Here in the U.S. we're often below 1GB for a month.
 
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Internet in Northern Europe tends to be pretty good.

It's hit and miss in a lot of smaller towns in Italy though. I used mobile data to download podcasts faster and even some recordings on my DVR back home during my trip in Sicily.

Also streamed some NFL games too.

Also, the. Big international hotel chains are often the worst. They give you slow wifi for free but then try to sell you the business class wifi for more money and it's only like 5 or 6 Mbps.

At this Frankfurt hotel wifi is good but they give you a unique login and password for each device. I asked for 3 and at first the receptionist said they only give two because too many devices slow it down. Then she made an exception and gave me a third password, like she's doing me a favor.
 
audreyh1 said:
Or just use T-mobile. You don't have to worry about dealing with a different phone, finding and switching SIMs (and being careful not to lose the home one), etc. Much easier!!!!

Having a European number hasn't been an issue in our recent travels so we're going to convenience next time and both of us will have T-Mobile smart phones.
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We used T-mobile and it worked well in Italy and the UK. I had to call customer service because our data wasn't working. Turns out one has to enable data roaming on the phone (Android).
 
MooreBonds said:
Will be spending Halloween and a few days after in Cancun w/ my girlfriend at our first all-inclusive resort. Can't wait to see what it's like! Although still trying to figure out what our costumes will be...
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Report back on how it goes. I've never done all inclusive at a resort and am curious if you found it worthwhile.

SIS
 
Lsbcal said:
We used T-mobile and it worked well in Italy and the UK. I had to call customer service because our data wasn't working. Turns out one has to enable data roaming on the phone (Android).
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Right - same for iPhone.
 
rodi said:
For jeans - I've been known to wear them into the shower and wash them on me... then wring them out and hang over the shower rod. I used towels to wring out the excess water. But if I'm travelling in warmer weather I avoid bringing jeans because they are too bulky compared to other fabrics.
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I always get my jeans heavily starched at a laundry before leaving home. Starched jeans shed water, stains and look reasonably good after wearing them as long as 2 weeks. Just don't get any mud on them.

And remember that you'll never see those people again.
 
Bestwifeever said:
I bet you can pack a suitcase in no time!

We have 12 weeks traveling in 2015 done or scheduled but only two trips were two weeks (hence the pack enough underwear to last the trip and no worries re laundry, for the most part)--things start blurring for me past that. Only four trips scheduled for 2016 at this point.
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My mother traveled so much in her retirement years, that she lived out of her suitcase even when at home. But she never learned to pack light.

Congratulations on your being able to travel so much. We've had two major European trips, a cruise to South America and spent a cold February in Vegas/Hawaii/San Francisco in 15 month.

And to think my wife and her girl friend are leaving me at home Nov. 1st while they go to Belize, Honduras and Mexico on a cruise. I think of it as 10 days of peace and quiet.
 
We found the best deal for SIMs in Italy at Wind (Egyptian): 20 euros for 100 min and 2 gb data for 30 days for each of our iPhones. The data really made a difference when traveling. Wifi in every hotel, some better than others, but all in the rooms.

We found take out laundry service in both Positano and Taormina. Shirts and blouses were hand pressed and folded. Same day or overnight service.

I had to pay for our cycling trip on The Moselle River next June during the trip to get the 5% discount and managed to do it on my iPhone so next time will not pack my laptop.
 
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Lsbcal said:
We used T-mobile and it worked well in Italy and the UK. I had to call customer service because our data wasn't working. Turns out one has to enable data roaming on the phone (Android).
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Another +1 for T-Mobile. We are a family of four and take regular vacations out of the country. It's great when we can all use our phones without any issues. Very handy when we split up, because we can easily text each other. And we get it for free as part of an inexpensive plan, $90/month for 4 phones. IMO, it really can't be beat.
 
kcowan said:
We found the best deal for SIMs in Italy at Wind (Egyptian): 20 euros for 100 min and 2 gb data for 30 days for each of our iPhones. The data really made a difference when traveling. Wifi in every hotel, some better than others, but all in the rooms.
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And in the spirit of being a cheapskate: you can buy one SIM card and share the data with others in your group/family by turning on WiFi sharing on the phone using the local SIM card.

With an iPhone it's called Personal Hotspot in Settings.

Also, make sure the people using this turn off Data Roaming on their phones so their phones routes data through your phone and not the local cellular carrier.

Of course, if you want each phone to have a local number they'll each need local SIM cards.
 
kcowan...if you need a Laundromat in Palermo there is one very close to the market area. It is run by an Italian who lived in Boston for 25 years and then returned home (says fishing got too dangerous an occupation for him). Just google and the locations pop up. It was fairly close to our B&B opposite the opera house but our host was not aware of it. He is always in the store. You can put your wash in, he will watch it if you want to walk around the market in the interim.


The catch...mostly older matrons in the store doing washing their heavy items such as bedspreads. I made myself scare and went for a cap.


DW says the locals paid much attention when she emptied our suitcase full of dirty clothes and put them in the machine one by one. Wash and dry was very good.
 
I have also frequently used ATT international data packages while traveling abroad (on my US smartphone), which is okay for just email but can get pricey with more extensive internet use (I think it was $30 for 120 MB if I recall correctly). T-Mobile international can be a good deal for data, BUT has a much more limited number of countries covered than ATT (I posted a comparison list a year or so ago), so that's a non-starter if traveling off the beaten track.
When I'm going to be in a country more than a day or two I use an old smartphone that I got unlocked, and have been MUCH happier buying local SIM cards (when I can) because they permit me to do local phone calls and texts plus very cheap internet access -- all of which facilitate travel logistics enormously. I don't bother if I'm only in a place a day or two (e.g., on a cruise) -- and just use the ATT international plan and/or seek out WiFi.
 
smurray5991 said:
I have also frequently used ATT international data packages while traveling abroad (on my US smartphone), which is okay for just email but can get pricey with more extensive internet use (I think it was $30 for 120 MB if I recall correctly). T-Mobile international can be a good deal for data, BUT has a much more limited number of countries covered than ATT (I posted a comparison list a year or so ago), so that's a non-starter if traveling off the beaten track.
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140+ countries are supported by T-Mobile. That's looks pretty complete to me. Pretty much includes any place that I'm likely to visit and if not, then I guess I'll figure out an alternative option. I'd be curious to know how this compares to ATT, but I'm skeptical there's a big difference.

We're contemplating an around the world trip next year and every country that we're likely to visit is included. If we go, we'll be moving around a lot, for example, 4 days in London, 4 days in Paris, 3 days in Singapore, etc. I'd hate to have to deal with getting a SIM card. If we didn't have T-Mobile, we'd probably just use wifi as needed, but it's nice not having to think about it. Everywhere we go our phones will work without us having to do anything or pay extra. For a trip like this, that's a big plus, but even for regular/short trips internationally it's convenient.
 
In Capri, the proprietor was from Connecticut and worked summers in Capri. He was a wealth of information about the countryside.

In Sicily, the chef of a local club in Taormina spends winter in PV at one of our favorite restaurants.
 
I got my laundry done in Siracusa at a laundromat owned by an American woman and her Italian husband.

Paid 7.50 Euro for about a week's worth of underwear, socks, shirts, probably a couple of kilos but enough to throw together into one load.

They washed and dried, folded it in two hours.
 
It is amazing what you can find if you look around.

We have had some good conversations and met some interesting people at laudromats during our travels.
 
Just added up all of our costs for a five week trip to Greece w/weekend in Paris on the way home. Air from Toronto-Athens, Crete-Paris, Paris-Calgary. Ferry to Hydra, Sifnos, Paros, Naxos, Crete. 9 day car rental in Greece mainland, 1 day car rentals in Paros, Sifnos, Naxos, 7 day car rental in Crete. 2 people. All accommodation, food, misc. $8K CAD (6KUSD) door to door.
 
$1700 CAD for Air Transat, $215. Agean Air. Both net of all taxes etc. Those were the total prices for 2 fares.

Average of about 50E for accommodation and a great breakfast. Priceline hotel win for Paris.

Best deal: 10E total for 2 people CDG-Paris and Paris-CDG on the new Easyjet van service (used this for London-Gatwick two years ago). Don't have to be an Easyjet customer to use it...we were not. Booked it early.
 
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50 euro average per nigh in Greece with breakfast for two?

Didn't they impose tourist taxes as part of the bailout deals?
 
explanade said:
50 euro average per nigh in Greece with breakfast for two?

Didn't they impose tourist taxes as part of the bailout deals?
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I glanced at HouseTrip offerings in Salonika*, (Wimdu and airbnb are often cheaper), and this was the first one I came across......141€ for 3 nights, (albeit you'd have to shop for your own breakfast).

*I'd speculate that the smaller centres might be cheaper........then again it's almost 30 years since I was last in Greece, and things change.
 
Prices always include all taxes. Two of the best places were 54 and 43E respectively. The first had a pool, balcony, sea view, the second was a 100m from the ocean w/sea and mountain view from the balcony. Fabulous hot breakfast with home made pastry every morning. We were in both places for 4/5 nights each.


Rental car invoice did show VAT at 23 percent. Not certain about the islands...it was 25E cash thanks very much and for one it was also choose any car you want.

Tourism in the Peloponnese was way down. In some places rates were down by 50 percent. Most of the tourists were French or German. The economy on Crete seemed much better than Athens. Several people told us they left Athens to find work on the Islands.
 
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