Scoop Airport/Hotel/Travel Thread

[JWags85]

Capri is not worth going out of season, as someone who has done that.

If pbi is looking at Austria, I'd like to recommend Salzburg.  Castle on the hill, birthplace of Mozart, Alpine background, Sound of Music stuff, Augustiner Bräu Mülln (1600s brewery), the whole city is very walkable as well.

Salzburg is great.  The salt mines are super cool as well.  Very underrated European city.

Lucerne is actually my favorite city in Switzerland, definitely a gem as well (no pun intended due to their heavy place in the gemstone trade).

Is Belgium off the table pbi?  Or maybe you've been there a lot?  Can you fly non-stop Antwerp/Prague?

Definitely not from Antwerp, Antwerp Airport is a tiny thing that is basically just a spot for seasonal holiday hotspot travel on Tui.  But I'm sure Brussels Airlines flies to Prague from BRU.

[MU Fan in Connecticut]

Some off the beaten path recs:
a) Warsaw.  Really enjoyed a long weekend there.  Great city to walk, very safe, great eastern european style city center.
b) Belgrade.  A little bit more "rustic" (and rusty) than Warsaw.  Very interesting if you're a history type.  Great restaurants and not at all expensive.  We walked and walked and walked. 
c) Zurich.  Expensive but very cool city center and lots to do around.
d) Lucerne.  Great little city. 

And the one on your list I'd avoid.
Istanbul - I'm tired of taxis trying to rip me off and hawkers everywhere who just don't give up.  Really annoying.  And when I tell them In German that I don't speak English they switch to German!!!  The Haggia Sophia and blue Mosque are amazing, and the old city is pretty cool, but there's not much else.  And traffic!!!

This past summer, the wife and I spent a night in Warsaw for the first time in well over decade.  We had an early flight the next day and Bialystok is too far.  We were very impressed as so much has changed for the better int that time frame.   They made the area at the entrance to the the Stare Miasto pedestrian only that we recall being dangerous with all the cars driving through.

[pbiflyer]

Is Belgium off the table pbi?  Or maybe you've been there a lot?  Can you fly non-stop Antwerp/Prague?

Yeh, we were just there for 10 days a couple summers ago. Loved it. Based out of Antwerp. Spent way too much time at the 11th Commandment, which I think was a recommendation from here.

So think I've narrowed it down to
Budapest-Vienna train to Prague
Istanbul
Warsaw-Krakow

Will wait to see the event schedule so I can look at specific dates/times.

[Hards Alumni]

Yeh, we were just there for 10 days a couple summers ago. Loved it. Based out of Antwerp. Spent way too much time at the 11th Commandment, which I think was a recommendation from here.

So think I've narrowed it down to
Budapest-Vienna train to Prague
Istanbul
Warsaw-Krakow

Will wait to see the event schedule so I can look at specific dates/times.

One thing to keep in mind is that the Czech train system is not as great at the neighboring countries.  Slower, older train cars was our experience.  In cast that changes your mind at all.

[MuggsyB]

Yeh, we were just there for 10 days a couple summers ago. Loved it. Based out of Antwerp. Spent way too much time at the 11th Commandment, which I think was a recommendation from here.

So think I've narrowed it down to
Budapest-Vienna train to Prague
Istanbul
Warsaw-Krakow

Will wait to see the event schedule so I can look at specific dates/times.

Ya....I much prefer Antwerp to Brussels.  I woukd go with option #1.  I haven't been to Budapest for awhile but it's a beautiful city.  Maybe I'll make Paprikash this weekend.  There are some quaint Hungarian towns you can check out, but I forgot the names.  Eger maybe?  I dunno. 

[pbiflyer]

One thing to keep in mind is that the Czech train system is not as great at the neighboring countries.  Slower, older train cars was our experience.  In cast that changes your mind at all.

Yeah, that is why I would fly from Krakow to Prague. Neither the Polish or Czech rail systems got glowing reviews. From Vienna to Prague, I can take Austrian trains.

BTW, a great European rail resource is https://www.seat61.com. Everything you would ever want to know about train travel in Europe.

Ya....I much prefer Antwerp to Brussels.  I woukd go with option #1.  I haven't been to Budapest for awhile but it's a beautiful city.  Maybe I'll make Paprikash this weekend.  There are some quaint Hungarian towns you can check out, but I forgot the names.  Eger maybe?  I dunno. 

Kind of leaning that way, I love Vienna and have some friends there I can see.
And it would allow me to correct my one Vacation movie moment, when I did the 45 minute trek to Prater park to ride the historic 1897 giant ferris wheel only to discover it was closed for maintenance (not on the web site!). https://wienerriesenrad.com/en/history/

Choosing Istanbul will very much depend on what flights I can get on the back end. We have to use a corporate travel site and it is being cranky letting me do Turkish air outbound and Lufthansa return.

[MU Fan in Connecticut]

Yeah, that is why I would fly from Krakow to Prague. Neither the Polish or Czech rail systems got glowing reviews. From Vienna to Prague, I can take Austrian trains.

BTW, a great European rail resource is https://www.seat61.com. Everything you would ever want to know about train travel in Europe.


Kind of leaning that way, I love Vienna and have some friends there I can see.
And it would allow me to correct my one Vacation movie moment, when I did the 45 minute trek to Prater park to ride the historic 1897 giant ferris wheel only to discover it was closed for maintenance (not on the web site!). https://wienerriesenrad.com/en/history/

Choosing Istanbul will very much depend on what flights I can get on the back end. We have to use a corporate travel site and it is being cranky letting me do Turkish air outbound and Lufthansa return.

Polish rail must be in middle of a major upgrade.  I rode a very nice speed train there and back from Warsaw to Bialystok that was 2 hours.  It used to be 3 hours and local trains only. The stations were all new the entire way.

[MuggsyB]

Yeah, that is why I would fly from Krakow to Prague. Neither the Polish or Czech rail systems got glowing reviews. From Vienna to Prague, I can take Austrian trains.

BTW, a great European rail resource is https://www.seat61.com. Everything you would ever want to know about train travel in Europe.


Kind of leaning that way, I love Vienna and have some friends there I can see.
And it would allow me to correct my one Vacation movie moment, when I did the 45 minute trek to Prater park to ride the historic 1897 giant ferris wheel only to discover it was closed for maintenance (not on the web site!). https://wienerriesenrad.com/en/history/

Choosing Istanbul will very much depend on what flights I can get on the back end. We have to use a corporate travel site and it is being cranky letting me do Turkish air outbound and Lufthansa return.

I think it's the prudent choice.  You really can't go wrong in Vienna.  Or honestly Austria/Hungary. 

[MU Fan in Connecticut]

I'm in DC to walk a trade show this week. I thankfully made a last minute call to switch my transportation to Amtrak from flying down.  I got the last seat on the train down and going home was very limited.  Between the shutdown and especially today's Nor'easter my intended flight was very delayed (I checked). 

[MuggsyB]

I'm in DC to walk a trade show this week. I thankfully made a last minute call to switch my transportation to Amtrak from flying down.  I got the last seat on the train down and going home was very limited.  Between the shutdown and especially today's Nor'easter my intended flight was very delayed (I checked). 

Make sure you get some Ethiopian food.  Injera is the perfect vessel for inhaling all of that goodness.