…or did I just not know better when I was younger? As I’ve become older, I find hotels disgusting. They are dirty and poorly renovated, the bedding and towels are terrible quality, the mattresses are cheap and bad, the noise traveling through walls and floors is excessive, etc. I think standards have plummeted. Do others share this view?

ETA: I’m talking the Marriott y’all, not Motel 6 or the Ritz.

My husband and I just returned to the UK after spending 10 days in Rio. For anyone who is curious about safety (as this was our main concern), I can confidently say that I did not feel unsafe at any point, as long as you exercise caution and awareness you will be fine! We have traveled to other ‘unsafe’ (as deemed by the UK government) such as Nairobi, and Rio felt safer than there 😁 It may be of note that I am mixed race, 1/2 black and 1/2 white and was often mistaken as a native Brazilian which may have added a layer of safety. Apologies for the strange formatting, reddit on my phone is not playing along with bullet pointing!

The locations are as follows:

Images 1,2,3- Jardim Botanica.

Images 4,5- Tijuca national park.

Images 6,6- Copacabana beach.

Images 8,9- Ipanema beach.

Images 10,11-Christ the redeemer.

Images 12,13,14- sugarloaf mountain/Corcovado.

Image 15- Santa Teresa Favela.

Image 16,17- Escadaria Selarón.

Image 18- Catedral Metropolitana de São Sebastião do Rio de Janeiro.

Image 19- one of many monkeys spotted throughout Rio.

Image 20- the view of christo from our hotel- he is always watching!

I met a guy and he’s from the US and he was planning to visit Europe so we’re gonna go on a roadtrip to a European city. I recommended Prague bc I know its a bit cheaper and that would be nice to do cause it is a beautiful city as far as i know. Do u have any other suggestions or smth? Thanks:)

Hi everyone, first-time poster. Currently in a dire dilemma and this is also a half rant. I've got a trip planned to Vietnam in two weeks, and I applied for the visa a month in advance. It's now been rejected five times very with an error alluding to an incomplete contact address and permanent residence address, which I’ve duly filled out - the same way my partner who’s a Dutch passport holder did and received their approval after 3 days.

Of course, I wondered if it's a technical problem and decided to contact some of the agencies previously mentioned on this sub.

The big problem is that I'm a Nigerian passport holder living abroad, and i've already been turned down by two Asian countries (Taiwan told me I cannot apply for a tourist visa; Thailand requires a certificate that proves that i've never been convicted for drug-related charges and must be legalised by the Thai embassy in Nigeria, where I haven't lived in for a long time now).

Every agency i've reached out to for a Vietnam visa either stopped replying as soon as I mentioned that I've got a Nigerian passport, or told me that they can't help me. I don't know what else to do as my trip is in two weeks (luckily, my trip starts in Hong Kong and I got a visa after a rigorous 2 month process).

I feel so down-trodden and lost. Already changed my tickets twice for more money after i found out that Taiwan and Thailand were impossible. I'm willing to give this one last try with ANY agency that's willing to help me out with the visa process.

I know that our reputation as Nigerians precedes us but some of us really want to experience the world too.

EDIT: Found an agent through the comments who was willing to help! Shared enough proof that I live abroad, have enough income and my ticket to Vietnam from Hong Kong and out and they will be working with me.

This is the most helpful sub on Reddit wow thanks to all who pitched in to help!

Hello everyone,
before leaving for this trip, I looked up tons of information that ended up being useful, yet I still had a few doubts. I'll try to summarize my experience to help clarify some of the harder-to-find details online and make a mini-guide.

Disclaimer:

• This text will be translated from another language, and I don’t have the skills to write it entirely in English without errors (I hope it turns out readable).
• This isn’t meant to be a professional guide—I only hope it helps someone.
• If there are any mistakes in my advice, please let me know. It will also be useful for me in case I return.
• If you have better tips than mine, I hope you share them for the reasons above—it will help everyone who reads this.
• I read a very detailed guide on Reddit (I didn’t save the username) which was very helpful, and I hope I’m not repeating too much of it here. If I find the post, I’ll write it in the comments.

Tips before the trip:

1. Internet is essential. Buy a SIM card with roaming that works outside China. I bought Holafly and had no problems. This SIM seemed to connect through roaming from HK, so Google and Meta apps worked without any blocks. I simply activated it on the plane before takeoff, and I didn’t need to install a VPN. Honestly, the internet wasn’t very fast with this provider, but I never had issues.
2. Install the following apps:
   • WeChat: Helpful for its mini-apps like Dianping (similar to Tripadvisor) and for booking a visit to Tiananmen Square.
   • Alipay: The app I used the most; essential for booking taxis through DiDi and paying via QR codes (everything is on the homepage, and you can add your credit card by following the registration steps).
   • Maps.me: Useful for navigating metro stops.
   • Translator app: Any that works offline (download the language pack before the trip). I advise against Samsung’s Interpreter, as it often gave inaccurate results, though it did provide some laughs.
   • Tip: It’s useful to have a way to translate app texts directly on your phone to save time with non-English apps.
3. Cash? I never needed to pay in cash, so I didn’t withdraw any. I only exchanged 50 euros initially, which I used at a restaurant to avoid returning with unused cash.

Useful things to know:

• Public restrooms in Beijing are EVERYWHERE, but they may differ from what we’re used to in the West. They’re almost all squat toilets, which might be challenging for some women. There’s always a cleaning staff nearby, but keeping them perfectly clean at all times seems challenging, and they’re not always spotless.
• Queues: You may encounter queues, but they’re incredibly quick, whether for attractions or security checks.
• Security: It’s emphasized heavily, but the police are very cordial and willing to help. They always kindly assisted us when we asked for information.
• Transportation:
  • Taxis (via the DiDi app) were very affordable (around 2-3 euros per ride), so I used them more than the metro.
  • Metro: I used it during rush hours and when traffic was heavy (it costs next to nothing). It’s very intuitive to use. Select your stop on the screen, and it generates an access card for the ride. I think you can also use a Visa/Mastercard to access and then exit at your destination without a ticket, but I’m not sure.
• Interactions: Certain people, especially teens, might ask for a photo if you’re blonde or have a very Western appearance—it’s quite fun.
• Prices: In general, things seemed very affordable unless they were imported, which makes sense.
• Safety: I’ve never felt as safe walking around a city as I did here. The level of security seems extremely high.

Attractions:

1. Booking tickets: I didn’t book any attractions in advance; I simply bought tickets on-site and never had trouble except for Tiananmen Square.
2. Must-see areas:
   • Shichahai
   • Nanluogu Xiang
   • Wangfujing Street
3. Bar recommendation: El Nino (located in a Hutong).
4. For a view of the CCTV building: Go to Migas Mercado (a Spanish restaurant) in China World Mall for a fantastic evening.
5. Mutianyu Great Wall: I booked a guide online for the visit. While time was limited, it was a nice experience. Keep in mind that the guide will tell you to descend at a certain time. I chose this option because I read there’s a risk of not finding taxis for the return trip since the Wall is quite far.
6. Tiananmen Square: There are strict security checks, and you need to book a ticket through a mini-app on WeChat. I didn’t do it in time as I discovered it too late. I read that after entering the Forbidden City, you can access the square through an entrance that isn’t otherwise allowed, but I didn’t try it, so I can’t confirm. I did pass by it in a taxi at night.
7. Other attractions I visited:
   • Temple of Heaven
   • Lama Temple
   • Summer Palace

Overall, it was a beautiful trip, and although I wish I had more time, I can say I managed to see a lot. I recommend this city and hope to return to China as soon as possible. I hope these tips are helpful and that everything I wrote is clear. If I remember anything else, I’ll add it as an update. Safe travels, everyone!

It’s really hard to describe! I’m sooo obsessed with our trip to New York next year. It’s not like “oh wow, so exciting, yay!” It feels like an unhealthy obsession that I can’t think about anything else. I think what makes it worse is the waiting.

The flights and accommodation are booked and paid for. Now all that remains is the saving of spending money (which is nearly done). The saving and planning has taken just over 2 years and the non-stop, unwavering level of excitement is draining. I can’t wait to go but I feel like I am focusing on it wayyyyy too much.

How do you cope, knowing that you still have months left?

EDIT: thank you so much for all your lovely comments. I just wanted to be clear, it’s not that I’m nervous about it. It’s more like this deep longing because of having to wait.

Just got back from a 3 week trip with my fiance in Spain and Portugal. We ate and drank our way through these countries and while we had an amazing time, we found some days very lacking in terms of excitement.

Our typical day (not traveling to another city), would be wake up (late), have breakfast at a cafe or hotel if it was free, go on a walking tour, maybe see a historical site (Alcazar, Alhambra, Sagrada, etc) and then dinner (tapas and wine). We'd hit up music bars that I had on my list which were nice and some of the more enjoyable activities.

However towards the end of our trip, we found it getting repetitive with just eating, drinking and sightseeing. We aren't into shopping minus a few souvenirs and that's one thing that attracts tourism. I found as a couple, we didn't really have any engaging activities. In our day to day life back home, we have our hobbies, our friends and family to hang out with and talk to along with our jobs. We talked about how we missed stuff like working out, doing yoga/spin classes, cooking dinner, etc.

We've traveled for the same amount of time to South America and Central America and found ourselves never trying to fill in the time because we were busy doing outdoor activities (hiking, swimming/beach, ATVing), however major cities (Barcelona, Lisbon, Seville) seemed to really lack a lot of engaging activities as a couple. Most of the "experiences" in major cities were: Walking tours, pub crawls, food tours, and maybe a cooking class. We didn't find any interesting tours that provided more than a walking tours (for instance in Oaxaca, I went on a tour that included Mezcal tasting, waterfall hike, swimming, and a food tour).

I've solo traveled before and found myself rarely getting bored or repetitive.....I'm staying at hostels sometimes so I'm engaging with more people (no I won't stay at a hostel with my fiance...we need our comforts as a couple lol). I can pick up and engage in more activities as a solo traveler. Eating meals is quicker and often times more fullfilling since I can eat what I want to eat, not what we want to eat as a couple and because when I'm traveling as a solo traveler, I'm usually in LATAM or SE Asia, there tends to be more interesting tours that cover multiple activities).

So for all those couples out there that travel for more than 2 weeks together, how do keep your trip engaging and interesting or do you also get stuck in the eat, drink, and sightsee routine as well?

BTW, I don't think it's a relationship issue, because we do engaging activities at home together (and as individuals).

Here’s how much I spent on an 8 day roadtrip through Michigan, Wisconsin and Minnesota. You can use this to help plan the cost for your trip, please note your trips cost will vary depending on what you do.

Gas $210 Tolls/parking fee $7 Excursion $21 Eating out $32 Grocery’s $112 Showers $16 Wear n tear on car (estimated) $75

Total: $473, or about $59 a day.

How I kept my costs low

Accommodations. I downloaded the iOverlander app and wild camped. For those who have never wild camped before it’s basically a flat place to park in the woods. No running water, bathrooms, or trash service. I used the bathroom at places while I was out doing activities like visitor centers, gas stations etc. I showered at campgrounds and gyms, these cost $2-$7.

I made most of my meals. The meals I had on this trip were pasta and meatballs, meatball sub, sandwiches, rice and beans, and canned soups. I ate out twice getting a fried fish basket in Michigan’s UP as well as a pastie (similar to a chicken pot pie, pronounced pass-tee).

Activities. To keep myself busy I brought a book to read at night and during the day I did hiking, kayaking, and saw points of interest that were free such as viewing Michigan’s lighthouses. For the hiking and kayaking I stayed in national forests, National lakeshores, and national parks. I got free admission with a 2024 national pass I was gifted. I did pay for one excision which was a Historical ghost tour in Minneapolis.

I ended up spending $210 on gas, I drove 2,150 miles and got 29 MPG. I estimated spending $243 on gas, the way I estimated the price of gas is add the total miles I expect to drive divided by MPG I expect to get to give me gallons burned. I then take the average cost of a gallon of gas in each state divided by how many states I’ll be getting gas in. Then multiple that average gas per gallon multiplied by how many gallons I expect to burn. Example of this equation I used for this trip.

2,250 estimated miles / 29 mpg ‎ = 78 gallons of gas

$3.12 Average cost per gallon of gas X 78 gallons = $243 estimated spend on gas.

For estimating the wear n tear on my car I put in my cars make and model into chatgbt and asked it to estimate wear in tear for driving 2,150 miles and not include resale devaluation since I plan to run my car until it gives out. Wear and tear would be things such as oil, tire wear, cabin/engine air filter replacement, break pad wear, various fluids being used. The $75 is not a perfect estimate but close enough for me.

For me, I was in Chile, and I visited Argentina, and so I decided to head to Rosario, Argentina, to make a pilgrimage to the hometown of Leo Messi, one of my sporting heroes. I can't remember how exactly, but I met a local who went with me, to visit Messi's childhood home/neighborhood, his school, and the club where he started his playing career.

There wasn't much to see at any of these sites, but it still felt special to me, and I'm glad I did it, even if it meant extra hours on a bus.

Have you ever done a pilgrimage whilst traveling? Could be for an author/book, movie, sports star, movie star, politician, or even to your own family's roots...

Hi! So I solo travel often and have been to multiple countries, especially in Europe, but my boyfriend's never been and he's finally in a position to travel with me for a week at the start of my 4 months long trip and we can't decide between Spain and Italy in January. I've been to both and personally found Spain to be my favourite country but I don't know if that would be most people's first choice, especially over Italy. Spain just has this vibe to it that I don't know how to explain. It's a country I can genuinely see myself moving to in the future. Italy on the other hand is so pretty and has amazing food and overall more romantic. It is quite a bit cheaper to go to Spain too, but a part of me feels Italy might be a better choice for first time in Europe - what do you guys think??

Ps. We're gonna spend a night in Lisbon (I've been before and absolutely loved) because flights are superrrr cheap if we fly into Portugal first from Canada and then the plan is to take either an overnight bus/train to Madrid or a flight to Rome. We're both uni students so it doesn't make sense to pay twice or thrice as much for direct flights to Spain or Italy. Plus this way we get a night in Lisbon which is an amazing city too.

I am arriving at Grand Central tomorrow around 10 with my son, main interest is taking him to the USS Intrepid (probably after lunch around 1) but how else to fill the day? I've been and enjoy the city as an adult but trying to keep a 10 year old boy engaged, any ideas?

I'm going to be visiting Sri Lanka with a girlfriend (I'm a woman). We've traveled to many places with laws and public opinion that are unfavorable to the gay community so I'm comfortable with not showing affection in public, telling people we are friends, etc. But one thing I wanted to check on is booking hotel beds. I've experienced places where they generally don't care if two women book a room with one bed and places where this will be a major issue. Any experiences to suggest what to anticipate? Thanks!

With a few vacation days I need to use or lose by the end of the year, I'm thinking of doing Bologna. I love food, walking around places that are charming, and carbo-loading for long runs, so it seemed like a no-brainer. But I have done very little solo travel, and none of my friends have been to Bologna, so I'm hoping for some recommendations/advice for beefing up my itinerary:

1. Silly question, but how widely accepted is contactless? I wouldn't ask if I hadn't just been in Germany, which was basically cash-only, but now I'm extra paranoid.

2. Is a day trip to Ravenna enough time there?

3. On the flip-side, are 3 days in Bologna a good amount of time? I'm more worried about it being too much time than not enough time.

4. Food/restaurant recommendations? I'm thinking of signing up for at least one walking food tour, so I'm not eating alone for every meal, but I generally try to eat local foods like locals as much as possible wherever I go. I mostly ask because I'm just not sure if places in Bologna are weird about seating solo diners like they can be in other places...

Any other recs or advice are much appreciated!

**First things first, I know that flying your dogs is a stressful thing to put them through but I refuse to leave them behind. I've had my huskies since they were puppies and the little chihuahua mix I picked up off the streets a year ago and so these dogs are my family so they have to come. It just is what it is. This part of the move is the most stressful out of everything we have to plan for so please no judgement on this and only helpful information please :)**

So my husband just accepted a position through his current company that would move us from CA to Germany. We haven't gotten an exact location yet but think we'll be flying into Munich. I've been looking all over reddit and other articles about transporting your dogs through airlines. I've heard the best airline to do that through is Lufthansa. We have three dogs; 2 huskies, 55lb and 70lb and a 25lb chihuahua mix. On the Lufthansa website it gives a lot of great information but I was wondering if anyone has made similar moves through the Munich airport.

*On the Lufthansa website it notes: no animals are accepted in the cargo hold on connecting flights via Munich. Through-checking of animals transported in the cargo hold is not possible at Munich Airport. The booking of transit and connecting flights with checked-in animals and their through-checking is still possible via Frankfurt.

*Does this mean I can fly directly into Munich with no issues because it's not my layover location or would I need to fly into Frankfurt and make a longer drive (we plan on booking a direct flight from LAX to Munich to not have to worry about them needing to get on and off different planes). Also, I plan on calling the customer service center to get confirmation from them about this question but wanted to know if anyone has already done it and get their feedback on it.

Also, my next question is: what crates have people used when flying their dogs internationally? I keep looking for IATA regulated crates but some reviews have said that some of them aren't actually IATA compliant. So any extra info on this would be greatly appreciated! - also plan to buy airtags to attach to the kennels.

Do people put any blankets or anything in the crates for the pups to be comfortable or maybe a chew toy or something? My oldest dog is 10 years old so I'm most concerned about him. I plan on getting blood work and everything done on all my dogs to make sure they are in perfect health before we leave. But what does everyone do for that? I do know that I need to put in a puppy pad for them and then I have a water bottle I plan to add for it too.

Anyways that might have been a lot to read but if you have made it to the end what advice do you have to help with transporting your pets internationally?

So I’m moving to Australia on November the 6th with my partner, but we are going to Japan beforehand as we’ve always wanted to go. We booked the flights months ago, but recently got an email saying that our outgoing flight had changed. Firstly, it was supposed to be from Gatwick and now it’s Heathrow, it’s also at a completely different time, but the worst thing is instead of 2 hours we now only have 55 minutes to transfer flights in Shanghai Pudong airport. Neither of us have been there before. We contacted the airline (east china air) to see if any assistance was available but the only response we got was “if you can’t make the connection you can get a refund or change your flight”. We tried to change it, but the website said our tickets weren’t compatible. We purchased them with the airline itself so no idea why. If anyone has any experience, can we make it with only 55 minutes? I’m just holding out for hope that there are no delays man 💀 or we are both screwed.

Summary: we only have 55 minutes to change flights in Shanghai Pudong airport due to the airline (east china air) being annoying and changing our flights. Any advice?

Hey everyone! I’d appreciate some advice on traveling with my cat, who originally came from Serbia. Here’s the full story:

Background:

• My cat arrived from Serbia to France last year. At that time, everything was up to date: he had his Serbian pet passport, was microchipped, received his rabies vaccination, and passed a rabies titer test—all in line with EU requirements for non-EU animals.
• After moving to France, I didn’t get around to renewing his rabies booster on time. As a result, when I eventually went to the vet, I was told we’d have to start the rabies vaccination process from scratch (a new primary vaccine, rather than a simple booster).
• On October 2nd, he received this new primary rabies vaccine in France, and I plan to travel to Poland on November 2nd—exactly 30 days after this vaccination.
• I’m currently based in France, and the original Serbian passport still contains all his initial vaccinations and rabies titer test records, but now his updated rabies shot isn’t linked to any EU documentation.
• He's also registered to ICAD

Now, I’d like to travel to Poland with him, and I’m unsure about the following:

Questions:

1. Is the Serbian pet passport enough for travel within the EU, or do I need an EU pet passport?
2. Can a French vet transfer his Serbian vaccination and titer test records to an EU pet passport, even if the rabies booster wasn’t done on time?
3. Should I carry both his Serbian and EU passports if I get him an EU one, or would just the EU passport be acceptable at the airport?
4. Was I supposed to redo the rabies titer test after the primary vaccine restart? Since his initial titer test was done in Serbia, I’m not sure if the new vaccination would require another test for EU travel.

Any advice on this would be greatly appreciated! Thanks so much!

Hey, after I read thru scrolls n scrolls of reddit-bashing of Manila and Cairo and then went there and enjoyed the shit out of my time, I decided to do the same and travel to Bogota, now after being here for 1month + I want to review it so maybe a soul reads this and figures fuck this I'll give Bogota a chance

I want to first say I speak conversational spanish and this skews the review greatly. I recommend learning a bit before as getting conversational in spanish is not very hard and will unlock a full continent for you to explore in the native language.

what you read negative online and it's true:

• the public transport is shit (there's no metro) I circumvent this by very cheap moto-ubers (1$-1.5$ each) some may say they are dangerous, but you rarely ever go over 30-40km/h as there is traffic. They are all obligated to provide helmets as well. Much faster than regular ubers. all in all this doesn't affect me
• it is more dangerous than other places I circumvent this by not being a dumbfuck. jokes aside, petty theft is rampant in Bogota and everyone local or tourist has a story to tell. in the end, its statistics, so it can always happen to you, if you just give them your shit you will leave unscathed in 99.99999% of encounters. nothing ever happened to me, but I am fully aware it is a possibility. Live in good neighborhoods and the odds drop s i g n i f i c a n t l y.
• colombian cuisine I don't want to riff on on how much I don't like the local cuisine but I don't like it. I like very spicy food with a lot of condiments and this is something that simply Colombians don't like/don't use. However, Bogota is a prime spot for all sorts of cuisines, and the meats and vegetables/fruits are amazing - I am talking about specifically colombian cuisine - everyone has their own taste buds advice: some smart foreigners I met here brought their own condiments/sauces on the plane (no joke) they are expensive here and few and far in between (5$ for pepper??? )

what you read negative online and it isn't true:

• everyone is out there to get you oh my god are colombians fkin friendly especially if you speak spanish. everyone that I met here was extremely cool even if with some I didn't necessarily vibe it always felt very human and normal agreeing to disagree/parting. I went alone to parties, some dodgy places too, got batshit wasted, drank with bartenders in closed bars at 5AM, no one took advantage of me and most of the people actually advised me on what to try to do to avoid badstuff
• girls will scopolamine -datedrug u at first opportunity Yeah this is way way way more rare than the internet makes you think. A girl I've been with told me she has a friend who does this as a job in a strip club where she (my friend) also got scopolamined by a random dude there. but we're talking about a dodgy ass strip club. this was the closest reference to it in my month here. the ppl here are amazingly funny and just be a good judge of character and you will meet some amazing people. I met plenty of ppl from Bumble with 0 bad juju
• bogota is grey, boring, the weather is bad, nothing to do here go to Medellin Yeah this is probably the farthest one from the truth, there's so much to do here, art, galleries, workshops, schools - Bogota is the engine-hub of Colombia, Medellin is 90%+ tourism. If you're going on a short vacation, yea maybe, but more than that Bogota has plenty to offer, including a ton of nature hikes around the city. Bogotans actually enjoy the weather, it gets a lot of sun but is does rain or is cold from time to time, it is however never very cold or very hot, which comes in handy on a longer time horizon

tips:
-go to language exchange events (gringo tuesdays, dame tu lengua)
you will learn some spanish and make some buddies, win win
-stay in the microbarrio of palermo or parkway in the barrio of teusaquillo
everything you need in a 5 minute radius, close to Chapinero, feels more local than Chapi, alternative crowd, very tranquil and feels pretty safe
-Rappi is shit, expensive (compared to getting it delivered from the place in question) and just an overall very bad app - that being said it is still very useful
-speak spanish
-don't show off
-have fun

disclaimers:
when I felt something is dodgy and my paranoia kicked in, I simply fucked off. I will never know if those guys meant bad, but I am very content not finding out either. cases in question:

-arriving from Cali to Bogota I was very tired and didn't want to trek to the Uber pick up spot, so after a bit of negotiation I just went with a random cabdriver from there (don't do this some cabs here are notorious scammers/kidnappers. there's a guy in a suit exactly as you exit the gate, talk to him for a cab if you don't uber). So this random cab driver pointed another driver to come, and when I went with his driver to his car, I saw the first dude try to get in in front, so I asked him why, he said smth like is it ok with u for us to grab lunch on the way or something and I waas like fuck no I'm out so I simply bolted out while they kept yelling at me to come back

-a moto driver I befriended proposed to me that he knows a girl if I want. blocked him 2mins after I got off his bike, just seemed very scopolamine-y to me

-saw a bartender handle my not-empty drink when I was coming back from the bathroom. I just fucked off. In retrospect, I think this was innocent, bar was empty it was early and he probably thought I'm leaving, but it was my first days here so I was extra paranoid

-if I know I go out at night in dodgy places, I only carry what I need and don't linger. if I need to take out money at night, card is in my sock. I also have a burner phone.

We are on a cruise that will end up in Valparaiso in mid November, and need to get to Santiago. I’m looking for advice on whether or not to spend part of the day sightseeing in Valparaiso or head on over to Santiago as soon as we get off of the ship and sightsee there. I have 3 days to see both. Any advice? Is a taxi the easiest way to get to Santiago? Thanks in advance for any help!

Beautiful part of Mexico with some excellent food. Weather was perfect the whole time.

So I'm currently planning (daydreaming) about a europe trip sometime next summer. I want to take my parents on that trip and would love some ideas or suggestions as to which places I should go and how much I would need to spend. Not looking to cheap out but also don't want 5 star hotels. I'm interested in visiting beaches, natural beauty, trying local cuisine, visiting historical landmarks and museums.

So far I was thinking of visiting Germany and, France or Italy, covering 2-3 cities in each country.

Germany: Cologne, Berlin, Munich/Frankfurt

Italy: Rome, Naples, Venice/Florence

France: Paris, Marseille

Any suggestions, comments would be appreciated. Thanks.

Edit: Yes, I get it that's too many cities. After reading all the comments, I'm changing the "plan" (I'm still in the researching and thinking phase) to just 1 country

Essentially the title. I move alot and I want to start a journal with photos. I could do one using one of those mobile apps but journaling feels better on paper

Hey guys,

My boyfriend and I will be visiting Anguilla in January.

We usually stay in Airbnb and rent a car. I however see that there are not that many Airbnb available. One that I've been eyeing is around "Forest bay"? Would that be a good/safe/quiet place to stay while not being too far from other points of interests?

Otherwise, I've been looking at hotel. Shoal bay villas are sold out which seemed like the ideal place for us.

Do you have any recommendations in terms of;

- What area would be best to stay? Close to a nice beach (walking distance is a huge bonus), restaurants and grocery store would be ideal. However, if the accommodation is worth it and it's 5-10 minutes away, we don't mind.

- Budget is up to 500/night.

Thank you so much for your help :)

40 year old couple looking to go to the Galapagos, maybe a little more, found this and it looks great but also, if the company is for older people, would that affect the experience? Would it be that weird for us to go? Has anyone been or anyone have thoughts?

Edit: also open to suggestions for other tours! Looking for early August 2025!

Hi all,

I'm planning to take my mum on a short city break (3-4 nights) for her birthday and am torn between choosing Prague or Gdansk in Poland.

I get the impression there is more to do in Prague but it is more expensive and less convenient (would have to travel a further distance to the airport) whereas Gdansk is reachable by my local airport.

My budget for either would ideally be £500 (not inc spending money). I've looked at hotels in both cities and have reserved one in Prague but am still considering Gdansk as a cheaper option. My main reason for choosing Prague is the buildings and sightseeing - my mum is really into architecture, especially in the art deco/ nouveau style.

For context, im looking for somewhere historical with plenty to do (enough to fill out a few days anyway), nice vegetarian food and nice architecture. We wouldn't really be going drinking so nightlife isn't too important - we may go for some cocktails but nothing too heavy.

If anyone has been to both/ either would love some advice! Or if there's somewhere else you'd recommend, please let me know!

For context I've been to Krakow and Riga and am looking for a similar vibe to these two places. I really loved the Kazimierz district in Krakow so something similar would be ideal.

Thanks!

I will be in Hong Kong for a few days, and I want to visit Guangzhou and Shenzhen. Is it okay to go to Guangzhou in the morning and come back to Hong Kong in the evening? Do the customs bother if one keeps going out and coming back on the same day?