Firstly, a general rule: Get yourself a good book that covers the general things that you want to do, see & need additional information on. Lonely Planet guides are fantastic & are generally the favourite pick, however this time I chose a different book. I chose "The Rough Guide to Europe on a budget" not because I was on a budget, but more so because after quickly reading through the general Europe books & this one, I found this to have more options & information regarding airport shuttles, public transport & even tourist attractions that you could do. Still including the most popular attractions, but it also spoke about ways that you could see or bike tours you could do that also included them (& multiple other ones) & it wouldn't cost you an arm & a leg. It was a personal choice, but I was happy with my choice. Tipping in restaurants & cafes, is it required? Tips are generally included in the bill, so don’t feel like you have to tip unless it was great service & you want them to know (or you have loose change you don’t want to carry around). Men Coming from a young woman who travelled alone, in Italy, Croatia, and Amsterdam, firstly you need to understand that it doesn’t matter where you go, the men will always make noises. Whistling, kissing noises, and one liners in their language are the most common things that you’ll come across. All you need to worry about is not to react, retaliate, or give them any attention & you’ll generally be fine. I never had any problems, I ignored any passer byers remarks, and didn’t wear overly revealing clothing. I still wore trendy skirts & dresses, but nothing over the top where there was a lot of skin showing. Not only is this disrespectful in many places, but this is what will get you the attention you don’t want. Basically, be cautious, respectful, and a mature adult, ask people in shops or around groups of other people in tourist areas if you have any questions. |
Ulmon iPhone App. I highly recommend checking out & downloading the app “Ulmon” or also known as “City Maps” on your iPhone/smartphone. This will give you the full map of all major cities in the world & can be used offline, once you’ve downloaded it. You can either download it as the App “Ulmon” or you can download individual apps on the cities for e.g. Ulmon Paris, Ulmon Milan or Ulmon Amsterdam. This is great because you look more like you’re on your phone texting as opposed to lost & looking on a map trying to find your way. I found this to be a huge life saver as I would walk everywhere to get to know where I was. You have an option to select an icon that will show you exactly where you are & it appears as if it is a compass. The way that this works, is whatever way the top of your phone faces (while lying flat on your hand) the icon will face the direction it is going. You can literally use it as a compass for directions on which street to turn down. For example, stand on a corner & manoeuvre your hand so the phone points at the multiple street options until you can work out which is the correct one to turn down. The closer you get to the street (or required destination), the closer the icon will appear. It moves with you – therefore making it easy to navigate your movements. Another great point for this app is that you can “Pin” different locations. For example, I would pin the location of where I was staying so I had my base to return to, & then I would pin the location of the different attractions I wanted to go to in a separate colour so I could tell them apart & work out how far away they were from each other. It truly is a fantastic App & I would not have had such an easy going holiday & adventure without it. Toilets In Europe there are a lot of dirty toilets, squatting toilets, or reasonably clean toilets. However, take note that when using the reasonably clean toilets that they will also regularly come at a cost. There are entrance fees into toilet blocks that are approximately 0.50 EUR or 1.00 EUR in order to go in & use them. This is very common in the airport, train stations, shops & also along the streets in between markets & shops, so don’t worry when you are asked to pay a small price. |
AirBnb A fantastic website that provides you with all kinds of accommodation. Accommodation from spare rooms in Berlin, share rooms, studios, apartments in Milan, houses, villas, or even mansions on the Amalfi Coast. This site/App provides options for everything. It is definitely worth checking out! The costs are much lower than hotels, and even hostels – so do your research – check out the options of where you’re going & check to see what you could really be staying in. I stayed in an apartment for $58/night AUD compared to hostels going for $89/night AUD in a shared room. It is worth checking out all your options & this provides heaps. There are filters to help sort which accommodation is most suitable, whether it be for price, shared/private, location etc. All applicants on this website have to go through particular security checks before posting their properties on the site, however still be careful. Ø Check if they have reviews – always try & stay somewhere that has at least a few different reviews Ø Contact them first in an email & make sure they are good at communicating – get back to you within a sufficient amount of time. If they show from the beginning that they’re not reliable, than you’ve already basically got your answer. Ø Always ask questions before booking. Ø Read their profiles & their full costs. Ø Wifi – most have wifi, take advantage of this & it’ll make it easier for you when organising your days ie. Checking attractions online to visit or even doing online check-ins for future flights before leaving. Check it out – I found it to be a great help! |