Holidays - The Bear and Badger

Skondo

That's a nice BIG pic adkm.

adkm1979

Fixed. Click the thumbnail for the BIG pic.

Matt_82

Was Elmlea going to a pageant?

Kow

I didn't realise Elm was a Bollywood actor.

Funkstain

Just got back from NY.

Couple of top tips:

- Rockefeller is a better view than Empire State, so unless you're desperate to go up the ESB you could skip it. If you do decide to go up the ESB, for the love of God buy the priority pass. On a whim, as we were passing it, we decided to go up it one night (this is midnight on a weekday) and the priority pass, which costs $20 more than the standard pass ($27 or something), let us skip 2.5 hours of queuing with angry parents and tired children.

- The city pass thing seems like great value, but remember the museums are all voluntary entry fees. They suggest $25 for MOMA and MMA but you don't actually have to pay that. We paid $10 per entry which seemed reasonable.

- If you're going for more than 2/3 days, get a 7-day subway pass: you can go all over the city with one card, for $31. It pays for itself after only 12 subway journeys and seriously reduces hassle.

- The statue of liberty island is shut right now (though due to open soon), so skip expensive boat tours etc and catch the totally free Staten Island ferry which goes right by it.

WorKid

We've finally booked a holiday! Gran Canaria, with the kids, bungalowy job. Also we fly out from Manchester not Bristol which is good. I fucking hate Bristol airport.

We've never done this before, and our flight back is near enough midnight, but checkout is midday - I presume they are used to this and keep our luggage and stuff? Or do we have to sit for 12 hours in the heat with 4 suitcases and two miserable kids.

Paul the sparky

They keep your shit locked up for you and usually give you somewhere to shower/change clothes before you get picked up. Hope you have a great time.

GooberTheHat

Hotels will normally hold your suitcases in the luggage room until you are ready to leave.

WorKid

Good stuff, that's quite a relief.

I can't wait to be honest. Choosing a holiday has been a fucking slog but we're happy now, all inclusive (= no badgering me for money for drinks and ice creams), kitchenette (= can give the kids proper english food if we need to!), 4 hour flight which seems manageable. And a day in Manchester too. I fucking LOVE Manchester.

Shinji

So myself and herself have booked flights to Tokyo without really thinking a huge amount about it.

So if anyone has any tips on stuff to see, places to stay I'd love to hear them.

ShabbyMcCrabby

Brooooooooooooooks!

ShabbyMcCrabby

I head off to Ibiza tomorrow for a week. I'm not really a massive clubbing person so I'm not sure how much fun I'll have but it was a very good deal and I'll be able to cross it off my list. The people I'm going with are cool so that should make it good. If all else fails I can just hang out on the beach.

beano

Should've gone to magaluf.

http://m.vice.com/en_uk/read/an-accidental-big-night-out-in-magaluf

Matt_82

I found I was far too old for Ibiza when I was 25. I'm not a clubber though so I was never going to get on with it.

beano

I was eleven when I went. It was 1990. Three of us went away last minute for 80 nicker. ONLY KID IN MANCHESTER AIRPORT IN SCHOOL UNIFORM. MET CURLY FROM CORRIE. EEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE!

beano

Two weeks off school. Mega. Tho.

Cos

Yeah, Billy's posts cover a lot of great stuff. The Japan Rail pass is a must if travelling outside of Tokyo. I really enjoyed Kyoto as well and if you do make it there, I'd highly recommend going to Nara. It's about 45 minutes on the train from Kyoto (covered by JR Pass too) and is really beautiful. You can fit a lot into a day trip there but can always go back for a second depending how long you're in the area.

The Ghibli Museum is well worth the trip, even has it's own bus stop and catbus styled transport. You do have to book in advance for a specific day so make sure you plan for it.

I also spent a couple of days in Fujigoko which is a great base if you want to see or climb Mount Fuji. We did a tour around the lakes taking in Sengen Shrine, Oshino Hakkai and the ice caves. The Shiraito and Otodome Falls were also amazing and I'm sure there are buses taking you between the various sights around Fuji.

http://www.japan-guide.com/e/e6900.html

I'll post anything else I can find/remember about some of those places if you're interested.

igorgetmeabrain

beano wrote:

Should've gone to magaluf.

http://m.vice.com/en_uk/read/an-accidental-big-night-out-in-magaluf

That is where I'll end up when I die and get despatched to hell.

JMW

Book Ghibli from here if you want to do it, it's highly unlikely they'd still have advance tickets once you're there.

JMW

We looked through quite a few days worth on the Lawsons machine, couldn't find anything; fortunately we'd been before. Japan's the sort of place most people would want to go again too though.

Shinji

Cheers Gonzo, Cosby and JMW, I'll have a look

mk64

Seen

nick_md

ShabbyMcCrabby wrote:

I head off to Ibiza tomorrow for a week. I'm not really a massive clubbing person so I'm not sure how much fun I'll have but it was a very good deal and I'll be able to cross it off my list. The people I'm going with are cool so that should make it good. If all else fails I can just hang out on the beach.

I went to Ibiza last month as the folks & uncle were out there in a villa. Been there several times as a kid due to my dad living there in the 60s / 70s so having lots of roots, but this was the first time going of legal drinking age. If you're not interested in clubbing (I'm not really, certainly at those prices) then there's plenty to do anyway. Take a boat out to Cala Bassa or Cala Gracia (can walk to the later actually from San An) for some lovely, more secluded beaches. You can also take one of the several faux-train trips around the island, taking in the vineyards and rural locations etc. The one I took stopped up some high point with a lovely bar and free beer, took about 2 hours in total I think. Also worth getting a bus (2euro odd) over a taxi and checking out Eivissa (Ibicenco way of saying 'Ibiza') which is the main city and has a kick ass 16th-or-so Century fort for keeping the moors at bay. They had a full medieval fayre when I was there too and if you like your history you'll love it. Only word of warning is to buy your bus tickets back when you get to your destination as a lot of the ticket places shut early. Santa Eulalia is also a nice place to visit if you're bored of the main San An locations, but is pretty small. In other words, you can easily do a non-clubbing holiday if that's what you want.

Failing all that, go to Pacha or something.

Edit - just realised you've gone already. well fuckit.

Tempy

Off to Amsterdam with the girlfriend tomorrow, for a week. Any holiday tips would be welcomed.

Kow

The red light district has moved.

Paul the sparky

Benidorm for a stag do tomorrow. Probably going to be hard work after the first night.

Kow

Prepare for the heat. Summer is here.

Tempy

Noted

WorKid

Tempy wrote:

Off to Amsterdam with the girlfriend tomorrow, for a week. Any holiday tips would be welcomed.

I loved Amsterdam when I went. Just relax and soak it in. Don't bother with the So called sights.

adkm1979

Tempy wrote:

Off to Amsterdam with the girlfriend tomorrow, for a week. Any holiday tips would be welcomed.

I don't know if they still do a city-wide museum pass, but it's worth it if they do. Ditto buying tram passes rather than single tickets. The Van Gogh museum is a must, the Rijksmuseum is worth it for The Nightwatch alone, but the central hall has various Rembrandts, Vermeers and so on. A walk around the Red Light District at night is worth it, and perfectly safe. Go to the Ann Frank Huis, and you can go up the nearby Westerkirk for views of the city. A boat cruise can be pricey, but good fun. The Heineken brewery does a fun little tour with beer drinking at the end. Depending on how long you're there, seeing Boom Chicago is fun. I used to work for a company called Mike's Bike Tours, they still exist, dunno what like they are these days but they used to do the best tour of the city. Museumplein, the square between the Riksmuseum and the Van Gogh museum used to be lovely to sit in, as is the Vondelpark nearby. Rembrandtplein and Leidseplein are the two main pub/club squares in the evenings. There are two streets off Leidseplein with pure hunners of restaurants of varying price/quality/touristiness. Best restaurants I ate in there were District V (or District 5) and one in the Vondelpark, I think where the little cinema is. I can give you directions for a short cycle out of the city to see a windmill and cheese farm / clog factory, if you're interested. Oh, and look for a little courtyard called the Begijnhof off of the square called Spui (pronounced similar to shpow, not spoo-ee). Have pancakes while you're there, particularly the little sweet ones called poffertjes. Also have stropwaffels.

Are either of you intending smoking or taking mushrooms?

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