Vacation - Where are you going?

[rcpratt]

It obviously depends on your interests, but I would HIGHLY recommend that you re-examine the time you spend in Paris. That isn't nearly enough time to see the majority of the cool things, let alone the "minor" cool things.

We had to decide whether to spend 3 nights in Prague or Paris...Prague won out. I wish we could spend a week everywhere, but alas...

that would really depend on what you think is "cool"

TBH there pretty much nothing i want to see in Paris

if that were my trip id just add 2 more days in germany and not go to france at all

I was sternly instructed that we were absolutely going to Paris.

 

[JamesV]

June 9-16 Allegheny National Forest, dispersed camping trip. Will be hiking, kayaking, taking pics, and generally just relaxing.

Total cost is around $400 for gear I didn't have, gas, and kayaking fees.

 

[IndyColtsFan]

How are you doing either for that cheap? Flights from east coast are $1400 for London and $1100 for Hawaii. Hotels are $250-$300 a night for something decent.

If you're interested in Hawaii, check package deals. I haven't looked lately, but my wife and I decided on the spur of the moment (less than a month out) that we wanted to go to Hawaii in the spring of 2010. It was $1200 or $1300 each and that was for airfare and 6 nights at the Hilton Hawaiian Village. We also took some tours but even with those and meals I believe we were still under $4K total.

 

[Possessed Freak]

and it shoehorns me and the BF if we want to go out just by ourselves to have a romantic dinner or something)

Trust me in this. If you end up going the condo route, get your own car. It frees you up, AND as an added benefit if there are two events going on at the same time, then you appear the hero when you can split the party into two.

 

[IndyColtsFan]

We had to decide whether to spend 3 nights in Prague or Paris...Prague won out. I wish we could spend a week everywhere, but alas...

Prague is on our list but Paris really is amazing and has so much to see. I'd highly recommend a 2 or 3 day sidetrip to Normandy as well if you are interested in WWII history at all. Obviously you don't have time this trip but keep that in your back pocket the next time you're over there.

 

[Mixolydian]

How can you not have time in 3 years? Were you in jail?

If you need ideas on where to go head to the bookstore. There are books specifically designed for this. Cities, Countries, Places, Monuments, etc to see before you die. They're pretty much named exactly that so it's not hard to find them.

It doesn't take a rocket scientist to figure out that "Hey, the Pyramids are pretty cool! I think I'd like to see those."

You make the time. I guarantee you're no busier than I am, and I took 2 weeks off in the middle of 3 very large projects with tight deadlines to make it happen. And that isn't even considering the work around my house I'm doing.

In terms of where you want to go, there are endless places to see in this world that will meet any price range you have.

I guess i just dont make it a priority.

 

[Scarpozzi]

I'm going to my backyard for vacation this year. I'll be spending about $40,000-50,000.

 

[IndyColtsFan]

that would really depend on what you think is "cool"

TBH there pretty much nothing i want to see in Paris

if that were my trip id just add 2 more days in germany and not go to france at all

I would take a trip to Paris if the Louvre was the only thing there to see. Seriously, it is one of the coolest places I've ever been. As it turns out, there is much more to see and we were able to see everything on our list AND go to Normandy, which we couldn't do on our last trip to Paris in 2009.

rcpratt, I don't know what you're planning on seeing in Paris, but if it involves museums and especially the Louvre, get a museum pass and use the side entrance off of Rivoli street. You literally will walk right in.

 

[Fingolfin269]

Disney World in the fall.

cost TBD.

BF really wants to stay at a Disney resort, but my friend knows someone with an empty condo in Orlando... I'd rather stay at Disney myself, especially since I have a friend from college who can get me a 50% discount on a room, but my friends are pushing the condo idea and my BF doesn't want us all to be split-up.

otoh, if we do the condo thing, it means having to rent a car and pay for parking, so gotta price that out too. (one friend is driving down by herself while the rest of us fly, and she insists that having her car alone would be fine, but I'm skeptical at cramming 5 30 year-olds into a car during a Florida summer... and it shoehorns me and the BF if we want to go out just by ourselves to have a romantic dinner or something)

Take a look at renting DVC points. Below is the site we usually use. You can get into a deluxe for less than the cost of a moderate (relative to normal Disney booking prices). It might be too late to do this now but still worth looking into.

http://www.dvcrequest.com/

 

[vi edit]

Already did a week in St. Lucia in March (Mommy & Daddy get away..10 year anniversary). This summer we'll probably keep it close to home. A couple days in the Dells and a few days in Chicago. This December we'll head down to Florida and spend Christmas near Pensacola where my sister and my nieces are.

 

[Gunslinger08]

you can do NYC-London for under 1k per ticket (depends on when you are going) but 2k does not seem correct i agree unless you are burning a lot of miles for huge discounts/free tickets

i do disagree on your hotel price, you can fine much cheaper rates for places that are fine

Any recommendations on places to stay in London? I spec'd out a trip from DC to London with a day trip to Paris last night and it was about $7k. Airfare is $1400 each. Need hotel for 5-7 days, car to drive around (really just want to see Stonehenge - can you get there by train and taxi? don't know what else there is to see in southern England), train tickets to Paris for a day, and food.

 

[nageov3t]

Trust me in this. If you end up going the condo route, get your own car. It frees you up, AND as an added benefit if there are two events going on at the same time, then you appear the hero when you can split the party into two.

yeah.

tbh, I'm really regretting the group vacation entirely, but my best friend and I had talked about going to Disney before I started dating my boyfriend, so I couldn't exactly leave her out in the cold.

but, then I needed to drag a few more people onto the trip because while my boyfriend and I obviously need/want our own separate room, I don't think my friend would have had the money without 2-3 other people to split the hotel bill with.

 

[randomrogue]

$2800 for airfare. Where's the other $4,200 being spent in 5-7 days besides hotel and car?

Your $250-$300 a night for a hotel is your call but you can stay in hostels with your own private room for much less. You can rent an apt for a week. You can do a number of things that drastically reduce your costs if you're comfortable staying outside of a fancy hotel.

 

[Fingolfin269]

Any recommendations on places to stay in London? I spec'd out a trip from DC to London with a day trip to Paris last night and it was about $7k. Airfare is $1400 each. Need hotel for 5-7 days, car to drive around (really just want to see Stonehenge - can you get there by train and taxi? don't know what else there is to see in southern England), train tickets to Paris for a day, and food.

We're staying at the County Hall Premier Inn early July. Seemed to be best value/location I could find.

http://www.tripadvisor.com/Hotel_Re...er_Inn_London_County_Hall-London_England.html

 

[IndyColtsFan]

I guess i just dont make it a priority.

Not sure how old you are, but I was the same way when I was younger. I kind of regret not being more adventurous and traveling more in my 20s. My rules for vacation are pretty simple now:

1. Europe is currently my preferred spot for big vacations, but we're looking at South America (mainly Peru) and New Zealand also. In general, I want to go somewhere that caters to some of my interests such as history and natural beauty. I had planned on going to Egypt but obviously the events over the last couple of years have pushed those plans further down the road.
2. I'm generally not fond of beach vacations and I'll never go somewhere like Las Vegas. I find those places boring and unstimulating, though I got so worn out on my last vacation that I could see going to an all-inclusive resort in Mexico again and staying drunk the entire time.
3. Renting a cabin in Tennessee was nice, but I don't think I'd do it near Pigeon Forge again. Good lord, I hate that place.

 

[randomrogue]

I guess i just dont make it a priority.

If you need vacation ideas I can help you out. PM me. I've been all over the place for all kinds of budgets.

If anything though take time off work to just sit on your front porch and relax. You can't just work all the time. What's the point in that?

 

[rcpratt]

Not sure how old you are, but I was the same way when I was younger. I kind of regret not being more adventurous and traveling more in my 20s. My rules for vacation are pretty simple now:

I think he's just trolling, but it is tough/annoying in your 20s if you're trying to be responsible as well. Between student loans, buying a house, and 2 to 5 forced vacation weekends (i.e., weddings) every summer, money and time are both scarce

I guess it doesn't get any easier once you start poppin' out the kids though. Wheeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee

 

[Fingolfin269]

3. Renting a cabin in Tennessee was nice, but I don't think I'd do it near Pigeon Forge again. Good lord, I hate that place.

I grew up in East TN. I agree with you.

 

[Exterous]

We're staying at the County Hall Premier Inn early July. Seemed to be best value/location I could find.

http://www.tripadvisor.com/Hotel_Re...er_Inn_London_County_Hall-London_England.html

Random side note since you will be staying next door a couple of days after we are there but supposedly there is a really good food market called The Real Food Market just past the Jubilee Gardens before you get to Waterloo Bridge (so really close to where you are staying) if you happen to be there Friday - Sunday

http://www.realfoodfestival.co.uk/market/producers/

 

[Gunslinger08]

We're staying at the County Hall Premier Inn early July. Seemed to be best value/location I could find.

http://www.tripadvisor.com/Hotel_Re...er_Inn_London_County_Hall-London_England.html

That place is booked. I didn't look super hard last night, but it seems like there are some cheaper places to stay. So $3k for airfare + baggage for 2 people, $200/night for a hotel ($1000-$1400), $150 for a 2 day car rental and gas to see Stonehenge and whatever else isn't right in London, $300 for roundtrip train to Paris, plus food/entertainment/incidentals. That's probably getting close to $6-7k.

 

[Anubis]

you every try a travel agent? my parents went to London last year and stayed in a bunch of local B&Bs, they had a Driver take them everywhere they wanted to go (mostly London and south) they were there for a week and it did not cost them anything close to 7k

almost positive it was well under 5 including airfare. they always use a agent (cause they are old) even when flying across the country to see my sister

 

[blackdogdeek]

Any recommendations on places to stay in London? I spec'd out a trip from DC to London with a day trip to Paris last night and it was about $7k. Airfare is $1400 each. Need hotel for 5-7 days, car to drive around (really just want to see Stonehenge - can you get there by train and taxi? don't know what else there is to see in southern England), train tickets to Paris for a day, and food.

If you're going to be staying in the city I don't think you'll need a car. In fact, it would probably be more of a nuisance. You can get to anything in the city via the Underground or by taxi if you really don't mind spending much more money. There are many bus/tour companies that go to Stonehenge for a day trip and they usually throw in a stop at Bath since there isn't much to do at Stonehenge.

 

[Kreon]

you every try a travel agent? my parents went to London last year and stayed in a bunch of local B&Bs, they had a Driver take them everywhere they wanted to go (mostly London and south) they were there for a week and it did not cost them anything close to 7k

almost positive it was well under 5 including airfare. they always use a agent (cause they are old) even when flying across the country to see my sister

My parents have always used an agent, and I've gotten in the practice of using the same one. She finds deals that are amazing. What my parents do is they keep her informed of their vacations, and their list of places they want to travel, and when she finds stuff meeting that criteria, she calls them up. While she wasn't able to get us an epic deal when my gf and I went to Disney a couple years ago, she saved us money over what we found ourselves.

 

[DougK62]

Wow, some of you spend the big bucks on vacations. Good for you. I'm not taking any big trips this year, since late in 2012 I went on one of my childhood "dream" vacations and am still glowing about it. I was in Nepal for three weeks trekking in the Himalaya. Very highly recommended. I went by myself, and spent <$2500 for everything (no tour group - self planned).

Go on vacations! Life is too short to spend it all at work.

 

[SSSnail]

Gonna go to the Maldives and Singapore in October with the missus, gonna spend about tree fiddy. Problem is, I only have fiddy cents.