clarence's European Vacation

[CLARENCE 2015!]

Ive posted a bit about my new lady friend...things are going VERY well except she has just now lost her job... but that gives her some more free time!!!

MY wife and I traveled in the years before she passed and it was the greatest time of my life- now my lady friend and I will be travelling as she has not seen much of the world. Her first husband was not a particularly good man and I want her to enjoy herself... she is a beautiful person inside and out

So I am booking the tickets ASAP- we are going to Europe! The plan is to fly in to London most likely and then wander across the continent until we run out of dough...I have to decide a budget for the trip but would like to splurge a bit

Any tips from you Europeans??? And NO- I will NOT be stopping by the Red Light District in Amsterdam!!!

[CLARENCE 2015!]

Also- Virgin Atlantic or British Airways?

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Thank you both- and I am planning to do both... definitely want to take her to London, Paris, Amsterdam, Munich, and Rome

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Thank you all for the tips-

In general I would like to see a bit of Eastern Europe... I know Bratislava is very close to Vienna and that may be an option...the Dalmatian Coast is probably also cheaper then the French or Italian Rivieras so that would be a great option

Even though we will bbe wandering mostly I will still try to come up with a plan similar to Rick Steves advice- I will write the locations we both want to see then create an approximate time based on our budget...for hotels- as long as it is decent quality I don't care if it is 2 star or 5 star but I would prefer as close to city center as possible within my budget... will probably do Premium Economy for the plane tickets- seems like a good middle ground. I care more about what w do during the day over there then how we get there or where we sleep (and maybe more then sleep ;-)) at nighttime

[CLARENCE 2015!]

Clarence, take a look at this:



How much time do you have ?

1 month ? 2 months ?

You could fly to Lisbon and then go to Madrid and visit Julio, then up to Barcelona, Marseille, visit Antonio around Cannes, then go to Switzerland and visit ZuWo in Zurich, then go to Paris, then to the Bretagne and Normandy, then to London/England/Scotland, then back down and to Belgium and Netherlands, then Hamburg and Denmark, up to Göteborg and Oslo, over to Stockholm and visit Gustaf and Swedish Cheese and back down to Berlin and Poland, visit Kalwejt in Warsaw, go to the Auschwitz camp, then to Prague, then to Munich, then come to visit me in Salzburg, over to Vienna and Bratislava, then Budapest, down to the Balaton, Zagreb, Slovenia, Venice, South Tyrol, Milano, Turin, down to the Tuscany and Genova, then Rome, then down to Lower Italy and the Isles and then back up to Rome and fly home.

The "Atlas Board Grand Tour" looks interesting!!!

[CLARENCE 2015!]

Dirty!!!

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So what about a visit to Ibiza since you don't seem to like the Red light district? It's also warmer there, that could be a reason since you are from Florida.

I looked it up on your recommendation- seems like a very hopping place! Might be a bit too crazy even for me and my lady friend however... I saw videos of "Pacha' on YouTube and I don't know if I can do that!
I would usually go to the Red Light District but would be inappropraite for me to be "window shopping" with my lady there...

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Thank you JulioMadrid!
This is very helpful- my past tours in Europe have often been thru tour companies like thiswhich makes it much easier then trying to maneuver around myself

[CLARENCE 2015!]

Plane tickets are booked-
Flying out of Orlando to London Gatwick on British leaving the evening of the 29th and getting in before 7AM on the 30th
To get back- flying out of Vienna on Austrian on June 18th to Dulles and taking United down to Orlando

We will take my car down to the airport and leave it at parking. I am very excited that these details are in place and the trip is set... now we have to plan our route within Europe. We have watched the Rick Steves video on trip planning and here is what we are thinking...

London
Brussels (for day)
Amsterdam
Munich
Rome
Florence
Venice (for day)
Innsbruck (for day)
Vienna

When I say (for day) it means we will either be passing thru or using another city as our base- for Brussels we will hit on train from London to Amsterdam, Venice from our hotel in Florence- and Innsbruck on our way to Vienna. This is very preliminary and I will soon start booking hotels...

Thoughts?

[CLARENCE 2015!]

Airfare is rough... a little under $10K... but I am aiming to stay under $20K. A dear friend who passed away late last year bequeathed me a large piece of property which- possibly uknown by him- has been in high demand recently as it is near several race tracks. His advice to me in life was to enjoy my own and having outlived him- I figure I will take his advice

I am blessed to be able to afford a wonderful life now- after making a cool few million in the height of the construction boom in South Florida I ended up using most of it to provide for my wife in her last years as Iw as more then happy to do for her... we traveled extensively and stayed in the finest hotels and took business class flights etc... that and her medical expenses left me in a difficult spot but I had enough money to purchase a good home closer in. I got a bargain on my home and had roughly half of that money left to place into investment accounts- thru Fidelity, Vanguard, and Raymond James. I still have a fixed annuity which takes care of most of my basic needs and now with this bequest I can afford to be comfortable again...

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For me and the lady- the way out is about $3,000 and return is about $6,300- both in economy class (British calls it World Traveller)

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Well we are booking just a month and a half before we fly- if you look at July and August it may be better... I also think British and Austrian may be more expensive then say Delta or American- but the routes worked better for us

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Why do you hate France?

I love France... just does not fit within my budget for this trip. I will be in it briefly on the train to Brussels I believe

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So we've decided to bypass Innsbruck and make our day trip from Vienna to Bratislava... go behind the curtain a bit.

Over the weekend I will aim to book all my hotels- looking for reasonable quality hotels near the city center or a train that takes us there...

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Booked all my hotels-

London- The Chesterfield Mayfair- already arranged a romantic turndown service to get the trip started ;-)

Amsterdam- Hotel Estherea- right on a canal

Munich- Hotel Torbrau- quick walk to Marienplatz

Rome- The Inn at the Spanish Steps- called the best value in Rome

Florence- Palazzo Magnani Feroni- traditional and great views of the city

Vienna- Hotel Imperial- splurging to end the trip...closing it like a Grand Tour


I am VERY excited...as is the lady! In four weeks we will be in London getting ready to have dinner...

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I definitely will then- thin crust is excellent...

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Actually we are driving to Vienna from Florence...and I am not black-
However I appreciate the tips...we'll be there the 15 thru the 17 of June- we are doing a day trip to Bratislava early on the 16

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I'm not black- maybe people are confusing me with the more well-known Clarence...

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We were originally planning to go thru Innsbruck... you recommend it?
And we are planning to take train or bus from Florence to Venice for the day- I hear driving into Venice can be a nightmare with limited parking for the traffic during the summer

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Going to pop "the question" in Venice ;-)

[CLARENCE 2015!]

Farewell
Adieu
Vaarwel
Abschied
Commiato
Rozlúčiť sa

[CLARENCE 2015!]

Yes- we will be driving to see Innsbruck and surroundings from Munich! Thank you for the tip...I am very excited for that part...
Flight leaves Orlando at 17:15 and arrives 6:45 at Gatwick...

My lady friend is spending the night here. We are packing now and are very very very excited!!! :-)

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I'll be there the 14 to the 17- flying out...we'll be spending one of the days going to Bratislava for the day...are you a Vienna local?

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Printed and will be used- thank you very much for your tips and advice Tender Branson

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Have a great trip, Clarence!

BTW: How are you getting from Amsterdam to Munich?

Overnight train :-)

Thank you to my European friends for the tips and advice!