Holiday Jolidays!

[ratbert]

Glastonbury this weekend then the Coast to Coast walk (St Bees to Robin Hood's Bay) in August. Eek!

[Worthy4England]

Oktoberfest sounds intersting tho - whats the dilly?

ie, do you book packages? or flights & hotels seperate? how early are all Munich hotels booked up? how long do you go for? and do you take the Dorris, or the lads?

You could do any/all of the above.

When I've been, I've not booked packages, but either hopped a flight to Munich or Frankfurt and grabbed a train to Munich (or come from somewhere further South by train). Hotels if not pre-booked can be tricky to get. The tourist information in Munich used to then go about finding you somewhere to stay - but probably better for lads trips if you're taking that approach.

The tents are all pretty good to be honest - Hippodrom used to be a good craic as did Hacker Pschorr. I guess the biggest thing is whether to try grab a table and stay put, or try and do them all - in which case you're usually on standing room only for a while.

As to how long to go for - long weekend territory is pretty good - can take in other parts of Munich maybe on one of the days - Englisher Garten - which is good for a chill (and has its own beer garden), Hoffbrauhaus etc. etc.

Pretty good site here

http://www.oktoberfest.de/en/navitem/Ab ... toberfest/

telling you what's what.

[clapton is god]

Glastonbury this weekend then the Coast to Coast walk (St Bees to Robin Hood's Bay) in August. Eek!

C2C was going to be my retirement present to myself in 2003 but for various reasons I never got round to it. I compleated the Wainwrights in July 2002 and that seemed to be the next thing to do. Hope to still do it before I'm a doddery old git - oh, too late.

Just come back from my jollies as mentioned elsewhere. Two weeks of bliss on Skiathos.

[hisroyalgingerness]

Oktoberfest sounds intersting tho - whats the dilly?

ie, do you book packages? or flights & hotels seperate? how early are all Munich hotels booked up? how long do you go for? and do you take the Dorris, or the lads?

As Worthy said do any of them things.

What we've done is this:
Direct flights with lufthansa
2 nights midweek (when it's quieter, just) in a central poo-hole
.....

And that's it. 3 couples going plus two other lads. Girls can go shopping and take pics if they want, we intend to drink and watch the dancing women.

As yet we've not planned the rest of the trip, but a quick glance at the map suggests Munich is within 3-4 hours train/bus rides to:
Austria - Innsbruck, Vienna
Belguim - Antwerp, Bruges
Czech - Prague (stop off at Nurnberg on the way)

I'm quite excited, going to be a reet European adventure. Also the more I look at Germany, the more I think it looks a great country to explore. There's just that age old problem about Germany...

[thebish]

My favourite tent is the Schützen-Festzelt - best quality of food and dancing Bavarian women.

I have a vague memory of your photos!

[Worthy4England]

My favourite tent is the Schützen-Festzelt - best quality of food and dancing Bavarian women.

I have a vague memory of your photos!

You mean from last year, or about 40 years ago?

[thebish]

My favourite tent is the Schützen-Festzelt - best quality of food and dancing Bavarian women.

I have a vague memory of your photos!

You mean from last year, or about 40 years ago?

I dunno.. but it was a busy bar and busty dancing bavarian women! My memory is no longer able to readily distinguish what happened a year ago and what happened 10 years ago!

[P.O.S.]

Ibiza in September for some closing parties (and back a day before United at home, good planning!) and went to Torquay for the weekend in May on a caravan park with some friends, which turned out to be a lot more fun than I thought it might - made better by winning myself £250 at bingo on the final night... which the missus then claimed most of for herself.

It's been a couple of years since my last european backpacking adventure now, I fancy another one again soon I'm getting withdrawal symptoms from the excitement and slight nervousness of getting night trains through eastern europe and turning up at strange hostels in the dead of night - but it's probably going to have to wait until next summer at least

[mummywhycantieatcrayons]

My favourite tent is the Schützen-Festzelt - best quality of food and dancing Bavarian women.

I have a vague memory of your photos!

Sadly my memory of it is only quite vague too.

[mummywhycantieatcrayons]

The tents are all pretty good to be honest - Hippodrom used to be a good craic as did Hacker Pschorr. I guess the biggest thing is whether to try grab a table and stay put, or try and do them all - in which case you're usually on standing room only for a while.

I was there for a day with a mate before we met up with people we knew, and we found it much more difficult to get any service when we standing up and found that sitting at/standing on the benches of tables was much more enjoyable. Definitely worth sorting out, if you can, IMO.

[mummywhycantieatcrayons]

Week before last I spent one day and one night in Pisa, then three days and two nights in Florence.

Pisa was nothing special - just a small university town that didn't seem to have a great deal more than its leaning tower going for it (although this really is a bizarre sight when one is right in front of it). I did have a very good meal there though.

Firenze, the flowering city... wow, everything I hoped it would be. Great galleries and architecture, excellent food... only slightly spoilt by being overrun by Americans, many of whom wanted to complain about BA and BP to me.

were you not bothered by the dirt, the stink, the litter or the graffiti? thats what pops into my head when i recall Florence, that and the tourists!

No, I have to say I didn't find it more dirty, littered or graffitid than your average city, nor did I notice any stink at all.

Stayed in a nice private property rather than a hotel, and the owner gave me some good food recommendations - http://www.acaciafirenze.com/

Only clicked when I got there that the woman's name was also the name of property and indeed the whole street. Turned out the Palazzo Pepi had been in her family for 500 years.

[Little Green Man]

Bavarian women.

OK, back by popular demand...

[Worthy4England]

The tents are all pretty good to be honest - Hippodrom used to be a good craic as did Hacker Pschorr. I guess the biggest thing is whether to try grab a table and stay put, or try and do them all - in which case you're usually on standing room only for a while.

I was there for a day with a mate before we met up with people we knew, and we found it much more difficult to get any service when we standing up and found that sitting at/standing on the benches of tables was much more enjoyable. Definitely worth sorting out, if you can, IMO.

Undoubtedly.

We used to go (for a few days at a time ) and give there used to be a good few of us, we'd send half the party from tent to tent, to grab a table, then move on.

[General Mannerheim]

so there would still be Munich hotel rooms available for this October?

I disliked Florence, found it incredibly grotty. and like most large Italian cities, full of beggars and theives! maybe i was just having a bad day?

The history/architecture etc make it still worth a visit of course, just doubt id ever return.

[Worthy4England]

so there would still be Munich hotel rooms available for this October?

I disliked Florence, found it incredibly grotty. and like most large Italian cities, full of beggars and theives! maybe i was just having a bad day?

The history/architecture etc make it still worth a visit of course, just doubt id ever return.

Probably still available - we used to just turn up and always managed to get somewhere - but we weren't that fussy as long as it was clean and had running water.

[General Mannerheim]

hmm, im gonna weigh it up!

[hisroyalgingerness]

It'd be nice to go away without my stalker following me!

I'd imagine weekend you might struggle but midweek should be ok. There's those camping sites too where you have a camp bed in a tent and breakfast and that. They're meant to be good

[mummywhycantieatcrayons]

There's those camping sites too where you have a camp bed in a tent and breakfast and that. They're meant to be good

This is what I was going to say, if you're just thinking of going with some mates.

[David Lee's Hair]

Well for me just back from a long weekend in Paris, must admit I'd forgotten how bleedin' expensive the place was, not helped by exchange rates, or the fact I was staying near Arc De Triomphe, so pretty much the most expensive part of Paris.

Other than that, I'm holding out to see if Mayweather Pacquiao happens, if it does I see a little trip to the states being in order.

[Gary the Enfield]

South of France for me. Two weeks near Perpignan. Can't wait for that lovely 'lapin paysanne' and the beautiful Collioure Rose wine.

The only trouble is, I'm facing a schlepp from Calais in the car. 12 hours of 'are we there yet?'