Length of stay quandary - What would you do?
Aug 12th, 2005, 01:20 PM
#1
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Length of stay quandary - What would you do?
Now that I am retired I finally have the time to go on vacation. I am planning to go to France and Italy (maybe a short time to Spain) sometime in 2006. I cannot come to a decision.
There are days that I would go for a relatively comfortable vacation with 3-4 star hotels and good food. I would be able to pay for this vacation for 21 days to a month.
On the other hand, I could stretch this vacation for several months if I stay in 2-star hotels and convents.
Due to health concerns (arthritis) I choose to travel solo. I do not want to have to rush or to ruin someone else’s vacation by slowing them down.
Any ideas?
There are days that I would go for a relatively comfortable vacation with 3-4 star hotels and good food. I would be able to pay for this vacation for 21 days to a month.
On the other hand, I could stretch this vacation for several months if I stay in 2-star hotels and convents.
Due to health concerns (arthritis) I choose to travel solo. I do not want to have to rush or to ruin someone else’s vacation by slowing them down.
Any ideas?
Aug 12th, 2005, 01:31 PM
#3
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I like to mix the two options; it feels great to stay a couple nights in a luxe hotel after "roughing it" for a while, but then, there's a lot of fun to be had in the more atmospheric places.
Have you checked out Untours? (www.untours.com) I really enjoy them and the apartment option is a great way to really be on your own time schedule.
Happy travels!
Have you checked out Untours? (www.untours.com) I really enjoy them and the apartment option is a great way to really be on your own time schedule.
Happy travels!
Aug 12th, 2005, 01:34 PM
#4
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Well, it is not my first time in Europe. I have been there about four times (the last time in 1998). I am somewhat of a francophile. Every time I go, I enjoy it as if I had never been there.
Aug 12th, 2005, 01:42 PM
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Hi Simone,
Congratulations on your retirement!! I think a mix of budget-moderate would be ideal.
Lodging: You could stay in budget options for several days and then spend a couple nights in a nice hotel as a break, then go back to the budget accomodations. I recommend Rick Steves and Karen Brown guidebooks for finding safe, comfortable budget and moderate accomodations.
Food: Stay in hotels that provide breakfast or stop by a grocery store for a few breakfast items. If you must splurge, splurge at lunch when it is less expensive! A 3 course meal at a nice restaurant is much less at lunchtime than in the prime dinner hour. Eat your dinners in casual sit down restaurants. Look for the ones filled with locals and not other tourists and you will be assured of finding good food... and at a reasonable price!
Enjoy your trip!
Congratulations on your retirement!! I think a mix of budget-moderate would be ideal.
Lodging: You could stay in budget options for several days and then spend a couple nights in a nice hotel as a break, then go back to the budget accomodations. I recommend Rick Steves and Karen Brown guidebooks for finding safe, comfortable budget and moderate accomodations.
Food: Stay in hotels that provide breakfast or stop by a grocery store for a few breakfast items. If you must splurge, splurge at lunch when it is less expensive! A 3 course meal at a nice restaurant is much less at lunchtime than in the prime dinner hour. Eat your dinners in casual sit down restaurants. Look for the ones filled with locals and not other tourists and you will be assured of finding good food... and at a reasonable price!
Enjoy your trip!
Aug 12th, 2005, 01:57 PM
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Thanks for your quick replies.
Amy – I never heard of Untours. I just checked their website and requested a catalog.
Thanks for your wishes TexasAggie. I am leaning towards a mix. It will mean a lot of heavy-duty research to find good quality. I am truly enjoying this planning portion of my vacation.
Amy – I never heard of Untours. I just checked their website and requested a catalog.
Thanks for your wishes TexasAggie. I am leaning towards a mix. It will mean a lot of heavy-duty research to find good quality. I am truly enjoying this planning portion of my vacation.
Aug 12th, 2005, 02:11 PM
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I have faced similar concerns and usually opt for the longer trip. But I see two flaws with your logic.
First, I can't imagine that changing from 3-4 star hotels and good food to 2 star hotels can extend your trip by triple the time! There's not THAT much difference in the prices. To do that would mean going from $300 a night hotels and $150 dinners to $100 a night hotels and $50 dinners. Much greater difference than the difference between 2 star and 3 star. Actually it means even more difference than that since many other items like admissions and transportation won't vary at all from one plan to the other.
Secondly, it doesn't have to be all of one or the other. We are happy springing for one really nice meal here and there, but don't really scrimp either. We set an overall average budget per day (which many would think would be pretty high -- say $300 for the two of us for everything). When we keep that down to $200 a day for five days in a row, that gives us an extra $500 to spend, and that allows a big splurge!
I also think that if your expense of getting there is big (and it usually is), that it seems worth it to try to stretch out the time as long as possible to make that trip more worthwhile.
First, I can't imagine that changing from 3-4 star hotels and good food to 2 star hotels can extend your trip by triple the time! There's not THAT much difference in the prices. To do that would mean going from $300 a night hotels and $150 dinners to $100 a night hotels and $50 dinners. Much greater difference than the difference between 2 star and 3 star. Actually it means even more difference than that since many other items like admissions and transportation won't vary at all from one plan to the other.
Secondly, it doesn't have to be all of one or the other. We are happy springing for one really nice meal here and there, but don't really scrimp either. We set an overall average budget per day (which many would think would be pretty high -- say $300 for the two of us for everything). When we keep that down to $200 a day for five days in a row, that gives us an extra $500 to spend, and that allows a big splurge!
I also think that if your expense of getting there is big (and it usually is), that it seems worth it to try to stretch out the time as long as possible to make that trip more worthwhile.
Aug 12th, 2005, 02:29 PM
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Personally, I would not change what I enjoy and am comfortable with just to spend more days in a place. That just doesn't make sense to me personally, but I don't value something just due to being somewhere a long time.
I also don't regard 3* hotels as luxury exactly (think that word was thrown around). I make a decent living and now routinely stay in 3* hotels, but rarely a 4* (except in places where they are cheaper or hotel quality is dicey), but I don't think 3* hotels are exactly roughing it in comparison to 4*.
There are too many extremes in your example that I just don't think are the way it is -- 3-4* hotels and good food versus 2* hotels and, I guess, bad food. All of one thing versus all of another.
I can stay wherever I want because I am not very acquisitive in general in my life, and don't spend money on shopping and other things like a lot of people do. This is not a sacrifice to me, it's just the way I live and what I prefer. But I have no desire to spend a lot of money on expensive meals (which I think is what you mean by good food, that it is expensive), so cutting back on my food budget when traveling would put me back in some poor student stage which would be silly. Now I don't naturally crave really expensive hotels nor 5* hotels, so that's what I mean by I can stay where I want.
YOu should know what you enjoy yourself, that is the bottom line. As I said, I don't value staying longer in places just to be there. I also do not really like traveling for long periods, so I am different than some people on that score. I like my home and city where I live very much, as well as many of my regular friends, activities and work, and don't really WANT to travel for several months at a time. I enjoy traveling but sort of get tired of it after a while, it's not really as comfortable as being at home in many ways.
There are actually ways to be comfortable even within the budget of your cheap trip, I think, and that is based on destination. I've stayed in a nice 4* hotel in a minor Czech city that cost about 80-100 euro, less than the price of many 2* hotels in Paris (let alone London), for example. I stayed in very nice 3* hotels in Provence that were that rate, also.
ugh to staying in a convent, I've done too much of that in my life already
I also don't regard 3* hotels as luxury exactly (think that word was thrown around). I make a decent living and now routinely stay in 3* hotels, but rarely a 4* (except in places where they are cheaper or hotel quality is dicey), but I don't think 3* hotels are exactly roughing it in comparison to 4*.
There are too many extremes in your example that I just don't think are the way it is -- 3-4* hotels and good food versus 2* hotels and, I guess, bad food. All of one thing versus all of another.
I can stay wherever I want because I am not very acquisitive in general in my life, and don't spend money on shopping and other things like a lot of people do. This is not a sacrifice to me, it's just the way I live and what I prefer. But I have no desire to spend a lot of money on expensive meals (which I think is what you mean by good food, that it is expensive), so cutting back on my food budget when traveling would put me back in some poor student stage which would be silly. Now I don't naturally crave really expensive hotels nor 5* hotels, so that's what I mean by I can stay where I want.
YOu should know what you enjoy yourself, that is the bottom line. As I said, I don't value staying longer in places just to be there. I also do not really like traveling for long periods, so I am different than some people on that score. I like my home and city where I live very much, as well as many of my regular friends, activities and work, and don't really WANT to travel for several months at a time. I enjoy traveling but sort of get tired of it after a while, it's not really as comfortable as being at home in many ways.
There are actually ways to be comfortable even within the budget of your cheap trip, I think, and that is based on destination. I've stayed in a nice 4* hotel in a minor Czech city that cost about 80-100 euro, less than the price of many 2* hotels in Paris (let alone London), for example. I stayed in very nice 3* hotels in Provence that were that rate, also.
ugh to staying in a convent, I've done too much of that in my life already
Aug 13th, 2005, 06:03 AM
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Hi simone,
>Now that I am retired I finally have the time to go on vacation.<
Good for you. I recommend retirement to every one.
Your either/or constraints aren't really valid.
We will be visiting France next month for 3 weeks. We have a combination of lodgings - 2*, 3* and 1 4*. They range from 55 - 250E/night dbl.
I suggest that you plan for 2 months and set your budget, then go looking for where to stay.
As for food - it is hard not to get good food at reasonable prices in France and Italy.
Also keep in mind that you can't make up for a lifetime of deprivation by eating foie gras and brie every day for 8 weeks.
You'll get sick. I know from experience.
>Now that I am retired I finally have the time to go on vacation.<
Good for you. I recommend retirement to every one.
Your either/or constraints aren't really valid.
We will be visiting France next month for 3 weeks. We have a combination of lodgings - 2*, 3* and 1 4*. They range from 55 - 250E/night dbl.
I suggest that you plan for 2 months and set your budget, then go looking for where to stay.
As for food - it is hard not to get good food at reasonable prices in France and Italy.
Also keep in mind that you can't make up for a lifetime of deprivation by eating foie gras and brie every day for 8 weeks.
You'll get sick. I know from experience.
Aug 13th, 2005, 06:09 AM
#11
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If this were your first time, I would keep it under 20 days, and shoot for a balance of the two, with more "in the middle" than either end of the spectrum.
And as you have the experiences and preferences you mention, I would probably aim towards 5 weeks or so - - and still keep a mix. Either NW or NE Spain could make a nice short complement to a trip of a month in France and Italy.
Best wishes,
Rex
And as you have the experiences and preferences you mention, I would probably aim towards 5 weeks or so - - and still keep a mix. Either NW or NE Spain could make a nice short complement to a trip of a month in France and Italy.
Best wishes,
Rex
Aug 13th, 2005, 06:14 AM
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Thanks for your advice. I think I just needed someone to knock some sense into my plans. You are right, eight weeks of foie gras may drive me into longing for peanut butter and jelly again.
Aug 13th, 2005, 08:28 AM
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Here's another sugegstion - how about an apartment? You can usually get a monthly rental for a lot less than the equivalent daily hotel cost. You would have to make your own bed but most provide a weekly maid. Perhaps you could do a month in France then a month in Italy... maybe a few days in Spain in between? If you take an apartment with washer dryer you could pack lighter and not have to contend with finding a laundromat.
Good luck!
Good luck!
Aug 13th, 2005, 09:07 AM
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I'm with Seamus on the apartment idea. I very rarely stay in a hotel for a stay of a week or more (except for business). An apartment is much more economical for this length of stay.
If I were you, I would rent my favourite flat in Nice, cook many of my meals from the great food on offer in the market and just relax for 2 weeks, then move on to a single location in Italy or Spain for another two weeks - also in an apartment. I would go in Oct or early spring.
Unfortunately, traveling alone is not very cost effective (whether it be in a hotel or flat). I am probably much younger than you and I would not consider this style of holiday as a "drag". I would not be so afraid of traveling with a like-minded person, if you can.
If I were you, I would rent my favourite flat in Nice, cook many of my meals from the great food on offer in the market and just relax for 2 weeks, then move on to a single location in Italy or Spain for another two weeks - also in an apartment. I would go in Oct or early spring.
Unfortunately, traveling alone is not very cost effective (whether it be in a hotel or flat). I am probably much younger than you and I would not consider this style of holiday as a "drag". I would not be so afraid of traveling with a like-minded person, if you can.
Aug 13th, 2005, 09:33 AM
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"Inexpensive" is relative, of course...
http://www.holidayfrance.com/France/...Nice/p6303.htm
it's unit 2. £425/wk in oct. perhaps a cheaper rate can be negotiated for 2+ weeks. fantastic location above the chanel store...less than 5 min walk to the beach and the airport bus stop. less than 10 to old town, cafes and bars right outside the front door.
http://www.holidayfrance.com/France/...Nice/p6303.htm
it's unit 2. £425/wk in oct. perhaps a cheaper rate can be negotiated for 2+ weeks. fantastic location above the chanel store...less than 5 min walk to the beach and the airport bus stop. less than 10 to old town, cafes and bars right outside the front door.
Aug 13th, 2005, 11:24 AM
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..my mother has travelled a lot in her retirement- a very merry widow. She often finds interesting 1-4 week rentals in resorts during the off season..the Algarve and Croatia to name a few places. She finds these in periodicals catering to seniors,,I think one is a magazine put out by AARP..She loved staying in a place for a week or 2 with lots of day trips. She found a kitchenette handy. good luck. I can't wait til I retire...
Aug 13th, 2005, 12:17 PM
#18
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There is a little bit more to this retirement. I have had to take early retirement due to my arthritis. I do not qualify for any senior discounts yet.
The reason I wanted to make this a memorable trip is that I don’t know if I will be able to come back. I don’t know if my arthritis will worsen. For now I am able to manage very well, maybe somewhat on a slower pace.
I am toying with the idea of renting an apartment here and there and use that as my home base for the area. I am not sure whether this is a good idea for a solo traveler. I don’t have a problem traveling solo because my family and friends are planning to join me here and there. I don’t think I will be feeling lonely.
The reason I wanted to make this a memorable trip is that I don’t know if I will be able to come back. I don’t know if my arthritis will worsen. For now I am able to manage very well, maybe somewhat on a slower pace.
I am toying with the idea of renting an apartment here and there and use that as my home base for the area. I am not sure whether this is a good idea for a solo traveler. I don’t have a problem traveling solo because my family and friends are planning to join me here and there. I don’t think I will be feeling lonely.
Aug 13th, 2005, 01:45 PM
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Hi Simone,
How about this?
Six weeks Sept 1 - Oct 14
Paris Week 1
Fly to Venice Week 2
see www.myair.com
Train to
Florence and Tuscany Week 3
Train to Rome Week 4
Train to
Naples and the Amalfi Coast Week 5
See www.lesirene.com
Fly Naples to Nice Week 6
see www.whichbudget.com
Train or fly back to CDG
see www.sncf.com or
www.whichbudget.com
How about this?
Six weeks Sept 1 - Oct 14
Paris Week 1
Fly to Venice Week 2
see www.myair.com
Train to
Florence and Tuscany Week 3
Train to Rome Week 4
Train to
Naples and the Amalfi Coast Week 5
See www.lesirene.com
Fly Naples to Nice Week 6
see www.whichbudget.com
Train or fly back to CDG
see www.sncf.com or
www.whichbudget.com
Aug 13th, 2005, 02:03 PM
#20
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ira,
I am writing this itinerary down for whenever I retire and have 6 weeks to spend in Europe. Sounds marvelous with the perfect amount of time in each spot - time to really see the sights at a leisurely pace.
The only hitch is that it will likely be 35 years until I retire
I am writing this itinerary down for whenever I retire and have 6 weeks to spend in Europe. Sounds marvelous with the perfect amount of time in each spot - time to really see the sights at a leisurely pace.
The only hitch is that it will likely be 35 years until I retire
