What's the biggest mistake you made on a European trip?
Mar 4th, 2017, 05:11 AM
#23
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Packing way, way too much on my first trip. Two suit cases and one of those folding deals you'd put a suit in. For a 3-week trip. At least half I never used or maybe used once. What was I thinking?
Mar 4th, 2017, 05:20 AM
#24
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Bilbo !
Great list.
I have not had your experience in sexual choice of stay, but I was about to say the same about credit cards.
My wife once chose to get her ski in her face and was evacuated via a ski ambulance, then ambulance. Don't know how she managed to evade the helicopter.
We had to pay a lot in advance and had to use every card we had to get enough money ...
Now I make sure to have a limitless creditcard just for such problems.
Great list.
I have not had your experience in sexual choice of stay, but I was about to say the same about credit cards.
My wife once chose to get her ski in her face and was evacuated via a ski ambulance, then ambulance. Don't know how she managed to evade the helicopter.
We had to pay a lot in advance and had to use every card we had to get enough money ...
Now I make sure to have a limitless creditcard just for such problems.
Mar 4th, 2017, 05:34 AM
#25
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1. Not knowing the car well enough, subsequently not getting it locked and being robbed. Part of this was comfort and cockiness.
2. Not following cues and directions, I read the map and ended up stick on a walking path on a hill. I now know how to get hold of "AAA" in Germany . The desk person, when I has asked directions was pretty negative about our destination. Hint #1 to the adventure to ensue.
3. Trusting that there would be good internet coverage in Italy (There is in France), planning on using my phone for directions. The GPS worked but not directions, need Internet for that.
4. I learned my lesson a long time ago, but overpacking stinks. so, I make sure that there are ways to do some laundry, take some hanger-clothes pins and a bit of Tide.
2. Not following cues and directions, I read the map and ended up stick on a walking path on a hill. I now know how to get hold of "AAA" in Germany . The desk person, when I has asked directions was pretty negative about our destination. Hint #1 to the adventure to ensue.
3. Trusting that there would be good internet coverage in Italy (There is in France), planning on using my phone for directions. The GPS worked but not directions, need Internet for that.
4. I learned my lesson a long time ago, but overpacking stinks. so, I make sure that there are ways to do some laundry, take some hanger-clothes pins and a bit of Tide.
Mar 4th, 2017, 05:45 AM
#26
@WoinParis - while I travel with multiple ATM and credit cards (although not unlimited - not sure I could get one of those) I always travel with medical and medical evacuation/repatriation insurance for the kind of unfortunate situation you describe. It got me back to the US after I broke my wrist in Switzerland, haven't needed it since but I wouldn't leave home without it. (Europeans probably don't need the medical part.)
Mar 4th, 2017, 05:55 AM
#27
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About 30+ years ago, before the Internet, I booked a hotel for a week in Brussels that turned out to be horrible--and we stayed for the whole week, rather than finding a better hotel.
I did learn the French word for insects.
I did learn the French word for insects.
Mar 4th, 2017, 06:48 AM
#29
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Not buying that gorgeous 4-storey townhouse just around the corner from the main quai in Honfleur. In 1978, US$13,000 seemed like a fortune. I figured I'd have to become a drug dealer to afford it, and didn't want to go that route.
Mar 4th, 2017, 07:52 AM
#31
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Ouch, bilbo! We were in Ile de Ré last year, and there was a real estate brochure sitting on the counter of the café where we were having an apéro. We flipped through it and were astonished that the least expensive place listed in it was 880,000€ - for a shoebox-sized studio in an ugly 3-storey building way far inland.
At least I had the foresight to buy in the Dordogne in 1993 when there were almost 10 francs to the dollar.
At least I had the foresight to buy in the Dordogne in 1993 when there were almost 10 francs to the dollar.
Mar 4th, 2017, 09:25 AM
#37
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My first trip with a huge suitcase. Lesson learned and never did it again.
Not using the bus system in Paris until our 3rd or 4th trip.
Not cleaning our seats and area around them on an Air France plane on the flight over. Husband sick 48 hours later, me --sick 48 hours after that. The plane was disgusting so we always bring on a travel pack of Clorox wipes to wipe down our seats, seatbelt clasps, tray table, movie screen etc....we haven't been sick on a trip since.
Not having any Kleenex in my purse on excursions and finding no toilet paper in bathroom.
Not checking to see if there are any special exhibits in museums etc...while we are in that city. Almost missed an amazing Cartier exhibit a few years ago.
We have made lots of mistakes but still have had great trips. I think the biggest mistakes I see on the forum is trying to cram too much in on a trip, over planning and leaving no flexibility to do something unexpected.
Not using the bus system in Paris until our 3rd or 4th trip.
Not cleaning our seats and area around them on an Air France plane on the flight over. Husband sick 48 hours later, me --sick 48 hours after that. The plane was disgusting so we always bring on a travel pack of Clorox wipes to wipe down our seats, seatbelt clasps, tray table, movie screen etc....we haven't been sick on a trip since.
Not having any Kleenex in my purse on excursions and finding no toilet paper in bathroom.
Not checking to see if there are any special exhibits in museums etc...while we are in that city. Almost missed an amazing Cartier exhibit a few years ago.
We have made lots of mistakes but still have had great trips. I think the biggest mistakes I see on the forum is trying to cram too much in on a trip, over planning and leaving no flexibility to do something unexpected.
Mar 4th, 2017, 09:27 AM
#38
It still remains our petrol fiasco of 2005. For the few that don't know the story...
The route Gubbio to San Quirico d'Orcia...from the trip report:
"It was going to be a leisurely 2 ½ drive to the Palazzo del Capitano, and I had us arriving at the appointed wine-drinking time of 5 – 6 p.m. We stopped at an unmanned ESSO station for gas. After initially pausing at the Diesel pump, I went over to the Super Gas. We looked for the manual on how to get the gas tank open, but sadly we remembered (from our “can’t find how to reverse” fiasco) that there was no manual. After a few minutes the “brain trust” had the gas tank open.
Our next job was to figure out how to pay. After five minutes, we had everything in control, paid the 70 Euros to fill up, and it was on to San Quirico d’Orcia. But you know better than that, don’t you?
After about one minute, the car sounded like my bicycle when I was a kid and it had baseball cards in the spokes, only this sounded even worse. I don’t know if they could see the panic in my eyes, but my passengers were beginning to feel as uneasy as Kim’s stomach.
The car began to sputter more and more, and I was increasingly unable to accelerate.
We all agreed we should stop at the closed IP station up ahead to see what was wrong. A little flustered (ok…a lot), I believed I was hitting the brake as I entered the station, but in reality I was hitting the clutch. Instead of stopping near a pump, we glided gently into a nearby field. For the second time on the trip, the four of us were forced to push our car backwards, this time until we found cement.
Being the most (only) mechanical person in our vehicle, Kim attempted to determine what went wrong. That didn’t take long. Kim then uttered the words that have us all waking up in a cold sweat to this very day, “Oh my God, we put Super Gas in a Diesel car!”
Yes, ladies and gentlemen, here we were, four stranded, feeling rather stupid, Americans in the middle of virtually nowhere, all alone at a closed IP station in a car filled with the wrong gas. There hadn’t been four longer faces since the Kerry family on election night 2004. The only place on the car it said “Diesel” was above the gas cap, under the lip, where it was nearly impossible to see, but, alas, the damage had already been done.
The good news was Kim had brought an international cell phone for some business he had to do during the trip. I immediately called my father-in-law in the states and said, “Is putting Super Gas in a Diesel car very bad?” After 30 seconds of laughter, he replied, “Oh yeah, it’s really bad!”
That was accompanied by more bad news, there was only a busy signal at the Europcar number we had on file. We tried for half an hour. No luck.
We found a skinny hose and Kim, whose stomach wasn’t feeling bad enough to begin with, tried to siphon the gas out. Although thinking I should offer him a Gas-X to lighten the mood, I decided against it.
Siphoning did not work, but as despair set in as the four of us sat alone at a closed IP station, the guy who works at the station stopped by. As fate would it, there was going to be a little concert at the station that evening. It was our first stroke of luck.
The IP employee told us about a tow truck driver in Gubbio who might help us. He called him, and he could pick us up. The downside to that plan was it would cost a few thousand Euro. Next, he called a Europcar international number and finally got through to someone. They said would have someone call right back.
I paced while Tracy, Kim and Mary read. An hour later, I was pacing faster and still there was no return call from Europcar. The guy at the station tried again and this time got through to Europcar in Perugia, where we had spent 47 of the nicest minutes of the trip just a day earlier.
For a moment, I closed my eyes and tried to wish ourselves into the Palazzo del Capitano courtyard. I don’t think I clicked my heels, however.
It didn’t work.
At 5:30 p.m. (about 3 ½ hours into the ordeal) a tow truck came and lifted our car onto the back of the truck. Mary and Tracy were offered the front seat in the tow truck with the driver, but what about Kim and Tom? Well, we hopped onto the back of the truck, climbed in our newly deceased rental mobile and strapped ourselves in backward for the trip down the hill. It was Bucket of Bolts, Part II, The Tourists Held Hostage.
Had we known what was going on up front during our journey, Kim and I probably would not have been so happy, obliviously waving to all the Italian woman who were about to pass us on the winding road. According to Tracy, when the driver reached the first turn on the mountainous road, he looked back nervously to see if the car was still on the truck or careening down a nearby cliff. She also said he drove much of the way with one hand (cell phone) and no hands and one knee when adjusting the visor to keep the glaring sun from coming in and blinding him.
But drive he did, and our wives said he was great to talk to when he wasn’t on the phone. They knew much of his life story by the time we reached our final destination, which was, thankfully, Perugia. There was tons of traffic, and Kim and I had no clue to where we were headed. We saw a Europcar office and I thought, “Man, if only we could stop here,” but it looked closed.
Suddenly, we saw the driver and Tracy head toward us, and Mary made a mad dash to the office. As it turned out, the driver was on the cell phone to the guy at Europcar, who stayed 45 minutes late to wait for those gas pumping-impaired Americans.
The Europcar guy was nice and even a bit funny. After telling us we were not the first Americans to ever commit such a foolish error, he said in his best English, “I probably don’t have to tell you this, but this car is diesel.”
We thanked him and tipped both he and the driver (we also tipped the guy at the IP station). As I walked away, he added, “To put the car in reverse, pull up on the ring.” I wondered if he had seen a video from our Spello parking lot experience.
The four of us were feeling very lucky that our day had turned out like this, because just two hours before things looked bleak, although Kim had said at the time, “In 24 hours, this won’t be a big deal.”
The rest of the trip was much smoother.
The route Gubbio to San Quirico d'Orcia...from the trip report:
"It was going to be a leisurely 2 ½ drive to the Palazzo del Capitano, and I had us arriving at the appointed wine-drinking time of 5 – 6 p.m. We stopped at an unmanned ESSO station for gas. After initially pausing at the Diesel pump, I went over to the Super Gas. We looked for the manual on how to get the gas tank open, but sadly we remembered (from our “can’t find how to reverse” fiasco) that there was no manual. After a few minutes the “brain trust” had the gas tank open.
Our next job was to figure out how to pay. After five minutes, we had everything in control, paid the 70 Euros to fill up, and it was on to San Quirico d’Orcia. But you know better than that, don’t you?
After about one minute, the car sounded like my bicycle when I was a kid and it had baseball cards in the spokes, only this sounded even worse. I don’t know if they could see the panic in my eyes, but my passengers were beginning to feel as uneasy as Kim’s stomach.
The car began to sputter more and more, and I was increasingly unable to accelerate.
We all agreed we should stop at the closed IP station up ahead to see what was wrong. A little flustered (ok…a lot), I believed I was hitting the brake as I entered the station, but in reality I was hitting the clutch. Instead of stopping near a pump, we glided gently into a nearby field. For the second time on the trip, the four of us were forced to push our car backwards, this time until we found cement.
Being the most (only) mechanical person in our vehicle, Kim attempted to determine what went wrong. That didn’t take long. Kim then uttered the words that have us all waking up in a cold sweat to this very day, “Oh my God, we put Super Gas in a Diesel car!”
Yes, ladies and gentlemen, here we were, four stranded, feeling rather stupid, Americans in the middle of virtually nowhere, all alone at a closed IP station in a car filled with the wrong gas. There hadn’t been four longer faces since the Kerry family on election night 2004. The only place on the car it said “Diesel” was above the gas cap, under the lip, where it was nearly impossible to see, but, alas, the damage had already been done.
The good news was Kim had brought an international cell phone for some business he had to do during the trip. I immediately called my father-in-law in the states and said, “Is putting Super Gas in a Diesel car very bad?” After 30 seconds of laughter, he replied, “Oh yeah, it’s really bad!”
That was accompanied by more bad news, there was only a busy signal at the Europcar number we had on file. We tried for half an hour. No luck.
We found a skinny hose and Kim, whose stomach wasn’t feeling bad enough to begin with, tried to siphon the gas out. Although thinking I should offer him a Gas-X to lighten the mood, I decided against it.
Siphoning did not work, but as despair set in as the four of us sat alone at a closed IP station, the guy who works at the station stopped by. As fate would it, there was going to be a little concert at the station that evening. It was our first stroke of luck.
The IP employee told us about a tow truck driver in Gubbio who might help us. He called him, and he could pick us up. The downside to that plan was it would cost a few thousand Euro. Next, he called a Europcar international number and finally got through to someone. They said would have someone call right back.
I paced while Tracy, Kim and Mary read. An hour later, I was pacing faster and still there was no return call from Europcar. The guy at the station tried again and this time got through to Europcar in Perugia, where we had spent 47 of the nicest minutes of the trip just a day earlier.
For a moment, I closed my eyes and tried to wish ourselves into the Palazzo del Capitano courtyard. I don’t think I clicked my heels, however.
It didn’t work.
At 5:30 p.m. (about 3 ½ hours into the ordeal) a tow truck came and lifted our car onto the back of the truck. Mary and Tracy were offered the front seat in the tow truck with the driver, but what about Kim and Tom? Well, we hopped onto the back of the truck, climbed in our newly deceased rental mobile and strapped ourselves in backward for the trip down the hill. It was Bucket of Bolts, Part II, The Tourists Held Hostage.
Had we known what was going on up front during our journey, Kim and I probably would not have been so happy, obliviously waving to all the Italian woman who were about to pass us on the winding road. According to Tracy, when the driver reached the first turn on the mountainous road, he looked back nervously to see if the car was still on the truck or careening down a nearby cliff. She also said he drove much of the way with one hand (cell phone) and no hands and one knee when adjusting the visor to keep the glaring sun from coming in and blinding him.
But drive he did, and our wives said he was great to talk to when he wasn’t on the phone. They knew much of his life story by the time we reached our final destination, which was, thankfully, Perugia. There was tons of traffic, and Kim and I had no clue to where we were headed. We saw a Europcar office and I thought, “Man, if only we could stop here,” but it looked closed.
Suddenly, we saw the driver and Tracy head toward us, and Mary made a mad dash to the office. As it turned out, the driver was on the cell phone to the guy at Europcar, who stayed 45 minutes late to wait for those gas pumping-impaired Americans.
The Europcar guy was nice and even a bit funny. After telling us we were not the first Americans to ever commit such a foolish error, he said in his best English, “I probably don’t have to tell you this, but this car is diesel.”
We thanked him and tipped both he and the driver (we also tipped the guy at the IP station). As I walked away, he added, “To put the car in reverse, pull up on the ring.” I wondered if he had seen a video from our Spello parking lot experience.
The four of us were feeling very lucky that our day had turned out like this, because just two hours before things looked bleak, although Kim had said at the time, “In 24 hours, this won’t be a big deal.”
The rest of the trip was much smoother.
Mar 4th, 2017, 09:44 AM
#39
Not taking a second credit card along. Pick pocketed and had to wait for new card to be FedExed to small town in rural Italy.
Using a travel agent, a friend of a friend after always booking everything ourseleves. Never again. She made so many mistakes which weren't apparent until we were traveling.
Using a travel agent, a friend of a friend after always booking everything ourseleves. Never again. She made so many mistakes which weren't apparent until we were traveling.
