Travel : Eastern Europe

[Dnls_mum]

bebebub:

Thanks for sharing.


Dnls_mum,
Did you arrive at n depart from the same city?
Care to elaborate on the Jewish Quarters which you didn't enjoy?
U moved ard on your own during some part of the trip. By trains and buses? Any tips on how their transport system work?

The Synagogue in the Jewsih Quater in Prague is quite an ancient one. Unfortunately, there is little instructions or literature to read and the people there aren't exactly helpful and there was no one to advise what the various attractions had and how the combine tickets can be used. We should have done more research before we went. As we have little knowledge of the Jewish religion, all was pretty meaningless to us. To truely appreciate it, it would be probably better if you had a guided tour of the place. Due to this experience in Prague, when we were in Budapest, we took a tour of the Synagogue. You can book it at the ticketing counter at the entrance of the synagogue. That visit was more meaningful.

We flew in to Prague and left from Budapest. We checked out various airlines and thought the connections provided by Luthansa was best. We arrived early in the morning in Prague after a short transit in Frankfurt. We left late afternoon in Budapest and returned via a short transit in Munich.

DH and I took a river cruise down the Danube, from Vilsofen in Germany to Budapest. We spent 3 nights in Prague and from there coach to Vilsofen with a lunch stop and time for a short walk around town at Regensburg (Germany). We embarked our ship at Vilsofen and from there was on a 7 nights cruise down the Danube, finally ending in Budapest. The ship was our hotel and mode of transport. We arrived each morning at various towns including Bratislava. Walk around town on our own after a short walking tour, then went back to the ship for meals and sleep. A very comfortable and luxurious way to tour the cities along the Danube. Extremely safe too.

This was our second river cruise. We took one in Amsterdam/Belgium in 2011. We love these river cruises! I am now considering taking the one in Russia from Moscow to St Petersburg or the one in Portugal. But this year cannot since DS1 has O lvl so very busy year, so maybe do either one next year. :xedfingers:

[bebebub]

Dnls_mum:

bebebub:

Thanks for sharing.


Dnls_mum,
Did you arrive at n depart from the same city?
Care to elaborate on the Jewish Quarters which you didn't enjoy?
U moved ard on your own during some part of the trip. By trains and buses? Any tips on how their transport system work?

The Synagogue in the Jewsih Quater in Prague is quite an ancient one. Unfortunately, there is little instructions or literature to read and the people there aren't exactly helpful and there was no one to advise what the various attractions had and how the combine tickets can be used. We should have done more research before we went. As we have little knowledge of the Jewish religion, all was pretty meaningless to us. To truely appreciate it, it would be probably better if you had a guided tour of the place. Due to this experience in Prague, when we were in Budapest, we took a tour of the Synagogue. You can book it at the ticketing counter at the entrance of the synagogue. That visit was more meaningful.

We flew in to Prague and left from Budapest. We checked out various airlines and thought the connections provided by Luthansa was best. We arrived early in the morning in Prague after a short transit in Frankfurt. We left late afternoon in Budapest and returned via a short transit in Munich.

DH and I took a river cruise down the Danube, from Vilsofen in Germany to Budapest. We spent 3 nights in Prague and from there coach to Vilsofen with a lunch stop and time for a short walk around town at Regensburg (Germany). We embarked our ship at Vilsofen and from there was on a 7 nights cruise down the Danube, finally ending in Budapest. The ship was our hotel and mode of transport. We arrived each morning at various towns including Bratislava. Walk around town on our own after a short walking tour, then went back to the ship for meals and sleep. A very comfortable and luxurious way to tour the cities along the Danube. Extremely safe too.

This was our second river cruise. We took one in Amsterdam/Belgium in 2011. We love these river cruises! I am now considering taking the one in Russia from Moscow to St Petersburg or the one in Portugal. But this year cannot since DS1 has O lvl so very busy year, so maybe do either one next year. :xedfingers:

You r the river cruise guru! River cruise sounds like a good idea to settle accommodation/transportation n safety issue in this case. But i hv budget constrain leh :sad: N I like to roam ard at own-time-own-target.

If I just want a short cruise on the Danube, where do you reckon is the best point to embark. Understand that Danube flows through a couple of cities?

[Dnls_mum]

bebebub:

You r the river cruise guru! River cruise sounds like a good idea to settle accommodation/transportation n safety issue in this case. But i hv budget constrain leh :sad: N I like to roam ard at own-time-own-target.


If I just want a short cruise on the Danube, where do you reckon is the best point to embark. Understand that Danube flows through a couple of cities?

The Danube is a major river in that part of Europe. We cruised from Vilsofen and Passau in germany to Linz, Melk, Durnstein, Krems in Austria, to Bratislava in Slovakia and Budapest in Hungary. This is just one popular section. It goes further south and north.

In Budapest, you can take night cruises on the Danube. A night cruise of the Budapest section of the Danube is really a must do in Budapest. The city is well illuminated by lights and the view of the parliament building from the river is so beautiful. You can also take a full day tour in Budapest to the Danube bend.

I personally like cruising the Wachau Valley (Austria) section of the Danube. It passes many quaint Austrian towns and vineyards and castle ruins. Very beautiful and peaceful sight. But I'm not sure if you can take a day cruise of that area.

[bebebub]

Dnls_mum:

bebebub:

You r the river cruise guru! River cruise sounds like a good idea to settle accommodation/transportation n safety issue in this case. But i hv budget constrain leh :sad: N I like to roam ard at own-time-own-target.


If I just want a short cruise on the Danube, where do you reckon is the best point to embark. Understand that Danube flows through a couple of cities?

The Danube is a major river in that part of Europe. We cruised from Vilsofen and Passau in germany to Linz, Melk, Durnstein, Krems in Austria, to Bratislava in Slovakia and Budapest in Hungary. This is just one popular section. It goes further south and north.

In Budapest, you can take night cruises on the Danube. A night cruise of the Budapest section of the Danube is really a must do in Budapest. The city is well illuminated by lights and the view of the parliament building from the river is so beautiful. You can also take a full day tour in Budapest to the Danube bend.

I personally like cruising the Wachau Valley (Austria) section of the Danube. It passes many quaint Austrian towns and vineyards and castle ruins. Very beautiful and peaceful sight. But I'm not sure if you can take a day cruise of that area.

:thankyou:

[jacsplace]

Planning to visit Warsaw this November. Anybody got any info, tips, practical advice to share? Much appreciated!

[jacsplace]

Can anyone advise where to change Polish zloty in Singapore? thanks!

[Shan]

Went to Poland in June. Before we went, we checked with money changers and even asked LOT Polish Airlines staff who said cannot change in Singapore. But not sure whether there are any money changers now that have Polish zloty.

[jacsplace]

Thanks Shan. So what did you do for money in Poland?

[bebebub]

jacsplace\" post_id=\"1941326\" time=\"1571127605\" user_id=\"7071:

Can anyone advise where to change Polish zloty in Singapore? thanks!

I’m not surprised if you can’t get Polish zloty in Sgp. Lack of demand, I reckon.

We were not successful in getting any forint in Sgp for our trip to Hungary. We use Euro to exchange for forint upon arrival in Budapest. I was advised to change just enough for small purchases (eg. subway tickets) as the currency is useless once I step out of the country, and converting the balance to euro or US$ is unwise. Euro is accepted in most Budapest establishments, but any change will be given in forint. We used our credit card for restaurant meals and bigger purchases. At the end of our visit, I used up my balance forint in MacDonalds.

Didn’t quite answer your question. Just sharing what we did when faced with a similar issue

[Shan]

As we were in Prague before going to Krakow in Poland, we changed some in Prague. And when we arrived in Krakow, we changed at a money changer there.


For Warsaw, I recommend to visit the POLIN museum if you are interested in the history of Polish Jews. It is a wonderful museum.