1-day-stop cruise ship passengers at each of these Greek islands. I have seen some discouraging videos especially about Santorini -- extremely crowded and steep (both the wife and I have knee problems at this stage in our lives). For anyone who has ever stopped at these ports for the only day of your life you will be there, what can you recommend? I am thinking about just joining tours at these two stops even though I am almost 100% a "do it myself" guy and don't like being stuck with others on a timed agenda ..read more

Hi, This may all seem very stupid, but we're going to arrive very tired and I'd like to have things planned rather than trying to figure it out on the fly. We're flying to LHR, then LHR to GVA and taking ground transport via Mountain Drop-Offs to Chamonix in September. The Mountain Drop-Offs confirmation email says: "Our uniformed driver or representative will meet you on the Swiss side of Geneva airport in the arrivals hall. Turn left out of baggage reclaim, our desk is next to the Tekoe Tea Shop. Please keep your mobile phone with you and turned on once you are inside the terminal so that ..read more

My first international trip is in April/May 2025. It will be the first retirement travel! I've booked the first ticket - arrival in Rome at 17:35 local time (11:35 my normal time). I have no idea if I'll sleep on the plane or not since it is the first time. I am flying biz class on AF. How should I plan for day 2? I will have 3 days in Rome before moving to Florence. I was planning a Vatican day, Colosseum/Roman day and a Piazza Navona/Centro Storico day. Thinking I should do the Piazza Navona day first in case I am zonked by the time difference. It seems like the easiest day. The other days ..read more

Travelling soon to AMS. I have a Schengen (German) passport; partner has a non-Schengen (Canadian) passport. Are there agents for those with Schengen passports or is it e-scanners only? Based on previous experiences, we are hoping to use a Schengen line with an agent for both of us ..read more

Planning the final schedule of my trip to Europe. I am arriving in London and will be departing from Berlin. In between those two places, I am deciding between spending 4 days in Madrid, or 3 days in Vienna. The former is higher up my bucket list, although I can always visit Spain next year and spend a longer time. Main disadvantage is that the airfare from Lon - MAD - Berlin is much more substantial. Vienna, on the other hand is 'on the way ..read more

Hey, what is your favorite country you have been in Europe so far? And which country do you really want to visit ..read more

I'm doing some in-advance planning for a potential Iberia elite point run in the summer and Greece is in Europe III for IB, which is an earning sweet spot: 306€ return in eurobiz for 450 elite points. However the only Iberia Express flights MAD-HER-MAD would be back to back on a redeye, landing at 04:30 and departing again at 05:10. Is anyone familiar with the layout of Schengen arrivals/departures at HER and whether this b2b is possible? Does it just spit you out into the departures hall or are arrivals and departures separated? If it's not doable, I'm just going to go for a more standard ..read more

Hello everyone I, my wife and family friend will be for three days in Istanbul in second half of June. We would like to stay at a family hotel/homestay/aribnb type place at a quiet neighbourhood that is within walking distance of public transport (get to/from IST). Any recommendation at what area look at and what should I budget for such a place? I would like to limit lodging to $150/night for all three of us. Thanks ..read more

Are there still Sahara sandstorms in Europe? It looked really bad from the pics...orange skies and all... Is it all over yet ..read more

Hello, Since Hyatt just added a bunch of luxury properties, I am trying to decide whether I should change some plans for a trip I have in September. I'm currently staying at the Canaves Epitome. But I was looking at the Santorini Sky, which just got added. Any opinions on which one is better for a first visit to Santorini? Thanks ..read more