F&E - Paris & Italy

[superfamous]

hi there,

anyone has reccomendations for hotels in the following cities? it's my first time so i absolutely have no idea where to stay!

- paris
- milan
- venice
- florence
- rome

planning my F&E honeymoon

don't really want to splurge, but at the same time, don't want too shabby accomodations. something clean, safe, comfortable, accessible and affordable. (and with aircon, not all rooms have aircon?) we're not planning to drive, mostly relying on the metro and budget flights so a hotel near to the metro stations are important (esp if i have to be lugging huge luggages towards the end!)

budget's about US$100+ per night (i know that's quite a wide range... but i'm trying to see what i can get), lesser will of course be better

 

[pinkglove]

hi, I stayed in this hotelchain the last time I went, comfy and not too exp.. u may wanna check it out.. I stayed in 1 of them which's very near e station but i don't remb the exact one i stayed though..
http://www.timhotel.com/en/home.htm


For Venice, it's such a small place but there's lots of B&B or smaller boutique hotels that u can consider instead of those exp 5star hotels..

Enjoy ur honeymoon!

 

[superfamous]

hi pinkglove, thanks!

i've not started on research for venice yet. still stuck on hotel for paris, any B&Bs to look out for?

 

[superfamous]

oh, i also forgot to mention, free wi-fi in the rooms would definitely be a big plus!

 

[sahdeau]

hi...im also in the same situation..planing for HM in june to france and italy...maybe we can share here too

 

[superfamous]

sahdeau, what planning have you done so far?

for paris, i have settled on the st germain/latin quarter area. am deciding between renting an apartment or hotel coz i will be there for about a week. if apartment, i am also considering ile st louis. my choice of hotels have quite a wide range of prices from euros 100+-200+. let you know when i have decided

based on my research, ibis chain of hotels are quite good and affordable. i was looking at a hotel at montmartre and they were less than US100/night!!! but the thing is they are not in the central parts of paris so i did not consider it.

let me know if you need any help, can PM me

 

[sahdeau]

wow..information overload ..thanks for all the help..
so far..i hadjust book my air tix to paris and back fr rome..
gotta do the detail planing soon..we shd be buying train tic there when we go there..maybe the internal flight buy in singapore.
we should be going
paris-venice-milan-florence-pisa-rome...
not sure how to go abt doing it..now reading lonely planet..haa

 

[superfamous]

sahdeau, i know what you mean about information overload, i felt that way too!

maybe you can consider paris-milan instead of paris-venice. coz i think its easier (and maybe cheaper) to find train/flights from paris to milan instead of paris to venice. paris to milan will most prob be by train (think it will take quite long) or flight. think flight is better coz you will prob be taking train most of the way in italy, so can save time

can go check out rick steves guidebooks too, i think they're pretty good. i bought fodors guide to paris first but i find rick steves better, have neglected my fodors

 

[pinkglove]

easy jet flies paris - venice at around $100 one way for june.. u can check it out =)

 

[sahdeau]

thanks gal..ijust check .its cheap...and abt 60euro/..

 

[pinkglove]

glad to be of help =) Easy jet always has cheap and good flights. =)

 

[yomeishu]

hi superfamous,

l've emailed u my europe itinerary

 

[yomeishu]

i got the whole list of the hotels that l booked for my europe trip. i think l emailed u too.. i did a lot of research alr so the hotel we stayed are comfortable and safe. except florence ..sigh, most of the hotel are not really hotels and u have to check with them whether there's air con. coz many hotels not providing air condition. for the paris, u can stay at ibis cambrone, it's very near eiffel tower. we stayed there. fyi, hotels near eiffel tower area/champ elysees/ lourve are super ex. try the hotels those are few metro stops from the hot area. u refer to my email, i think i did put our hotels info inside. For Italy is actually very easy to tour around. Venice you just to take the boat to another island such as murano-the city of glass, fyi..the tickets for the "sea taxi" are not cheap..everything in italy just ex ex ex..except Gucci (after tax rebate) heehee. u can try ryan air from paris to rome, very cheap only. If you intend to stay in france for 1 week, i recommend u can take a train to brussel, it's about 4 hours journey. You can check the france train company SNCF for the ticket price.

Anything just buzz me, i will see what can l help

 

[yomeishu]

sahdeau, try get ur italy pass in sg 1st then reserve ur seats when u reach italy. coz we buy from eurail is actually cheaper than u buy there. or u can buy from trenitalia.com but apparently they dun accept credit cards from outside of europe! Pisa is actually located at florence, take train only 1 hour to reach there, spend 1 day will be enough liao. the tower is not big..lol. u can buy the ticket to pisa from florence train station by using the kiosk, very easy. But if u got the italy pass, u just need to pay for the seat reservation. but for pisa, dun need to reserve, just get on the 2nd class will do..

 

[yomeishu]

If you are taking a train from paris Gare de lyon station to Milano Centrale will be around 7 hours. Or u can consider taking a night train. It will passby swiss. of course it will cost more. My bf and i book a night train from venice to vienna is about 180 euro for one cabin, then from berlin to zurich we also took night train and the price is slightly lower/higher (i can't really remember). You can get cheaper one coz that time we didn't wanna share the cabin with others. Of course i suggest u do not share with others coz it's ur honeymoon.

if u taking ryan air oreasy jet is also quite good coz the price are really cheap. I think few years ago i visited spain and l took a flight from barce to paris, the ticket was only 12 euros. i remember total l spent for the flight was less than 40 euro after tax (round trip somemore)

.

Try ryanair, it's really cheap. i think from paris to venice is less than 50 euro for 2 persons one way after taxes.

 

[sahdeau]

hi qwerty,
could you also send me a copy of the itinery pls...thanks alot..
[email protected]

i been doing research and saw alot of horror story of italy and paris. pickpocket and such....

italy train tix is cheaper to buy there?
my friend told me that in UK train tix is cheaper to get from online in singapore...so im kinda confused...

 

[superfamous]

qwerty, thanks!

will reply your email when i get home, been busy lately.

what is there to do in brussels? my hubby v bad traveller, so i'm afraid 4hr train ride there and back is too much for him

 

[yomeishu]

hi sahdeau,

Yes! Italy is full of pickpockets and gypsy. But do not worry abt that, as long as dun put your passport and money so out front then no problem. My bf nearly got robbed when we were in italy. I will tell u the story when l email u.

For the train ticket, we bought Global pass (for travelling more than 5 countries) so we must get it online before we go to europe coz when u reach there, they do not sell the eurail pass there.

You can refer to this site www.eurail.com
fyi, eurail pass doesn't sell in europe so if u wanna go there and buy it's kinda impossible or it will be very expensive. What I mean cheaper buying there only if u have maybe 1 trip/1 way travel from point to point then single trip ticket will be more recommended.

You may refer the point to point price from www.trenitalia.com then compare to the italy pass from www.eurail.com.

My advise is plan your route 1st such as how many days in paris /italy. once u decide where and when to go, then look for the option of transportation (flight/train). Then work out from there for your budget. In general, their hotel rooms (2person/1nights)average is min 100 + euro. Of course the condition of the hotel rooms are generally not tally with the price that u are paying, don't ever compare them to sg hotels. haha.

I'll email you my itinerary and the hotel that we book. Our entire trip is fun and enjoyable. Do not worry about the route or where or how to explore the place coz it's really easy to have f&e in europe.

We visited 6 countries in one month and the most expensive country is swiss. One simple macdonald meal (1 burger + 1 drink) can simply hit SGD 20 and that's for 1 person only. I remember l bought a hotdog in zurich cost me SGD10 and it's not very big..lol..it's even more expensive than new york.

For paris, the cost also not cheap but it's ok to us. Italy especially venice, everything is heaven price. The boat cost a lot. If lm not wrong, it's 1 way from main island to another island cost 16euro. it's one way person 16 euro, imagine u go point to point in venice, every trip you have to pay 16 euro. lol. To us, italy is the most not worth for money in terms of hotels.

 

[eternity82]

Hi qwerty, can i have a copy of yr itinerary as well thanks. [email protected]

 

[superfamous]

qwerty, i dont think the boat is that expensive lah.. see this website: http://www.italylogue.com/planning-a-trip/venice-transportation-101.html

What does it cost to ride the vaporetto?
A single ticket buys you one hour of travel time on the vaporetto for €6.50 - so if you’re just looking for a quick trip and won’t make another one within that hour, that’s a high price to pay. At that point, I’d suggest you either get a pass that covers you for your whole visit, or just walk. Once you’ve bought your ticket, don’t forget to validate it in the machines available just before you walk the plank toward the canal.

 

[thommy]

so good ah jo, can get to go europe for HM, me most likely no $$$ left after my banquet

 

[yomeishu]

hi superfamous, haha, l think l made a mistake, I count it in SGD16

 

[yomeishu]

hi sah and eternity, l have sent you my itinerary =)

 

[superfamous]

Thomas, can save up after the banquet. we didnt go immediately after too

btw do you think the euros will drop further? i think i'm very KS, feel like changing euros now! the rate is at 2 when i checked ysterday

 

[thommy]

jo, I guess that's the only way out ba for me sigh...when u flying off?

haha u asked the correct person! in my line I need to look at forex everyday, last few weeks euro $ had been relatively weak, think now's the best time for u to change $$$

 

[superfamous]

early part of may

will drop further not? hehe

 

[yomeishu]

hi thomas, now is best time to change euro? how about aussie dollars?

 

[thommy]

jo: I'm not too sure, but I guess even if drop wun drop a lot so shld be ok to change now

qwerty: AUD no, its still climbing up steadily. In fact now's not the time to go Aussie, good places to go wld be Europe, UK and US. Yen also still high now.

 

[starnight]

Hihi, I just booked my open jaw flights to Paris & return from Rome a few days back.
In the process of planning my itinerary in Italy.
Will be going to Venice, Florence & Rome.
Can anyone who have been there advise whether it's recommended to book the train tickets from Venice to Florence, Florence to Rome in Singapore?
And if I intend to book online, which website should I go as I understand trenitalia doesn't accept Singapore credit card?

Thanks in advance!

 

[starnight]

Oh yup, I saw this Paris Viste card for transport on trains. Is it more worthwhile to get this card or just buy the carnet of 10 tickets?

Thanks again!

 

[superfamous]

Thomas, i forgot the money changers are closed on friday during lunch so i didnt get to change. maybe monday

starnight_starbright, when are you going and flying by which airline?

i'll be going in may and intend to purchase my tickets when i am there. maybe a few days before departure (so buy the next train ticket for next destination when i arrive).

for paris, i'm intending to just buy the carnet. hth!

 

[thommy]

haha weekends also can change although more ppl lah...

have fun this may!

 

[starnight]

Hi notsuperfamous!,
I am going on the 19 March and returning on 30 March by Emirates. The fare is cheap, but gotta transit in Dubai for 3.5 hours. I planned to book SQ initially but the flights are full for their promo - 2 to go and in a way, I saved more via Emirates

 

[pinjie8275]

Hi

I am planning for a 16D trip departing on the 1 April via Emirates too. In to Rome and Out from Paris. SQ though is direct flight charged ard $1K more for a pair of tickets during the same period. Moreover, our planned period seem to be full too.

My route would be Italy(Rome/Florence/Pisa/Bologna/Venice/Milan)-Switzerland(Bern/Interlaken/Lucerne)- France(Paris). Initially I was very greedy! Was thinking of squeezing Brussel/Bruges/Ghent and Amsterdam and even Munich/Cologne! hahaha... It's possible but at the end of the trip, I would probably get the so-called tourist fatigue.

Am now thinking of lessening the nos of cities to visit.

Hi qwerty, could you share with me your itinerary and recommended hotel list? [email protected]
We are thinking of looking for a hotel only when we arrive there so that we have the flexibility of changing our plan. But several guidebooks mentioned that Italy peak period starts as early as end March hence am worried that we might end up with no rooms or 'pretisge' room!

I will probably be getting a 15D Global Eurail Pass. Though budget airlines are cheap, my hubby is worried about the travelling time between the airports, the hassle of checking in early, security check and etc... And my hubby said Europe's airport systems are not as prompt as Singapore hence loss/delay of baggages, change of flight timings are quite common. =(

 

[pinjie8275]

Btw, I think Eyewitness Travel guidebook are quite good. Lotsa pictures and walking guide. I borrowed from NLB. Very detailed maps on some selected place of interests. But the accomodation and dining recommendations are not so much for the travellers with tight budget.

Nevertheless, it's a good book to see which cities interets you. For a more indepth research on the suggested routes by train, I think the Europe by Rail 2009 is quite good.

 

[superfamous]

starnight_starbright & pine&jie8275 mind sharing how much you paid for your flights? now i'm wondering if i overpaid for mine

my only consolation is that mine is direct flight...

and pin&jie8275 you are covering alot of cities! now i'm wondering if i should visit more too i'm going for 21 days and not even going to switzerland.

 

[yomeishu]

hi pin,

u can go to www.lastminute.com if you will only book your hotel when u reach there. I've sent you my itineray. cheers =)

base on ur 16 days trip better try not to squeeze so many places. paris u need at least 4 nights, swiss u need 4 nights at least, rome min 2 nights, florence+pisa min 2 nights, venice 2 nights...14 days liao (base on the place u are visiting), 16 days u need to prepare 2 days back and forth

l'll advise u to take train instead of flight. You can buy 3 countries pass with the 2 ppl travel so that u can get a slightly lesser price.

Remember to download eurail schedule, it's very important for u to plan ur route and easy for u to look for hotel base on ur train timing =)

 

[yomeishu]

starnight, u can buy italy pass, for u to travel.

l bought my eurail pass here www.eurail.com or u can go to local travel agency, many of them are selling eurail. u must get it in sg as europe doesn't sell eurail pass. they only sell point to point and it's more expensive. European also not eligible to buy eurail pass as it's cater for non european who live outside of europe.

 

[superfamous]

after working out a tenative itineary, i think i can squeeze out 3 days to head to london. any opinion on whether i should head to london from paris and fly from london to rome thereafter?

if i go to london (3 days), will have 5 days (including the day i arrive) in paris and 7 days in rome and florence.

if i dont go to london, will have 6 days in paris, 9 days in rome and florence.

what do you think? i'm just afraid i will be too tired out at the end of the trip, LOL. and not enough time in each city, dont want a touch and go experience. but am also afraid i will get bored if i stay too long

 

[sahdeau]

wow...how many days u going...i stil not sure how many days to stay each place...still planing.
i thinking if i should go switzerland for a while..

 

[pinkglove]

i tink 7 days for rome and florence's & 5 days for paris is sufficient if u are planning to go to only e main attractions..
However, if u are leaving london out and spending more days in other cities, u can plan for day trips to somewhere around paris / rome / florence e.g versailles

 

[superfamous]

sahdeau, going for about 3 weeks. we thought of switzerland too but too little days for switzerland and london's nearer too.

pinkglove, oh 5 days in paris does include versailles already... plus main attractions like notre dame, louvre, effiel tower, grand oprea, marais area, latin quarter, montmartre.. we're not huge museum buffs so will prob just head to louvre and maybe just 1 other.

rome we're planning vatican city, the normal attractions in the city itself. was planning to head to pompeii but if theres' no time we will skip that.

florence, will head to siena, pisa and the outlets.

 

[superfamous]

btw, which airport is preferably to fly out of london?

i know for paris, its either orly or cdg...

 

[cuclainne]

heathrow for international, stansted for budget

 

[pinkglove]

oh. in this case then i tink 5 days's prob sufficient for paris & italy then .. can consider london!

 

[joey04]

Hi Everyone, I'm currently planning for my F & E honeymoon to europe. Quite kiasu cos I'll be going only in Nov, hehe.

Like to check for a 19 days trip, is it too extensive to cover London, Paris and Italy?

Qwerty, can you be so kind to fwd me your itinery, my email add is [email protected]

Many thanks.
Cheers,
Joey

 

[superfamous]

cuclainne, how far is stanstead from central part of london? is it easy to get to?

thanks pinkglove, i think i might!

jia-joey, think 19 days quite sufficient, i'm planning about 21 days and going to paris, rome, venice, milan, florence. london unconfirmed yet

if you dont spend so many days in each city, you can even consider other places (switzerland?)

 

[yomeishu]

Hi Joey,

l've sent you my itinerary. But my trip didn't include london as we prefer to go to uk separately. Since you have 19 days in europe, make a good use of it. November is autumn so the day time should be shorter. So your route has to be planned wisely else you may end up waste time.

During my trip, we choose the city or the country that we want to spend more time such as swiss. It depends on which type of traveler you are . I did a bit of research on the countries that l want to go, so ended up we spent average 2 nights in italy that was including rome-florence(pisa)-venice and we find it enough as we are not italy fans afterall..haha. Instead, we spent more days in prague(where my fiance proposed to me ) although it's small and not really much things to see.

Jo(superfamous), you may consider to go to swiss since your 1st stop is paris might as well buy a 3 countries pass and use it for swiss, swiss is really good place! you will like it. Fyi, Rome is super duper dusty, dirty and bird poops are everywhere, my impression of rome is " China in Europe"...lol

 

[joey04]

I've a qs, if we are travelling in mid Nov, is it going to be very cold in switzerland?

Hi qwerty, ya lor, that's why I'm starting to plan so early mah. But still a bit lost and a lot of reading up to do. =)
Thanks for the itinery!

 

[superfamous]

qwerty, but we will only have 3 days!! like not enough for swiss..

i think italy has lots of bird poop, venice too! i was reading the guidebook and it was telling u what to do if kena bird poop on your head @@