"Not all those who wander are lost."
At least I think that's what J.R.R. Tolkein said. This is most certainly NOT a criticism, but I've noticed that some people come to this board to ask advice about their itinerary. Sometimes people's expectations are unrealistic because they want to pack in seeing as much as possible. I understand this. For most of us, Europe is a long way to go to NOT try and pack in the sightseeing. However, all these itineraries make me wonder if I'm the only "wanderer" on this board. I plan, that means, "make a list" of places I'd LIKE to see at each stop (sometimes I don't even do that), but then I end up seeing about half of what I had "planned" because I wandered off.
It starts when I head out towards Point A. Then I'll find something interesting along the way to Point A. I eventually get to Point A, but sometimes, by then it's Point C, D, or F. Not to mention all the interesting things that I don't need to stop and see but just take the time to gaze at as I stroll by. It took me nearly all day to get to York Minster. York is a wanderer's paradise.
Are there any other wanderers here or are most people on a schedule of some sort?
Ruth
Midwest, USA 7/22/10
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Recently, I was asked what my dream job would be. I responded: Urban Explorer.
Just drop me in any city or town, make me aware of the "major" sites, and then leave me to wander around. That's how I really discover a place.
A note: I used the word "urban" for a reason. I have no desire to explore the far reaches of the Amazon nor climb Mt. Everest. I prefer cities and towns with a national park thrown in here and there. At night, others can enjoy the tents and the bugs, I'll take a hotel.
BTW...I'm copyrighting "urban explorer" on this board. Anyone using it without giving me credit is stealing. (I've seen some of my other "original" terms and phrases "stolen" and used by the thief as their own. You know who you are.) :)
Frank II - BTW...I'm copyrighting "urban explorer" on this board. Anyone using it without giving me credit is stealing.
What a great idea! Kent would make a pile from the use of "dreaded ZTLs"!
Urban explorer(c) {(c) by Frank II} - I see a pith helmet in your future...
I suppose 'live like a local' is taken?!?
How about 'cheap, clean, and safe'?!? (wait, I think that's something else entirely...)
Why would someone spend $1000 and fly all night to get to somewhere in Europe, just to say, "Eh, what do we do now?"
That's a great way to travel if you have a month in one place Steve, but most people don't do that. And I don't believe for a minute that you didn't know a single thing about Paris and you didn't learn what it had to offer until after you arrived. Was that your first time there, or a return visit?
If you have limited time in a place with no game plan, a lot of time can be wasted just winging it the whole time. I am not one to schedule things - 8:00 this, 10:15 that, etc., - but without a clue what a place has to offer, too much precious time is wasted trying to figure it out.
I agree with Andrea.
Haven't you been to Paris before Steve?
Our first trip to Europe since the kids were older was in 2006, and all we had planned "barely" was the London part. Sad to say that as much as I love an adventure, we wasted a lot of time worrying and wondering what to do with the month in Europe. We had free accommodations in London, but only for 10 days! We wasted a lot of money, and lost so much time...
I used to travel without hotel reservations. Sometimes it worked out, but I have found with flight delays and other problems that again, we waste time so now I try to book some hotels. We never buy tickets for museums or anything else ahead of time. That I leave until we get to the place.
I used to be much more of a planner. Now I like to think that I'm more of a researcher. Since having kids, we tend to rent apartments and stay in one place for a week before moving on. I like to know a bit of what's in the area, but we make our plans day by day depending on what we feel like, what the weather's like, what the kids want to do. And it's a bit harder to find information on places to take the kids -- tons of books on all the museums and churches and stuff, not so much on petting farms. We check out the tourist info office where we are to find out about those kinds of things, along with good hiking in the area.
I don't think any of us "wanderers" arrive without doing any research at all. But we don't assign each attraction to a specific time bracket. Here are some of the reasons: 1) Weather: Nothing worse than forcing yourself to hike through the Alps in the rain and mud because you only budgeted one day for it. 2) Energy level/ interest level: A museum that may have sounded interesting on paper three months ago could have less appeal by the time you finally reach it. Or, you may have stayed out later than you planned the night before and need to rest that morning. I personally did not enjoy my first trip to Munich, not because Munich isn't a great city, but because it came on the back of seeing St. Petersburg, Vilnius, Warsaw, Krakow and Prague. 3) Discovery: I have always stumbled upon something that either wasn't in or didn't seem interesting in the guidebook that subsequently, I wanted to explore.
Tom, where are you moving to? I am fascinated and intrigued by your signature :-)
We plan on things to see or do, but as you said, the weather will play a big role.
When we were in Brittany last December, we planned to have two long trips for the three weeks we were there, and everything else was very much a spur of the moment thing. We love hiking so we would pick a place either nearby (depending on the weather), or go a little ways out and spend the day or part of it, hiking.
OH Lee, we're not saying you shouldn't plan ANYTHING. After all even Columbus had a plan, but he didn't say "On Day 92: 9am to Noon - Tour Forbidden City, Noon to 12:45pm Have lunch at Chinese restaurant, 1pm to 3pm - Walk the length of the Great Wall, 4pm to 5pm - Tea with the Emperor.
Besides, even if someone did spend $1,000 to fly all night to some city and said "what do we do now?" Would that be so very horrible? Maybe some people like to travel like that. Maybe they don't feel it's necessary to see what most people believe they should see. They could just go to an information booth, where it is likely someone speaks English and ask for suggestions and directions. They might find their time well-spent in the adventure of getting to the places they didn't plan to go. Someone else might think the time was wasted because they didn't fulfill a checklist of things "must-see" things.
I'm more like Maureen.
Our first few trips weren't planned down to the minute, but if we only had 4 days in Paris we needed to plan around the days the museums were closed, etc. A fairly rigid itinerary. These days, it's so much more relaxing (hey - what a concept!) to research what's available, note what's closed when, then choose what we feel like doing once we're actually on the ground. It helps that we've already seen 'the biggies' so there's no pressure there, and what's left over are the hardly-known, quiet museums, churches, parks, etc., that aren't absolutely packed with tour-bused crowds, and if they aren't free they are usually very inexpensive. Bonus!
Also, the weather can absolutely wreck one's plans. If you have the romantic notion that your trip MUST be about strolling along the riverbank and painting en plein air or biking through the lavender fields and instead it's pouring rain with 30 MPH gusts, your dream trip is pretty wrecked. Learning to LET GO OF THE DREAM and improvise is much easier after a few trips under your belt. Several people here have written about how the weather did OR didn't ruin their trip - attitude is hugely important! Ya know, spending the day hanging out in a pub on a rainy day is still a vacation to me - I can't do that at home. (OK, sure, my local 'British' pub has some soccer jerseys on the wall, but that doesn't mean it's IN Britain!)
I'm definitely in the camp that feels like I traveled a loooong way, so there'd better be SOME plan! LOL I'm just glad I'm out of the 'must-do-THIS-today, because-we-have-to-do-THAT-tomorrow' mentality.
Lastly, many of us who have wandered WERE lost! Yet, those can be some of our absolutely best travel memories. I think those times teach us that it's OK to 'plan' to be lost...
Go wander...
"Besides, even if someone did spend $1,000 to fly all night to some city and said "what do we do now?" Would that be so very horrible? Maybe some people like to travel like that"
Well 'horrible' might be a strong term, and yes I'm sure traveling like that floats some people's boats but I had a trip kind of like that to England/Scotland and I think we all really wished someone had come up with a better plan. We had a rental car and started off driving from place to place just trying to find a B&B at the last minute. Well this was pre-cell phone days and the phone booths would eat up all our change before we got the reservations confirmed. After one stressful evening of wandering to every hotel in town and finding nothing available but an overly expensive inn with thatched roofs (I swear there were spiders and things moving around in there) and that served blood pudding for breakfast, we thereafter made the TI our first stop in whichever town we ended up in for the night--which worked out OK but ended up costing a lot more than if we had organized it earlier.
I remember spending a lot of time driving around through the countryside but not really seeing anything, and standing around trying to figure out what to do next. It was still a good trip, but not as good as it could have been.
Most people are on a limited schedule/budget and therefore want to maximize time and money. To do so generally requires advance planning.
Actually some of us who wander are lost :)! My husband and I got turned around quite a few times in Paris- even with an excellent street map. Next time we'll take a compass.
Liz, I hear you on that.
I can't do the check list thing, but we now do much better planning.
In fact, during our recent trip (seems ages ago), to England earlier this month, I was proud of myself for having our documents organised, our little baggies for security, shoes that were easy to slip off, AND a huge ziploc bag with magazines, lip balm, hand lotion, wipes, eye drops, and puzzles for use during the flight. I would always have good intentions in the past, but this time I decided it would be done properly, and I have to say, being organised has its benefits.
Which brings me to booking hotels ahead of time. I remember the days of landing in London and not knowing where we would sleep! I was pregnant and had a 3 year old at the time. Insane I tell you, insane! It worked out, but we lost time, were confused, and I really don't want to revisit those days. Better to have some ideas of where to go, what to do, and then you can pick and choose what is super important. I do love lazy days at the parks, hiking, and going down streets just to see what's around the corner...
I too am like Cindy. I have a plan when I leave home but am always prepared to make a change. I think I became this way because when you travel to Europe you have to be prepared there may be a strike of some kind and if you can't "roll with the punches" you will have a miserable time.
hi--Tracy from PA here--posting because i saw my name come up in this thread and was VERY confused. but i think i get it now--some of you thought you were insulting me by saying i overplanned. nope--you didn't insult me--you were absolutely correct. i absolutely overplanned. i have a BINDER for goodness sake! for the love of god, what kind of a vacation is THAT? (no offense intended for anyone who has a binder that works for them--different strokes and all...) and it stressed me out for at least the first half of the trip. and i'm typing this now--and have time to type this now--because i've learned to let some things go and rest when i need it (which is now--glass of wine to my right will attest to this!) we've been in Paris for over a week, and we've not 'gotten to' the eiffel tower (imagine! that was item number one on my original plan!) and we've crossed versailles off entirely--but had a brilliant day today on an opera garnier tour and puttering around galleries layfayette (the view from the top IS spectacular, thank you whoever on here told me to do that!) travel is always a learning experience, and in this case, i found that i'm better at wandering than i am at following a plan. sadly, i'm really good at MAKING plans...don't you just love irony? but i've already said to my husband--my plans for our next trip will be 'we land on this date, we fly out on this date'. anyone following my (rather painful, at times) blog knows that i was VERY sad about the entire trip at the beginning--now i know that i needed to do this to learn about myself. and i can only imagine how much better we will be at traveling next time...and the time after, and the time after. and i'm blessed with a husband who is brave enough to attempt a second (and third, and fourth...) try!
Wine smooths the sharp corners...it's like...
Liquid Duct Tape!
(Legalese: The term "Liquid Duct Tape" cannot be used without acknowledgment. Please credit "Mary, Texan in CA" each and every time. This way, "Mary, Texan in CA" will not be forced to sue each and every one of you. Have a Good Day.)
Our first trip to Europe was in 1972. We packed one small bag each, bought a roundtrip ticket, had our Europe on $5 a day, and went for 3 months. Outcome: literally, the trip of a lifetime. We have made many trips since, each one increasingly scheduled and laden with electronics and baggage, and each one wonderful. But enough! Mid life crisis(?) if 60 can be called mid-life, and we yearn for the simpler days of our youth. The next trip will be as our first, with only the air scheduled. We do tons of research and have a pretty good idea of what we want to see and do, but maybe we'll get to Austria, and maybe we won't. Perhaps we'll waste a bit of time, or spend a few more dollars, but that's the trade-off I am ready to assume. Having zero sense of direction, I have wandered my entire life, and like Marilyn know that indeed I am lost! Luckily, partner has an excellent cerebral compass so we manage. We hope to travel to Eastern Europe this fall for about 3 weeks. We did 3 months without internet, cell phones or clean sox; I'm willing to bet we can do it again. Happy travels to all!
Denny - Fantastic! Congrats on your first AND next trip!
Our first trip was the best of all of our trips, because everything was such a new experience. [we were travel virgins ;-) ] We had a rough plan for each day, no reservations, and a Global railpass. I'd love to take that trip again, without the goof-ups, of course!
I mourn for the Global Pass - it's just not what it was...Hop-on/hop-off has been replaced with 'go stand in line and buy that 2 euros reservation or 15 euros passholder fee'.
Sigh.
Seems to me that people who do too much 'wandering' tend to be worried about missing out on something if they have a set in stone plan instead they feel they must adhere to.
We plan - we set up an itinerary and make reservations for accomodations and travel, if necessary.
But planning to be in one place to see something is hardly the same as not being open to enjoying whatever comes up while there. Having seen most of the big sights in the major cities of Europe, we tend to go more now to enjoy the lifestyle and bring along a list of things that might be worth checking out while there. A guide of choices so to speak. of which we usually see most of the interesting ones.
Our favorite moments when travelling, it seems, is getting into a strange part of town or out in the boonies somewhere, looking at each other and saying simultaneously "We're lost".
BTW, we always include "vacation days within the vacation" - days where we stay just to stay somewhere scenic with no plans for doing anything in particular. Bergamo, for instance, or Lake Como. Siena is good for "nothing"
My patented phrase is "The Art of Doing Nothing", while in Europe. We have mastered it and it never really ends up being nothing at all.
How interesting ... DH and I were just talking this morning about trips and trip planning. We tend to be the "Plan to Wander" type of travelers. I absolutely love doing the pre-trip research. We make a list (not a rigid "we have to be at this place at this time" list) and generally figure out how to get there.
We usually have limited vacation time and NEED to do a bit of planning. However, we have our 5th trip coming up in November, and we have NEVER followed our "soft itinerary" ... not one time. We know how we'll get there, have a decent idea on what we'll do once we get there, and know how we'll get home.
Example: our first trip to Paris, we arrived in the middle of a transit strike. We just walked (or took the occasional taxi) to some of the sites we wanted to see, and when transit started running again, we did less walking. Found a lot of neat places and had a great time.
The upshot is do whatever you want to do in terms of planning or not planning. What works for you may not work for someone else. The important thing is to get out there, interact with the place and the people and make whatever kind of memories that mean the most to YOU.
That's why vanilla is not the only flavor of ice cream ...
I've only been to Europe a few times. Somehow I've always combined the sightseeing with the "walking, or driving, and enjoy the moment,have time to stop and savor being at a place, have time for talking with people they meet there, and not look at their watch every 20 minutes." Maybe because I view seeing the "must-see" sights as being just as worthy of my time, no matter how short, as enjoying the non-sightseeing moments, being spontaneous (wandering) talking to locals, etc.
That is why I started this thread. I read so many posts asking about "what to see" that I wondered if most people here travelled with a checklist of sights they must see, and just go from one to the other all day, or if they had a flexible list of things they'd LIKE to see but if, when wandering from one sight to another, they found something more interesting in the moment and went off to do or see that instead.
If I miss some "must-see" sight, that's ok. I'll see it next time - if it's that important to me. I just feel that I'd drive myself nuts running to see sights just because they are there.
I guess for me it's not really about what I do or see, but just being there that matters to me.
I make alot of plans just for something to do while i'm waiting to go on my trip, but rarely really stick to them. I do make reservations for accommodations well in advance because i love to sort through all the tourist information i send for and pick out a place to stay. I have vague plans, but I'd rather go with the flow, so to speak. I give myself alot of extra time to relax and am rarely stuck for something to do. Too much rushing around from one "must-see" to another is not my style at all, and just makes me hot and cranky. I hate crowds, and I hate being ripped off, so as an experienced traveler I've learned to avoid tourist traps. I wander, most definately!
Always plan on a nice place to sleep for at least the first two or three nights preferably with a check in time close to flight arrival time. After you have explored a bit you can probably find something cheaper (sometimes just down the street). Nothing is worse than being jet-lagged with no place to R&R. You may end up making some really bad choices when you are tired and sleep deprived like taking taxis when there is a direct bus route. Alway plan to pack lightly just in case your check in time is three or four hours after you flight. Invest in good, light luggage with sturdy handles and wheels and good shoes.Find out what is safe to carry on your flight. Never over pack! Plan what you will wear and try on before you leave! Jeans are ok but remember how long they take to dry. Dress in layers if possible. Think about toilet locations especially if you are eating rich foods and drinking beer. Plan on paying to use toilets in case there is no McD,StBks or you don't have time to look for one. Remember the initials W.C. Pay attention to where you are wandering so that you can find your way back when you have wandered into an unsafe place. Remember that time passes quickly when you are wandering thru winding streets and looking at buildings and shops, experiencing new sites, smells and sounds. One can cover a lot of ground in a few short hours. Remember landmarks, buildings, stores, fountains.....Learn to say "how do I find",please and thank you in the local language. Always carry the address and telephone number of your hotel. You can probably guess that I plan these things because I have had some challenging experiences. You may also guess that I am a budget traveller. I am all for the freedom of minimal itinerary. Wander but be safe.
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