Hi there. I have never really flown before and need help deciding on the best flight option. I am going from LAX to MEX and am not familiar with the quality of the airlines options. The first choice is a flight with United. Pros: The company is well known and hopefully the most reliable, also this is the cheapest flight for only $270 on the United Website. One carry-on bag included. Cons: both trips require a 2 hour layover making it a 6 hour total flight both ways with plane swaps. Also, this flight time is not ideal with an early departure at 0500. The next option is Volaris. The Pros: it is a direct flight at a convenient time for me. Cons: I've heard rumors that the quality of the airline is subpar, and that the trips are sometimes cancelled at the last minute. The pricing for this flight is $307 on a website called "Kiwi" that I haven't heard of. If anyone could share their experience with this airline or the booking website? Also, there is no carry-on option. The third option is AeroMexico. Pros: Its a direct flight at a very convenient time for me. Also, one carry-on bag is included. Cons: This is the most expensive option at $410, although there is an option for $382 on a website called "eDreams" but once again I question the legitimacy. I'm not sure what aspects to prioritize with these flights as I have limited flight experience. I would appreciate any advice or experiences shared. Thank you 🤗

if i get norway visa but i m travelling through switzerland is it an issue for next time while i apply for schengen visa ?

We are just taking a via flight to Switzerland and will be there for just 8-10hours.

Will it be an issue later on as my passport would have a Swiss stamp as a point of entry and not Norway?

I am an Indian, incase any specific rules for Indians ?

My wife and I are traveling throughout Europe for the next 4 monthsish and I am wondering how we would go about getting refunded for our qualifying purchases? We won't be in a non shengen country until June. Since we wouldn't be leaving the EU but leaving the country, would we do it after we leave the schengen the first time or the second time? Do we need to do it for each country?

Summary:

I solo travelled for 8 days (from the UK):

• 5 days in Orlando, within Disney World accommodation
• 3 days in Miami in South Beach (originally going to be 4 but left a day early)

I caught a cold the day before my flight to Florida, so I shoved down medicine/cough suppressants every day but I ended up leaving Miami a day early, partly because of that and partly because I felt I was still jet lagged.

Itinerary:

Day 0 - Arrived in evening in Orlando

Day 1: Kennedy Space Centre Day

This was pretty amazing - they have great tours within the key attractions. I found 1 day was sufficient to tick off the big name attractions, the Saturn V exhibit and the Atlantis Exhibit. Like others have said these were both awesome and worth seeing.

Day 2: Disney World Magic Kingdom
Day 3: Disney World Hollywood Studios
Day 4: Disney World Animal Kingdom
Day 5: Disney World Epcot

Day 6: Took Brightline Train to Miami and stayed in South Beach area

Day 7: General exploring, hanging out on beach, going to Little Havana

Day 8: Ended up taking an early flight home this evening

General comments about Orlando:

My Orlando leg was centred around Disney World, and so I picked accommodation in Disney World to avoid having to travel into Disney World repeatedly. This turned out to be a pretty good decision.

I'd definitely recommend this as you can fairly easily get in and out of Disney World with Ubers or with a rented car.

General comments about Disney World Accomodation:

I stayed at All Star Movies Resort which along with the other All Stars is fairly budget compared to other hotels.

Overall impression:

• The food is not great but if you're only there to have breakfast and are eating out otherwise then it's fine. I couldn't imagine having more than 1 meal a day here.
• Transportation is great - they have quite frequent (every 15 to 30 mins) shuttle buses to each of the major parks
• Have basic amenities, such as shops with medicine, quick food supplies, hats etc...
• My one criticism off this place is the level of sound you can hear from neighbours can be a lot, particularly when you have a young family next door which you probably will! Partly because of this, I struggled to get a decent sleep which really didn't help... I probably wouldn't stay here again because of this.

General comments about Disney World Parks:

I'm in my 30s so I wasn't sure how I'd find Disney World, but I had a really positive experience. I'm not a massive rollercoaster person so the rides at Disney were for the most part a good balance between being scary/exciting and being approachable and more fun for someone who isn't into crazy rides.

Favourite rides: The seven dwarfs, Pirates of the Carribean, Haunted Mansion (all in magic kingdom).

In addition to the rides, the parks do musical events, parades, and other events which are really nostalgic.

Favourite attraction/event: Fantasmic in Hollywood Studios. This and the Magic Kingdom fireworks evening show do such a great job of making all these invented world and characters come alive and making you part of it.

IMO this was the highlight of my Orlando leg.

General comments about Miami:

Quite expensive in comparison to similar places in London. I found it easy to be spending almost 100 dollars on a meal.

South Beach is quite walkable, but in comparison the rest of Miami is not really walkable.

General comments about Florida

Transportation

I always forget when I come to the USA how much more car oriented the cities are. Even in Miami which had some walkable areas (e.g. South Beach), the streets feel much less friendly to pedestrians versus a European city.

When I stayed in All Star Movies in Disney World, I saw there was a streak restaurant about 15 mins walk away in principle, but there was literally no way you could walk there because of the way the surrounding area is built (e.g. due to having to cross dual carriageways with no pedestrian crossings or no sidewalks).

I did research transportation options and decided Uber would be my primary mode of getting around (e.g. from Disney World accomodation to Kennedy Space Centre, and getting around Miami, and to and from airports). Overall this was fairly cost effective and much less hassle than trying to rent a car when I don't drive at all in London. I'd definitely recommend this for others.

On getting from Orlando to Miami, there is a train called the Brightline which is in general much better than what most US states. This is a very cost effective way of getting from North to South Florida so again would recommend this (paid about 70 dollars for a ticket, 3.5 hours travel time).

Weather

I travelled from late march to early april (after postponing my original trip planned in October 2024) and the weather was great (high 20s Celcius) and not too humid.

I'd definitely recommend planning your Florida trip to avoid the more humid months or hurricane risky months which you can research online.

Other Comments:

As I said I caught a cold the day before my flight and it wasn't so bad that I felt the need to cancel completely. I powered through but it did still make it tough to enjoy the trip as much, particularly in Miami.

The flights in particular are brutal with a cold - not only do you feel the normal dehydrating and potential nausea but you can get the painful pressure effect on your ears and forehead due to being congested during ascent and descent.

I recommend having at least 1/3 litre of water to drink before ascent and before descent to ease the congestion as well as the usual decongestants - the water basically gets rid of any potential pain.

Overall:

Travelling in the USA is always interesting and different. I've used to London urban planning and have been to Italy/Spain/Greece/France/Thailand/Japan and overall I find it much more comfortable and easy to navigate in the pedestrianised and public transport heavy cities like Rome or Tokyo.

Walking around parts of Miami in particular it just feels sort of soul less some times with the lack of people on the streets as everyone is in cars. Again, just my personal experience.

Would definitely go again to Miami to have a more exciting trip, doing more water activities, hopefully without being congested and jetlagged next time!

In a recent post u/robustregistration talked about walking barefoot on the Great Wall of China and really feeling the thousands of years of history.

I walked through a castle in the UK and saw stairs with dips in the middle, solid stone worn down by so many feet over the centuries. That caught my eye and really made people who lived in the castle real. The thrones and the beautiful clothing and amazing architecture are all wonderful but being able to really picture the people from that time - working, resting, laughing, struggling, tired, excited, chatting with friends, worried about their kids - I felt all that.

At the Roman Colosseum, I saw an exhibition of little things found under the seats like buttons, money, etc. It really resonated with me; all those things are found in our stadiums today.

What are the things that you have seen during your travels that made you feel truly connected to people from the past?

Trying to get some insights on best practices from this group. Appreciate in advance.

Hi! My Grandmother and I are planning a trip to Staletti to visit her mother’s birthplace. We want to make a trip of it so are considering flying into Naples and roadtripping it to Staletti. Any suggestions as to where to stop & stay along the way? Or any recommendations just in general? Open to any and everything!

So I(36F) had bought my ticket before any political shifts a few months ago. I've heard great things about El Salvador and needed to see for myself (PS — highly recommend!).

Now for passing through immigration. I was already on edge given all the recent news, but I decided to just go with it. I didn't wipe my phone or prepare myself for anything. I figured if something were to happen, I might as well see it through LOL. I flew through EWR (New Jersey). I arrived at the security guard and, without stereotyping too much, he reminded me of one of those Jersey boys that could have been on Jersey Shore. At first, he was laid back and chewing gum and asked me where I came from and where I'm going. I said I came from El Salvador and was headed home to Canada. He perked right up. El Salvador?

I then got what felt like 20 questions: Did I go alone? Did I meet anyone there? Where did I visit? Why did I visit? How long was I there? Do I travel alone often? Why do I travel? What do I do for work? And more. All while going page by page in my passport looking at all my stamps.

Now, I've passed through the US a few times—always a layover, never a visit. I know these are normal questions they can ask, but I haven't been questioned like this before.

Overall, it was a fine layover—no real headaches—but you can feel they’ve upped the security.

Hello, I’m a full-time employee on blue card in Germany and wanted to invite my younger sister (19) for a month in her summer break. She is a bachelors student. For her visit friends and family schengen, I’m unable to provide a Verplfichtungserklärung since I’m on probation. Our parents also can’t be her sponsors since they don’t have passports. It is also not possible for our extended relatives to sponsor her.

I wanted to know if it would be okay for her to self-sponsor her trip; I am okay to send her the required funds for the number of days (80eur a day). Will this work? Would it make sense to provide an additional “gift letter” stating that the transfer is to support her for her trip, since issuing a Verpflichtungserklärung is not possible in my case? I will also mention this in my invitation letter.

As a part of her additional documents I will be providing my bank statements. She is also going to submit her college id, letter of good conduct from her dean, and fee receipt for the next semester. Are there any other supporting document examples that would help her case?

Thank you, any help is greatly appreciated!

Like the title, I am traveling to Portugal and Spain from mid-May to mid-June. Looking for some tips especially for the Spain portion. This trip opportunity came spur of the moment and my brain is feeling fried trying to decide what to see! Any thoughts/tips are greatly appreciated. Below is not so much an itinerary as much as it is a list of ideas.

I’m interested in soaking up as much culture as I can. Art, architecture, food, beaches and hiking. I enjoy live music, nightlife & dancing but I don’t drink anymore so the party scene isn’t a focus necessarily.

I fly into Porto and have 10 days to get to Lisbon. I thought about doing a 2-3 day portion of the Camino de Santiago but in the opposite direction (towards Lisbon) and wonder if it will be “worth it”? Coimbra comes highly suggested and once in Lisbon I’d like to do a day trip to Sintra. This keeps me pretty inland so if there are other towns/villages you suggest to see or something along the coast that is a must please let me know!

Once in Lisbon I fly to the Azores for 1 week for a retreat so this portion is already planned out.

When back in Lisbon in late May I then have 2+ weeks to do Spain. I don’t have a return flight yet so one thought is I could boogie from Lisbon up to San Sebastián > Barcelona > Andalucía > back to Lisbon for return flight OR Lisbon > Andalucía > Barcelona > San Sebastián > Madrid or Porto for return flight

I’d like to see Andalucía - Seville, Córdoba, Granada, and Malaga all get recommended - how do I decide?? Is Gribaltar worth getting to? San Sebastián & Barcelona are both on my list. Madrid I’ve heard mixed reviews about. Many say it is a must but some say they preferred Barcelona so maybe it can be skipped? It’s a nice halfway point from Andalucía though so it could be easily done, I’m sure. Are there any towns less traveled that I’m missing out on?

Thank you in advanced for your input!

We are staying two nights on safari at the Mara Under Canvas mobile camp to see the wildebeest crossing the Mara River in August. I believe the Mara River is the border between Kenya and Tanzania. I was wondering how realistic it would be to cross over into Kenya during a game drive. Is it an open border and you can hardly tell if you’ve crossed from one country into the other, or are you only able to cross through a formal border check point?

Hey everyone I am looking for a travel idea for a 6 day trip April 16th-21st we are located just outside Philadelphia and I will be traveling with my brother (16) and grandmother (73). We are looking for a destination no more than 8-9 hrs driving distance. We definitely prefer nature oriented activities to a city vibe. We have been to Maine and cape cod before so those can be ruled out. Budgeting won’t really be too much of an issue as it is the off-season in most places. We don’t mind driving a bit once we reach our destination. Thanks so much!

My 80 yr old mother and I (50 yr old female) are traveling in Spain in a few weeks. Since my phone's algorithms are now sending me every news story about how much dislike there is in Spain of tourists, can someone tell me how concerned I should be? We are polite and genuinely interested in Spanish history and culture. We will be spending a few days/nights in Valencia, Denia, Granada, Seville and Barcelona. Tia.

Edit: thanks everyone!!

I have 13 days in Japan and S. Korea for the first time with my two teenage kids in the summer. Please let me know what you think of this itinerary:

Nights in each place:

2-3 nights: Tokyo

1 night: Hakone

2-3 nights: Kyoto (possible day trip to Osaka if 3 nights)

3 nights: Okinawa for beach (can I fly from Kyoto or do I need to fly from Osaka?)

Fly Okinawa-->Seoul

3-4 nights: Seoul

Notes: We want to spend time at the beach. Okinawa seemed like the nicest place for clean water and beaches, but I would also be open to places in S. Korea.

It's worth considering more time in places where I can get better value/more spacious hotels.

Hello, I'm going to Montenegro this summer. I'm mainly going to hike and explore nature. Here's my itinerary. Can you tell me what you think? Thank you for your advices :)

Day 1: Arrival in Podgorica, city tour, and walk along the Cijevna River

Day 2: Head to Durmitor National Park and Black Lake

Day 3: Tara River Canyon, Lake Zminje

Day 4: Head to Njeguši then Lovćen National Park

Day 5: Kotor, Perast

Day 6: Lake Skadar and return to Podgorica

Hey guys,

I did an oopsie.
I think I accidentally clicked on use prime on edreams. I'd love to cancel that subscription, but when clicking on my account and prime it opens an empty webpage. So I can't cancel it, it is currently probably in its "free-trial".

Is there another way, I called, but support seems useless, some poor guy from the Middle East, he told me I have no subscription, but the confirmation email he sent with my flight contained the "because you own prime".

So have you had any experience with that, do I have prime yes or no, do I have to cancel it tomorrow, i.e. does it need time to update? Or will it not even go through, and when will the subscription fee be subtracted from my account. Part of me just wants to block my card outright right now.

Hey all, looking for some help putting together a trip this summer.

Flying into Barcelona June 28th

Barcelona June 28-July 2nd

Nice/Southern France July 2nd - 5th

Cinque Terre July 5th-8th

Florence July 8th-11th

Rome July 11-13th

My wife and I would prefer to do all this via trains. The train from Barcelona to Nice is 8.5 hours so we’re not against doing half the leg and staying one night in a different city before making it to Nice. Any suggestions on this?

We know 2 nights is not a lot in Rome but we’ve been here before and it’s more of a convenient place to end with an international airport to get us back into the U.S.

These dates can also change depending on feedback. We’re interested in mainly hitting the highlights of each city along the way , having food food and maybe having a slow day or 2 on a beach.

Hi everyone! Hoping this is OK to post here. My partner and I are going on a tour group trip next month to Kenya & Tanzania, ending in Zanzibar. I have a couple of practical questions that I was hoping others might have some insight into:

1. For most of our trip we are camping, both in the Serengeti & on the beach. How cold does it get at night in mid-May? Should I be bringing some cold weather clothing?

2. Our tour officially ends in Stone Town, and then we have two extra days before our flight home. We were debating renting a car and driving to the beaches on the eastern shore of the island. I'm wary of doing this because I hate being stopped for bribes, etc. Is there any kind of "public" transportation on the island? Shuttles, for example?

Any other general tips or advice would be welcome! We are both pretty seasoned travellers but have never been to this part of Africa before (only Morocco).

Thank you!!

Going on a three week getaway starting w St Lucia (followed by Costa Blanca and albania) Anyway, my plan was mostly hiking and beaches. Natural beauty and relax. I am staying in the south of the island. Anyone who's been what was your experience? Insanely beautiful island I kinda just want to wander about but would like to know anyones personal experience on the trip ?

Thanks :)

Hello Everyone! We are a family of four with two young boys (1st grader and 5th grader). We're looking for ideas for family vacations. We want to spend lots of time outside, being active, and disconnecting! Here's what we're looking for:

• Remote wilderness / nature setting
• Hotel style rooms or standalone cottages / cabins
• Continental U.S.
• In the mountains near a lake or river (would consider oceanside)
• Hiking trails
• Programming and activities for families (sports, arts & crafts, etc.)
• Outdoor adventures
• An option to have at least some meals included would be nice

What do you know of that fits the bill?

EDITING TO ADD: we will consider rustic to luxurious accommodations!

This grocery store owner just stole 100 TL from my mother. She paid and instead of receiving all her change, the owner withheld 100 TL without us realising (it's our first day here and we are very jet-lagged hence why we didn't notice). They scam people so much here (taxis, restaurants, hotels) that you genuinely have to supect it from EVERYONE - even the small grocery store owner down the street.

I know every country has this issue to a degree, but I feel like it's especially the case in Turkey.

Hey everyone,

I'm looking to book a trip to Europe from North America for later this month, and I have two options. I can either fly SAS from IAD (Washington Dulles) on their A350-900, and then connect on their A320neo, or I can fly Delta's 767-400 on the transatlantic flights. Price is comparable on both itineraries, and both itineraries involve the same amount of connections. Is one better than the other? What do you think?

Hi!

I am flying out of ABE to Japan and the route requires we take a bus from ABE to Newark prior to flying out. For whatever reason, the ticket was $400 cheaper per person if we took the bus, rather than just the same route going out of Newark. Apparently, they really want people to ride their bus.

The question is, should I still get to ABE ~3 hours early for an international flight? Or would this not be needed because Newark is the international portion, and it would be okay to get there ~2 hours in advance? ABE is a smaller airport and it's normally quick relative to the larger airports. It is a 6 AM bus time so being able to get a little more sleep would be great if we can.

I tried to look through the internet/old reddit posts but was having trouble with finding an answer, so I appreciate the help!

I'm going to Scotland at end of May. I've chosen a company for a one day private tour that takes me to Balmoral Castle and Stirling Castle. The company advised to NOT get Stirling Castle tickets ahead of time as to not limit time at Balmoral and promises there will be plenty of time for Stirling.

Everything I've read about Scotland says to prebook Edinburgh Castle and Stirling Castle as those can be the hardest to get into. I want to trust the company's judgment, but I also don't want to miss Stirling or waste a ton of time waiting to get in. What's your experience at Stirling Castle, is pre-booking needed or is it easier to walk in than my research has led me to believe?

Thank you!

I had a difficult time finding accurate and complete information for the bus route from Tissamaharama (Thissa) to Ella in Sri Lanka (bus route 10) online, so I wanted to provide this for future Sri Lanka bus travel planners.

General Overview According the bus station attendant in Thissa, route 10 buses leave at 7am and 8:10am from Thissa to Ella. The full bus route is from Katharagama to Kandy, which is shown on the bus signage along with its route number.

I got on the “7am” bus in Thissa at 7:09am and I got to Ella at 9:58am. This was a 2 hour and 49 minute bus ride.

The bus from Thissa to Ella costs 467 Sri Lankan rupees (about usd$1.58 at the time of this post)

Primary bus stops on Route 10 are: Katharagama, Tissamaharama (Thissa), Thanamalwila, Wellawaya, Bandarawela, Welimada, Nuwaraeliya, Pussellawa, Gampola, Peradeniya, Kandy

A map and downloadable GPS file I collected of the route can be found here

Ride Details and How to Get onto the bus either from the front door or back, it doesn’t seem to matter. If you are not at a bus station, and only a roadside bus stop and flagging the bus down, be ready for the bus to only slow down and not actually stop, you have to literally jump into the bus before it speeds back up. The buses typically have route numbers (Route 10 in this case) as well as origin and destination names displayed on the front and back of the top of the bus in English. When you get on the bus, the conductor will come to you, tell them your destination. You pay in cash, they can typically provide change. You will receive a paper ticket or receipt for your journey. Reservations are not possible that I know of, just show up and get on. I did not have a problem finding a seat on my buses in Sri Lanka, I never had to stand, however the buses do fill up periodically through the journey so be prepared to be crammed in if necessary.

There is some space for bags/luggage above the seats (overhead), the opening width is approximately 12 to 15 inches (30 to 38cm). On my several bus rides through Sri Lanka there was always space in these overhead spaces, but a large piece of hard-cased luggage could be difficult to find space for. I believe there is extra storage on the back of the bus for large items, accessed from the outside of the bus, but I never had to utilize this space, so am uncertain how it works. You can also place bags at your feet or under the seat in front of you, and if there is available space, directly on the seat next to you. As a heads up, if there is no seating left on the bus, and you have a bag in the seat next to you, you may be asked to move the bag elsewhere.

There are no restrooms on the bus, but most bus stations (not bus stops) do have basic restroom facilities, some for a small fee (~20rs) and some free. The buses do stop at some stations for 5 or more minutes, but I am uncertain how to know which ones these are beforehand if you wanted to get out, talking to the conductor would probably provide this information if you needed it. Ideally you don’t have to do this and just stay on the bus to keep your seat and not be left behind.

The buses stop when people wave them down on the side of the road. This means the buses stop and accelerate frequently depending on the route, day, and time of day. Buses can fill up and empty many times on a multi-hour trip.

Seats are in a 2 and 3 person quasi-bench configuration. On the left side of the bus, each bench can hold 2 people. On the right side of the bus, each bench can hold 3 people.

There is no AC on the buses, but windows do open. The windows are glass as well, so when it is raining you still have a view. Some buses elsewhere, like in parts of India, do not have glass windows but only opaque accordion-like blinds, so this is a nice feature in Sri Lanka.

Seats are covered with a vinyl type material and are cushioned. There are armrests on the aisle seat but not between individual seats. Legroom seems to vary between buses, some it is quite tight and others it is sufficient to generous.

Music is typically played at a medium-loud volume during the whole bus ride. Typically fast tempo local music. Personally, I found the music annoying for so many hours given its loud volume, but it is certainly part of the experience.

At larger bus stations vendors come onto the bus to sell edible items. Typically fruits, corn, nuts, and baked goods. There are also sometimes people selling (or requesting donations for) non-tangible items with pamphlets, possibly religious.

Buses do not have internal signage for stops like in the US, Europe, Japan, etc. You will need to keep the GPS on your phone up and running to know when you need to get off. When it’s your time, be ready to jump fast, as they often only slow down for you.

Bus drivers do not appear to care about road rules or safety. They drive incredibly fast, it feels extremely sketchy.

Getting to Thissa

The train does not go all the way to Thissa, so you will likely need to take a taxi or bus to get there. If you are somewhere west of Thissa, like Dikwella / Hiriketiya Beach, then taking the 334-1 bus is extremely easy. It comes about every 20 minutes and is in Google Maps. Most of the information above can be applied to that route as well.