Quick Travel Tips for Europe

Traveling in Europe can be a great time. There's so much to see with so many different geographic types, cultures, ruin-sites, and museums that seeing it all is no simple task. There is a lot of planning that needs to be done. The first step that should preface any trip, anywhere, is to make sure everyone going is on the same page about expectations. Everyone going on the trip needs to discuss the plan. What is everyone imagining will happen? Are there different opinions? How will people react if things don't work out according to plan? This gets to the first of my major points: BE FLEXIBLE. As concerns plans, it's best advice for everyone to independently research things, so discussion can be focused on what would be a "good time." Some people may not be interested in researching activities until there; that's not a problem. Just find out what their expectations for the group are.

Using the BE FLEXIBLE principle will have a number of benefits: (1) Maintaining the comfort level to express desires and feelings, and most importantly when traveling to Europe (2) Eligibility in traveling inexpensively.

I believe the first of my points is self-explanatory; however, its importance is greater than the second, which I will explain.

I have two favorite airlines when I think "Europe". The first to look into is AirTech (www.airtech.com). With AirTech, you book a three to five day window that you think would be ideal for traveling, and the window is not a firm selection. With AirTech you don't request your flight until the Tuesday before the three to five day window you would like to firmly book. Prior to one trip back to the States, I hurt my back and could hardly walk, let alone sit on a flight for 10 hours and then still have 10 or more hours of travel time left to get to LA. BEING FLEXIBLE saved my butt and AirTech is the definition of cheap, felixible travel.
The next company I highly recommend for affordability and flexibility is RyanAir (www.ryanair.com). Check out their flights. And think FLEXIBLE; if you're patient and organize your travel correctly, you can get flights throughout Europe for 25 euros! That is not a joke. I have taken a number of trips on RyanAir and paid more in taxes than I did for fare. BE FLEXIBLE.

By maintaining a POSITIVE MENTAL ATTITUDE, you are assured a great trip to Europe-or anywhere in the world, really! This cannot be under-emphasized. If you plan on doing things a little off the books, seeking out adventure, ‘getting lost to just to see what happens', things will get tough. Trains might be missed, food (and water) might be hard to find and there may be nobody around to help. Provincial Europeans are very adept at hiding during the afternoon; there will be nothing open in the afternoon hours so plan ahead and don't get mean or impatient. If you stop having fun and start thinking how wrong every thing is, etc, there might be fights. The whole point is to do the travel in a smart way. BE FLEXIBLE and maintain a POSITIVE MENTAL ATTITUDE.

The last pointer DON'T WORRY ABOUT STICKING OUT-YOU DO! is meant to help you keep tips one and two in mind. Whether it's adolescents embarrassed by the family and how ‘they stick out' or a couple that wants to ‘blend in' this is an expectation. Remember, expectations need to be addressed before even booking your flights? Well, this is a major one that will really help if everyone is on the same page. There will be no blending in; DON'T WORRY ABOUT STICKING OUT-YOU DO! If you don't worry about it, you can have more fun. Everyone will act more naturally and facilitate forgetting that you ‘stick out'.

There's also an economic affect to this; go wherever you want and eat where ever you want. I know from experience that there are a number of great restaurants in travel guides. While traveling through Europe eating at a number of the highest recommended restaurants is a fantastic idea, and at the same time balance out the cost by eating a number of inexpensive meals in local secrets-you'll have to ask around! It's a secret!

Remember, it's a vacation, even if it is an adventure. Have a good time and relax. Just don't get tense and don't worry about controlling the situation. Following these really simple tips will ensure a great time, I promise.
James DiPadua, published Mar 27, 2006