Big fan of Budapest. The city itself has a certain unusual quality compared to other well known European cities just because of its history in the Austro-Hungarian empire and strong Eastern European (and Middle Eastern) influence. This combined with the bath culture and great energy from the easily accessible night spots (think beer gardens rather than clubs) make it quite a gem for a long weekend trip
Tag: Partying / Lash
A day wandering through Bratislava
Was disappointed with Bratislava. There is an ok old town, the castle is worth a look and there are nice spots to walk along the river, but it is a far poorer version of some of the magnificent spots nearby like Vienna, Prague and Budapest, or other “cute old towns” such as Ljubljana or Krakov
My suggestion is to allocate the time you have to those cities rather than making the trip to Bratislava
Then again, if you’re on a stag do / bachelor party, I could see the appeal as it looks well set up for this. A few drinks in the square, boat party and then on the lash, happy days. Less so for anything else
Extra tip – watch out for the taxi drivers charging high prices, especially from the station or airport. They’ll tell you it’s a minimum charge of €20 / €40, which is nonsense. Should be less than €10 from the station and and around €20 from the airport
A day in Newcastle
Newcastle has a great reputation for its friendly locals (and, let’s face it, the accent everyone loves to imitate) and its world-class partying / lash that comes from both the locals and its giant student population (locals, aka “Geordies” will often like to quote how many top 10 lists Newcastle appears in for a night out). But it also has a surprisingly elegant city centre with a riverfront that rivals anything else in the UK outside of London, and 4 places to visit nearby that are equally surprising in just how gorgeous they are
If you’ve got only a day (in summer!), I’d recommend the below itinerary for the best of Newcastle and the surrounding area
2 days for the famous highlights of Hong Kong
Hong Kong is a great place to visit either as a destination on its own, or, as many people do, as a nice 2 day stop over between flights. I’ve lived in Hong Kong for 8 years, so . . . I’m biased . . . but also leaves me well placed to give you tips on how to have the best experience
For this review, I’m focusing on 10 classic highlights of Hong Kong and can give some tips that will improve your experience. But my biggest tip overall is that Hong Kong is not just skyscrapers and neon signs – more than 3/4 of HK is undeveloped, 40% is national parks and a mini tropical paradise if you just jump on a ferry or take a short taxi ride. For some ideas that will give you an even better HK experience, see the travel entry for 2 days hidden highlights of Hong Kong – you maybe surprised at just how world-class an experience you can get from these little islands
Relaxing on the beaches of Phuket
Phuket is a beautiful spot to chill out at for a few days. It has the full range of accommodation and eating options, some good opportunities for partying / lash, diving to the south and enough scale to head off on trips all around the peninsular
Yes, its touristy, but it ticks the chill out vibe after a few weeks of travelling or as a simple break from any of the nearby Asian cities
Only a very brief travel entry, so a few high level tips:
- Even if there for full on partying/ lash – try not to stay in Patong. It’s great for the nights out, but there are just so many wonderful options slightly further away in the hills and on the beaches for the same prices
- When in Patong, even if not there for a giant night out, make sure to head to Tiger Bar. It kind of sums up the Patong vibe with something like 50 different mini bars each with their own theme
- There are a bunch of islands off the east coast of Phuket that you can visit as part of day tour with a variety of operators leaving from Yamu Pier. The islands are great, but you just need to be careful who you book with because it is very easy to get rammed into a full tourist boat that won’t quite hit the paradise vibe you’re looking for
- There are some great spots for scuba diving all around Phuket, in particular the ferry reef dive off Raja Yai in the south is superb, with heaps of large cleaner fish that come up very close
A supercharged week seeing the highlights of Israel and Jordan
I say this trip is supercharged because it doesn’t leave much time for chilling out. But, if you’re like most of us and only have a limited amount of vacation, then this is a fantastic weekend to weekend trip that takes in the world famous sites of Jerusalem, Petra and Wadi rum; while providing time for some fun experiences like floating in the Dead Sea, scuba diving in the Red Sea, driving through sparse deserts and a party in Tel Aviv
You’ll need energy for these 7 days, but you’ll be rewarded as, in my opinion, its one of the world’s best week long trips in the world
I was hesitating in going in winter as I’d seen low temperatures. Don’t. The winter helped with reduced crowds, not needing to book far ahead and not getting exhausted by the heat. Perfect trip for a week-long winter break
7/8 week itinerary for the highlights of South East Asia
South East Asia has to be the premier world traveling region. A big call? For sure, but consider what genuinely world class offerings it can provide:
- World class beaches and coastal areas – think of THAT beach in Ko Phi Phi and HaLong Bay, one of the Natural Wonders of the World
- World class food – think Thai, Vietnamese, Malay and the genuine fusion into the mix with the large established Indian and Chinese communities
- World class ancient sites and history – think of the temples of the “8th Wonder of the World” of Angkor Wat, and the breathtaking site of the pagodas stretching across the plain in Bagan
- World class cities and party locations – think of Singapore as the city of the future and the Full Moon Parties on Ko Pha-Ngan
And all this in a place that is super safe, outrageously friendly, easy and cheap to travel in. A must for any keen traveler and the below itinerary will give you the highlights – enjoy!
Nights out in Tokyo
What a place – as you walk the crammed streets, ride the insane subway, visit the various bars / restaurants / shops that cater for any niche, you start to realise just how big and varied Tokyo is. It also has so many different centres in their own right that you could spend weeks wandering around and only see a sliver of the place. Instead, best thing to do is just get yourself lost in the mayhem of it all
For each of the 4 times I’ve been to Tokyo, its mainly been for lash / partying, which felt like a blur, so I won’t try and write a review. Instead, I just have a few tips / thoughts:
- Nights out:
- Kick your evening off with the Robot Restaurant. It’s hard to describe – it’s kind of like a robot / giant animals / skaters / burlesque show with booze, and, I think food, added. All very odd, but heaps of fun and is in Shinjuku (next to Golden Gai) so a great place for going out
- Golden Gai is a great spot for drinks – 200 tiny bars crammed into within something like 5 very small streets right next to each other, some with only room for 4/5 people. Quite a unique experience
- Geronimos in Roppongi was great atmosphere. Good fun banging the drum
- Be prepared for lots of taxis – Tokyo is huge and getting from area to another can take a while
- Places I enjoyed:
- The famous Shibuya Crossing is worth a visit
- Tokyo Skytree is good for a view of the city
- Getting up early for the fresh fish market
- Gutted each time I missed the Sumo Wrestling. That looks awesome
- Accommodation – there are so many places to stay in Tokyo that there is something for everyone and really depends on what your itinerary and budget is, so I won’t go into specific recommendations. But, I would recommend the capsule hotels – the ones where you sleep in a capsule rather than a room. The shared services, such as onsens are usually superb, and its just a fun very Japan-style experience
- Short trips from Tokyo. If you do have more time, I really recommend
- Taking the 2.15 hour bullet train to Kyoto for a classical Japan feel, seeing the imperial heart and sampling some of the Japanese whiskies in the famous Suntory distillery – for more details and tips, see the individual travel entry for – Cycling around Kyoto and sampling whiskies in the Suntory Distillery
- Climbing Mount Fuji in Summer – you go from central Tokyo to the summit and back easily within 24 hours for what is a real bucket-list item. For more details, see this individual travel entry – Climbing Mount Fuji in Summer
2 days in London and top 10 things to do
One of the world’s premier cities and with just about everything you could hope for in a 2 day city visit. World famous sites such as the Houses of Parliament and the Tower of London; world class restaurants, shopping areas and entertainment venues; vast parks which give you the opportunity to break away from the mayhem; and, of course, the mania that surround the Royal Family and their residences. Yes, its busy, but it’s also a must visit city
There’s obviously heaps and heaps of things to do. I’ve listed out below what I think are the top 10 split between must-sees and great to sees. Plus, some general tips for how to get the most out of your visit
Day trip to Macau from Hong Kong
Macau is a wonderful day trip from Hong Kong with the combination of China’s boom on display as you wander through the lavish mega casinos, plus the Portuguese culture shinning through in the architecture, food and even street signs in Portuguese in the various spots that justify its UNESCO World Heritage status
Top 3 tips:
#1 Experiencing the Portuguese feel – there are various places which are great for getting your fix. Taipa Village is lovely and well located next to the main casinos. The area around the Ruins of the Church of Saint Paul is the symbol of Macau and does feel a bit like being in Lisbon around there. But my main tip is to head to the south of Taipa Island to either the South West for the classic restaurant of Fernando’s that is a bit of an institution in Macau, or to the South West in the area around the Chapel of Saint Francis Xavier which is far less busy and you’re able to sit having Portuguese food in the courtyard looking across the water
#2Enjoying the Casinos – whilst Macau sees x6 the revenue of Las Vegas passing across its tables, that doesn’t necessarily equate to the entertainment. Its more a reflection of the Chinese love / obsession of gambling and this is the only spot in all of China to do it – for example, you’ll typically see a minimum bet of around Macau $200 (USD25) on the tables in Macau combined with little entertainment. That being said, the entertainment that is on offer is great. I’d particularly recommend spending time walking the canals of the Venetian and booking ahead for the world-class Cirque du Solei show “The House of Dancing Water” in the City of Dreams. It is superb . If you can time it right and keen for the lash / partying, the Hard Rock Pool Party is also a must
#3 Transport – getting to Macau from Hong Kong is super simple. There are ferries leaving every 30mins or so from 3 spots across Hong Kong and it only takes an hour. Most realistically, you’ll aim to leave from the Shun Tak Centre on Hong Kong island. Just be aware though that there are two ferry spots in Macau – Macau Outer Harbour which is for the Macau Peninsular (the northern half) and Taipa (the southern half). Getting around though is a bit harder than Hong Kong as there isn’t the subway / MTR equivalent. Easiest to just get taxis
Overall, its a very easy and great experience from Hong Kong