In March, Alvin’s research paper was accepted in a conference to be held in Germany. I actually didn’t have a plan to go to Europe but after seeing the different sights, I decided to “tag along” with Alvin and visit other places in Europe.
I actually started looking out for popular tourist destinations in Europe using Google Earth since late last year (even though we had no immediate plan at that time). We “officially” started planning after Alvin’s paper was accepted. We first applied for an entry visa. The processing took 10 working days.
Just want to share what I learned during the planning:
A) Visa Processing Requirements:
1) Airline itinerary: can get from travel agencies for free
2) Hotel bookings: Can get bookings online
3) Child does not need to pay visa fees
4) Insurance: NTUC is cheaper than AIG and more comprehensive
B) Airfare Comparison (SG to Frankfurt):
1) Etihad Airways (has stop-overs) was the cheapest but they don’t fly daily
2) Qatar Airways (has stop-overs) was also cheaper than SQ but they have a stop-over of more than 15hrs in Qatar.
3) Qantas Airways flies direct and cheaper than SQ by a few hundred dollars
4) Singapore Airlines flies direct but more expensive than Ethihad, Qatar and Qantas. But if you get the odd flight times, it will be cheaper than Qantas and Qatar Airways.
C) Euro Rail
1) Can by online thru www.eurail.com.sg (Dynasty Travel)
2) Point to point 2nd class seat is much more expensive than Global Pass (if you are going to visit several countries).
3) Global pass are 1st class seats and Flexible for 15, 30, 60 days.
D) Hotels
I compared the prices of several websites such as bookings.com; hotels.com; and Octopus.com. We used our Marriott points for our accommodation in Paris.
E) Clothing – For a budget-type like me…
1) Cold Wear – I got some cheap on sale clothes from here
2) Winter Time – They have more variety than Cold Wear
3) John Little – Cheaper than 1&2 but lesser options
4) Song Song – Cheaper than the rest J bought some cotton turtle neck shirts.
F) Museums Pass
Paris Museums pass: www.Paris.concierge.com
Metro Pass: www.parismetro.com
Disneyland Paris: www.365tickets.com
Switzerland Tours: www.viator.com
G) Reference books for our itinerary
1) Europe Eyewitness
2) Lonely Western Europe
3) Frommer’s Europe
4) Budget Europe
5) Lonely Planet Switzerland
6) Switzerland Brochures: you can request online and switzerland will send you by parcel
G) Itinerary
At first, my itinerary was for 21days and was very ambitious. I had to revise it 14 times to get a more realistic one. Some of the revisions I made:
1st version: Germany (Frankfurt, Bremen, Berlin), Netherlands (Amsterdam), Belgium (Brussels), France (Lille, Paris, Versailles), Switzeland (Geneva), Italy (Milan, Florence, Pisa, Rome, Assisi, Venice)
2nd version: Germany (Frankfurt, Bremen, Berlin), Netherlands (Amsterdam), Belgium (Brussels), France (Lille, Paris, Versailles), Spain (Barcelona, Madrid)
3rd version: Germany (Frankfurt, Bremen, Berlin), Netherlands (Amsterdam), Switzerland(Geneva), Belgium (Brussels), France (Lille, Paris, Versailles), Spain (Barcelona, Madrid)
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.
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In the end, we had to cut down a lot of countries (as the cost was too much!) and going thru many countries was not practical and realistic for a very short time. We settled down to three countries, namely, Germany (Bremen, where Alvin’s conference will be held, 5Nights), Switzerland (Lucerne 3Nights and Geneva 2Nights) and lastly France (Paris 5Nights and Versailles)
Hotels:
Bremer Haus Hotel(BREMEN, GERMANY)
The hotel is in the city’s historical core, just out of reach of all the hustle and bustle of the city on a peaceful sidestreet; the perfect Bremen getaway. Start your day with the hotel’s hearty breakfast buffet, then head out and discover all the city’s hidden treasures. For business travelers, the hotel is close to the exhibition grounds, and for those who want to extend their sightseeing to the outlying area and nearby towns, the railway station is also nearby.
Address: Loningstrasse 16 - 20, 28195 Bremen, Germany
Rate: SGD212/night winclusive of breakfast
Seeburg Hotel, Luzern (LUCERNE, SWITZERLAND)
Situated in lush green surroundings in Seeburg, 3 km from the centre of Lucerne and right on the banks of Lake Lucerne, Hotel Seeburg offers stunning architecture and great views.
Spend peaceful nights in tastefully furnished rooms and enjoy the wonderful views towards the lake, the mountains and the forest.
Choose between the elegant Alexander restaurant serving gourmet cuisine and selected wines, and the stylish Seerestaurant with its great views on Lake Lucerne, Mount Pilatus and romantic sunsets.
Enjoy inspiring conversations in the Sunset City Beach Light bar, where all Lucerne meets in summer under the open sky.
A wide range of stylish and fully equipped seminar and banquet rooms are at your disposal as well in the Seeburg hotel.
Hotel Rooms: 57
Addres: Seeburgstrasse 61
6006 Luzern, Switzerland
Tel: 041 375 55 55
Rate: SGD242/night inclusive of breakfast
Renaissance Paris Hotel La Defense(PARIS, FRANCE)
The Renaissance Paris Hotel La Defense is in the heart of La Defense district of Paris, France. Just next to the Grande Arche de La Defense this Paris hotel is just a few minutes from the capital's famous attractions: only 6 metro stops from the Champs-Elysees. Guests can walk from the Renaissance Paris Hotel La Defense to the large shopping center "les 4 Temps" as well as to the CNIT conference center. Whether you come by train, metro or taxi from Paris airports, access to the hotel is easy and for those coming by car there is a private and supervised hotel car park. This upscale hotel provides spacious hotel rooms with Marriott bedding, air conditioning, Internet access, premium TV channels, and in-room safe. For successful conferences and events there are 13 meeting rooms with natural daylight and broadband internet. Hotel guests have free access to the fitness gym with sauna and steam room. Guests can enjoy traditional French cuisine in the hotel restaurant and a relaxing atmosphere at the Colonial bar.
60 Jardin de Valmy, Boulevard Circulaire, Sortie 7
Paris La Defense Cedex, 92918 France
Phone: 33 1 41975050
Rate: SGD321/night inclusive of breakfast
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