European holiday - late September

Inkyhead

Booking a holiday for the last 2 weeks of September. 10 days to 2 weeks. Staying in the one place or move between a couple. 2 of us, myself and the old man.

Looking for the proverbial sun and sand but some culture and sights as well. Don't really fancy your average resort type ish in Spain or Portugal.

Went to Croatia last year (Dubrovnik, Hvar, Split) and absolutely loved it. Going back to the Dalmatian coast is a definite option. - the islands are beautiful. Brac, Korcula, I don't know.

Need some inspiration. Any recommendations? Croatia or otherwise? Always wanted to check out Italy, Barcelona sounds beautiful. Turkey or the Greek islands?

All info or thoughts appreciated

schemingbohemia

Sicily? Sardinia? More archaelogical stuff in the former.

stargazer 68

schemingbohemia wrote: »

Sicily? Sardinia? More archaelogical stuff in the former.

Im just back from Sicily - absolutely amazing! Would definitely recommend it.

jt_dublin

Hi Doovies,

The Mrs & I were looking for a similar holiday and were also thinking of Croatia & Dalmatian coast / islands. She had been there before too & loved it. But instead we are off the Girona region in north eastern spain next month, 2 nights in the city (hotel historic) and 7 nights on the coast. From what I have read the city is lovely and the area & coast is dotted with lots of historic villages, little coves etc.. Take a look at Begur & places around there. The Dali museum is nearby in Figueres.

JT.

Inkyhead

Cheers!! I'm intrigued by Sicily, 'twas one of other destinations I had in mind. Any more info on it?? One question: what's the best/easiest way to get there? (presuming you can't fly direct from DUB/SNN to Palermo)

And JT, thanks for the info pal, that area of Spain is definitely an option for me too I think. Right up by the Pyrénées..like the sound of that, could even get in a climb. Close enough to Barcelona to stay a few nights there as well.

jt_dublin

Hi InkyHead,

There is a conversation going on about Sicily at the moment in the "Things to do in" forum if you want to have a look. I have put a few comments in there too. You can fly Dublin to Catania with Aer Lingus, as far as I know.

http://www.boards.ie/vbulletin/showthread.php?t=2056709704

Inkyhead

Thanks a lot! Giving Sicily serious consideration now. Half thinking about Croatia & Barcelona/Northern Spain still though

Also: anyone got any info on island hopping in Greece? Presume there's loads of threads already but.. I'm curious as to whether 10-14 days would be too little time, and which islands are a must....?

stargazer 68

We flew Dublin to Palermo with Ryanair. We stayed on the west coast and saw a fair bit of that area. We had a car which I have to say was a godsend because we were able to go out each day for lunch to different villages and then back out again in the evening. If we hadn't had the car we would have been stuck at the hotel or cost a fortune in taxis but that could have just been where we were located.

horse7

Has anyone travalled with the travel dept to Hotel Tirena in Dubrovnik,they include half board with tours. If you have ,could you tell me what the meals were like,as i went with the travel dept to lake garda before and the meals were quite bad.(complaints had no result). their tours are pretty good.

tatli_lokma

Malta? very accessible and lots to do culture wise
Rhodes - no direct flights but beautiful, another Knights of St John fortress, and other areas on the island are really pretty.
Turkey - Bodrum penninula or Aegean Coast - it does get the 'irish abroad' crew, but this can be easily avoided. You could fly to Izmir and stay in Cesme - beautiful and you can access Troy from there. Or flying to Izmir there are lots of places which aren't package holiday resorts where you could base yourself to visit ephesus, miletos & priene. Or go further north and visit Cappacoccia. LOTS of archaelogical places in Turkey.

Inkyhead

horse7 wrote: »

Has anyone travalled with the travel dept to Hotel Tirena in Dubrovnik,they include half board with tours. If you have ,could you tell me what the meals were like

Funny you should ask, I actually stayed in Hotel Tirena last September for 3 nights. Didn't go with a tour operator, but that's beside the point I guess.

Regarding meals, we were only booked in for B&B so can't comment on dinner etc, but the breakfast was pretty good I thought. Not mind blowing mind, but lots of choice, big buffet all you can eat job

We only went on one tour via the hotel: to Mostar in Bosnia taking in Medjugorje en route, the driver/guide was a top man, quality day. I'd highly recommend getting in a trip into Bosnia if you can, really interesting and dirt cheap over the border as well.

mel.b

I have recently just returned from a week in Sicily. I flew to London and then got very cheap flights to Trapani on the West coast of sicily which is less touristy than the east. I think all up, inc flights to the uk it cost €130 which i was happy with. As i didn't have a car i based myself in trapani as it has good public transport links. Things to do inc Favignana, levenzo & marmotta islands, argigento ruins, palmero, erice, san vito la capo, selinunte (?spelling) and segesta ruins. It was really really hot while i was there and not comfortable for a lot of sightseeing so i did Favignana, Erice and Argigento as well as spending two days at the beach in San Vito Lo Capo. if i was going again i would base myself there for a couple of days (or longer if you want a beach break) and then move on. If you hire a car you can move each day, if not Trapani is as mentioned a good base as it has links to all the sights mentioned.

Inkyhead

Thanks Mel, some really good info there. A lot of the above definitely on the to-do list if I go. San Vito lo Capo looks spectacular, that beach!

MadsL

Mostar and Sarajevo?
Andalucia - Tarifa through to Jerez d la Frontera, Cadiz and Seville?
+1 for Malta

Fratton Fred

There is a lot more to Majorca than Magaluf. Palma is a lovely historic city, there are several caves you can visit as well as lots of nice little coves and some great restaurants.

stargazer 68

mel.b wrote: »

Favignana, levenzo & marmotta islands, argigento ruins, palmero, erice, san vito la capo, selinunte (?spelling) and segesta ruins. It was really really hot while i was there and not comfortable for a lot of sightseeing so i did Favignana, Erice and Argigento as well as spending two days at the beach in San Vito Lo Capo.

We didnt do San Vito but overheard a conversation on the plane that a couple of people hated it - really touristy but beach does look lovely
We did Segesta ruins. Erice is fabulous for an evening. We got cable car up to it and walked into the town for dinner and a beer - fabulous. If you are on the west coast you have to find Scopello and Castellemare Del Golfo - lovely towns to sit in and have a beer and lunch or dinner.

tatli_lokma

If you fly into Palermo or Trapani, I would HIGHLY recommend you stay here:

http://www.tripadvisor.ie/Hotel_Review-g656839-d1836017-Reviews-B_B_Pacheco-Paceco_Province_of_Trapani_Sicily.html

It is a wonderful B&B with such friendly and wonderful hosts. If you are staying on the north of the island and doing the sights I cannot recommend this place enough. The hospitality of Francesco and Bice is out of this world. A little gem as far as accommodation goes.

Inkyhead

Fratton Fred wrote: »

There is a lot more to Majorca than Magaluf. Palma is a lovely historic city, there are several caves you can visit as well as lots of nice little coves and some great restaurants.

I've been to Majorca more than anywhere else in the world growing up! Magaluf, Palma Nova a good few times, Alcudia twice. Have done the lads holiday and family holidays there now that I think of it, safe to say I've seen most of the island by now

MeMeJK1

Little Ted wrote: »

Malta? very accessible and lots to do culture wise
Rhodes - no direct flights but beautiful, another Knights of St John fortress, and other areas on the island are really pretty.
Turkey - Bodrum penninula or Aegean Coast - it does get the 'irish abroad' crew, but this can be easily avoided. You could fly to Izmir and stay in Cesme - beautiful and you can access Troy from there. Or flying to Izmir there are lots of places which aren't package holiday resorts where you could base yourself to visit ephesus, miletos & priene. Or go further north and visit Cappacoccia. LOTS of archaelogical places in Turkey.

+1 for Malta. Amazing place to go to with some beautiful beaches and lots of things to do and in addition to the main island I would also recommend visits to Gozo and Comino. Some info can be found here: http://www.new.visitmalta.com/

tatli_lokma

Gozo is wonderful

I am pie

Absolutely loved cycladic greek islands - naxos, paros & santorini. Cannot understand the Malta love at all. Very disappointing, nowhere near as nice as Greek islands, Sicily and Sardinia.

Turkey is another option.

tatli_lokma

I am the opposite - whilst I liked Sicily and enjoyed my time, I wasn't as blown away as I thought I would be. With the exception of the owners of the B&B Pacheco, I prefered the people in Malta, as i felt in Taormina in particular that service with a smile was more geared to the people who obviously have money!
I and thought Valetta was wonderful. Taormina is very picturesque, but very touristy and quite expensive. In terms of costs, I thought Malta was better value for money - yes there are some package holiday geared resorts but given the prices I can forgive that and anyway I always make my own way out of the resorts and into the less touristy areas. Sicily is indeed very nice, but it didn't meet my expectations, and I found it really expensive for the type of holiday it is. You are looking at around €80-100 per night for very basic accommodation. And too many Americans wanting to go to Corleone!

MadsL

A hotel on Lake Garda and a hire car gets all sorts of sun, sand and sights, Verona and Milan not far away.

Fratton Fred

Little Ted wrote: »

Gozo is wonderful

especially underwater. best diving in the Med:cool:

Inkyhead

Thanks for all the info folks, after some conversation we've decided to go for Sicily. Now to decide where to stay! 11 or 12 days in total I reckon. Want to stay in at least 2 maybe 3 different places. It really is a large island with a lot of choice!

Firstly, considering renting a car during our stay (is it necessary?)

A lot of good suggestions, what sights & trips are a must in your view? Following that, what places to stay and for how many days? Best route?

Apologies for all the questions but I'll probably book based on your recommendations Thanks again.

stargazer 68

Inkyhead wrote: »

Firstly, considering renting a car during our stay (is it necessary?)

We did and I would definitely recommend it if you want to see the sights. The little towns are just lovely and you can go between them if you have a car - DO take out the extra insurance that they offer though! Italians are lousy drivers and the parking is shocking. Streets are really narrow and steep.

As I said we were on the west coast and stayed in Hotel La Battigia - absolutely lovely and on the beach. If you were in the area it would be ideal for a couple of days stay. You can get to Erice, Castellemere do Golfo and Scopello from here with no problem as well as the rest of the west coast. If you want a bit of touring info log onto trip advisor and search Sicily - there are lots of people on there with real insider knowledge from routes to restaurants! SO JEALOUS!

Inkyhead

Gonna fly into Catania with Aer Lingus, and out of Palermo with Ryanair, or vice versa. Will most likely rent a car. Need to decide on where to stay in between now! Want to do a few days in Taormina, or Giardini Naxos if Taormina's too expensive. Need to choose where to stay in the West/NW of the island as well, lots to see up there.

I'm actually buzzing about Mount Etna, more than anything else really! Big into the hillwalking & climbing anyway so an active volcano = mind blown :cool:

jt_dublin

Hi InkyHead,

Great that you have decided on Sicily... Now you just have to plan the finer details! I would agree with you staying in Giardini Naxos as opposed to Taormina. You are closer to the beach, not right in the centre of the tourist trap and you still have all the amenities you need.

I am a big fan of TripAdvisor to find great accomodation & resaurants that you might not otherwise come across, so that would be my recommendation to you. Just looking at the B&Bs in Giardini Naxos, the tops ones sound really good and might be worth checking out. They should definitely be cheaper that Taormina hotels!

http://www.tripadvisor.ie/Hotels-g194774-c2-Giardini_Naxos_Province_of_Messina_Sicily-Hotels.html

And yes, a trip to Mt. Etna will be amazing... Hopefully you will get a clear day.

Another poster on here was recently asking about food & wine in Sicily.

A great way to try Italian / Sicilian food & drink is to go to a Sagra (plural = Sagre), a festival & celebration of local food & drink. I lived in Italy a few years ago and loved going to the Sagre. The food was great and the atmosphere wonderful. I think that you would love these, as you get a feel for the real Italy / Sicily and not just a tourists view.

The poster was asking about the Siracusa & Ragusa provinces specifically but within the Sicilian Festa links you can go to other provinces as well, and list sagre, events, festivals etc.

The links are in this post.

http://www.boards.ie/vbulletin/showthread.php?t=2056726491

bamboozle

Little Ted wrote: »

Gozo is wonderful

Gozo is wonderful

Malta is not...

MadsL

bamboozle wrote: »

Gozo is wonderful

Malta is not...

You have been doing it wrong.

Inkyhead

jt_dublin wrote: »

Hi InkyHead,

Great that you have decided on Sicily... Now you just have to plan the finer details! I would agree with you staying in Giardini Naxos as opposed to Taormina. You are closer to the beach, not right in the centre of the tourist trap and you still have all the amenities you need.

I am a big fan of TripAdvisor to find great accomodation & resaurants that you might not otherwise come across, so that would be my recommendation to you. Just looking at the B&Bs in Giardini Naxos, the tops ones sound really good and might be worth checking out. They should definitely be cheaper that Taormina hotels!

http://www.tripadvisor.ie/Hotels-g194774-c2-Giardini_Naxos_Province_of_Messina_Sicily-Hotels.html

And yes, a trip to Mt. Etna will be amazing... Hopefully you will get a clear day.

Another poster on here was recently asking about food & wine in Sicily.

A great way to try Italian / Sicilian food & drink is to go to a Sagra (plural = Sagre), a festival & celebration of local food & drink. I lived in Italy a few years ago and loved going to the Sagre. The food was great and the atmosphere wonderful. I think that you would love these, as you get a feel for the real Italy / Sicily and not just a tourists view.

The poster was asking about the Siracusa & Ragusa provinces specifically but within the Sicilian Festa links you can go to other provinces as well, and list sagre, events, festivals etc.

The links are in this post.

http://www.boards.ie/vbulletin/showthread.php?t=2056726491

Cheers for that JT! I have to say though I take a lot of TripAdvisor reviews with a pinch of salt, lots of fake reviews in there since businesses copped on to the fact that travellers use it. There are counties in Ireland where you have a fast food joint or cafe as the #1 restaurant in the county - ridiculous really. Lots of great info on the forums though!

Still trying to figure out an itinerary. Were it not for Agrigento I would avoid the South coast altogether, it's making things awkward having to fit it in, it's a must-see though I think.

ardmacha

Northern Croatia/Slovenia. Stay in Rovinj or Piran or round about there and then go to Ljubljana, Bled etc.

jt_dublin

Inkyhead wrote: »

Cheers for that JT! I have to say though I take a lot of TripAdvisor reviews with a pinch of salt, lots of fake reviews in there since businesses copped on to the fact that travellers use it. There are counties in Ireland where you have a fast food joint or cafe as the #1 restaurant in the county - ridiculous really. Lots of great info on the forums though!

Still trying to figure out an itinerary. Were it not for Agrigento I would avoid the South coast altogether, it's making things awkward having to fit it in, it's a must-see though I think.

Hi Inkyhead
I agree that there are fake reviews on TripAdvisor but you can often tell the difference. Most 'real' reviews give the good & the bad. Plus I usually check to see who many reviews that person has posted before. If it's a first time poster giving a glowing report, then I would take it with a pinch of salt.

I lived near the Greek temples of Paestum in Italy, so I suppose I had similar on my doorstep and didn't go as far as Agrigento. Yes it may be a long way to go. You could spread yourself too thin by trying to see everything. You could possibly book the first part of the holiday, taking in Giardini Naxos (Taormina & Mt. Etna) & Siracusa. Then see how you feel and decide where to go from there. With a flexible plan, you can then decide whether you want more history, culture, ruins, or the hustle & bustle of Palermo, or maybe just more chilling, hill walking or beaches.

Inkyhead

jt_dublin wrote: »

You could spread yourself too thin by trying to see everything. You could possibly book the first part of the holiday, taking in Giardini Naxos (Taormina & Mt. Etna) & Siracusa. Then see how you feel and decide where to go from there. With a flexible plan, you can then decide whether you want more history, culture, ruins, or the hustle & bustle of Palermo, or maybe just more chilling, hill walking or beaches.

The only problem with that is we're working with a tight-ish budget when it comes to accommodation. I don't think Sicily is like Croatia whereby you can pick up a cheap apartment when you arrive in a town? We favour self catering (but it doesn't seem to be the norm), not too enthusiastic about B&Bs. This just leaves hotels & unless prebooked they can be extortionate, right?

Everything I want to visit is on the East coast or the North/North-West. Agrigento is the only exception. I wonder is it too far to go there on a day trip...?

Tiriel

I used hostelworld.com for apartments and rooms in buildings which worked out very affordable but were all really lovely, filter your search for private etc. I did that all across Sicily :-)

Inkyhead

Thanks a mil Cork girl. Exactly what I was looking for

Outta curiosity, what towns did you stay in? Any recommendations on places to see?

tatli_lokma

Inkyhead wrote: »

Cheers for that JT! I have to say though I take a lot of TripAdvisor reviews with a pinch of salt, lots of fake reviews in there since businesses copped on to the fact that travellers use it. There are counties in Ireland where you have a fast food joint or cafe as the #1 restaurant in the county - ridiculous really. Lots of great info on the forums though!

jt_dublin wrote: »

Hi Inkyhead
I agree that there are fake reviews on TripAdvisor but you can often tell the difference. Most 'real' reviews give the good & the bad. Plus I usually check to see who many reviews that person has posted before. If it's a first time poster giving a glowing report, then I would take it with a pinch of salt.

I agree with both of you, and therefore I tend to use the reviews in conjunction with the TA forums. You get a much better overall idea that way. For eg, a hotel we booked last year was #50 of 75 hotels in the ratings, but after a few questions on the forum we went with it anyway, and it was a pleasant surprise. Really lovely. This year the hotel we booked was originally no 3 in the ratings, its now number 38! But it gets a solid average of 4 out of 5 or 5 out of 5 and 85% of all visitors rate it as 4 or 5 out of 5, and from reading them the majority appear to be genuine reviews. However two of the hotels in the top 5 get only 4 out of 5 score and less than 75% rate it 4 or 5 out of 5! so I cannot for the life of me fathom how TA calculate their rating system!

Plus a lot of people don't seem to be able to differentiate between the accommodation and the resort - they hated the resort, or got ripped off by the water sports guy, so they rate the hotel badly! I think a lot of reviewers think they are reviewing their holiday, not the accommodation!

Use the forums - you'll get a more balanced recommendation there - that's been my experience anyway.

Tiriel

Inkyhead wrote: »

Thanks a mil Cork girl. Exactly what I was looking for

Outta curiosity, what towns did you stay in? Any recommendations on places to see?

I stayed in Trapani (NH Hotel by railway - don't stay in Trapani, we flew in via Ryanair and had no choice as it was a late flight).

Cefalu - Hotel Kalura (loved it, again a hotel - but spacious apartment style, white washed traditional with views over the sea, swimming pool - feels local. Has parking etc. just outside Cefalu, loved it.
Palermo - stayed in Hotel Concordia - €35 each and was on main street, beautiful views across the skyline, has a lift - spotless.

Catania - stayed in B and B Teatro Bellini - was lovely, central, clean - did everything we needed. No real need to stay in Catania, but it broke up a long distance route for us

In Giardini, we kind of splashed out and stayed in villa Daphne for a few nights- stunning stunning place, highly recommend it!! But it is a bit dearer.. and location wise it's not in Taormina and a bit from the beach, but across from the bus stop. Fabulous though, will go back some day

Siracusa - highly recommend B and B Oikos through hostelbookers.com
Another gem - lovely people, lovely location just off the main Cathedral square, views of the ocean and overall just fab.

Favignana - loved it, had a great few days there - really local - great fish restaurants, boat trips with local fishermen. Would go back in a flash Boat leaves from Trapani. Can't remember or find where we stayed!

The rest we picked up as we went around so I'm afraid I can't remember, but I know this much - you will love it

Inkyhead

Looks like I'm going to be flying into and leaving from Palermo anyway.

It costs approx €59 to fly to Palermo or back with Ryanair. The cheapest flight to/from Catania with our beloved flag carrier is €230 (one way). Crazy! :eek:

Tiriel

Palermo has more to it than just the city - for example the Monreale monastery that is just outside the city - you can get here by local bus. The views are outstanding over the whole area - the local architecture built into the hills is just crazy to see, like makeshift housing with endless extensions.. hilarous. Also there's Mondello beach, which is nice!

Inkyhead

Cork_girl wrote: »

Palermo has more to it than just the city - for example the Monreale monastery that is just outside the city - you can get here by local bus. The views are outstanding over the whole area - the local architecture built into the hills is just crazy to see, like makeshift housing with endless extensions.. hilarous. Also there's Mondello beach, which is nice!

Cool, will pay it a visit for the views alone. Saw Monreale mentioned somewhere alright but didn't pay too much attention. That beach looks lovely as well! Palermo is on the cards for a day or two for sure. Might finish up there after doing the East coast and possibly Cefalu

Inkyhead

So I have booked 5 nights in Giardini Naxos, and the following night in Agrigento. The plan is to spend the final 2 nights in Palermo city & so the only thing left to decide is where to stay the 4 nights in between..

I think a base in Western Sicily: somewhere from which to see Erice, San Vito, Castellomare del Golfo, Scopello, Zingaro reserve etc. Would like to be near a beach but also within walking distance of some restaurants/bars, if possible. Recommendations.....? (Dovies' earlier suggestion would be slightly over budget)

mel.b

If you want beach then i'd look at San Vito - just check that when you are going to be there you are not out of season as everything basically ****s down. Trapani would be the other logical choice but the beach isn't very nice (v.small amount of sand, not nice sand either). From San Vito Erice, Scoppello etc would be accesible by car.

jt_dublin

mel.b wrote: »

If you want beach then i'd look at San Vito - just check that when you are going to be there you are not out of season as everything basically ****s down. Trapani would be the other logical choice but the beach isn't very nice (v.small amount of sand, not nice sand either). From San Vito Erice, Scoppello etc would be accesible by car.

Yes, usually Italian / Sicilian resorts do close down in September but i think it might be quite the opposite for San Vito. They have the Cous Cous festival on the last week of September, so Inkyhead, it depends on whether you want bustling or quiet!

http://www.trapanigate.it/en/activities/san-vito-lo-capo/cous-cous-fest-2012.asp

This will give you an idea of how busy it can get!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zgml_BukHwE&feature=autoplay&list=UUBgamygj-YwdWu9Omurso2w&playnext=1

That youtube clip says it gets 200,000 visitors during the week. So I would say accomodation prices could be high and you might have noise through the night if you are close to or in town. Maybe Castellammare del Golfo would be a better choice and doing day trips to San Vito to enjoy the festival.

mel.b

Whoops, just noticed the typo i made while using my ipad! That should be 'shuts down', not ****s down!'

Inkyhead

Right, so 3 nights in Castellammare del Golfo and 3 nights in Palermo booked. The prospect of San Vito being thronged didn't appeal tbh, and I decided for a finish that only 2 nights in Palermo wouldn't do it justice. Thanks again for all your help folks

jt_dublin

Brilliant. Have a great holiday. It will be interesting to hear how it all went, so please do let us know when you are back & recovered from it all!