Traveling with Contiki pt.1
- lyrisariana
- Jun 30, 2016
- 4 min read
There are so many things to think about when planning a trip. I have had the opportunity to take 2 Contiki trips to Europe and they have been the easiest trips. Contiki specializes in trips for people between the ages of 18-35. In 2008 my cousin, a friend and I took the European Discovery tour. Tour included 1 night in Amsterdam, Netherlands; 1 in Rhine Valley, 1 in Munich, 1 in Tyrol, Germany; 1 in Venice, 2 in Rome, 1 in Florence,Italy; 1 in Lucerne Switz; and 2 in Paris. They have everything covered, from trips to museums, to wine tasting tours in caves. Breakfast daily was included, some lunches and 1-2 dinners.
Contiki has some luggage restrictions which some people were a little upset about. Its one 50 pound suitcase per person, plus a small purse (i think that's right). And its a good amount of luggage space, the bus only has so much room for everyone. I went during the summer so i packed pretty light, and thinking about it, i am sure i over packed shoes. Realistically, 3 pairs. You need 1 good walking shoe, 1 dress shoe, 1 sandal. Make sure you have your medications, or any type of pain reliever you may need. I guess i had never walked so much before the trip that half way through my knees started hurting so bad i couldn't walk right. It was so hard finding medicine in foreign countries. Other than that, you can find things everywhere. Like basic things will be easy to find, medicine i think is a bit of challenge, at least for me.
We arrived in London 2 nights before the tour to explore London and it's surrounding areas on our own. Contiki makes it easy if you want to arrive a few days sooner, you can stay in the same hotel you will check in for the tour later. Although the tour starts in London it doesn't actually take you out in the city, it's mainly a drive around town on the way to the docks. From the docks you get on a boat and head to Amsterdam.
Amsterdam: Arrival day/night we went on boat tour which was included with a weird Flugel shot, that evening we had a walking tour around red light district and an optional 'cultural show'... pretty much a sex show. The next day, you head to Rhine Valley.
Rhine Valley: Diner together and then an optional wine tasting tour in cave which was really cool. Free to roam around that night on your own if you don't join. The next morning, head to Munich.
Munich: Walking tour around the city which includes churches and showing us where hofbrauhaus is located and optional bike tour that ends in a cool beer garden. Next day head to Tryol Austria.
Tyrol: We headed to Tyrol with a stop at Swarovski, walked around and had some chocolate cake in the cafe. There was also an optional rafting tour which i didnt join, but looked like fun.
Next day off to Venice!
Venezia: No real tour here, its fairly small so we walked around on our own with maps given to us by the tour guide. Optional boat ride, and a must. Also there was a glass blowing tour which was optional, very interesting. We didnt spend too much time in Venice it was a pretty fast trip and almost a little too fast compared to the other 1 nighters.
Next day, trip to Rome.
Rome: Here i did just about all of the optional tours. Trip to the Vatican, walking tour of the Roman Forum, all super informative and must in Rome if it is your first time. We spent 2 nights here so there was plenty of free time. It was a good amount of time. My cousin and i stopped at a few cafes and just relaxed, people watched and sipped cappuccinos. Next stop, Florence.
Florence: Probably my favorite city on this tour. We arrived and went on a walking tour. There is an optional leather tour in the morning and then another optional walking tour. We did both, you can skip the leather tour, although informative, if you are not planning on buying leather there is no point. In Florence, i think its a main stop for a lot of Contiki tours during the summer so they have a special deal at a club. It is also optional to join, it includes entry and a free drink but its all tourist and pretty empty since the venue is big. I think it's worth going and at this point you are pretty friendly with the rest of the mates on the tour and it can be a lot of fun. After 2 nights in Florence, Lucerne.
Lucerne: We went ona tram to the highest point of a mountain there, then had our own free time to walk around. It was very quite and we ate dinner on own. We were pretty exhausted at this point of the tour and ready for sleep so we didn't explore as much. Final stop, Paris!
Paris: It is breathtaking, just like the movies but unfortuantley since this is a budget tour, we didnt stay in the best part of town. It was close to the Moulin Rouge (which was an otional tour my cousin and I skipped). Optional tour entry into the Lourve, worth it. My cousin and i were speed walking through the entire museum, it's massive. And the painting you want to see (Mona) are at the end of the museum. After the museum, we spent some time on champs d'elysee, the shopping street of shopping streets. I could have spent days there. I didn't buy anything, it was just like another world. Contiki ended in Paris, and from here everyone parts their own ways.
Check out some of the pictures from the tour below, pictures are in order starting with exploring London on our own.
