Travel destination suggestions
 

As I posted a week or so ago, we are going to be headed to Barcelona for the Barcelona Summit then we are going to head over to Amsterdam.

Last time we went to Barcelona we got there early and headed to Andorra before the show. Normally, after going to Amsterdam I go to Germany to visit friends, but this year we have decided to mix it up a little.

Right now, we are thinking about going to Ireland before Barcelona. We are now looking for places to visit after Amsterdam. Rome looks interesting but I thought I would see if anyone here had some alternative suggestions.

Things that rank high in our consideration would be:

1) Historical sites.
2) Great landscapes.
3) Ability to communicate.
4) Easy to get to Barcelona / Amsterdam from there.

It is entirely possible that we will just spend the additional time in places like Ireland and Scotland, but if someone has a great idea, I am all ears.

I just made a trip 2 weeks ago by car through Croatia. And it was more beautifull than expected. More old cities than in Greece, Old Romanian cities, cheap food, good roads, good weather, and i saw several german motor groups travelling by the coast. No problem with English, though some spoke better German. There are also some great nature parks with waterfalls more inland. Krka park, and some names i have to look up.

My route when i arrived from Holland: http://tinyurl.com/38p5o6l
Porec, Zadar, Rabac, Trogir, Dubrovnik, Zagreb

On the way back a travelled throug Prague and stopped there for 3 days (you will like that). But you can also go to Venice in Italy. From Dubrovnik you can take a boat and go to Rome in italy.

But you have to take some days to go to Amsterdam or Barcelona. We went from Zagreb (Croatia) to Prague (8 hours) and three days later we did the rest of the route. First look if you like the country, than we can think over the route :)

I haven't put any pictures online yet.

How does it work with your bike, do you put that on a plane?
Than you can fly from Venice to Barcelona.

VENICE, Italy
BARCELONA, Spain
Mon 20 Sep 2010
EUR 42.94 per person

Forgot Rovinj, old Romanian city
http://www.google.nl/images?rlz=1T4S...N&hl=nl&tab=wi

Yeah, I wish I could bring the bike. Man, now you have me thinking. We were just discussing going a week early and hitting Ireland/Scotland, then doing the shows and going home. But now, you got me thinking about doing just that. I would probably spend the same amount renting a car as it would cost to send it over. Only problem is would I want to go home if I had my bike with me?

And yeah, we discovered Ryan and our entire thought process changed.

Thanks for the other suggestions as well.

Rome would be my first selection if you are looking for historical sites and the Italians are pretty nice to communicate in English. Landscapes, not really unless you get out of the city but overall, it's a great choice in my opinion :)

The moon.

Start in Rome, take the ferry to split in Croatia :) The coast of France could be interesting to.

From Croatia i think it is best to take a ferry to Venice, you can't take a car into Venice and parking is expensive.

I haven't seen italy yet. This was the first time a took a car to explore this part of Europe. Next time i will go to italy (but first New York, Boston, Quebec, Niagra Falls).

You discovered the pirce fighters like Ryan Air/ www.easyjet.com :) Flying is cheaper than driving through Europe.

Best is to go before the shows. The best seasons end the first week in september.
You have to find out if the climate is good in several countries. The islands in Greece are abandoned after the first week in september.

damn i cant wait to see the pictures.

I didn't get to spend much time there, but I went to Zurich, Switzerland once. I was actually on a 10 hour layover coming home from a trip to Egypt (which is an amazing place, but probably too far to go to from Amsterdam).

Anyway, I spent about 8 hours in Zurich seeing some sites and checking it out and It was a very cool. It is surrounded by the Alps and has some great old world flavor.

Have you even been to the UK?

For bike riding there is some stunning countryside and sweeping roads bike nuts love.

http://www.devittinsurance.com/biker...ools/maps.html

http://www.northukbikers.co.uk/hartside1.jpg

Great technical sweeping bends and beautiful views.

Lake District:

http://www.photoeverywhere.co.uk/bri...dCONVAR570.jpg

Brecon Beacons:

http://www.beaconsbackpackers.co.uk/...ackpackers.gif

Box Hill in Surrey is a mecca for bikers:

http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_luXum5-dZA...00/boxhill.jpg

And more in Scotland and Ireland too.

And we speak English. Although with a funny accent.

:)

(flight to AMS takes 30 mins and costs about 100 bucks).

Go to Stockholm ! ( my hometown)

Stockholm meets all your requirements. Stockholm is europe's most beautiful capital. We have plenty of water and islands that you can boat hiking to. Plenty of historical buildings and museums to visit. All Swedes speak English, and all are service-oriented. Hotels in all price ranges. You can travel cheaply to Barcelona with http://Ryanair.se from Skavsta airport or a bit more expensive from Arlanda airport.


http://beta.stockholmtown.com/en/
:thumbsup

The roads here might be a bit bendy for the Harley and I don't know how likely you are to kill yourself when you forget which side of the road you should be on without the reminder of being sat in the opposite side of a car.

Switzerland is a beautiful place in the summer :thumbsup

I'd kill just to see Ireland, can't wait to see the pictures!

surprised no one suggested North Korea ;)

seriously: Sweden.

I absolutely loved Ireland.
The southwest part is awesome.
Driving the Ring Of Kerry is a must

I flew into Shannon and stayed at the Bunratty resort, great place.

Its perfect for day trips to Cork to the South or North to Galway

Great people as well.

Yeah, right now I think we are learning towards exploring Ireland, Scotland and England before Barcelona, then come home after Amsterdam.

Not too concerned about the twisties, but the wrong side of the road to drive on is a slight concern . . . and one reason to get a bike as I have never driven a car with the steering wheel on the wrong side of the car.

http://www.2wheeltravel.com/Motorcyc...ire/ukhire.htm

not cheap. no idea how American licences work so no idea whether your licence would be OK for hiring either. here a car licence and a bike licence is different things.

Go to Scotland you will love it. I'm from there and go every year if you have any questions let me know.

I'm thinking France and then Monaco after Amsterdam this year...

Put your bike on a airplane and come over to England

Try Corfu (I've been to a few other Greek islands but Corfu is so far the best one), cheap to rent a bike, good food and not expensive, nice beaches, great landscape.. I'd recommend taking an enduro, not a chopper though, sometimes the roads connecting beaches and main roads can be tricky.

try cork & mayo

Excuse me, but this is huge misinformation, Italians do not speak English. Very few speak English, and I mean VERY. In their schools they study french/spanish as foreign language and just recently English is being implemented. I spent lots of time in Italy so trust me I know what I am talking :)

luxembourg! serious, in my twen years i travelled europe and luxembourg was a total highlight! i cannot remember any city where i needed less sleep - ppl are great and the city looks like WW2 was non-existant ... plus, GOOD BEER ;)

and they have GORGEOUS women there ... lol, when i was married and we visited BASEL, even my wife was in awe about the girls ... nice mix of german/italian/french breed :2 cents:

Rome/Florence is a great short "side" trip - if you have a little longer, you can also spend time in the countryside (we stayed at a villa in Tuscany, outside of Montepulciano which was spectacular) and get the best of all worlds. We were there more than 2 weeks, speak no Italian, had no problem.
Another great, shorter trip would be Copenhagen. The city is fabulous, Tivoli is spectacular, and the Danish people are wonderful (many speak English as well). If you have more time, you could also take the train to Norway for scenery that you'll never forget.
And I've rented bikes in several European countries with no problem.

Take the bike across on the ferry from the UK to mainland Europe and ride to Barcelona. My first husband was a biker and did that more than a few times.

I was in Ireland last August, it was freezing and raining the whole time
If you enjoy wearing hats and gloves in summertime, go there.