Ping: FOFC Tourism and Travel Agency: Eastern Europe Bureau

[lordscarlet]

My wife and I have decided, fairly spur of the moment, to take a trip to Eastern Europe. Specifically we are going to Czech Republic, Slovakia and Hungary.

Our route is:

Prague (2 days) -> Kutna Hora (few hours) -> Olomouc (evening and overnight) -> Sklabina (day trip, where my wife's paternal Great Grandfather is believed to have been born) -> Budapest (2 days)

We're just starting to research what we want to do. So far our basic thoughts are:

Prague
Swan Lake (or some other theater performance)
Daytrip to Cesky Krumlov
Explore the city

Kutna Hora
Explore
Bone Church (Welcome to the Bone Church in Kutna Hora, Czech Republic (http://www.outsideprague.com/kutna_hora/bone_church.html))
have lunch

Olomouc
Explore

Sklabina
Just drive around and explore. If we get more information about her family, we'll go more in detail as far as that goes. We don't have a lot of information, though, and it's more likely going to just be a chance to take in the countryside

Budapest
Explore
Szechenyi bath


I don't know if anyone has any experience with these three countries, but any suggestions would be fantastic. We generally shy away from the touristy things (although there are a number listed above) and try to just experience a city as it's residents do. Walk around, get a bite to eat, go to a few shops, that sort of thing.

We're going at the end of February, so it will be cold and presumably pretty free of tourists. Hopefully we'll get to see some snow. :) Snow while visiting Eastern Europe sounds pretty picturesque to me.

[sterlingice]

I would love to see how this turns out. How did you decide on Eastern Europe?

SI

[Izulde]

I've been to Budapest twice (the second time wasn't my choice). It didn't leave a very strong impression on me, to be honest. I thought the bath you mentioned above was probably the best and most relaxing part.

I do seem to remember now, come to think of it, eating this really awesome pizza with spices on it, but exactly where that was now, I couldn't tell you.

[Honolulu_Blue]

I did an Easter European trip back in 1999. Wow. Can't believe it was that long ago.

Me and a buddy of mine did Prague for a few days and then took a train to Budapest.

Like Izulde, Budapest didn't leave too much of an impression. There was one killer restaurant (could never remember the name) right in the big square in the city center that was fantastic. That said, I much preferred Prague in almost every way. It's a great city.

[Young Drachma]

Prague was heavily endorsed by an old friend who spent years there working for an english language newspaper. Hope you enjoy yourselves!

[lordscarlet]

I would love to see how this turns out. How did you decide on Eastern Europe?

SI

As I casually mentioned above, part of my wife's family is from there. Her last name actually derives from Slovakian origins (it was changed in some manor in the US, but we are not entirely certain of it's original version). She has always known it as a Czech name, but apparently her family is more accurately from "Bohemia" and the city her great grandfather emigrated from is in the current nation of Slovakia. Based on visiting Prague and the other city, it made sense to check out Budapest while we are there.

[lordscarlet]

Oh, and I didn't mention that we're planning to train between destinations. We are going to get a car in Sklabina to drive around, but the rest will be train rides between cities and our feet to get around.

[Mustang]

You should probably drop a message to Sgran. I think he is in Budapest and is in the travel industry if I remember right.

[whomario]

When about are you going ?

Going by train should be fine, but make damn sure to double-check your dates and departure times (just in case there´s limited service for some reason). Reliable and easy to use planner (if you don´t have one allready) for all of europe : Route Planner (http://plannerint.b-rail.be/bin/query.exe/en?L=profi)

Do you plan on booking ahead or getting a Eurail Pass btw ? I´d think that point to point might be cheaper for your route, just thought i´d mention that :)

Be sure to check if buying the Prague Card and/or Budapest Card makes sense for you. It gives free access to near every attraction in town and free public transport for a fixed price for either 24, 48 or 72 hours. Don´t buy it online in advance but at the tourist information (in prague there´s one right in the main train station), cheaper that way.
This sort of card/pass is available in pretty much every big city in europe by now, it just depends on what you do if it´s worth buying. At the very least it is very convenient (but there´s also day passes just for the public transport system)

For Prague i would definitely recommend visiting Prague Castle in the evening as 1) the crowds are smaller (all guided tours start between 10am and 2 pm) and 2) the lighting in the evening is spectacular :) Only problem might be the opening hours of the buildings.
The complex itself is allways open till midnight (11pm until march 31st), but the interior areas (st veits dome, cathedral etc) close at 6pm (4pm until march 31st), so it might be a bit until dark sets and it might be too time-wasting to visit the castle, go back into town and then go back up in the evening.
But maybe you could visit it, then have a nice dinner in the "lesser town" district (there were some great looking restaurants) and then go up ?

as for restaurants in the old town centre: Be sure to check out the narrower side streets, much cheaper without loosing any quality.

I don´t know if you are into this sort of thing, but I heavily recommend to do a ghost tour which only lasts about an hour in the evening but is tons of (slightly spooky) fun.
We did it here : Ghost Tours in Prague (http://www.praguetourservice.com/index.php?action=main&subject=677)
They also do a 30-45 extra right after that goes underground into the tunnels and cellars, very informative and spooky.


In Budapest there´s obviously Castle Hill, if you want to do sth different : There´s awesome caving tours available nearby from easily walkable to "down on your knees in mud" level :)

[lordscarlet]

Thanks, whomario! Currently we are planning to pay for point to point. It looks like that will be about $150. The Eastern Europe pass is over $200 for each of us for a 5 day pass.

We will definitely check out the Prague/Budapest card and look into all of the spots you mentioned. :) My wife's coworker did the caving and really liked it.

[Sgran]

My wife and I have decided, fairly spur of the moment, to take a trip to Eastern Europe. Specifically we are going to Czech Republic, Slovakia and Hungary.

Our route is:

Prague (2 days) -> Kutna Hora (few hours) -> Olomouc (evening and overnight) -> Sklabina (day trip, where my wife's paternal Great Grandfather is believed to have been born) -> Budapest (2 days)

We're just starting to research what we want to do. So far our basic thoughts are:

Prague
Swan Lake (or some other theater performance)
Daytrip to Cesky Krumlov
Explore the city

Kutna Hora
Explore
Bone Church (Welcome to the Bone Church in Kutna Hora, Czech Republic (http://www.outsideprague.com/kutna_hora/bone_church.html))
have lunch

Olomouc
Explore

Sklabina
Just drive around and explore. If we get more information about her family, we'll go more in detail as far as that goes. We don't have a lot of information, though, and it's more likely going to just be a chance to take in the countryside

Budapest
Explore
Szechenyi bath


I don't know if anyone has any experience with these three countries, but any suggestions would be fantastic. We generally shy away from the touristy things (although there are a number listed above) and try to just experience a city as it's residents do. Walk around, get a bite to eat, go to a few shops, that sort of thing.

We're going at the end of February, so it will be cold and presumably pretty free of tourists. Hopefully we'll get to see some snow. :) Snow while visiting Eastern Europe sounds pretty picturesque to me.

Sorry i didn't respond earlier. You seem to have some specific places in mind to visit. Have you been to these countries before? It sounds like wife has been there at least if her ties are that strong.

Prague is the ultimate bumming around city. It's pretty tourist friendly as long as you don't plan on driving (sounds like you're not). Definitely see the Charles Bridge and the castle. The Jewish quarter is impressive, especially the cemetery, but if you really like history and plan on doing some driving, I highly recommond visiting Theresienstadt (Terezin), which is a bit over an hour drive from the city. This is the infamous Jewish ghetto where the Nazis shot the creepy video "Hitler Gives the Jews a City".

One thing about Prague: watch your shit! I was there two months ago doing factfinding for our Holocaust tour and my colleague's jacket got stolen from a barstool. By the time we got back to the room they'd stolen his wallet, laptop, and gps. (yeah, he was an idiot for leaving the keycard in its little packet with the room number, but still).

I don't really know much about the smaller towns you're planning on visiting. I can tell you that the scenery isn't going to be very nice in February. To be honest, most of Slovakia is a bit backwater. The hilly and mountainous areas are gorgeous, but it will be slow going in February, so don't set an aggressive time schedule.

Budapest is my home. I understand why a lot of tourists prefer Prague -- it is easier for English speakers to find the hotspots, whereas Budapest is more spread out. On the other hand, Budapest is much bigger, and has plenty to offer. If you tell me what you're interested in I'll be glad to suggest a multitude of things to do. There is a great nightlife here that is much more integrated between locals and foreigners than Prague is.

Reminder of currency fun:
Czech: crowns
Slovakia: euro
Hungary: forints

[Bad-example]

Easy to get ripped off in Prague. My brother's MIL got her money stolen in the ladies room of a restaurant and we are 99% certain the management was involved.
More importantly, be prepared to see way more hot women in Prague than you might expect. When I was there 20 years ago(!) you could hardly walk down the street without bumping into one. Yeah, I liked Prague.
One of the coolest mementos I have from that trip is the watercolor landscape I bought from a street artist.

[Sgran]

When I was there 20 years ago(!) you could hardly walk down the street without bumping into one. Yeah, I liked Prague.


Budapest is actually better, but it is debatable. So long as your wife isn't the jealous type...

[BillyNYC]

Did Budapest/Vienna/Prague (4 days each) in Nov. 2008. I know I'm in the minority, but much preferred Budapest to Prague. Everywhere in Prague I went, I felt like it was overrun with tourists and people trying to make a $ off of them. (Granted, maybe that's just due to me being in the wrong spots of town.)

Budapest on the other hand felt more "real" and approachable.

Will look through my notes and photos later, but a few places that I recommend:

Prague:
Kafka Museum: http://kafkamuseum.tyden.cz/ShowPage.aspx?tabId=-1 (granted, he's one of my fave writers, but the museum's thorough, interesting and away from crowds)

Charles Bridge at midnight: Charles Bridge - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Charles_Bridge) Touristy during the day, but I loved walking across the bridge and admiring the statues as the snow fell at midnight.

Budapest:

House of Terror: House of Terror - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/House_of_Terror) Depressing, yet interesting. About Nazis, etc.

Buda Triangle (bottom here: Especially for Kids in Budapest at Frommer's (http://www.frommers.com/destinations/budapest/0047021105.html)) Says it's for kids, but I enjoyed it. Great views of the city and a nice hike. Harder in winter, since train runs less often and the chairlift is very cold.) If you have only 2 days, I'd probably skip this.