Ask Me Anything: European Trip Planning with the Monday Night Travel Team

0:00 Good evening everyone and welcome to Monday

0:02 Night Travel with Rick Steves Europe.

0:04 My name is Emily Berkes and tonight I will be your moderator

0:07 for this special ask me anything edition of Monday Night Travel.

0:11 We are going to be answering our audiences most

0:14 asked questions from across our social media channels and fielding

0:18 lots of questions from our live audience here tonight

0:20 all to help you plan your next European vacation.

0:33 And on that note, it is the moment you've all been waiting for.

0:37 Please join me in welcoming my three lovely co-hosts.

0:42 Then Green, Lisa Friend and Gabe Gunnek.

0:45 Hello you three.

0:46 Don't you look adorable this evening.

0:52 Well, I am so glad that we could all gather here tonight

0:56 because we are off on spring break soon and in true RSE fashion,

1:00 we have a busy travel calendar between the four of us and so I

1:05 was wondering if we could talk about where everyone is going on spring break.

1:09 Gabe, should we start with you?

1:11 I'm going to be staying on this side of the Atlantic

1:14 and I'm going to spend my spring break going

1:16 on a week and a half road trip of the great

1:19 state of Oregon just to the south of us.

1:22 I'm I'm from the great state of Oregon.

1:25 Oh.

1:25 Thank you.

1:26 We can talk to You're you must be why it's so great.

1:28 Oh my god, you're the sweetest.

1:30 I am going across the Atlantic.

1:31 I'm super excited to take the new direct

1:34 Seattle to Rome flight on Delta on Friday

1:37 and I will be leading our best of Europe in two weeks tour and then

1:41 our best of family Europe and I will be back on June 7th just in time

1:45 to be done with our spring break and start up shows again on June 8th.

1:50 Ah, Lisa, I want to hear about that flight.

1:52 I'm just back from Venice completing guidebook research.

1:56 So my spring break will be spent here at home,

1:59 perhaps re-watching a few Monday Night Travel

2:01 episodes and missing the three of you dearly.

2:05 Where are you going to be, Emily?

2:07 I I will be going on our Paris in the Heart of France tour.

2:11 I'm taking my mom and my little sister, so I'm very excited about that.

2:14 And because I just can't say no,

2:18 I will be going to Arizona to do a backpacking trip

2:22 with my friends just 3 days after I'm back from France.

2:25 So, I have a month of girls' trips ahead of me, which I'm very excited about.

2:31 Um but since again, this is the last time

2:33 the four of us will be together for a little while,

2:35 I was hoping we could all toast to European travel.

2:40 Cheers.

2:41 Cheers.

2:42 Salute.

2:42 Cheers.

2:44 Prost.

2:49 What are we drinking tonight, Ben?

2:51 This is a Pinot Grigio from the Veneto, or as I like to say, the Veneto.

2:56 The Veneto.

2:58 Which is the region around Venice, of which Venice is the capital city.

3:03 [clears throat] This is very nice.

3:05 All right.

3:05 Well, thank you for the wine, Ben.

3:07 I I'm so happy you introduced me to a new wine region, the Veneto.

3:13 Very very exciting.

3:16 [laughter] Um all right.

3:16 Well, I think um that was a great note to start our show

3:19 on, but before we dive into the questions that I have prepared for you three,

3:25 I would just like to take a moment

3:28 to outline just exactly how this show will go down.

3:33 In my new role here at Rick Steves Europe on the brand marketing team,

3:37 I moderate the comments across our social media channels,

3:40 whether that be our Facebook and Instagram accounts,

3:44 our Facebook group, and the travel forum on our website.

3:49 These are all places where travelers are gathering

3:52 to have interest interesting conversations and exchange valuable travel advice.

3:57 And I also now I'm very very familiar

4:00 with the travel questions that are plaguing our audience.

4:03 So I have collected the most asked questions from our online communities

4:07 and I have gathered three of my favorite travel experts to answer them.

4:12 So tonight we will be talking about travel skills.

4:18 We will be answering questions about the travel news

4:21 and current events that are shaping how we are traveling now.

4:25 We of course will talk about our favorite European destinations.

4:30 And because this is an ask me anything segment,

4:34 we will have a dishy spill the tea MNT tells all segment

4:38 so you can get to know your MNT host a little better.

4:42 And in that we also will be playing a fun bonus game.

4:47 And so that is how our night is going to proceed.

4:51 And we are going to start with travel skills.

4:55 So this may include real questions.

4:57 Travel skills includes packing tips, itinerary planning, sightseeing,

5:02 but we are going to start with choosing your accommodations.

5:07 So Ben, this first question is for you.

5:09 A member of our Facebook group asked,

5:12 "Is using a third party the best way to book lodging in Europe?" And so Ben,

5:16 I am wondering if you could tell us how you find

5:19 good hotels in Europe and whether or not you use third-party sites.

5:25 Thank you, Emily.

5:26 That's a great question.

5:27 I do use third-party websites, but only to a limited extent.

5:31 I use them to look up potential places

5:33 to stay and to read reviews on these places.

5:35 However, when it comes time to book an accommodation,

5:38 I go directly to their website and there's a few reasons for that.

5:42 Booking direct tends to give you the best rate.

5:45 If there's any communication issue, it'll be between you and the hotel,

5:49 so issues are less likely to occur and more of what

5:53 you're paying will probably go directly to the hotel or Airbnb.

5:56 So, those are the three reasons why I recommend you book direct.

5:59 In terms of looking for places to stay in Europe, yes,

6:03 there's third parties you can use,

6:04 but the best place is the Rick Steves Europe guidebook.

6:09 And in fact, I just did this for Venice.

6:11 I went to 40 or 50 hotels.

6:14 So, we go in person when we find

6:16 quality accommodations that we think our travelers will enjoy.

6:19 So, that's the top resource that I will recommend and we even on some of them

6:23 have a little discount that's RS percentage

6:27 in some of the listings in our books.

6:29 So, if you email the hotel directly and say

6:31 that you got the recommendation from the book,

6:33 maybe they will extend a small discount to you.

6:37 All right.

6:37 Thank you, Bed.

6:38 And since you just spent some time in Venice researching our Venice guidebook,

6:46 I was wondering if you would like to respond

6:49 to this comment that we received on Facebook recently.

6:52 This person said that one of the best bits

6:55 of Rick's advice is when in Venice, stay on the island.

6:59 And I'm curious if you have any fresh out of the rucksack tips to share,

7:05 as Rick would say, concerning hotels in Venice.

7:09 Definitely, Emily, and I think that's a fantastic point from Brian.

7:12 You know, um it's so important to stay on the island when you're spending

7:17 the night in Venice to the point where

7:18 in the next edition of the Venice guidebook,

7:20 we will probably not list any accommodations on the mainland.

7:25 So, when you stay on the island near St.

7:28 Mark's, a very good location because you can

7:30 access a lot of the major sites in Venice,

7:32 but if you have a bit more time, more than a couple of nights,

7:35 and Venice is worth at least a couple of nights,

7:37 I would suggest the Cannaregio neighborhood,

7:39 which is in the north part of the island of Venice.

7:42 You have local restaurants there.

7:45 It's where many Venetians actually live.

7:47 It's quieter.

7:47 You get a much more back door look

7:49 at the city without being far away from many major sites.

7:53 So, that's what I would suggest in terms of where to stay in Venice.

7:57 Having just spent nine nights there,

7:58 I'm so honored to have had that opportunity.

8:01 And, you know, Venice is a place where more time

8:04 allows you to experience and get to know the city.

8:07 So, focus on experiences.

8:09 I took a few food tours to um review for the book,

8:12 and that was one of the best things I did because Venetian culture,

8:15 Venetian cuisine is unique from the general Italian cuisine,

8:20 and a food tour is one way to learn more about the city.

8:23 So, just a few tips for you there.

8:25 I would also say as a woman traveling solo that Venice is

8:28 one of the safest cities that you're ever going to stay in.

8:32 And, Venice is really an early night town because most of the workers

8:36 have to get on the boats to leave to go back to the mainland.

8:39 So, a lot of bars close down at 11:00 or midnight.

8:42 Um but, I can walk along the canals,

8:45 along the streets at midnight by myself as a woman,

8:48 and I feel totally safe in the Only interesting thing that ever

8:51 happened to me was I saw George Clooney on a boat,

8:54 and that was a story I'm sure I've told on MNT before.

8:57 And, did you jump in the canal?

9:00 Okay, so we're going to spill the tea later.

9:03 Later, you can ask me what Lisa did when she saw George Clooney.

9:08 All right, noted, Lisa.

9:10 I will not be forgetting that.

9:12 And, Lisa, actually my next question is for you.

9:16 We had a user in our Facebook group asking about how

9:21 they can find a great agriturismo to stay in in Italy,

9:25 and I was hoping you could, one,

9:27 tell our audience what exactly an agriturismo is,

9:32 what the appeal of them is, and how you, Lisa, would reserve one.

9:38 Okay, so an agriturismo is a government-subsidized farmhouse hotels.

9:42 They still have to make 51% or more of their income from farming,

9:47 but it was a way the Italian government

9:49 wanted to help independent farmers still make a living.

9:54 And so people opened up their farmhouses, and they're fantastic.

9:58 You're almost always going to need a car to stay at one.

10:01 They're They're farms.

10:02 They're out in the countryside.

10:04 And I would first use our Rick Steves guidebook.

10:07 Um so if they're listed anywhere where we cover,

10:10 we're going to have the best recommendations for you for that.

10:13 But if not, there's a good website agriturismo.net.

10:18 Um and that's sort of the official agriturismo farmhouse hotel website.

10:24 Thank you, Lisa.

10:25 And my next question is also within your niche.

10:31 Um a couple weeks ago,

10:32 we had a user comment on one of Rick's packing videos asking if Rick

10:38 could pack for her so that she could learn how to finally pack light.

10:42 And so Lisa, since you are the queen of packing light,

10:46 I was hoping you could help Grace out and share some tips for her.

10:50 Um in addition, we actually have a user, William, with us who is wondering,

10:57 um do you guys truly only pack five shirts per the Rick Steves mantra,

11:03 or do you ever cheat and throw in some extra tees?

11:07 Um and also, do you have any advice for packing for different climates?

11:11 So I know I just threw a lot at you.

11:13 Wow.

11:14 [laughter] Okay, let me see.

11:16 people want to know.

11:16 Hi Grace, no, I cannot pack for you,

11:18 but you should watch my packing show because I think, honestly, for women,

11:23 there's a little bit more credibility

11:25 in in my packing show than Rick's because I say,

11:29 "No, I take seven to eight tops because mine are smaller.

11:33 Some have sleeves, long sleeves, three-quarter sleeves, some are sleeveless.

11:36 So, that was the other question.

11:38 Do we ever cheat?

11:39 It There's no cheating as long as it fits in a carry-on size bag.

11:44 And the secret for me is really it's layering up for different climates.

11:50 So, for a spring through fall trip, I'm going to take the same thing.

11:54 I'm going to take a mix of long pants,

11:57 capris, sleeveless tops, short-sleeve tops.

12:00 And on the coldest day when I have to go

12:01 to the top of the Schilthorn at 10,000 ft,

12:04 I'm going to wear my long pants, my socks, my shoes.

12:07 I'm going to wear a T-shirt and my layering sweater,

12:10 which is usually like a black V-neck cashmere sweater,

12:13 and then I'm going to have my raincoat on.

12:15 And that's going to keep me warm even at high elevation.

12:18 And then as I go down and I hike more, then I just sort of shed things as I go.

12:25 Um, and the other one is laundry.

12:26 You basically you want to pack for about a week's worth of clothes,

12:29 and once a week you go to the laundry.

12:31 And Rick is actually evangelical about using his sink for laundry.

12:36 I pack six or seven pairs of underwear and six or seven pairs of socks so I

12:40 don't have to do uh sink laundry if I don't want to, but I will be honest,

12:45 I take two to three pairs of pants and I do

12:48 wear them more than once before I make it to laundromat.

12:51 So, I hope that that helps Grace and William and anybody else.

12:55 And watch my packing show cuz it's fun.

12:58 And I'll just say not to brag, but back in 2023,

13:02 I did a 3-week trip where I had to be uh

13:06 in Switzerland in the middle of the summer prepared for up to 80°.

13:10 I went to the Faroe Islands where I had to be prepared for sub-40°.

13:14 I had to run races and attend a formal dinner,

13:18 and I was still able to do all of that packing within the carry-on size bag.

13:22 So, you just have to be very strategic um and as Lisa said,

13:27 layers, layers, layers.

13:30 I want to see that packing list, Gabe.

13:32 I I'm very impressed.

13:33 I have photos of it all.

13:35 I'll show you, Emily.

13:36 Oh, good.

13:39 proud.

13:39 You should be.

13:41 Uh okay, Gabe.

13:41 Well, this next question is for you, actually.

13:44 We get a lot of questions on the travel forum in our Facebook group

13:49 asking about how people can stay connected

13:52 and use their phones while traveling through Europe,

13:55 including this traveler here who is headed to Italy soon.

13:59 And they are wondering what the best e-SIMs are for Italy.

14:04 And so, I was hoping if you could just

14:07 start by telling us a little bit about e-SIMs,

14:10 how to use them, and also what you would recommend for this traveler.

14:16 Well, this is great because um people have started to think of me as being techy

14:21 because I did a a class for Monday

14:25 Night Travel of traveling smartly with your smartphone,

14:27 but I think I'm a great person because I am not techy.

14:30 So, I have to try to figure out

14:32 get all of this information through my thick skull.

14:36 Um so, I can hopefully communicate it well to others.

14:39 So, phones come with SIM cards, which is a subscriber identity module.

14:45 Basically, when you get a phone,

14:47 you have your provider like Verizon or T-Mobile, and that SIM card,

14:51 it stores the data of who you are or which phone

14:55 is yours and what plan you have because those mobile carriers,

15:00 they operate the cell towers and all

15:03 of the physical infrastructure that relays your messages.

15:06 And so, basically, that SIM card is like flashing

15:09 your ID to say, "This is who I am.

15:12 I have access to this network.

15:14 Let my message through." But when you're traveling,

15:17 you are no longer amidst your normal network.

15:21 So, you need to use different mobile networks to get your messages across.

15:26 And there's a couple There's a few different ways to do so.

15:29 Two of the main ones are using

15:32 your existing carrier like T-Mobile, Verizon, AT&T,

15:36 and getting their international plan,

15:38 where basically you can just not do anything to your phone,

15:42 keep using it, just purchase that plan,

15:44 and your carrier has kind of cut deals with the various European carriers.

15:49 Or you can get a SIM card in Europe.

15:53 It used to be that you'd go to a mobile phone shop,

15:56 and you would get a little chip,

15:58 and you would take the chip, the SIM chip, out of your phone,

16:02 and you would put in the international chip,

16:05 and you would get a different phone number,

16:07 and basically you'd have like a new ID card to access a new network.

16:13 Now, because the um the the real estate inside of a phone is so precious,

16:20 they said even that tiny SIM card is too big.

16:23 We're going to do a tiny micro SIM card if it's just fused into the circuitry.

16:28 And now, you can get an eSIM, which is an embedded SIM,

16:33 and you can get that kind of new eSIM

16:37 usually through an app or some sort of QR code.

16:40 Um is how then you that activate uh access to the local networks.

16:45 So, I have T-Mobile, which is a great network at least right now

16:49 because you can just go and use your phone normally,

16:52 and you don't need to buy an international plan.

16:55 Some of the plans let you do that.

16:56 Most of the plans.

16:58 Most of the plans.

16:59 If you get If you get like the Essentials one,

17:02 um then you don't necessarily have the international plan.

17:06 But most of them do.

17:07 So, I don't actually have to do that, but Ben,

17:09 given that you were just in the Veneto,

17:13 um you were just in Italy using SIM cards.

17:15 What did you do?

17:17 Yes, Gabe.

17:17 I used an eSIM for my iPhone and I got Airalo.

17:21 It's A I R A L O and I've used them a couple times.

17:25 You just go on their website.

17:27 They have the list of options.

17:28 You can choose single country or all of Europe for not much

17:32 of a surcharge and then you pick the amount of data you want.

17:35 And my rough rule is unless you're a heavy user you're showing it there Lisa.

17:39 Thank you.

17:40 Unless you're a heavy user 5 GB a week of data should be more than enough.

17:45 So I try to purchase a plan with that in mind.

17:49 So I'm going to chime in because you can have multiple SIMs since

17:54 the last few years you can have multiple SIMs eSIMs in your phone.

17:59 So I buy an eSIM from Airalo or Saylite S

18:04 A I L Y which is a little bit more secure.

18:07 I will use an eSIM from them but I also keep my T-Mobile phone number.

18:11 So I actually will have multiple phone numbers on my phone which

18:15 as a guide is really helpful because I want my tour members to to call

18:19 me on one line and I want the spam likelys to call me

18:24 on a different so I can block that number so I can sleep at night.

18:27 So But that brings up the point Lisa that yes,

18:29 you can control which SIM is on and which SIM

18:31 is off which is valuable if you don't have international coverage.

18:35 You want to make sure that that's turned off

18:37 or maybe you'll be given a very large fee.

18:41 Did we get all the waves with that?

18:45 [laughter] Thank you you three.

18:45 Lots of helpful information there.

18:47 Gabe I actually have two follow-up questions for you

18:51 both from Nick Z who is joining us tonight.

18:55 They want to know first how do you

18:58 pull up your e-tickets if you have sketchy Wi-Fi?

19:01 You know say you're going into a museum

19:04 you're digging through your phone to find your tickets.

19:06 Um And Nick's second question for you is do you own a beret?

19:11 Oh, a beret?

19:12 Does Nick know you?

19:13 Is Nick one of your friends?

19:15 I don't own a beret.

19:16 You do too.

19:16 I've seen you in a beret.

19:19 He borrowed my beret.

19:20 Ben's beret.

19:22 I had an extra.

19:23 No, I I don't have a beret,

19:25 but I should put that on my next birthday list because

19:29 one of mine.

19:29 bring you one from France this year.

19:32 As to the first question, um yes,

19:35 so many tickets are online these days and they're always

19:38 in your email and sometimes there can be shotty Wi-Fi access throughout Europe.

19:44 So, one thing that I always do really diligently, ideally before my trip,

19:49 but you can also go with the approach

19:51 of just kind of having a morning ritual before you

19:54 leave your hotel where you have reliable Wi-Fi to just

19:57 take screenshots of your various tickets and confirmation information.

20:03 I'm still kind of an analog guy at the end of the day,

20:06 so I will even still print all of my uh confirmations

20:12 for everything and I'll have one stapled packet of all my information,

20:16 which is very much overkill.

20:17 I'm not sure I've ever used it, but it gives me a a sense of ease.

20:22 But, otherwise, always taking screenshots is a good idea.

20:26 I will say I agree with you with boarding passes.

20:28 Samantha Brown just talked about this on social

20:30 media just the other day that having a paper boarding pass is very good

20:35 insurance against the airlines ever doing anything untoward,

20:39 accidentally or not.

20:43 Good tip, Lisa.

20:44 Thank thank you both.

20:45 Um all right.

20:48 Well, another big topic in our online communities is, of course,

20:55 train travel and a lot of people ask um if they need

21:00 to book their train tickets in advance before they actually leave for Europe.

21:06 And that is what this person is asking.

21:08 They are traveling to France in August and they

21:11 are unsure if they should worry about booking their tickets

21:14 from Marseille to Avignon before they travel or if they

21:18 can enjoy the flexibility of booking them while they are there.

21:23 And so I was wondering if anyone has some advice for this traveler to France.

21:29 Oh, any of us?

21:30 Oh, I would love to take this question cuz

21:32 I've actually taken the train from Marseille to Avignon.

21:35 So, uh Marseille to Avignon is not that far.

21:37 They run TER, which are regional trains,

21:39 and they run high-speed trains that go on further.

21:42 Um Gabe and I were talking about this earlier and if

21:45 you know for sure like I want to leave at 10:30,

21:48 I want to that's how I want to plan my day,

21:51 go ahead and buy your ticket in advance,

21:53 especially if you're buying it a month or two in advance,

21:56 you can save 40 to 60% off of the regular price,

22:00 especially if it's a a longer train,

22:02 like if you're going from Marseille or Avignon to Paris,

22:05 you would for sure want to buy that ticket

22:07 a month or two in advance to get the good discounts.

22:10 Marseille to Avignon,

22:11 those trains are going one or two times an hour and like I said,

22:14 you can take a regional or a high-speed.

22:16 You don't need to worry about it.

22:18 It's only if you want the the assuredly that you're

22:21 going to get on the train at a specific time.

22:24 But I wouldn't worry about that one specifically.

22:29 All right, and I have another train question for you three.

22:33 So, Leah is going to Italy for the first time

22:36 this summer and she is considering getting a rail pass.

22:40 She knows she is going to have at least five train journeys,

22:44 it looks like, within Italy.

22:47 How can she figure out whether or not she would benefit from a rail pass?

22:52 Can I answer this one, too?

22:53 Sure, and we'll add on if we need.

22:55 So, the thing about Italian rail passes is

22:58 they don't usually save you a lot of money

23:00 and they're not super flexible because you have

23:03 to make your seat reservations on any high-speed train anyway,

23:06 but if you have five journeys and you know you want to travel in first class,

23:12 especially because it's summer and the air conditioning

23:14 is just a little bit stronger in first class,

23:16 then she might want to look at a rail pass.

23:19 But otherwise, second class, non-summer, I wouldn't worry about it.

23:24 Most of the places that people are going have a lot of train connections.

23:28 And purchasing it purchasing the tickets ahead allows for those discounts,

23:32 which also makes the pass not as good of a value.

23:36 All right, thank you.

23:37 And I have a follow-up to to that train connection that you guys just mentioned.

23:44 So, Carol L, who is watching with us tonight,

23:49 she was wondering if you had any tips for handling short

23:53 train connections and what happens if you were to miss your train.

23:57 And she she didn't state where she was traveling.

24:00 So.

24:01 Aha, well And really European travel.

24:03 I'll start us out with that.

24:05 Depending on the country, she may be able to have a sense of what platform

24:09 she's arriving on and then departing from with her next train.

24:14 A good website for that is bahn.com.

24:16 It's bahn.com.

24:18 It shows the schedules of most public trains for all of Europe.

24:21 So, I go to bahn and often times I'm able

24:23 to see the platforms ahead, so I have an idea.

24:26 Otherwise, I get off the train,

24:29 go to the end of the platform, look for the big board,

24:32 find my next train, and confirm the platform on it,

24:36 and go instantly to that next platform.

24:38 If the first train is late, and so therefore you missed the next train,

24:42 generally the rail service is helpful at adjusting your ticket

24:46 to the best next option because it was their fault.

24:49 So, don't worry too much.

24:50 In some countries like Switzerland, the trains are almost always on time.

24:54 In other countries, they're not always on time

24:56 and this this may happen, but it's okay.

24:58 Don't worry too much.

25:00 I don't have anything to add.

25:01 That was beautiful.

25:04 You stumped Lisa, Ben.

25:09 [laughter] Stumped me?

25:09 I just We have a We have a a score that we're keeping, right?

25:15 We're each getting a score every time.

25:18 Yes, you you three actually are being graded on this, and answering

25:22 questions from the live audience does earn you bonus points.

25:25 So, remember that.

25:27 Okay, well, we are going to move on to our next category,

25:31 and that is trending travel topics.

25:34 This section is devoted to answering questions about the travel

25:38 news and current events that are shaping the way we travel.

25:42 And I also, again, would like to remind you

25:44 that we are taking your travel questions all throughout tonight's program.

25:49 Uh and so, make sure you submit them to the Q&A widget.

25:55 All right.

25:56 So, our first question is for Ben.

25:59 We are going to start with a topic that is on everyone's minds right now,

26:03 and that is EES, which stands for entry-exit system.

26:08 And Ben, you just went through EES um about a week or so ago,

26:13 and I was wondering if you could tell Beth

26:16 here what she could expect from her layover at CDG.

26:21 She is on her way to Zagreb,

26:24 and she is looking for tips for navigating

26:27 crowds or potential delays associated with EES.

26:31 Thank you, Emily.

26:32 Thank you, Beth.

26:33 Well, I'll start by explaining what EES is.

26:35 It's the new entry-exit system of the Schengen Zone of the European Union,

26:39 which is the border zone of the European Union,

26:42 and most EU countries are Schengen countries.

26:45 This is replacing the old stamp that you used to get in your passport,

26:49 and I want to emphasize, don't worry too much about it.

26:53 It's not a big deal at all.

26:55 Some of the news has been maybe making

26:57 it into a bigger deal than it actually is.

26:59 It's very quick.

26:59 I just did it.

27:00 I went through Amsterdam on April 7th.

27:03 I went uh to Bologna via Amsterdam.

27:06 And because Amsterdam is the first place I

27:09 landed in the Schengen zone of the EU,

27:11 that's where I went through passport control.

27:13 They on April 7th were still using the old system.

27:16 I had my passport stamped because the requirement

27:19 date is April 10th for the new EES system.

27:22 So now it should be of course in force.

27:24 That also means when I left via Amsterdam,

27:28 I left Schengen going through the Amsterdam airport,

27:30 that was where I used the EES system because I left at the end of April.

27:35 And that was so quick.

27:36 They scan the passport, they take a picture of you,

27:39 and they take your fingerprints.

27:40 And this is biometric data that they keep for 3 years.

27:44 So the idea is that if you go back

27:46 to the Schengen zone of the EU within the next 3 years,

27:50 you may just have to present your passport,

27:51 they may not take your fingerprint and face.

27:54 Regardless, this was very quick.

27:56 It took 20 seconds.

27:58 Uh there was no line at the time that I went through.

28:01 So I think that travelers should not be too concerned.

28:03 Maybe at this moment now there's a little

28:05 bit of transition because it's a new system.

28:07 Uh but don't worry, the same old rules still apply regarding uh getting

28:12 your passport checked and the validity you

28:14 need for your passport and all of that.

28:16 Uh so what can Beth expect?

28:18 She can expect that she's going to have her picture taken,

28:20 her fingerprints taken,

28:22 and she's going to need to show her passport in a scanner,

28:24 but that it should not be a big issue at all.

28:28 And isn't it fair to say that some countries

28:30 have been rolling this out for a while now?

28:32 Because maybe I didn't get my fingerprints done before,

28:35 but I know I've had my picture taken and my passport

28:38 scanned a couple of times in the last few years.

28:41 Yes, every country has rolled them out at a different pace.

28:44 Uh I I they should just be about

28:46 done now unless they're working through any kinks.

28:49 Maybe they're feeling Portugal just rolled it back by a few months.

28:51 Yeah, that could be.

28:52 Maybe they're working through some kinks.

28:53 But this is part of the more significant ETIAS,

28:58 which is an online form and fee that we may

29:02 have to start paying at some point in the future.

29:03 Right now, the date for that is October.

29:05 It's been pushed back for years, so don't worry too much about it.

29:09 It's not a visa, it's just an online form and a payment.

29:11 Europeans have to do it before they come to the US,

29:14 so in a way it's kind of reciprocal.

29:16 So keep an eye on that.

29:17 For now, not an issue.

29:19 Thank you, Ben.

29:20 You read our travelers' minds because that question was coming up.

29:24 So thank you for clearing it up.

29:26 Um I have a follow-up question to EES.

29:31 So this traveler is worried about

29:34 their return flight when they are leaving Europe.

29:39 They have an 85-minute layover at CDG um before their transatlantic flight.

29:47 Do you think this is enough time?

29:48 They are considering rebooking their tickets, biting the bullet,

29:53 and paying what is probably a large fee.

29:55 And I am curious what you guys think of that.

29:59 Do you have any thoughts for this traveler?

30:01 Um I thoughts

30:03 Thoughts and [laughter] prayers.

30:04 That's good.

30:05 Um yeah, 85 minutes did she say at CDG?

30:08 Yeah.

30:08 Yeah, so Charles de Gaulle in Paris.

30:11 Uh that is not enough time,

30:12 but what they need to consider before they

30:14 rebook is what happens if they miss their flight.

30:16 So if they miss their flight because their original

30:19 flight was late and they're booked on the same airline,

30:22 it's the airline's responsibility to put them up for a night at a hotel,

30:26 pay for their food, and get them on a flight the next day.

30:29 If they've got like a meeting or something they have to be home

30:31 for, then I would say go ahead and rebook and get a larger layover time,

30:37 but um I yeah, I would I personally would

30:40 not book an hour and 25 minutes at CDG.

30:42 My minimum is an hour and 45 and that's on the way

30:46 home where I don't care if I get home on time.

30:49 On the way there it's a minimum of like two, two and a half hours.

30:53 So.

30:54 And whether or not she can rebook may depend on how

30:57 it was booked and what level of ticket she bought, right?

31:00 If it's easily to If it's easy to rebook then good I good thing to do.

31:05 All right.

31:06 Well, we also get a lot of people asking if their layover is long

31:11 enough and I think this does boil down to personal preference to some degree,

31:17 but um yeah, people want to know is their layover long enough?

31:23 Just period and is their layover long enough to leave the airport

31:26 and sightsee and I would like to pull the three of you.

31:29 So, I believe that you have some whiteboards with you.

31:34 So, um we are we're playing a new game here.

31:38 We're calling it the tipping point game.

31:40 And so, um first of all, I would like to know what the shortest layover length

31:50 is in hours that you all would feel okay with.

31:54 So, this is where you're touching down in Europe

31:57 and you need to make a connecting flight.

31:59 What is the shortest layover that you

32:01 will accept and book your ticket to Europe?

32:09 You two are writing a lot.

32:10 What?

32:13 [laughter] Oh, wow.

32:12 He's going further than me.

32:14 It's like a math problem.

32:17 Okay, it looks like two hours for Gabe.

32:19 Lisa, oh, calling out Heathrow.

32:23 We need two and a half hours at Heathrow,

32:24 okay, and one and three quarters hour at other airports.

32:29 Ben is thinking small or medium airport, you can do with an hour.

32:33 Large airport, we need 90 minutes.

32:36 Wow, 60 minutes is

32:38 I'm a I'm a runner, so I can get to the airport quickly if I have to.

32:42 Gabe and I are both willing to hustle.

32:44 [laughter] And the other thing is it really does

32:45 depend on the airport a bit and the size.

32:47 In Helsinki, I think an hour is enough.

32:49 In Reykjavik, I think an hour is usually enough.

32:52 I think 35 minutes in Reykjavik can be enough.

32:55 Any airport when they're running the whole

32:57 the one airline is running the whole airport.

33:00 They're not going to leave without you.

33:04 All right.

33:05 Well, on the topic of layovers,

33:07 I am curious how long your layover has to be for you

33:12 to leave the airport and go sightsee in whatever your layover destination is.

33:19 How long do you need?

33:28 Okay, it looks like Gabe's ready.

33:30 Oh, Lisa is writing.

33:32 I know, these two are like authors.

33:35 [laughter] You got to publish their book out.

33:36 I wrote less this time.

33:38 Okay, 7 hours for Gabe, 5 hours if transport into town is good.

33:43 Lisa, I think that's a great point because if you're flying into FCO in Rome,

33:47 you can just hop on the Leonardo Express.

33:50 Well, I mean, you are in Rome,

33:52 but so that is also something to consider that you're in Italy.

33:56 But again, if you're there's good transport,

33:59 that can really save you a lot of time and stress.

34:01 And Ben says 6 hours.

34:03 Okay, have any of you actually done

34:05 this recently where you had a a long layover?

34:07 Okay, Lisa, where where did you it your layover?

34:11 I went to go get some um special chutney for my friends

34:15 who just spent a lot of time in South Africa,

34:17 and we found out that you could only get it at this one store,

34:20 and we went to the end of the line and got it and turned around and came back.

34:23 But the 5 hours allows you at least 2 hours of sightseeing cuz

34:26 you should be back at the airport 3 hours before your flight in general.

34:31 So, there's no point really in leaving the airport if

34:34 you don't have at least a couple hours to do something.

34:36 And we had a very specific mission we were on, and it was fun.

34:41 I also just find getting to the airport to be

34:43 one of the stressful most stressful experiences of any trip,

34:47 so the the payoff for having to go through that one

34:51 extra time has to be pretty high for me to consider it.

34:57 Is this what you told me?

35:00 I've never had Mrs.

35:01 Ball's chutney, so [laughter] I'm a good friend.

35:05 You'll let me try some?

35:06 No, it's at my friend's house.

35:07 I can't get them.

35:10 oh.

35:09 Okay, and now we're just going to switch gears a little bit.

35:12 I'm curious how far um you all are willing to travel for a day trip.

35:20 So, how long in transit are you willing to spend to take a day trip?

35:26 I thought you said how long Is this um round trip?

35:29 One way.

35:30 One way.

35:31 One way.

35:34 And yet, one way.

35:34 This is We're all in the same ballpark.

35:37 Yeah, we agree.

35:38 Oh, very good.

35:39 You know, three I was actually thinking two hours,

35:42 so you guys are all willing to go Well,

35:45 I figure it depends on the method as well.

35:47 If you're driving, that can be more tiring.

35:49 If you're taking a train, uh it's a little easier, maybe.

35:53 A direct train.

35:54 Yeah.

35:54 Yeah, not transferring.

35:57 I wouldn't want to do this many times on a trip,

35:59 but I think like one well-placed epic day trip

36:03 in the middle of a trip um can be really exciting.

36:06 Especially because you're saving time by day tripping and not

36:08 having to check in and out of a hotel.

36:11 Yeah.

36:11 Yeah.

36:11 Mhm.

36:12 Mhm.

36:12 [clears throat] That can be very tiring.

36:15 Well, it takes up time, right?

36:17 But Venice is not one of the places

36:19 you should do this unless you absolutely have to.

36:22 George Clooney, if you day trip in the night.

36:24 Yes, [laughter] that's right.

36:25 And you have to pay the excess for free.

36:29 All right.

36:30 Well, we are going to switch gears and get back

36:33 into those hot-button travel topics that our travelers are talking about now.

36:39 And so, we're going to talk about using AI to plan your trip.

36:44 I know a lot of our travelers, I believe use AI to get ideas about where they

36:49 might want to travel or maybe help them plan their itineraries.

36:54 And so, Lisa, why don't we start with you?

36:59 This travel forum user is wondering,

37:02 "Would you let AI totally plan your trip?" And I guess

37:07 a Wall Street Journal journalist tried that out to, I think, little success.

37:15 But, what about you?

37:16 Would you consider using AI to help you plan your trip?

37:20 Um hell to the no.

37:22 But, that's a personal answer.

37:24 I mean, I'm not a big fan of AI because of the environmental impact,

37:28 but also because AI will always go out and get you some kind of answer.

37:31 They're never going to come back and go, "Well,

37:33 I don't know." So, you can't really trust everything they say.

37:37 Um I think Rick has said that he

37:38 will use it for very short uh specific questions.

37:42 Like, you could use you could ask AI, like,

37:44 how long does it take to get from here to there?

37:46 But, as somebody who was a travel consultant for 20 years, um no.

37:51 I don't think that you can negate

37:53 the uh importance of experience and personal opinion.

37:57 So, no.

37:58 I'm not letting AI because also AI

38:00 just takes a lot of information from influencers.

38:03 And if I want influencer information, I can just go to Instagram directly.

38:07 I know um one of our top guidebook co-authors,

38:11 Cameron Hewitt, who has been on Monday Night Travel many times,

38:14 wrote a great blog post on um comparing an entry

38:19 that he wrote for a site with one that AI wrote.

38:22 and one thing I found most fascinating is because AI just scrapes things

38:27 from the internet and so much of what's on the internet is promotional.

38:30 AI in some ways kind of can't help but always trying to pitch you on something

38:35 rather than just giving you the information

38:38 and letting you decide if it's right for you.

38:40 Thank you.

38:40 That was so well said.

38:41 I appreciate that.

38:43 No, seriously.

38:43 All right.

38:44 Well, thank you both and Gabe,

38:46 we are going to close out this section with a question for you.

38:51 Um a lot of people are, I think,

38:54 confused and unsure if they should use Airbnb uh to, you know,

39:00 reserve and and just stay somewhere while they're traveling.

39:03 And so I was wondering if you could tell us a little bit about the pros,

39:08 cons, and ethics of using Airbnb.

39:11 What would you recommend to our travelers?

39:13 Yeah, I mean, this is a huge discussion topic in the travel industry,

39:17 especially around discussions of overtourism and ways that in many

39:22 ways the most prized and historic regions of certain cities

39:29 are now becoming the exclusive domain of tourists and then

39:32 actually kind of losing the local flavor that made them great.

39:36 Barcelona probably being the poster child of this of the Las

39:40 Ramblas walking street that used to have all the little birds that the the local

39:46 children would go and get their pet birds there.

39:48 You don't see those there anymore because there aren't really locals living

39:51 in that area um because it has become the domain of tourists.

39:55 I was just in Arles, France this summer and there were signs

39:58 all over town that I found very compelling.

40:01 They They weren't trying to be accusational or mean,

40:04 but it just said, "Hey tourist,

40:07 your Airbnb is driving up my rent." And so I think in the early days of Airbnb,

40:15 it was this great concept of it was a lot

40:17 of people just renting out a side room or renting out

40:20 their basement and it put you in a situation where you

40:23 had the two things that we prize most with our lodging,

40:26 which is easy access to the city center and trying to connect you with locals.

40:31 In our hotels, we often have that with our friendly hoteliers.

40:35 And so I generally try to encourage people um try to use hotels,

40:43 hostels, um guest houses, traditional B&Bs as much as possible.

40:48 Um sometimes an Airbnb could be a good solution,

40:53 um especially maybe if you're going to be outside of those historic cores.

40:57 And one good thing that you can

40:59 do because Airbnbs kind of became very profitable,

41:02 you got some people that bought up a lot of property

41:05 in these cities just to turn them into short-term rentals.

41:09 So, when you find an Airbnb,

41:11 click on the owner and it will tell you how many properties they own.

41:15 So, you want to make sure that it's

41:16 somebody that hopefully maybe just has that one property.

41:20 The last thing I'll say is while having your own little apartment can be nice,

41:24 there can be logistical issues.

41:26 I once got an Airbnb in Paris.

41:29 We couldn't find the key and it turned out

41:32 that the code that the host had given us,

41:35 one of the digits was wrong and we didn't know how to reach them.

41:39 And so, when you're just corresponding

41:41 with one person rather than a well-organized business,

41:45 there's more potential for things to go wrong.

41:48 I'll add that many hotels have many apartments or apart hotels.

41:52 In my trip to Venice just now, I stayed in four different places.

41:56 Two of the rooms that I stayed in were not rooms,

41:59 they were actually small apartments that were part of Ground floor by the hotel.

42:03 Exactly.

42:04 Which ones were they?

42:05 Opera Relais de Charme in Verona.

42:11 I put him on the spot.

42:12 And [laughter] what was the other one?

42:14 In Was that in Venice proper?

42:16 No, in Padova.

42:17 Oh, okay.

42:18 Yeah.

42:18 And you stayed at the Tuscan Alley in Padova?

42:20 Yes, they gave me an apartment.

42:22 Yeah, thank you.

42:23 Majestic Tuscan Alley.

42:25 Tuscan Alley.

42:25 Yes.

42:26 And the other thing Gabe to finalize that point too is that in my experience,

42:31 and you alluded to this, if you're traveling off the beaten path,

42:34 chances are it's a local owning the B&B.

42:37 But if you're traveling in a very touristy place, perhaps not.

42:40 Yes.

42:41 Yeah.

42:42 And also, I always say with lodging, hostels,

42:45 a lot of people don't know this, but a lot of hostels have private rooms.

42:48 You would still have a shared bathroom,

42:50 but you get to know people, still pretty centrally located,

42:53 there's a kitchen, and you don't have to sleep in a room with strangers.

42:57 And some of them do have private bathrooms.

42:59 That's my standard, and I have stayed at a couple of hostels,

43:02 especially the further north you get in Europe, the more expensive it gets,

43:05 so I have stayed in hostels in England and Scandinavia,

43:08 and yeah, I like a private bathroom.

43:12 All right.

43:13 Well, thank you, you three,

43:14 and I think now we can move on to our destination investigation,

43:20 which is part of the show where we

43:23 will answer questions about our favorite European travel destinations.

43:27 First things first, Lisa, I have a question for you.

43:32 Um, Marie here is doing our family tour this summer,

43:37 and in July they will be traveling,

43:40 and they will have their free day in the Cinque Terre.

43:43 Uh, they'll be staying in Levanto,

43:45 and they will have their 16-year-old grandson in tow,

43:49 and they are looking for things to do.

43:51 So, what would you recommend this family does

43:55 with their free day in the Cinque Terre?

43:57 Well, first of all, I'm very excited that you're coming on our tour,

44:00 and the family-friendly tour is without a doubt my favorite itinerary of all,

44:04 because it's the only one that includes

44:06 London and the continent, so it's fantastic.

44:09 I don't think that you honestly need to worry about

44:11 what you're going to do in the Cinque Terre now.

44:13 I'll give you the answer anyway,

44:14 but one of the things your guide is going to do

44:16 on that beautiful but long bus drive from Switzerland down to the Cinque Terre.

44:21 They're going to talk to you about all your options.

44:24 Um in a nutshell, I would say depending upon

44:27 what your interests are and your fitness level, you know,

44:29 get up and hike in the morning like early morning like

44:33 7:00 you want to be out there before it gets too hot,

44:35 before the crowd show up, and then spend the afternoon on the beach.

44:40 That's In a nutshell, that is my recommendation.

44:45 I tried to give her the easiest one.

44:46 That's good.

44:48 [laughter] Well done.

44:48 Sounds like a wonderful day.

44:50 Um So since we are currently in Italy, um Jason in our chat just asked,

44:57 "Is Naples a doable day trip from Rome?" Yeah, I mean,

45:02 within the parameters that we gave, yeah, it's 90 minutes by high-speed train.

45:07 You would definitely want to book that in advance because regular price

45:10 you're going to be paying a little over $120 for that ticket.

45:15 So if you buy it in advance, you'll save some money,

45:17 but yeah, you could absolutely do Naples as a day trip from Rome.

45:22 Though I think we would probably recommend in an ideal world

45:25 to spend more time in Naples than just a day trip.

45:28 No, we wouldn't.

45:29 No?

45:30 No, but we would say maybe go sleep in Sorrento,

45:33 and then there are other things to do in that area,

45:35 but Naples is worth about a full day.

45:38 I think Emily Emily loved Naples.

45:40 I think Emily would disagree.

45:42 I did.

45:42 That's also because I'm my brilliant friend pilled,

45:45 so I [laughter] I had a a skewed uh

45:50 I I was more interested than maybe the average traveler.

45:53 And also I love pizza, and the pizza will not disappoint you, Jason.

45:56 It is worth the day trip.

45:58 Um all right, I have a question that I think is

46:01 perfect for one Benjamin Green uh from from BR in the chat.

46:07 They are wondering favorite locations in the Balkans for young solo

46:10 travelers going to need a little time outside of the Schengen area.

46:16 You have any Balkans recommendations?

46:18 Well, more Balkan countries are part of the Schengen area,

46:21 so that's tricky because Croatia became part

46:24 of the Schengen area a few years ago.

46:25 So now we're talking Bosnia, Serbia, these kinds of places.

46:29 I think Belgrade is a fantastic city for young people.

46:33 It's great food, good music,

46:36 and the culture there is just a little bit different.

46:39 So I would suggest Belgrade as a city to spend some

46:41 time and you could make a few day trips from there.

46:44 Definitely outside of Schengen.

46:47 Thank you.

46:48 And now I have a question for Gabe from William P.

46:53 He is looking for countries that are off the beaten path like Bulgaria and they

46:59 are wondering if you feel it's easier

47:01 to navigate through them on an organized tour.

47:04 And specifically Gabe,

47:06 they're just wondering how did you find Bulgaria when you traveled there?

47:09 Do you think it would be doable as independent travel?

47:14 Yes.

47:15 I think on the one hand I was grateful that I

47:19 got to do Bulgaria as a tour because our tour guide, Stefan, is excellent.

47:27 I mean, he is the guy that the royal

47:30 family calls if they want to tour somewhere in Bulgaria.

47:35 So he really is incredible and I felt like

47:37 I got such a great sense of the country.

47:40 That said, I was actually surprised how accessible I found Bulgaria.

47:44 Granted, when I was there,

47:45 I didn't need to figure out my buses to each different place,

47:51 but I think coordinating your bus travel or getting a rental car

47:55 would not be that much more difficult than other places in Europe.

47:59 Um Um and I felt that Bulgaria definitely had a distinctive flavor,

48:03 but I didn't feel significantly more culture shock than other places in Europe.

48:08 Um and it has the oldest continuously inhabited city in all of Europe.

48:14 It's not Rome, it's not Athens, it's Plovdiv.

48:17 Um which I was also thinking when Ben was answering would

48:20 be a great uh place for younger travelers cuz it has history,

48:25 but it is considered the cultural capital

48:27 as opposed to Sofia being the actual capital.

48:30 And it has a very youthful and artistic vibe to it.

48:35 So, um and then of course getting out to the Black Sea,

48:39 um you also have a lot of really vibrant cities out there.

48:42 So, um I would strongly recommend Bulgaria to anybody

48:47 that considers themselves a Rick Steves style traveler.

48:52 Well said.

48:55 All right.

48:55 Thank you.

48:56 out with these two smart guys.

48:57 [laughter] They're killing it.

49:01 You guys are killing it.

49:02 Well, we learn from the best, Lisa.

49:04 Rick, I know.

49:05 No, you.

49:08 [laughter] Should we tell our audience that the only way

49:09 I agreed to do the show is if I didn't have to do any prep for it and I

49:12 could just come [laughter] on and drink wine and talk?

49:16 Well, we have our we have our Magna

49:18 wine glasses for this destination investigation section.

49:22 Okay, we're we're ready.

49:25 All right.

49:25 Well, Lisa, I do have another question for you

49:28 that I think you are well equipped to answer.

49:31 So, this person in our travel forum,

49:35 they are driving from Dingle to Doolin on their uh Ireland road trip

49:42 and they're wondering what they should uh stop to see during that drive.

49:47 They'll be coming from a couple days on the Dingle Peninsula,

49:51 so they will have already seen it.

49:53 But, what would you recommend to this traveler who is on their way to Doolin?

49:58 I love it says AI not helpful.

50:00 I'm like, yeah, that doesn't surprise me.

50:02 So, if I were going to go from Dingle to Doolin,

50:05 a couple of things that I would not want to miss,

50:07 I would definitely leave Dingle and take the Conor Pass,

50:11 which is this beautiful mountainous pass that they go over to go

50:15 from the south side of the Dingle Peninsula to the north,

50:18 and then you're going to hit R560 and go east and you're

50:21 going to take it all the way to the Tarbert car ferry,

50:25 and then go across, and then I'm

50:27 going to say something so controversial right now.

50:30 Skip the Cliffs of Moher.

50:32 Just head to I know, and I'll tell you why.

50:36 Just go straight to Doolin, and then in Doolin, there are one,

50:40 maybe two companies that do cruises out of Doolin

50:44 that come back to the Cliffs of Moher.

50:46 And I did that with a private group that I took years ago,

50:49 and it was so much more impactful to be right up there

50:54 and you have that Princess Bride Cliffs of Insanity feeling cuz you're just,

50:58 you know, these 800-ft high cliffs and you're right

51:00 up against them and you might see a puffin.

51:03 So, that would be like a big big deal for me.

51:06 I'd be very excited.

51:07 And also, the Cliffs of Moher is not like I went when back in 1990

51:13 when you could belly up to the edge and hang your head over and, you know,

51:19 contemplate your mortality.

51:20 Now, they have it all walled off, so you can't actually get very close.

51:24 So, I would say, see those cliffs from the bottom,

51:26 and if you really want to defy death and hang your head over,

51:30 take the boat from Galway or Doolin over to Inishmore and go

51:35 to the fort of Dun Aengus on Inishmore because that is

51:39 not uh regulated and you can impress your teenagers and um

51:44 get sick to your stomach by hanging your head over the edge.

51:47 I thought that you were going to tell us if we want to dangle,

51:49 we can go to the Blarney Stone.

51:51 We know how much you love that, Lisa.

51:54 No.

51:54 Some of my [laughter] delightful ex-tour members are there right now,

51:56 and they said they kissed the Blarney Stone,

51:58 and all I was like, "Hand sanitizer!" [laughter]

52:02 Drink the Drink the hand sanitizer, yeah.

52:04 Uh okay, so I will uh just close out

52:08 this section with one more question, again for Lisa.

52:11 This uh woman, Kathy P., she is headed to Puglia,

52:17 and she will be spending a week in Puglia

52:19 celebrating her 50th wedding anniversary with their family,

52:23 including a 1-year-old grandchild.

52:26 And Lisa, I thought you'd be the perfect

52:28 person to recommend some places in Puglia to visit.

52:32 To Kathy.

52:33 I love Puglia, and one of the places that is

52:37 in Puglia that I really really like is Bari.

52:40 And Bari used to have a reputation kind of like Marseille

52:43 or some other places as sort of this gritty port city, but it is very charming,

52:48 and the people in Bari are just They're like

52:51 every stereotype of Italian people that you ever thought.

52:54 They're just like They're bigger than life, and they're friendly,

52:58 and the food is fantastic, and it still feels pretty untouristed.

53:02 And I was even there during a festival the last time I was there.

53:05 So, I love Puglia.

53:06 Matera is this town that is People were living in cliffs Sorry.

53:11 People were living in cliff cave houses up until like the 1950s, I think.

53:17 And so, that is a UNESCO World Heritage,

53:19 but it is an absolutely unique place to visit.

53:22 And then, that is a place where I would stay also in Puglia at an agriturismo,

53:27 but there they have a different name, masseria,

53:30 m a s s a or i r i a, and that is

53:35 their idea of a farmhouse hotel and an enclosed courtyard,

53:38 and it's very affordable.

53:40 Um and I went and stayed at Canto del Lupo.

53:44 Um, I think that means the singing of the wolf, but I would

53:47 also where cantaloupe comes from.

53:48 Is it really?

53:50 Oh, that's cool.

53:51 Huh.

53:51 Yeah.

53:52 So, those are the three places that I would for sure see,

53:55 but there are other places like Taranto,

53:58 there's um there's a really important important there's a really

54:03 heavy influencer um broadcast place called Polignano a Mare, um,

54:10 which is a beautiful seaside town with sort of cliff-like dwellings, um,

54:17 but I did not go there because it's very very busy with tourists,

54:21 so I tried to stay a little bit more off the beaten path,

54:23 but easy to drive in, loved Puglia, I recommend it.

54:26 And if she's traveling with a 1-year-old,

54:28 the one thing that they need to keep in mind is renting a car,

54:32 um, can they rent a car seat for the time

54:35 that they're there or do they want to bring one from home?

54:37 And that kind of depends on if you paid

54:39 for that baby to have a seat on the flight or not.

54:41 Over.

54:45 Beautiful, as always, Lisa.

54:47 And I will also mention that Lisa did Lisa

54:52 did a great presentation on Puglia for Monday Night Travel,

54:55 which you can find on our website,

54:57 and I will make sure it is included in the links

55:01 that we share um over email after this show.

55:06 All right, well, thank you you three again,

55:08 but we do have to move along because we

55:11 have a really fun game planned for our all section,

55:16 and that is called move, visit, forget.

55:21 And if it feels familiar to you,

55:23 that is because it is based on a PG-13 ranking game of a [laughter]

55:29 But, this is travel oriented,

55:31 and so I am going to show our guests three destinations each round,

55:36 and they are going to tell us which destination they

55:38 would move to, which one they would just like to visit,

55:42 and which one they are forgetting.

55:44 And so, to start things off It's not fair.

55:48 We are starting with London, Paris, and Rome,

55:52 three of our organization's favorite cities in Europe.

55:58 And so, for starters, London.

56:01 What are the three of you thinking for London?

56:06 One, two, three.

56:08 Oh my gosh.

56:11 We might We might rent an apartment a flat together.

56:14 Let's do it.

56:14 Okay.

56:16 I'll be there, too.

56:18 All right.

56:20 So, our next city, Paris.

56:23 Are we forgetting Paris or are we visiting Paris?

56:27 Oh, we're Oh my gosh.

56:31 [laughter] So, I guess we're all forgetting Rome.

56:33 Yeah.

56:34 We still love Rome.

56:36 I still love Rome, too.

56:39 A little more.

56:41 Okay.

56:42 Next three cities, we have some Central European capitals,

56:47 Budapest, Prague, and Vienna.

56:49 And we are going to start with Budapest.

56:53 What do you guys think about Budapest?

56:55 Ah, Lisa.

56:58 Damn.

56:58 I don't know, you know, Orban's out now, so I might change my mind.

57:02 see.

57:02 That's fair.

57:03 Budapest is is great.

57:05 Okay.

57:07 And Prague.

57:10 And maybe we need to talk so that our cuz we're sharing the screen, yeah.

57:14 Yeah, I would live in Prague.

57:17 I would live in Prague, as well.

57:19 I would visit Prague.

57:21 There are some great places [laughter] outside of the old center.

57:25 And finally, Vienna.

57:29 I'd visit.

57:30 I'd want to go to the opera and all of the high culture and And fun things.

57:35 the food and the pastries in Vienna best

57:37 of all the places that we're talking about.

57:39 Mhm.

57:39 Yeah, Lisa, I I am in agreement with you and Gabe,

57:42 I'm actually surprised based on the cafe culture there

57:45 and all of the nice cakes that they have in Vienna.

57:48 I'm Okay.

57:51 You've kind of exposed me cuz Vienna is the one I haven't been to yet.

57:55 So, that's partly also why I have it picked to visit.

57:59 Fair enough.

58:00 And I I picked to skip it.

58:04 Okay.

58:05 And now we have Scandinavian capitals.

58:07 Mhm.

58:08 Tricky.

58:08 And these three are now all linked on our newest Scandinavia tour,

58:13 the Scandinavian Capitals in 10 days.

58:16 So, for starters, Copenhagen.

58:19 Lisa Lisa and I are going to live in Copenhagen.

58:22 Okay, Ben, why why are you not visiting Copenhagen?

58:28 Yeah.

58:26 Yes, so I am choosing to skip it.

58:29 I love Copenhagen, but it is busy the center these days,

58:33 and I just feel the other two are more

58:35 livable and where I would want to spend more time.

58:37 But Copenhagen is more affordable than the other two.

58:39 And not Stockholm necessarily.

58:41 I think you're I think Stockholm is the cheapest of the three.

58:44 Do you think that I am going off older knowledge?

58:48 [laughter] Is that an honest question?

58:49 Yeah, Ben, do you think Lisa's going off I took the Scandinavia tour and edited

58:54 the Sweden section of the Scandinavia book.

58:56 Well, I think that we're going to have

58:57 to Google cost of living in these three places,

58:59 but again, Copenhagen has the best pastries.

59:02 Boo-ya.

59:03 And I love the way that people just luxuriate along the canals

59:07 and you can go for a dip in the canals in the summer.

59:10 I agree, Gabe.

59:12 laid-back.

59:12 Yeah.

59:12 And also, everyone at home,

59:13 we want to know what destinations you would move, visit, and forget as well.

59:19 So, let us know in the comments.

59:22 Okay, Stockholm.

59:22 Now we are on to Stockholm.

59:26 I visit it.

59:28 Wow, no no consensus at all here.

59:32 So So Lisa, you would skip it?

59:34 Yeah, I would skip it.

59:35 And I would choose to live there.

59:36 I think it's the most livable city.

59:37 I love the archipelago though off of Stockholm.

59:40 But that's not in Stockholm.

59:41 It is.

59:41 It kind of is.

59:42 It's close, [laughter] but I'm not moving there.

59:44 Not doing it.

59:45 And finally, Oslo.

59:47 What do we think about little Oslo, the smallest of the three capitals?

59:51 But the most important as my 17% Norwegian heritage makes me say.

59:58 [laughter] Well, it may be small,

59:59 but there are unexpected sightseeing thrills that await travelers to Oslo.

1:00:04 But But Gabe will not be experiencing them.

1:00:06 No.

1:00:06 We'll send you a postcard Gabe.

1:00:09 [laughter] Okay.

1:00:11 Now onto Alpine Europe.

1:00:13 Ah.

1:00:14 These three destinations are all on our Alpine My Way Tours, Chamonix in France,

1:00:19 Castle Roto in the Dolomites in Italy Italy,

1:00:23 and the Lauterbrunnen Valley in Switzerland.

1:00:26 So first things first, Chamonix.

1:00:28 Are we What are we Oh, wow.

1:00:30 Oh, we're skipping it.

1:00:32 We're going to skip it all three.

1:00:33 No love for Chamonix.

1:00:34 Okay.

1:00:35 If there's no love for Chamonix, there's nothing to do there in my opinion.

1:00:40 Chamonix The Chamonix tourist board Chamonix

1:00:42 has a fantastic tourist information office.

1:00:44 They're very nice and they give away a lot of great free information,

1:00:46 but I've been stuck in Chamonix when the weather

1:00:48 is bad and so Is this Lauterbrunnen Yes, we're now we're onto Lauterbrunnen.

1:00:57 Wait a minute.

1:00:58 Wait a minute.

1:00:58 I got to think about this.

1:01:00 Um I would live there.

1:01:01 Wow, are you rich?

1:01:03 Would you live on the Money is no object.

1:01:05 Okay.

1:01:06 Would you live on the Schilthorn side or the Jungfrau side?

1:01:09 It's a current answer.

1:01:10 Um I have spent so much time on the Schilthorn side,

1:01:14 that's my tendency to Yeah, we'll say Schilthorn side.

1:01:16 The people are nicer on the Schilthorn side.

1:01:19 All right.

1:01:19 And finally, the Dolomites.

1:01:20 We want to visit you, Ben.

1:01:23 I want to have the best of Germanic and Italian culture.

1:01:28 [laughter] Nothing wrong with that, but I chose affordability, too, so.

1:01:31 And it's in Italy.

1:01:32 You can tell which of the three of us has owned a house.

1:01:37 [laughter] Lisa's thinking in terms of housing prices.

1:01:39 I didn't know the cost was an issue, Lisa.

1:01:41 It's always an issue.

1:01:42 Okay, and I have just one more round for you guys,

1:01:45 and that is castles and palaces of Europe.

1:01:49 So, what castle will you be moving to?

1:01:54 Is anyone moving to the Alhambra?

1:01:57 I am.

1:01:58 I'm when me and my classmate Alicia decided

1:02:02 when we were studying abroad in Spain and visited,

1:02:04 we agreed that someday we would buy it and we would live there.

1:02:07 So, I'm sticking by that.

1:02:09 The beautiful gardens.

1:02:11 I'm skipping it.

1:02:12 Ah.

1:02:13 Yeah, sorry, Gabe.

1:02:14 Granada's my favorite city in Spain.

1:02:16 Super conflicted about this one.

1:02:18 If you move there, I'm not visiting you.

1:02:19 That's what that means.

1:02:20 Wow.

1:02:20 I will visit you.

1:02:22 I don't Yeah.

1:02:23 I can't.

1:02:24 I just [laughter] All right, break it up, guys.

1:02:26 Break it up.

1:02:28 We still Chenonceau.

1:02:29 What do we think of Chenonceau?

1:02:31 Chenonceau, Loire Valley.

1:02:33 Two visit, one live, Lisa.

1:02:35 See, to get to Paris, fantastic weather, great agriculture.

1:02:40 Yeah, I'm there.

1:02:41 If it was good enough for Leonard Leonardo da Vinci

1:02:44 to retire to, it's good enough for me to move there.

1:02:47 And finally, Neuschwanstein.

1:02:50 That one I will skip.

1:02:52 Really?

1:02:54 Well, I choose to live there because I'm a little mad.

1:02:57 Like King [laughter] Ludwig.

1:02:58 Plus, I love the Alps and I can take the train to Munich from Füssen.

1:03:03 You know, my Bavarian people call him Mad King Ludwig.

1:03:06 They just call him King.

1:03:08 Well.

1:03:10 And I have to say I noticed that you all three picked different castles,

1:03:15 so Ooh, so we can each have one.

1:03:18 a castle every to live in.

1:03:20 You'll arrange that, Emily?

1:03:22 Yeah.

1:03:23 Okay, good.

1:03:24 I'll I'll make sure.

1:03:25 I'll make sure that happens.

1:03:26 Um All right.

1:03:28 Well, I think that we are nearing the end of our show,

1:03:34 and so I will just give a quick word from our sponsor,

1:03:37 and tonight I will shout out our online communities.

1:03:41 We have a number of online communities on our website at the travel forum,

1:03:46 as well as our Facebook group where

1:03:48 travelers gather to exchange valuable travel advice,

1:03:52 share trip reports, and ask tough travel questions

1:03:56 where they crowd source real answers from real travelers.

1:04:01 And so, you can find uh both of those online.

1:04:04 You can find the travel forum at our website ricksteves.com,

1:04:07 and you can find the Rick Steves Europe group on Facebook.

1:04:13 All right.

1:04:14 Well, we are nearing the end of our show,

1:04:17 and so I think that I will ask you all just one more question.

1:04:23 And I am wondering if you would all be willing

1:04:26 to share one European backdoor with our audience of yours.

1:04:33 [laughter] So, this is like something that we secretly

1:04:36 don't want the world to find out about,

1:04:37 but we'll just tell our Monday Night Travel friends.

1:04:40 Yes, but you're feeling very generous in the spirit of Monday Night Travel.

1:04:44 That's true.

1:04:44 In the spirit of sharing travel information for free.

1:04:47 Cuz we always say Rick doesn't keep any secrets.

1:04:50 All his favorite places are in the guidebook,

1:04:52 but we're not Rick, so we can keep a secret or two.

1:04:56 Okay.

1:04:57 Do you want to go first?

1:04:58 I have my answer.

1:05:00 I'll go first.

1:05:01 I don't think mine is going to be

1:05:02 a surprise to anybody that has watched Monday Night Travel,

1:05:05 um but my trip to the Faroe Islands,

1:05:09 it was one of my favorite places I've ever gone.

1:05:13 Um I just found it so charming and it's getting a little more tourism now,

1:05:18 but it still feels like a kind of a version of Iceland that has,

1:05:23 granted not as much geological diversity, but um far less tourism.

1:05:28 I will say I'm a northerner at heart, so I'm not bothered by 45° and rainy.

1:05:34 If you are, it is not the place for you,

1:05:36 but if you don't mind um cozying up inside or putting on a rain jacket,

1:05:42 I do think it is a um secluded little paradise.

1:05:46 Nice.

1:05:48 Ben, will you go next?

1:05:49 Well, I am a big fan of northern and eastern Europe, as some of you may know,

1:05:55 and I will say that my back door are the Baltic states,

1:06:00 the Baltic nations, Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania.

1:06:03 They've gone through a dramatic transformation in the last 35 years.

1:06:06 They're doing very well.

1:06:08 The English level there is quite good, particularly in the cities.

1:06:11 It's more affordable than western Europe.

1:06:13 They have excellent natural beauty and the national parks are fabulous,

1:06:17 whether it be outside of Tallinn, or I'm thinking Sigulda,

1:06:21 which is this charming town outside of Riga in Latvia,

1:06:25 where you can take a luge down a mountainside.

1:06:28 These are just great nations.

1:06:29 Culturally, they're mixed.

1:06:30 They have a Russian minority, particularly Latvia and Lithuania.

1:06:34 And so what's happening there with current events,

1:06:36 with the situation with Russia,

1:06:38 is very relevant, but they're still safe and uh just a great place to go.

1:06:42 I love them.

1:06:43 I didn't realize we could choose like multiple countries.

1:06:46 region.

1:06:47 Okay.

1:06:48 Um [laughter] I'm going to I I thought about two places,

1:06:52 so I'm going to give one a shout-out to the very

1:06:54 first place I ever went in Europe after Paris,

1:06:56 and that is the medium-sized town of Osnabrück in northwestern Germany.

1:07:01 It has a university a university.

1:07:04 It has some good medieval architecture and it has zero American tourists.

1:07:09 And then my favorite little village is called Fontvieille and it's

1:07:13 in Provence and it's not the one on the Riviera, it's in Provence.

1:07:16 And I'm actually going to talk about it a lot more

1:07:18 when Gabe and I do our Beyond the Best of France show.

1:07:22 So, that's the town that's not in our guidebook that is you know,

1:07:26 it's in a super close distance to so many

1:07:28 great things and it's just got a really great vibe.

1:07:31 Join us there on June 15th.

1:07:34 Not in Fontvieille, but here online.

1:07:38 We should do that show remote.

1:07:39 Yeah, that'd be cool.

1:07:41 I'll be in Poland, so I can't join you, sorry.

1:07:44 Well, thank you you three for putting up with me

1:07:49 for over an hour and all of my questions.

1:07:51 You all have been great sports and have shared

1:07:54 lots of valuable travel information with our travelers this evening.

1:07:58 So, thank you.

1:08:00 Thank you, Emily.

1:08:01 Emily.

1:08:01 You did a great job.

1:08:02 This was so fun.

1:08:03 Well done.

1:08:03 I'd gladly spend up to 2 hours with you.

1:08:06 Don't push it, Gabe.

1:08:09 [laughter] Thank you, Emily.

1:08:10 You did a really nice job putting this all together.

1:08:14 [gasps] All right.

1:08:13 Well, thank you you three again and I will wish you a good evening.

1:08:19 And I would also like to thank all of you for joining

1:08:23 us for this new Ask Me Anything edition of Monday Night Travel.

1:08:28 I hope you enjoyed [music] it.

1:08:29 I also would like to remind you that we

1:08:31 are now on spring break for the next 3 weeks,

1:08:34 [music] but we will be back on June 1st

1:08:36 to cover America's National Wonders with [music] Micah Myers.

1:08:40 So, be sure to join us for that.

1:08:43 And until then, happy travels.

1:08:58 Uh Ben, what you doing there?

1:09:01 I typed up my favorite places in Rome and I'm

1:09:03 posting them in the Roman forum to help other travelers.

1:09:07 You know, my favorite pizzeria is criminally underrated.

1:09:13 Ben, I think your recommendations would be a lot more helpful

1:09:15 if you post them in the Rick Steves travel forum instead.

1:09:19 The what?

1:09:20 The Rick Steves travel forum.

1:09:22 It's an online forum at ricksteves.com where

1:09:24 millions of travelers share tips from their trips.

1:09:26 Mhm, that does sound convenient.

1:09:28 Plus, you should probably brush up on Rick's Italy for [music]

1:09:31 food lovers show because this is not the best pizzeria in Rome.

1:09:37 It's too Emily.