In 2005, we moved to Italy with US Gov. Since the govt was paying for our move, we decided to take a break in London for 3 days and in Rome for 2 days enroute to Sicily. We travelled with 4 big suitcases and 2 hand carriages. Since we didn’t have any time to do the planning, we took the fully guided bus tours inclusive of all entrance tickets (and lunch in UK) at each city. Here are the cost of our bus tours:
City of London fully guided Day Tour - $ 125/person $100/child
London Country side Day Tour - $ 120/person $100/child
Rome fully guided Tour - $ 200/person
Luckily, since our son was just 3 yrs, we didn't have to pay for him.
London Baggage Storage:
http://www.airwise.com/airports/europe/LHR/LHR_08.html
We paid 4 pounds/suitcase. We had 4 suitcases. We ended up paying $126 (64 GBP) for 3 1/2 days.
Rome Left Luggage:
The left luggage is located at Terminal C, ground floor (international arrivals) and it's opened every day from 07.00 to 23.00
FARES: Suitcase weight up to 55 Kg max
0 - 7 hours = 2 euro
7 - 24 hours = 3.50 euro
From the second day on = 3.50 euro per day
Now that we have settled down in Italy, we have kind of mastered the art of travelling in Europe. If you do not want to do all the planning, then its better to go with the Europe package tour offered by SOTC/Thomas Cook etc. With kids, the package tour is very tough. You spend long hours on the bus during the day. Also, travelling like a local is more cost effective and enjoyable.
Recently I took my relatives on a 2days/2nights trip to Rome. For 3 women, it costed us merely Euro 340: .
2 nights of triple bed hotel – Euro 200
Hop ON Hop OFF Bus tickets – Euro 40 (13/person)
Entrance tickets for sightseeing – Euro 50
Food – Euro 50
Our do-it-yourself 3 days/3nights trip to Paris for 2 adults + 1 child costed us Euro 550:
3 nights double bed hotel - Euro 300
Paris 3 day train pass - Euro 100
Sightseeing tickets - Euro 50
Food - Euro 100
We did a 6 days/5 nights driving trip of Swiss and Austria. Driving in Swiss is similar to driving in US. Come prepared, Swiss is very expensive. Every single sightseeing ticket is over $100/person. I don’t remember the total cost of the trip but here are few things that I remember:
6 days Car Rental - Euro 300
5 nights Hotel - Euro 500
Swiss Sightseeing tickets - Euro 300
I have attached an itinerary of do-it-yourself tour that my cousin recently did. March/April is a good time for Italy but not for Swiss, Paris or UK. May/Sep is the perfect time. June/July/Aug are so crowded with tourists. You will spend lot of time standing in the queue for Tower of London/Eiffel tower/Louvre museum/Colosseum/Vatican City etc.
Please avoid big baggages and strollers. Travelling by train is cheaper since you don’t have to pay for kids under 5. Also by taking night trains you avoid the hotel charge. Sleeper Trains are very nice in Europe. If you plan well in advance, the airfare in budget airlines is the same as the train ticket. AAA hotel bookings are lot cheaper compared to online hotels like orbitz.com, Venere.com and bookings.de
Any questions or concerns, i will be more than glad to help with whatever i could.
City of London fully guided Day Tour - $ 125/person $100/child
London Country side Day Tour - $ 120/person $100/child
Rome fully guided Tour - $ 200/person
Luckily, since our son was just 3 yrs, we didn't have to pay for him.
London Baggage Storage:
http://www.airwise.com/airports/europe/LHR/LHR_08.html
We paid 4 pounds/suitcase. We had 4 suitcases. We ended up paying $126 (64 GBP) for 3 1/2 days.
Rome Left Luggage:
The left luggage is located at Terminal C, ground floor (international arrivals) and it's opened every day from 07.00 to 23.00
FARES: Suitcase weight up to 55 Kg max
0 - 7 hours = 2 euro
7 - 24 hours = 3.50 euro
From the second day on = 3.50 euro per day
Now that we have settled down in Italy, we have kind of mastered the art of travelling in Europe. If you do not want to do all the planning, then its better to go with the Europe package tour offered by SOTC/Thomas Cook etc. With kids, the package tour is very tough. You spend long hours on the bus during the day. Also, travelling like a local is more cost effective and enjoyable.
Recently I took my relatives on a 2days/2nights trip to Rome. For 3 women, it costed us merely Euro 340: .
2 nights of triple bed hotel – Euro 200
Hop ON Hop OFF Bus tickets – Euro 40 (13/person)
Entrance tickets for sightseeing – Euro 50
Food – Euro 50
Our do-it-yourself 3 days/3nights trip to Paris for 2 adults + 1 child costed us Euro 550:
3 nights double bed hotel - Euro 300
Paris 3 day train pass - Euro 100
Sightseeing tickets - Euro 50
Food - Euro 100
We did a 6 days/5 nights driving trip of Swiss and Austria. Driving in Swiss is similar to driving in US. Come prepared, Swiss is very expensive. Every single sightseeing ticket is over $100/person. I don’t remember the total cost of the trip but here are few things that I remember:
6 days Car Rental - Euro 300
5 nights Hotel - Euro 500
Swiss Sightseeing tickets - Euro 300
I have attached an itinerary of do-it-yourself tour that my cousin recently did. March/April is a good time for Italy but not for Swiss, Paris or UK. May/Sep is the perfect time. June/July/Aug are so crowded with tourists. You will spend lot of time standing in the queue for Tower of London/Eiffel tower/Louvre museum/Colosseum/Vatican City etc.
Please avoid big baggages and strollers. Travelling by train is cheaper since you don’t have to pay for kids under 5. Also by taking night trains you avoid the hotel charge. Sleeper Trains are very nice in Europe. If you plan well in advance, the airfare in budget airlines is the same as the train ticket. AAA hotel bookings are lot cheaper compared to online hotels like orbitz.com, Venere.com and bookings.de
Any questions or concerns, i will be more than glad to help with whatever i could.
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