Has Anyone Booked a Holiday Yet?

[Chris_OGrady]

21 hours ago, NJFox said:

Off to Scotland next week, 3 nights in Edinburgh and 2 nights in Perth. Second time visiting both cities. Already have a tee time booked for one day, also hoping to catch St. Johnstone at home next Saturday. Traveling with a group, but there's time to get away.

 

Any good pub recommendations in Edinburgh or Perth? Staying right on the Royal Mile, by Waverley Station. 

 

 

Guildford Arms is a beauty. Get's busy though

 

Worth checking this out: https://theeuropeanbarguide.com/a-day-out-in-edinburgh/

Edited 12 November 2024 by Chris_OGrady

[NJFox]

1 hour ago, Chris_OGrady said:

Guildford Arms is a beauty. Get's busy though

 

Worth checking this out: https://theeuropeanbarguide.com/a-day-out-in-edinburgh/

Thanks, saw this same link and have Guilford on my list. Always get good recommendations when posting on this thread.

 

3 hours ago, Izzy said:

Where are you playing?

Gullane no. 2. I'm sure the no. 1 course is great, but they offer less visitor tee times. As no. 2 is half the greens fee of the no. 1 course, plus with club rental, I'm still happy to get a great links experience without breaking the bank.

[CosbehFox]

2 hours ago, martyn said:

Have now got 2025 mostly sorted. Mexico (family) in April, San Sebastian/Basque country with the wife in June for 4 nights, then Disneyland Florida with kids in October.

 

Always wanted to go to the Basque country so i'm particularly looking forward to that one. Originally planned on using Bilbao as a base, but some reasonably priced flights popped up direct to San Sebastian so heading there instead. Obviously Google has loads of suggestions, but any recommendations for food (from Pintxos to Michelin) and day trips welcomed if anyone has been. 

 

Same for Disney/Florida, if anyone has any suggestions/recommendations, they'd be gratefully received, particularly things kids enjoyed the most, and also any place within 2/3 hours of Orlando/Miami for a few days relaxing on the beach after the mania of Disney.

Assume you flying from London City? 
 

[CosbehFox]

Poznan serviced a good weekend. Old Town square is now completely redone. Surrounding streets have some cracking bars

[foxfanazer]

Off to Fort Augustus in Scotland in a few weeks. Staying at the Highland club right on Loch Ness

[boots60]

2 hours ago, martyn said:

Have now got 2025 mostly sorted. Mexico (family) in April, San Sebastian/Basque country with the wife in June for 4 nights, then Disneyland Florida with kids in October.

 

Always wanted to go to the Basque country so i'm particularly looking forward to that one. Originally planned on using Bilbao as a base, but some reasonably priced flights popped up direct to San Sebastian so heading there instead. Obviously Google has loads of suggestions, but any recommendations for food (from Pintxos to Michelin) and day trips welcomed if anyone has been. 

 

Same for Disney/Florida, if anyone has any suggestions/recommendations, they'd be gratefully received, particularly things kids enjoyed the most, and also any place within 2/3 hours of Orlando/Miami for a few days relaxing on the beach after the mania of Disney.

Went to Bilbao for a long weekend last week to take in the Athletic v Betis game. Flew on Vueling Airlines, £54 return which is massively cheaper than San Sebastian direct. Vueling have some iffy reviews on tripadvisor but I found them fine, flights on time.

The Basque country is welcoming, clean, efficient, enchanting with possibly the best choice of Tapas in Iberia & also football mad.

[NJFox]

3 hours ago, martyn said:

Same for Disney/Florida, if anyone has any suggestions/recommendations, they'd be gratefully received, particularly things kids enjoyed the most, and also any place within 2/3 hours of Orlando/Miami for a few days relaxing on the beach after the mania of Disney.

Disney is so vast with many varied experiences, it really depends on preference. Are your kids more into Magic Kingdom (traditional Disney), science and superheroes (Epcot), etc? The hotels all have different themes, too. If you want to stay "on property" at a Disney Hotel, I would recommend Wilderness Lodge- the American West theme, close to Magic Kingdom, and with enough options for kids. Beach Club is amazing with a sand-filled swimming pool that's popular with kids and adjacent to Epcot, but neither of them are cheap. Dining reservations open 60 days before your stay, including for Disney Springs (shopping and restaurant area). Let me know if you have any hotel or dining-related questions. Happy to offer any advice on hotels you might be looking at.

 

Best advice I can offer, as someone with a Disney insider-type spouse who knows the travel hacks, is to look at which parks offer Extended Evening Hours while you are staying there. Conventional wisdom says to spend all day in the theme parks to maximize your time, but that's exhausting and really adds up with the food you buy. For almost the same price as your single ticket, you can buy the evening passes- get in the park at 7PM, and by 9PM or so they kick everyone out of the park who doesn't have the evening only ticket. You then have your run of the place until 1AM, and snacks/non-alcoholic beverages are free all throughout the park. We did this last summer at Epcot, and we waited no longer than 15 minutes for the most popular ride. Most rides we just walked onto with no wait...well worth the money, and the sun was down. As someone who doesn't love Disney, it was the best way to do the park.

 

For an escape day, would recommend Cape Canaveral to see the NASA complex, only an hour from Orlando. So many good beaches on the east coast. People also recommend Universal Studios in Orlando, but we've never been.

 

Last bit of caution...hurricanes. There have been several active hurricane seasons in Florida the last few years. Disney is pretty insulated from it, and they usually stay open when a hurricane hits, but September and October are peak times for the storms.

Edited 12 November 2024 by NJFox

[martyn]

21 minutes ago, boots60 said:

Went to Bilbao for a long weekend last week to take in the Athletic v Betis game. Flew on Vueling Airlines, £54 return which is massively cheaper than San Sebastian direct. Vueling have some iffy reviews on tripadvisor but I found them fine, flights on time.

The Basque country is welcoming, clean, efficient, enchanting with possibly the best choice of Tapas in Iberia & also football mad.

I'd considered Vueling to Bilbao, and even Ryanair to Biarritz, but filtering out return flights departing at silly o clock meant San Sebastian direct only ended up being £80 or so more expensive, included a baggage allowance, and LCY is a far more convenient airport for me than Gatwick or Stansted which the Vueling/Ryanair options would be. That, and having a preference to base in San Sebastian swayed the decision in the end. 

Edited 12 November 2024 by martyn

[martyn]

6 minutes ago, NJFox said:

Disney is so vast with many varied experiences, it really depends on preference. Are your kids more into Magic Kingdom (traditional Disney), science and superheroes (Epcot), etc? The hotels all have different themes, too. If you want to stay "on property" at a Disney Hotel, I would recommend Wilderness Lodge- the American West theme, close to Magic Kingdom, and with enough options for kids. Beach Club is amazing with a sand-filled swimming pool that's popular with kids and adjacent to Epcot, but neither of them are cheap. Dining reservations open 60 days before your stay, including for Disney Springs (shopping and restaurant area). Let me know if you have any hotel or dining-related questions. Happy to offer any advice on hotels you might be looking at.

 

Best advice I can offer, as someone with a Disney insider-type spouse who knows the travel hacks, is to look at which parks offer Extended Evening Hours while you are staying there. Conventional wisdom says to spend all day in the theme parks to maximize your time, but that's exhausting and really adds up with the food you buy. For almost the same price as your single ticket, you can buy the evening passes- get in the park at 7PM, and by 9PM or so they kick everyone out of the park who doesn't have the evening only ticket. You then have your run of the place until 1AM, and snacks/non-alcoholic beverages are free all throughout the park. We did this last summer at Epcot, and we wait no longer than 15 minutes for the most popular ride. Most rides we just walked onto with no wait...well worth the money, and the sun was down. As someone who doesn't love Disney, it was the best way to do the park.

 

For an escape day, would recommend Cape Canaveral to see the NASA complex, only an hour from Orlando. So many good beaches on the east coast. People also recommend Universal Studios in Orlando, but we've never been.

 

Last bit of caution...hurricanes. There have been several active hurricane seasons in Florida the last few years. Disney is pretty insulated from it, and they usually stay open when a hurricane hits, but September and October are peak times for the storms.

Yes we considered February half term 2026 because of this, but in the end, on the balance of probability, chose October as we'll be there at the very end of the month where the risk, whilst still present, should be less than earlier in the month.

 

Really useful advice on the evening hours, thank you.

Edited 12 November 2024 by martyn

[NJFox]

6 minutes ago, martyn said:

Yes we considered February half term 2026 because of this, but in the end, on the balance of probability, chose October as we'll be there at the very end of the month where the risk, whilst still present, should be less than earlier in the month.

 

Really useful advice on the evening hours, thank you.

In that case, keep an eye out for info on Mickey's Halloween Party at Magic Kingdom. That's the October evening event they host- free candy being handed out everywhere in the park. Here's the link with all the Evening Hour pricing, if you want to start throwing your trip budget out the window now.

[Stadt]

2 hours ago, Chris_OGrady said:

Guildford Arms is a beauty. Get's busy though

 

Worth checking this out: https://theeuropeanbarguide.com/a-day-out-in-edinburgh/

Love EBG, knows exactly what makes a good pub 

[Izzy]

56 minutes ago, NJFox said:

Gullane no. 2. I'm sure the no. 1 course is great, but they offer less visitor tee times. As no. 2 is half the greens fee of the no. 1 course, plus with club rental, I'm still happy to get a great links experience without breaking the bank.

I follow a chap on YT called The Average Golfer and he played Gullane no. 2 a couple of years ago. Looks fantastic, enjoy 

 

 

[RowlattsFox]

3 hours ago, martyn said:

Have now got 2025 mostly sorted. Mexico (family) in April, San Sebastian/Basque country with the wife in June for 4 nights, then Disneyland Florida with kids in October.

 

Always wanted to go to the Basque country so i'm particularly looking forward to that one. Originally planned on using Bilbao as a base, but some reasonably priced flights popped up direct to San Sebastian so heading there instead. Obviously Google has loads of suggestions, but any recommendations for food (from Pintxos to Michelin) and day trips welcomed if anyone has been. 

 

Same for Disney/Florida, if anyone has any suggestions/recommendations, they'd be gratefully received, particularly things kids enjoyed the most, and also any place within 2/3 hours of Orlando/Miami for a few days relaxing on the beach after the mania of Disney.

Would take me 10 years to have the money to do all them 3 and you are doing them in the same year 

 

Fair play though, sounds fantastic 

[DerbyshireFox]

5 hours ago, Raj said:

Thinking about Croatia in Summer as daughter Has GCSE exams in eatsre when we normally go abroad.

 

We like historical things and wandering around rather than Lazing around. I know a few of you have been   so any recommendations would be muchly appreciated. 

I only did Zagreb when I went, but that was lovely. Lots of museums, can do a day trip to Slovenia. Any of the national parks are a must see. Plitvice was stunning when I was there. Can do trips over to Bosnia from split and Dubrovnik. Loads to do. Hoping to go back next year

[FoxesDeb]

6 hours ago, martyn said:

Have now got 2025 mostly sorted. Mexico (family) in April, San Sebastian/Basque country with the wife in June for 4 nights, then Disneyland Florida with kids in October.

 

Always wanted to go to the Basque country so i'm particularly looking forward to that one. Originally planned on using Bilbao as a base, but some reasonably priced flights popped up direct to San Sebastian so heading there instead. Obviously Google has loads of suggestions, but any recommendations for food (from Pintxos to Michelin) and day trips welcomed if anyone has been. 

 

Same for Disney/Florida, if anyone has any suggestions/recommendations, they'd be gratefully received, particularly things kids enjoyed the most, and also any place within 2/3 hours of Orlando/Miami for a few days relaxing on the beach after the mania of Disney.

I love a good plan!

 

We also have 2025 planned, a week in Marrakech in March, 10 days in June split between Croatia and Slovenia flying in and out of Zagreb, and 3 weeks in SE Asia in late November/early December. The first 2 weeks we will be on a cruise out of Singapore round Malaysia, Thailand and Vietnam, and then we're planning to tag 5 days on the end in Bali. 

 

 

[Raj]

1 hour ago, FoxesDeb said:

I love a good plan!

 

We also have 2025 planned, a week in Marrakech in March, 10 days in June split between Croatia and Slovenia flying in and out of Zagreb, and 3 weeks in SE Asia in late November/early December. The first 2 weeks we will be on a cruise out of Singapore round Malaysia, Thailand and Vietnam, and then we're planning to tag 5 days on the end in Bali. 

 

 

Talk to me about Croatia Debs

[jonthefox]

I too have 2025 sorted. Krakow in January, Norway Finland and Estonia at Easter. Cornwall in the summer and a med cruise in September. Crikey , I feel skint writing that 🤨

[VLC86]

Japan is as wild and incredible as expected.

 

Done 3 nights in Tokyo already and on the 2nd in Kyoto. 

[jonthefox]

20 minutes ago, VLC86 said:

Japan is as wild and incredible as expected.

 

Done 3 nights in Tokyo already and on the 2nd in Kyoto. 

Number one on my bucket list 

[Greg2607]

We've just booked 10 nights all inclusive at a Royalton hotel in Riviera Maya in Mexico at the end of January.  The wife has upgraded us to a swim up room that also comes with a butler 🤣🤣🤣

 

Thoroughly looking forward to it! 

[FoxesDeb]

1 hour ago, Raj said:

Talk to me about Croatia Debs

We're flying into Zagreb, picking up a hire car from the airport and then driving about 3 hours to Pula, staying there for 5 days, then driving 3 hours up to Terme Catez in Slovenia for another 5 days before we fly back to Spain from Zagreb, about 30 mins back to the airport from Terme Catez.

 

Bit of a beach holiday in Croatia although still plenty to see quite close to where we're staying, and we'll visit Ljubliana and Lake Bled in Slovenia. Staying with Eurocamp in both locations, she loves the pools, the evening entertainment and meeting up with other teenagers, and we love the space and the freedom to do as we please.

 

Flights, car hire and accommodation has come in at around €1k for the 3 of us so not expensive at all.

 

We've never been to either country so I can't recommend anything unfortunately, but both places look stunning and we're really looking forward to it.

 

 

[Samilktray]

Booked a weekend in Berlin for march. Should be alright I imagine 

[Lako42]

1 hour ago, Greg2607 said:

We've just booked 10 nights all inclusive at a Royalton hotel in Riviera Maya in Mexico at the end of January.  The wife has upgraded us to a swim up room that also comes with a butler 🤣🤣🤣

 

Thoroughly looking forward to it! 

**** my life

[VLC86]

2 hours ago, jonthefox said:

Number one on my bucket list 

Rightly so.

 

Not sure I’ve properly gathered my thoughts on Tokyo but it’s as ridiculous as you would expect. Crazy bars, food is insane, people everywhere and utter carnage. Probably the most wild thing I’ve seen was the top floor of the games arcade which had lots of rhythm based games (drums, guitar, dancing and god knows what else). Never seen anything like some of the lads on them  

[martyn]

8 hours ago, RowlattsFox said:

Would take me 10 years to have the money to do all them 3 and you are doing them in the same year 

 

Fair play though, sounds fantastic 

We're very fortunate for next year in that the in laws are paying everything for Disney except our flights as it's their dream to treat the grandkids, Mexico is the same as we're just staying with family, and San Sebastian i've used a load of hotel credit built up with expedia. That, and being an avid collector of air miles over the years means we'll probably only end up spending about £4000-5000. comprising mainly flight taxes and then spend whilst away.

 

Without that, you're right, it'd be nuts, probably £15000 at least.

Edited 12 November 2024 by martyn