Holiday!

[greenfairy43]

Go to Exmoor, a realitively unknown gem of a place. The coastal drive around Porlock way is insane & the scenery is stunning!

[Katster]

I was just going to say that.

There is a website that has the policy of local councils and their car parks. When I get the chance I will search for it.

As a rule of thumb you are fine unless restrictions are posted. Make sure he it is at services you btw a ticket. During festie season we would use lay bys on A roads, the ones with an island in between. Parking on streets it is best to be discrete as is parking off road on a country lane. Keep your eye open for friendly pubs that will let you stop over if you ask nice (and buy food). It is worth asking as you travel to keep a list for the future.

I did think discretion might be the key. If we end up having to park on a street one night, opening the back doors of the van in the morning and having a brew in bed might not be our most sensible option and I won't start showering under someones sprinkler or using their rose bush as a toilet either!! Lol.

[Rufus Gwertigan]

I did think discretion might be the key. If we end up having to park on a street one night, opening the back doors of the van in the morning and having a brew in bed might not be our most sensible option and I won't start showering under someones sprinkler or using their rose bush as a toilet either!! Lol.

With one of my festie mates we stopped in a quiet lane. He was complaining about my snoring so I slept outside on the verge. In the morning an old woman with a dog walked past and said "morning", which woke me up. She came back about 20 minutes later with a flask of tea and some toast.

But the best lot are at Exeter train station. I always have the cheap tickets booked at stupid o'clock. I always have my hammock so I sling it under the stairs on the platform. One year I was asleep and the porter asked what time train I wanted. When I woke up again if had pinned a move to the hammock asking someone to wake me at 8 o'clock. Last year I ended up on the platform after the last train. I set up for the night and the porter came over. If then asked if I would like to sit in the office and watch some tv. I turned in around 3 and a different porter woke me at 6 with a coffee.

You really do meet some lovely people if you travel about.

[Rufus Gwertigan]

And again. So good I did it twice ;-)

Edited March 26, 2012 by Rufus Gwertigan

[5co77ie]

You may find this site useful for wild Camping:

http://www.wildcamping.co.uk/

[The Nal]

Anyone ever been to Vietnam?

[Yoghurt on a Stick]

Yes, I have. Did a tour from the north to the south of the country. It's a fab place and I want (will) go back again. Vietnam Airlines are now doing direct flights from London to Hanoi or Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon).

[The Nal]

Yes, I have. Did a tour from the north to the south of the country. It's a fab place and I want (will) go back again. Vietnam Airlines are now doing direct flights from London to Hanoi or Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon).

Saw that. Hence my interest. Thinking of going later in the summer.

Any bullet points you can lend me to convince a few heads my end?

Price of stuff? Entertainment etc?

Any info appreciated.

[Yoghurt on a Stick]

The very best advice I can give is to study the forum section on Trip advisor. There's a search box for asking if subjects you are interested in have been asked before. You can also ask questions of fellow travellers who have been or are in Vietnam.

Not sure how long you intend to go for? Ideally you'd want about 3 weeks to do the length of the country properly (or longer). We only had 17 days so had to miss a few places out.

The cost of food and items in general are noticeably cheaper over there. Some of the 'street food' is ridiculously cheap. There are some items like designer wear which will cost you the same as here / Ireland eg Nike trainers.

For entertainment I bought myself a shed load of diazepam over the counter. I took this for several days until my friends told me to stop because I was becoming a mong! Apart from that there are bars etc to go to. One thing I would recommend is going to a sky bar in Hanoi or in HCMC. We went to both and it really offers you a great perspective on each city.

Because of time restraints we took internal flights but you can do the trip by train.

Oh, I've just remembered - there's a Things to Do section on the Trip Advisor forum for each place eg . input Hanoi and click on the Things to Do section on the left hand side and up will come the main touristy things to do eg visiting Ho Chi Minhs preserved body etc etc.

If you get the chance go to Halong Bay - truly stunning scenery. I prefered Hanoi to HCMC as the later is more like a western city, whereas Hanoi is crazy eg look at the traffic

Health and safety in building construction can also leave a lot to be desired

I really can't recommend the place highly enough. It's a great cultural experience and treat.

I could bang on for ever but will leave it there for now. Any questions just ask.

[The Nal]

I could bang on for ever but will leave it there for now. Any questions just ask.

Plenty to go on there! Legend. Appreciate it.

[Yoghurt on a Stick]

Forgot to mention yesterday - if you do go then choose carefully what time of year you go. As the country is long stretching from north to south then you can find that one part of the country is cold while the other basks in sunlight.

[The Nal]

Forgot to mention yesterday - if you do go then choose carefully what time of year you go. As the country is long stretching from north to south then you can find that one part of the country is cold while the other basks in sunlight.

Thinking of July/August/September time?

[Yoghurt on a Stick]

Unfortunately that'll be the monsoon season. We went in February and had good weather north and south.

http://www.tripadvisor.co.uk/Travel-g293921-s208/Vietnam:Weather.And.When.To.Go.html

[The Nal]

Unfortunately that'll be the monsoon season. We went in February and had good weather north and south.

http://www.tripadvis...When.To.Go.html

Fuck!!

Actually read some more and it turns out different parts of the country have different weather at different times. So I may get rain but same could be said for any time of the year.

Edited April 4, 2012 by The Nal

[Yoghurt on a Stick]

I'm not saying don't go at that time of year. Far from it. Just do some detailed homework on the weather if you are travelling from north to south or visa versa. For example Hoi An, a very popular place to visit, regularly floods during the wet season. And when I say flood I mean flood. This photo taken of a tourist who happened to be there during the flooding says it all;

http://i.telegraph.co.uk/multimedia/archive/01492/typhoon-flood_1492032i.jpg

I'd go back there at the drop of a hat. If you want to experience a culture shock in a big way then I can think of no better place to start. By the way it's culture shock in a nice way.

[The Nal]

Good hotel to stay in Liverpool anyone? Dont fancy shelling out 70 quid.

[windy_miller]

also, fish and chips in robin hoods bay? its the Magpie cafe in whitby you need!

I was in Whitby t'other day and was intending to go to the Magpie but couldn't be arsed with the massive queue so went to the Quayside for the "3rd best fish and chips in the country". Bloody lovely they were too. Is Whitby some sort of fish and chips mecca? Most of the places seems to have won an award.

[Spliffman]

Hello,

if you are in the midlands, you should check out Ironbridge. The birth place of the industrial revolution. The Ironbridge Gorge Museum is full of interesting stuff to do and see. There are beautiful views of Ironbridge and the gorge to be had too. Also it's on route for you if you're going to Robin Hood Bay. Go down east coast, through Linconshire, Herefordshire into Shropshire and then into Wales, and down west coast in Devon and Cornwall.

Also if you're down in Cornwall check out the Minack Theatre. Seeing is believing.

=

This youtube clip doesn't do the place justice, you really have to see it for yourselves.

Hope these help, have fun ;-)>

Edited April 17, 2012 by Spliffman

[Katster]

Thanks spliffman, I was pretty much planning that route anyway so will hopefully check some if not all of your suggestions.

Nearer the time this thread will be one of my resources for planning a suitable route with definite places to visit.

Cheers!

[Katster]

I will blog our holiday too, for anyone interested

[windy_miller]

I'm off to Japan at the end of August! Can't wait!

[The Nal]

I'm off to Japan at the end of August! Can't wait!

Dream destination for me. Where are you going?

[windy_miller]

Dream destination for me. Where are you going?

Tokyo and Kyoto. And probably Osaka for a day trip as its not far from Kyoto.

I've been to Tokyo with work before, but this is my first time as a tourist.

[Katster]

Because of the crap weather we are thinking of grabbing a last minute flight to visit friends in Tenerife instead of our road trip. Does anyone have any experience of just turning up at the airport in the hope of getting on a flight? I was hoping to get a last minute deal but they are all coming back at around £350 each return, which isn't that cheap for a weeks holiday!! Even when I search for flights leaving in a couple of days they are coming back at £350 ish.

We have friends who live in Tenerife so whenever we can get a flight is fine but with all the festivals I am doing this year we only actually have a window of one week so we are unfortunately not flexible on dates only times.

[Purple Monkey]

I need to fuck off out of this country for a good week or so to somewhere with sun before my SAD actually kills me.....

A desert would be good.