Some of you may remember that I entered a blogging competition a few months ago, where the first place prize was a trip to Europe. When I entered, I had no thoughts of winning because you still would have to purchase your own flights into Europe, and Europe is still really expensive. But then I was listed as a finalist and all of a sudden, I really wanted to go!! We decided that if I did win, we would purchase our flights and extend the trip to 3 months. I started imagining a summer spent in Europe, walking on cobblestone streets and lounging in sidewalk cafes. You guys all tried to send me there (and THANK YOU!!), but alas, I did not win.
So I tucked away my Europe dreams and instead focused on making plans to visit other countries in Southeast Asia.
We knew that we were spending spring in China, but what about afterwards? For the longest time, it was just one huge blank space. Do we go to Bali? Or maybe to Malaysia? Maybe we go back to Vietnam since we loved it so much.
I know, I know… it’s such an unfortunate situation when you can’t decide where to travel to next.
All of these sounded like perfectly good options. However, I couldn’t exactly put my finger on it, but they didn’t excite me either. Maybe I’ve had enough of Asia and need a change of pace. But we didn’t think we could afford anywhere non-Asia either. Are we going to become one of those travelers who just bum around Southeast Asia for eternity?!
Can we still go to Europe on our own? Why not??
It’s kind of funny how plans come together in the most unexpected way. We spent months debating where to go, and then the perfect plan emerged in practically just one afternoon. So I guess all this to say that we have finally decided on our travel plans for this summer:
We are spending the summer in Europe (AGAIN!!!)
Yes we’re going to Europe on our own!! There are two things that made this possible:
- a COMPLETELY FREE flight (both in and out) by cashing in a large chunk of our Chase Sapphire Preferred points, and
- the dollar being strong again. The euro and the dollar are practically 1:1 right now (it’s actually 1:1.06 to be more precise). Last summer when we were in Europe, it was more like 1:1.34. We’d be stupid not to take advantage of this!
Our plan is as follows:
Warsaw, Poland (6/23 – 6/30)
We are flying from Hong Kong to Warsaw to once again meet up with D’s Polish family. This is when we met last summer!
I had Warsaw as one of my 5 Destinations to Revisit, but I never thought we would get to return so soon! And yep, we will be staying for a week at D’s relative’s mansion again. Not gonna lie, we’re both pretty excited about that!
Wroclaw, Poland (6/30 – 7/7)
Of course, we cannot go to Europe without making a trip back to Wroclaw!
We threw out a lot of options. Should we return to a place we love or go somewhere new? But when I felt more excited by the prospect of re-visiting Wroclaw, than I do by the thought of exploring a new place… the choice was easy!
If you’ve been reading my blog for a while, then it wouldn’t come as a surprise that the driving force behind returning is this:
Pierogarnia, THE BEST RESTAURANT EVER!!
Oh Pierogarnia, we will be re-united much, much sooner than I imagined!
Krakow, Poland (7/7 – 7/9)
A little explanation first: the main reason we wanted to go to Europe is to go to Lyon (more below!). But how do we get to Lyon from Wroclaw? After a bit of searching, I found cheap flights from Krakow into Lyon. So Krakow again, it is.
definitely don’t mind going back to this place!
We are only making a two-night stop in Krakow. Just enough time to eat at our favorite eatery, Milk Bar, and pay a visit to the local vodka bar.
I never wrote one single word about Krakow last summer. I hope to rectify that this time.
Lyon, France (7/9 – 8/6)
Ever since D watched the Anthony Bourdain episode of Lyon some time back, he’s been dying to visit. Lyon is known as France’s gastronomical capital (again, a destination chosen solely for the food!). Last summer, we were in Paris for 5 nights and sadly, I did not fall in love with the city. We also mainly lived off of baguette sandwiches and street gyros. So this time, I’m looking forward to discover the real France and its cuisine. French food lovers… any must-eat recommendations?
We will base ourselves in Lyon for a month, and from there, we hope to also visit Loire Valley, Marseilles, and Nice. I would really have loved to visit Sara in Paris too, but she will have already moved by the time we get there. :(
Italy: Bologna, Florence, Rome (8/6 – 9/17)
After Lyon, we are headed to Italy! First time for me, and second time for D. When we sat down to make a list of where we wanted to go in Italy, we ended up with SO MANY destinations, from Lake Como to Venice to Florence to the Amalfi Coast to Rome to Sardinia to Sicily. We wanted to see it ALL! We have approximately 6 weeks in Italy and for a brief moment, we considered an epic Italian backpacking trip. But I knew that I just can’t.
Last summer, we blew through 20 cities in 3 months. Places blurred into one another and by the end, we were absolutely exhausted (not to mention that we also spent a ridiculous amount of money). This past year has taught me that slow-travel is a lot more rewarding. I love getting to know a city and finding local gems, something that’s hard to do if we’re just breezing through.
So we decided on just three places: 1 week in Bologna, 2 weeks in Florence, and 3 weeks in Rome.
a photo of Rome from D’s last trip. Don’t worry, the photography will be much better this time!
These places were chosen for… ummm, the food (I want to eat spaghetti bolognese from where it was invented!!). And of course Rome for the history as well.
I’m so super excited about Italy and Rome in particular because I’m going to meet Madaline (from Pretty Thing & Co.). Not only that, we’re actually renting her Airbnb apartment and will be living directly below her! I already have images of summertime picnics and pasta making parties. I can’t wait to meet her and her beautiful family!
Now, I mentioned that we booked our flight out of Europe on points too. So where are we going after Europe??
JAPAN!! This decision was made literally on a whim! We were going to book our return flight back into Hong Kong, but after a couple of quick searches, we found it was much cheaper to fly from Rome into Tokyo! DONE! But this is perhaps, a discussion for another day. :)
This sounds so exciting! Europe AND Japan, totally jealous! We’ll actually be somewhere in Europe in September and it would be super cool to meet up, but since we only have a few weeks we’re going to stick around the Netherlands-ish and probs won’t make it down to Italy :/
I’m so excited for you to visit that area of Europe!! I’ve only been to the Netherlands, but not anything further north. I’m sure our paths will cross at some point sooner or later!
How exciting!!! Whenever we return to Rome, I’m planning to stay at Madaline’s Airbnb rental, too. Can’t wait to read about your epic trip!
I’m so excited to stay with Madaline!! It’ll be one of my first real blogger meet-up too so it’s super exciting!
OMGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGG
:)
Ok, so first of all I thought you won that Europe trip thing until I went back to look… #notreadingcarefully.
Second, this is AMAZING. You know this morning I was just thinking to myself, *does anyone ever go to Poland??* Because it looks like a fascinating country but definitely not as popular as the rest of Western Europe, you know?
Also… We’re going to Japan too– in June! We will have to share planning notes! Other travels this year include Ecuador, New York, and hopefully Patagonia (fingers crossed!). Can’t wait to trade travel photos, friend!
I LOVED poland!! D was asking if I’d rather go somewhere new, like Croatia, and I was like “nope, I’d rather go back to poland”. I was happy to “meet” some bloggers who loved Poland too! But you’re right, most people just go to Western Europe, which is also mainly what we’re doing this trip, hehe.
Ahhhh I can’t wait to hear about your Japan trip!! We kind of have no idea what we’re going to do there yet! All we have is that flight into Tokyo! You will definitely have to share your notes from there! And Ecuador and Patagonia!!! I Also would love to go back to South America (it’s just so so far!). I never made it to Patagonia when I was there!!
Eeeeee! What an amazing trip ahead :D So excited to be following along with you!
Also, I secretly hoped London was on the list ;) hehehe.
I really really wanted to go to London!!! I actually did find a rental that was super reasonable for 1 month, but it was like way in the outskirts of London. And the prices for food and everything else in London is still way too expensive!! I know we will go there again at some point, but you’ll already be gone :(.
I knowww, London is stupidly expensive!
Wow sounds like such an amazing trip! All that time in Italy is going to be amazing!
I can’t wait!! It’s my first time in that region! So excited about the food :D
What wonderful destinations ahead! I can’t wait to hear about all of them. I would love to visit Poland, but I’m most excited for your Italy trip. I love that country and can’t wait to go back! Congrats to you and D! :)
I seriously can’t even pick what I’m most excited for! Everyone has really really nice things to say about Italy though so I’m hoping to LOVE it!
Your plans are so similar to mine!! I’m in Thailand right now and heading to Europe on Thursday. Unfortunately there won’t be much lounging in sidewalk cafes for me… but working on a superyacht has it’s perks too!! ;)
Your plans are so similar to mine!! I’m in Thailand right now and heading to Europe on Thursday. Unfortunately there won’t be much lounging in sidewalk cafes for me… but working on a superyacht has it’s perks too!! ;)
http://the-living-spree.blogspot.co.nz/
What is this working on a superyacht thing that you speak of?! That sounds amazing! Have a safe flight to Europe and have tons of FUN! :D
Haha, it’s not all sunshine and butterfly!! But the good days are GREAT days! I’m a stewardess on luxury yachts so I work my European summers over there :) great way to make some quick money for the travel fund, whilst actually travelling while I work haha! It’s suuuper hard to find work though, not looking forward to that detail. I wrote a post about it a while ago if you’re interested :)
http://the-living-spree.blogspot.com/2014/09/the-painstaking-search-for-superyacht_9.html
And here are a couple more about yachting and living in the South of France for it!
http://the-living-spree.blogspot.com/2014/09/working-on-superyachts-and-life-in.html
http://the-living-spree.blogspot.com/2014/11/superyachts-round-2.html
Wow! That’s amazing Alissa! I’m really amazed that you got hired to work on a super luxury yacht with no previous experience or connections. Kudos to you for going through all the hard work! What an amazing experience!!
YeahiIt’s hard work to get into at first but once you’re in, you’re in! Thanks love!
Bollocks! For a moment I thought you won! Actually I have totally forgotten about that contest after retweeting you.
I can’t wait to read about your take on Lyon. One of my mates was posted in a telco company there for a month and he said “There’s nothing in Lyon! It was horrible!”. But then, he was working in a factory most of the time so I would not trust him one bit at all!
Haha!!! We really chose Lyon just for the food. I wasn’t too keen on the idea at first (because I haven’t really heard of it before to be honest), but then I googled “lyon france food” and I was drooling at every single image! Sold!!
Aaaggghhh…..We keep missing each other! I’m going to Italy too to Cinque Terre, Venice and probably Bologna…but in June :( but on the off chance you find a super cheap flight to London, let me know! I’m sooooo jealous you’re headed to Japan – I woupdate absolutely love to go there! And I’ve heard the same about Lyon being a real foodie destination! It’s going to be a great summer foodwise from the sounds of things!
You’re smart to go to Italy in June! We’re going at like the worst, most expensive time. I really really wanted to go to London after Italy! But I think last time, we spent something like $1000 in 3 days in London, so we quickly vetoed that idea. :( But if you happen to find a cheap flight from London to Lyon in July…. ;)
All we have planned for Japan so far is our ticket into Tokyo! It was such a spur-of-the-moment decision that I still can’t believe that we’re actually going!!
I LOVE travel plans, mine and other peoples! I just get excited about all the adventure!! MUCH ADVENTURE!!
Travel plan-wise we haven’t got too much. We have a long weekend in Warsaw in September, and for the next five weeks were doing a bit of local exploring (off to see the tulip fields in The Netherlands, then the Royal Greenhouses in Brussels, then we’ve for a festival. Then I need sleep. Then Amsterdam for a day (museum visit), maybe two days. Then we need to plan again :)
We just bought our new train passes on the cheap, so we’ve got some Belgian day trips to plan out!
I guess pretty boring in comparison to yours. But, I like them :)
Oh man, we miss each other in Warsaw!! I love that you’re going to be doing so much local exploring! I didn’t get to see the tulip fields so I can’t wait for your pictures. What museum is so special in Amsterdam that it warrants a trip for a day??
I know! I was disappointed! I love meeting other bloggers!
It’s a medical museum where they have some old skeletons with different diseases on display. There’s also some other science/medical things too. It’s called the Vrolic Medical Museum (or something close to that…)
Ohhhhh that sounds really interesting. I’m not really a museum person but that sounds like something I would really like!
Your summer looks amazing!! I can’t wait until you guys get here! We will def make pasta and maybe a few other things! Florence is my number one favourite city. ever. And Japan. OMG. Im so jealous!
I can’t wait to get to Rome either! Having friends to meet makes travel so much more exciting! I’m so happy to hear that Florence is your favorite city. I need to read through your archives for things to do there!
Yeyyy! Wow, sounds like an amazing trip. Unfortunately our trips won’t cross :( But do visit Slovenia if you have the chance, it’s right next to Italy *wink-wink* and it’s very small, you can see it all in one day haha! Kidding aside, have a wonderful trip!!!
Thanks Isabel! We did think about Slovenia actually, but i really don’t want to rush through places again. I would rather return to Europe another time and take my time to explore Slovenia and Croatia, and that region!
WOW!! This is an AMAZING itinerary! I have to admit, I’m a little jealous! You know how much I love Poland :-) We really enjoyed the Copernicus Science Museum in Warsaw. And these were some of my food favs in Warsaw, though you certainly have locals to guide you while you are there: http://www.simplysaratravel.com/home/simply-sara-eats-in-warsaw
I’m sorry our paths won’t cross in France :-( That would have been so fun! But enjoy Lyon! And eat at Le Café des Fédérations – one of the famous Lyonnais bouchons. If you like cocktail bars, L’Antiquaire was really good in Lyon.
And I’m so happy to hear you’re going to Bologna! Oh, the food is AMAZING! Get coffee at Caffè Terzi – so good! I have other food recs but I have to dig them up – email me if interested!
Have the very best time! Can’t wait to read about your summer adventures!
I know.. I’m bummed that I won’t be able to meet you in France, but I’m excited to follow your journey back to New York (I’ve never been there!). Thanks for the Lyon recommendation!! We have done no research at all yet about what to eat there! I’m so excited to eat real French food! I’m also so happy to hear that you loved the food in Bologna. I will probably email you later for some rec’s!
Yes, please do email me!! Once I get settled a bit in the beginning of June, I’ll be more organized to share more tips :-)
These plans sound incredible! I was just in Italy for two weeks and it was absolutely amazing. I completely fell in love with Florence! But if you’re looking to do a day trip while you’re there, I went to Lucca and it was super lovely. Didn’t do much there but it’s a really nice town to wander. There weren’t many tourists, you can walk around the town’s walls, and sitting in the town square (which is actually oval-shaped!) eating pasta and having a glass of wine was just a dream. :)
Thanks Sara! I’m so happy to hear such good things about Florence!! Lucca sounds lovely as well. We will have plenty of time in Florence to do day trips! I hope you post about all of that really soon so I can soak up all the information!
Yes! I am planning on tons of Italy posts in the coming weeks :)
Ooh I’m going to Rome too! For Lyon, make sure to eat in a “bouchon” (literally, cork but it means a small local restaurant). It’s worth seeing the statue of Le Petit Prince if you are a fan
Suze | LuxuryColumnist
Thanks Suze! I’m really looking forward to some real French food this time! And I’m embarrassed to admit that I don’t know anything about the Le Petit Prince statue, but I guess travel is for learning!
How fun! I can’t wait to hear all about your plans as they expand even more!
Thanks Polly! I’m really looking forward to this Europe trip!
Amazing!!! Love Poland so much, you are so lucky to go back so soon!!! Unfortunately we won’t cross paths but I am super excited for you!
Thanks Cynthia! You guys are going to be back in the States this summer, right? I can’t wait to follow along on your adventures there!
Yes! For almost two months… ahhh!
Yay, travel plans!! How exciting!!
I can’t wait to see all your photos. Ian and I had a really hard time planning where the heck to go in Italy, too, when we went there last spring. We ended up seeing Milan/Verona/Eraclea/Venice/Bologna/San Marino, but I know we’ll return to do Florence, Rome and Sicily one day (so I’m especially looking forward to seeing your posts on those first two!) The architecture in Bologna is absolutely lovely. I was only there for a few hours, but I think it’d definitely be worth spending more time there.
I do have one suggestion, too! If you’re looking for a day trip from Bologna, go to San Marino — it’s probably my favorite thing we did when we were in Italy, it’s an UNESCO site, and then you can say you’ve been to an extra country, too! My original post on San Marino needs editing, but I have a ton of photos that show you how cool it is: http://northtosouth.us/san-marino/
Have fun you two!
Oh my gosh, San Marino and that castle looks amazing!! Thanks so much for letting us know about it!! Yeah we figure that we can always go back and see the other cities, rather than rush through a bunch. One good thing about full-time travel is that we don’t feel like we need to see as many places as possible. I’d rather take my time with exploring a place now!
Obsessed with your itinerary – and also a bit jealous! :) Poland is on my list of places to visit this year – like top 3 places, so I cant wait to read more about you experiences in the coming months. And Bologna? One of my favorite Italian cities, hands down. Enjoy!
Oooh you should definitely go to Poland if you have the chance! It was one of my favorite European countries… to the point where I would rather go back there than go to a new country! I really didn’t know much about Bologna besides the food when we decided to go there, but everyone has really really good things to say about it so far, so I’m even more excited for it now!
So exciting!!! I’m so happy that you get to spend some quality time in Europe this summer. I’m especially jealous of your Italy itinerary ;) It sounds like you picked some seriously great foodie destinations!!
Yeah! I’m so excited!! I’m actually not a huge fan of Italian food, but I think it’s only because I haven’t had it in Italy! I already know I’m going to gain so much weight this summer, but some things are worth it, right? :)
Wow! Sounds like an amazing summer planned :) When are you going to be in Japan? I JUST bought tickets too! I’ll be there in October. Maybe we’ll overlap?
How exciting!!! Yes, we will be Japan until mid-October!!! I really hope we overlap and meet up! Let me know your Japan itinerary! We don’t have any real plans yet, but maybe we can plan something that will put us in the same city at the same time!
Ooh yes! That’ll be awesome :D I’ll be in Japan Oct 7 to Oct 19 flying in and out of Tokyo. No plans as to where we’ll be and when yet, but we’re hoping to get to at least Kyoto and a few other places possibly as well.
Ooh lets keep in touch and see if we can match some plans up! We’re mostl likely flying out of Japan around Oct 19 too but don’t know yet from where. Our tentative plan is to stay in Osaka for 1 mo (because it’s cheaper than Tokyo) and use that as a home base. We can probably meet up in Kyoto! We’ll keep in touch!!
I love Europe and haven’t been in 2 1/2 years after living in London for 6 years and I really miss it. I will be travelling in Alaska, British Columbia and Hawaii this summer then heading to Asia in November for 7 1/2 months – can’t wait!
Maybe we’ll have some overlap in Asia in 2016! We have tentative plans to return to the SEA area in January 2016. I look forward to following your adventures for the rest of this year! You go on a lot of off the beaten track adventures. :)
I would love that Anna! Let’s stay in touch :)
As I live in the UK, I’ve travelled to many European towns and cities, but sadly have very few blog posts about many of them, because I only started writing seriously mid-2013. I love Italian cities though, so I think you’ve made some good choices there :-) and I’m more than a teeny bit jealous that you’re heading to Japan! I’d love to be able to afford to go back!
I only have two plans for travel this year, one of which is to visit the hilltop monasteries of Meteora, Greece, and the other is to cycle the Camino de Santiago, Spain. I’m a little bit obsessed with Spain! I’d love to be able to fit in a long-haul trip at the end of the year, but I’ll have to see how healthy (or not) the bank account is looking nearer the time :-)
I recently saw some pictures of Meteora in Greece and it looks amazing!! I would love to see that someday too! I also can’t wait to hear about your cycling trip, because reading about it is the closest I’ll come to doing that kind of stuff!
Japan is gonna be soooo expensive! It should be better now to go because the yen dropped and the dollar is stronger. We figured we’d better take advantage of that! But we do have plans to settle down somewhere for a bit after Japan to save up!
Great plans! I lived in France but I haven’t been to the places you will go, I know mainly the south. About food… there is so much! Crepes of course, and cakes… I love confit de canard (duck), but I don’t know if you’ll find it there because it’s a speciality of the south west.
About my plans… In summer I’ll be in winter, haha! I’ll be in South America, still don’t know where exacty :)
Ooh I’d love to go back to South America someday! It’s just so farrrrr. I hope it won’t be too cold down there during our summer! Looking forward to hearing where you decided to go!
How exciting!! I love the initial research phase after making a decision where you’ll be travelling to.
I’m still figuring our for sure where I’ll be exploring this year, but it looks like Nepal and India are likely to happen. Super excited!!!
Chalsie | The Workshop Co. x
We’re really interested in India too! For a bit, we kinda thought about going there at the end of this year. But to be honest, the thought of India really intimidates me. So I’m excited to hear your take on it!!
It totally intimidates me too! But I feel it’s the right time for me :)
I can’t wait to hear about it! Hearing other people’s accounts make me feel braver to go!
Oh my gosh! I am so ridiculously excited to follow your summer adventures. Europe is my #1 place right now and I really can’t foresee myself being able to choose anywhere else to travel for the next few years! Particularly jealous of your one-month stay in France, though I haven’t been to Lyon. I definitely have a few Italy recommendations I’ll have to share with you! x
Yes!! Please do share if you have the time! If you’re planning to go to Europe a lot in the next few years, I really hope our paths will cross at some point!! xx
Oh my goodness your summer plans sound AMAZING!!! HOW DO YOU DO IT?! hehe, share your secrets (besides the Chase card!) I can’t wait to keep up with all your travels… definitely hope you find time to blog while you’re out and about exploring Europe! I am so fascinated with Poland lately… would love to go someday. Sadly it’s turning into winter here in Lima, but we’ve got some “Winter travel plans” that include traveling around the country. :)
Oh gosh, so sorry for the late reply, Mere!
Honestly, it is mostly because of the Chase card!! We’ve been using it for a little over a year now. We put almost all of our spendings on it, and I think we roughly calculated that we can get a free round-trip long-haul flight every year! That saves so much money already. And it’s a good time to travel for the dollar right now too!
Poland was one of my favorite European countries I went to last year. I really hope you get the chance to go! The cities are really cute, the food is delicious, and it’s really cheap too! I’ve never been to Peru, though I’d love to go someday when I make it back to that part of the world. I’ve added your blog to my bloglovin’ feed so I’m looking forward to reading about your adventures there!