Mary Herendeen:
Summertime travel has long been a point of excitement and anticipation. Summer trips to Europe, in particular, have always held a special kind of magic—the alluring smell of street food, art hiding quietly around every corner, and a rich history that's imprinted onto every brick and well-worn cobblestone.
Welcome to Traveling With AAA, I'm your host, Mary Herendeen. On today's episode, we're talking about everyone's favorite summer travel destination: Europe. As COVID restrictions become a distant memory, experts are predicting that 2023 could see a 30% increase in tourism numbers compared to 2022. This means an even busier Europe with longer lines and heftier peak season crowds.
The wisdom of a world travel expert, especially for first-time travelers, can really help ensure your European experience is an enjoyable one. To help you curate the best itinerary and avoid the crowds as much as possible, we are talking to world travel expert and World Travel Family CEO, Alyson Long.
Planning a summer trip to Europe can feel like a daunting task, from finding the flights to booking accommodations and securing transportation to the actual attractions we want to experience. It can quickly become overwhelming as the stress of getting it right sets in. How do we see everything we want to see? How do we know which tourist traps to avoid?
So Alyson, before our listeners get too overloaded with planning and logistics, where would you suggest people start if they want to visit Europe this summer?
Alyson Long:
The first thing is to know yourself and to not go to a place because all your friends have been, or because everyone else thinks it's fabulous. I think you've got to know what you are really interested in. I think this is a mistake that we've made a few times; we've gone to a place because we've been told it's absolutely amazing and you must go. And we've got there, and we didn't really want to go and we found, actually no, we don't really like it here. We should have stuck with that gut feeling that we didn't really have any burning desire to go there, but everyone else said it was good, so we went and found we didn't really enjoy it all that much. So, know yourself and know what really interests you and what you really want.
Mary:
When it's more than just yourself traveling, how do you appease everyone?
Alyson:
If we're talking about a family, know what each individual family member enjoys because there's nothing worse than dragging your kids along to something that they're really not interested in. You've got to figure out what's going to work for everyone.
Mary:
A lot of travelers have big European cities on their summer travel list. For those who want to experience more of the local culture, do you think that's still possible in these high-traffic tourist hotspots?
Alyson:
Yes, I think it is. Even in London, Paris, or Barcelona, there are still local people who live there and their culture is whatever they do in that city. I don't think it's excluded by mass tourism. I think it's still there, but you've just got to not go where the tourists often go. You've got to find where the local people live more, where the local people eat, where they shop, and their favorite things to do. Obviously, you're not going to experience local culture when you're visiting the big museums or attractions. You've got to go more into everyday life and do what the local people would actually do when they live in that place. I think it's still there, I don't think it's a problem to find at all.
Mary:
Can you tell us about your personal favorite European hidden gem and what you love about it?
Alyson:
Well, I'm a bit biased. I'm going to say Romania because we lived in Romania for 3 years on and off while we were traveling. It is very much a hidden gem. Very few people go there, particularly to the part where we lived, which is the very far north. It's one of the very few places in Europe where you can see a culture that's almost untouched by tourism.
Every year, it gets more and more affected obviously. There are more people going there, but to see somewhere where tourists haven't been, where they still use horses and carts rather than motorized vehicles, where the roads are still dirt, where the farming is basically subsistence farming. They grow all their own food, they raise all their own animals, all the food is real food—it comes off the land and it's absolutely delicious. One of my favorite experiences in Europe is to go up to an area that's so pristine and untouched. It's absolutely incredible.
Of course, Romania has beautiful cities to offer as well with loads of history, incredible architecture, living traditions. There's a plowing festival—I can't remember the Romanian name, but they all dress up in traditional costumes, as they do every Sunday for church. They parade around carrying these plows and it's out of this world. That's my favorite.
Mary:
This sounds really magical and quite off the beaten path. Can you describe the traditional costumes that they wear for church and during the plow festival you mentioned?
Alyson:
They’re mostly orthodox Christians. The women wear the floral head scarfs, usually with a matching floral skirt, and then a really, big poofy blouse, which traditionally they handmade. They do all the smocking by hand to make 1 shirt, and both men and women wear this smocked white shirt. To make 1 shirt by hand can take months or years; I was told the exact time, and they sell for an absolute fortune. So the clothes are passed down through families, particularly when you get to the winter outfits. So in the winter, when we lived up there, it would get down to -20, -25 centigrade. I don’t know what that is in Fahrenheit.
Mary:
That's -4 to -13 degrees, pretty extreme cold. How do they keep warm?
Alyson:
The women had a sort of overskirt that was very thick, felted wool with traditional colors that would be unique to that particular village or region. They wear little booties made from sheep skin and then wool socks, and they're all cross laced at their legs for the winter. And you still see people wearing them in the fields, but on Sunday they wear these traditional costumes and they're really proud of them as well. They just look amazing.
Mary:
I wonder about the challenges of visiting these less touristy places. What are the biggest struggles people might face in these more remote locales?
Alyson:
The big one is that there is a language barrier and that's very uncommon. You very rarely actually meet a language barrier anywhere there is a strong tourist industry.
Mary:
What makes the language barrier an issue there?
Alyson:
In these small villages, you'll find most of the population is elderly and the youngsters tend to go away for work because they don't want to continue in the farming lifestyle because it is a hard lifestyle. The old folks mostly do not speak English, so there is a language barrier.
Mary:
And so how do you manage to communicate?
Alyson:
We got by with sign language and Romanian is a romance language—because the Romans were there, that's why it's Romania—so it's quite similar to Italian, French, and Spanish. You can kind of muddle through. I know a little bit of all those languages, I did French and German in school. You can muddle through, and if you have to order in a restaurant, you can use an app or you very quickly get used to restaurant words. You know what the different dishes are. I always say I speak menu in 50 countries. You get used to what the different dishes are.
That's the only major issue for most people trying to get around. Or say they were staying in a guest house with a lady host and explaining that they don't eat eggs or something, that might be complex.
Mary:
How would you go about relaying food restrictions, particularly any serious allergies or intolerances?
Alyson:
I don't react very well to MSG in food and that can be a problem in some places in Asia. What I do is use Google Translate, and I just type in English, “If I have MSG, I will die,” and it will appear in Vietnamese and they sort it out for you.
Mary:
Side note that Google Translate app is free, so if you are traveling this summer and expect to encounter food allergy situations, it's a great resource to have. What about transportation in Romania? How did you get around?
Alyson:
It was very common and totally acceptable for people to hitchhike in the area where we were. We'd pick up hitchhikers all the time. They'd offer us the equivalent of the bus fare. There were minibuses that did an infrequent circuit, but they'd always be very crowded. They're very cheap, but you'd never know where to catch one if you weren't local. There are no bus stops or anything like that.
There are little practicalities like that, and obviously different expectations, if you're really going to get off the beaten track like we were. In the west, we might expect modern conveniences like heating, showers, basic things like that. They're more difficult to find. We had no heating in our house; we had a little wood stove in the kitchen and that was it. We just wore a lot of jumpers, so be prepared for things like that.
Mary:
How has the idea of a vacation changed for you over the years?
Alyson:
I was brought up as a kid and our summer holidays were going to a beach; lying on the beach, getting a suntan swimming, doing all those sort of things. That was what I believed a vacation should be right up until I was in my 20s maybe because that was how I was brought up. It was only when I became older that I discovered that my ideal vacation is nothing like that at all. I like exploring, seeing things, local foods, adventures.
Mary:
Step 1 for your planning phase is to know what everyone really wants. Your World Travel Family blog is certainly a testament to that. You're a family that enjoys all of the above. So, what's step 2?
Alyson:
Step 2: Start researching. Where is your ideal holiday? Where is the place you really want to see, or the activity you really want to do, or the thing you'll get most enjoyment from. Then start looking at flights, accommodation, and activities. If you are traveling in the summer months, particularly during school holidays—which are most of the summer months in Europe, through the first week of September—book in advance because Europe is crazy in the summer.
Mary:
Any other advice on places or timeframes to avoid if you could?
Alyson:
I actually did some work with Skyscanner a few years ago, and they told me that the biggest destinations for Americans were London, Barcelona, and Paris. They're very busy in summer particularly. So, August bank holiday is a time to really avoid. I think that's the end of August around August 28 or 29. August bank holiday is when things will be extra super insanely busy, so definitely avoid that one if you can.
Mary:
Why does the whole world seem to descend upon Europe in the summer months?
Alyson:
We have laws in the UK where you can't take your kids out of school outside school holidays. People actually get fined for doing that, so they have to travel at those times. Prices are a lot higher. The first thing I'd say is do not travel during school holidays if possible because it costs an arm and a leg, and the crowds will be absolutely phenomenal.
Mary:
If I'm following, UK summer holidays are where you're going to see some of the absolute highest prices for accommodation.
Alyson:
They certainly hike the prices up during the school summer holidays, they will be much, much higher. The flights will be more expensive as well. This is why some people in the UK do pull their kids out during the school term because they can get a better deal on a trip, and they actually pay the fines. You're fined per child, per parent, something like that for each day of school the child misses. They actually find it worthwhile to pay those fines and get a better family vacation experience and price, which is kind of shocking really, isn't it? But that is how much they hike the prices up in the summer.
Mary:
It sounds like it's more important than ever to make sure you're prepared to spend a little more than usual this summer.
Alyson:
I think it's going to be very tight this year. I've just been in Europe; I was in Europe in February, March, and we struggled to find accommodation and we certainly struggled to find accommodation that was affordable. It seemed like everything was more expensive. I know there's a big cost of living hike in the UK. Food costs have gone up, so that's going to affect your hotel costs, isn't it? There’s something like 20% food price increases. We struggled, and that was in winter.
Mary:
Good to know. Listeners, make sure your food budgets are a bit more generous if you're traveling to Europe this year in particular.
How far in advance should people start looking for accommodations and making plans?
Alyson:
I'd really start looking as early as you can, particularly if you are the sort of person where you have quite exacting requirements or needs, if you want a certain level or style of accommodation. If you're much more easygoing and go with the flow, you can leave it. I quite often leave it, and then I quite often struggle.
Mary:
Any other suggestions on what travelers should book ahead of time?
Alyson:
Book your transport in advance if you can because there's nothing worse than turning up in an airport and having to figure out how you're going to get somewhere. It's happened to me. I got off a train once in Kuala Lumpur—I'd never been to Kuala Lumpur before—and I had 2 little kids and a backpack and I just expected to be able to walk along the road and find the hotel which I had booked. Well, I walked along the road, and I couldn't find that hotel. So, I had one child crying at this point and a local lady helped me in the end. That was before Google Maps, and Google Maps is the best thing ever. It's just so great to use.
For a foreign person of arriving in one of those cities, I do a fair amount of research. Things like the underground system in London, the metro in Paris, they may not be self-explanatory if you've never been there before. I know London like the back of my hand and even I get confused by the Underground sometimes. Figure out how you're going to get from the airport to where you want to be. Figure out how long that journey's going to take you.
Mary:
Do you usually book hotels or vacation rentals? And what should people consider when making that choice?
Alyson:
I do not want to stay in a holiday home ever, if I possibly can avoid it. When you stay in a holiday home, it's dreadful! You've got to cook, you’ve got to clean, you're not on holiday! Dad may think it's a nice holiday if he's not the one stressing over shopping, cooking, cleaning, and towels. With Airbnb, they've got all these ridiculous rules when you check out. You've got to clean the house from top to bottom, put the bins out, do the washing up, they have all these rules and stipulations, so I never use them. If I can possibly avoid it, I don't use them. Then they've also got these cleaning fees. Why am I pay a cleaning fee when I'm expected to clean it myself? That's a bit weird.
So, I'm hotels all the way. They're not necessarily expensive hotels, any hotel where they give me clean sheets and that's fine. For instance, in Asia, you can stay in a hotel for a family of 4 starting from around $20 U.S. a night. That's hugely affordable. Why would I stay in a self-catering, self-cleaning apartment or a holiday home when it's that cheap? But the difference is in Asia, the food is so affordable. You can eat a really nice meal in Thailand or Vietnam for say a dollar a plate, whereas in Europe you can't do that. If you are on a tighter budget and you wish to save money by self-catering, which is a great idea to save money, then yes, you're going to have to book a holiday home, apartment, or villa with a kitchen or you're going to be paying a lot to eat out 3 times a day.
Mary:
Listeners, all roads lead back to step 1. I think as a traveler, just knowing what experience you want to have versus what you'd rather not deal with on a vacation is very important. For me, cooking, cleaning, and doing grocery shopping, that's not the experience I want to have. So, I can see how hotels offer an advantage for short-term stays where you'd rather not spend any time cleaning.
Alyson:
Once, for an extended period, we did book our own little house in Vietnam and we thought, “We'll cook. It’ll be great, we'll cook.” We went to the market and bought the vegetables, fresh noodles, and things we needed, but we found it wasn't really possible to cook a good meal without having bought 6 different spices, a couple of different oils. You don't want to stock a whole pantry, and it's not as easy as that just to self-cater without buying an awful lot of stuff.
Mary:
Yeah, that's a very good point. You'd really need to invest in a mini spice rack to cook properly, and that's just another added cost.
One thing to think about though, especially with the kids, is that they can be picky eaters.
Alyson:
That's another reason that some adults do book rentals and self-cater because they have picky eaters and know that the local food won't suit their kids or allergies. I've got a friend who has a child with a severe peanut allergy, so they were in Thailand and that's a major problem. So they did self-cater and that was their only option.
Mary:
Aside from the crowds and the price tag, are there any advantages that travelers might have traveling to Europe during peak season?
Alyson:
If you do visit say, London, in the school holidays, the only advantage I'd say you’d have that you won't have the school groups. Quite often if we visit something like the Natural History Museum during term time, there'll be a lot of school groups and they can be noisy, and there's lots of them, and they're running around and stuff like that. That is a slight advantage.
Mary:
Most people are probably planning their European vacations pretty far in advance. Is that always the best strategy?
Alyson:
Personally, I'm always last-minute, absolutely always. I have this mental block with planning ahead. It's actually quite a good strategy in some ways. If you really can leave it to the last minute, you might find some amazing deals on flights. I've been thinking for ages that this year I'd go home to the UK, and I'd go to a few other places while I was in that hemisphere—I'm in Australia.
I signed up for flight notifications. For instance, if you go to sites like Skyscanner and put in a rough idea of what flights you want and enter your email address, they'll notify you as the prices go up and down. That's really, really useful. If your dates are a little bit loose and flexible, and even your destinations are flexible, it’s very good ideas to sign up for those notifications.
Another thing I wanted to mention are cruise ships. I'm actually supposed to be going on a cruise at the end of this month, and I looked on their website and it was $400 each. The next day, it was $600 each, then they had a sale and they put it up to $800 each, and I still haven't booked it. I'm hoping that when this sale ends, it's going to drop back down again. If it does, I'll book it then. But I've got that incredible flexibility where I can go or not go. I realize you can't do that if you haven't got that flexibility, but these are the games that the companies play. They're trying to attract a different demographic by fluctuating those prices and adding different deals, and I think you've just got to get a feel for it to know how all these different companies work.
Mary:
Do you think it works similarly with last-minute hotel bookings?
Alyson:
I don't think booking last minute really has much difference in terms of hotels unless it's ridiculously last minute, like on that night when they do drop their prices.
Mary:
What about the museums and attractions? Is it best to book those in advance? Let's say the Natural History Museum, for example.
Alyson:
They have a booking system now where you have to reserve a time slot. You can't just turn up anymore unless it's a quiet period. If it's a quiet day, you can get away with just turning up and going in, but you actually have to reserve a time slot online. It's still a free museum, most museums in the UK are free, but you have to make this booking to get in. I think they set up the system during COVID and they've kept it. That might mean that you’ll have a better experience because the crowds inside might not be as bad, but yeah, you've got a little bit of forward planning now whereas before you didn't have to do that.
Mary:
Does buying your museum ticket in advance save any time, or should you still expect to wait in line?
Alyson:
With most tickets, if you buy a ticket in advance, you will have priority over the people standing in the queue. The queue is to buy the ticket. Usually, the queue isn't to get into the attraction. For instance, the London Eye; I've walked along the south bank of the Thames in school holidays and seen queues just snaking around the whole of the south bank. The queues are phenomenal and I have stood in those queues myself at times when they're a little bit shorter.
The best thing to do is just buy a skip-the-line ticket and that will have a time slot, so you'll be due to get on your gondola at that specific time. You just turn up around that time—you'll still have to be a bit early. But these skip-the-line tickets, they do exactly that, allow you to skip the line. This is something I put on my website quite a lot, these ticket-buying options that will save you time.
They'll also save you money sometimes, which is really interesting. I was taking a son for birthday treat to, it wasn’t the London Dungeon, I think it was the London Tombs. We planned to go and we checked the price online, saw the price thought, “Yeah, that's fine.” It wasn't school holidays, we didn't think it would be busy; we thought we'd just walk in. We got to the attraction and the price was double what we'd seen. It was ridiculous! So, we opened our phones, Googled it and found way, way cheaper tickets online to book on the spot and we bought them. Unfortunately, we had to print them, so we had to go upstairs to a photo printing shop that just happened to be there and print these out to show the guy. We saved ourselves loads of money doing that. And OK, most people couldn't be bothered, but if you just learn from that experience that tickets are quite often actually cheaper online.
Mary:
You've really got to be mentally prepared for big city sightseeing when you're in places like London or Paris.
Alyson:
If you've really got your heart set on them, then you should go and just be prepared that it is going to be busy, that you are going to have to pre-book your activities and figure out what you're going to do on which day. A lot of the things to see and do will take up a half day, or a tour could take a full day. You're going to have to plan it like a military attack.
Mary:
What other activities would you suggest for anyone descending upon London this summer?
Alyson:
On the London Eye, there are maps, diagrams, and arrows pointing to what all the different things are, so you should be able to identify them if you don't know what they are. I mean, most of us know most of the sights in London, don't we though, really? But for me as a Londoner, I really love it. Now the other option is still on the south bank, you've got The Shard and what's called The View from The Shard. You go up in an elevator to the top. You know The Shard, it’s a very tall, pointy building. It's very impressive. I think it was the tallest building in Europe for a while, I don't think it is now. You go up in a very fast escalator and you go up onto this viewing platform, which is all surrounded by glass. I found it absolutely terrifying. My kids loved it. Again, it's a nice view, but it's more toward Greenwich, so you see more of that end of London. The London Eye is practically right opposite the House of Parliament and you can see horse guards, Buckingham Palace, and Green Park, whereas The Shard is more east.
Mary:
Any other travel tips for those planning on peak season European travel?
Alyson:
I'd also suggest looking at alternate airports. If you are flying into the UK, you've got 5 or 6 airports around London and you might save yourself a big wad of cash if you choose a different one. Luton and Stansted are usually a lot cheaper because they take the budget airlines.
Mary:
That's great advice especially if London itself isn't on your itinerary. Different airports could really put you closer to less crowded destinations that you're interested in exploring. On that topic, are there any special, less busy places you'd suggest in the UK?
Alyson:
The UK has many, many beautiful places to see, but they're mostly fairly remote, like the beaches around Wales or the big beaches on the south coast, which are very lovely. Many people come to see Scotland, many people have relatives they’re visiting, Ireland is hugely popular and that's just a hop and a skip for us from the UK.
Mary:
Those are great suggestions for anyone looking for a quieter experience, maybe even after a few busy days in London. What kind of general travel advice do you have to give our listeners who are planning trips this summer?
Alyson:
If you are traveling anywhere, not just Europe, and you’re not the most experienced traveler in the world, or even if you are, check your visas and your passport and make sure you’ve still got 6 months on it. Also, check that your passport has got blank pages left in it. I turned up in Bali recently, and I didn't have any blank pages left and I nearly didn't get in. It's a very long story, and I did get in, but I just didn't think to check. I knew that all our passports were valid. We checked that they all had 6 months, but I didn't check for blank pages. So, basic things like that.
The other thing I'll say is that next year they're changing the visa system for Europe. I don’t know if you know about that. I don't know full details, but it's going to be a more complex process to get visas for Europe. So, if you are going to go to Europe, bear that in mind. It might be easier to go this year. I think it's all going to be online, but it's going to be a little bit more complex, so take a look at that situation.
Mary:
What about spending money? Should people get their money exchanged before their trip?
Alyson:
Currency isn't a big deal. I wouldn't bother bringing foreign currency with you, or even huge wads of American currency because you can just get it at the cashpoint or ATM. That works pretty well. I'd strongly recommend driving in Europe if you really want to get out of the big cities and get a real feel for what Europe has to offer. I really strongly recommend renting a car and self-driving around because the transport system in Europe is really not easy to navigate. It's not as extensive as, say in Southeast Asia, I find it a little more difficult. I find the easiest way to travel around Europe and often the most cost-effective way is to rent a car. Check the insurance and the vignette system. You have to buy a vignette for lot of countries in Europe, which is a little sticker that you put in your car window. If you don't buy a vignette, you'll be fined as has happened to me in Hungary. I crossed the border thought, “Oh, staying just inside the border. I'll get the vignette tomorrow,” and by that time, they'd already fined me. I had to pay a fine. Again, my own stupid fault. And just know that really stupid mistakes like that happen to all of us. Just because I've been traveling my whole life and I've been everywhere, I make stupid mistakes. So, don't beat yourself up if you do. Things happen.
Mary:
That is definitely the best advice to take with you no matter where you go. I think that's the perfect way to wrap up today's show.
Alyson, thank you so much for joining us today. It's been a real pleasure, and I appreciate you sharing your travel wisdom and your experience with our listeners.
Alyson:
Lovely to talk to you. Thank you.
Mary:
To travel the world vicariously with Alyson and her family, you can follow along via her blog at worldtravelfamily.com.
A big thank you to our listeners for tuning in today. If you are planning a trip, be sure to connect with a AAA Travel Advisor, check out AAA.com/travel, or visit your local branch. If you enjoyed this podcast, please subscribe. I'm Mary Herendeen, thank you for traveling with AAA.
