Europe Bus Tour

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Europe, the world's smallest continent with a well preserved cultural heritage, open borders and efficient infrastructure is known for castles & palaces, beaches & islands, spectacular scenery, great food and night life.

My Trip

• 2017 November 02 to 11 (10 Days): I went on an exciting adventure across Europe with a friend on an inter-country bus tour, experiencing 8 countries in just 10 days. It was my first time taking such a long bus tour, and while it could be tiring at times, it allowed me to explore many places within a short period and without breaking the bank.

Visited Countries

1 - Austria
2 - Germany
3 - Liechtenstein
4 - Switzerland
5 - Italy
6 - Vatican City
7 - Monaco
8 - France

Visited Places/Attractions

• Austria
  • Vienna ( Schönbrunn Palace, Stephansplatz Dome church, ‎Habsburg palace or Hofburg, ‎Museum quarters)
  • Salzburg (Love lock bridge, ‎Mozart's birth house, ‎Sound of Music shooting gardens)
• Germany
  • Munich (Opera House, City Hall, ‎Staatliches Hofbräuhaus in München (Royal Brewery in Munich))
• Liechtenstein
  • Vaduz (Town areas)
• Switzerland
  • Engelberg (Mount Titlis)
  • Lucerne (Chapel Bridge, Lucerne lake)
• Italy
  • Milan (Duomo & Galleria Vittorio Emanuele)
  • Venice (All attractions)
  • Rome (Colossium, Arch of Constantine, Trevi Fountains)
  • Florence (Ponte Vecchio, Palazzo Vecchio, Piazza Signoria, Santa Maria del Fiore (Duomo di Firenze), Giotto's Tower, Baptistery, Basilica of Santa Croce, Adrimar leather factory)
  • Pisa (Piazza del Duomo, Pisa Baptistery, Pisa Cathedral, Leaning Tower of Pisa)
  • Loano (Varesina Beach)
• Vatican City
  • Vatican City (Vatican Museums, Sistine Chapel, St. Peter's Basilica)
• Monaco
  • Monaco City (Prince's Palace of Monaco, Saint Nicholas Cathedral of Monaco)
• France
  • Èze (Parfumerie Fragonard)
  • Nice (Place Masséna)
  • Cannes (Palais des Festivals)
  • Paris (Arc de Triumph, Eiffel tower)

Day Plans

• 1: 2017-Nov-02 Thursday > 5 AM @ Airport, 7:40 AM Doha-Vienna Flight, 11:35 AM Vienna | Austria (Vienna)
• 2: 2017-Nov-03 Friday > Join Bus Tour Blue Line at Vienna.Vienna – Salzburg – Munich | Blue | Austria, Germany (Munich)
• 3: 2017-Nov-04 Saturday > Munich – Liechtenstein - Mt Titlis – Lucerne. Transfer to Green line. | Blue/Green | Germany, Switzerland (Lucerne)
• 4: 2017-Nov-05 Sunday > Lucerne– Milan – Venice | Green | Switzerland, Italy (Venice)
• 5: 2017-Nov-06 Monday > Venice – Rome | Green | Italy, Vatican City (Rome)
• 6: 2017-Nov-07 Tuesday > Rome – Vatican – Arezzo | Green | Vatican City, Italy (Arezzo)
• 7: 2017-Nov-08 Wednesday > Arezzo – Florence – Pisa – Genoa | Green | Italy (Genoa)
• 8: 2017-Nov-09 Thursday > Genoa – Monaco – Nice – Cannes – Avignon | Green | Italy, Monaco & France (Avignon)
• 9: 2017-Nov-10 Friday > Avignon – Paris. Bus tour ends. | Green | France (Paris)
• 10: 2017-Nov-11 Saturday > 12 PM @ Airport, 3 PM Paris-Doha Flight, 11:30 PM Doha | Qatar (Doha)

Photos

Day Notes

01 - 2017-Nov-02, Thursday

• 7:40 - 11:35 AM Doha-Vienna Flight

Qatar Airways flight to Austria took off at morning after few minutes delay. Spent time on board watching movies and trying to sleep.

Reached Vienna on time by noon and the entry was smooth and simple. The driver from the transfer company was waiting outside with my name and he dropped us at the hotel in Vienna city. It was a nice room. We kept our bags there and had a quick refresh and went out for sight seeing.

Took a tram to see the famous Schönbrunn Palace and then came back to room. Bought a nice jacket and sweater and then again went out to the city centre by metro train. Saw Stephansplatz Dome church, Hofburg palace and museum quarters and walked a lot through the area. Had dinner from McDonald's and bought some souvenirs. Reached back in room by 7 PM and slept early.

Hotel:
Hotel Mercure Wien Westbahnhof
Felberstraße 4, 1150 Wien, Austria

Places visited:
Vienna, Austria
Schönbrunn Palace
Stephansplatz Dome church
‎Habsburg palace or Hofburg
‎Museum quarters

02 - 2017-Nov-03, Friday

• Join Bus Tour Blue Line at Vienna.Vienna – Salzburg – Munich

Woke up very early before 5 AM. We had lavish time to prepare for the first day of our bus tour. Had a very nice buffet breakfast from the hotel and walked to the nearby railway station to meet the tour guide Danny. He came on time there by 8.30 AM and took us to the bus. It was a big coach and was full of people mostly from China.

First destination was Salzburg in Austria itself. We had a short toilet break after 2 hours and reached there by noon. The main attraction there was a love lock bridge over a river and Mozart's birth house. Walked through those areas and had burger lunch from McDonald's.

After, headed to Munich in Germany and reached there by evening. Sun had already set. We had a walking tour with the guide and saw places like Opera House, City Hall and Hoebrauhaus, a famous beer parlour. After buying the usual souvenirs of fridge magnets and shot glasses, returned to bus and went to hotel. Reached The Tulip Inn hotel after 7 pm and checked into a small but nice twin room.

Hotel:
Tulip Inn Munchen Messe,
Zamdorfer Str 120 , 81677, Munich, Germany

Places visited:
Salzburg, Austria
Love lock bridge
‎Mozart's birth house
‎Sound of Music shooting gardens
‎
Munich, Germany
Opera House
City Hall
‎Staatliches Hofbräuhaus in München (Royal Brewery in Munich)
‎

03 - 2017-Nov-04, Saturday

• Munich – Liechtenstein - Mt Titlis – Lucerne. Transfer to Green line.

Woke up early after 5 and got ready and had buffet breakfast. It was not that good. The bus trip started at 7.15 AM. Had a toilet break at 9.15 AM and bought toothpaste, razors and moisturiser cream from the shop there.

By 10.30, we crossed the border of tiny nation Liechtenstein from Germany through Austria. We had one hour stop at the capital Vaduz. Spent it by buying souvenirs and taking scenic photos with Alpine mountain background. Left that city by 11.45 and within few minutes entered Switzerland crossing the Rhine river.

Reached the small town of Engelberg by 2 PM. We had booked the cable car trip to the top of Mount Titlis. That was an amazing ride and we had lots of fun at the top in the snow. We also visited the glacier cave and walked over the cliff bridge.

We started our return trip by 5 PM and reached Lucerne after an hour. Spent an hour there walking through the city and the main attraction of Chapel Bridge, an oldest wooden bridge across a lake.

After, we got transferred to another bus running the green line tour covering Italy and France. This bus had 45 people in total and DJ was the guide. In half an hour we reached the hotel for tonight's stay and it was really nice one.

We had a lavish dinner of chicken and vegetables from the nearby restaurant and slept by 10 PM.

Hotel:
Holiday Inn Express Luzern - Neuenkirch
Raststaette Luzern-Neuenkirch A2, Rothenburg, 6023 Luzern, Switzerland

Places visited:
Vaduz, Liechtenstein
Engelberg , Mount Titlis, Switzerland
Chapel Bridge, Lucerne, Switzerland

04 - 2017-Nov-05, Sunday

• Lucerne– Milan – Venice

Got ready early and had breakfast. Was not very good. The trip in bus to Italy started by 8 AM. Had a stop to see Lucerne lake and a toilet break after 10. It was cloudy and drizzling most of the time.
By 12 we entered Italy and reached Milan after 45 minutes for our major sight seeing stop. Visited the Duomo, one of the biggest and grandest Gothic cathedrals in the world, and the Galleria Vittorio Emanuele, an ancient and glamorous arcaded shopping gallery. Also had typical Italian lunch of pizzas and pastas. We started our drive again after 3 PM to Venice.

We had a short toilet break at 5 PM at near Verona and reached our hotel room near Venice at 6.45 PM.

Hotel:
Albatros Hotel Venice
Viale don Luigi Sturzo, 32, 30174 Mestre VE, Italy

Places visited:
Lucerne lake, Switzerland
Duomo & Galleria Vittorio Emanuele, Milan, Italy

05 - 2017-Nov-06, Monday

• Venice – Rome

Started from the hotel by 8 AM after a lousy breakfast and reached Venice after half an hour. With a local guide, went to the old town area in a speed boat. It was windy and cold at 10 degrees and was cloudy with some sunshine in between but not raining. The ride was 20 minutes long. We got around 4 hours on the Venice islands and did the famous Gondolina boat ride through the water canals and a visit to Murano glass factory. Visited the famous squares and bridges and took lots of photos. Finally had a typical Italian lunch with lasagne. The boat took us back to the mainland before 2 PM and then we started our long 525 km drive in the bus to Rome. Had our first toilet break at 4 PM near Bologna and had a coffee and snack. Later stopped for a dinner break at 6.30 PM and we had grilled chicken breast and coffee. Continued our last stretch at 7 PM and reached our hotel near Rome by 8.30 PM. Slept soon after we checked in as we were really tired. Room was really nice here.

Hotel:
IH Hotels Roma Z3, Via Giorgio Perlasca, 13/15, 00155 Roma RM, Italy

Places visited:
Venice, Italy

06 - 2017-Nov-07, Tuesday

• Rome – Vatican – Arezzo

Started from the hotel at 7.45 AM after a not so bad breakfast and reached our first stop at Vatican City by 9.30 due to heavy traffic in Rome. It was drizzling in the morning but by the time we got down sunshine was back. We had opted for a guided tour covering Vatican Museum and Sistine Chapel. The local guide took us there with interesting explanations of all major attractions including the famous art works of Rafael and Michael Angelo like Pietà depicting the Virgin Mary cradling the dead body of Jesus.. After we visited St. Peter's Basilica. Besides souvenirs also bought some stamps and then headed by bus to the Trevi Fountains. We had a buffet lunch and famous Gelato ice cream and before 3 headed to Colossium. Spent around 2 hours there and went inside this huge medieval structure and also saw the Arch of Constantine just outside it.

We started our return drive by 4.45 PM and had our toilet break around 7 PM. Had a coffee and bought some water from there. Reached hotel before 8 PM and slept. Room was very nice.

Hotel:
Hotel Il Gentiluomo
Via Raccordo Autostradale, 1/a, 52100 Località San Giuliano, Arezzo AR, Italy

Places visited:
Vatican Museum
Sistine Chapel
St. Peter's Basilica
Trevi Fountains
Colossium
Arch of Constantine

07 - 2017-Nov-08, Wednesday

• Arezzo – Florence – Pisa – Genoa

Started after 8 AM from Arezzo to Florence after a modest breakfast. Reached Florence by 9 AM. Had a walk tour with a local guide who was a very old lady and saw all major attractions. Ended it in a leather factory where we were given lots of time with a demo of various leather. All was costly so just bought a small coin bag. At 12 we headed for a traditional group lunch in a famous restaurant. It was nice with pasta and pizza. It ended with beef stake and tiramisu.

We returned from there at 1.30 PM and reached Pisa by 3 PM. Leaning Tower of Pisa was the main attraction here along with the nearby Cathedral and Baptistry. Took the famous photo of posing like pushing back the leaning tower.

We returned by 4.30 PM and it was raining most of the time. Good that it didn't happen during our sight seeing times so far. Took a toilet break at 7 and reached hotel in Loano by 7.45 PM. Slept after a quick visit to the nearby Varesina Beach.

Hotel:
Hotel Garden Lido
Lungomare Nazario Sauro, 9, 17025 Loano SV, Italy

Places visited:
Florence:
Ponte Vecchio
Palazzo Vecchio
Piazza Signoria
Santa Maria del Fiore (Duomo di Firenze)
Giotto's Tower
Baptistery
Basilica of Santa Croce
Adrimar leather factory

Pisa:
Piazza del Duomo
Pisa Baptistery
Pisa Cathedral
Leaning Tower of Pisa

Varesina Beach, Loano

08 - 2017-Nov-09, Thursday

• Genoa – Monaco – Nice – Cannes – Avignon

Breakfast was very bad today. Just croissants and coffee. We started our travel by 8 AM.

At 9, we crossed to France from Italy and few minutes after reached Monaco. It was very beautiful and we had to take few escalators to get on top of the middle region named Monaco ville. It was on top of a big rock on the Mediterranean sea side and could get excellent views of the other two regions Font vielle and Monte Carlo. It was drizzling but we still enjoyed the time there.

Left Monaco after 11 AM and stopped at a perfume factory near Eze. Looks like that was another marketing tie up as the demos were not elaborate but the perfume costs were very high.

We continued our trip after 12.30 and reached Nice by 1.15. It was still drizzling. We had naan and curries from an Indian restaurant and there was just enough time to visit the famous square there and the beach. Left Nice by 3 PM and reached Cannes by 4. Visited the famous film festival palace and the nearby beach and returned after 45 minutes. After around two and half hours of travel reached our hotel near Avignon by 7.30 PM taking a toilet break at 6 PM. The place was very cold with below 5 degree night temperature. Room was nice. We had lavish beef stake dinner from the restaurant there and slept.

Hotel:
Campanile
60 Rue du Bon Vent, 84140 Avignon, France

Places visited:
Prince's Palace of Monaco
Saint Nicholas Cathedral of Monaco
Parfumerie Fragonard - Èze
Place Masséna, Nice
Palais des Festivals, Cannes

09 - 2017-Nov-10, Friday

• Avignon – Paris. Bus tour ends.

Last day of our bus tour. Woke up early to see the full buffet breakfast items before it's finished by our fellow members. This time the tour guide had to tell all not to take more items to keep in your bag. It was okay food.
Started our long 700 km drive to Paris by 8 AM. Had our first short break at 10 and then the lunch break at 12 noon and had a burger. Started again by 1 with a break at 3.30 and reached Paris at 5 PM. The tour group dropped us at Place de Italia and we took the metro train to our hotel near Arc de Triumph. It was drizzling most of the time. After dumping our luggage in the small but nice room, we got out for a walk around the area. Visited the Arc de Triumph and then Eiffel tower from a distance. Bought some souvenirs, had a lavish dinner and crashed to the bed before it was late.

Hotel:
Hôtel Royal Elysées
6 Avenue Victor Hugo, 75116 Paris, France

Places visited:
Arc de Triumph
Eiffel tower

10- 2017-Nov-11, Saturday

• 12 PM @ Airport, 3 PM Paris-Doha Flight, 11:30 PM Doha

Woke up very early as we were used to that. Had buffet breakfast when it was ready. It was raining all the time so the plan for an outing was dropped. Checked out after 9 AM and walked to the nearby metro station to go to the airport. There was some function going on and the whole area near Arc de Triumph was closed. After struggling a bit with French speaking Police personnel found our way out to another station after walking a lot.

The Qatar Airways flight from Paris to Doha took off on time at 3 PM and I spent the time on board watching movies and sleeping. Landed safely back in Doha by midnight.

Expenses:

Airt tickets, Bus Tour Package and Hotel = 6,385 QAR
Shared expense = 450 €
Own expense = 467 €
Total = 917 € = 4100 QAR
Grand Total = 10,485 QAR

Notes

1 EUR = 4.35 QAR = 75 INR
Bus Tour Operator: http://goeugo.eu/

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