Holidays into the unknown ;)

Its not my kind of party anyway.

Grammaretto

Goodness me! I am surprised. I love maps and I love planning where I am going. I love to research the places, find out about the language, culture and history.
It really makes for a much richer experience. To just land somewhere which could be anywhere is a waste in my opinion.

Same here :-) We recently came back from a cruise to Norway - Arctic region.....unbelievable the amount of people who complained it was 'cold'!! Also a considerable number had not packed weather appropriate clothing/footwear....... where did they think they were going, a clue was in the title of the cruise. I love researching and planning trips like you Grammaretto. Even try to have a little of the language if possible.

fancythat

I have a relative who is guity as charged as well.
She says, "well the pilot knows where he is going, so that is good enough for me".

🤣🤣🤣

I think it sounds quite exciting, but you’d definitely need a specific type of personality to enjoy it. My husband would spend the whole time worrying about the hotel quality, whereas I’d be happy as long as there’s a nice view and a local market. It’s a bit of a gamble, but sometimes the best memories come from the trips you didn't over-plan.

Isn't it amazing how people just love to judge others whose idea of a holiday Isn't theirs. What on earth is wrong with going somewhere you don't know, doing no research, and just enjoying whatever comes your way. Sounds a lot more relaxing than putting in hours of study beforehand and then breaking your neck to fit in all the visits you plan to do. Not everyone wants or needs to do this, and I don't understand why people are castigated for their lack of geographical knowledge. Doesn't make them shallow or dull, just differently focused. i expect there are some really deadly dull people amongst those who assiduously do their research before setting foot on foreign soil. There's an implied criticism too that those who go on cruises and make a cursory visit to the destinations on the itinerary are somehow lacking. Why?? There's a lot of undeserved judgement going on here. Let everyone enjoy their holiday in their own way, no need for 'holier than thou' comment on people's choices.

I am a great user of Trip Advisor as well as Google before I book.
Getting the opinions of those who have been as well as what it looks like, and things they found is part of the fun.
I have got bus timetables, travel times and a few dire warnings ( one next to sewage plant, one mossies in Sept but not earlier for example)

I do not know what they teach in schools these days. When I mentioned that a 16 year old could not identify Wales on a map to some other young people, they confirmed that neither could they!
I must admit that I have still not absorbed the "new" Yugoslavian countries yet, even though I DO know that they are all East of Italy :-)

Plenty folk are sadly too idle, or just plain dim, to research a holiday before going. It makes no sense to us, either. It doesn't help that Geography seems to have not been taught much for about 40 years or so -- for verification, see almost any quiz show?!

I recall we went to Majorca (possibly Min), on a next to last minute package that had been heavily discounted. The plane as often happens had people going to a wide variety of hotels. When the plane went over more sea (as the Balearics are in the Med) it was hilarious to hear lots of passengers asking why, as they thought they were going to Spain (which as everyone knows, is only a Mainland . . .). When we got on the buses to reach the hotels, some had no idea if they were going to one on the seafront, or inland?!

We've been lucky enough to go on some cruises (when we both worked, so had more cash!) -- for those, it really makes sense to do ample research, as Ship's Tours are the source of many complaints, a major (& often justified) moan is due to the rip-off prices. In many destinations, you can organise your own trips, without any crowd, and at much less cost.

You can also -- IF you know -- visit some better places than the more obvious venues in the tour books? But some folk will it seems always be a bit nervous about going their own way?

skate

Isn't it amazing how people just love to judge others whose idea of a holiday Isn't theirs. What on earth is wrong with going somewhere you don't know, doing no research, and just enjoying whatever comes your way. Sounds a lot more relaxing than putting in hours of study beforehand and then breaking your neck to fit in all the visits you plan to do. Not everyone wants or needs to do this, and I don't understand why people are castigated for their lack of geographical knowledge. Doesn't make them shallow or dull, just differently focused. i expect there are some really deadly dull people amongst those who assiduously do their research before setting foot on foreign soil. There's an implied criticism too that those who go on cruises and make a cursory visit to the destinations on the itinerary are somehow lacking. Why?? There's a lot of undeserved judgement going on here. Let everyone enjoy their holiday in their own way, no need for 'holier than thou' comment on people's choices.

Have you not been on GN very long or you’ve just not noticed how it is?

GNs are really great for the help, support or advice you can get, but . . .

Let everyone enjoy their holiday/food/bedding/laundry/showering/driving/heating in their own way, no need for 'holier than thou' comment on people's choices.

is too much to expect.

When I was young and foolish, if I was planning a holiday abroad I used to book in for a term beforehand learning the language. None of these languages stuck in my head once the holiday was finished, except for some reason "thank you." I can now say "thank you" in quite a few languages, but so can everybody else! You can get greeting cards with "thank you" in umpteen languages. Now of course, you can look up phrases on your mobile. Perhaps this makes prior research irrelevant.

The idle/dim people are supposedly the ones who then complain about their holidays
But here some of you are, complaining about other peoples holidays!!!

sixandahalf

I very much doubt I will ever be able to afford a holiday.

We have come up with various ingenious schemes to at least be looking at a different 4 walls.

Housesitting, pet sitting and house swaps.

Three fun ways to go to a new place at minimal cost. If you're old enough for a bus pass , house sit in UK cities, eat the same food that you would at home, save on your heating and water bill.

And not everyone has a willing partner with whom to 'do their own thing'. There's a lot of smug self congratulation on how 'we' launch ourselves undaunted into adventurous exploration of foreign parts. Some of us are solo travellers who are only too happy to take the safe, unchallenging holiday option and enjoy it without worry.

MissAdventure

There's nothing wrong with that, though.
For two weeks a year, people are entitled to be led, or fo climbing, backpacking, or lay on a sunbed and get sozzled.

More power to them.

Magical Mystery Tours!

We did go on a Mystery Tour once but did know what island we were on 😁
Saw interesting places we wouldn't have thought of visiting by ourselves.

MissAdventure

The idle/dim people are supposedly the ones who then complain about their holidays
But here some of you are, complaining about other peoples holidays!!!

😂😂😂

Allira
My friend, (boss) went on a magical mystery coach trip once, and it took them to the village they already lived in.

MissAdventure

Allira
My friend, (boss) went on a magical mystery coach trip once, and it took them to the village they already lived in.

😁

We were overseas although I suppose we could have ended up where we were staying!

And you could have been sat at the dinner table with the adventurers.
Squinting at their maps, and speaking "the lingo" to the waiter.

When we used to camp every year in France and we found an area we especially liked we used to tour the surrounding campsites to find the best one.

The last few year we went to the same one every year as the children had friends there and we loved it.
Before that we just used to look at the best campsites we could find in the area we wanted to go.

I am not too keen on Mystery tours as I like to know where I am going!

MissAdventure

The idle/dim people are supposedly the ones who then complain about their holidays
But here some of you are, complaining about other peoples holidays!!!

Such fun!😂😂

Not just holidaying - twenty years ago, our next-door neighbours actually decided to move to Spain, but when I asked whereabouts, which region they were going to, they hadn't a clue.

Imagine that, moving somewhere and having no clue where you're going.

Honestly, it’s horses for courses, whatever floats your boat.

IMO, people can do whatever and go wherever they want, even if they zero idea about where they are going or what’s there.

Some simply want to chill in the sun, read a book and eat and drink, and others wish to explore and try new things.

I like to do both!

Does it matter?

MissAdventure

The idle/dim people are supposedly the ones who then complain about their holidays
But here some of you are, complaining about other peoples holidays!!!

It’s sooooo good to have you back!

🤣🤣🤣🤣

I have just come back from visiting a friend in an East European country - I knew roughly the small region we were going to but the complexity of the language meant the name of the town on the map wasn't pronounced how it expected it to so I was a little vague as to exactly where I was.