Travel • Page 23

A couple of friends are potentially going to Nicaragua in the fall and I’m going to try to tag along. I’ve never left the country so I’m pretty excited about the possibility.

On a more broad note it’s hard to imagine or predict what the world is going to look like technologically, politically, environmentally 20 years from now so I’m really feeling the deep urge to travel as much as possible, as quickly as possible.

 

i'll be in san juan, puerto rico in less than two weeks.

 

Won't be until July or August until Norway opens up their border, so no flying for me until then

 

Has anyone here used Turo to rent a vehicle?

 

yeah, it's worked great for me. only bad thing i've noticed is that private owners are a little more nit picky on damage and cleanliness compared to traditional car rental agencies. i got charged $30 for some sand and some small scuffs in the trunk.

 

Thanks. I need to rent a car in LA this summer and it looks like Turo would be about half the cost compared to the standard car rental companies.

 

could i offer another alternative?

whenever i go to los angeles, i go to toyota of downtown la. they have a rent a car service there that's really good. i've rented hatchbacks for 35$/day with 250 miles allowance per day. since i have full coverage auto insurance, it comes with free rental insurance. i've rented with them 4 times now and have had nothing but great experiences there.

just throwin it out there.

 

Ty for this, I’m going on a few weeks and we were just gonna walk/take the bus everywhere bc rental cars are insane right now. Gonna look into this!

 

call first for reservation info to make sure they have somethin affordable available when you plan to head out, since gas is hovering at 4$/gal right now in cali, the ubers add up, and as affordable as public transportation can be, unless you're takin their light rail, the bus rides take up alot of time.

 

we don’t have a ton we absolutely need to do, mostly wandering in certain areas for a day to see what catches our eye so bus/rail works but we wanna go to Santa Monica one day from the echo park area so it’d be nice to have a car then.

 

Well, I am flying into LAX with my wife and 2 kids and we need to get in a car and drive to Palm Springs, lol. So I would avoid needing to get to downtown LA if I can.

 

What can anyone tell me about Asheville, North Carolina? Looking at it as a long term place to settle down

 

What type of info are you looking for?

* It has a reputation as a more liberal city in western NC, which is mostly conservative. It's like a mix of hippies and older rich people that retired to the mountains or have second homes there, though this is definitely just a stereotype.
* It gets a lot of good live music, especially relative to its population.
* Great outdoors activities (hiking, rafting, etc.). The Blue Ridge Parkway comes very close to downtown Asheville.
* Great food relative to its size.
* Tourism is a big part of the city (even their minor league baseball team is called the Asheville Tourists...).
* It has a small airport, but is 2 hours to the Charlotte airport and less than 1.5 hours to the Greenville-Spartanburg airport.

 

Music. Craft Beers and cocktails. Mountains. Good weather. Snowboarding/skiing available nearby. Whitewater rafting in the spring/summer.

Lovely lil big town.

 

When it came to Prohibition, Asheville was ahead of the curve. In 1862, North Carolina passed its first Prohibition law to conserve grain during the Civil War. It was repealed in 1866 after the war ended, but Asheville passed its own version of the law in 1907. National Prohibition would not be passed for another 13 years.

Ashevillians invented the Bellyak, aka the world’s first prone kayak.

One of the nation’s first electric street railways opened in Asheville in 1889. A few years later, a line was built to connect Biltmore Village with the courthouse to assist with the transportation of supplies + laborers working on the Biltmore Estate.

Five #1 box office films have been filmed at least partially in the Asheville area: Last of the Mohicans, The Fugitive, Hannibal, Patch Adams, Nell + Forrest Gump. Believe it or not, Dirty Dancing never went #1.

The blue in the Blue Ridge Mountains come from a chemical called isoprene that trees release into the atmosphere. Isoprene contributes to the beautiful blue haze you often see over the peaks of the Blue Ridge on a clear day.

Over 3,000 species of fungi have been recorded by researchers in the Great Smoky Mountains National Park, according to the Asheville Mushroom Club.

Asheville’s ideal temperate climate helped put it on the map as the perfect place to recover from tuberculosis. The reigning theory of the time was that Asheville’s mild weather + cool night air would help clear the deadly bacteria from the lungs of the afflicted. In 1930, Asheville was home to 20 TB specialists and 25 sanitaria with a total of 900 beds. Unfortunately, 75% of people who entered the facilities were dead within 5 years.

 

Ok the part about the fungi makes this an easy decision

 

Happy to help

 

it's not 'in' downtown, just nearby. the traffic around the area of the dealership isn't too bad.

there's a light rail route that ends two blocks from the santa monica pier. but driving up the pacific coast highway from san diego through santa monica to about santa barbara is worth the price of a rental, even for just one day of the trip.

 

Old thread but giving it a bump...

Any Scottish folk in here (or people that have travelled to Scotland before) that can help with any recs for restaurants/bars/cool experiences in Edinburgh/Glasgow/Inverness? Going in April. It's 4 nights in Edinburgh, 2 in Glasgow, 1 in Fort Williams/Glencoe, 2 Nights Isle of Skye, 2 Nights Outer Hebrides and then 4 nights Inverness. Got the route booked (hotels, trains, cars, ferrys etc). Just need some suggestions of things to do in the cities.

It's probably super touristy, but booked the platinum whisky tour and then dinner at the kitchin, but that's it so far. Still researching museums, pubs, eats etc.

 

OK - Im spitballin' off top of my head a few things and can see what floats your boat.

Glasgow:

• If there is a gig on I would highly recommend going. Barrowlands is my favorite venue. King tuts follows it up. Those are both relatively central to the city centre.
• Glasgow Music City Tours | Guided Glasgow Walking Tours they do a good tour about glasgow of the venues etc (i think they also do one in edinburgh). I went on it and it was pretty good.
• Fang Crazy golf has just open and is really fun, like its really well done. (Cant beleive im listing it!)
• There is a tour of Glasgow Central Station which takes you into hidden platforms and stuff, it sounds really geeky but it is really interesting.
• Glasgow Necropolis - creepy at night, but its where they filmed some of the new batman
• Id recommend just walking the "Glasgow Centre Mural Trail" has great murals on sides of buildings of like Billy Connolly etc
• I quite liked just walking from the city centre through to west end (hipster/studenty) through Kelvingrove park.

Food/bars:

• Bucks Bar - Good chicken burger and chips. Would recommend booking a table if on a busier night
• Paesano Pizza - Great neopolitan pizza. Would go about lunch time, can book tables and can be very busy in evenings.
• Franks Pizza's & Subs - best pizza going but it is in the west end, but if a nice day its well worth the walk.
• Topolabamba - absolutely phenomenal mexican food. Love it. Again, if a busy day id recommend booking a table.
• Raffas buritos in the 'hidden lane' in the west is good. It is literally a hidden lane.
• Pot Still - famous whiskey tasting bar. Its pretty good went there with some pals who moved country and came back. good mix of locals and tourists and you can speak to bar tenders about whiskey etc.

Edinburgh:

Food/bars:

• IMeltmongers - mac and cheese toastie!
• Bens cookies - really nice (PRICEY!)
• The Banshee Labyrinth - it was like in a cavern and i really liked it.

I'll think of some more over next few days as im knackered just now! Feel free to get in touch if you need a hand with anything. Can be a bit more helpful to do with Glasgow and maybe a bit with edinburgh.

 

Nice! This is solid. I really didn't expect a response in here as it was dead for a year (Covid I get), but this is great, I'll do some googling and see what looks like a fit for my group. After we leave Glasgow, and up until Inverness, it's just nature and castles so looking for some good times at the front end of the trip!

 

This summer, Greece or Italy?!

 

A bit last minute… any tips for Paris? I am away on a business/awards trip with probably not much time to myself. Any must see things /restaurants?

 

Going to Austin this week for work. Any recs for downtown activities?

 

Get fed in traditional Texan-style at the Cooper’s Old Time Barbecue Pit