hibs.net Messageboard

Page 1 of 3 123 LastLast
Results 1 to 30 of 69

Thread: City Breaks

  1. #1
    @hibs.net private member Lancs Harp's Avatar
    Join Date
    Nov 2015
    Location
    Chesterfield
    Age
    60
    Posts
    7,297

    City Breaks

    Taking my much better half off to to Seville for a weekend break at the end of September. Love travelling and had a few really good City breaks Prague Paris and Helsinki come immediately to mind (with a good few others worthy of a mention in dispatches).

    Any favourite breaks and recommendations?

    Anyone been to Seville?


  2. Log in to remove the advert

  3. #2
    Bit further but Istanbul is amazing.

  4. #3
    @hibs.net private member Lancs Harp's Avatar
    Join Date
    Nov 2015
    Location
    Chesterfield
    Age
    60
    Posts
    7,297
    Quote Originally Posted by patch1875 View Post
    This quote is hidden because you are ignoring this member. Show Quote
    Bit further but Istanbul is amazing.
    Managed to knock of 45 plus countries but never made it to Turkey and would very much like to go to Istanbul. Not top of the Mrs list though, I'll have to work on it

  5. #4
    Quote Originally Posted by Lancs Harp View Post
    This quote is hidden because you are ignoring this member. Show Quote
    Managed to knock of 45 plus countries but never made it to Turkey and would very much like to go to Istanbul. Not top of the Mrs list though, I'll have to work on it
    Do it! Turkey is a wonderful country, I quite like places with a bit of an edge to it Naples is another favourite.

  6. #5
    @hibs.net private member Lancs Harp's Avatar
    Join Date
    Nov 2015
    Location
    Chesterfield
    Age
    60
    Posts
    7,297
    Quote Originally Posted by patch1875 View Post
    This quote is hidden because you are ignoring this member. Show Quote
    Do it! Turkey is a wonderful country, I quite like places with a bit of an edge to it Naples is another favourite.
    Personally my top three Cities are Cape Town, Marrakech and not surprisingly Edinburgh.

    Plenty of edge in Cape town and Marrakesh so I know what you mean.
    Last edited by Lancs Harp; 11-08-2019 at 04:09 PM.

  7. #6
    Belfast is really cool, easy to get to and not that expensive.

  8. #7
    Sarajevo. Not the prettiest and it's not the easiest to get to, but the history and people are something else.

    I've mentioned this before, Romania has some beautiful and underrated cities. Brasov, Sibiu and Sighisaora are worth a visit

  9. #8
    Berlin is a great break, Budapest is stunning too as is Krakow, Naples as mentioned is good but we done Pompeii and will do Herculaneum in a couple of weeks time.

  10. #9
    @hibs.net private member danhibees1875's Avatar
    Join Date
    Apr 2005
    Location
    Edinburgh
    Age
    32
    Posts
    13,700
    Porto is a fantastic little city. Cheap direct flights from Edinburgh, a lovely city with great food and drink and cheap accommodation. Worth taking a trip to the Duoro valley, and make sure to try one of the local "Francesca" sandwiches.
    Mon the Hibs.

  11. #10
    Coaching Staff lyonhibs's Avatar
    Join Date
    Mar 2007
    Location
    Zurich
    Age
    39
    Posts
    14,004
    Lisbon or Lyon would be my recommendations

  12. #11
    Coaching Staff HUTCHYHIBBY's Avatar
    Join Date
    Jul 2004
    Location
    EDINBURGH
    Age
    52
    Posts
    22,474
    Brussels/Leuven, Cologne, Belgrade, Riga, Ljubljana, Zagreb and Kiev (quite a long trip for a w-end though) amongst others for me.

  13. #12
    Another vote for Porto, I'm living near Strasbourg so I'll thrown that in to the hat.

    Geneva is nice too for a weekend, Luxembourg City too.

  14. #13
    @hibs.net private member .Sean.'s Avatar
    Join Date
    Nov 2009
    Location
    Haddington/ Newhaven
    Age
    33
    Posts
    10,385
    Krakow and Budapest are both amazing.

    Didnt enjoy Prague at all, found the majority of locals rude as **** and I spent half the time asking why they were ogling my missus and making her feel uncomfortable. Full of creeps, spoke to a couple from down south and a group of lads from Newcastle and they said they experienced similar - the locals are complacent with tourism trade and clearly don’t want you there.
    ''It's always been just part of the culture. Growing up, for most working-class kids, is all about football, music or clothes. You might not have much money, but whatever you have got, you're going to look good.'' - Paul Weller

  15. #14
    @hibs.net private member Billy Whizz's Avatar
    Join Date
    May 2002
    Location
    Edinburgh
    Age
    62
    Posts
    44,157
    Quote Originally Posted by danhibees1875 View Post
    This quote is hidden because you are ignoring this member. Show Quote
    Porto is a fantastic little city. Cheap direct flights from Edinburgh, a lovely city with great food and drink and cheap accommodation. Worth taking a trip to the Duoro valley, and make sure to try one of the local "Francesca" sandwiches.
    What’s the transfer time from the airport to Porto centre

  16. #15
    Never been to Porto but Lisbon is fantastic and highly recommend. Bilbao and Madrid are easy to get to from Edinburgh and are also both fantastic but the best Spanish city break is 100% Valencia.

  17. #16
    @hibs.net private member danhibees1875's Avatar
    Join Date
    Apr 2005
    Location
    Edinburgh
    Age
    32
    Posts
    13,700
    Quote Originally Posted by Billy Whizz View Post
    This quote is hidden because you are ignoring this member. Show Quote
    What’s the transfer time from the airport to Porto centre
    The airport is well located. We got a taxi into the city centre in about 20 minutes, an airport bus takes about 40.
    Mon the Hibs.

  18. #17
    @hibs.net private member goosano's Avatar
    Join Date
    Sep 2005
    Age
    64
    Posts
    1,906
    Quote Originally Posted by Billy Whizz View Post
    This quote is hidden because you are ignoring this member. Show Quote
    What’s the transfer time from the airport to Porto centre
    We used the metro/light railway from the airport to the city centre. It takes 30 minutes. Porto is great for a break and there are fantastic beaches and coastline to the south of the river.
    I've had breaks to Lisbon Budapest, Valencia, Bratislava, Santander and Gothenburg. The first two were my favourites. I didn't like Valencia much. Gothenburg was great with a lovely archipelago but exorbitant drink prices

  19. #18
    Left by mutual consent! calumhibee1's Avatar
    Join Date
    Dec 2005
    Posts
    16,615
    I was in Seville a few months back. Not necessarily a lot to do but it’s a lovely place and pretty cheap. Also outrageously hot

    I stayed at the Hilton Garden Inn which had a pool if that’s your thing (from memory when looking for hotels I don’t think many of them did) and a free shuttle service into the town every day. Uber’s were only about a tenner from the hotel.

    Real Alcazar was worth a visit

  20. #19
    Coaching Staff Since90+2's Avatar
    Join Date
    Apr 2010
    Location
    Leith
    Posts
    10,593
    Vienna is absolutely stunning. The architecture is probably the most impressive I have ever seen.

    St Stephens Cathedral is one of those places your jaw hits the floor as you walk. Schönbrunn Palace is also a must visit , the sheer scale of the place is mind blowing, it makes Holyrood look like a shed in comparison.

    Vienna for me was far far more impressive than Prague which I found abit disappointing.
    Last edited by Since90+2; 12-08-2019 at 05:44 PM.

  21. #20
    @hibs.net private member The Modfather's Avatar
    Join Date
    May 2004
    Location
    Edinburgh
    Age
    38
    Posts
    6,764
    Copenhagen made a lasting impression when I went over with the now wife for the Hibs game. We treated it as a long weekend and only did the football thing on the day of the game. If I were ever to move abroad that would be my first thought.

    There’s a cluster of hotels the airport side of a massive park. Was 10 minutes on the shuttle to the city centre or the airport. Was also only a 20 minute bike ride through the park to the city. They have hop on hop off semi electric bikes so easy for all ages to use. They have also done the cycling thing properly, right throughout the city they have 3 levels of pavement, one for pedestrians, a level down for cycling and another level down to the road. Never seen a cleaner city.

    Wasn’t cheap given it’s Scandinavia, but just waiting until my daughter is old enough to appreciate it and will head back.

  22. #21
    Rome and Berlin are brilliant cities, but huge. Plenty to see and learn about. Loved the food in both places too.

    Was in Seville for a day last year, nice place, very hot!

  23. #22
    @hibs.net private member Mibbes Aye's Avatar
    Join Date
    Apr 2007
    Posts
    15,550
    Quote Originally Posted by .Sean. View Post
    This quote is hidden because you are ignoring this member. Show Quote
    Krakow and Budapest are both amazing.

    Didnt enjoy Prague at all, found the majority of locals rude as **** and I spent half the time asking why they were ogling my missus and making her feel uncomfortable. Full of creeps, spoke to a couple from down south and a group of lads from Newcastle and they said they experienced similar - the locals are complacent with tourism trade and clearly don’t want you there.
    Were you staying in the city centre? I wouldn’t be surprised if the ogling was less Czech and more ‘lads’ on party or stags. It is very popular with Russians and their language doesn’t sound hugely different from Czech. I go over there two or three times a year, usually staying just on the fringes of the Old Town and the groups of young Russians, coked up and drunk, are prevalent as soon as you get anywhere close to the city centre. Their idea of what constitutes constraint and good manners doesn’t set a high bar. But that’s true of the English and Scots stags as well!

    In the centre, I think the local businesses and the like put up with the tourist trade, both the stag and hens, and the folk wanting to see the astronomical clock and Charles Bridge because like you say, it is profitable income. They also put up with very rude, often shocking behaviour. What always strikes me is that every business, every waiter, every barperson almost always speaks passable English and in fact the tourists, whether Russian, German or Chinese use English as the common language. It is amazing what using a few Czech words or phrases can do though - service staff tend to be genuinely delighted that someone has made the effort, given the assumption that you can just get by on English.

    I think the other thing to bear in mind is that while it is changing, countries like the Czech Republic are still very, very formal when it comes to conversation between customers and staff. You no doubt would have been greeted with ‘Dobry den’ in shops, restaurants and bars, rather than ‘Ahoj’. The former is formal, translates as ‘good day’ whereas the latter is essentially ‘Hi’ or ‘Hello’ but they would never really use the latter or expect you to unless you knew each other really well and informally. All that can make them come across as a bit austere and aloof. You don’t get a ‘Good day’ or ‘Good afternoon’ in Greggs or Morrison’s or the local Wetherspoons over here, let’s face it.

    Genuinely sorry you are and your partner didn’t have a good experience. I’m a frequent visitor to Prague and the Czech Republic and I love it. Fascinating country with great culture, great appetite for sports and great beer, wine and food.

    Would echo your comment about Budapest, a lovely city (or somewhat like Prague, two cities divided by the river).
    There's only one thing better than a Hibs calendar and that's two Hibs calendars

  24. #23
    Promising Youngster
    Join Date
    Nov 2012
    Posts
    90
    I’m heading to Venice, Trieste, Ljubljana and Lake Bled in September. Any recommendations of things to do/places to eat whilst out there?

  25. #24
    Coaching Staff HUTCHYHIBBY's Avatar
    Join Date
    Jul 2004
    Location
    EDINBURGH
    Age
    52
    Posts
    22,474
    Quote Originally Posted by Ajo View Post
    This quote is hidden because you are ignoring this member. Show Quote
    I’m heading to Venice, Trieste, Ljubljana and Lake Bled in September. Any recommendations of things to do/places to eat whilst out there?
    Plenty wee places on the river in Ljubljana, take a cable car ride up to the castle too.

  26. #25
    @hibs.net private member overdrive's Avatar
    Join Date
    Apr 2002
    Location
    South Gyle
    Age
    39
    Posts
    7,840
    Madrid is great. Relatively cheap too.

  27. #26
    @hibs.net private member danhibees1875's Avatar
    Join Date
    Apr 2005
    Location
    Edinburgh
    Age
    32
    Posts
    13,700
    Quote Originally Posted by overdrive View Post
    This quote is hidden because you are ignoring this member. Show Quote
    Madrid is great. Relatively cheap too.
    I was about to say Madrid. Lovely city.

    Some of the tapas bars are incredible. Mountains of food along with your pint.
    Mon the Hibs.

  28. #27
    Coaching Staff Haymaker's Avatar
    Join Date
    Oct 2006
    Location
    Chatham, NJ, USA
    Age
    38
    Posts
    11,284
    Quote Originally Posted by Mibbes Aye View Post
    This quote is hidden because you are ignoring this member. Show Quote
    Were you staying in the city centre? I wouldn’t be surprised if the ogling was less Czech and more ‘lads’ on party or stags. It is very popular with Russians and their language doesn’t sound hugely different from Czech. I go over there two or three times a year, usually staying just on the fringes of the Old Town and the groups of young Russians, coked up and drunk, are prevalent as soon as you get anywhere close to the city centre. Their idea of what constitutes constraint and good manners doesn’t set a high bar. But that’s true of the English and Scots stags as well!

    In the centre, I think the local businesses and the like put up with the tourist trade, both the stag and hens, and the folk wanting to see the astronomical clock and Charles Bridge because like you say, it is profitable income. They also put up with very rude, often shocking behaviour. What always strikes me is that every business, every waiter, every barperson almost always speaks passable English and in fact the tourists, whether Russian, German or Chinese use English as the common language. It is amazing what using a few Czech words or phrases can do though - service staff tend to be genuinely delighted that someone has made the effort, given the assumption that you can just get by on English.

    I think the other thing to bear in mind is that while it is changing, countries like the Czech Republic are still very, very formal when it comes to conversation between customers and staff. You no doubt would have been greeted with ‘Dobry den’ in shops, restaurants and bars, rather than ‘Ahoj’. The former is formal, translates as ‘good day’ whereas the latter is essentially ‘Hi’ or ‘Hello’ but they would never really use the latter or expect you to unless you knew each other really well and informally. All that can make them come across as a bit austere and aloof. You don’t get a ‘Good day’ or ‘Good afternoon’ in Greggs or Morrison’s or the local Wetherspoons over here, let’s face it.

    Genuinely sorry you are and your partner didn’t have a good experience. I’m a frequent visitor to Prague and the Czech Republic and I love it. Fascinating country with great culture, great appetite for sports and great beer, wine and food.

    Would echo your comment about Budapest, a lovely city (or somewhat like Prague, two cities divided by the river).
    Been to Prague 7 or 8 times with mixed sex groups and never had any issues. Other than Edinburgh it would be the European city of choice for me to live (if I could speak Czech beyond ordering beer and deep fried cheese).

  29. #28
    @hibs.net private member GlesgaeHibby's Avatar
    Join Date
    Apr 2007
    Location
    Edinburgh
    Age
    37
    Posts
    7,373
    Quote Originally Posted by lyonhibs View Post
    This quote is hidden because you are ignoring this member. Show Quote
    Lisbon or Lyon would be my recommendations
    Just back from a stag in Lisbon and would recommend - although being a stag I didn't see an awful lot of Lisbon. Will go back at some point with the Mrs to properly explore.

    Loved Prague - so much to see and so much choice food wise. Had an absolutely outstanding meal in an Argentinian restaurant in Prague last year.

  30. #29
    Coaching Staff lyonhibs's Avatar
    Join Date
    Mar 2007
    Location
    Zurich
    Age
    39
    Posts
    14,004
    Quote Originally Posted by GlesgaeHibby View Post
    This quote is hidden because you are ignoring this member. Show Quote
    Just back from a stag in Lisbon and would recommend - although being a stag I didn't see an awful lot of Lisbon. Will go back at some point with the Mrs to properly explore.

    Loved Prague - so much to see and so much choice food wise. Had an absolutely outstanding meal in an Argentinian restaurant in Prague last year.
    Yeah, I saw .

    Would definitely recommend it with the good lady friend as well - go to Belem and join the queues for the divine Pasteis de Nata

  31. #30
    First Team Breakthrough portyhibernian's Avatar
    Join Date
    Mar 2013
    Location
    Edinburgh
    Posts
    433
    +1 for Lisbon - beautiful city, friendly locals and some really nice restaurants (we really liked one called BouBou's). Everything uphill would be my one complaint! Taxi drivers went on strike while we were there last September which caused an issue getting to the airport when we we were leaving, but sure that will all be sorted by now.

Bookmarks

Posting Permissions

  • You may not post new threads
  • You may not post replies
  • You may not post attachments
  • You may not edit your posts
  •  
hibs.net ©2020 All Rights Reserved
- Mobile Leaderboard (320x50) - Leaderboard (728x90)