No. of Recommendations: 4
DW and I continue to make up for travel time lost to the pandemic. After spending a week in Nice and 4 weeks in Paris earlier this year and in Hawai'i (Oahu, where all is well) for 2 months currently, we're set for 2 weeks in Bologna and Florence around Thanksgiving. We'll be back in Waikiki for January through early April 2024, and then in May-June we'll spend 6 days in Netherlands, 10 days in Nice, and 2 weeks in Paris.
We travel comfortably but sensibly, sorta Rick Steves style. We pack lightly and never check bags. We'll be staying in apartments exclusively while in Europe. I put a lot of research into selecting places to stay (primarily on VRBO). We return consistently to the same apartments in Paris and Florence, which suit our requirements and budget perfectly. The owners are older, refined individuals, and we look forward to seeing them.
Airfares are definitely higher this year (and next), but at least my decades of flying with Delta pays off with complementary upgrades to Comfort+ seating on most flights and sometimes even lay-flat seats, trans-Pacific.
In the Netherlands, Amsterdam has its attractions but also its detractions, and so this time we'll be staying in Haarlem, which is barely 20 minutes away by train or bus to the west. Haarlem is a lovely, interesting city in its own right, and it's much less hectic than Amsterdam. It's also within an easy bike (or bus) ride to several North Sea beaches, which are impressive and worthwhile, even in May. We may day-trip to The Hague and/or Leiden, too.
We'll be getting the new Covid booster as soon as it's available this fall, along with our flu shots (and perhaps RSV jab, too--will check with my doc). We still carry N95s with us and use them in situations that feel uncomfortable (such as crowded public transit). In Hawai'i, no one looks twice at you if you do that, because it's long been commonplace in Asian countries, even if you just have the sniffles. Or maybe there will be no Covid bump this winter/spring at all? We'll see.
There's talk of some sort of visa that will be required of US travelers to Europe beginning next year, but the date has not been fixed yet, and the application process (online), waiting time (maybe a few days),and fee (modest) do not appear to be significant.
