Holidays

Started by Oakleafer93, June 03, 2009, 01:17:25 PM

Previous topic - Next topic

50fiftyball

I know it's not strictly West Coast, but having drove from Lake Tahoe down to San Francisco, and then to L.A. I have to say Lake Tahoe was one of the most beautiful places I've ever seen. We stayed in the South of the Lake, there were a few casinos, mind you it was December so it was freezing, attempted skiing, very badly!

Has anyone been to it in the summer? Would love to go back to see it in good weather.

As for the argument on the 10/11 day stay in Vegas thing, I just don't like travelling all that way from our Emerald shores to spend 5/6 days!

But can see your point on getting sick of it possibly after a few days gambling/drinking. So I'd probably consider a flight in the middle of the 10 days to somewhere else, driving would be cheaper but everywhere is 5/6 hours away at least!

Rois

Quote from: 50fiftyball on June 02, 2015, 12:20:58 PM
I know it's not strictly West Coast, but having drove from Lake Tahoe down to San Francisco, and then to L.A. I have to say Lake Tahoe was one of the most beautiful places I've ever seen. We stayed in the South of the Lake, there were a few casinos, mind you it was December so it was freezing, attempted skiing, very badly!

Has anyone been to it in the summer? Would love to go back to see it in good weather.

Lake Tahoe is a brilliant spot, I agree with you, it is absolutely beautiful.  We were there in September and hiked up Mt Tallac, incredible views from the top.  We chilled by the lake in the afternoons, went swimming (lots of watersports on it) and had some craic in the bars in the evening (stayed in South Lake Tahoe). 
If you like that kind of stuff, take a look at Mammoth Lakes.  You can drive through Death Valley to get there so scenery is amazing - google says it is 5.5 hours from Vegas but you have Death Valley on the way to make it an interesting drive.  http://www.visitmammoth.com/things-to-do/summer-activities/

Brick Tamlin

Do none of you people work?

omaghjoe

Quote from: Rois on June 02, 2015, 12:59:12 PM
Quote from: 50fiftyball on June 02, 2015, 12:20:58 PM
I know it's not strictly West Coast, but having drove from Lake Tahoe down to San Francisco, and then to L.A. I have to say Lake Tahoe was one of the most beautiful places I've ever seen. We stayed in the South of the Lake, there were a few casinos, mind you it was December so it was freezing, attempted skiing, very badly!

Has anyone been to it in the summer? Would love to go back to see it in good weather.

Lake Tahoe is a brilliant spot, I agree with you, it is absolutely beautiful.  We were there in September and hiked up Mt Tallac, incredible views from the top.  We chilled by the lake in the afternoons, went swimming (lots of watersports on it) and had some craic in the bars in the evening (stayed in South Lake Tahoe). 
If you like that kind of stuff, take a look at Mammoth Lakes.  You can drive through Death Valley to get there so scenery is amazing - google says it is 5.5 hours from Vegas but you have Death Valley on the way to make it an interesting drive.  http://www.visitmammoth.com/things-to-do/summer-activities/


Puckoon should be resident expert here....

Ever been to those old goldrush towns Placerville, Neveda city, Truckee always fancied getting a look around those places

LOL Rois alls I can say is that is that we defo have different tastes!

omaghjoe

Quote from: AZOffaly on June 02, 2015, 11:14:11 AM
Quote from: omaghjoe on June 01, 2015, 09:56:35 PM
Quote from: AZOffaly on June 01, 2015, 09:15:39 PM
Quote from: 50fiftyball on June 01, 2015, 10:44:20 AM
On the topic, have any of you ever drove down to San Diego from there? Was looking at maybe doing this in the middle of my stay, its about 4 hours which isn't too bad, have seen San Francisco & L.A.

Hear San Diego is beautiful, beach etc..

I hear you AZ, I've never been to Phoneix but my impression is that it is an endless sea of airconed mcmansions and strip malls all built in the middle of the desert. My idea of hell! Who in hell decided it was a good idea to build a city there anyway?
San Diego like must of SoCAl was built post WW2 and the houses tend to go up in a sort of midwestern style of house. They are still an endless sea and completely unsuitable for the climate but at least they arent obnioxus and gaudy like the new houses, although in LA you have some of those Mission style houseswith flat roofs, how I long for a house like like that.

I like going to San Diego, it is always good to get away from LA, what I like most is that there is a real pride of place of their city however its just not different enough from LA for me. Heading to the mountains this year.

As an alternative recommendation I would recommend the central California coast Pismo beach, Santa Barbara etc. You don't have the hectic traffic to deal with, and you got the missions beaches and the vineyards. However I think alot of you probably don't mind dealing with the traffic on a short trip, its the day in day out that makes u loathe it

San Diego is the business. Pacific Beach, La Jolla, Downtown. A little older than most cities on the west coast (in terms of the way it feels) but brilliant. I did that drive too, from Vegas. Went out and played a match as well when we arrived. Won the game, and had a migraine in the car on the way home :)

Hmm would say you'd struggle to do it in 4 hours. You'll be goin down the 15 which passes thru the Eastern part of the LA sprawl and could be nasty if you hit it at the wrong time. Also the drive isn't like much, desert followed by the afroementioned sprawl.. not pretty but if its different u might find it interesting. I would advise flights if your time constrained but u gotta factor in that the time for those as well

Defo Wouldn't go outright and call San Diego beautiful, its basically suburbia built on a desert scrub land with beaches at the coast same as LA. San Diego has a definite different feel to LA although it quite similar. There's less people spread over a bigger area so its not as congested. The beaches are typical for SoCal large, wide, exposed, can be windy, can be cloudy.

Not sure where AZ is getting the older feel frm San Diego, its all quite new, maybe the gaslight area in downtown? Although thats sort of made to look old. Maybe the Balboa Park buildings? Anyway both worth a look around. The Field in the gaslamp is owned by people from Coalisland I believe, I refuse to step foot in the place because of this tho!

We have friends in Coronado island which is worth a walk around and lunch, defo one of my favourite places in Socal. There is also Seaworld which I found a bit disturbing, the missions San Diego & San Luis Rey in North County which is where the first European settlements in California, I find these very interesting.

La Holla is worth a dander around and you are guaranteed clouds if the sun is getting too much!

The craft beer scene is big in San Diego at the mo and you can do various brewery tours and pub crawl worth looking into

You could also head on up to Orange County further North there is the a cool little beach town called Laguna Beach, prob about just under an hour from downtown San Diego

You could also head south to Tijuana, which is good fun or head on down the baja peninsula for isolated beaches and great food.

hey joe, I knew I didn't explain that very well :) I suppose I'm coming at it from the point of view where I was flying in every weekend to play football from Phoenix, and basically rotating between residential areas like Kearney Mesa, Adams Avenue, etc as well as going to Pacific Beach. Whenever I went to San Francisco we were in Union Square basically, and then coming from Phoenix, San Diego always seemed very old style, very Spanish. The houses and little streets around PB or La Jolla are way older than anything you'd see in Phoenix for example.

But don't get me wrong, I loved San Diego and our weekends there. We stayed away from Downtown mostly, but visited it occasionally, the Field in the Gaslamp quarter, etc. Usually we were in PB, or occasionally La Jolla. We went racing in Del Mar, down to Tijuana for the craic, etc etc. It's a lovely city, with a lovely climate.

Also, all the above dates from 2003, which was my last time there. It's conceivable that it's changed a lot since then :) But Jerome's report on PB there last week looked exactly as I remember it.

I hear you AZ, I've never been to Phoneix but my impression is that it is an endless sea of airconed mcmansions and strip malls all built in the middle of the desert. My idea of hell! Who in hell decided it was a good idea to build a city there anyway?
San Diego like must of SoCAl was built post WW2 and the houses tend to go up in a sort of midwestern style of house. They are still an endless sea and completely unsuitable for the climate but at least they arent obnioxus and gaudy like the new houses, although in LA you have some of those Mission style houses with flat roofs, how I long for a house like like that.
Anyway I could see how you would think its old coming from there

I like going to San Diego, it is always good to get away from LA, what I like most is that there is a real pride of place of their city however its just not different enough from LA for me. Heading to the mountains this year.

As an alternative recommendation I would recommend the central California coast Pismo beach, Santa Barbara etc. You don't have the hectic traffic to deal with, and you got the missions beaches and the vineyards. However I think alot of you probably don't mind dealing with the traffic on a short trip, its the day in day out that makes u loathe it.

Rois

Quote from: omaghjoe on June 02, 2015, 03:56:54 PM
LOL Rois alls I can say is that is that we defo have different tastes!
Awwwww what, you holiday snob you??  ;D  You're going to the mountains, I love the mountains, hiking and skiing.  Though no doubt Mammoth Lakes/Tahoe is too commercial eh? 



omaghjoe

Quote from: Rois on June 02, 2015, 04:59:35 PM
Quote from: omaghjoe on June 02, 2015, 03:56:54 PM
LOL Rois alls I can say is that is that we defo have different tastes!
Awwwww what, you holiday snob you??  ;D  You're going to the mountains, I love the mountains, hiking and skiing.  Though no doubt Mammoth Lakes/Tahoe is too commercial eh?

No its not that, its that the drive from Vegas to Mammoth is scenic, ;) most Californians scratch their heads at Europeans visiting Death Valley, I was doing the same when we got there.

But I do admitt to being a holiday snob and I loathe the sun however the problem is so many great places are stuck in it >:(

First summer vist to the mountains, looking forward to it but with a young kid we arent gonna be to adventurous

Rois

Quote from: omaghjoe on June 02, 2015, 05:21:05 PM


No its not that, its that the drive from Vegas to Mammoth is scenic, ;) most Californians scratch their heads at Europeans visiting Death Valley, I was doing the same when we got there.

But I do admitt to being a holiday snob and I loathe the sun however the problem is so many great places are stuck in it >:(

First summer vist to the mountains, looking forward to it but with a young kid we arent gonna be to adventurous

Well now I only suggested driving through Death Valley on the way to Mammoth Lakes to see the flat sandy plains, not setting up camp for a week in Stovepipe Wells.

Mountains in summer are amazing - we're off to Chamonix in the Alps for a few days in July.  Such an underrated type of summer holiday.

omaghjoe

Quote from: Rois on June 02, 2015, 05:45:44 PM
Quote from: omaghjoe on June 02, 2015, 05:21:05 PM


No its not that, its that the drive from Vegas to Mammoth is scenic, ;) most Californians scratch their heads at Europeans visiting Death Valley, I was doing the same when we got there.

But I do admitt to being a holiday snob and I loathe the sun however the problem is so many great places are stuck in it >:(

First summer vist to the mountains, looking forward to it but with a young kid we arent gonna be to adventurous

Well now I only suggested driving through Death Valley on the way to Mammoth Lakes to see the flat sandy plains, not setting up camp for a week in Stovepipe Wells.

Mountains in summer are amazing - we're off to Chamonix in the Alps for a few days in July.  Such an underrated type of summer holiday.


Agreed but I guess its all to do with where you are coming from. I always like visiting mountains when I was backpacking in tropical places

For people coming from the wind and rain in Ireland you couldn't blame them for wanting sun sun sun

Mikhailov

Quote from: Rois on June 02, 2015, 05:45:44 PM
Quote from: omaghjoe on June 02, 2015, 05:21:05 PM


No its not that, its that the drive from Vegas to Mammoth is scenic, ;) most Californians scratch their heads at Europeans visiting Death Valley, I was doing the same when we got there.

But I do admitt to being a holiday snob and I loathe the sun however the problem is so many great places are stuck in it >:(

First summer vist to the mountains, looking forward to it but with a young kid we arent gonna be to adventurous

Well now I only suggested driving through Death Valley on the way to Mammoth Lakes to see the flat sandy plains, not setting up camp for a week in Stovepipe Wells.

Mountains in summer are amazing - we're off to Chamonix in the Alps for a few days in July.  Such an underrated type of summer holiday.

Jeez Rois - you have the days of it. Every time I log on here, you are either going on holidays, planning a holiday or have just returned.

Every destination that is discussed has been experienced by your good self and you appear very knowledgeable about all areas of the globe - do you work in the travel industry by any chance?


BenDover

Galway for the weekend any suggestions for Sat night

Rois

Quote from: Mikhailov on June 03, 2015, 04:56:00 PM

Jeez Rois - you have the days of it. Every time I log on here, you are either going on holidays, planning a holiday or have just returned.

Every destination that is discussed has been experienced by your good self and you appear very knowledgeable about all areas of the globe - do you work in the travel industry by any chance?
Aw jeez I am starting to sicken people...
No, I'm in the accountancy industry but spend half my year planning hols and put a lot of thought into where to stay and what to do. If I were to start a business I reckon it would be travel consultancy. But I only really visit the US and France on ski hols.

omaghjoe

Quote from: Rois on June 03, 2015, 10:21:49 PM
Quote from: Mikhailov on June 03, 2015, 04:56:00 PM

Jeez Rois - you have the days of it. Every time I log on here, you are either going on holidays, planning a holiday or have just returned.

Every destination that is discussed has been experienced by your good self and you appear very knowledgeable about all areas of the globe - do you work in the travel industry by any chance?
Aw jeez I am starting to sicken people...
No, I'm in the accountancy industry but spend half my year planning hols and put a lot of thought into where to stay and what to do. If I were to start a business I reckon it would be travel consultancy. But I only really visit the US and France on ski hols.


Nah Rois, Travel Consultancy sure is that not just a travel agent?

You can have it, I'll be a location scout!

50fiftyball

Anyone been to Thailand - specifically around the main islands - Koh Samui, Koh Pangan, and forget the name of the other  ::)

In addition, anyone any experience of Contiki Tours, Intrepid or G adventures etc along those lines.

I've time off work during the 2 week football break in July, can't get any friends to come due to work commitments, never travelled alone for more than 2/3 days so looking at Contiki's 9 day travel around the island's mentioned above.

I'd love to go for it on my own but time is limited (only a month away) and I don't have the time to start checking buses, transportation etc, especially if flying into Phuket/Bangkok from Dublin/Belfast.

take_yer_points

Quote from: 50fiftyball on June 04, 2015, 02:12:39 PM
Anyone been to Thailand - specifically around the main islands - Koh Samui, Koh Pangan, and forget the name of the other  ::)

In addition, anyone any experience of Contiki Tours, Intrepid or G adventures etc along those lines.

I've time off work during the 2 week football break in July, can't get any friends to come due to work commitments, never travelled alone for more than 2/3 days so looking at Contiki's 9 day travel around the island's mentioned above.

I'd love to go for it on my own but time is limited (only a month away) and I don't have the time to start checking buses, transportation etc, especially if flying into Phuket/Bangkok from Dublin/Belfast.

Flew into Bangkok 2 years ago and went down to Koh Samui first, then up to Chiang Mai and did a tour with G adventures and finished up in Bangkok for a few nights.

Didn't tour the islands but really enjoyed Koh Samui - stayed near Bo Bhut beside a place called Fisherman's Village.  Getting around the island was easy enough

The tour with G adventures wasn't great - they booked a hotel in Chiang Mai for us and when we got there they put us into a shit B&B. We stayed one night and then went and booked ourselves into a hotel the following day. I wouldn't be overly fussy but looking back I can't believe we even stayed there for a night. In fairness to them they refunded us the cost of the hotel - I think G adventures use local tour operators and it was them that messed us about rather than G adventures themselves. The rest of the tour consisted of being lifted by the guide for a few hours each day and then an overnight in Chiang Rai - no major issues other than accommodation but if I was doing it again I think I'd do it myself