Some Useful Websites

• Wikitravel — the Wikipedia for travel information. Great site for transportation information for any city.
• Amateur Traveler is an award winning travel podcast and blog.  Lots of great information from many destinations.  It is hosted by Chris Christensen.
• Everything-Everywhere is the home of award-winning photographer and travel blogger Gary Arndt
• The Point guy — the go to site everything that has to do with travel reward points.
• How to Plan a European trip from Kloop.com
• Normadic Matt is a best selling author who offers lots of useful travelling tips
• Jonny Jet is another traveller I follow.  His site offers travel tips and deals.
• Solo Travel — ideas and resources for solo traveller.
• Viator– is major tour company that specializes local tours.

Links for specific countries or cities

Paris, France

• Rick Steves’ Paris Travel Guide, a good collection of self-walking audio guides and podcasts
• WikiTravel Paris, a good starting point for transportation options.
• Ten things to do on your FIRST trip to Paris by Oliver Gee, The Earful Tower channel
• First time Paris:where to go and what to do by Nicola Williams, Lonely Planet
• 20 Ultimate Things to do in Paris by Fodor’s Travel
• How to Spend 5 Days in Paris by Noamdic Matt, www.nomadicmatt.com
• Best Things to do in Paris (paid tours) from GetYourGuide.com
• Jeanette Winterson on Paris’s Great Bookstore, Shakespeare and Company by Lit Hub Photography, by LIt Hub Photograhy, www.lithub.com
• What It’s Like to Live Inside the Legendary Paris Bookstore Shakespeare & Co., from www.vice.com
• At These Parisian Landmarks, Shhh Is the Word, Richard B. Woodward, www.nytimes.com
• The Paris Gold Ring Scam from EuropeforVisitors.com

Ireland

• Brochure from RIT (Royal Irish Tours)
• Ireland Travel Guide by Nomadic Matt
• Rick Steves’ Guide to Ireland
• YouTube Videos:
  • Rick Steves’ Dublin and Mystical Side
  • Rick Steves’ The Best of West Ireland.
  • Rick Steves’ Belfast and best of Northern Ireland
  • Dublin’s Vacation Guide by Expedia
• Podcasts:
  • Planning a trip to Ireland from This week in Travel.
  • Travel to Ireland from Amateur Traveler
  • Irish Fireside Podcast and blogs
• Ten things to do in Dublin for free from Rough Guided
• Vine adventures: a glimpse of vibrant Dublin from Lonely Planet
• Dublin by the book: a literary tour of Ireland’s capital from Lonely Planet
• 6 Best Things to Do When Driving Northern Ireland from Everything-Everywhere.com
• Top 10 Northern Ireland experiences from Lonely Planet

Iceland

• 11 Tips to Help you visit Expensive Iceland on Budget by Nomadic Matt.
• Top things to do in Iceland from Lonely Planet.
• Five things to keep in mind for first time visitors in Iceland from I Heart Iceland
• Visiting Iceland: 14 Dos and Don’ts from Lonely Planet.
• How to have a Budget Break in Iceland from Lonely Planet.
• Fire and ice: Adventures in Iceland from Lonely Planet.
• 10 things No One Tell You About … Reykjavik by Amanda Wowk, thepointsguy.com

Barcelona, Spain

• 8 Things to know before going to Barcelona by The Points Guy
• Ramblas from Rick Steves.
• A perfect weekend in Barcelona by Lonely Planet.
• 18 free things to do in Barcelona by Trent Holen from Lonely Planet
• How to Spend 5 days in Barcelona by Nomadic Matt
• Top 10 day trips out of Barcelona from Lonely Planet
• The 5 Best Excursions outside of Barcelona from CheapOAir

Madrid, Spain

• Madrid by Rick Steves.
• A Cultural Travel Guide to Madrid from The Wall Street Journal.
• The Top Things to see and do in Madrid by Nomadic Matt.
• Icons of Madrid: Discovering the Prado & Botin with New Eyes by Lauren Aloise from spnanishsabores.com
• A Literary Tour of Madrid by Shayla Martin from www.fodors.com

Lisbon, Portugal

• Top things to do in Lisbon from Lonely Planet
• Budget Break from The Times (UK)
• Taste of Lisbon: classic dishes and culinary surprises on a foodie tour by Isabel Choat from www.theguardian.com
• My favorite Eats in Lisbon by Lisa, www.llworldtour.com
• A Lisbon Food Court Housed in a Palace by Diane Daniel, www.nytimes.com
• Lisbon: grab a tram, a tart and an eyeful from Lonely Planet
• Why I Fell In Love With Lisbon by Flora from floratheexplorer.com
• Sweet Lisbon: the best places to get your sugar fix by Hannah Summers, Lonely Planet
• My Favorite Hostel in Portugal — Living Lounge Hostel in Lisbon from cherylhoward.com
• 36 Hours in Lisbon by Seth Sherwood, www.nytimes.com

Las Vegas, USA

• Vegas for extroverts and introverts from VegasSolo.com
• Leaving Los Vegas — Ghost towns and Aliens Encounters from LonelyPlanet.com
• Ten things to do nearby with a casino in sight from LonelyPlanet.com
• The 38 Essential Restaurants (October 2013) from Vegas.Eater.com
• 10 Attractions in Las Vegas Besides Gambling from Inspringtavellers.com

Others

• Purchasing Travel Insurance: 5 Tips from a pro by Johnny Jet.
• Do You Really Need Rental Car Insurance? from New York Times.

Train Travel

In Europe, deep discount tickets between cities are made available 60 or 90 days before the day of travel and they are sold out quickly.  The earlier you book, the cheaper the ticket.  Also, time of day and day of the week will affect the price drastically.  Keep in mind that most major European cities have more than one major train station.

In Asia, train tickets are inexpensive but inter-cities trains get filled up quickly.  High-speed trains are plentiful in China but reservation is a must.

• A beginner’s guide to buying cheap European train tickets online from www.seat61.com. This is an excellent site to start but make sure you give yourself enough time to navigate the very detailed information.
• Buying European Train Ticekts by Rick Steves
• Train Travel in Europe with Interrail  Nomadisbeautiful.com
• Eurail Pass vs buying point to point ticket in Europe from Indie Travel Podcast
• Life in the slow: Four classic European rail lines by George Hobica, USA Today
• Top 5 unmissable journeys by rail from www.lonelyplanet.com