Migrated post from Blogger.com. Refer to Europe 2009 Blog Migration.

The planning of my Europe 2009 trip is split over five sections:

1. London 8~9/09

Booked a room at Umi Hotel, Bayswater, London overnight for that Tuesday. This will ensure that I don’t have to get up super early to make the 6am start from Umi Hotel. Check-in will be anytime on 08/09 from 2pm onwards.

I’ve now downloaded a map of the London Tube as a handy guide.

2. Rome to Hertogenbosh 17~18/09

This transition is a little trickier… Hertogenbosh is ~1 hour from Rotterdam or Amsterdam by car (source: Google Maps directions). I’ve decided upon Transavia direct (via TravelEurope.com) which is 90 euro from Rome to Rotterdam. This flight seems the best, just need to find out more about the airline reliability! The alternatives are via:

• major airlines: at least 800 euro… yikes
• stop-overs (London/Paris): ~ 200+ euro plus flight duration blow out to 4hrs+

The flight I’ve picked leaves 10am and arrives 12:15 in Rotterdam – which will give me plenty of time in the arvo to explore and make my way to Hertogenbosh.

3. Amsterdam to London 23/09

While doing the online flight bookings I have also proceeded to book the final flight/link between the Netherlands and UK. Cheap British Airways flight BA-435 will return me to London on the last Wed/full day of my hol. Afternoon flight ensures that I have plenty of time on either side to play… I’m thinking that the morning of 23/09 should allow me to visit the House of Anne Frank…

This particular flight will land me Heathrow and not Gatwick or the other airports.

All the jigsaw pieces are now starting to fall into place!

I’ve also performed a comparison on travel insurance but my ANZ Platinum Credit Card benefits seem to cover me without additional costs so… all good!

4. Amsterdam Tour Plans 17~18/09

• 17/09 arvo = Visit the Van Gogh museum [www.vangoghmuseum.nl]
• 17/09 evening = Visit the Vodka Musuem [http://www.vodkamuseum.com/en]
• 18/09 morning = Visit the House of Anne Frank (8 euro for tickets – http://www.annefrank.org
• 18/09 afternoon = Visit the Royal Palace [www.paleisamsterdam.nl]

Overnight stay will be at Park Plaza Victoria, in the heart of the city.

Will also be catching a train from Rotterdam to Amsterdam since tickets are ~$30 AUD.

5. London Plans

In keeping with the latest developments for my upcoming trip, I’ve added on the coach travel between London (Victoria Coach Station) and Mansfield/Nottinghamshire where my cousin has agreed to pick me up from.

It also turns out that my Godmother’s family in London are quite eager to show me a good time which is totally awesome as well…

Google Maps is a fascinating tool – I can check out the StreetView photos and get a virtual tour of all the travel routes I’ll be taking… however, I’m resisting doing this too much as it will spoil the fun. Google Maps has taught me this evening that Hyde Park is pretty much in between the Victoria Coach Station and Bayswater where the Umi Hotel is for checking in on Tuesday 08/09.

One of the last unknowns in this whole trip still remains my first few days in London… Part of the challenge is where and who to stay with… meeting up with friends and getting in the sights – I will only have three whole days…

Sights I hope to see/visit in London include:

1. London Eye
2. Hyde Park
3. Buckingham Palace
4. Madam Tussaud’s
5. A matinee show at Westend
6. London Tower

Somehow I don’t think I can cover all of that in three whole days – although I will have one day from the afternoon of 23/09 thru evening of 24/09…