[Samir Taheer]

Originally Posted by sharktale

So now I shall need suggestions on where to shop in London & Paris.
I am looking for deal / outlet store suggestions, where I can buy good brands at a cheaper rate, mostly apparel.

The only brand shops I'm entering is UniQlo and Nike.

You can try Camden Stables or Spitafield Markets - Both have some great stuff, depending on your taste. If not for the clothing the atmosphere is great.

[libranof1987]

Originally Posted by sharktale

My father is keen on making treating this as a "drive-by" trip, ticking-off important places and wants to stick to the group tour.

I am looking for deal / outlet store suggestions, where I can buy good brands at a cheaper rate, mostly apparel.

If you're traveling with a group, you might not get the time to deviate and go to an outlet store. You can shop at the airport as well; several stores have everything well marked down items.

But yea, stuff in Europe isn't as cheap as you'd find in the US.

[Thad E Ginathom]

You can Google factory outlet for such places near London. I used to go to one about an hour drive away in Essex. I forget the name. There is one in Wembley, but I haven't made it there. There are low-cost chains like Primark. I used to buy underwear at Marks and Spencer, but, on my last trip, went to Primark and spent one third!

British retail is in a bad way so expect sale prices on many shops.

[katchkamalesh]

Originally Posted by sharktale

So now I shall need suggestions on where to shop in London & Paris.
I am looking for deal / outlet store suggestions, where I can buy good brands at a cheaper rate, mostly apparel.

Primark and THK are good options. You can find them spread across London.

Also all tourists can claim back the VAT paid (expect on kids and some other products). Just ensure that you show your passport at the counter before paying. They would generate a VAT refund receipt which needs to be shown at the last port of exit. Do a bit of google on this.

[adimicra]

I am visiting Italy in May.
Need quick advice for finalizing the details on my trip.
In Rome, should I book a tour of the Vaticna museum and Sistine Chapel? Please note that we are not big art lovers. I am thinking we might get bored and also it is normally very crowded. I am thinking I will just visit the Vatican City and St. Peters Square but skip the Vatican museum/Sistine Chapel. Please suggest.

I am planning to go to the Trevi Fountain area in the evening/night. Do you suggest a guided tour? Or, go by yourself? basically, I have 2 evenings free in Rome.. so I was wondering what to do. Also, is Uber the preferred mode of travel for going from the Hotel to various places of interest? Please suggest.

[libranof1987]

Originally Posted by adimicra

In Rome, should I book a tour of the Vaticna museum

Yes; you can do so online to skip the queue. Make sure you book the English tour.

Sistine Chapel?

Not a lot of history in Sistine Chapel; just climbing some stairs and going on the roof/dome. We didn't do Vatican museum but did do Sistine Chapel. You pay separately there. Take the elevator so you don't have to climb the whole way. Nice views of the city.

I am planning to go to the Trevi Fountain area in the evening/night. Do you suggest a guided tour? Or, go by yourself? basically, I have 2 evenings free in Rome.. so I was wondering what to do. Also, is Uber the preferred mode of travel for going from the Hotel to various places of interest? Please suggest.

No guided tour needed for anywhere except Colosseum (recorded walkie) and Vatican City.

Where are you staying: city or outskirts? We stayed a couple of kms away from the Colosseum and for three days, walked all over Rome. We did about 15kms a day which included Airbnb - Colosseum - Trevi Fountain - Pantheon - Monuments etc. in two days. Took a bus only to visit Vatican City.

Europe is best explored by foot so unless you have elderly/children, I'd strongly recommend walking around.

[chetan_l]

Originally Posted by adimicra

In Rome, should I book a tour of the Vaticna museum and Sistine Chapel? Please note that we are not big art lovers. I am thinking we might get bored and also it is normally very crowded. I am thinking I will just visit the Vatican City and St. Peters Square but skip the Vatican museum/Sistine Chapel. Please suggest.

I went on a 41 day solo trip to 10 countries recently, apart from my previous visit where I had visited 5 counties over 21 days. I will count the experience of visiting the Vatican Museum as amongst the foremost of all my experiences. And I am not an art lover...(I even skipped Louvre during my 4 days in Paris.)

So, my very strong recommendation is do not miss the Vatican Museum. The maps room in particular is guaranteed to take your breath away. I can place a huge bet on this

Also, while you can visit the museum on your own, an expert guide taking you on a 4 hour tour will be fascinating. There are so many tidbits and trivia that you will miss out if you are doing the tour on your own. For example, I saw tourists walk right past without even realizing that the centuries old fascinating painting on the wall appears to turn entirely towards you as you walk across the artwork...

I strongly recommend an expert guided early-access tour of the Vatican as a must-do.

The only alternative I can think of is to make the tour on your own using Rick Steves audio guide on your phone. That would be the second best way to experience the Vatican - or any museum/attraction.

Originally Posted by adimicra

I am planning to go to the Trevi Fountain area in the evening/night. Do you suggest a guided tour? Or, go by yourself? basically, I have 2 evenings free in Rome.. so I was wondering what to do.

Visit the Trevi fountain at night time. No guided tour required for Trevi, Spanish Steps, Pantheon, Vittorio Emmanuele square, Colosseum, Roman Forum, etc. Again, Rick Steves audio guides are an excellent resource. Believe me, this app makes a world of a difference - you will either just 'see' the sight without this app or enjoy an intimate, fun and entertaining account of the significance of each of these places with Rick in your pocket.

Originally Posted by adimicra

Also, is Uber the preferred mode of travel for going from the Hotel to various places of interest? Please suggest.

I used the public transport extensively. I never needed to use Uber. However, Uber is a cheap (for Europe) form or taxi and works seamlessly once you have linked your forex/credit card for auto-payment

[carboy]

Originally Posted by adimicra

I am visiting Italy in May.
Need quick advice for finalizing the details on my trip.
In Rome, should I book a tour of the Vaticna museum and Sistine Chapel? Please note that we are not big art lovers. I am thinking we might get bored and also it is normally very crowded. I am thinking I will just visit the Vatican City and St. Peters Square but skip the Vatican museum/Sistine Chapel. Please suggest.

I am planning to go to the Trevi Fountain area in the evening/night. Do you suggest a guided tour? Or, go by yourself? basically, I have 2 evenings free in Rome.. so I was wondering what to do. Also, is Uber the preferred mode of travel for going from the Hotel to various places of interest? Please suggest.

Rome/Vatican is my most favourite place in the whole world. I would book a guided tour of the Vatican/Sistine Chapel. It's totally worth the money. For the rest of the Rome, I would take a hop-in-hop-out bus tour - that will cover a lot of the places. One of the places on the route would be the Colosseum. Colosseum tickets have really long lines so book Colosseum tickets in advance. You can then spend the remaining day(s) on trips on your own.

Do not miss Vatican/Sistine Chapel. You do not particularly need to be an art lover to enjoy such art.

Going to Rome & Vatican City is like stepping into a Roman history text book. After visiting all the grand stuff, in the late evening, I was just taking a walk around my hotel & I saw a church - just a regular neighborhood church which was part of a school. When I walked into that church, even that was so grand, that it blew my mind.

If there just 1 place in the world to visit, my first choice would be Rome/Vatican & next would be Paris. I also visited Pisa & Venice but didn't enjoy it so much.

[adimicra]

Thanks for all your replies.
Looks like Vatican Museum and Sistine Chapel are must-see attractions, so I will try to accommodate those. I went to Louvre in Paris and frankly, found it a bit underwhelming. SO, I am pretty skeptical about museums etc.

I have 2 nights in Rome. My hotel location is this https://goo.gl/maps/ZGpPj5231ZN2

Day 2 morning/afternoon will be spent in Vatican.
So, I have Da1 afternoon and evening and Day 2 evening.
PLanning to cover the following -
Colosseum
Pantheon
Roman FOrum
Trevi fountain
Piazza Novano

Anything else?

[chetan_l]

Looks like a packed two days. You have covered most of the important ones. Take it easy, depending on how the day goes.
Don't miss to walk around neighborhoods; take a stroll, eat food in any good restaurant, have a gelato, and just sit and do people watching!

[carboy]

Originally Posted by adimicra

Day 2 morning/afternoon will be spent in Vatican.
So, I have Da1 afternoon and evening and Day 2 evening.

Do Vatican on Day 1. It's a half day thing. Book the guided tour in advance before you leave India.

[narayans80]

Originally Posted by adimicra

My hotel location

Looks a little far off on B-line. You'll manage day 1, but day 2 would need an early start. If you don't have tickets to the Colosseum-Forum-Palantine Hill trio, visit one of the latter first and get a combination ticket for the 3. Colosseum tickets are notoriously crowded.

You can try doing Spanish Steps, which is nearby a metro. I think doing the rest in a day will drain you out and possibly won't have energy to do more

[adimicra]

Thanks for the response. Since, I am reaching ROme on Day 1 at 9 AM , I plan to take it a bit easy. WIll head out afternoon/early evening depending on how we feel.

The plan is take a Uber and walk down the following route -
Spanish steps - Trevi fountain - Pantheon - Pizza Novano _ Trastevere (whatever we can cover).

Day2 will start early, cover Colosseum and then Vatican.
If we have energy, will cover the rest of the walking tour mentioned above.

Let me know if the above plan sounds good.
I know this will be hectic and we will adjust based on how we feel, particularly the walking parts.

[Krishroy]

Originally Posted by adimicra

I am visiting Italy in May.
Need quick advice for finalizing the details on my trip.
In Rome, should I book a tour of the Vaticna museum and Sistine Chapel? Please note that we are not big art lovers. I am thinking we might get bored and also it is normally very crowded. I am thinking I will just visit the Vatican City and St. Peters Square but skip the Vatican museum/Sistine Chapel. Please suggest.

I am planning to go to the Trevi Fountain area in the evening/night. Do you suggest a guided tour? Or, go by yourself? basically, I have 2 evenings free in Rome.. so I was wondering what to do. Also, is Uber the preferred mode of travel for going from the Hotel to various places of interest? Please suggest.

Get the ticket for Vatican Museum and Sistine Chapel from the official site. They will charge you few Euro more. But it will be a skip-the-line ticket. You may take a guided tour or you can pick up audio guide from Vatican museum. Another option is to download Rick Steve audio Europe app in your mobile. It is quite comprehensive.
St Peter's Basilica is free of charge; but this will have a long queue. It opens at around 7:30 AM in the morning. Get there as early as possible. No tour guide can provide you skip the line entry for St. Peter's Basilica. If anybody is offering such, he must be lying.
For Trevi Fountain, you need not require any tour guide.
Get a 48-hours transport pass. It will charge you between 12-14 EURO. Also, you shouldn't miss Colosseum and Roman Forum, if you visit Rome.

[adimicra]

Guys, thanks a lot for your replies.
As you can see, I am hard pressed for time in Rome (bad planning on my part).
SO, at the sound of sounding stupid, do you think I should skip entering the Colosseum given it takes quite a bit of time? Also, even if I buy the tickets in advance, how much time should I budget for visiting the Colosseum?
Also, wanted to check how easy/difficult is it to get taxi/Uber at Rome, particularly at night (10 PM )? Secondly, is it safe to travel at night with family?

Looks like I have to leave out either the Museum/Sistine chapel or the colosseum.
To me, I think I will go to the colosseum and skip the Vatican museum. Tough choice, but what to do.

Plan to book the tickets soon, any final suggestions