Hello... Leaving soon for trip early May. Unfortunately cooler temps so no cute summer clothes.
Trying to pack light. Are hair dryers provided in most of motels/lodging?
Also traveling solo. What is best adapter to purchase/bring? I guess should not assume I can borrow from motel.
Would they have hairdryer to borrow?
Also I assume we check into motel at end of sight seeing if the day and not when bus arrives to new place?
Ty!!!
For USA/Europe adapter I like this one I have. Lots of outlets and USB ports in a single piece. https://a.co/d/4pgoOJR
It is extremely unusual not to have a hair dryer in a European hotel room--even much cheaper rooms than you are staying in. The hair dryer may be in a bag, tucked in a drawer, on a shelf in the closet or in some other obscure spot. If you don't see one, ask the hotel receptionist.
For our trip in May I checked all hotels we are staying and they all have hair dryers. It’s probably getting more common to have them.
There is a wealth of information here on the site in Travel Tips, for instance:
https://www.ricksteves.com/travel-tips/phones-tech/electric-adapters-converters
Arrival at hotel can vary. Sometimes there is a orientation walk after a short time at hotel to take your luggage in and freshen up a bit.
You can order an adapter online but you may also be able to buy one locally. If you have an AAA store near you they always have adapters and have the ones that are marked as to what countries they cover. You'll need the general European 2-prong adapter. Bed, Bath and Beyond and Target generally have them as well.
Even when I did this tour a number of years ago all the hotels had hair dryers. Sometimes they are tucked into the wardrobe, most often they were wired in.
Hopefully you've got your shoes broken in! Please concentrate on shoe function so your feet will be happy. There are a couple of long walking days on this tour - Amsterdam and Rome were my longest days at over 10 miles each location so you will want shoes that can hold up to that.
This is a wonderful, wonderful tour! A RS tour guide for another country told me this was his favorite tour because you see blockbuster sights every day! He was right!
Do you have your guide's name yet?
Oh thank you all!!! Relieved about hair dryer haha. Was wondering where a bathing suit and water shoes would be needed? Beach?
And have to figure phone stuff out. I have Metro by T-Mobile. But not the same. I could probably change back to T mobile as I hear it works well there free I believe
Working on shoes. Definitely a running type athletic shoe for walking. Not bringing hiking shoes... Not looking at serious hiking this trip
The only place you could probably use a bathing suit is on your free day in Monterosso al Mare if you chose to go in the water there. I'm not a big water person so I've never gone in the sea although I've stayed there 3 or 4 times on various trips. You'll have to decide if the extra weight of the suit and shoes would be worth it.
Yea to working on your shoes. Yes, athletic shoes will work well. The only place where hiking shoes might be needed is, again, Cinque Terre but there is plenty to do other than hiking. Many take the train/ferry between towns to see the other 4 villages.
You'll have a full day in the Lauterbrunnen Valley but the walks there are easily done in athletic shoes. The classic walk/hike from Mannlichen to Kleine Scheidegg has jaw-dropping views but is really a very wide, well worn path that is mostly flat! Gorgeous! I also walked back from Trummelbach Falls to the hotel (we were staying in Stechelberg) and that was long the small river path which was flat and wide.
Hairdryers were in every room we had on tour. However, they will not get you salon style. Not hot or powerful enough. They will get your hair dry. Women in Europe don't overdo their hair. Scarves, hair ties, hats, would be a great way to style and not be overly concerned about hair.
Hotel check ins may vary. On our trip it was at the end of the day. We'd sightsee along the way and then arrive to our hotel early evening. We got our rooms, got organized and then meet up for the walking tour of the area and group dinner. Your itinerary will probably give you an indication of when you arrive to your hotel.
