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3 weeks in Europe Trip Report including Village Ile de France

davewasbaloo

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Day 17 - By the Rhine

Day 17 - By the Rhine

Well, I felt we had to go and explore the Rhine on our last full day. My sat nav only covers the UK, and as the cost for each added country = 1 DLP Dream pass, we took Sarah's sat nav to cover Europe. Sadly her memory capacity was not big enough to cover all the areas we went to. so we kept Hesse out of it. I thought Rudesheim am Rhine was in Westphalia - wrong Rudesheim.

But when trying to find the Rhine from there, we chanced upon a sign for a war cemetary. Not knowing what it could be (Franco Russian? Napoleanics? The two world wars?), I thought it worth the explore.

We ventured over a mile down a dirt track and happened on the WWII cemetary where 2300 boys and old men were burried, not given notice until 10 years after they were interred. Very sad considering they would have been the last line of defence.

We then followed the Rhine from Rudesheim (we did find it) through to Bacharach (where we stopped for lunch) and then on to Koblenz where we followed the Mosel back to our appartment (Koblenz, the corner of Germany where the Rhine and Mosel meet).

We enjoyed a few glasses of wine and games in the wine cellar and went to bed very late. Great last day on the Mosel (which despite being smaller and more demure than the Rhein, was our preference).

http://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=a.10150162460714998.306036.744599997&l=f503750816
 

davewasbaloo

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Day 18 - Cologne and Phantasialand

And here comes Phantasialand, Day 18:

We were so tired the next morning and the weather, after being glorious for so long, was wet and cold. We packed up the car and had plans to head to Collogne to visit the Catherdral while enroute to Phantasialand. I had been to Collogne many times in my youth and knew it was best for modern shopping, but it was the cathedral that was of interest.

When we got their the visability was poor, the scaffolding was up, the kids were asleep and the parking was difficult, so after a drive by (and no photos), we decided to simply head to the Phantasialand and the Ling Bao chinese hotel, the one Jessica was really looking forward to.

I had not been to Phantasialand since the 1980's, a park I remember being fun, but light on the theming except the German and Chinese parts. However, they reinvented themselves over the years and really started to develop highly themed areas. I still was not sure if we would do the park (given the foul weather), but we opted to try their flagship hotel given the cost including breakfast was almost the same as a family room elsewhere that would not include breakfast. and boy, am I glad we did.

We stayed at one of the best themed hotels I have in my life (remember I am a theme whore) and had one of the finest meals of the trip, and certainly on par with a Napa Rose or Victoria and Albert experience.

We checked in swiftly and the rain had stopped, it even warmed up a little. We went up to our room and were in awe the whole way. everything was highly themed (not the token theming of WDW or DLP here). Disney tend to theme the architecture and public areas, but I always have found the rooms light on themeing. That certainly was not the case here.

We unloaded our stuff and decided to explore. Given we were staying in the flag ship hotel, we decided to explore the moderate african hotel down the road, the Matamba hotel. Now, I have to say, it was almost as good as Animal Kingdom Lodge - minus the animals. It was awesome, the bathrooms looked like clean African bathrooms using oil drums for sinks and corregated metal for the stalls. The fire pit, the art work, the music, the african cast, it was all on point. Now this hotel does not have a pool (it is a moderate), but it did have a fire pit, and extensive adventure playground, a killer view of the beautiful B&M Black Mamba coaster and an exclusive entrance to the park! What a great moderate hotel.

We then explored our hotel and fell even more in love. The gardens were exquisite, rivaling the Japanese tea garden in San Francisco (though chinese in this case) and others too. The coi ponds were well stocked with mature fish, the music and lighting, including burning torches were fabulous, and it blended in with the chinese area where there was an exclusive hotel entrance.

The kids area was highly themed, as were the two bars and two restaurants. The indoor/outdoor heated pool was nice (not the most amazing, but nice, but indoors had a giant dragon who "breathed water" every 15 minutes. There was an adult only clothing optional steam room. And a Madala spa as well. Lovely.

We ran back up to the room to get changed and went for a swim. It was superb. When we returned to our room after showering (with asian herb relaxing shower gel), there were two free souvenir t shirts on the children's junk themed bunk beds!!!! Disney would never do that. They are the kind you can colour in, and the front desk had the pens if we wanted to do that for the evening (we decided to save that for a home activity).

We got changed into some nice clothes - Jess wore her silk chinese shift dress, Mikey his scottish dress attire from last year's vacation, me in my western shirt and mama in a dress and sweater.

We went down to the Lu Chi restaurant, a locally reknowned place for the high quality food, service, and singing waiters and waitresses. We had a blast and a delicious meal. The entertainment was great too - the waitress did 1950's lounge numbers like Sway and that ilk, the fantastically fun Thai waiter did rock n roll numbers with audience participation (I did not photo, but I did video). It was brilliant. We then went off to the room, and having had such an amazing evening, we discussed whether we would go into the park the next day or not (we agreed to see how we felt the next morning and see what the weather was doing.

http://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=a.10150162622199998.306066.744599997&l=c2c54c25a7
 

ciscogizmo1

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Yay... I love your trip reports. I think, we are going to try and go to Paris in 2013. I was thinking of doing a 5 night/2 airline package with Marriott awards for Paris. Then, trade one of my Marriotts for the timeshare. The hard part will be lining up the Hotel stay with the timeshare. I was kinda hoping mid-June to be a slow time in Paris.

Is there much to do with train distance of the timeshare? I doubt we'll spend everyday at the parks.

Thanks for taking the time to do this report.

Tina
 

andrea t

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I was so excited to see trip report posted! I really look forward to reading about your wonderful travels and seeing your kids growing up. Thank you for the posts and the pictures. You give so many of us great ideas and places to dream about or add to our own bucket lists.
 

davewasbaloo

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Day 19 - Phantasialand

After the amazing night, we decided as long as it was not pouring down, we would go into the park.

When we awoke, the sky was a little grey, but we decided to chance it. I am so glad we did.

The breakfast spread was amasing, the kids fell in love with the dragons, and we really enjoyed our day in the park (details in the photo commentary). the highlights were the internationally award winning magic show (worth the price of admission itself), the very best mine train coaster I have experienced, the best mad house, some very solid dark rides, and lots of entertainment everywhere, as well as good and affordable food.

At the end of the day there was a terrific show that brings all the Dragons and entertainers together for a show down (beating most of what Disney has been putting out recently in the US and Europe). It was really great, followed by a good Mexican taking advantage of the extended hours announced that afternoon. There are plenty of amazing thrills for those that seek them, but with only one day, we concentrated on what we could do as a family

We then headed off to Brussels to spend a free night (thanks to points) in the Holiday Inn. They upgraded us to a full suite with a kitchen! Sweet.

We really had a great day, but sadly the holiday would come to a close 48 hours later.

http://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=a.10150163156464998.306219.744599997&l=d15c266196
 

davewasbaloo

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Yay... I love your trip reports. I think, we are going to try and go to Paris in 2013. I was thinking of doing a 5 night/2 airline package with Marriott awards for Paris. Then, trade one of my Marriotts for the timeshare. The hard part will be lining up the Hotel stay with the timeshare. I was kinda hoping mid-June to be a slow time in Paris.

Is there much to do with train distance of the timeshare? I doubt we'll spend everyday at the parks.

Thanks for taking the time to do this report.

Tina

Sounds like a great plan Tina. Mid June can be quite busy as that seems to be when most Americans come across and some schools are out already (though august is the absolute busiest followed by July). But it may be workable.

There is plenty to do near the resort, but best done by car or bus. But for me, the do not misses are:

Provins (45 minutes to the south)
Rheims - cathedral and champagne wineries
Chantilly - Chateau and horse museum
Veaux le Vicompte and Fountainbleu (two very lovely chateau nearby)
If you like theme parks, then Parc Asterix is very good.
Exploring the shops of the modern Val D Europe shopping mall (and there is an aquarium).
The birthplace of Louis Braille is 3 miles away and has a museum too
Compiegne and Pierrefonds - castles, the WWI armistace carriage etc.

Many of these places have excursions from Marriott or DLP, but they are a little pricy.

any more questions, just ask.

Here is a thread you may find useful:

http://www.tugbbs.com/forums/showthread.php?t=125973&page=2&highlight=france
 

davewasbaloo

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Day 20 - Brussels and Gent

Day 20 – Brussels and Gent or rather, the inspiration for Disneyland’s Tomorrowland and Epcot Center?

To save some money, we decided to have some apple sauce and cookies in the room and get a bigger breakfast out and about. If we checked out before 9, the parking would be free. So we decided to go to the Expo park and park for free there too (knowing we could take a bus, tram or train into the centre again if we so wished). Although the Grand Place and Manekin Pis are fun and all, the kids had seen a lot of architecture, and overall Gent is prettier, so we opted to tour the Expo sites from 1956 (another hobby interest - I cannot wait to go to Milan for 2015)

It was here we started with the most popular site in Brussels, the Automium, centre piece of the 1956 world's fair, and it was a showcase for the future. Now it is a showcase for the history of the Expo. At the time, it had the fastest elevator in the world. The legacy of the fair lives on in this city. A big part of me wishes London were hosting the Expo rather than the Olympics. A view from the top is normally fantastic, but the overcast day impacted, still, impressive though. There was a rather awesome restaurant above us, full of googie touches, but sadly it was too early for it.

From the top we could see where the amusement park was during the 56 Expo, is now a model village of Europe. A lovely reminder of some of our travels. And in the centre ball, we decided to stop for coffee and belgian waffles, mmmmmm.

Then we viewed the kids area designed for overnight science field trips. It was very kitsch, and I kept my eyes open for Austin Powers and Dr evil to pop out. Groovy Baby.

The escalator down was fast and freaked us out a little. I could not get back up to Jessica despite trying to run up. Some Russian boys helped Sarah thankfully.

The exhibits were great. They were about how Europe had rebuilt after the war, how technology played a role at home and other things too. It was fascinating. The Expo, in the days of expensive travel, still had more visitors than all the Disney parks put together in one year (that wouldn't happen today). 3/4 of a million guests were there one day.

As we exited, there was a Leonidas Belgian Chocolatier with some cool chocolate - Mickey Mouse, the Automium and Manekin Pis all made out of chocolate.

Deciding what to do next, we agreed to explore the rest of the Expo sites and then move on to Gent. We stopped next at the American Pavilion, now a theatre and an HQ for some media businesses. The mural pays tribute to combining the American and Belgian culture (Belgium is renowned for its cartoons like TinTin).

Then we explored the Asian pavilions - China and Japan. I wonder where they got the ideas for Epcot, there were a lot of similarities. When Epcot Centre opened they said it would be a permanent World’s Fair. I wonder if they visited Brussels as a part of their research? There was a muslim wedding going on, or rather the photo shoot. Everyone looked great! The China Pavilion was stunning (now an Asian Art museum), what a great place for wedding pictures.

And with that we said Dag/Adeau to Brussels and went on to Gent.

After checking in at the Express by Holiday Inn (a free room and they gave us four free drinks). We took the bus and tram into the old town.

Touristically, we opted to have dinner in the Kornmarkt. enjoying a variety of dark and cherry beers with some great belgian favs. As we ate our meal, a huge storm rolled in, with heavy wind, rain, hail, thunder and lightning. We were able to watch from the comfort of under an awning. It was pretty awesome. The square became deserted, and after the sun came back out, so did the street performers and the people.

Mama opted for ribs (and we had a family portion of double fried belgian chips with mayonaise). I had the entrecote steak and salad, and the kids had curry coated chicken. Washed down with dark beers and cherry beers (Coke for the kids, though they loved sampling the different beers and wines).

Gent is a lovely town, and less overrun by tourists than other locations. That night the kids said they did not want to go home, they wanted us to travel together forever. I agreed.

Looking around, I fell in love with one building adorned with dancing statues atop. I thought that this is why Disneyland Paris had to be so amazing in its design, it was competing with fantasy in the real world! We said goodbye to the city and headed for our tram back to the hotel. Exhausted but happy. When we returned, we had our free night cap and went to bed. The next day would be Brugges and the voyage home.

http://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=a.10150163347559998.306280.744599997&l=6a11325ab8
 

Swice

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One word

I only have one word to say.

"Wow!!!!"
 

davewasbaloo

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Day 21 - Brugges and the voyage home

Day 21 - Our last day in Europe - Brugges and the trip home to the UK

We decided to go into Brugges and explore th Venice of the north. We met one of the most horrid people of the trip in a toilet. The kids had to go and we did not have huge amounts of change. I paid just to take Mikey in and they gave Sarah a hard time for us stealing. So Sarah was pressurised into paying for the two girls even though it was a trip for Jessica (most toilets we encountered didn't charge for kids). I am sorry, but I got angry and used the toilet anyway, even though I didn't really need to. She came into the gents and screamed at me for stealling. what a downer.

Anyway, I told Sarah to ignore her and jut focus on the fun. We explored the beautiful city.

We took a canal cruise, which was delightful in dutch and english. We really enjoyed it and it was good value.

We stopped into a chocolateer for some treats and then visited the cathedral to see the Lady Madonna and Child Christ, the only Michleangelo to be commissioned and installed outside of Italy in his lifetime. It was beautiful, a was the choir music as we explored.

We left Brugges and headed back to Calais to catch the train home. We were able to get on a train hour earlier than booked, and the new check in procedures were a dream - check in, passports and then customs. You can then go to the terminal, or if the timing is right, you can go straight to the train, which we did. The kids slept from Brugges, through France and Mikey awoke as the train rolled into England, Jessica awoke at Dartford near London. She did not believe we were in England until she heard everyone peaking English when we made a comfort stop. Lol.

We got in the early evening, ordered pizza and got a fairly early night. The holiday was over, but hopefully the memories will last forever.

Nearly a week later, and I am getting itchy feet to plan the next adventure.

http://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=a.10150163464494998.306320.744599997&l=5802984688
 
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davewasbaloo

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Overall, we had a fantastic trip, even at Disneyland Paris. It is just that seeing the other site and parks shows how although the imagineers did a fantastic job, the management has really slid, and if Mack ran DLP, I would be very happy. Lol. The historic sites, the art, the time spent with family. It was wonderful.

I could clearly see where Disney got a lot of inspiration for Fantasyland and Epcot. Wonderful to draw the parallels.

I loved it all, and cannot wait to start planning our next adventure.

If you have read all the way through, you probably deserve a medal. Any questions, let me know.
 

jlp879

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Wow, Dave, did you say I deserve a medal or a meal for reading it all? Because either way it took just as long to read but your trip was an absolute treat to devour and I think you deserve the medal (or report meal) for posting it all. The pictures are a feast for the eyes and the written descriptions make me want to re-examine my timeshare ongoing requests for the next two years.

What an absolute delight to read of your adventures and see your beautiful pictures. Please let me know what kind of camera you use and what other websites you plan to use for posting your recent travel adventures.

Thanks for the vicarious trip!
 

davewasbaloo

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Thank you for your very kind reply jlp879. The camera used was a new one - the Sony Cybershot DSC-HX5V. although I would love to take SLR pics, it is not conducive to theme parks, lots of miles and kids. And to be fair, I took about 3000 shots, I try to edit them down to the best.

I like to travel, it is my real passion and why I waited so ling to buy a timeshare. With the exception of Disney in the past, I like to go different places. In Europe, not many vacation clubs fit that bill other than MVCI. Most of the ones that are great for American travellers are not great for European trips (at least MVCI you can use a Marriott hotel if push comes to shove).

It is mainly Disney sites I post my reports to Disney on, or Facebook for friends, or last year I experimented with youtube. But there are some reports/coverage:

2010

The British National space Centre
http://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=a.500612969997.274751.744599997

Alton Towers Christmas Party
http://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=a.473812244997.258963.744599997&l=6de6a25e30

Bedford Victorian Christmas Market (where we live)
http://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=a.464426554997.251833.744599997&l=441483b29b

Renault World Servies Race Final at Silverstone UK
http://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=a.426713019997.230593.744599997&l=75c696efdd


Disneyland Paris Aug 2010 - Hotel New York
http://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=a.418950524997.196339.744599997&l=e51e3ff0db

http://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=a.419134909997.196468.744599997&l=54802b3d41

http://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=a.419148484997.196476.744599997&l=9c85f03193

http://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=a.419172929997.196486.744599997&l=67f81785d5

Marriott Vacation Club Marbella
http://www.tugbbs.com/forums/showthread.php?t=128595

Chessington World of Adventures (UK)
http://www.tugbbs.com/forums/showthread.php?t=127709

London Dungeons and Madame Tussauds
http://www.tugbbs.com/forums/showthread.php?t=127708

MVCI Ile De France and Disneyland Paris
http://www.tugbbs.com/forums/showthread.php?t=123221

Scotland and the North of England
http://www.tugbbs.com/forums/showthread.php?t=120208

And many others. Prior to 2010, those prior to MVCI include:

Playa Andaluza - Feb 2009
http://www.tugbbs.com/forums/showthread.php?t=91844

Newport Coast (as well as the Bay Area, Monterrey etc.)
http://www.tugbbs.com/forums/showthread.php?t=67373

Son Antem
http://www.tugbbs.com/forums/showthread.php?t=59292

Village Ile De France (non Disney sites too)
http://www.tugbbs.com/forums/showthread.php?t=51001

And there are loads of other legoland and Disneyland PAris reports from when our kids were little. Bet you are sorry you asked now :ignore:

Hope you like them.
 
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