The most common rules (may vary of course): you have to remove your shoes.

men: trousers, not shorts women:

long skirt (or trousers) women:

shoulder and arms cannot be exposed women: scarf (sometimes)

Clothing restrictions in mosques often vary from country-to-country, and even within mosques in a country.

Everyone is asked to take their shoes off at an entrance area.

For men, no shorts are allowed; for women, no skirts or bare shoulders, in addition to this some countries also mandate women to wear a scarf.

Those are the basics, but how 'welcoming' a mosque is to tourists depends usually on how many tourists visit a place.

The more frequented ones often have robes that they give you for free to 'cover yourself up'

in case your clothing is deemed inappropriate.

Smaller and/or less frequented mosques may not have such provisions.

Off-topic: Mosques often have special entrances for non-Muslim visitors.

Don't go barging in through the main entrance; if unsure, ask.

Most mosques also do not allow visitors into the main prayer area.

Having said that, most people - or staff, if the mosque has them - are friendly and will help you out with trying to resolve clothing restrictions or other questions.

Generally it would be said to you if you need to do some specific - rules are various from country to country and even from town to town.

I can't remember something applied to all except that you really should not eat or sleep there, or something like that :)

Dogs are banned too.

Calm, peaceful and polite non-Muslim will not attract negative energy during visiting the mosque.

It does depend on the specific country and the norms of the place.

In the Putrajaya Mosque in Malaysia you get given a pink robe to cover up, and even then you can't enter the mosque proper if you're not Muslim; yet while visiting the Netherlands with a youth travel group of all sorts of backgrounds (and attire)

we were welcomed into a Turkish surau (a mini-mosque of sorts) as we are.

Loose and modest tends to be the way to go really.

to be more accurate.

For Men

it's like the churches.

you required to cover from shoulders to knees.

**Short are accepted if they cover the knees as most scholar says.

(I pray with short in Saudi Arabia all the time), but some mosques are banned shorts, not all of them.

For Women : If they need to pray: They need to cover everything but not her face and hands.

If they need to visit only:

it's different and less strict and different from country to another :).

and for a general role she need tall pants and t-shirt at least.(this is the basic in all places)in

Saudi she even need to cover her hair(this is the Max).

**pets are not allowed especially dogs, so be careful.

Question: I know from visiting many catholic churches that many require knees and shoulders to be covered, so dressing appropriately is essential for hassle-free travel. Are there similar rules that might apply when visiting a mosque?

Are there any standard clothing restrictions when visiting mosques?

The rules will vary between and even within countries, but generally everyone will need to remove their shoes, men will not be allowed with shorts, while women will not be allowed with skirts, bare shoulders or uncovered heads.

Rules and regulations for clothing restrictions in Mosques vary from country to country. Sometimes even from town to town but removing your shoes at the entrance, men not wearing shorts and women not wearing skirts and baring their shoulders are some rules that all mosques have in common.

Rules and regulations for clothing restrictions in Mosques vary from country to country. Sometimes even from town to town.

It is obligatory for everybody to remove their shoes at the entrance. Men are not allowed to wear shorts whilst women are nnot allowed to wear skirts and bare ther shoulders.


I have backpacked around a fair bit in India - I grew up there, by the way - and yet I still mostly had to use English to get myself understood when I was visiting other states.

There are 22 official languages 1 in use in India.

The curious thing is even for Indians

it is often English that is the binding thread - the one language that I could communicate in any part of the country I was travelling.

Hindi is useful primarily in the north and western regions of India.

People will be lot more friendly to you even if you can speak basic Hindi phrases and less inclined to rip you off.

Having said that, correct pronunciation in Hindi can be tough to master.

It's sort of like learning Chinese - when you don't get the tones right, they won't understand what your 'Chinese' means.

While Hindi is not a tonal language per se, it does have elements where tone and stress play a part unlike they do in English.

If you plan to go off the beaten track and into rural areas, then I would very much suggest you to learn Hindi phrases and try to get pronunciation right.

People in cities can often compensate for wrong pronunciations because they are used to it, but people in smaller towns often cannot.

In most situations, they will try to help you though by getting hold of someone who does understand English.

Now, for southern parts of India - Bangalore, for instance, as you mention in your itinerary - you will find less people capable of speaking and understanding Hindi, and in addition to the regional language of the state English is the de facto second language.

In fact, speaking in Hindi can sometimes be taken as insult in the southern states because it is seen as 'north India' imposing an alien language upon them.

English works everywhere with people buying and selling things and in the hospitality and tourism business.

Hindi does not work everywhere and seems to not even be respected in the parts of the country (ie most of India) where it is not the primary language.

I found very few people helpful in trying to teach me basic Hindi phrases, the opposite that I found everywhere else I've travelled.

I put this down to all the areas I was in having a different primary language so a bit like asking somebody in Slovenia or Romania to teach me some Russian.

Having said that I did learn and use the numbers from one to ten and how to order a cup of tea and those seemed to work well

(I think it was "mujhe ek kop chai dijiye".

If you only learn one word for India, make it "namaste" - it worked in every part of the country I went to and for me

it was the key for to turning the locals from rudely elbowing in front of me at the train booking window to kindly helping me to fill out my forms!

This single word seems to show the local people that you are not just another ignorant outsider.

If you are planning on travelling to only places such as Delhi, Bangalore, Mumbai, Chennai and Hyderabad - essentially the metros - English will not be a problem.

There is no one language that really works in India.

But in most urban areas such as the ones listed above, English will work without any problem.

At most "touristy" places too, you are very likely to find someone who speaks in English.

For instance, in Rajasthan the guides actually speak a lot of European languages such as French and Spanish.

If you plan to visit the country side (where mostly the vernacular language is spoken) or taking an off beat path, English may not always work.

In such cases, it might just help to learn some stock phrases in the local language.

But people are generally friendly; if you stop one person for help, a bunch of them will gather together.

Someone in the group will definitely understand what you need.

I traveled around Maharashtra (including Mumbai) and Andhra Pradesh

and I had no problem getting by with just English.

I did try and learn a few phrases in Hindi, Telugu, and Urdu, however, I hardly used any of them.

In the few instances where I did try and speak in the native language ( e.g. , when trying to bargain), I was often met with a blank stare.

This was either due to the seller only wanted to haggle in English; the person actually spoke one of the other 100+ languages in India; or, more likely I completely butchered the pronunciation!

English works, better than Hindi in the southern states.

If you are planning to visit cities, English will not cause any problems.

Most people on the streets definitely will understand the gist of your question.

Question: I am to travel around some Indian cities: Delhi, Mumbai, Bangalore and others. Will I have trouble speaking only English, or should I learn some phrases in Hindi?

Will I be able to travel around India speaking only English?

English will often work best in places where Hindi is not the main spoken language, and will be understood everywhere among people working in the hospitality and tourism business. However, when going off the beaten track and in rural areas, it is good to learn the right pronunciation of some Hindi phrases.

In india English usual is spoken everywhere, especially if you are planning to visit places such as Delhi, Bangalore, Mumbai, Chennal and Hyderabad. Also, Hindi is often rejected in the southern states of India but if you are planning to go off the beaten track and visit the country side it is advised to atleast learn a few phrases in Hindi because Eglish is not often spoken.

if you are planning to go off thebeaten track and visit the country side it is advised to atleast learn a few phrases in Hindi because Eglish is not often spoken.

In india English usual is spoken everywhere, especially if you are planning to visit places such as Delhi, Bangalore, Mumbai, Chennal and Hyderabad. Also, Hindi is often rejected in the southern states of India.


If you have a Nokia Symbian device, then you can get Ovi Maps installed on it.

Ovi Maps allows you to download map files for as many countries as you want and store in on your memory card.

Once that's done, you can set Ovi Maps to offline mode and still be able to use it to get directions.

If you get a local SIM, then it will be able to show you rough location data too.

I find Google Maps' public transit planning feature very handy too

but I often cannot use it on roaming.

Instead, I use this app called Métro (available for iPhone, BlackBerry, Symbian, Windows Mobile, PalmOS - no Android or Windows Phone 7 version yet) that allows you to store public transit information data offline for many major cities around the world.

The full list of supported cities supported by Métro is available here ; you can also use the same page to customise your download in case you do not want the full package.

They are fairly regular with keeping their database up-to-date too.

EDIT :

Google Maps has recently launched a beta feature (only on Android phones though)

that allows you to save map data for a specific radius on your phone for offline usage.

Not as useful as downloading maps for a whole country like Ovi Maps allows, but if you have wifi access every now and then on the road then you should be able to take bits of Google Maps offline on the go.

EDIT 2

: Android users can also try out the free MapDroyd app that allows you download offline maps country-by-country.

The maps themselves are mostly barebones with no point-of-interest data.

There are different handheld GPS units.

My favourite is the Garmin eTrex.

Garmin's own MapSource maps are usually quite expensive and require annual updates.

OpenStreetMap is a nice alternative; you should check the site if the coverage in the required area fits your needs.

The quality of data is quite okay too.

The map data can be stored offline in a Garmin handheld GPS unit , thus negating the need to have a mobile phone or a global roaming plan.

I am still amazed that all of Europe's maps fits on a small Micro SD card as big a my small toe nail.

FIrstly, even if you COULD get offline Google Maps, it's not that useful in non western countries.

Murmansk - the largest city in the arctic circle, is shown as just two streets in Google Maps.

Most of their coverage of Central Asia is next to useless as well.

In addition, you need some serious storage for offline google maps.

What I eventually settled with was NavDroyd - for Android, but there'll be equivalents for iPhone etc.

It cost a few dollars, but not much - and the maps are all totally free, as they just download the free Open Street Maps maps, which are vector graphics anyway.

It was fantastic.

The interface was a little clunky to me and took a few minutes to get used to, but once I had it sorted it was brilliant - even in Siberia, Kyrgystan and Mongolia! And being back in London

it's pretty fantastic here too, although I find it easier to use Google Maps here as it inclues other information I look for (Latitude).

I've got a smartphone which can cache maps locally (it's a Nokia N900, but lots of other ones do that too, with a few notable exceptions).

Before I go somewhere, on Wi-Fi

I browse around the area I'll be visiting, so the phone downloads all the maps.

When I'm there, I can then navigate around without needing to download anything, just using the cached maps and the GPS.

I can also browse around the surrounding area too, which is handy for planning and orientation.

Also has the bonus of using a gadget I already carry with me, so I'm less likely to forget it!

A cheap unlocked Android phone with GPS (they start at $120 or so) plus a free offline maps app like RMaps .

You don't need a data connection, but have the option of popping in a cheap local prepaid SIM card for calls and net access.

Then you can use Mobile Atlas Creator 1.8 to download relevant maps from different sources before you go (or using a laptop and hotel WiFi while on the road).

MapDroyd gives you downloadable offline maps but this is limited to Android phones.

I tried this on my phone and did a comparison with Google Maps a year ago.

MapDroyd had quite a bit of work to catch up with Google.

For the iPhone, there's an app called Galileo that you can use.

It uses Openstreetmaps data.

You turn the caching feature on in the app, then when you're in the hotel, you navigate to the place you want to go, and grab all the data.

When you leave that place, you can purge the cache to free up space for the next city.

I found this to be really useful, since you can decide how granular you want your mapping data to be.

In some places, like say Hamburg, you're only going to be concentrating on a touristy portion of the city, not all of it, so you don't really need to download the other 95% in level 50 zoom.

Question: I don't need a recommendation or a list but my knowledge of GPS and "navi"s and the differences between them is an utter mystery to me.  But often I'm lost in backstreets in random countries where access to something like a live Google Maps would be awesome. I absolutely cannot afford a smartphone with worldwide roaming though.  Can GPS's do what I want or am I barking up the wrong tree? If they can is it only high end ones than can?

Are there cheap GPS or other navigator devices with downloadable maps for the whole world?

Ovi Maps, Rmaps and MapDroyd offer downloadable or maps that can be viewed offline on Android or other phones. Many smartphones will also allow you to cache maps locally and view them offline.

With Nokia devices like the Nokia Symbian you can get Ovi Maps and with the Nokia N900 you can cache maps locally. On the other hand, Unlocked Android phones with GPS give you the possibility to download apps like MapDroyd and Rmaps that provide offline maps.

With the Nokia Symbian you can get Ovi Maps and with the Nokia N900 you can cache maps locally.


Overall, Spain is a relatively safe country, if you compare the total number of crimes committed in Spain to other countries.

Another resource for that is the Eleventh United Nations Survey on Crime trends and the Operations of Criminal Justice Systems .

I can't find a statistic that compares the various cities in Spain, but according to this report , the Costa del Sol is particularly affected by crime, therefore it also has the nickname Costa del Crime.

Also a major German journal states that the Costa del Sol has a very high crime rate, especially Marbella, Torremolinos and Fuengirola.

Maybe this is also because Torremolinos is a very popular party destination for European tourists.

Another Spanish report says that the Costa del Sol is heavily influenced by the Mafia.

According to this site, Barcelona has the highest crime rate of all major Spanish cities whereas Madrid has a relative low crime rate.

So to sum it up, I would say Costa del Sol and Barcelona have a relatively high crime rate, while the rest of Spain is relatively safe compared to European standards, and especially safe if compared worldwide.

(This was a comment but I promoted it to an answer after the question was reopened but before it was reworded to ask about statistics and resources.)

Purely anecdotal evidence but

based on my own personal first hand experience from back in 2002.

Barcelona has more theivery than any other place I've been anywhere in the world, and I've been to every capital city in Central America which has a worse reputation.

I stayed there for over a week and there was not one day

when I did not either witness at least one theft or meet at least one traveller who had been robbed.

Of course I haven't been to every city in Spain

but I saw nothing like it in the other parts of the countries I did go to.

By the way the crime I saw or was told about by the victims I met was certainly not limited to pickpocketing by any means!

I saw a middle aged local lady have her purse snatched by a small boy

and I met two backpacker girls who were grabbed from behind and pulled to the ground whereupon their backpacks were cut off with a knife.

Scamming was also prevalent.

Especially the one where a youth invites you to join in playing soccer with him though the ball is imaginary.

If you are looking for a resource of crime statistics, you can check the website of Eurostat, the statistical office of the European Union.

In a dedicated section, you will find information on crimes in the EU member states and beyond .

Note that the total number of crimes can be broken down by type.

Robbery is one of these types.

Note that these are absolute figures, but with Eurostat's population statistics , you will be able to compute rates.

If you are interested in what is going on in cities, you can have a look at the Urban Audit .

It contains a section on crime.

Spain don't have any organization or government department that counts or makes crime statistics.

But in Spain there is an Observatorio de la Delicuencia (a universitary agency that is interested in this area).

In 2010, they made public this paper (Spanish) that shows the evolution of criminality in the previous years using police data.

This is the English abstract (the only part in the study that has been written in english): In Spain we do not have periodic victimization surveys since no agency has undertaken this important task.

In order to determine crime levels and trends, national researchers have been forced to focus on official statistics, despite the known weaknesses of these sources.

The present research displays an analysis of the current Spanish criminality, as shown by victimization surveys nationwide.

The longitudinal comparison was made between the two passes (1989 and 2005) of the International Crime Victim Survey (ICVS) in which Spain participated, and polls conducted by the Observatory for Crime in 2009 with the same ICVS questionnaire.

Having these three surveys in sight, we have been able to describe and to assess the evolution of crime in Spain in the last two decades.

As the reader will see through these pages, although public opinion assumes that crime in Spain has increased through the last twenty years, victim surveys for these decades show that crime in Spain has continuously dropped.

If you are very interested, you can use a translator to get a full view of the situation.

If you just only interested to know whether Spain is a safe country, you can go directly to PDF page 3 and see the two charts.

The upper one shows the evolution of criminality from 1980 to 2008.

The other chart shows the population evolution in the same period.

The study concludes that crime is descending in Spain.

Overall, crime in Spain was 47'6 per 1000 inhabitants , less than other european countries:

Sweden: 120.4 United Kingdom: 101.6 Belgium: 94.7 Denmark: 78.8 Germany: 76.3 Netherlands: 75.3 Austria: 73.8 European Union: 70.4 Finland: 64.9 France: 57.5 Luxembourg: 55.7 Italy: 55.6 Spain: 47.6 Greece: 41.2 Portugal: 37.2 Ireland: 25.2 Now, as a Spaniard living in Spain

, I could say that Spain is as safe as any other European country and if you take the minimum safety measures you won't have any problem (don't show money in street, don't use expensive jewellery, etc).

Some areas are more dangerous than others, like Barcelona ramblas, but don't be paranoid, just cautious.

You might want to look at Statplanet .

It is a great resource to compare various indices per country.

There is a section on Crime and Drugs

Just to confirm that what they say above about high crime rates is not true.

I've been living for more than 20 years in several cities of that area and i could say that you could feel safe walking in the streets almost at any time of day and night.

Of course that there exist places where is better not to go.

Question: I'm going to visit Spain, and my wife is very worried about thieves in Spain. What cities should we be aware of? Are there any ways to protect myself from them?  eg Barcelona has a reputation for pickpocketing, but is it warranted?

Is there a resource for crime statistics in Spain - especially robbery

While Spain does not have an official government body that compiles crime statistics, you can check Urban Audit, Statplanet or Eurostat, the statistical office of the European Union. Overall, Spain is relatively safe compared with other European countries, although there is a lot of theft in Barcelona and you should take basic precautions as in any other place.

Barcelona is known to have a massive theft rate and It is advised to take basic saftey meseaures like not wearing expensive jewellery in publib. However, Spain is considered to be as safe as any other european country. But Seeing as the spanish government doesn't provide crime rate statistics,  Eurostat, Urban Audit, Statplanetare are good resources of crime statistics if you are interested.

It is advised to take basic saftey meseaures like not wearing expensive jewellery but Spain is considered to be as safe as any other european country.

Seeing as the spanish government doesn't provide crime rate statistics, Eurostat, Urban Audit, Statplanetare good resources of crime statistics.


If you want large castles in Germany, try 10 Largest Castles in Germany

If you're willing to travel a little further afield to Lithuania, there is Trakai Island Castle .

It's not in Poland or Germany

I know

but it's architecturally similar.

According to wikipedia, the castle is sometimes referred to as "Little Marienburg (Malbork)"

My suggestion is not in a country around the Baltic Sea, but near the Mediterranean Sea.

It is even not a castle per se but a fortified city.

Anyway, it is big, old and very impressive.

So let me introduce the Cité de Carcassonne .

( picture from Wikipedia )

Malbork is the reportedly largest castle in the world , so searching for a larger one may be futile.

It stands at the confluence of two warring groups: the Germans, specifically the Teutonic Knights, and their opponents, the Baltic peoples.

I can't say much more about the German castles than has been said in another post.

But I urge you to look at the other side, the Baltics.

Specifically, the Estonians were the Baltic people most successful in resisting the Teutonic Knights.

Probably more so than the Lithuanians and Latvians.

For this, and other reasons, the Estonians were better than most other Europeans at building castles.

Their capital of Tallinn (formerly Reval) has the most castles per land area of any city in Europe.

And some of them are older than Malbork.

Found an option in Frombork , castle where Copernicus worked.

Main building: Copernicus tower:

In the castle is situated the Copernicus museum

You might be interested in Trakų pilis / Trakai island castle which is just a hour of driving away from Vilnius, capital of Lithuania.

It is, of course, not as magnificent as Malbork but definitely worth a visit.

Trakai is also famous for an exotic ethnic minority (Tatars) living there for many centuries.

As you mentioned castles in the Czech Republic as well, I would suggest visiting Konopiště Castle.

It is not extremely big but it is extremely well preserved, and it is situated about 40 kilometres from Prague.

Alternatively, a more impressive castle (from the outside) because of its position and dimension is Karlštejn Castle (about 30 kilometres from the capital), which however was modified various times and has not preserved the original structure inside.

The images are taken from Wikipedia.

Question: Some time ago I was in Malbork castle and was amazed by its size and beauty. I want to know - are there some castles similar to the Malbork's, may be not so famous. I'm interested in castles in Poland or Germany (may be Czech Republic). Main measure to the castle is size, in my opinion (the bigger the castle is, the older it is).

Are there any analogs of the Malbork castle in Poland or Germany?

Trakai Island Castle, which is just a hour of driving away from Vilnius, capital of Lithuania, and Konopiště Castle, located in the Czech Republic, are both worth visiting.

The Trakai Island castle in Lithuania and the Konopiště Castle in the Czech Republic were suggested as places to visit similar to the Malbork castle.

Trakai island castle in Lithuania
Konopiště Castle in the Czech Republic.


Don't pack anything.

You'll find much cheaper, and probably better, plug adapters all over India.

Expect to pay Rs 15-30 for simple ones that just accommodate US-style plugs, and Rs 40-50 for full universal ones.

You can find them at any general store/convenience store in major cities and tourist locations, but might get a better selection at electrician's shops.

travel.stackexchange.com/users/306/R.. GitHub STOP HELPING ICE

I agree with @R..

I spent over four months in Delhi in 2009, and while I did bring over a couple of plug adapters with me, it's much easier and cheaper to just buy them there.

Any market will have them.

(Just remember that the price of almost anything in India is negotiable!)

In addition to buying a couple of plug adapters, you can also purchase a universal power strip with surge protector once you're there.

It looks like this

and I think I paid the equivalent of $5 USD for one in a market in Delhi.

These are a good idea if you're bringing multiple electronics like laptop, tablet, phone, ipod.

The universal power strip is great for a couple reasons:1)

You can plug in all of your electronics at once.

My experience is that many Indian hotels/hostels/guest houses do not have many outlets so if you have multiple things to charge, a power strip is your best friend.

Surge protection is really important (especially if you're traveling during summer in India, though you didn't specify when your trip was).

Brownouts, blackouts, and power surges are common, and you don't want your laptop to get fried.

If you have one of these, you don't need to buy a lot of individual adapter plugs that are small and easy to lose.

As I mentioned before, though, this is something you'll want to buy in India to make sure the powerstrip itself has the right plug.

(It'll probably be a grounded plug that looks like this .)

The last thing is to make sure you check voltage requirements for anything you bring with you to plug in.

A lot of electronic devices can automatically convert, but things like hair dryers typically need a voltage converter to do it for them.

I went to India (from the US) last year and brought one of these .It's only an adapter, not a voltage converter.

It will work with your laptop, phone charger, etc.

if they support 110V and 220V.

If you have devices (electric shaver, hair dryer, etc.)

that only operate on 110V this won't work.

Some "international" hotels will have a 110V outlet in the bathroom for shavers.

You'll need something like this: http://www.roamingfox.co.uk/India-Travel-Adapter-pr-16236.html

What I do when I need confirmation is to check this website: http://users.telenet.be/worldstandards/electricity.htm

It has an EXHAUSTIVE list of each and every type, the voltage and the countries that use them.

It's been handy for some of the stranger countries I've been to and hasn't failed yet.

Myself, I have a multi-adapter.

The only country it doesn't seem to handle is South Africa, which has 3 giant prongs - bigger than the UK ones!

Good luck, and enjoy India!

I would highly recommend this one from Amazon .

It appears that a 3rd party is selling it at the moment...

I have used this extensively in Europe, India, the South Pacific and the US as well.

Can't beat the price point and convenience... Caveat - The build quality is not excellent, but considering Radio Shack sells individual adapters for upwards of $10 USD each, this is well worth the price, many times over...

It depends where you're from.

Most of my devices have the two pin mainland Europe plugs.

For these you don't need an adapter at all.

All the power points take them as well as three pin Indian plugs.

For my one US plug I bought a very small/light US to Europe adapter for 20 US cents.

UK and Australian ones need a bigger one available everywhere in India for 80 cents.

Pick up a road warrior travel adapter.

It is small and durable and has only two pieces that convert into every plug configuration imaginable!It is pretty cheap ($20) and you will have an adapter for life that you can take on all your adventures!

There are 3 types of plugs used in India:

Type D, C, and M

They look following:

D C M You will see a lot of universal sockets

The voltage in India is 230 volts

50 Hz.

So you are ok from Europe, and Asia, not so much from US.

More on Plugs and voltages

Question: I'm travelling around a few cities in India, from Delhi to Bangalore. What type of plug adapter should I pack?

What kind of plug adapter should I pack for India?

You can find cheaper and possibly better plug adaptors in India itself, so don't bother packing any before you leave.

There is no need to buy anything prior to travelling seeing as it is much cheaper to buy an adapter in India.

There is no need to buy anything prior travelling seeing as it is muchcheaper to buy an adapter in India.


It seems to depend on what passport you have.

Both the tourist information website and the Ecran Airport site say the same thing.

For tourist trips of up to 90 days, citiziens of European Union (EU) nations, Turkey, USA, Canada, Mexico, Israel, Japan, Singapore, Switzerland, Iceland, Norway, Australia, New Zealand do not require visa.

It looks like all other countries do require visas, you'll need to contact your nearest North Cyprus Embassy to get one.

And if there isn't one, then it looks like Northern Cypriate matters will likely be handled by the local Turkish Embassy, so speak to them.

As for issues with the two Cypruses, if you see the "Crossing the Green Line" section on the tourist information site it suggests you shouldn't have any issues as the land border is open.

If you've not got a suitable EU passport or visa, you'll need to get a visa to cross to the south, and you can certainly ask about it when applying for that visa.

I wouldn't expect any issues though.

Just in case others are still looking at this question and answers - if you have any of the passports listed in answer 1 above, there is absolutely no problem at all flying into Ercan airport and then crossing to the ROC and back.

I have an Australian passport

and I have had a holiday home in TRNC for 8 years.

I work in the Middle East, I regularly travel to Europe, and the USA and Australia once or twice a year.

I also have a TRNC student visa stamp in my passport

and I have never once had a problem with entering any other country because of it.

The only legal way to fly into Cyprus is through Paphos (PFO) or Larnaca (LCA) international airports.

If you want to visit KKTC (Turkish occupied part of Cyprus)

you can use the crossovers in Nicosia, but don't fly into the Tymbou so called "Ercan" airport.

It's an illegal port of entry and EU Immigration

will likely hassle you when you return.

It also be noted that Turkey refused to establish direct communication with Nicosia ACC which causes serious concerns over safety and flight efficiency in the region.

Republic of Cyprus (RoC) will not let you cross over into the south if you entered the island through an illegal entry point such as Ercan Airport, in fact I know they won't.

It's best to abide by EU and international law if you want to avoid hassles.

If someone would like to visit Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus then you must fly to Turkey in the first of all

and then you must take your transfer flight to Northern Cyprus,Ercan Airport.

At the border of Turkish Republic of N.C,they will stamp your passport.

If you've EU passport or USA or any visa-free country for EU then there will be no problem when you want to cross the border to Southern part of Cyprus.

Because Southern government has no right to act against EU laws so Southern Cyprus border police must get you in their land.

As long as you have EU passport or visa-free passport for EU then you can enter.

It's all the same for opposite way.

If you'll fly to Southern part of Cyprus then again,It's all fine.

Get yourself to the border and enter to the Northern part of Cyprus.

Only Turkish passport holders can not visit Southern part without a valid South part of Cyprus (tourist C type) visa.

And some other 3-4 more countries too.

If you have a Turkish passport then you'll need to get visa and then fly to Greece and then to Cyprus.

Cypriot passport holders could use opposite way to visit Turkey too and they can get visa on their arrival to the airport because of the laws between Turkey and EU.

First I need to mention that I used to live in Cyprus.

My suggestion is to fly to Cyrpus on Larnaca or Paphos airports.

Visa is not required if you hold an American passport and plan to stay for less than 90 days.

Crossing into Northern Cyprus is very easy.

I used to cross from Nicosia (Leedra Street) on foot, however this is not the only crossing point.

Be aware that if you are flying to Northern Cyprus Directly, (via Ercan airport) and want to cross into Cyprus (South), you will be considered by the Government of the Republic of Cyprus to have entered Cyprus through an illegal port of entry.

The Government of the Republic of Cyprus reserves the right to fine you for illegal entry if you cross into the south, or decline you entry into or exit from the Republic.

Also, another point: if you are planning to rent a car in Cyprus and want to cross into the Northern side with it, it might not be allowed due to insurance issues .

So ask about this before getting the car.

Cheers and good luck!

Question: I know that Northern Cyprus is recognized only by Turkey, and not other countries. So how can I visit this republic - only from Turkey, or there are some other ways? Will I have problems with getting Cyprus visa after such trip?

Northern Cyprus - way to visit and what problems can I have with Republic of Cyprus after that?

For trips of up to 90 days, toruists from the EU, USA and other visa-free countries will be able to cross from the north to the south of Cyprus. However, you can only fly to the north from Turkey and to the south from Greece, and Turkish passport holders will not be able to cross via the land border.

Only Turkish passport holders can not visit soouthern Cyprus without a valid visa whilst citizens of Europe, America, Canada,  Mexico, Israel, Japan, Singapore, Switzerland, Iceland, Norway, Australia, New Zealand do not require a visa for tourist trips of up to 90 days..However it is important to remember that firstly, the only legal way to fly to cyprus is through Paphos or Larnaca international airports. Secondly, if you want to visit the Turkish republic of Northen Cyprus you have to go through Turkey . Lastly, it is considered illegal to cross over the border to southern Cyprus after flying directly to northen cyprus..

Citizens of Europe, America, Canada,  Mexico, Israel, Japan, Singapore, Switzerland, Iceland, Norway, Australia, New Zealand do not require a visa for tourist trips of up to 90 days.

Firstly, the only legal way to fly to cyprus is through Paphos or Larnaca international airports. Secondly, if you want to visit the Turkish republic of Northen Cyprus you have to go through Turkey . Lastly, it is considered illegal to cross over the border to southern Cyprus after flying directly to northen cyprus..

Only Turkish passport holders cannot visit southern cyprus without a Valid Visa.


I believe you might be referring to Tomtit: http://www.tomtit.se/english/

There's a similar sort of thing that I've been to in Cardiff, the UK, called "Techniquest": http://www.techniquest.org/start/

I've also been to At-Bristol in Bristol, the UK: http://www.at-bristol.org.uk/

I found the following page too which is a list of interactive science centers around the world, I have no idea if it's comprehensive or not: http://www.cs.cmu.edu/~mwm/sci.html

Children, discovering and learning about the world around us at The Natural History Museum and Tom Tits (Södertälje).

Exhibits explain the wonders of physics, biology and other sciences.

Both are technical Museums.

Are there any analogs of such museum in other European countries?

In Paris, there are two of them: Palais de la découverte Cité des sciences

Also - Tekniska Museet has an interactive part called Teknorama with lots of fun and learning things to do.

Another museum that might be interesting for kids (and adults as well) in Stockholm is Skansen (the open air museum).

It recreates the way of life in rural Sweden 200 years ago.

Various traditionally dressed craftsmen show their crafts in old historical cabins with historical decor.

Crafts widely range:

glass-blowing, making cheese, baking, making yarn out of flax, etc.

All these processes are demonstrated and explained, and children are able to participate (there might be a line to participate, but it's possible to watch).

The bakery sells their pastries directly to the customers, and I was told that the cheese made in Skansen is used in the food that is served in their cafeteria.

In addition there is also a zoo in Skansen.

Are there any analogs of such museum in other European countries?

I can recommend Technorama in Winterthur, Switzerland.

It is a technology museum with various experiments suited for children but also all other age groupes.

Question: I heard about museum near the Stockholm in which children can make some experiments in chemistry, physics and so on, but I completely forgot its name. Can you help me to find some information about it (in English, if available)? Are there any analogs of such museum in other European countries?

Are there any museums in Stockholm for children? (not Junibacken)

The musueum you are referring to may be The Natural History Museum and Tom Tits (Södertälje), and there are similar museums in Cardiff (Techniquest), Paris (Palais de la découverte  Cité des sciences). Another interesting open air museum for kids in Stockholm is called Skansen.

The Museum referred to could be Tomtit:  http://www.tomtit.se/english/ . However, there are similar Museums like  "Techniquest"(Cardiff, the Uk:  http://www.techniquest.org/start/ ,  Children, discovering and learning about the world around us at The Natural History Museum and Tom Tits (Södertälje), Palais de la découverte  Cité des sciences (Paris)  Skansen  (the open air museum) in Stockholm.

The Museum you are referring to could be Tomtit:  http://www.tomtit.se/english/

Similar museums are   "Techniquest"(Cardiff, the Uk:  http://www.techniquest.org/start/ ,  Children, discovering and learning about the world around us at The Natural History Museum and Tom Tits (Södertälje), Palais de la découverte  Cité des sciences (Paris)  Skansen  (the open air museum) in Stockholm.


Looking around a little, it seems that you don't always need to apply for a Chinese visa in your home country, but you generally need to have at least a work permit in the country where you apply.

For example, the Chinese Visa Application Service Center in New Delhi “is responsible for receiving visa applications for visit to mainland China from ordinary passport holders who are Indian citizens and citizens of other countries possessing Indian permanent residence or work permits”.

The site of the Chinese embassy in Switzerland mentions that “for non-Swiss passports, a residency card is required (or Swiss employer certificate, or Swiss school certificate, etc.)”.

This isn't a definitive answer — you'd need to contact a Chinese embassy to be sure — but there is a presumption that the answer will be no in general.

Looking at non-official sources, it seems that the answer is yes in certain countries (perhaps certain neighboring countries?).

For example, a certain travel agency website has fee schedules for non-residents in Kazakhstan and India but not in Georgia .

They also claim that a Kazakhstan citizen can apply for a Chinese transit visa in Australia , and that a Georgian can apply for a Chinese visa from Kazakhstan but applying in Georgia requires being a Georgian national or resident .

travel.stackexchange.com/users/277/Gilles 'SO- stop being evil'

Edward Hasbrouck, a travel writer, has a pair of posts about getting Chinese visas outside of China specifically in Hong Kong.

The information is a little dated, but might still be useful.

http://www.hasbrouck.org/blog/archives/001498.html http://hasbrouck.org/blog/archives/001598.html

It probably depends on the country.

I know of people that have gotten Chinese Visa's in Vietnam and Thailand

so it's certainly possible, really the best thing to do is ask the embassy in question.

As a fallback go to Hong Kong instead, I've got several visa's from Hong Kong for China, you can usually get them in less than a day through a travel agent or about two days through the official office.

I found this site (China Embassy in Kazakhstan Republic, only Russian and Chinese); there it says that you can apply for the China transit visa in this Consulate in the Kazakhstan republic, but I still can't find official information about it (don't know Chinese).

Update:

It is possible again in Kazakhstan.

Uzbekistan also still possible, but more difficult than before.

It's not possible to get a Chinese visa in Kazakhstan at the moment.

It is possible in Uzbekistan and Kyrygzstan.

More information available in Caravanistan site.

EDIT :

Note - author is affiliated with site.

July 2013:

We successfully got our Chinese visas while in Mongolia (link is to our blog).

It took a bit of extra effort and supporting paperwork compared to applying from our home country (UK), but it was cheaper and the Chinese Embassy staff in Ulaanbaatar are very helpful

Question: For some countries you can only apply for a visa in your home country (Russia is such a country)  Is China also such a country? I was thinking of applying for a visa in the Republic of Georgia or possibly Kazakhstan. I'm already travelling outside my own country (Australia) now.

Is it possible to apply for a Chinese visa while travelling outside your home country?

It is not always necessary to apply in your home country, but you will generally need to have at least a work permit in the country where you apply. It is possible in Uzbekistan and Kyrygzstan, but currently not in Kazakhstan. The travel writer Edward Hasbrouck has a couple of posts about getting Chinese visas in Hong Kong.

At the moment it is not possibile to get a Chinese visa in Kazakhstan. However, It is possibile to get a  Chinese Visa outside of your country but it depends on the country. For example in countries like Uzbekisstan and Kyrygzstan this is a possibility but you most probably need a work permit in the country you are planning to apply for your visa in. For more information on this subject you can check out Edward Hasbrouck's  posts on getting a Chinese visa outside of China (especially in Hong Kong).

It is possibile to get a  Chinese Visa outside of your country but it depends on the country. For example countries like Uzbekisstan and Kyrygzstan this is a possibility but you most probably need a work permit in the country you are planning to apply for your visa in. Formore information on this subject you can check out Edward Hasbrouck's  posts on getting a Chinese visa outside of China (especially in Hong Kong.


Ask at your hotel or hostel.

I work in a hostel and we have about four sets of scales

so guests can make sure their luggage won't be over the weight limit for their flight.

I'm sure we're not unique in this regard.

When you are at the airport you could step onto the conveyer belt of a checkin desk that is not in use.

The scales normally still show the weight.

If you happen to find a shop that sells stones (for stone carving) they usually have scales to measure the weight of the stone to calculate the price.

Those scales should be able to hold you.

You could try to befriend someone local and ask to borrow his or her scale.

You could also use the couchsurfing website to contact people and ask them just to borrow their scale.

Or you could try to find a store that sells scales and just use it in the store without buying it.

Sometimes you can find a scale inside a gym or swimming pool (maybe more common in Scandinavia?)

In many countries you actually have people standing around on street corners with their scales which you can use for a small fee.

The problem may be that you may use your home scale naked, while you are dressed to various degrees when on the street (depending on the weather).

Also some of the scales look pretty old, and may not be super correct.

But at least is it gives you some idea.

In the UK pharmacies sometimes have scales that require a coin to be activated.

If your hotel room has a bath, measure the dimensions, fill it up completely with water, climb in and measure how much water is displaced.

Don't blame me if the hotel complains about water damage :)

For completeness sake, pharmacies in Italy often have both scales and sphygmomanometers to measure blood pressure.

Both are available to the customers, and are either free or coin-activated.

Question: While on the road you don't have your handy scales at home, and without making an appointment to see a doctor, where else could you find some scales to determine your on-the-road weight? This is useful if say, your travel medicine is weight-related...

How to find out your body weight while travelling?

Your hotel, hostel or host may be able to let you use one, or you could try pharmacies, gyms and swimming pools. Some shops selling stones for carving will have scales to weigh their goods, or you could try an airport check-in desk that is not in use. In many countries, there are people standing around on street corners with scales that you can use.

Borrowing a scale from the hotel or hostel you are staying at, or even a local could be an option. You could also use couchsurfing to contact people and ask to borrow their scale. In many countries you can find people on the streets offering scales that you can use but you have to pay a small fee. So, you could esaily weight yourself on a conveyer belt and the airport or in a shop that sells stones. moreover, Places like swimming pools and gyms often provide scales, and in countries like the Uk and Italy pharmacis often have scales for public use. However, if your hotel room, has a bath, you can measure it and fill it up with water. The amount of water displaced when you get into the filled bathtub is your weight.

Borrowing a scale from the hotel or hostel you are staying at, or even from a local is an option. You could also use couchsurfing to contact people and ask to borrow their scale.

In many countries you can find people offering scales that you can use but you have to pay a small fee. So, you could esaily weight yourself on a conveyer belt and the airport or in a shop that sells stones.

Places like swimming pools and gyms often provide scales, and in countries lkike the Uk and Italy pharmacis often have scales for public use. However, if your hotel room, has a bath, you can measure it and fill it up with water. The amount of water displaced when you get into the filled bathtub is equal to your weight.

If your hotel room has a bath, measure the dimensions, fill it up completely with water, climb in and measure how much water is displaced.


I am Billy Ssali (freelance local Tour guide in Uganda).

I would say that Rwanda has an added advantage over Uganda compared to the distance to be driven in the car, in Rwanda it takes 2 hours drive from Kanombe International Airport to get to Kinigi (Parc De National) while in Uganda it needs a minimum of 11 hours to drive from Entebbe International Airport to Bwindi impenetrable forest depending on which gorilla family you want to visit.

But Uganda has the large number of mountain gorillas so if your to consider that and the good medical facilities and good terrain, then you can give Uganda an thought.

Roads are not always good though.

Can't advise you to go to Congo since their security is unreliable, anything can happen at any time!

Not only that but even getting a Congo visa is not easy whether online or at any of their border checkpoint.

Roads are impassable, visa goes up to $135 single entry for Congo, Rwanda visa fee was reduced to $30 (but you need to apply online in advance).

Uganda visa fee is $50 single entry.

When I did my research a few years ago I read that the biggest likelihood of seeing gorillas is in Uganda, I haven't tried it myself though.

I was traveling around other parts of Uganda and it felt reasonably safe - we were using public transport and cheap accommodation.

It was a few years ago though, you should check the current situation (usually foreign ministries have travel advice service - e.g. from UK's foreign office ).

Mountain Gorillas, which are said to be man's closest relatives are living in Bwindi Impenetrable Forest and Mgahinga National Park in Uganda, Parc Nationale Des Volcans in Rwanda and the Virunga National Park in Eastern DR Congo.

But Uganda has the biggest numbers and Rwanda is also good.

I advise you to visit: www.visitgorillas.com

wwww.aabtoursandtravel.com and get detailed itineraries for trekking these amazing creature.

Also call direct +256 755 700 700, for immediate help.

It's true; Uganda, Rwanda and DRC both have Mountain Gorillas, however safety in DRC is truly not reliable unlike in Uganda and Rwanda.

So on the scoreboard of safety DRC scores least.

When it comes to price, a gorilla permit (a must have in both Uganda and Rwanda to see the mountain Gorillas) is $1500 and $600 in Rwanda and Uganda respectively.

The Ugandan Gorilla permit is way cheaper than that of Rwanda.

So on the scoreboard of price Uganda ranks best (eliminating DRC because of safety).

When it comes to facilities and service Uganda ranks equally as good as Rwanda.

So you would spend twice in Rwanda than in Uganda for the same experience and quality of service.

Now, in the year 2017, Uganda has the best value for the price.

I did Gorilla Tracking in Bwindi National Park in August 2017 for 600 USD per person.

It was well organized with good rangers.

The walk was unexpected easy and short, but depends on the place and the family you visit.

It was possible to book the day before (with some luck).

Rwanda charges 1500 USD per person since this year.

Way too much.

Congo charges 400 USD afaik.

But is much less safe and more complicated.

This year, three rangers have been shot in the Virungas by rebels.

But: I wouldn't do it one more time,

no matter where.

It is to much money for just a few hours in the forrest and one hour with the Gorillas.

Question: I understand that you can see gorillas in the wild in Uganda, Rwanda and Congo. In planning a trip to Africa to see gorillas, why might I choose one country over another considering factors such as safety, price, conservation practices and likelihood of seeing gorillas?

Which country should I go to in order to see gorillas?

Uganda, Rwanda and DRC all have Mountain Gorillas, however safety in DRC is truly not reliable unlike in Uganda and Rwanda. A gorilla permit necessary to see one costs $1500 and $600 in Rwanda and Uganda respectively, and the facilities and service are comparable in boh countries.

Firstly, safety in DRC is worse compared to Uganda and Rawanda. Secondly, a gorilla permit costs between 1500 dollars and 600 dollars in both Rwanda and Uganda  where  the ranking of  servie and facilites is also equal. However , you are more likely to spot Gorillas in Uganda.

You are more likely to see Gorillas in Uganada than anywhere else.

Firstly, Safety in DRC is worse compared to Uganda and Rawanda. Secondly, a gorilla permit costs between 1500 dollars and 600 dollars in both Rwanda and Uganda  where  the ranking of  servie and facilites is also equal.


Tackling the London-Manchester bit, Virgin Trains runs regular services on this route.

If you book in advance, tickets should be under £20 each way.

There are several fast trains an hour, and it takes about 2 hours for the trip.

You can get timetables and book tickets on the virgin trains website (amongst others)

One note about UK advanced train tickets - tickets generally go on sale 3 months in advance.

The very cheapest tickets will often sell out that week, but you can normally get some fairly sensibly priced ones for several weeks after.

(There are normally advanced tickets at a couple of different price points for most journeys).

Finding out exactly when tickets are on sale to does vary in difficulty, First

Great Western as an example display their booking dates on their homepage, others don't.

Another snag is that tickets aren't released until engineering work is announced.

This may mean that weekend tickets go on sale later than weekday ones, and some companies will have their weekend tickets available weeks before others!

Advanced purchase train tickets are almost always for a specific train, and non changeable.

They are generally only available on longer journeys, but you can sometimes get a local journey at each end included (depending on the company).

I think almost all the train companies offer them, but advanced tickets are generally tied to just that one company.

This means that if you want to do a journey that involves two companies, you'll often need to book two advanced tickets...

Finally, if you're booking fairly last minute, expect things to be rather expensive, especially on popular routes.

If you're booking on the day / almost on the day, you may be able to save a little bit by taking a slower train.

Ask at the ticket office about that, and they'll tell you if it's possible.

Another option that may be available is Split Tickets , where you find that splitting your long journey up into lots of local legs can be cheaper!

Oh, and if you're travelling off peak and with a child, then get a Family Railcard.

There's an annual fee, but you'll generally save that on any single long journey.

You can't start too early, and you must have at least one child in the group, but for family leisure journeys it can save a lot.

Regarding the first question, you might want to check Maxroam .

They offer several international roaming packages including voice and/or data.

Data is charged from about $0.65 per MB.

update :

MaxRoam has launched a new service for Europe in this article

Not exactly an answer, but a word of caution.

It is important enough that I didn't want to make it a comment.

Last year I went to Italy and got a data stick from Vodafone to use while I was there

(working).

Of course, I don't speak italian, so I had to rely on the customer rep to explain the options to me.

I selected what seemed to best fit my situation, but I had to sign a contract to do so.

I was told that I can simply cancel at the end of the trip, no charges, no problem.

It turns out that 8 months later, I am still being charged by Vodafone Italy.

I cancelled the credit card, but because of the way they charge, Master Card gave them the new card number.

Master Card seems unwilling to deal with the situation and all I have to prove my point is what some customer rep told me 8 months ago.

The charges are still in dispute.

Conclusion: don't sign any contract that you can't read and even then, you better read all the fine print.

You can get a global sim that will work throughout Europe, the prices for data are on the expensive side, you might want to read some of the relevant answers to this question - about avoiding data roaming fees.

As for trains, all British train information, including booking of tickets, can be found at

The Trainline .

Prices and journey times vary depending on your route, faster more direct travel is usually more expensive, and buying well in advance can save a lot of money.

Vodafone works in pretty much all european countries; however at 15Euro for 50MB for traffic (Vodafone.de prepaid roaming data rate)

you are better of buying a new (local) sim card in each country.

t-mobile uk offers a cheaper rates (up to 1 Pound/500MB per day), and im pretty sure it will also work in all the other countries on your list.

Question: I will travel to Europe this year. I am planning to visit Manchester Old Trafford on the first day. How can I get to Manchester from London? How long does it take, and how much does it cost (preferably by bus/train).

How to go to Manchester from London?

Virgin Trains runs regular services on this route, which depart several times an hour and take about 2 hours, or you could try Maxroam. Prices and journey times vary, but it is cheaper to book in advance and faster, more direct travel is usually more expensive.

You can get to Manchester from London, with Virgin Trains and Maxroam. Prices and times vary depending on your route but usually there are several fast trains per hour that are a two hour trip and if you book in advance tickets should cost under 20 pound each way.

You can get to Manchester from London, with Virgin Train and Maxroam.


Google Voice — $0.01/min .

The way it works is you can call online or call a local US number that will call the Chinese number for you (which would use your minutes or your normal per minute cost on top of the $0.02).

Your girlfriend could call you online using it as well, if you set up an account for her in the US (it can't be set up outside).

That would require a second phone line though — any US number that isn't already in use by Google Voice.

Once set up she can have it redirect to Gmail chat rather than the phone number, so if you have parents with a land line or something you could use that number ;)

I don't know a cheap way to call from China using a physical phone, unfortunately.

I'm just adding this in on the off chance that the US is the same as Australia, hopefully this is helpful.

If you have a place in your city like a China Town that has plenty of Chinese shops you can get very cheap calls by purchasing Chinese calling cards.

Many Chinese grocery stores have posters stuck up with call rates.

This is very common in my local area as we have many Chinese overseas students.

On the back of the cards will have a number to scratch off and you register your card for first time use.

The call rates are usually very cheap.

However, be warned, some of the telcos disappear overnight so don't go and buy $50 worth of cards, we used to buy a $10 card.

This might last you a week or two.

If you have any Chinese friends you can ask them to recommend a brand of card that is reputable, but most of them are good.

We now just use Skype, so haven't used cards for a couple of years.

I second the calling card suggestion, but it will be easier for your girlfriend (and for you) if you just google search and buy them off of the internet.

You don't need the physical card for calls -- just the codes.

Just pick any of the top google hits and you should be ok-

you'll be able to use it within 2 minutes of purchase, and the rates are comparable to skype rates for calling mobile or land lines.

If you speak with your girlfriend for extended periods of time and do not want to be hassled with dialing 25-digit calling cards and be on the clock every time, I would recommend Vonage World .

They offer unlimited calling to China (landline + mobile), and, from personal experience, the call clarity is excellent.

It does come at a cost though - be prepared to spend US $30-35 per month.

They do have some introductory offers for lower rates.

I would also checkout Rebtel .

Its like a calling card, but you can assign friends special numbers so you don't have to enter a code.

Alternatively, you can hang up within 10 seconds (which is free) and get your friend to call you back.

They will see a local number, so you both only pay for local calls and Rebtel will charge nothing.

Note that if you don't have a local SIM, your service provider will still add roaming charges.

They support China .

I haven't actually used them yet.

italkbb offers this service.

You can call back from china with no cost.

I have this service few year now, it work for me.

you can call 24/7 any time for $24.95

My suggestion would be to use the Betamax comparison website.

Right now you can call Chinese mobile numbers for as low as 0.2 cents per minute with Cheapvoip.com .

Ignore the "free" call offers as they are usually equivalent to a subscription.

If you use their callback service you don't even need an Internet connection, though you would be charged an extra 0.2 cents for getting a call to your AT&T number.

Overall it would cost 0.4 cents/minute that way.

You can also use any Betamax provider to top up phone credit in China, in case your girlfriend's mobile phone account runs out.

Question: My girlfriend got a new job that requires frequent travel to Shanghai, China. She has a Chinese phone and sometimes has Internet access. Aside from Skype/Internet communications, what's the cheapest way for me to call China? Also what is the cheapest way for her to call me? Are there any hidden fees to watch out for, depending on what method I use?

What's the cheapest way to call China from the US with an AT&T cell phone?

Google voice is very cheap at $0.01/min, but for comparisons with a physical phone you can use the Betamax comparison website. Possible options include Chinese calling cards, Vonage World, Rebtel and italkbb.

A cheap way to call China is unfortunately difficult to find but, websites like google voice and Betamax are cheap ways to keep in contact . In places like China Town, you can buy very cheap calling cards like Rebtel and Italkbb. Also, if you talk to your girlfriend for extended periods of time, to avoid dialing 25- digit calling cards constantly Vonage World is a good option.

A cheap way to call china is unfortunately difficult to find but, websites like google voice and Betamax are cheap ways to keep in contact .


Unless it is a significant amount, changing coins isn't worth it.

The amounts are small and most banks and foreign exchanges won't accept coins generally.

My solution is to collect the left over foreign coins until I fly on an airline that participates in the Change for Good program and then donate them.

British Airways and Virgin also have their own programs.

It is a great concept as a small amount of foreign coins isn't very valuable to you, but when compounded across thousands of passengers a year, it can make a real difference.

If you don't want to wait until your next flight to donate, many charity shops (at least in the UK) accept foreign coins.

Every international airport I've visited has something like this: (This one was in Schiphol yesterday, but I've seen them everywhere.)

It doesn't matter what country the coins are from or what country you're in.

They'll sort them out and spend them to make the world better.

Just gather up what you have and drop them off next time

you see one.

If you really want to change them, your best bets is to change the currency with people who go to the currency's country, either tourists or residents.

Usually, I just keep the coins around and give them to friends when they go to somewhere

I happen to have some coins from.

Other than that?

Just keep them as souvenirs, give them away, go visit the same country again?

Also, I noticed that coins sometimes can be exchanged at airports/borders, as long as it is part of a reasonable sum of money.

If you happen to visit a school show, where students show their hobbies, you will find that world coins are quite popular as a collection topic.

You could perhaps give it a some collector.

Donate it to church auction.

Some coins which form a set of a country, may be interesting prize.

Last choice is sell it on eBay.

You can also try selling them on eBay and get most of your money back that way too.

Some of the coins may be worth $1 or more on face value for just one, such as the Japanese Y500 yen or the British £1.

So a "handful" can be worth over $20 easily.

Donate it on the principle of giving can be another option.

If you have coins from 25 different countries, try selling them in bulk on ebay to collectors.

This way you can even get what they are worth back (but usually a little less than their face value).

There are a number of companies in the UK who exchange foreign coins.

We had a whole load of foreign coins that we collected with our school and then sent them an organisation called Cash4Coins - they exchanged all the coins and once we'd agreed we were happy with the amount the money was in the bank in less than an hour.

My son, who is at university is collecting foreign coins with his student union for charity...

Cash4Coins also will collect for free if the coins weigh over 5kg.

Question: Tonight I just cleaned my room and while doing this I found some money. I counted it and I found out that there are a lot of coins from 25 different countries.  I know that normally banks don't exchange foreign currencies in coins, but is there a way so that I can still get some money for my foreign coins?

How do I get money back for my foreign coins?

Most banks and foreign exchanges will not exchange coins, but you may be able to change them with people planning to visit the countries or sell them to collectors on eBay.Cash4Coins and other companies in the UK also exchange foreign coins.

Seeing as most banks and foreign exchange points don't usually accept coins, you could get your money back by selling your coins to collectors on Ebay or exchange the coins with people who visit the country of that specif currency.  If no, Cash4coins exchange coins for free if the amount weighs more than 5kg and many companies in the UK exchange foreign coins.

Most banks and foreign ecxhange points don't usually accpt coins.

Exchanging the coins with people who visit the country of that specif currency is an option.

You could get your money back by selling your coins to collectors on Ebay.

Cash4coins exchange coins for free if the amount weighs more than 5kg. Also, many companies in the UK exchange foreign coins.


If hiking interests you, I'd recommend the Rhodope mountains in Bulgaria -- there are a lot of popular tourist trails between the mountain refuges.

The mountain is virtually uninhabited (there are a few large-ish towns and small villages), so if you are tired of civilization, this might be something to consider.

Depending on your interests, you can choose between historical sites (such as Perperikon , which I highly recommend), natural wonders ( Trigrad Gorge , Marvelous Bridges , etc.), spa centers/mineral water resorts (for example, Velingrad and its surrounds), ski resorts (e.g. Pamporovo ), caves ( Devil's throat ) or Christian monasteries ( Bachkovo Monastery) .

Following most of the trails could take between 2-3 days up to a week or more, depending on your time constraints, and you'd probably still miss some places of interest.

The best time to travel is from late spring to mid-summer, when the temperatures will be high enough to travel without too much equipment.

Drop a note

if you need some further pointers, I'd be happy to help.

Disclaimer:

Being Bulgarian

, I'm obviously biased, so take this with a grain of salt.

In Montenegro: UNESCO-protected Kotor Old Town, Ostrog Monastery, Cetinje (Historical Capital), Skadar Lake.

If you have enough time, it would be nice to see some mountains too: Zabljak, Durmitor, as well as Biogradska gora.

If you'd like to take part in night life than Budva is very good and while you're there, you could visit Budva Old Town.

Also Maximus is located in Kotor and it is the biggest night club in Montenegro.

Well I can recommend the Transylvanian mountains in Romania.

Bucharest you'll likely go through (the capital)

but I found it a bit dull and oppressive.

Head out to Brasov in the mountains, a fantastic town, and with lots to do in the mountains all around, from Bran Castle (marketed as Dracula's castle), a mountain fortress and more.

And if you're lucky, you'll see some bears as well!

In Bosnia, must sees are Sarajevo (2/3 days should be enough), and Mostar (1 day).

In Bosnia, besides Sarajevo and Mostar, there is Pocitelj, Kravice waterall, Hutovo Blato, even Stolac (all Herzegovina is very lovely).

Question: I'm already planning my next vacation in next May or late August/early September. I'm planning to visit the Southeastern part of Europe. Im especially interested in Bosnia and Herzegovina, Montenegro, Albania, Macedonia, Bulgaria, Romania and Serbia. The time limit is 4 to 6 weeks. I´m interested in tips that are worth a visit, especially cities and natural sights, so that I can plan a great tour.

Roadtrip in Southeastern Europe

The best time to travel is from late spring to mid-summer, when the temperatures will be high enough to travel without too much equipment. The Rhodope mountains in Bulgaria are good for hiking, or you could visit Bran Castle (marketed as Dracula's castle) in the Transylvanian mountains in Romania. Zabljak, Durmitor, as well as Biogradska gora are also worth seeing. In Bosnia, besides Sarajevo and Mostar, there is Pocitelj, Kravice waterall, Hutovo Blato, even Stolac (all  Herzegovina is very lovely).  In Montenegro you can visit UNESCO-protected Kotor Old Town, Ostrog Monastery, Cetinje (Historical Capital) and Skadar Lake, as well as Maximus in Kotor, which is the biggest night club in Montenegro.

South East Europe is full of interesting places to visit. Bulgaria offers mountain hiking, as does Romania along with a chance to visit Dracula's castle. Montenegro offers historic towns, mountains and amazing nightlife. Finally Bosnia offers the must-see city of Sarajevo, among others.

The Rhodope mountains are good for hiking in Bulgaria. Best time to visit is spring-summer.

Montenegro has many sites worth visitng including historic towns, lakes, mountains and nightlife.

Romania has the Transylvanian mountains and Bran castle, famous as Dracula's castle.

Sarajevo is a must-see in Bosnia, as well as many other places of interest including Mostar.


A taxi ride would be at least 3000 Baht, but from the Airport you have taxi stands with fixed prices for most destination.

From downtown Bangkok, you can negotiate to as low as 2000

Baht.

The less expensive would be to take the public minibuses.

Thais use them for transport between provinces.

Most of the minibuses can be catched at Victory Monument.

To go there from the Airport either take a taxi (about 200 baht), or take the Airport Link to Phaya Thai.

There are one rapid (100 baht I think) and one that stops to every station.

At Phaya Thai, take the BTS to Victory Monument (one stop).

Vans depart from several places under the Skytrain station (near Century mall), normally from ~7am to ~8pm.

So total for the less expensive trip would be Airport Link (45 baht) -

Bts (15 baht) -

Minibus (~200 baht) =

260 baht.

More infos :

Bangkok public transport map , Getting to Hua Hin

Try this: http://airporthuahinbus.com

It is 305

Baht for a trip from Suvarnabhumi to Hua Hin on a bus with AC.

Estimated travel time is 3 hours .

This service is brand new, it just started on 29 November 2012.

The best way is to stay at the Inter-Continental and charter their Cessna for the 35-minute hop .

But at 50,000 baht one-way, this may not be all that cost-effective ;)

Use Train, take "Airport Rail Link (SA City Line)" : Airport >

Makkasan station (45THB) 5 minutes walk : Makkasan Station > Phetchaburi Station (MRT-Metro) take "MRT" : Phetchaburi Station > Hua Lamphong the Thailand Train central (29THB) take "Train" :

> Hua Hin , there are more than 10 times a day (44THB-202THB depend on the class) Budget 45+29+44= 118THB Time overall around 5 hours PS.

check the train time table at http://www.railway.co.th

Bell Travel bus desk on Level 2 of the Airport has shuttles that run regularly, best if you book on line as they sell out, Around THB260/per person.

Air conditioning, toilet, wifi, reclining seats.

Around 3.5 hour trip but definetley the cheapest and easiest way to get there.

Not associated with this company just a happy customer.

I think a metered taxi from the airport (Suvarnabhumi) to Hua-hin should be around 2,500 Baht

, I did a quick online search and found a company called oriental escape that offer airport or downton pickup and transfer to Hua-hin for 2,650 Baht in an economy car (toyota Soluna)

so a taxi should be a little bit cheaper than that, I usually get a taxi from Sukhumvit to Hua-hin and pay around 2,200 Baht!

there is actually no question of what is the best way.

The best way is CLEARLY by Bell Travel bus ( http://airporthuahinbus.com ) easy online booking new 24 seater bus 3

super wide fully reclining seats in a row

smooth ride 3.5 hours travel time price 270 baht

The second best way can be hiring a private car online

Camry/Innova car not as smooth as a bus, surely will make you more tired roughly the same travel time price from 1800 baht Trains may be fine, but it will take much more time old smelly train first take airport link train then change to MRT then walk to the railway station and buy tickets trains are super slow and NOT NICE Don't ever think about taking a van from Bangkok, it's a horrible experience, not foreigners should travel this way...

It's inhumane.

I have used www.bangkokshuttle.com several times to get from the airport into downtown Bangkok.

Apparently, they also serve Hua Hin for 2,800 THB.

Clean and hassle-free.

Disclaimer: I have no affiliation with Bangkok Shuttle other than as a satisfied customer.

I have travelled many times to Hua Hin.

The most cost effective way to travel is by train as Fawas described above, another easy way is using the airport bus shuttle, but.. I have had to wait almost 2 hours sometimes before leaving the airport, and that is not really great after a 11 hour flight and then another 3 -3½ hours in the bus.

But the buses are comfortable.

What I normally do is book a transfer by taxi from a Hua Hin based taxi company, there are several you can find on the net, but lately I have used www.huahintaxiservice.com simply because the reply fast and have good communication skills in English when I book the trip.

As mentioned I have tried others and all seem to have good cars and good drivers, price for one is between 2200 to 2500 THB.

If your goal is get the cheapest journey do the following Airport rail link city line to Lot Krabang (next station) (15 Baht)Take the train to Bangkok (6 Baht)Hualamphong to Hua Hin

This is what i would advice and also an extra tip... Save yourself the stress , worries and the dragging with suitcases and spend the few baht/dollar/euro and take the Bell bus which cost 305 euro.

It is quite fast and very comfortable.

If you are at Hua Hin, you probably can walk or take and if not, take taxi from the busstation to your resort/hotel.

2200/2800 baht for a taxi is really overpriced.

If i have to wait an hour extra, then i will have lunch or dinner there.

A 3-4 hour drive to Hua Hin with an empty stomach can be a longggg ride.

What i would recommend is leave a day earlier Hua Hin, and take an airport hotel for 1.5 or 2 nights.

They offer often free shuttle from/to the airport.

Because my flights from BKK to my destination departs at 2AM i will book an extra night, so i will leave the hotel at 22:45pm and be 3 hours before departure time at the airport.

At daytime i can relax and swim and get a last glimp of Bangkok if i want, and then take a rest, and then shower and head to the airport worry and hassle free.

Question: What is the most cost effective way to get from the Suvarnabhumi Airport to Hua Hin (on Thailand's northwestern Gulf coast)? And how much would that be compared to a taxi ride?

Which transportation is best from Bangkok Suvarnabhumi Airport to Hua Hin?

A fixed-price or metered taxi ride would cost around 3,000 2,500 Baht, which can be booked online or at the airport. You can also hire a private car from about 1,800 Baht. There are also public minibuses or shuttles that can be booked for about 260 THB, but these often require a long wait. Trains are the most affordable, but can be uncomfortable, slow and smelly and may need several changes.

There are many ways of travelling from Bangkok airport to Hua Hin. The cheapest ways seem to be the train and the minibus. A more comfortable, faster option that can be booked online is the Bell bus. Taxis are available at a cost of 2500 to 3000 baht, some companies offer online booking. Private cars can also be rented online but are tyring as you have to drive yourself. Finally, the Inter-Continental hotel has a Cessna you can charter.

Taxis from Bangkok airport to Hua Hin cost around 2500 to 3000 baht and take 3 - 3.5 hours. They can also be booked online.

The Bell bus is a good service, not too expensive and can be booked online or at the airport.

Private cars can be booked online but the journey takes the same time as the bus and you have to drive yourself.

The cheapest method of travelling from Bangkok airport to Hua Hin is the train.

The Inter_continental hotel has a Cessna you can charter, journey time 35 mins.


According to the CDC , they recommend MMR, DPT, polio, Hep A/B, Typhoid and Japanese encephalitis

Also Malaria meds are recommended.

That being said, I've lived in SE Asia and travelled around with only MMR, DPT, polio and the Heps.

A lot of people swear by Malaria meds, but every time I take them, I feel horrible and can't really do anything

so I generally skip them.

I would strongly recommend Japanese encephalitis though, it is currently rated at endemic and is seen even in Bangkok.

Hep

A/B are rated at a low threat in Thailand, but they are generally good immunizations anyway.

MMR, DPT, polio are considered standard for international travel, and are highly recommended.

Typhoid is rated as a threat in rural areas.

I'm not sure of the rates in cities.

According to the Thailand entry on the Finnish site rokote.fi, These vaccines are recommended for everyone :

Hepatitis A DPT / DTwP MMR

These are recommended for some, based on a risk estimate (preferably conducted with a health professional): Hepatitis B Japanese encephalitis (but see also Ginamin's answer !)

Cholera Typhoid Preventive malaria medicine is also recommended for parts of the country (green in this not very detailed map ).

Seems like Bangkok and the coastal areas most frequented by tourists are not in the higher-risk zone though.

The site cites this source for their vaccine information: Matkailijan terveysopas 2009, a publication by the National Institute for Health and Welfare

Nothing, really, unless you mean to stay in the jungles for a while.

And yes of course you want mosquito repellent because skitos are never any fun.

Your biggest health concerns have to do with heat, hydration, food and traffic accidents.

If you drink 2 liters at home, you need 3 liters in Thailand (assuming of course a temperate climate where you are from).

You also need to drink electrolytes regularly.

Good sunscreen.

Don't laugh, this is not your typical "hey, I got sunburned", mess around with that

and you could spend the rest of the holidays in a really bad condition.

For the food, keep in mind that tap water is not drinkable.

Actually it's not drinkable in most of southern Asia, so buy bottled water only.

You don't want to drink anything with crushed ice but ice cubes are usually fine.

Thai food tends to be very spicy and you are likely to get mild diarrhea (which brings you back to the hydration issue - Diarrhea causes a loss of water & electrolytes).

Other than that, of course you have all kinds of diseases, but not more than in other civilized countries.

Hygiene standards are rather decent in most places.

And traffic accidents.

It's not a disease, but it's still an epidemic and as a tourist you are far more likely to suffer significant health problems from the poor driving standards than you are to catch any major disease in Thailand.

(By the way, people are supposed to drive on the left, here.

Let's be fair, that's also a reason why tourists have a lot of accidents).

Found this from the World Health Organisation : Yellow Fever Country requirement: a yellow fever vaccination certificate is required from travellers over 9 months of age arriving from countries with risk of yellow fever transmission.

Yellow fever vaccine recommendation:

no Malaria Malaria:

Malaria risk exists throughout the year in rural, especially forested and hilly, areas of the whole country, mainly towards the international borders, including the southernmost provinces.

There is no risk in cities (e.g. Bangkok, Chiang Mai city, Pattaya), Samui island and the main tourist resorts of Phuket island.

However, there is a risk in some other areas and islands.

P. falciparum resistant to chloroquine and sulfadoxine–pyrimethamine reported.

Resistance to mefloquine and to quinine reported from areas near the borders with Cambodia and Myanmar.

Human P. knowlesi infection reported.

Recommended prevention in risk areas:

Mosquito bite prevention only; Recommended prevention in areasnear Cambodia and Myanmar borders: Mosquito bite prevention plus atovaquone–proguanil, doxycycline or mefloquine chemoprophylaxis (select according to reported resistance pattern)

If you come from:

Angola Argentina Benin Bolivia BrazilBurknan Faso

Burundi Cameron Central Africa ChadColumbia Congo Cote d'Ivoire Ecuador Equatorial GuinEthiopia French-Guiana Gabon Gambia GhanaGuinea Guyana Guinea Bissau Kenya LiberiaMali Mauritania Niger Negeria PanamaPeru Paraguay Rwanda Senegal Sao Tome & PrincipeSierra Leone

Somalia Sudan Suriname

TanzaniaTogo Trinida & Tobago

Uganda Venezuela Zaire, you need an evidence of vaccination for yellow fever ( Thailand immigration ) in order to be allower to enter the country.

Risk of malaria is really low and malaria pills has bad side effects.

Question: A member of my family is headed to Thailand shortly (and I'm considering it as well, haha) and wondering what immunisations are required / recommended for that area?

What immunisations, if any, are required / recommended for Thailand?

MMR, DPT, polio, Hep A/B, Typhoid (rated as a threat in rural areas) and Japanese encephalitis (currently rated at endemic) are recommended by the CDC. Malaria meds are recommended, and  a yellow fever vaccination certificate is required from travellers over 9 months of age arriving from countries with risk of yellow fever transmission.

A number of vaccinations are recommended for travel to Thailand, however, none are obligatory, unless you are a traveller from a list of countries where yellow fever is required. Malaria medication is also recommended.

A number of immunizations are recommended for travel to Thailand.

Travellers from some countries need to be vaccinated against yellow fever.


Hippietrail suggested making this a full answer, so here you go:

For dengue, the answer is emphatically no.

There are four strains of dengue fever, and while getting one of them confers life-long immunity to that strain, each successive infection with dengue of a different strain carries with it a considerably higher risk of either dengue haemorrhagic fever or dengue shock syndrome.

You really, really don't want either one.

This, incidentally, is why you won't be seeing a vaccine for dengue fever for quite some time

- researchers are justifiably concerned that unless they can confer 100% immunity for all four strains, the vaccine will actually increase the risk for severe disease.

For malaria, its something of a harder question based on a number of different factors, but its not something I would ever count on over malaria prophylaxis, even if you were staying very long term.

While I have not heard of any resistance to dengue being developed, there have been studies done over years on genetic resistance to malaria .

Note that this is genetic resistance that builds up over many generations, and has been observed in specific tribes or ethnic groups.

You aren't going to develop resistance simply by travelling a lot and it would be unwise to forego standard precautions.

That said, what I think you're really referring to is general 'resistance' to mosquito bites (from normal, non malarial / dengue vector mosquitoes) that you'll develop if you travel / stay in those regions long enough.

You learn to live with it.

Anecdotal evidence I have been told by various friends and acquaintances who had dengue in the past several years in Mexico is that dengue gets worse each time you catch it leading to dengue haemorrhagic fever when you get it the third time.

I'm pretty sure this is not accurate scientifically though.

Read up and ask a doctor to be sure.

In any case you can catch it multiple times and it won't get milder each time.

As for malaria there are multiple species (and probably strains) of the parasite which vary greatly in their severity and risk of relapse so I would assume that having contracted one would not give you immunity to the others as the very minimum.

I would suggest again reading up online and asking a doctor if this is a risk you are likely to actually face.

The only time I was in a malaria area was on the coast of Honduras about five years ago

and I seem to remember the (very poor) locals telling me they also have to take antimalarials in the dangerous season.

Since it turned out I was not there during the dangerous season

I did not use most of my medicine.

But that's just me - don't copy me!

Again I am not an expert on mosquito borne diseases.

This is mostly stuff I've heard from people in my travels with a bit of Googling to back some of it up.

For real advice check with a health professional.

You write that there's no vaccine for dengue.

Well, that's not true.

A dengue vaccine exists.

It has been developed by the Sanofi Pasteur laboratories.

It's called Dengvaxia (CYD-TDV) .

It has already been licensed and has proved efficient in countries where it has been tested, see WHO and The Borgen Project .

It took about 20 years to be developed.

Malaria is a serious and sometimes fatal disease transmitted by mosquitoes and causes symptoms that typically include fever, fatigue, vomiting and headaches.

In severe cases it can cause yellow skin, seizures, coma or death.

People living in the areas of Malaria high risk (who have recently survived an infection), re-infection typically causes milder symptoms, however partial resistance disappears over months to years if there is no ongoing exposure to malaria.

However due to the high levels of mortality and morbidity caused by malaria—especially the P. falciparum (most deadly) species—it has placed the greatest selective pressure on the human genome in recent history.

Sources: Malaria at Wikipedia Genetic resistance to malaria

I can't address dengue fever but with malaria it's possible for it to lie dormant in the body and then come back.

If infection gave immunity this wouldn't happen.

I've come down with it three times this way

(I haven't been in the malaria zone since the initial infection) and each time has been about the same (albeit quite mild.)

Question: I have heard that in countries where malaria or dengue fever are endemic, local residents have built up resistance to the diseases so that contracting them is rare or impossible. Is this true, and is it possible for long-term travelers or expatriates to build up resistance?

Is it possible to build up malaria and dengue resistance?

There are four strains of Dengue fever, and while infection with one will give you some immunity to that strain, re-infection is often accompanied by worse symptoms and leads to dengue haemorrhagic fever when you get it the third time. There is some temporary resistance to malaria, leading to milder symptoms on re-infection, but you will not develop resistance merely by travelling and you would be unwise not to take precautions.

Immunity to dengue fever does not increase after a person catches it, in fact the opposite is true and symptoms are worse with subsequent infections. Some resistance may build up to malaria, on the other hand, but this will not happen just from travelling to areas infected by malaria.

Catching dengue fever does not give you immunity. In fact, it gets worse every time you catch it.

People may build up some resistance to malaria but there are many different strains so it does not stop you catching it.

Nobody is going to build up immunity through travelling.


I have a few suggestions for you: Go to the BlizzCon 2011 in Anaheim, only 60 km away from LA.

There you can take a look at Diablo 3 and you could use collect some fancy gifts from Blizzard.

Go to the Atomic Testing Museum .

I was never there, but a friend of mine really recommends it.

And according to the homepage it sounds quite interesting.

I don't know what kind of geek you are, but maybe the Erotic Heritage Museum has something for you?

If you're interested in technic in general, maybe the Hoover Dam is something you'd enjoy.

There it is also possible to do some guided tours .

Something I don't know personally, but also sounds interesting: CSI: The Experience Maybe DEF CON is something for you.

It is a hacker conference that takes place every year in Las Vegas.

Always worth a visit is the Playboy Club !

Drive around and see if you can get a glance at Google's self-driving cars .

Contact the Geeks of Nevada and see if they can help you.

Last but

not least you could do some really geeky roadtrip on the Extraterrestrial Highway and try to sneak into Area 51 ;)

I'll add more activities as soon as I can remember all the stuff ;)

Speaking as someone with similar interests as yourself: 1)

Best geek thing to do in Vegas: learn to count cards at blackjack, play poker, or other forms of advantage play.

Very few gamblers believe there is anything to learn about gambling, and so it's possible for geeks to learn how to maximize their gambling experience.

Poker is the easiest game to become good enough to win money.

Play blackjack and video poker with a goal of breaking even, but generating casino play so you're offered comps.

I win money at poker, lose money in the casino, but my comp value is usually ~3x my casino losses. 2) Been to the Atomic Museum twice.

It's definitely worthwhile, but won't take more than a few hours even if you're extremely interested.

Use Google Maps to take the bus there. 3)

Actually, use Google Maps to take the bus anywhere .

Cabs are hellishly expensive, the monorail doesn't go very far, but the bus network is extensive and cheapish.

($7 for an unlimited day pass as of mid-2011.)

I almost always walk where I'm going, but not in Las Vegas -- the distances there are much further than they appear to be, thanks to topography and the size of the landmarks.

There are half-price show ticket booths scattered around town.

Quite a few of the shows would be of geek interest, purely for the live special effects if nothing else.

There's a nightclub called "Insert Coin" near the Fremont Street experience which is apparently themed on 8-bit video games.

It wasn't open yet when I was there, but the "coming soon" sign was a "Loading" bar that was progressively filled in red.

Thought it was a great promo.

Helicopter tour of the Grand Canyon has been on my list for years.

Haven't done it, but it strikes me as geek double-rainbow.

Pinball Hall of Fame You will probably have to take a cab there

but it's pretty interesting to see all of the old Pinball machines from yesteryear.

You can always go to CES - Consumer Electronics Showcase

This geek enjoyed

The Neon Museum for its history and tech aspects.

Several pictures I took at the Boneyard are now in rotation as desktop backgrounds.

There are tons of non-casino things to do.

For example if you like zoo-like activities, at different hotels you can see lions & tigers, flamingos, dolphins, sharks & rays (and you can touch a ray), assorted fish and birds both inside and out, and so on.

And if, like some geeks, you're a foodie, then there are more places to go than you can fit into any vacation - and for less than you might expect to spend, too.

I also enjoyed figuring out the tech behind the free outdoor shows like the fountains, volcano, pirate/siren battle and so on.

The bus is a good bargain.

The distances are enormous - walking will fool you a few times.

Question: Obviously, the Star Trek Experience  would have been  a good suggestion. But consider that I'm a science fiction geek, computer programmer, technologist, those kinds of things. What kind of cool stuff along those lines is there in Vegas?

Geek stuff to do in Las Vegas

Depending on your particular interests, you could visit the  BlizzCon 2011  in Anaheim, only 60 km away from LA, the Atomic Testing Museum, the Erotic Heritage Museum, the Pinball Hall of Fame, CES - Consumer Electronics Showcase, the  Hoover Dam, the Playboy Club or even the shows, if only for the special effects. Finally, you could drive around and look for Google's self-driving cars.

There are lots of things for geeks to do in Las Vegas including visits to "techy" places like the Atomic Testing Museum. Some geeks may also be interested in looking out for Google self-drive cars or enjoying the technology behind the special effects in a show. The Hoover Dam is also worth a visit.

Specific "techy" things to do in Las Vegas include the Atomic Testing Museum, BlizzCon and the Consumer Electronics Showcase, among others.

Other interesting things to do in Las Vegas include the Playboy Club, looking out for Google self-drive cars and seeing a show.