Deal Alert: 20% off First Class Swiss Train e-Passes

Deal Alert for train travel in Switzerland!

From now through April 4th you can get a First Class Swiss Pass for 20% off.  Link via RailEurope here.

Get limited-time savings of 20% off all First class Swiss Travel Pass e-passes. Amplify your Swiss itinerary with this exclusive offer ! Book by April 4, 2018 with coupon code 20SWISSTRAVEL18. Valid for North American residents only.

The fine print:

Offer is valid on 3, 4, 8, and 15 days consecutive electronic Swiss Travel Passes for Adult and Youth traveling in First class. From March 6 through 5:00pm ET on April 4, 2018, select one of the electronic Swiss Travel Pass options and add to cart. Enter coupon code 20SWISSTRAVEL18 during checkout to receive the 20% off discount. The electronic Swiss Travel Pass is pre-validated ; therefore travelers are required to provide their first date of travel on the pass. The first date of validity must be on or before June 30, 2018. Offer is limited to the first 500 passes or until the promotion’s end date of 5:00 pm ET on April 4, 2018, whichever occurs first. Offer is valid only for residents of the United States, Canada, and Mexico. Unused Swiss Travel Passes are refundable/exchangeable with fees if received before the first date of travel on the pass. Please check product terms & conditions before completing your booking. One coupon code per booking may be applied. No other coupon code discounts can be combined. Offer is subject to change or extension without notice. No adjustments can be made on prior purchases.

Top places to visit in Ireland

This August I'll be returning to Ireland!  To be honest, I can't wait - during our last trip Shannon and I had a blast (much of it a water blast since the weather was nuts) and vowed we would return.  This time the four of us will be continuing our exploration and plan to pick up right where we left off.  I'm looking forward to more normal weather as well which will make the drive around the country even more fun.

Recently CN posted another highlight of places to see in Ireland and I can't disagree with any of them:

Most Beautiful Places to See in Ireland

Most of these are already on our list to some degree though we may branch out a bit as well to areas previously unexplored.

Do you have favorite/top places to visit in Ireland?

Place of the Day: Mdina, Malta

I love visiting castles.  It was a highlight while visiting Ireland and Dubrovnik to be able to walk the walls, see the history, and take in the experience in person for what it might have been many years ago.  So I was interested to see recently that I should add another walled city to my list of places to visit: Mdina, Malta.

Mdina, Malta

No cars are allowed in the city, save for emergency vehicles and those with special use.  The history of this particular area goes all the way back to the Bronze Age and was the place where the Apostle Paul was shipwrecked in the Bible during the Roman years.  

Mdina is another city with a number of churches and cathedrals - these include:

St. Paul's Cathedral

Church of St. Agatha

Santa Maria Ta' Doni

In order to get to Mdina you'll need to take a bus once in-country.  Malta International Airport serves the islands and is near the capital (Valetta).  Air Malta is one option though the major Alliances all fly into Malta with varying schedules.  

What to do in Rome?

Rome is one of my favorite cities.  I rang in New Years 2011 near the forum.

Italian (especially fettuccini alfredo) is at the top of my food list.

CN has a list of 22 great things to consider when visiting Rome - some may be new if you're a frequent traveler to the region!

What to do in Rome

I think my top choice from this list for my next trip will be visiting Cinecitta. One of my favorite TV shows was Rome and parts of the series were filmed there.

Do you have a top recommendation when visiting Rome?

Place of the Day: Perast, Montenegro

This particular region of the world is high on my exploration list, and for this post I wanted to highlight one city/area of particular interest: Perast, Montenegro.

Perast, Montenegro

Located on the Bay of Kotor, the city of Perast's history dates all the way back to the Byzantine empire.  Venice and Hungary also fought for control of the city, and in 1918 Kotor became part of Yugoslavia.  Shipping was the primary focus given its location within the Bay and surrounding inlets.

Various churches are still open and available to visit - more information about the region and what you see in this picture can be found at this site.  Some notable places to see include the unfinished parish of St. Nicholas, the church of Our Lady of the Rosary, Our Lady of the Rocks, and Bujovic Palace. 

Getting to Perast might be part of the adventure.  There are no direct flights though you can use a car or find a bus departing from Kotor that takes about 30 minutes.  Flying into Kotor or Dubrovnik is much easier, with a variety of connection options throughout the region and Europe.

For more research interest: https://www.lonelyplanet.com/montenegro/perast

Place of the Day: Salzkammergut Region, Austria

I'm a bit overdue for one of my "Place of the Day" posts, so I thought choosing one from a region where I thoroughly enjoy exploring and venturing out into the countryside would be the best to do. The Salzkammergut Region of Austria starts in Salzburg and tracks along the Traun River to the Alps and Dachstein mountain area.  It is also a UNESCO World Heritage Site.

Salzkammergut Region, Austria

This area has much to offer year round, including skiing of all sorts in the winter and hiking/cycling in the warmer months.  One picture I've seen many times highlights this region and the village of Hallstatt:

For more information about activities and tourism, this site is a helpful start: 

https://www.salzkammergut.at/

Flying into Salzburg is relatively easy with many European airlines providing direct flights.  From the US, Austrian Airlines is a Star Alliance partner and connects Vienna with many hubs including Newark, Chicago, and Los Angeles.  Connections to Salzburg can be found here.

Getting to Hallstatt itself can be done by car, bus, or train - I would probably choose the train option over the others.  Between Salzburg and Vienna, a stop at Attnang-Puchheim, and transfer toward Bad Ischi and one stop north of Obertraun. Adventure!