Can anyone recommend unique place to visit in July - TravelPUNK Backpacker College Student Budget Travel Message Boards!

cnchsr12 · 05-02-2006, 07:19 PM

My best friend and I have two weeks in June/July and would like to go somewhere unique and interesting but affortable and safe for two women traveling alone. I am posting this because we can easily think of cool places like Thailand, Vietnam, Greece but they are too HOT at that time of year. Any ideas (of places with nice temps in the No. Hemi summer)???

**Tadpole** · 05-02-2006, 07:24 PM

Pampolna Spain! Running of the bulls. If you like a party and you like thrills then thats something worth looking into. Its in early July.

What kinda of thigns are you lookign to do?
-Relaxed, lay out on the beach
-party
-Site see
-hang out

**Tadpole** · 05-02-2006, 07:26 PM

o and welcome to the boards!! I didnt realize it was your first post!

**bluepea** · 05-02-2006, 09:45 PM

Welcome!

Hey, if you're gonna follow his advice, go to Tarragona, Spain. Absolutely beautiful and non touristy. Great Roman ruins as well. But, it's hot there too!

Have you considered Alaska? Seems like it would be a great time to go. Or anywhere in Northern Canada. There's also Hawaii which, if I remember correctly has stable temperatures? You may want to consider Iceland or Greenland too, or perhaps go to Norway/Finland and/or Sweden.

Just a few suggestions.

**LostFarmboy** · 05-02-2006, 10:48 PM

So, it's somewhere unique you want, how about Russia, Mongolia, Kazakhstan, or China. I don't really know anything much about them at all, but they sure are unique and i'm sure would be a real adventure.

From experience i would say Austria. It's a beautiful place, not too hot in the summer, and the Alps are bloody fantastic to hike.

**tumblezweedz** · 05-03-2006, 12:41 AM

Lithuania, Latvia and Estonia.

Cheaper than Scandinavia, more exotic than western Europe, awesome food and drink, art, festivals, music, architecture, beaches (well, it's the Baltic Sea, it's not exactly "warm"), spectacular scenery, tons of history, people are...getting more accustomed to tourists = friendlier than in the past. Plus, it's a compact area, easy to get around, not nearly as crowded as the more usual spots on the Euro itinerary, but with easily as much to offer. If you're really brave, you can opt to rent a car and drive around (gorgeous, but challenging at times) or you can just take buses/boats/ferries from place to place. Weather is unpredictable, but in Lithuania, at least, it's usually sunny and in the 70s (20s C) during the summer. The music festivals (classical and jazz) are awesome in summer there too.

We lived there for a couple of years, so if you decide on the Baltics, feel free to hit me up for specifics. Did I mention how dang cheap it is to be there?

**expatben** · 05-03-2006, 03:37 AM

If its off the beaten track, maybe Wroclaw, Poland. I have been there and I find it very nice and not too hot.
If Spain is where ya head'ed I have heard great things about the beaches in San Sabastien. Actually as I recall July is when the Jazz festival hits Vitoria Gastiez. Germany will not be too hot either.

**tumblezweedz** · 05-03-2006, 07:46 AM

Good point Ben, Poland rocks. Gdansk is also beautiful, Krakow amazing (though pretty crowded in July), and Szczecin is small but lovely. And it makes a great game for people getting postcards (how the heck do you say that?) Even more verbal fun, and close to Szczecin is Swinoujscie (it's just possible I've mispelled it), which is a beach resort town. I haven't been there in 15 years, but it certainly qualified as "off the beaten path" back then. You can go for the day from Szcecin, by ferry.

Wroclaw is not on the standard Warsaw/Krakow beat that most packers visit, but is also worth a stop. Up north around Gdansk (which is touristy, but for locals and Germans, mostly) there are beaches (again, it's the Baltic), and castles (Malborg), pretty scenery and the restoration work in Gdansk is fabulous (I saw it in 1991 and in 2004... like two completely different places).

**tumblezweedz** · 05-03-2006, 07:50 AM

By the bye, I've traveled around Poland on my own, and round Poland and the Baltics with my husband and little kids, and both are perfectly safe for women travelers. Yes, you might get a bit of attention, but not much more than you would in a city at home, I would say. Probably less, because people tend to be a little more reserved.

**omisan** · 05-03-2006, 09:44 AM

I'd recommend Central America (Costa Rica rocks!!!) but summer is the rainy season. It means everything's cheaper and less crowded, but it may not be the sun & fun you might be looking for.

cnchsr12 · 05-03-2006, 10:00 AM

This is my first post and so far it's great! You guys are awesome - so many responses in such a short time!

I should have mentioned in my initial post that my friend lives in Switzerland right now, and we have both traveled the 'common' countries in Europe and some of Eastern Europe, I have also been to Iceland (which is amazing). So while I love Spain (ohh so much) and some of the other countries you suggested, we would like to go somewhere new

I was thinking of Lithuania, Latvia and Estonia and that region though and would love more information about where to go there.

And any other great ideas! (although my friend is avoiding N. America right now).

Looking forward to reading more responses

**simply_angelic** · 05-03-2006, 11:50 AM

just out of curiosity, why is your friend avoiding N. America? It can be one helluva place to visit (IMO

) . Ok so I just saw a travel special on this place and nw I'm dying to go...Paragonia? In the southernmost areas of South America...but could be quite a trek so if you're not into that, I wouldn't go...Maybe parts of Scandanavia? Have you been there a lot already?

cnchsr12 · 05-03-2006, 11:55 AM

My friend feels like if she comes to NA she should visit her family which is always a big deal, takes up tons of time, and they try to guilt her into moving back here. We would both love to travel NA more but probably at a later date

**simply_angelic** · 05-03-2006, 12:10 PM

I can understand that...felt the same way when I went to Europe. But it actually turned out really well. (of course they weren't trying to guilt me into moving there, but they did try to persuade me to come back this year and have them take me everywhere. AND those nasty SOB's kept trying to BUY ME EXPENSIVE STUFF! had to keep on my toes with the horrid sneaky family I have

)

**LostFarmboy** · 05-03-2006, 03:26 PM

Quote:

Originally posted by simply_angelic@May 3 2006, 10:50 AM
Ok so I just saw a travel special on this place and nw I'm dying to go...Paragonia? In the southernmost areas of South America...
[snapback]117471[/snapback]

I think you mean Patagonia SA....and yes it would be freakin awsome to see

**lauren313** · 05-03-2006, 03:59 PM

How about Bulgaria? I've never been, but I know some people who have, and they really loved it. I believe it only started to become "touristy" fairly recently, but if you want to avoid that, I'm sure you'd find some out-of-the-way places where you can get back to basics.

I'd love to go there!

**ajb3000** · 05-04-2006, 12:48 AM

How about former Yugoslavia? Definitely off-the-beaten-path, it's an incredibly fascinating region, very affordable and is now safe for travellers. Have a look at my photos from Serbia, Bosnia and Croatia here, hopefully they'll inspire you.

**florencia9699** · 05-04-2006, 06:01 AM

Quote:

Originally posted by LostFarmboy@May 3 2006, 08:26 PM
I think you mean Patagonia SA....and yes it would be freakin awsome to see*

[snapback]117529[/snapback]

It IS freaken awesome to see!!

xtremefx · 05-04-2006, 06:05 AM

go to Andorra,no one seems to go there and you can go through on your way to/fro france/spain,or go to Luxembourg,has anyone been to any of these countries if so..what they like...i recommend those cos ya dont really kno anything about em...cos there so small and not well mentioned...ever...really

**tumblezweedz** · 05-04-2006, 07:40 AM

cnc - I would HIGHLY recommend the Baltics, they are gorgeous, varied and inexpensive. If you decide on this, I will deluge you with suggestions on what to do, eat, see, experience, especially in Lithuania, where we lived for two years (just moved last June).

xtreme - we go to Luxembourg fairly frequently, Luxembourg City being about a 45 minute drive from our current home. It surprises me as a very green and nature filled country - there's a huge nature reserve park on one side, and there are some beautiful castles and whatnot. The one we have visited is Vianden, which is just as quaint a place as any you'd find on the Romantic Road in Germany, just in French, which is easier for me, since my French is better than my German.

Luxembourg City itself is quite dramatic, with its steep cliffs and stone bridges. It's also quite expensive, and very sophisticated with so much EU stuff going on there. I'd definitely say it's worth a look if you're in the area, but to really experience Luxembourg, as always, I'd suggest going out of the main city and checking out some of the smaller towns and rural areas as well. Of possible interest to Americans and military history buffs, General Patton is buried in the Hamm American Cemetary near Luxembourg City. We went to the Remembrance Day ceremony there last November, and I found the poppies growing here and there along the roads very moving. What they were doing blooming in November, I've no idea, but there they were. We'll be exploring Luxembourg in more depth now that spring is here, so I'll add any other tidbits I discover, as we go.