artnbarb
1000+ Posts
For me this is actually rather late to begin planning for the next year, so I'm feeling a little stressed because I don't have all the details worked out yet! I really expect 2022 to be a super busy year.
We did travel this year - a trip to Italy that I booked in June when I thought things were getting better. Although we did feel much safer in Italy than in Floriduh, part of the reason was because we knew everyone we were socializing with was fully vaccinated, and we also knew that masks were mandatory in all enclosed spaces. Still, we were nervous when we had to take the test before flying back - and luckily we were both negative. (And then we spend our last night at Fiumicino where I somehow caught a cold! Go figure!)
Because I expect 2022 to be very busy, and because we want to use FF miles, I'm trying to nail down our itinerary for next summer/fall. We had hoped to take a small group tour of Ireland, followed by a small group tour of Scotland, but it looks like those plans won't work. The people at WildNHappy Tours even offered to change their dates to accomodate us, but unfortunately our dates didn't work for the other people who had already booked the tour. Eventually I decided to skip Ireland and just concentrate on Scotland.
Right now I'm thinking about a few days in Edinburgh at the beginning of August, followed by a small group tour to the more remote corners of Scotland. Art's made it clear that he has no desire to drive on the left ever again, hence the small group tour. We'll see the Royal Tattoo either before or after the tour, then head down to London for 4-5 days with friends. We're hoping that BA flies from London to Perugia next summer - we could use FF miles, AND the luggage restrictions aren't as severe as they are on RyanAir. (Alternatively, someone suggested I check out RyanAir, saying that because of the ridiculously cheap prices, even with additional luggage fees it was still very affordable. We'll see).
Flying into Perugia would be a dream come true, altho if we're flying from London without jetlag, the drive from FCO wouldn't be nearly as bad. Looking to arrive in Umbria the last week of August and stay until the first week in November. If we do fly into Perugia I think we'll rent locally, as we did this year, but it'll be interesting to see what car rental prices will be for next year.
Art was kind of hinting about the transatlantic cruise from Rome to Tampa, but #1, I don't know if I'll ever feel safe on a large ship again, #2 we've been to all the ports several times, and I don't feel excited by any of them, and #3, there are EIGHT days at sea - 8 days in a row!!! - and that just sounds boring boring boring, so I'm hoping we can find a premium economy flight back to the states like we did this year - the seats were comfly and the food was actually good! I was shocked, but it's true. The biggest problem is that when you're booking with FF miles you need to book early to get the itinerary you want, but then the airline changes the itinerary anyway!
Now I just have to put all the puzzle pieces together!
We did travel this year - a trip to Italy that I booked in June when I thought things were getting better. Although we did feel much safer in Italy than in Floriduh, part of the reason was because we knew everyone we were socializing with was fully vaccinated, and we also knew that masks were mandatory in all enclosed spaces. Still, we were nervous when we had to take the test before flying back - and luckily we were both negative. (And then we spend our last night at Fiumicino where I somehow caught a cold! Go figure!)
Because I expect 2022 to be very busy, and because we want to use FF miles, I'm trying to nail down our itinerary for next summer/fall. We had hoped to take a small group tour of Ireland, followed by a small group tour of Scotland, but it looks like those plans won't work. The people at WildNHappy Tours even offered to change their dates to accomodate us, but unfortunately our dates didn't work for the other people who had already booked the tour. Eventually I decided to skip Ireland and just concentrate on Scotland.
Right now I'm thinking about a few days in Edinburgh at the beginning of August, followed by a small group tour to the more remote corners of Scotland. Art's made it clear that he has no desire to drive on the left ever again, hence the small group tour. We'll see the Royal Tattoo either before or after the tour, then head down to London for 4-5 days with friends. We're hoping that BA flies from London to Perugia next summer - we could use FF miles, AND the luggage restrictions aren't as severe as they are on RyanAir. (Alternatively, someone suggested I check out RyanAir, saying that because of the ridiculously cheap prices, even with additional luggage fees it was still very affordable. We'll see).
Flying into Perugia would be a dream come true, altho if we're flying from London without jetlag, the drive from FCO wouldn't be nearly as bad. Looking to arrive in Umbria the last week of August and stay until the first week in November. If we do fly into Perugia I think we'll rent locally, as we did this year, but it'll be interesting to see what car rental prices will be for next year.
Art was kind of hinting about the transatlantic cruise from Rome to Tampa, but #1, I don't know if I'll ever feel safe on a large ship again, #2 we've been to all the ports several times, and I don't feel excited by any of them, and #3, there are EIGHT days at sea - 8 days in a row!!! - and that just sounds boring boring boring, so I'm hoping we can find a premium economy flight back to the states like we did this year - the seats were comfly and the food was actually good! I was shocked, but it's true. The biggest problem is that when you're booking with FF miles you need to book early to get the itinerary you want, but then the airline changes the itinerary anyway!
Now I just have to put all the puzzle pieces together!