extra sim card
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For hiking in the Balkans, do you guys have any specific recommendations? Are there any hut type accommodations where you can multi-day hike w/o having to carry around a tent?
As for the Spirit stuff in another thread, Iâve flown all over the US in the last few years, direct flights, one backpack, pretty flexible on the flight dates and Iâve yet to have a bad experience with Spirit. Itâs so perfect for that type of travel. Iâve had tons of sub $100 round trips and almost never more than $200 unless itâs the holidays. Spirit rules.
https://www.wsj.com/lifestyle/travel/airbnb-new-york-hotels-short-term-rentals-law-802b484e?mod=mhp
The number of available short-term Airbnbs has plunged by over 15,000, according to an analysis by market-research firm AirDNA.
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Airbnb rental hosts with registered, legal listings say their bookings have fallen off, forcing them to drop rates.
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The number of short-term unitsâavailable for under 30 daysâlisted on Airbnb dropped from about 21,500 in August to about 3,280 in February, according to AirDNA.
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Kat Casey and her husband bought a two-family home, which includes an owner-occupied duplex and rental unit, in Astoria, Queens, in 2021. They planned to raise their three children in the duplex and post the rental unit on Airbnb for weekend stays. They listed the unit on Airbnb in early 2023 and intended for the additional income to help with maintenance and renovation costs for the 1930s home.Guests now stay in a private room in a shared unit, rather than having access to a private apartment. With the two-guest limit, the families they previously hosted can no longer stay. Casey says future bookings are down 50% from last year.
âThereâs a lot more cancellations, a lot more questions and a lot more anxiety with guests than previously,â she says.
Casey says the current regulations donât support families like hers, who rely on the additional income to afford living in their community.
The article does say hotel prices are now higher âin partâ to the decrease in competition
Iâve never been, but Theth Albania is on my bucket list. Looks like a great place to base yourself for hiking, in addition to being a really interesting and beautiful town.
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Itâs definitely a possible visit for this summer.
And thatâs coming from someone who went to Albania last March
My stepbrother is taking his wife to the ludicrously priced Blue Lagoon Resort for 2 nights for her 40th b-day. I told them Iâd be fine staying a cheaper place a few miles away and I could Uber back and forth as needed. My mom and stepdad, who are apparently rich now, decided to stay there there too, so they went ahead and paid for a room for me for 2 nights.
Ugh. Such a gigantic waste. What the fuck am I doing to do that comes close to making it worth the cost? Iâm not creating lasting memories with a significant other.
And now apparently a volcano is about to swallow up the place.
hell yeah, Iâve got a conference in Reykjavik in may, open to any suggestions since Iâll probably add a personal day on either side of the conference
Continuing discussion from AI thread from a few weeks ago.
Im in Mazatlan now but itâs a quick ferry ride to La Paz. Ive never been but hear its great and want to visit.
On the topic on Walmart down here. I went the other day and they only had 1 selection for bath towels. Itâs weird because their selection of produce and meat is top notch. They have kale and kombucha and tomahawk steaks. But the non food section sucks.
Luckily amazon has become more reliable in the last few years down here. Other similar sites like mercado libre. Still way pricier than US for a lot of stuff but i assume itâs because they dont have the same trade agreement with China that US does. As well as lacking the logistics infrastructure for cheap delivery.
MazatlĂĄn is amazing. Itâs the sweet spot of great weather and beaches but lacks the bars and clubs that makes it a spring break type destination. Large part of the boardwalk is just pedestrian path with no bars or restaurants.
There seems to be more canadians than Americans. All the currency exchange places list Canadian dollars. Restaurants have Canadian themed burgers and pizzas. The most absurd was the spice section at Samâs club that had Canadian type (tipo canadiense) spices and sauces.
Havenât done a summer here so weâll see how i feel when it doesnât get below 70 overnight and hurricane season comes.
Also in more shallow info, the women are absolutely incredible. At least for my tastes.
I stayed there for a month, itâs a great beach city, probably by far my favorite. I didnât really like Los Cabos or CancĂșn much at all. Playa del Carmen slighly better, but not great. Puerto Vallarta not too bad. Iâd definitely visit La Paz. It has a really nice boardwalk like MZT and is pretty chill as well with a few really nice beaches just outside the center.
Definitely try to go to a baseball game if the Venados are in season, those are a ton of fun. And if you like the Sinaloan women, definitely go to a baseball game when the CuliacĂĄn team is visiting town. The eye candy is off the charts.
La Paz is great. Todos Santos is more laid back than the Cabos, but still turning into pricey Gringo curio shop hell. There are some nice beaches to camp on around that area.
I also liked Santiago in the interior of the cape. Super laid back, slightly cooler in the mountains.
La Ventana is a windsurfer haven. Nice but everything was super expensive from what I saw.
I thought Cancun had the rep of being safe, beautiful, laid back, walkable, etc.
Theyâre beautiful beaches and all, but theyâre mostly isolated in a hotel zone full of resorts and stuff that could be anywhere. Thereâs like 0 cultural value and nothing local about that part. Which is fine for a lot of travelers who just want some great beaches, and a place to chill by day and party by night, but for me I prefer more cultural value in my travels.
MazatlĂĄn also has a long boardwalk thatâs great for walking/biking. CancĂșn doesnât really have anything like that. Itâs a bit like Vegas where the results are spread out on a very long strip, and itâs not that enjoyable to walk between them. Finally, MZT just has a really cool historic center thatâs enjoyable to walk around and adds a lot of local flavor (Puerto Vallarta solid for this too), but CancĂșn and Los Cabos are pretty much strictly about nice beaches and partying, with a real artificial atmosphere.
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Thanks for the info. My view of Cancun was shaped by a young, successful Mexican health care executive. I had asked him for a recommendation for a beach location which was safe, walkable, some interesting things to see, and chill for my wife and me, with nightlife not being a huge consideration.
He instantly said âCancun,â and noted how much he liked going there. Of course, if one is a busy Mexican executive I assume that a chill resort town will often be chosen over something cultural.
Iâve been only to Celaya, Guanajuato, and San Miguel de Allende, but it sounds like Iâd probably enjoy MazatlĂĄn a lot more than Cancun,
Old Town San Jose del Cabo is nice.
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The Yucatan is very safe. No one targets tourists, and thereâs very little cartel activity. Youâre probably at much greater risk of catching a stray bullet in the US.
The Cancun area has a lot to see and do. You can take a day trip to Cozumel Island, Isla Mujeres, local cenotes, the Tulum Ruins or Chichen Itza ruins (or one of the water parks if you have kids with you). Cancun itself just isnât the most walkable.
Playa del Carmen might be a little better. Iâve only driven through it, but it seemed nice.
Isla Mujeres (island a short ferry ride from Cancun) has a much more laid back vibe than Cancun with nice beaches. The only downside if you stayed there is there arenât as many restaurant choices and shops and stuff, unless you take the ferry to the mainland.
Tulum has a super expensive strip thatâs been discovered by the faux-hippie Justin Bieber crowd. The resorts actually on the beach are stupid expensive. The main strip with normal restaurants and stuff is a long hike from the chi-chi beach strip. But if you rent bicycles itâs fine.
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It looks like the new train actually goes to both places.
Chichen Itza is incredible. Go early or late to avoid the crowds. Same for Tulum ruins probably too.
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We went to cancun for nye this year, can confirm chichen itza was amazing.
My wife and I discovered something on our trip to Yosemite.
We love to travel and HATE to sleep anywhere other than our own beds. Anyone else similar? Strategies to get past it? By day 3-4 of any trip we are both exhausted becauss we sleep like shit.
If Iâm driving, I bring my pillows.
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