Europcar Counter – Courtesy of Wikimedia Commons

And that’s one of two major reasons why we fly so much. The matter of time; we never seem to have enough of it. We often have to get where we’re going in a hurry. The second reason is distance. Our country spans the entire width of North America and beyond. You have few travel choices if you want to get to Hawaii, for ex­ample. It’s either by plane, boat, or swimming, and I don’t like sharks. And boats make a lot of people seasick (not me…). So to belabor an obvious point, that means having to fly there.

But truly, the scale of our country is remarkably large compared to most European countries. Have you ever considered the distance from Miami, Florida to Anchorage, Alaska, for instance?  It’s 4,005 miles!

Maui Uaoa Bay Hawaii – Authors, Forest and Kim Starr Courtesy of Wikimedia Commons

I did a month-long tour of Europe that included England, France, Spain, Italy, Austria, Germany, Switzerland, Lichtenstein, Belgium, and the Netherlands, and it came to just about the same mileage as that trip from Miami to Anchorage. And that was the complete loop in Europe. Here in America that mileage only gets you to Anchorage, but doesn’t get you back. So, there’s no doubt about it, flying is often a necessity here.

Transportation In Europe - Courtesy Wikimedia Commons

But not in Europe; once you’ve arrived there, flying is definitely not the way to go in my opinion. Being so much smaller an area, having such incred­ible diversity in cultures and geo­graphies all crammed so close together, Europe calls to the traveler to actually traverse it by some surfaces means. So if you have the time, want to really see things, you should travel in this way. Europe has a marvelous train system, as well as great subway infrastructures in most major cities, and equally impressive bus networks in most countries.

But being Americans, and having had a long love affair with our cars, we do love to drive as well. Here, many people drive across country just for the fun of it. This sort of thing has been popular since the days of “Route 66,” and even before then. We Americans do love to drive when we can. And driving in Europe allows the traveler to get off the beaten path, to explore areas otherwise denied to them. So I highly recommend renting a car while abroad, but with some caveats.

Route 66 Road Sign-Fabio Pozzato Courtesy Wikimedia Commons

First, there is the problem of insurance. It can be expensive. And, reserving you own car by Internet, although often a good way to go, can be tricky. When going to Portugal, I rented a car online in advance, through National. Upon arrival at the Lisbon Airport I went to pick it up, only to find that they insisted upon my either posting a large sum of money as a “bond,” or paying over $200 for extra insurance. Nothing on the website had warned me of this. What I thought was a cheap deal turned out to be not so cheap! What could I do? I ended up by paying the extra money.

So when reserving your car, make very sure you know the full price of that rental. Also, be explicit about the car you want. Europeans seem to prefer standard shift. I don’t. So if you want that automatic, reserve early, assume you will pay more for it, because you usually will.  I was too late and so had to have a stick shift. Not having driven one in 25 years, and having to do it in a foreign country on steep hills – not so great. I’d forgotten how those cars can roll – backwards! So again, reserve your car early on to make sure you get that automatic if you want it.

Another point about insurance; get the full package. Do check with your credit card company, as well, because many automatically give you supplemental insurance when you use them. But the full package really is necessary. Remember, you are driving in a strange land, with unfamiliar signs, rules, and methods of doing things. Roundabouts (traffic circles) have rules you may not be familiar with and in Europe they do use a lot of them. In the United Kingdom, there is always the added fun of doing it on the left side of the road instead of the right. Plus, because you aren’t familiar with the car’s dimensions, it’s easy to scrape a hedgerow, or stone wall. Roads in the United Kingdom and the rest of Europe can be incredibly narrow! I scraped a car on my last trip to England. It was only my left mirror, and very minor, but scraping it against a concrete wall of a covered car park didn’t do much for its look. So, full insurance is a very good idea, because that mishap didn’t cost me a thing.

Secondly, I strongly advise some type of navigation equipment, such as Garmin, Tom-Tom, or whatever please you. In Portugal, I had brought along an elaborate and expensive road atlas. It was great to use for traveling on their major highways, but the minute you leave those, enter any village or town, you can forget the maps. Road names are rarely posted in real life in these places. Once in a while, I spotted one at an intersection, inset into a corner building, but for the most part, they just seemed nonexistent. So a road map with names doesn’t help in a town without them. And there are lots of such towns.

For example, I became utterly lost in Lagos, Portugal. Again, there were very few street signs in town. Upon entering the place, within about five minutes, I didn’t know where I was. I kept trying to find my way “out,” only to find I was lost in a maze of smaller and smaller streets, some so narrow my car practically brushed the walls and it was a small car!

Casa di Cura Cottolengo, Meugliano, Turin, Italy – Laurom, Courtesy Wikimedia Commons

Finally, when one street became so narrow as to be impossible to see ahead, I stopped the car. My father got out (only he could, because my door was within mere inches of a wall), and walked in front of the vehicle to see where the road led. That was nowhere, as it turns out. The road became, abruptly and without any signs or warnings of any kind whatsoever, a steep staircase down a hillside. It was very quaint, no doubt, but also very dangerous. Imagine if I had kept going a few more feet. I had to back all the way out. Not a pleasant experience, especially not after hours of driving south from Lisbon, and feeling desperately tired.

The next time I traveled and rented a car, I also rented a Tom-Tom. This was for nineteen pounds a day in England, which right now figures out to about $31.54 at current exchange rates. This was not cheap by any standards, but it worked beautifully for me, saved me tons of time and loads of frustration. England, like Portugal, seems very short on street signs once you are in a village or town. But with my trusty Tom-Tom, I always found my way. I even convinced an English friend of it’s worth. He bought one. Even the British have problems finding their way around villages, it seems.

There is also the matter of buying gasoline or “petrol.” Because my car was strange to me (a Mercedes), I had no idea how to release the gas cover. I asked two English people who were filling up to help me, but neither of them knew how either, although they really tried. Twenty minutes later, my father “stumbled” on the secret. Oh, and knowing the real price of gas isn’t easy either. In Europe, they sell it by the liter. Just trying to figure out how much that is a gallon was difficult, and then to try to convert the cost from euros or pounds to dollars in my head was even worse.

So besides that piece of navigation equipment, here is something else you should consider taking with you to Europe. If you have a mobile phone with Internet browser capability, bring it! With it, you can access Currate.com at http://currate.com/m.php. for their currency conversion features. If your mobile phone use more enhanced features, try going to http://currate.com/e.php. That way, you will always have, right at hand, the means to figure out just what that liter of gas is really costing you. And make no mistake, whether euros or pounds, their fuel stations can have very different prices. And also remember that Currate.com has actual images of over 180 currencies. This is a great feature for any traveler who finds they are moving from country-to-country with different currencies. Currate.com also has a Google-style world currencies map where you can just point and click to your destination and its currency.

USD EUR Italy World Currencies Map - Currate.com

Traveling requires preparation and that’s just as true for renting that car you want to use. And although most of us don’t like paying more, sometimes it is worth it. So, rent that car. Make sure one way or the other you have full insurance, and either bring along, or rent a navigation device to go with your car. And do remember that if you don’t like stick shifts, you should reserve an automatic well before your trip. And that expensive road atlas – well, they can be handy, but nothing replaces my Tom-Tom! I bought one as soon as I came home, and I’m downloading the European map into it for my next trip this coming March. To paraphrase, “I won’t leave home without it.” No more staircase streets for me!

Rob Shelsky, Currate.com Contributing Editor
Robert Rademacher, Currate.com Editor-in-Chief

References:

Currate Currency Tools:
http://currate.com

Travelmath
http://www.travelmath.com/flight-distance/from/Anchorage,+AK/to/Miami,+FL

How To Rent A Car Abroad
http://www.ehow.com/how_135792_rent-car-abroad.html

Renting A Car Abroad
http://www.greatgapyears.co.uk/renting-a-car-abroad.html

Road Signs In Europe
http://www.reidsguides.com/t_au/t_au_road_signs.html

Unhelpful Road Signs
http://blog.ivman.com/unhelpful-road-signs/

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My father and I had arranged flights from Greensboro to the airport in Newark, New Jersey. There was a two-hour layover there before the London plane. However, because we had to sit on the tarmac in a stuffy little commuter plane for over an hour-and-a-half at Greensboro, waiting for a flight slot, and then delays in landing at Newark, we arrived precisely when our next flight was due to leave. This meant a dash to that gate, and it was 28 large gates away! I’m guessing close to a third of a mile from our starting point.

Handicapped - Wheelchair Accessible Symbol used in public locations

So carrying all our luggage, my elderly father and I raced at top speed. He couldn’t keep up, so I shouldered his luggage, as well, to help him. We arrived there, breathless, red-faced, sweating, exhausted, and angry. And truth to tell, I was also a little ashamed. You see, I had constantly chafed at my father’s comparatively slow pace, being fearful he was going to make us miss our connecting flight. Yet, he did the best he could, poor man.

And yes, we did make the flight, barely; being the last ones to board (they held the flight, as it turns out and didn’t bother to tell us, so it seems we didn’t have to race to get there). But this was my first experience in traveling with a person who had a disability. It made me realize, as hard as it was for me, how much harder it is for them. The truth is, seeing people pushed around in wheelchairs by airport attendants – I thought they had it pretty easy. Not so! That was my ignorance and stupidity in thinking that. But in my own defense, my father’s age had not only crept up on him without his really being aware of it, but me as well. Neither of us realized he was facing new limitations that now affected the way he had to travel.

One more thing, the flight attendant who welcomed us aboard couldn’t have cared less how we felt, either mentally, emotionally, or physically. I suppose if I had told him my father was ill as a result of our frantic race, or made any sort of a scene at all, he would have just barred us from taking the plane.  Truth is if we wanted to fly, we just had to shut up and take it. But what’s the moral of this story? Well, for disabled or handicapped travelers, the onus is on them to take care of themselves. Oh yes, they can get help if they prearrange it, some assistance, and they should, but in the final analysis, it is up to the handicapped traveler, and/or their traveling companions, to arrange such things for themselves, because the truth is, if you don’t do it, nobody else seems to care much one way or the other.

Wheelchair Gate Hiroshima Japan - Courtesy Wikimedia Commons

Yes, this may sound a little negative, but it isn’t really meant to be. You see, with the massive number of people traveling, most airline workers are truly overworked, and have trouble just keeping up with their normal duties. So, it isn’t unreasonable for them to feel that you should make your arrangements for traveling. After all, they do offer services for the handicapped and disabled, if asked ahead of time, if prearranged.

And that’s what you as a handicapped individual or traveling companion to such a person, must do. Plan ahead of time! Take EVERYTHING into consideration. For instance, what I do now is allow for even greater layover times between connecting flights. Two hours used to be about right, I felt, but now I go for four, or even five hours. Even more, if customs is involved, because between that, collecting and rebooking luggage, security checks, going to the next gate, etc., time can go by quickly. I don’t want my father having to do something he physically shouldn’t, endanger his health in any way, just to make another plane on time. It just isn’t worth it.

Also airlines, as mentioned above, do offer assistance to disabled passengers, including the use of wheelchairs, etc. Allow time for this, because it takes time for them to get to you. It also takes time for them to board you, so you must be at your gates before boarding commences.  The same holds true for many other means of transportation, trains, buses, and taxis, but again, you can’t just take it for granted. You must arrange things ahead of time, be aware of what’s available there.

Wheelchair Lift Tijuana Trolley San Diego, California - Courtesy Wikimedia Commons

Furthermore, you must research every place you are going, every airport, train station, and anything else you are using for transportation. If they don’t have escalators, check to see if they have elevators. If you need to go to a different terminal, make sure the transportation there is handicapped accessible. Again, it is up to you to make sure that they have what you need, because once there, if they don’t – well, good luck. You might just end up dealing with a flight attendant such as I did – one who obviously didn’t care! This brochure from the Department of Transportation, New Horizons, Information for the Air Traveler with a Disability, is a big help and makes for a good starting point.

Pittsburgh International Airport Wheelchairs Services - Courtesy Wikimedia Commons

And don’t just research air terminals, bus depots, and trains stations. You also have to make sure that you have cash in the local currency when you need it, because for someone in a wheelchair, for instance, suddenly having to arrange to get somewhere to get that currency may not be at all easy or quick. You could well spend half a day in the effort, pay too much, and use up a lot of time on a trip that is precious, perhaps even a-once-in-a-lifetime one. So with regard to this problem, use Currate.com. It’s the best way I know, truly, to find the current exchange rates. Currate.com has reliable, regularly updated exchange rates. It has actual images of over 180 of the world’s currencies.

And with Currate.com’s currency converter calculator, figuring out how much currency you need, and more importantly what it should cost you is so easy! Currate.com even has a Google World Currencies map where you can visually select the country of your choice and just go there. Truthfully, it doesn’t get much easier than that.

And for those who are handicapped, instead of trying to navigate their way around in crowded places to find this information on displays in busy terminals, they can just use their Internet browser capable mobile phones. All they or anyone has to do is just go to   Currate’s Mobile Basic Currency Tool. For phones capable of more advanced features, you can use Currate’s Mobile Currency Tool with Currency Images.  This way, the traveler, handicapped or otherwise, has instant access to everything they need with regard to matters of currency conversion. They don’t have to go anywhere to find this out.

Currate.com Mobile Version - available on iPhone Web

Remember also that you have to make sure of those hotels, as well. Many older and smaller ones just aren’t handicapped accessible. I’ve been in some that have such steep and narrow flights of stairs that even healthy people are in trouble.  There are places the disabled or handicapped just won’t be able to go, such as historic buildings that aren’t handicapped accessible (castles, towers, fortresses, many manor houses), so be aware of this ahead of time and plan your trip accordingly.

There are always alternatives to climbing those endless flights of stairs to get a panoramic view. For example, if you can’t handle the equivalent of a 30-story climb to the top of Saint Paul’s Cathedral in London, then why not try the London Eye? The view is just as spectacular.

The important thing to keep in mind is that for the handicapped or disabled traveler, whether older or just a child, much is still possible. Traveling can still be a great and rewarding experience, and a lot of fun. But it does mean that the handicapped traveler, and any traveling companions, must research and plan. They should also be flexible. They should be willing to travel a little more slowly. And if someone in the party just has to climb those stupid stairs and can do it, let them. I, for one, could have just as much fun in some tea shop or a drink in a local pub, just chatting and getting to know other travelers, or even some of the locals. After all, there is more than one way to have fun while traveling!

References:

Slow Travel
http://www.slowtrav.com/europe/disabled_travel.htm

Access-Able Travel Source
http://access-able.com/dBase/links.cfm

Rick Steves’ Easy Access Europe
http://europeforvisitors.com/europe/articles/rick-steves-easy-access-europe.htm

How To Travel With Mentally Handicapped People
http://www.ehow.com/how_2038705_travel-mentally-handicapped-people.html

Kids Vacations for Disabled Children And Parents
http://www.beachcalifornia.com/california/disabled-kids-vacations.html

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Subway in Paris Courtesy Wikimedia Commons, Author, Pline Photo Personnelle

Do you want to rent a bicycle in Paris? Good luck! Your American credit cards probably won’t work, and even if it happens to, it will take repeated efforts on your part.

Courtesy of Wikimedia Commons, Velib Bicycles in Paris, France

Courtesy of Wikimedia Commons Velib Station in Paris, France, Author, Evan

Need to use a credit card at an automated ticket kiosk to catch the Paris Metro, that train to Berlin, or pay at an automated toll on a French road? Sorry, no can do! Or maybe you need to purchase gas?

Can you use that automated gasoline station up ahead? Again, you are probably going to be out of luck. You can’t use such services with American credit cards.

That is, you can’t use these and many other automated services unless your card happens to have an em­bedded chip in it, a version of the so-called “smart card.” And good luck with that idea, because as of this writing, it appears no American credit card company is using em­bedded chips for such pur­poses, at least not for Americans getting them in the United States. And the prob­lems don’t stop there. Many vendors, such as merchants, shops, restaurants don’t have, or worse, don’t know how to use, our “swipe” style ma­chines anymore. So, it isn’t just automated service that can be a big problem.

Sadly, although a few years back everyone was touting the “smart card” in the United States, it really didn’t happen for us. We have an older and reasonably reliable system that dates back about four decades, the “swipe” method of authorization for credit cards. And contrary to some remarks made by our European cousins that we should “catch up” with modern times, and do as they do, we really haven’t had the need.

SmartCard Used in Paris, France and Europe - Courtesy Wikimedia Commons

You see, the major reason for using such cards throughout Europe today is to stop, or at least considerably slow down, credit card fraud. In the United States, although we do definitely suffer from this crime, it hasn’t reached the level that it already has in Europe. So, American credit card companies haven’t felt the pressing need to switch. Also, we have an advanced infrastructure in the United States already dependent on, and using, the “swipe” card system. This would all have to be changed to work with such “smart cards.” It would cost billions of dollars to do this. It may be easy for a small country, like Belgium, to accomplish such a changeover, but for a continent-wide country such as ours, it is a major task, and would be at far higher cost.

However, the world does seem to be going the way of this new type of credit card. And, due to mounting international pressure to conform, we may soon have to follow suit as well. This would again make American plastic practical and easy to use all over the world.

But what do Americans do until then? Our options appear to be very limited. For the time being, we probably will just have to avoid using the automated services, and instead use our cards at bank ATMs and/or banks. Our cards are still good at such places and many others. Or we can choose to go back to an older method, and carry more cash with us to feed the automated machines.

Herein is a problem. If you can’t use that credit card to get the day’s best exchange rate automatically, then the need to know the current exchange rate becomes very important. As a smart traveler, you must be aware of the current rate of exchange. And for this, there is no better place than Currate.com . With reliable and daily updated exchange rates, an online currency converter calculator, a Google Earth type world map (http://currate.com/map.php) where you can just point and click to get the currency of your destination, and actual images of over 180 currencies, what could be easier?

Google World Map Based Currency Converter Tools with Currency Images

And remember what we said about many shops, stores, and restaurants in Europe not accept­ing our credit cards? This means your only alternative is to have cash on hand to pay the bill. But then what is the daily exchange rate for their currency and yours? What does that menu price in their currency translate to in costs in our money? How much should we tip? What does their currency even look like?

Well, if you have a mobile phone with Internet browser capability, you can access Currate.com simply by going to http://currate.com/mbasic.php. If your mobile phone is capable of using more enhanced features, go to http://currate.com/menhanced.php. This way, you won’t feel embarrassed, will be able to know the real costs of what

Currate.com Mobile Version - available on iPhone Web browser or any mobile phones with web browser built in.

you are buying, and can rest easy knowing you haven’t made some major and costly mistake. I find that Currate.com provides incredible peace-of-mind in this respect.

And there is some good news on this whole credit card issue; people do want us to be tourists in their countries, and they like it when we spend money. So many are taking steps to ensure their staff can also use the “swipe” machines, and they are trying different methods of allowing us to use our version of credit cards in lots of places. However, for those automated machines located around Europe, from using those Velib kiosks in Paris for bicycle renting, to those automated Esso gas stations, our cards just don’t work. So, keep some cash handy for emergencies, and remember Currate.com . And this way, your trip will be much less frustrating, much less annoying, and a lot more fun!

Rob Shelsky, Currate.com Contributing Editor

References:

Those Free Bikes In Paris? You Can’t Use ‘Em.
http://current.newsweek.com/budgettravel/2007/07/lost_in_translation_parisian_b.html

For Americans, Plastic Buys Less Abroad.
http://www.nytimes.com/2009/10/04/travel/04pracchip.html?_r=1&ref=technology

Best Payment Options For Travellers.
http://www.naviquan.com/page/best-travel-payment-options/1

Company News; Visa Will Put A Microchip In New Card.
http://www.nytimes.com/1995/03/21/business/company-news-visa-will-put-a-microchip-in-new-card.html

A Traveler’s Plea To Credit Card Issuers.
http://rdist.root.org/2009/09/28/a-travelers-plea-to-credit-card-issuers/

U.S. Credit Cards Becoming Outdated, Less Usable Abroad
‘Smart’ Chip-And-Pin Cards Catching On Worldwide, But Not Here.
http://www.creditcards.com/credit-card-news/outdated-smart-card-chip-pin-1273.php

Using an American Credit Card for the Paris Bike-Share System
http://intransit.blogs.nytimes.com/2009/02/17/using-an-american-credit-card-for-the-paris-bike-share-system/

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World's First Google Map Based Currency Converter, Including Currency Images

When Robert Rademacher, developer of Currate.com, was asked about the unveiling of this surprise, he said, “It all goes back to it being about ease of use for the traveler. This meant us placing great emphasis on simplicity of design for our website. And what could be quicker and easier than just to point on a world map and instantly click to one’s desired destination?”

Now with the world’s first Google Map based currency converter a fact, Curate.com hosts a formidable array of efficient and easy-to-use tools for the traveler. The new world map, along with actual currency images of over 180 countries, an online conversion calculator, and daily updated currency exchange rates, means the traveler has everything they need for currency conversions in just one convenient location. Another great tool is the ability to access this information using any mobile phone with built-in Internet browser capabilities.

Updated List Of Currate.Com Features, As Of October 2009:

• World’s first Google based map currency converter with “point and click” destinations.
• Reliable and daily updated conversion rates insure travelers know accurate rates for currency exchanges.
• Online currency conversion calculator, easy and simple to use, allows travelers quickly to calculate currency amounts for multiple destinations with differing currencies.
• Currate.com has images of over 180 currencies. Travelers can familiarize themselves with each local currency, thus saving costly mistakes.
• Travelers who have mobile phones with built-in web browser capabilities have access to two versions of Currate.com, http://currate.com/m, or if their phone is capable of using advanced features, the more enhanced version at, http://currate.com/e. Travelers now have instant, any time access, to Currate.com features.

Currate.Com To Investigate Costs Of Using Currency Exchange Services Provided By Various Banks And Currency Exchange Offices:

Developer Robert Rademacher says that Currate.com plans a series of articles investigating the actual costs, including “hidden fees,” of currency exchange services provided by various banks and currency exchange offices. Mr. Rademacher also stated, “At Currate.com, travelers are our only concern. We want people to know the real price of currency exchanges, no matter the type, source, or location of them.”

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