ADVICE ON TRAVEL
I have been looking up flights to Europe, hotels and rental cars and trains in Europe in preparation for the two week trip to Europe that my daughter Susie and I are going on beginning on Easter Sunday. And because of some algorhythms I have been getting a great deal of unsolicited advice on travel. I get advice on the ten things to remember to bring with me, the slickest luggage, the mistakes to anvoid at the airport, the best luxury hotels in Amsterdam and on and on.
Sometimes the advice is useful. But generally the advice is how to be comfortable in every situation and often the way to be comfortable is to spend a lot more money.
One example is the descriptions of the comforts of business class or first class on a flight and the trouble you can get into if you fly basic economy. In basic you are likely to get a middle seat, if you can’t fly for some reason the tickets are non refundable, you can only have one carry on bag. In short, you are going to be uncomfortable and at risk. If you fly first class you will have a private seat and will be able to stretch out and go to sleep. You can make changes to your ticket, get great food, you can check two free bags. You will be comfortable and run no risks.
For a basic ticket to Europe I can pay $500, for a first class ticket $5000. On first class I will get there 100 feet sooner by being at the front of the plane, will have better meals, can take more baggage and for eight hours be more comfortable.
But I won’t be comfortable, just more comfortable. I can lie flat but will probably sleep fitfully. To get the most of the eight hour trip I will have to spend the first two hours eating a fancy meal and the last hour a fancy breakfast so I will only get 5 hours of fitful sleep.
Travel on a plane is uncomfortable no matter what class you fly. You are only going to be uncomfortable for eight hours so in my mind it doesn’t matter what kind of seat you get. You are better off having a hamburger in the airport and skipping dinner and breakfast on the plane(at 2 in the morning, who eats breakfast in the middle of the night). I’m guessing that anyone who can’t bear eight hours of slightly more discomfort is going to be a poor traveler for the rest of their trip. Is lying fitfully flat for eight hours worth $4500 extra? For $4500 you can rent a very pleasant apartment in Montmartre for two months. But if you need to pay $4500 extra to be slightly more comfortable for one night you probably will skip the $2000 a month Airbnb, for a $300 a night hotel room ($18,000 for two months so your trip has to be short) where you can have breakfast in bed for an added cost rather than walking down the street to a marvelous French bakery.
What I am arguing is that travel is often not always comfortable and that very likely things will go wrong and that when things go wrong they might lead to a new adventure and a lot of fun.
I know from experience in India that the more luxurious a hotel with its wide lawns, the less likely you are to experience everyday India. You will be more likely to be located far from the bazaars of the old city where from an cheaper hotel you can walk out the gate and be immersed in India. You will be fawned over in the luxury hotel, and well served, but meet fewer people.
And finally, if you can only be comfortable by going first class, you have to either be very rich or to rarely travel and then for very short periods. Better to have an Airbnb in Montmartre for a month and to live as you do at home, getting groceries from the grocery store, cooking most of your own meals and slowing down and relaxing. And to do that you will be able to get around by bus or subway much easier if you have only a carryon bag and not those two free additional checked bags.
BILLYBABA’S WANDERING 