Inside Travel Talk

11 Rookie Europe Mistakes, Best Shore Excursions & Rhine vs Danube River Cruises

• Mark Faldmo & Patrick Wiscombe • Season 4 • Episode 5

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Jet lagged, lost, and staring at a two-hour line outside a must-see museum? We’ve been there—and we’ve got the fixes that turn a stressful Europe trip into a smooth, joy-filled one. We unpack 11 common mistakes first-time travelers make and share simple, practical ways to avoid each one, from when to take a taxi instead of the train to why “free” bread and water can quietly pad your bill. You’ll learn how to score timed-entry or skip-the-line tickets, manage cash and credit for the best rates, set up your phone for cheap communication, and switch to 24-hour time so you never miss a train.

Then we switch gears to pure inspiration with a guided tour of standout shore excursions that actually deliver. Think Lamanai’s jungle river ride to a serene Mayan site in Belize, Capri’s dramatic cliffs and Anacapri lift, Kotor’s misty sail into Europe’s “southern fjord” and the tiny church on a man-made island, Moorea’s shark-and-ray swim with a lagoon lunch, and the slow, romantic drift of bamboo rafting in Jamaica. We round it out with bonus gems: the hilltop charm of Eze near Monaco, Grand Cayman’s Stingray City with its playful detour to Hell, and the postcard-perfect lighthouse at Peggy’s Cove.

To close, we tackle the big river-cruise decision: Rhine or Danube. The Rhine brings castle-lined shores and fairy-tale stretches; the Danube leans into layered history and city drama, with Budapest as a star. Can’t choose? Connect them on a Grand European journey through canals and locks. For value seekers, we share the best months to book, including shoulder dates and festive Christmas market sailings. Hit play, get smarter, and plan a trip that saves time, dodges fees, and gives you more of what you came for: unforgettable moments. If you enjoy the show, follow, rate, and share with a friend who’s planning Europe—then tell us where you’d cruise first.

Show Open & What We’ll Cover

Patrick Wiscombe

The Inside Travel Talk podcast and radio show presented by BluePlanetVacations.com contains travel deals, promotions, and offers that may be time sensitive. All offers and information were accurate when the show aired. Travel deals and offers change constantly and are capacity controlled and subject to change without notice.

Show Voice

Explore your world. It's the Inside Travel Doc Podcast and Radio Show. Presented by Group Livelitations.com. Call or check the show now at 101 649 3700. 101 649 3700. And check out the podcast at InsideTravelTalk.com. And now here are your hosts, Patrick Wiscombe and Mark Faldmo.

Mark Faldmo

This week we are uh going to cover 11 rookie Europe mistakes, our favorite shore excursions, and Rhine versus Danube River cruises. Let's start the show.

Europe Rookie Mistakes Overview

Patrick Wiscombe

We are going to focus on an article that uh we found in Travel and Leisure. Travelandleisure.com is where we're getting this. This was 11 rookie mistakes to avoid on your first trip to Europe. You're gonna disagree with some of these, at least I'm going to assume that you are. Let's rapid fire this. Rookie mistake number one when visiting Europe, taking a cab. Yes or no, why or

Taxi vs Transit On Arrival

Patrick Wiscombe

why not?

Mark Faldmo

So this is one that I don't agree with. You know, as we were talking about earlier, there's something to be said about convenience and time. This article points out most major European cities have reliable public transportation. Use it when you arrive at the airport. And I've done this a few times, taking public transportation. You come up out of the subway system, you're disoriented, you know you're within two blocks of your hotel, but you don't know where it's at. You don't know which direction. So, especially from the airport, I would always take a cab. Once you get a little bit of acquainted with the area, I'm all for taking the subway and you know doing stuff like that. You know, but especially if you're not familiar and from the airport, I would always take a cab or uber lift, whatever. You know, something that gets you from point A to point B with no stops.

Buy Attraction Tickets Early

Patrick Wiscombe

Rookie mistake number two, buying tickets late. And I'm going to assume that that that has to be like popular attraction, stuff, stuff like that.

Mark Faldmo

Yeah. So this is one that I definitely agree with. Don't wait to buy your tickets to important attractions when you're there or just the day of. You always want to pre-buy your tickets. A good example is like if you want to go see the Vatican, go see the Sistine Chapel in the Vatican. If you show up, the line can be two hours long to get in there. It wraps clear around the block. I'm amazed every time when I'm walking past all the people, because I always get either set time or skip the line tickets that'll just get you right in at a set time. That's the way to do it. And there are so many places around Europe that are like that. That you want to buy the set time or skip the line tickets, you can buy them in advance. And a lot of times those might also come with a guide, which is nice as well. So to have someone explain the site that you're at that you're seeing.

Finding Better Restaurants

Patrick Wiscombe

Rookie mistake number three when going to Europe, eating at the first restaurant you see, yes or no, or do you really not care?

Mark Faldmo

For the most part, agree with this. There's so many good places to eat, and you also want to make sure you're not eating at some of the tourist-focused restaurants. You can find a good local restaurant. I remember in San Gimignano, I wanted a tiramasu. And I looked at one restaurant, couldn't find it or what I wanted. So I went to the next restaurant, settled for that, and it turned out being more like an ice cream instead of a full cake. Three restaurants down, there was exactly what I wanted, but I had already settled on settled on something that wasn't what I expected.

Patrick Wiscombe

Okay, so you're gonna say yes, don't make that mistake. Correct. Yeah. Mistake number four, carrying a ton of cash

Cash, Cards, And Comfort

Patrick Wiscombe

with you. I'm gonna say don't carry a ton of cash.

Mark Faldmo

That's correct. And what I do, I usually will get two or three hundred dollars in local currency just in case if I need it for an emergency when I first arrive, or just need it as I go as an emergency. But typically you can do everything by credit card. Credit cards are the best way if you need to withdraw cash from your credit card, get the best exchange rate there than going to a bank or to other currency sellers. And they're also, again, coming back to convenient, credit card is the most convenient way. Mistake number five, not spending enough time outside. I don't get that. You're there to explore, spend as much time out seeing things and experiencing things as you can.

Phone Plans, Wi‑Fi, And VPN

Patrick Wiscombe

Number six, forgetting to check with your phone carrier to make sure that you have the plan. So when you're making calls, you don't come home with a thousand or a thousand dollar bill. Yes. I'm sure you've seen that happen more than once.

Mark Faldmo

I've seen it happen a lot, and we were actually talking about this last week on the cruise ship. It's the the same thing. Make sure you have an international plan on your phone. For instance, I'm with ATT, they have a plan for $10 a day, gives you unlimited text and buys down your international calling rates. Okay. Although I have actually been going to switching my phone off so I can't make or receive phone calls and can't receive texts and going to WhatsApp and using internet connections and WhatsApp so that I don't have to even pay the $10 a day.

Patrick Wiscombe

Okay.

Mark Faldmo

So you know, if you use like WhatsApp or Apple has the similar to the messenger with Apple, you can just use you know hotel Wi-Fi hotspots. Now, if you're expecting a call or you need, you know, you will need to turn on your your phone plan, but you know, I I do as much as I can to even avoid that ten dollars a day. There's Wi-Fi everywhere that you can connect to. You know, just make sure you also have a VPN that you use, especially when you're traveling, so you don't get stuff stolen.

Bread, Water, And Hidden Charges

Mark Faldmo

Ordering bread and water. Yeah. So a lot of restaurants in Europe, it's not included, but they'll bring it to you. Oh really? You're charged for it, especially when they see a European tourist though or an American tourist, they'll give that to you, but then they charge you for bread and water.

Claiming Your VAT Refund

Patrick Wiscombe

Not claiming your VAT refund. So basically, when you go shopping, there's a tax. I didn't know that you could reclaim it.

Mark Faldmo

Yeah, you can reclaim it on you on certain hard goods, so like souvenirs, things like that, if it's over a certain amount. So you get a receipt and you keep all of your receipts, and then at the airport you take it to a VAT refund desk and they take it and they'll refund the tax. Oh wow. So in Europe, the VAT, which is uh value added tax, is what that stands for, you know, can be up to 30, 40 percent sometimes. It it can be quite pricey. And so, you know, like for instance, I remember purchasing a cuckoo clock in Germany. It's fairly expensive. It was you know four hundred dollars, five hundred dollars. But I got a hundred and sixty dollars back in taxes when we reclaimed that.

Patrick Wiscombe

Okay, so you can get it back.

Mark Faldmo

So you can. So just keep your receipts. If they're over a certain amount, they come with the uh message and how and where to claim your VAT

Mastering 24‑Hour Time

Mark Faldmo

tax back.

Patrick Wiscombe

This one surprised me, ignoring 24-hour time or military time. So, you know, one o'clock in the afternoon, 1300 hours, two o'clock, fourteen hundred, et cetera, et cetera. Why would that be a mistake?

Mark Faldmo

Well, it's a mistake because a lot of people can't convert the time. And so they show up for things wrong, time they miss things. Oh, so they really do. Yeah. You know, like train stations, time posted everywhere is in a 24 hour clock. You know, so if you're at an airport, it's a 24 hour clock. So if you don't know how to convert that quickly, just switch the setting on your phone to 24 hour clock.

Patrick Wiscombe

Just add 12 to whatever the number is. So if it's 7 a.m., add 12, it's 1900. Just add 12.

Mark Faldmo

How I do it is I if it's 1900, uh-huh, take the one out and just subtract two. So seven o'clock.

Patrick Wiscombe

Oh.

Mark Faldmo

So I just subtract I just subtract that's basically the same thing.

Patrick Wiscombe

So just add twelve. Or in

Footwear, Hotels, And Location

Patrick Wiscombe

Mark's case, add twelve minus two. So add ten. Well, no. What'd you say?

Mark Faldmo

I'm gonna keep I just from the main number, I ignore the one. Uh-huh. So on 1900, ignore the one and just subtract two from nine.

Patrick Wiscombe

Oh, okay. All right.

Mark Faldmo

Okay, you're you're pick your preference.

Patrick Wiscombe

Yes.

Mark Faldmo

Down. So I said my easy way, and it just confused everybody out there. That's how I've done it since I was a child. So my word. How funny. Down plane comfort. You're gonna be cranky. Yeah, make sure you have good walking shoes. I've been in Europe and had blisters, and it's not fun for the rest of your trip. You know, that that first day or two when you're walking a lot more than you're used to, just make sure you comfortable clothes, comfortable shoes. And I would also take that to where you're staying and the location of where you're staying. Stay closer to things, a nicer hotel. Now they will cost you more. But being located well, especially, you know, as we talked about earlier, if you are going to use that public transportation, somewhere that's well located to public transportation. So I would add that to their comfort. That they were talking about clothing, but oh no, I would add that to the whole

Mindset: Smile And Savor It

Mark Faldmo

trip.

Patrick Wiscombe

Last one before we go to break neglecting to smile and realize where you are in the world. So don't be a crankball. Realize that you're there to have fun. You're in Europe for heaven's sakes. Probably somewhere beautiful. Take a deep breath and enjoy yourself. And you're probably with somebody beautiful. One of the things that I wanted to touch on as part of our destination spotlight, and I'll just call destination's

Shore Excursions: Lamanai In Belize

Patrick Wiscombe

plural spotlight. One of the things that I want to do with this show, and Mark's in agreement with this, is he has traveled nearly four million miles, and he has his favorites. And so he came up with the idea of um, how about if we just talk about some of my favorite shore excursions regardless of the destination? Let's go top five, maybe. Yeah, so it comes to mind.

Mark Faldmo

There's probably a top ten, but we'll talk about five of them today. I think one of my all-time favorite shore excursions is in Belize City, and it's called Lamanae, and it's a Mayan ruin, but it's a very isolated Mayan ruin. So once you get to the port, you take a bus about 45 minutes to a river, and then you take a speedboat about an hour and a half up the river, and then it's you know, tropical jungle, there are wildlife to see, and then you get to this little dock you get off, and there's just a huge pyramid there. Really? One thing I like about this particular archaeological site is it does have facial big rock carving faces carved right into the stone. Wow. Now there are a few other places, think up near Veracruz, there are similar structures, but this is just an area where it's just unique compared to other ones that I've been to. Has a nice big pyramid, and it's your boat of 15 to 20 people. Maybe two other boats will come, but you're really the only ones there, and you have a nice lunch, and it's so isolated that it's very nice.

Patrick Wiscombe

I would think that some of the fun in that whole journey is just taking the speedboat. How far do you go on the speed boat? I mean the 45-minute bus ride and then the speedboat. I think that that would be part of the adventure.

Mark Faldmo

It is, and that is part of it. And you're about an hour and a half on the speedboat. Wow, okay. And they have stops, you know, they'll show you if there's a crocodile, they'll stop and show you that, and they just show you some things about the local wildlife and things. Never know what you're gonna see. Wow, okay.

Patrick Wiscombe

What's another one of your favorite shore excursions?

Isle Of Capri Essentials

Mark Faldmo

Another one, and we talked about this a few weeks ago, but I want to talk about it again is the Isle of Capri. So this cruise port would be the port of Naples. You take a ferry across to the Isle of Capri, and then just the layout and experiencing Capri is pretty amazing and unique. There's large lemons there. Oh, that's right. The lemons are very interesting. You take a bus up to a place called Anna Capri, which is on the very top of the mountain, and you take like a little ski lift up, and there's kind of a fort, church, something up there. Just an amazing, unique experience to go to the Isle of Capri.

Patrick Wiscombe

I remember you were talking about the uh lemon heads, I think they were the size of volleyballs. Yeah. Does that sound right? They're up there in size, yes. Let's go to your uh third favorite shore excursion.

Mark Faldmo

And that would be in Kotor, Montenegro, and it's Our Lady of the Rocks, which is a church that's out on a man-made island, and the island is dedicated to all the seafarers that were lost at sea. So whenever someone was lost at sea, the legend is they'd go out to this location and drop a rock, and eventually it became an island. And that's really unfortunate. Built a little church on this man-made

Kotor And Our Lady Of The Rocks

Mark Faldmo

island in the middle of the bay. And also getting to Kotor, Montenegro is I think a top thing to do for any cruiser. It's sunken river, and it's called Europe's Southern Fjord. And so you sail up, there's little villages, and I remember doing it early one morning with the mist and everything, you know, churches on the side of the fjord, and just amazing, very similar to Norway. Not quite as spectacular, but similar. And then to get to Kotor, this little walled town, is amazing. If you like by Christmas related things, I think one of the best Christmas shops in the world is located in Kotor, Montenegro.

Patrick Wiscombe

It's kind of sad that there's that many people that have passed away, that they got an island out of for all the rocks that they put in there. Yeah. Wow.

Mark Faldmo

So and that's the legend. Sometimes you don't know how true legends are, but but that is basically what that island is dedicated to. The little church, and you know, they only allow 15 to 20 people at a time on the island. Oh, small. And so you're there. It's literally probably 40 feet by 300 feet. It's a small island. What's your next favorite shore excursion? Well, let's go to the other side of the world and go to Morea in French Polynesia, um, Tahiti and it's swim with the sharks. I would do this in a minute. Yeah. So this one I love. You go on a cruise in the lagoon. Again, you know, beautiful, kind of like we talked about last week in the Cook Islands, just beautiful lagoons with water that you didn't think you'd ever see water that color. The scenery of Miraa as you're going, and then you stop in a spot, you get out, and there are sharks and stingrays that you swim with.

Patrick Wiscombe

And then you go to so after you do that, then you go to I know that they're animals, but it just feels like if you're swimming with sharks, that they're pretty

Moorea Sharks And Lagoon Lunch

Patrick Wiscombe

accustomed to s being around humans. Is that fair?

Mark Faldmo

They are. Okay. And this is a tour, it happens several times per day. And so they're these animals, you know, unfortunately, probably almost aren't in the wild anymore because that's their meal ticket or the Taurus. So they're more like domestic it's a domesticated shark. Yeah, so very interesting. And then, you know, after you do that, you go to a motu, which is an an island, a little kind of private island, and you have a nice lunch there. So I think should be on everybody's list, whether you do it on a cruise or you just just go to French Polynesia and do that there. What's your last favorite shore excursion? The last one will go to Jamaica, and I like this one because it's really relaxing. Um bamboo rafting. And so what they do is they take big bamboo logs, they tie them together, and make a raft. And then you have a raft driver.

Patrick Wiscombe

Wait, you don't make it yourself, you don't make it yourself.

Mark Faldmo

Uh-oh. So they do that, and then it's kind of a it's a laid back, kind of more romantic thing to do. Do it with your significant other, and you f float down the river with an amazing Jamaican guide, tells you about the area.

Patrick Wiscombe

How long are you on the water, roughly?

Mark Faldmo

Uh, about an hour to an hour and a half. Okay, so it's not that long. Yeah, so you've you float down. How many people are on the

Jamaica Bamboo Rafting

Mark Faldmo

raft? Two. Oh, that's it. Well, three. Yeah. There's two plus the driver. Okay. And so I love that one. Sometimes I'm not into the action adventure things, and it is so laid back. I enjoy just see I just the relaxation of that.

Patrick Wiscombe

Let's continue your favorite shore excursions. You thought of uh what, two or three more that you wanted to share with listeners? Thought of three more.

Mark Faldmo

Thought we'd add these on to the list.

Patrick Wiscombe

All right, so we have five, and now we're gonna go plus three.

Mark Faldmo

Yeah. So now it's hilltop towns in southern France. Yeah, you've mentioned this before. You know, I think Ez is my favorite. It's small. It's your ports would be Monaco or Nice. Ez is actually just a few minutes from Monte Carlo in Monaco.

Show Voice

Oh wow.

Mark Faldmo

And it's a walled city that you go up to. Uh, and I just love strolling through the s streets of these small hilltop cities. Although I will say, don't eat the candied almonds

Bonus Picks: Eze, Stingray City, Peggy’s Cove

Mark Faldmo

there. Oh no. I love candied almonds, and I broke a tooth, so the the the rest of the uh trip was hard with one side of my inoperable.

Patrick Wiscombe

Oh, see, I thought you were gonna say something digestive there. No.

Mark Faldmo

Kind of like the uh Taco Bell hotel and just a chip tooth, but I would go back to Ez any chance I get. How do you spell Ez? Easy. Oh, all right. Easy. Yeah. The letter E, letter Z. So Ez. Yeah. I don't think I've ever heard of it. No, it's a small little city, but very well worth the visit. What's next? And then we'll go to Grand Cayman, Cayman Islands, Stingray City.

Patrick Wiscombe

See, I would have thought that that was in with the uh the swim with the sharks in Morea. Swim with the sharks, the what else are you swimming with there? Stingrays. Stingrays. Okay, so this is Stingray City.

Mark Faldmo

So this is Stingray City. I like this particular tour because you get a little island overview. Um you get a stop in Hell, which is a city, little town, limestone. You can mail a postcard from hell, post stamped from hell. You go out on a boat and you just interact with stingrays. Very kind of relaxed. You know, I like these kind of more relaxed tours. Um it is kind of a tourist trap, but I enjoy it. I I think it's a a good excursion.

Patrick Wiscombe

That's pretty unique though, to go uh uh swim with stingrays. Yes. Unless you're Steve Irwin. Yeah. Is that too soon? Maybe.

Mark Faldmo

Alright, what's your last one? And then the last one is Peggy's Cove, Halifax, Nova Scotia. Peggy's Cove, I think, is one of the most picturesque lighthouses we were talking earlier about Civil War battlefields. I also love, and Heather especially loves to go look at lighthouses.

Patrick Wiscombe

When we were coming back from Alaska, and they really are in operation, I didn't realize how critical lighthouses are. Yeah.

Mark Faldmo

So truly. I don't know for other people, but for me, it's growing up on Peach Dragon.

Patrick Wiscombe

So what?

Mark Faldmo

The uh Oh oh Peach Dragon. Oh, yeah. I thought it was a dessert. No, the the lighthouse in Peach Dragon. So always fascinated me. But going back to this particular one, I think Peggy's Cove, the town, the lighthouse, the village, and the lighthouse are beautiful. Would you live in a lighthouse? I think I'd like to spend the night in a lighthouse. Okay, there we go. I don't know if I'd live there.

Patrick Wiscombe

It can get pretty harsh. Yeah, I guess it can. The only reason I bring that up is um after being on the sea, Seattle to Alaska back to Seattle, we got to see a lot of lighthouses. And it was one of those things, since we grew up in a desert, mariner terms and all that stuff has been a little bit foreign to me. I didn't realize how important lighthouses were until until you're on a ship going, oh, okay, there's the coast. Shows you where you're going. I know that you're a fan of the band U2. Yes. I was reading Bono's book called Forty Songs, One Story, and it's it was written and read by Bono. And one of the things that he did with his wife Allie for a time was they actually lived in a lighthouse. I didn't know you could live in a lighthouse. I thought it was more kind of a a job destination, not a living quarter. Just kind of fascinating. That's interesting. I wanted to address a text.

Rhine vs Danube: How To Choose

Patrick Wiscombe

We got a text from a listener a little bit earlier this week. Her name is Kipu, and she had a question about river cruising and wanted to know whether she should cruise the uh the Danube or the Rhine rivers. And I know that this is exactly the question you could answer.

Mark Faldmo

My question would be yes. But um, yeah, if you're deciding between both, they both have their pluses. I would do both. The Rhine has more castles, and the Danube I think has a little bit more history. You know, so you cruise on the Rhine, there's castles on both sides of the river that you're sailing past, whereas the Danube has a little bit more history. You know, Budapest, and we can add this in a future show. It's the Budapest. Yep, it's one of my favorite cities. But what a lot of people don't know is if you can't decide, you can cruise both on the same itinerary.

Patrick Wiscombe

Oh, so now we're talking.

Mark Faldmo

Europe, the rivers of Europe are connected through a system of canals and locks. You can actually cruise from the Black Sea all the way to the North Sea through Europe, through connecting rivers with canals and locks.

Patrick Wiscombe

So basically the ship goes in, they flood the lock, it raises the boat or lowers the boat.

Mark Faldmo

Um, and so again, you you can get anywhere in Europe by river. That is interesting to know. There's uh you know a grand European river cruise that starts in Amsterdam and ends in Budapest, and you're actually doing the Rhine and Danube on that.

Patrick Wiscombe

Okay, so let's go there for a second. So you're saying either or depends on preference. You can do both, but uh, which one should she book and when should she go? And what do we have for Kipu?

Mark Faldmo

I lean a little bit towards more towards the Danube. That's a personal choice for me. I really like the Danube. That would be my choice. I will say they're both good choices. I don't think you can go wrong with either one. Uh as far as the time to go, if you're concerned about price, you know, last week we talked about peak season and off-season and shoulder season.

Best Timing And Pricing For River Cruises

Mark Faldmo

The river cruises kind of take the off-season dates off in Europe, so they they don't do a lot in December, January, February. Be very cold. Yeah, so so there are some that go, but they really take those off. So the cruise season is really March through December. They do a lot of them have Christmas market cruises, which go in December, which are pretty special and unique. Um, but then they take January and February off. Your best dates to go are typically March and November.

Patrick Wiscombe

Okay, so it's still off peak. So you're gonna get a better price. You'll get a better price.

Mark Faldmo

Well, that is our show for this week. Thank you

Closing & Sponsor Message

Mark Faldmo

so much for listening. We'll be with you again next week to talk about travel.

Show Voice

That's it. That's the end of the show. You've been listening to the Inside Travel Talk Podcast and Radio Show with Patrick Wiscombe and Mark Faldmo. Presented by BluePlanetVacations.com. Book your adventure right now. Call 888-718-7717. That's 888-718-7717. Thanks for listening. Have a great week. Inside Travel Talk is brought to you by Ama Waterways. From castles and capitals to vistas and villages, visit some of Europe's most remarkable sites and cities. The award-winning and family-owned river cruise line, Ammo Waterways, offers a wide variety of unforgettable itineraries along Europe's iconic rivers, perfectly suited to every traveller's interests. Whether you are passionate about music, history, architecture, or enjoy the finer things in a Europe River Cruise on Emma Waterways is the gift that keeps on giving. To set out on your own river cruise journey, contact Blue Planet Vacations at eight eight eight seven one eight seven seven one seven or Blue Planetvacations.com.