Planning - Stage 1

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Hi all!

Let the planning for my holiday begin. I have a few questions and any answers would be greatly appreciated.

1. I'm considering venturing to South Africa for the world cup. (Exciting, I think so!) I enjoy football but will it be too hectic and crowded? How might I go about purchasing tickets?
2. Changing money from sterling to Euros is relatively simple but is there a safe way to carry my money while abroad?
3. Paris is my last stop before I start working in Lyon. Does anyone know a relatively cheap but nice hotel I can stay at? Since this is my final destination I want to really enjoy myself.

x

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Comments

[Stacey P]

Some Suggestions
Hi Shannon, I'm pretty well travelled around the Europe areas and I happened to have gone to South Africa last summer with my family! So here are a few suggestions and answers to your questions: 1. Get ready for the crowds, if you think the ones in England are crazy the world cup's going to be insane! So purchasing tickets; the official tickets can be purchased on the FIFA website (the sales phase ends on April 7 so get on that quick!), I'd use a prepaid card like the Caxton Card because of the foreign conversion transaction and because you're going to need to convert to the SOuth African Rand, might as well cut on the fees. Check out the link: www.fifa.com/worldcup/organisation/ticketing/index.html 2. Again, like above where you can use the Caxton Global Travellers card (I had one for when I went to South Africa and it really worked out great), the CaxtonFX Euro Card converts pounds to euros and its safe. I'm always scared about money safety especially in Spain and the big pick pocketing cities. Plus we got a really good rate over the airport exchange rate. here's the link: www.caxtonfxcard.com/ 3. Finally, just as a preface, I LOVE PARIS! We stayed at a modest Best Western hotel a few metro stops away from the center but look at this site to see what fits your needs:http://www.easytobook.com/en/paris-hotels/ HOpe this helps shannon!!

[nick]

info
coke is hirring people for the world cup, just did the olympic torch relay with them and its amazing. For cash you can use a money belt under your clothes. For paris theres is cheap hostel in montmatre, try the 3 ducks or aloha....

[seconnelly]

Thanks
Thanks Nick for all the helpful information! I will certainly look into using Coke for an 'in' (if you will) to the world cup. How was the Olympic Torch Relay? Was it well-organized? I'm a bit concerned about using a money belt, as carrying cash in general makes me nervous. But thanks for the hostel suggestions!

[seconnelly]

And another thanks!
Stacey, Thank you for the detailed answers to my varied questions, they were a huge help! You mentioned having traveled to South Africa -- how did you find it? There have been reports lately of race-related incidents across the country and it has made me a little nervous! The information about the Caxton card looks great! What a relief to know my money will be secure. Do you know what happens if the card gets lost or stolen? Is there a helpline? Do I need to send an email? And how quickly could I get a replacement? (I certainly don't want to be stranded with no money!)