T R A V E L - 72 HOURS IN COLOGNE, GERMANY

Hey guys!

I thought I'd share what I got up to during my 72 hour stay in Cologne, Germany. Once again, the other half won at Christmas with my 3 day break to Cologne, Germany. Including flights and a nice Air Bnb apartment for the weekend with I'll also share below.

Cologne (or Köln in German) is a very bustling city, it's the 4th biggest in Germany and you really need to add it to your 'to do' list of citys in visit in Europe.

We landed our Easyjet flight straight into the Cologne Bon airport - the tiny airport was a bit of a nightmare to get through security due to the small venue and a lot of planes landing, but it's worth the queue I promise. We were able to get the train straight from the airport, through central Cologne to Ehrenfeld - which was within a 15 minute walking distance from our Air BnB.

Where we stayed

Air BnB is a great alternative to hotels, We first used Air BnB on our trip to Portugal and we've never looked back. Michael picked an Entire Flat in Ehrenfeld. Named the coolest quarter in Cologne. It's a bright and vibrant area that is well worth discovering. Full of interesting boutiques, mouth watering restaurants and an easily accessible tram service that can take you anywhere around the city.

I loved having the comforts of home but in another city. Simple to follow instructions of how to get to the property and where we would find our keys. The apartment is located on a beautiful little side street with a little bar, launderettes and plenty of cafe's just around the corner.

The flat was based in a small apartment block on the ground floor, which over looked a beautiful backgarden (which we couldn't quite figure out how to get out to)  The room was small but it had everything we needed, and more! Even the bed was mechanically adjustable!

(Photos are from the Air BnB page)

Check out the listing here - Oasis of peace in the middle of life.

USE MY CODE TO GET £25 OFF YOUR FIRST SAY WITH AIR BNB!

www.airbnb.co.uk/c/stephaniet11149

What to do

You can pick up plenty of To-Do guides for Cologne all over the city and find the standard tourist things to do around the city. These include the Cologne Cathedral - Which is amazing and you should definitely go visit!
But when you get deep into the city and explore you'll find a number of things that you won't find in tourist guides.

Here's a list of everything we managed to squeeze into a few days in this wonderful city!

The Dom Cathedral

I thought I'd start with the main attraction. The Dom Cathedral is a Roman Catholic cathedral.  Building started in 1248-1473, it was then complete destroyed during World War II, rebuilt in the 1950s up until present day. They were still doing renovation work to the spires while we visited. It's also currently the tallest twin-spired Church coming in at 157m (515ft) tall.

The stunning architecture taking influence from the German Catholicism and Gothic tradition. The view inside includes beautiful mosaic flooring which pictures the history of archdiocese showing the different names and coasts of arms of a number of Cologne's bishops and archbishops, The Christian world order and humankind, as well as the cosmos.
Along with stain glass windows that bounce their stunning colours across the cathedral walls, it's a must see.

In addition to this, the Cathedral also offers a unique panoramic for those brave (and fit) enough to walk the 533 steep stone steps of the spiral staircase to reach the viewing platform around 100m above the ground.  If you're not the fittest, don't worry; There are plenty of places you can stop, There's a floor half way up that houses eleven bells,  with Fat Peter (the worlds biggest bell!) in the middle. Pretty cool to see but also an excuse for a rest.
The stair case is also very narrow so you'll have plenty of resting time while waiting for those coming down too.

Visiting the inside of the cathedral is completely free, to climb the steps is 4 euro, half price if you have a student card though.

Papa Joe's Jazzlokal

By far our favorite place during the trip. Located in the town center, from the moment we walked through the door we were hocked! Papa Joe's has live jazz every night of the week from the traditional to the slightly more modern jazz there is something for everyone. It's packed regulary with a mix of ages. Beers are quite expensive and still in the tiny glasses we see around Cologne but still good fun. It's free to get in and also free peanuts all around the joint. There's nothing quite like it! 5/5 from me.

Click here for the Papa Joe's Website.

Schokoladen Museum Koln

Are you a chocolate lover? (silly question) Then you're in luck! Cologne is home to the Lindt Chocolate museum, it's like something out of willy wonder. The modern architecture is built to resemble a ship. You can't miss it, just follow the River Rhine on the right hand side. An adult ticker is 9 euros.  It even comes equipped with a working 3 meter tall chocolate fountain and plenty of free samples while you discover the story behind how chocolate has been created since the very beginnings and also how it's made today in the Lindt factories. You can even pay to have a bespoke chocolate made for yourself on the top level with all the things that you like.

Love Lock Bridge

Also know as the Hohenzollern bridge that goes over the Rhine river,  you'll find a 400 meters long wall of locks filled with names and pictures of couples who have declared their love in the city. There's no a centimeter free on the cathedral side of the bridge, some smaller gaps as you approach the end of the bridge. If there isn't any space - don't worry, the govenerment take the locks down every once in a while because it becomes too heavy and dangerous. Which means we can all start again!

Koln Triangle

For those of you that still want to see Cologne from above, but don't fancy the 533 step work out. You'd want to go to the Koln Triangle. Just walk over the Love Lock Bridge and it's to the right, you can't really miss it. It's 3 Euros per person. Not a single step in sight just take the elevator and you're done. Another stunning panoramic perspective of this beautiful city!

Cycle around the city

If you're looking for an inexpensive way to get around the city (Not that the tram line isn't cheap or effective) there are plenty of places to go and rent a bike for the day. We travelling to the main attractions via bike as Cologne has great cycle routes throughout the city. The day the River Rhine flooded we were able to cycle through the over flow along the path without a care in the world. Plenty of places to safely secure the bike while we had a drink or two and I promise you will love it!

Are you going to add Cologne to your list of places to see in Europe?

T R A V E L - / / HOW TO GET THE MOST OUT OF A SHORT STAY IN PARIS.

I was fortunate enough to head over to beautiful Paris for the April Bank holiday weekend with the other half. You'll be able to find a whole blog post about what we got up to *HERE* - It includes everything we got up to over the 3 day trip with photos of all the AMAZING views and places we were able to visit.

This blog post will describe how we managed to get the most out of our short stay - and offer some tips and recommendations to how you could too!

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So you're thinking of heading to Paris for a few days, but want to fit in as many sightseeing stops and visit the best attractions without breaking the bank? Fear not; although Paris can be expensive, you can get the most of it if you just scratch beneath the surface.

Firstly, shop around for the best flights and accommodation deals! The less money you spend getting to Paris, the more you have to spend in Paris. Browse comparison websites such as Kayak or Icelolly. We booked ours using Expedia.
Expedia did everything for us! It found the cheapest flights to Paris, and offered us a fantastic list of hotels that we could filter out.
We flew from LHR to ORY. LHR is easy to get to using any of the bus services such as Megabus or National Express. Megabus can be booked in advance for £5 a seat! We opted to drive and used PurpleParking for only £42 - and I used Quidco so also received 10% cashback.

We chose our flights for April 28th-May 1st, and stayed in the 4* Hotel Mercure Paris Montmartre Sacre Coeur for a total price of £215 each. Meaning our trip cost £572 over all for the both of us.
You can find hotel's starting from £40 a night based on 2 sharing on Tripadvisor - It's easy to get the price lower than £500.

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Now, on to the main event. What can you do in Paris on a tight budget?
Paris, as a whole is an expensive place - but there are so many things you can do to make your money last!

There are a number of famous attractions you can visit completely free for all ages!

1. Basilica Sacré-Coeur 

 One of Paris' most captivating sights, many people like to view the elegant and prominent architecture from the foot of the 300 steps beneath. The building itself is located on the highest point of Paris - which offers a breathtaking panorama view of the city.
We entered the attraction walking from Montmartre itself rather than getting the metro, by doing this we were able to wonder through the quaint village and visit a lovely artist area full of wonderful paintings. If you would like to visit from the Metro station, please be aware of the sellers as you approach - Keep everything close!

2. The Cathedral of Notre Dame.

Many of us know about The Cathedral of Notre Dame from the well known Disney movie we all loved as a child (I know I did).
It's a fantastic piece of French History boasting remarkable Gothic architecture. The towers of the cathedral stand tall and proud over the ever-changing bustling city landscape. The beautifully crafted figures on the entrance to the building will transport you back in time, not to mention the stunning artwork and detailing inside. You'll also find a number of facts about the Cathedral inside, such as the building timeline - starting from 1163! It was a long project!
As it's one of Paris' main tourist attractions, be prepared to queue. To avoid the line simply turn up early in the morning, or later in the evening. It's definitely worth the wait though!

3. Montmartre Cemetery

 

Now I understand this can sound pretty morbid, but if you find yourself in the Montmartre area, head to the Cemetery. I promise you would have never seen anything like it. It may look like a scene to the world’s scariest horror film, but it really was a great experience. It's home to a number of celebrities including Alexandre Dumas (The writer of The Three Musketeers) and world famous actress Dalida (her grave/tribute was beautiful).
The cemetery was home to thousands of graves, including the super elaborate tombs with up to 16 family members buried inside.
Honestly, it's not as weird and spooky as it seems. It also makes a for a peaceful retreat from the crowded tourist areas and it's something different to do in your spare time.

4. Jardin de Tuileries

Please take full advantage of this beautiful garden! If you walk from Place de la Concorde through the garden you'll arrive at the entrance for the Louvre Museum. It's a stunning 20 minute walk with plenty of cafes to enjoy some food.
But it's also the perfect location to take full advantage of a homemade picnic in the sun! The park has plenty of seats and benches to use for free during the good weather and the fountain is a lovely spot to settle down before you visit the huge museum!
We went to our local shop to buy our picnic in order to save money for our big night ahead - Ham and Brie Baguettes with crisps, tomatoes, chocolate and a bottle of wine. Small but just enough for us, and can easily be purchased for less than 10 euro. We had enough Brie for 3 days!

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In addition to the free attractions I spoke about above, Paris are very giving to their under 'younger' generation. With a number of places offering discounted (or even free!) entrance fees for those under 25.

5. The Louvre Museum.

After your walk through Jardin de Tuileries - you'll arrive at the Louvre! The most visited art museum in the world! You'll spot the famous glass pyramid entrance straight away. It's a pretty impressive and memorable building and has some truly remarkable exhibits. We went on the Saturday, so the queue looked intimidating but it was something we both really wanted to do so we stuck it out - and were surprised at how soon we actually got into the building. Due to recent events, Paris is on high alert so security is of course top priority, so everyone entering the building is security checked which results in waiting. However it took hardly any time at all.
Even better, when we went to buy our tickets we were informed that because we were under 25 we were allowed into the exhibits completely free of charge! (YAY! More free things!). It really is as easy as showing your driving license/passport and voila!
The Louvre was one of my favourite attractions in Paris and I'd recommend it to everybody. I fell in love with Napoleon III apartments. #Housegoals.

 

6. Eiffel Tower

Of course, the biggy couldn't be missed off my little list of things to do. It's kind of hard to forget about and for good reason! The Eiffel Tower's structure is amazing as it stands alone - but the views from the top are spectacular and show just how enormous Paris actually is!
Now if you're brave and fancy a cheap challenge, you can walk up to the second floor of the Eiffel Tower for free. (It's a lot of steps, you've been warned)
But again, Thanks to Frances under 25 discount, you are offered a lower entrance price if you'd like to take the lift. Now we got the lift to the very top, at 14 Euros each it may seem a bit steep but I assure you it's worth it.

I'd suggest going in the evening, due to it being so popular the queue is something else. You have to queue for security, queue to collect your tickets and then queue to get onto a lift. It takes a life time. We went in the rain on a Sunday at around 8pm and I think our waiting time was only around 15 minutes to get onto the lifts. Much better than what we would have experienced in the sunshine on Saturday.
We managed to get up while it was still light enough to see everything, but by the time we reached the bottom the Eiffel Tower was lit up. A site we'll never forget! 

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7. Jazz Clubs

In addition to all of this, Michael and I are huge fans of live music, and Jazz specifically for Michael. Both of us agreed that our Jazz Club night out was our favorite part of the whole trip.

Now, we started splashing the cash a bit here compared to our other outings. We were able to buy the cheaper rate tickets again as we're under 25 to view a show at Duc De Lombards. One of Paris' best jazz clubs, if not the best. Located only a 2 minute walk from Chatelet's metro it's easily accessible.

We paid 23 euro each, for our front row seats to see Manchester based Jazz musician Matthew Halsall and his band, along with LA Jazz singer Dwight Trible. *give them a Youtube*
The atmosphere was electric, and the good vibes were contagious, everyone loved the music and the band connected with the crowd all night. Drinks were pretty expensive, at 29 euro for the cheapest bottle of time.
You can always pre drink before you leave, we picked up bottles of rose for 2.75 euro at our local super market.

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8. Restaurant Dinner Cruise

And last on my list of things to do! This was the big spender for us, but we did go all out. We had our last supper on the Paris en Scene. A three course meal with a bottle of wine on a boat travelling down the Seine. We paid 104 euro over all, which sounds like a lot - it works out around £88.

For a boat trip, three course meal and a bottle of wine I'd consider it to be a very good price! We booked the more expensive seats so that increased our price by 10 euro, and included the bottle of red wine that also upped our bill - It can be done for less!
If I remember rightly it was 39 Euro for just the meals, your best bet is to book online before hand as it fills up quickly.


The boat took you up and down The Seine, meaning you were able to see all the sites on both sides of the river. Including the Eiffel Tower and the original Statue of Liberty!

The service was amazing, they could cater for any additional dietary needs (I'm a vegetarian and nothing was too much hassle for them). The staff were polite and informative and the boat played some beautiful music that worked as a romantic soundtrack to the evening. The cruise itself lasts just under an hour and a half and I personally think it's totally worth the money!