US help.

[rocky86]

guys in LA Downtown, anybody noe of any cheap courier to deliver item back to singapore?

 

[fone]

guys in LA Downtown, anybody noe of any cheap courier to deliver item back to singapore?

USPS international or domestic mail (USPS / Fedex / UPS / DHL) to one of the freight forwarders. Not "cheap" by any means, alternatively, there will be the excess baggage fee, when you're flying back.

Editted: You can also choose to rent your own container, to be shipped back.

 

[critical888]

guys in LA Downtown, anybody noe of any cheap courier to deliver item back to singapore?

singpost got this vpost Usa by sea to sg, not sure if its cheaper u can try

but each person can 25kg x 2 luaggage up the plane right, should be enough?

 

[genie47]

Hiking through Zion Narrows. One day when I return, I will go through the Narrows.

 

[fone]

but each person can 25kg x 2 luaggage up the plane right, should be enough?

Depends on what airline you take and what status you have. SQ has 2x 23kg (3rd bag costs US$225), while UA only gives 1x 23kg (2nd bag costs US$100, 3rd bag US$200).

 

[critical888]

oh pai seh, maybe i take is winter time, more luaggage

 

[critical888]

but i like to go usa also coz the shoe size suits me there, size 12 , 4e wide, hard to find design in sg

 

[cscs3]

Depends on what airline you take and what status you have. SQ has 2x 23kg (3rd bag costs US$225), while UA only gives 1x 23kg (2nd bag costs US$100, 3rd bag US$200).

Is ok, as SQ ticket is generally S$400 to S$600 more then UA.

 

[patryn33]

singpost got this vpost Usa by sea to sg, not sure if its cheaper u can try

I thought vpost is for online purchase
There is a vpost location in la to ship things back?
Quick google not finding a location leh

 

[paul02]

Hi guys, I need some assistance in planning for a trip to NYC for a lone traveler.

Background: I’m in a difficult period in my life and just wish to go out, relax, and breathe again. NYC is one place I would like to go once in my lifetime and I have decided to do it now. Purpose of the trip is to visit touristy sights, and I will not be shopping (window-shopping at famous landmarks is ok) nor driving.

Dates: I am available to go from September to early Dec. Please suggest the best time to go? I wouldn’t want to pack heavy luggage, so perhaps earlier is better? Say mid-October? I’m OK with packing to withstand up to 10°C or so. It’s also easier to go around in less cold conditions. Target duration is about 10-12 days.

Places I want to go: As mentioned, I would like to visit common touristy places, and take in nature sights and nice sceneries. My list for now only includes Wall Street, Central Park, Empire State Building, Broadway, Times Square (sorry, haven’t done much research). I would also like to take day trips (or a 2D1N trip) out of NY to a neighboring city or two (Boston? Washington DC? Niagara falls?)

Accommodation: Kindly suggest hotels/hostels with top priority being SAFETY, followed by costs and convenience. As a single male traveler, I don’t really need to stay in 4* hotels. Will be happy to stay in a small room in a safe location near to subways for easy movement. Target below USD 200.

Sorry that I didn’t go through the 100+ pages of information. If anyone could help me do a rough guide, I will refine it myself and then ask for your opinions again. Appreciate lots!

Bumps for this guy. Help him out here.

 

[Telur17]

Hi guys, I need some assistance in planning for a trip to NYC for a lone traveler.

Background: I’m in a difficult period in my life and just wish to go out, relax, and breathe again. NYC is one place I would like to go once in my lifetime and I have decided to do it now. Purpose of the trip is to visit touristy sights, and I will not be shopping (window-shopping at famous landmarks is ok) nor driving.

Dates: I am available to go from September to early Dec. Please suggest the best time to go? I wouldn’t want to pack heavy luggage, so perhaps earlier is better? Say mid-October? I’m OK with packing to withstand up to 10°C or so. It’s also easier to go around in less cold conditions. Target duration is about 10-12 days.

Places I want to go: As mentioned, I would like to visit common touristy places, and take in nature sights and nice sceneries. My list for now only includes Wall Street, Central Park, Empire State Building, Broadway, Times Square (sorry, haven’t done much research). I would also like to take day trips (or a 2D1N trip) out of NY to a neighboring city or two (Boston? Washington DC? Niagara falls?)

Accommodation: Kindly suggest hotels/hostels with top priority being SAFETY, followed by costs and convenience. As a single male traveler, I don’t really need to stay in 4* hotels. Will be happy to stay in a small room in a safe location near to subways for easy movement. Target below USD 200.

Sorry that I didn’t go through the 100+ pages of information. If anyone could help me do a rough guide, I will refine it myself and then ask for your opinions again. Appreciate lots!

if you want to pack less clothes than earlier is probably better. october will be autumn and air will be nippish so you should at least have a good jacket. if you are lucky, can still view the the fall foliage. around xmas time, there will be xmas fairs which are fun to browse around and if you are lucky, snow.

there are a lot of touristy places you can go including the intrepid museum (air craft carrier turned into museum), museum of national history, moma, statue of liberty, tenement museum, etc etc. really depends on what you are interested. you might also be interested in checking out the outer boroughs which are v nice too.

if you want cheap, consider staying in queens or new jersey. brooklyn can be a bit ex too. or can check out ymca and other hostels in manhatten.

i think it would be better for you to do a rough itinerary and ask for comments rather than asking someone to come up with for you first.

 

[fone]

I thought vpost is for online purchase
There is a vpost location in la to ship things back?
Quick google not finding a location leh

Simply ship the parcel to your USA address. I've done it with other freight forwarders, when calculation shows that, with the domestic shipping, is cheaper than USPS international or excess baggage fee. VPost won't be in CA due to the sales tax.

 

[Shiny Things]

Dates: I am available to go from September to early Dec. Please suggest the best time to go? I wouldn’t want to pack heavy luggage, so perhaps earlier is better? Say mid-October? I’m OK with packing to withstand up to 10°C or so. It’s also easier to go around in less cold conditions. Target duration is about 10-12 days.

Yeah, you'll want to do September or October. NYC gets pretty cold in Nov/Dec.

Definitely do a side trip to DC. It's easy to get to on the train - the Amtrak runs from Manhattan straight to downtown DC - and DC is absolutely brimful of fantastic museums, cultural exhibits, and bars and restaurants to boot.

Don't forget the Intrepid Museum as well - you get to crawl around an aircraft carrier! And Concorde! And a space shuttle!

Accommodation: Kindly suggest hotels/hostels with top priority being SAFETY, followed by costs and convenience. As a single male traveler, I don’t really need to stay in 4* hotels. Will be happy to stay in a small room in a safe location near to subways for easy movement. Target below USD 200.

OK, you're going to have a lot of trouble getting rooms in Manhattan for under $200. Try to stretch your budget a little bit, because nice hotels in nice areas start to kick in around the $250-$300 range.

Your best bet is to use Tripadvisor - tell it your dates and your price range, and it'll tell you which hotels are the best.

DC is pretty doable in that price-range, though.

 

[rocky86]

guys, can i check, in LA downtown, the cab easy to get, iszit similar like singapore, or mus go to cab stand or call only booking to get cab over there? sorry i noob

 

[fone]

Is ok, as SQ ticket is generally S$400 to S$600 more then UA.

Depends on how you fly and status. Say if you have 3 bags and *A gold. SQ will give you 3 x 23kg free, while UA will only give 2 x 23kg free. If you stopover (more than 24 hours) in NRT both ways (say SIN - NRT - LAX - NRT - SIN). UA will charge you a US$200 for each leg, amounting to US$800 already. Even without stopover would about have covered the cost difference.

I've just got caught by UA flying 2 legs with an overnight (less then 24 hours) in between and they charge me for excess baggage twice. Forced to fly UA due to very bad timings on SQ.

 

[JAYBAOKONG]

Hi all,

Need some assistance in my planning for my trip. Will be heading to the West part of US in Nov.

Below is my tentative planning.
Day 1: land in San Frans late at night
Day 2: San Fran (rest and relax to get over jetlag)
Day 3: San Fran
Day 4: San Fran to LV via domestic flight
Day 5: LV - day trip to Grand Canyon
Day 6: LV - drive to desert hill outlet
Day 7: LA: drive from Palm Springs to LA
Day 8: LA: Theme parks
Day 9: LA: explore LA eg Hollywood boulevard, studios tours etc
Day 10: San Luis Obispo: drive from LA Via HWY 1 with stops at Santa Babara, Morro Bay and stay at San Luis Obispo . Anyone has recommendations for hotels in San Luis Obispo? What are the attractions there?

Day 11: Santa Cruz: via HWY 1, stop by paso Robles, Hearst castle, Carmel and end in Santa Cruz.
Anyone has recommendations for hotels in Santa Cruz and attractions there?

Day 12: SF: drive to Gilroy Outlets
Day 13: SF: city tour
Day 14: SF: city tour
Day 15: SF
Day 16: SF: fly back to sin

 

[fone]

Try fly into LAX and out from SFO, then you can play at LAX first, then vegas, then fly to SFO, and play at SFO and depart from there (or other way around also can). See if it saves you travelling time and also domestic air fare (depends how much additional you pay for the open jaw).

 

[JAYBAOKONG]

Try fly into LAX and out from SFO, then you can play at LAX first, then vegas, then fly to SFO, and play at SFO and depart from there (or other way around also can). See if it saves you travelling time and also domestic air fare (depends how much additional you pay for the open jaw).

Hi fone,

Thanks for your reply.

My tickets have been booked for the round trip ie sin-sfo-sin.

Now am contemplating whether to fly to LV or LA via domestic flight.

Any other comments on my tentative itinerary?

 

[fone]

How many drivers do you have and how well versed are you to drive 5+ hours (non-stop)?

I'm accustom to driving long distance within US, I've driven Los Angeles to Las Vegas non-stop, but that is, without the jetlag. Even then, I will need a stop like every 2 hours or so to freshen up (also depends on how often you and your passengers need toilet/meal breaks). Even then, if you only have 1 driver, it will be very taxing (might need more stops, if available).

I do not think you will need Gilroy after Dessert Hills, but personal preference, also, at most I personally will spend 2 to 3 hours at outlet, though the shopping experts will beg to differ.

Day 7: LA: drive from Palm Springs to LA

If you do not hit the peak hour jams, then 2 hours going to get you into downtown Los Angeles, you have plans on what you gonna do the rest of the day (might not even be able to check in)? Personally, I will stop halfway to have nice chinese food (monterey park / San Gabriel area), dim sum if you are early enough (I'm one who can eat Chinese from day one till last day of stepping into USA).

 

[JAYBAOKONG]

Hi fone,

There are 2 drivers so we will alternate. So far I have been on road trips where I drove for 4hrs non stop so based on my preliminary itinerary, it looks workable

But of course, we will be taking pit stops along the way for meals, toilet breaks and refueling .

For GC, it will be taking a day tour with the local company as I find the drive too long.

What are the off peak hours to drive to LA?

For day 7, it's dependent on what time do we leave Palm Springs as there might still be shopping to be done at desert hill outlets if we didn't manage to get enough. As what you have correctly mentioned, shopping is pretty subjective. Haha.. But again, we will be doing studios tours if we are there early, otherwise we will just rest and relax for the day if we are there in the later part of the day.

We are looking at checking out the studios tour. Do you have any recommendations as well?