View Single Post
      07-29-2018, 07:08 PM   #14
Kwando
Major
Kwando's Avatar
Canada
431
Rep
1,428
Posts

Drives: 2018 340i xDrive
Join Date: Jan 2011
Location: London, Ontario, Canada

iTrader: (1)

Trip Statistics
Days Traveled: 18 days
Kilometres Driven: 2,600 kilometres
Drive time: 27 hours
Hotel Cost: Average of $300 Canadian per night (200 Euros)
Spent in Petrol: $490 Canadian total (320 Euros)
Spent in Parking: Average of $33 Canadian per night (22 Euros)

Trip Tips
  • When booking flights, my wife suggested selecting the special meal options. Not only are these healthier for you, they tend to be better than the standard meal you get and most importantly - we were served first. We sat in mid-section of economy class and we finished our meals before they even started serving the rest of the plane. This may be airline specific.
  • Find the locations/attractions you want to see/do, then find the most convenient hotel with parking or was close to public underground parking. We maximized our sight-seeing time by staying in the most conveniently located hotel.
  • I strongly recommend you do whatever you need to do to get data on your phone so you can use GPS (and social media) while you walk around. International roaming from my carrier is too expensive so I bought two data sim cards from https://www.ebay.ca/itm/202072152287. It worked..but it was an absolutely nightmare fiddling with the settings to get it working.
  • Check https://www.theaa.com/driving-advice...p-country-list to find out if you need an International Drivers Permit for certain countries.
  • You need a toll pass if you plan on driving on Austrian motorways, which can be purchased at gas stations. I like to plan in advance so I bought mine online from https://www.tolltickets.com/ (I also bought my Swiss pass here). You have to choose what date you want it valid for. I suggest getting one longer than you think you need. I got one that was valid for a few days during my stay in Austria, but at the very end of my trip I drove back to Munich from Zurich and had to pass briefly through Austria on an expired toll pass (oops!).
  • European Delivery includes 14 days of insurance and no deductible at no charge. An added insurance cost is applied for time over the 14 day period. It’s not prorated so because I went over the limit by just a couple of days I had to pay $650.
  • Keeping a full tank of petrol. With such a thirsty engine and small tank I almost ran out of petrol twice. I was also thinking that petrol would be cheaper in the small towns. Boy was I wrong. I found petrol to be cheapest in Austria and Germany compared to Switzerland and Italy.
  • Along with the souvenir keychain (which they engrave for you), you also get discounts for certain items at the gift shop if you’re doing the delivery. Make sure you look at the flyer that they give you because there are some nice perks in there (i.e. free engraving for additional keychains that you purchase - a great gift idea for friends and family). When shopping at the Welt gift shop, focus on buying exclusive items rather than ones that you can find anywhere else.
  • Always keep some loose change on you - most public bathrooms charge for usage; the “fancier” places have someone or a machine dolling out change but if there isn’t, you’re pretty much stuck!

Summary
I still can’t believe that the trip happened. Overall I’d say that the trip was immensely positive. We are already planning our next European Delivery trip since we didn’t get a chance to go to a number of places we wanted to go. If you’re on the fence about doing the program I can’t recommend it enough. Thanks for reading!

I put together a highlight video of our trip. Sorry that it’s 12 minutes long but there was too much I wanted to share. Also sorry if our music preferences aren’t the same!

__________________

Check out my European Delivery Journal!
European Delivery June 2018 – Germany / Austria / Italy / Switzerland
2018 340i xDrive / Alpine White / Coral Red / 704M / MPPSK / Gloss Black Kidney Grille

Last edited by Kwando; 07-29-2018 at 07:19 PM..
Appreciate 0