[mcr]

Ok, so I have lots of cash now: $100k set aside just for travelling. (lots left for investing, etc.)... and will likely take off for 'extended travel vacation' by December of this year.

But my question now, is "how are you guys doing this?" - getting started in a new country that is -- do you just 'wing it'? Book a flight & get a hotel room when you get there - to give you opportunity to scope out a place to 'live' for a few weeks after? Or do you get things all 'pre-planned' before taking off? I'm already doing some 'on-line gaming' with the ladies in destination #1... my profile is letting them in on the fact I'll be 'moving to the country soon'.

A part of me would love to just 'wing-it' as an experiment - show up with pretty much my necessities -but then, I also don't want to waste time & money - or end up sleeping on the street for a couple nights. Should I check with the travel agencies to book a one-way travel holiday to ease into things? Any advice would be appreciated!

[Dash Global]

its best to figure out the most you can pre trip as that will save you time and possibly money.

[iknowexactly]

with that much money you can stay in a hotel until you find an apt,; just check before you go that there's no huge festival or convention so all hotels are booked. It makes sense to reserve a room for at least three nights or so; then you are not stressed when you're tired from travelling. cancellation fees are only a day usually (check)

[Seamus]

Forget the hotel and forget the travel agency. I've shown up completely blind to a country a number of times. It doesn't matter if you have a big budget and can afford better, the best way to ease yourself in is to crash for a week or so at a lively hostel. The people who own it/work there are a great resource for expat-aimed info, and you can usually meet some cool people to check out the nightlife or city with. Also once you get your feet on the ground you can check out which area of the city you really want to set up shop in. While there's a lot to be said for having a general idea beforehand of what you want to do, I personally prefer having a ton of flexibility on the ground.

[Celtic]

Typically, the more research you do ahead of time, the better of you'll be. Typically, you'll want to find out where the best place to meet women is, find a place to bring women back to near where you are meeting women, and you'll want to start pipelining women beforehand so you can hit the ground runnning.

Of course, if you have enough time and money, you can always get a hotel and figure things out when you get there.

[iknowexactly]

(01-09-2012 11:32 PM)Seamus Wrote:  

Forget the hotel and forget the travel agency. I've shown up completely blind to a country a number of times.

a great way to go for the adventurous, but OP saved up 100K before leaving--only he can determine if this type of plan fits his character.

[Dash Global]

you should already know everything about the city before you even touch down. ie best nightlife area, short term rental agencies, good eats and shopping, numerous girls on deck waiting for your arrival.

ideally you wanna someone waiting at your apartment in the best area to hand you the keys and females to take out shortly after arrival to get down to the real business at hand. Which is fucking as many females as possible!

[Seamus]

(01-09-2012 11:50 PM)iknowexactly Wrote:  

(01-09-2012 11:32 PM)Seamus Wrote:  

Forget the hotel and forget the travel agency. I've shown up completely blind to a country a number of times.

a great way to go for the adventurous, but OP saved up 100K before leaving--only he can determine if this type of plan fits his character.

very true, to each his own of course. my point is simply that when first getting to a city it's better to be in a hostel filled with outgoing, boisterous people who know the area somewhat (which is usually the case) than in a hotel room by yourself waiting for your scheduled tour of the cathedral, or whatever the case may be. it's great to get some friends on the ground as quickly as possible and work from there. you can always find a kick ass crib after you've seen the lay of the land a bit.

[iknowexactly]

(01-10-2012 12:06 AM)Seamus Wrote:  

(01-09-2012 11:50 PM)iknowexactly Wrote:  

(01-09-2012 11:32 PM)Seamus Wrote:  

Forget the hotel and forget the travel agency. I've shown up completely blind to a country a number of times.

a great way to go for the adventurous, but OP saved up 100K before leaving--only he can determine if this type of plan fits his character.

very true, to each his own of course. my point is simply that when first getting to a city it's better to be in a hostel filled with outgoing, boisterous people who know the area somewhat (which is usually the case) than in a hotel room by yourself waiting for your scheduled tour of the cathedral,

It's true contacts are huge for enjoyment-- one problem I've had in EE has been I had contacts with locals who helped set up apartments, but then when I got here, they are limited in time because, just like I did before I did POD evacuation, they have exhausting jobs and really can only do anything on weekends-- if they're not doing something else.

Might be worth it to book the hostel AND the hotel, go to the hostel and socialize, then make an excuse to go to the hotel!!
MIght be good for pulling if there are single girl travelers too!

Also, my emphasis on finding out-of-my-league women calls for time allocation different than normal tourists, and I want to associate with others
that aren't feminists or betas.

[InternationPlayboy]

I meet people in the states from other countries and meet up with them there and just try and go with the flow. I find that when you plan all these things, you get there and you find that there might be better ways to do those things. Be spontaneous, you'll have more fun.

[Pilgrim37]

(01-10-2012 12:45 AM)InternationPlayboy Wrote:  

I meet people in the states from other countries and meet up with them there and just try and go with the flow. I find that when you plan all these things, you get there and you find that there might be better ways to do those things. Be spontaneous, you'll have more fun.

I agree.
Apart from basic logistics ,accommodation,idea of why I'm going ,whenever I've thought too much about a trip,over planned etc I've either talked myself out of it or it turns out to be nothing like I planned for anyways.

Make a basic itinery,know why you're going,have your finances in order , and GO!

[Lief]

I would not commit to long term accommodations until you've spent a week on the ground. It is impossible to tell where you want to stay by reading Internet reports. It is important to have good logistics which means less than 1 km away from the nightlife. You want to be able bounce from the clubs with the girls.

Use a short term rental agency (yes you will get raped) as apartments are vastly superior to hotels.

Look at the different Meetups in the town you're going to. Couch surfing events. Sign up for online Expat networks.

If you are going to be investing some $$$ in your new location, book a few appointments with some lawyers. They might introduce you to their friends.