Ballet Travel - Tips and tricks?

[BW]

Just thought this thread might be worth reviving, as I know there are quite a number of new posters, and readers, on board.

[Leigh Witchel]

Thanks for doing this, BW.

Reading through this, a few notes: The Castex Hotel in Paris remodeled this year and the prices doubled

For those visiting New York, eating inexpensively can be done a few ways. Grabbing food at one of the Asian delis (They're mostly Korean, and a mammoth salad bar tends to be ubiquitous) or yes, fast food, can keep prices down. The location of an eatery has a lot to do with its price, some neighborhoods are more expensive than others. To grab a meal before a performance at Lincoln Center, I'd recommend the stretch of restaurants on 9th Avenue in the 50s. It's a short walk, and they're inexpensive. Rock bottom is the Chinese noodle house Mee on 53 & 9th which is very low on atmosphere (its decoration style is Early Flourescent) but the kitchen is excellent.

I'm going to Toronto to see the mixed program in February. Will you be around, Paquita?

[balletmama]

Wow, what a great thread. A lot of vicarious pleasure, since I am mostly in the NY metro area lately...For those of you coming here, I want to echo Leigh's comments on Mee Noodle. Also try Pam's Real Thai on 49th off 9th. Also cheap, also no decor, also good. And for a place to stay -- not at hostel rates, but below the usual NY prices -- do a search on Club Quarters, a chain of nice corporate hotels that rent out to the public on weekends at fairly decent rates.

[Leigh Witchel]

Yup, Pam Real Thai is quite good. There's a curry with string beans that's great there (I think it's E11!)

Favorite Ballet Alertnik Pre-and Post Theater Eats (all reasonable - by average meal I'm including tax & tip for an entree and some other item, either an appetizer or a drink)

• Mee - average meal under $10
  
• Pam Real Thai - average meal $10-$12
  
• Wondee Siam (There are two, both within a block of each other on 9th & 52-3) Wondee II is a bit more expensive than Wondee I, it's also prettier inside. The Thai beef salad at both places is great. I think the kitchen at Wondee I is a little better. Average meal $10-$12
  
• Saigon Fun - 51st & 9th. Vietnamese instead of Thai - great soups and the Bo Luc Lac (Beef Cubes in French Butter) is a favorite of carnivores in the vicinity! Friendly, and less cramped than the Thai places. Average meal $10-$12
  
• Vynl Diner - 54th and 9th. Friendly and funky. Food is a mix of diner and Southeast Asian. Tends to be happy and noisy. Average meal $15
  
• Renaissance Diner - 51st & 9th - open 24 hours. Enormous menu, slightly upscale diner. Reliable, decent and you know it's always open after a late show. I guess I think of it as a fixture because it's where I ate (with Manhattnik) on 9/11/01. Nobody ate at home that day, it seemed. Average meal $12-15 but you can easily spend less.
  

Now that I've written this, I'm hungry

[Estelle]

Leigh, I've just had a look at the web site of the hôtel Castex, and it's not especially chep any longer indeed!

A decent very cheap hotel I've heard about is the hotel Flatters in the Quartier Latin (5th arrondissement) near the Port-Royal station, my brother stayed there several time when he had to come to Paris for some exams and there were single rooms for less than 45 euros

(but it's only one-star, so don't expect something wonderful...)

Finding good restaurants not too expensive in the neighborhood of the Opera Garnier is not that easy... Two days ago we discovered, thanks to a friend, a restaurant which offers typical food of Southwest France (it is associated to a farm in Corrèze) at really low prices, all main courses (cassoulet, confit de canard, magret de canard...) are below 9 euros and even the wines are quite cheap. It's called "domaine de Lintillac"- but if you don't like duck food better not go there...

Else there are some restaurants on the Boulevard des Italiens, but most of them are not very original and are often crowded.

Now, if you don't care about the price, you can try the "café de la Paix" on the Place de l'Opéra...

[Ari]

Now that I no longer live in New York, I've come to rely on Priceline for hotels. Some of you may be familiar with the system — you bid on a room in a hotel of your choice of location and rating (two to five stars) and if your bid is accepted, you are booked for that room (you don't discover the name of your hotel until after your bid is accepted). It sounds risky, but I've used it three or four times and have been pleased. Last year I paid $100/night for a room at the Hilton (once the one on Sixth Ave. in the Fifties, and once the one on 42nd St.). The best deals come as close as possible to your date of stay.

[Tracey]

Another good website for last minute (6 weeks) worldwide hotels is www.laterooms.com.

This is where hotels put their rooms up for sale when they're not booked. All ratings of hotels from guest houses up. On our last 2 trips to London to see RB we stayed in the 5* Grosvenor House, Park Lane for £116 reduced from £455, and the 5* Radisson Hampshire, Leicester Sqare for £99 reduced from £435!! Those are room prices, not per person!

We train and tube it in there, breakfast in MacDonalds, but have a sumptious hotel room!!

Our next trip is in June but is on a 'school' night, so we'll be coming straight back after the performance !

Tracey

[Roma]

Well, I just returned from a trip to St.Petersburg and Paris. Saw Pavlenko in Swan Lake which pretty much made the whole trip worth it, too me. In Paris we weren’t as lucky. It was under a Neumeier occupation (Nijinsky at Garnier, Sylvia at the Bastille), but seeing Legris dance was quite something. (During Sylvia, my gaze wondered, and I saw Estelle sitting a few rows in front of me! I called after her at the end, but she didn’t hear me ) Even off- season, hotels in Paris aren’t cheap, though it is possible to find something very reasonable. We stayed at Hotel St. Roch (on rue St. Roch in the 1st arrd.) a block away from Tuilleries and a ten-minute walk from the Opera (from 60-100 euros, everything else in that area is upwards $150). It was simple, but very clean and very quiet (great little restaurant right across the street—La Cordonnerie). Right next to it is its “sister” Hotel St.Honore. (I found www.123france.com extremely helpful in planning this trip). Airfare is probably cheapest in the winter, and there are NO TOURISTS, so you don’t have to stand in line for anything.

As for Russia… it’s a bit more complicated. It really does need to be well planned way in advance (since the Mariinsky only posts its schedule two months in advance, and casting, for all intents and purposes, not at all, it’s difficult to know what you’ll be seeing at the time when tickets should already be ordered—definite downside) Airfare is 450- 600 in the winter, 700-900 in the summer, and the earlier you buy, the cheaper it is (if you are going to Russia only—from the States-- Finnair is probably best)

Getting a visa can be a hassle. You need a visa support letter (an invitation) from either a person or a tourist agency in Russia. If you get it from a tourist agency or a hostel (I am not sure if a hotel can issue one), find out at the Russian Consulate whether they will accept a support letter issued by that particular agency or hostel BEFORE you buy it (in most cases you do need to pay for it). I had a “slight” problem this time around when I came to the Consulate, oh, about two weeks before our trip, and was told that the hostel that issued my invite is no loner recognized as a legal entity. That was a nice surprise for me, and apparently for the hostel (International Hostel Holiday). Anyhow, once you are inside the country, you have to get yourself registered with a local OVIR branch (they keep track of foreigners), but if you are staying at a hostel/hotel, they should take care of that for you. If you are there for at least a couple of weeks, it’s viable to rent an apartment (last time I did that, I paid about $250-a month- for a studio in the city center), but then you are completely on your own, and if you don’t speak any Russian at all, it can get complicated. In fact, if you’ve never been to St. Petersburg, have no friends there, going for just a few days, and don’t know the language, it might be easier to go with a group or to stay in an American style hotel (like the Sheraton, a.k.a. Nevsky Palace). It ain’t cheap, but it’s less hairy.

Theater tickets can be bought from a scalper (they deliver or can be found in front of the Mariinsky before any performance). If you don’t want the hassle, get the tickets at the box office (or though your concierge), but keep in mind that there is a separate (higher) rate for tourists (tickets for natives are blue, yellow for foreigners).

Once you get there, pick up a copy of the St. Petersburg Times (it’s free), it comes out once a week and has all the pertinent theater, movies, restaurant, etc, information. That’s pretty much it. Oh, end of May, June—best weather, white nights:)

[Estelle]

So you were at that "Sylvia"? (When reading your post, I first thought "but how did she know what I look like?" before remembering the wedding photographs thread ;) ) I'm sorry not to have noticed you- well, I had no idea someone was looking for me, and my husband and I went home quite quickly to have dinner! That's a missed opportunity I agree that seeing Legris is quite something- well, that was the main reason why I attended that performance!

[Roma]

Originally posted by Estelle

I agree that seeing Legris is quite something- well, that was the main reason why I attended that performance!

Same here! I have to say, that even in the complete and utter c... that is Neumeier's Sylvia, Legris was mesmerizing.

Perhaps we can meet the next time we go to Paris .

[grace]

i admire (and am envious of) you ALL.

[Petra]

Thank you all - those who travel and those who live in the places other (want to) travel to - for your wonderful reports. This board is the best:cool:

[BW]

Since the seasons have already begun in many places, I thought I would bump this topic back up in case it might come in handy.

[aspirant]

I am traveling to Greece for a dance conference next month in Naxos. Any tips or tricks would be helpful to hear.

I have also on a number of occasions traveled for ballet purposes and stayed with friends (or friends of friends of friends...).

[koshka]

OK, my tips:

For St Petersburg: if you email the Mariinsky and explain that you are trying to plan a trip, they might be able to send you the schedule for the whole season. This was my experience last year, anyway. They were very nice. Also, you can reserve/order tickets directly by email, which worked out wonderfully.

(7 days in St Petersburg, of which I attended Mariinsky performance on 4 and a student performance on one!)

Travel to Russia is, regrettably, still a major bureaucratic hassle. For this reason, it might be worth considering package tours and just picking and choosing the activities. The prices can be very competitive with airfare + moderate hotel. I have been to Russia about 10 times and I always keep this option in mind.

The St Petersburg theaters continue to have dual pricing for foreigners and locals, but I hear that the Moscow theaters have finally done away with it.

Other places: it can be very difficult to get schedules in advance unless you have a very specific goal (eg specific theater or company). However, nowadays most major theaters have an email address through which some information can be obtained (eg the Mariinsky and also the opera house in Sofia, which promptly replied to a query about a month ago).

Otherwise, check a local paper for theater information and/or ask at your hotel and keep your eyes peeled for posters/etc. I caught a wonderful performance in Athens last weekend (POB at an ancient outdoor theater) because I spotted a poster and then looked up the information in the newspaper.

[Mashinka]

Here in London the "bureaucratic hassles" have simply increased over the years and I'm hearing horror stories of people having to abort their trips to Russia beacause their visas weren't processed in time. Visas can now cost up to £120 plus a surcharge if you have an EU passport. I seriously believe that these people are running some sort of racket.

[Funny Face]

FANTASTIC THREAD. :yes:

Hope this can remain as a perpetual mainstay. It's a great source of information -- the kind you could never get anywhere else.

While I've traveled extensively to perform, schedules are such that I could never see much ballet while traveling, except for Montreal.

However, it has been wonderful to be in festivals with ethnic dance companies from all over the world and to be staying in the same facilities with them for weeks at a time. One of my all time favorite membories was teaching the Notre Dame Fight Song to a rowdy gang of Soviet Georgians late one night in our dorm. These, by the way, are the fellas who dance en pointe without pointe shoes. They are in full soldier regalia complete with swords, and do mind boggling turns in the air, landing on one knee, etc. They are -- dare I say -- the sexiest dancers I have ever seen. Years ago, there was a commercial for Dannon Yogurt that featured dancers from Soviet Georgia -- the message was that if you eat this food you'lll dance like this when you're 100 years old.

It may not be nearly as exotic as other ports of call, but I've gone with friends to Jackson for the IBC, and when that rolls around again, I'll be glad to share all relevant information.

[Leigh Witchel]

What the heck, let's revive this thread again with a tip!

I just found out on a travel board (www.flyertalk.com) that American Airlines is having a major sale on San Francisco-JFK flights - in either direction. I just got one for next March (SFB's programs 4 and 5) for $137 round trip - including taxes. Cheapest I've seen it in years.

My guess is this fare will be gone in a day or two so if you're in SF and want to visit NYC to see the ballet or vice versa, jump on it! www.aa.com .

[koshka]

The Bolshoi and Kirov/Mariinsky now have their fall schedules up online--no need to beg their office by email. :-)

Sadly, it remains a hassle to travel to Russia as an independent tourist. :-(

[Mashinka]

Sadly, it remains a hassle to travel to Russia as an independent tourist.

Yes, a major hassle and what’s more it gets far more difficult as the years go by rather than easier. The cost of visas is an outrage and on my last trip I was actually made to pay a surcharge (of the equivalent of $30) for having an Irish passport!

Another recent problem in Moscow has been the demolishing of the old Soviet era hotels by developers making it near impossible to find accommodation at a reasonable price in the centre of the city. In fact there is an article in today’s Moscow Times announcing the demolition of yet another tourist hotel. Well worth reading as it sums up the attitude of the Russian authorities to visitors to their city. http://www.themoscowtimes.com/stories/2004/08/11/040.html

I stayed at this hotel on my last visit to Moscow. It is located at the back of Red Square and is within walking distance of the Bolshoi theatre. Yes the service at the reception desk was very slow and rather poor, but there was nothing wrong with the actual rooms and as for the statement:

"It is a murky hotel -- dirty windows, dirty books, dirty clientele," said one Western hotel consultant".

What a disgraceful thing to say! I would like to make it quite clear as someone who can be ranked as part of this hotel's clientele - I am not dirty!

If I want to see a Russian company in the future I’ll go to see them on tour. After a number of visits dating back to 1974 I’m now in the mood to call it a day, I doubt if I’ll be going back in a hurry.

[sylphide]

I recently came back from a wonderful trip to Saint-Petersburg. Everything went extremely well. I was travelling indepedently with my mother. We encountered NO PROBLEMS watsoever. I cannot say for myself that:

Sadly, it remains a hassle to travel to Russia as an independent tourist

.

I wouldn't ever go back there in a group. I need my freedom when I travel, and I found that it is a great way to interact with local people and get a more real feel of the surrounding way of life. Of course we had to plan the visa arrangments ahead of time. But once you know that you need it to travel there, I just can't see where the problem is. Every country has their plus and minuses. Saint-Pete. has such a wealth of culture that I found this a small price to pay to have acces to all this beauty. I went to the Mariinsky and bought various tickets from cheap to expensive, depending on what was left. However, this was always cheaper than what our hotel was suggesting. I absolutely do not regret having travelled that far to see my favorite company perform in its hometown.

I plan on going back next year. But that is just me.

[koshka]

sylphide is quite right that, once there, being in St Petersburg is a delight and largely hassle-free. I enthusiastically recommend it and remember fondly all of my visits there, even the ones where luggage got lost and parasites attacked my stomach.

It's the getting there that's a bother--arranging for a Russian visa typically takes about a month and costs about $100-200 for US citizens (not sure about EU) when all is said and done--photos, mailing, processing, etc. AND one must have prepaid hotel reservations, which is fine if you need a hotel but bothersome and expensive if you don't. (Private visit visas are possible but entail another layer of bother and expense on the part of hosts plus about the same cost for the traveler.)

Ticket purchases _can_ also be problematic. St Petersburg still has 2-tier pricing for foreigners and locals at certain theaters, which means that in principle one cannot just cruise by the corner ticket kiosk and see what's available. Sometimes they will refuse to sell the tickets to foreigners at all, and other times the ticket-takers at the theater will inform you that you need to go somewhere and pay extra. Of course, if you go directly to the theater, it's no fuss at all and online purchases are possible.

It's just a lot more bothersome than, say, flying to Paris for a week. I would go to St Pete a lot more often if the logistical arrangements were easier, and since St Pete is such a gem, it saddens me that the obstacles exist. Maybe in another ten years they won't.

[Leigh Witchel]

Resurrecting this thread, boy howdy, if you're considering a vacation, the USA is on sale. With the low dollar, maybe this is the time to see NYCB, ABT, SFB or any of our other companies?

From Britain, American Airlines is offering discounted flights all through 2005 - http://www.aa.com/content/uk/specialOffers/rbs.jhtml

NYCB's winter season is Jan. 4-Feb 27, performances Tues-Sat. NY weather is cold-ish but usually not miserable (except when it is. . .) I can't say there's a must see week - check the schedule at nycballet.com. Undiscounted tickets at NYCB are as low as $30, and can be found for less usually. That's a good less than GBP20 for a decent seat. Food's a bargain in comparison too.

So come and visit. You can see just how weird a nation we are for yourself!

[carbro]

For a visitor planning on buying four individual tickets or two pairs to NYCB, if you're going on the cheap, consider a membership to theFourth Ring Society. It costs $20 and entitles bearer to buy two tickets in the eponymous Fourth Ring (normally $30) for $15 each. There is no limit on the number of performances, but only two tix per evening/matinee. Plus, there's a $6 handling fee. So it pays for itself on the fourth ticket, if my quick mental calculations are correct. Membership is annual, covering both Winter and Spring seasons within a calendar year.

[Mary J]

For anyone coming to New York, the two hotels closest to Lincoln Center, the Empire and the Mayflower, are both closed! My guess is they will be demolished for more expensive high rise apartment buildings. I used to be able to find relatively inexpensive rooms at the Mayflower from time to time, and it was quiet and charming - the suites had little kitchens and comfortable sitting rooms - I guess those days are gone.