<p>My son will be heading to Europe for the first time to attend one game at the World Cup. He and 2 friends will travel to Munich, Berlin, Copenhagen, and Amsterdam over a two week period. I must first let you know that this is my child that only wears khaki short and khaki long pants. He does own two pairs of jeans, and is also the owner of several dress pants, sport coat, suit and ties; but his daily uniform is a pair of khakis and either a polo shirt or t-shirt, and docksiders without socks! He has dressed this way since elementary school and only started wearing jeans at all in college.</p>
<p>One of the boys he is traveling with has been to Europe several times. He told my son that he shouldn’t wear khaki shorts in Europe because it would make his stand out as Europeans do not wear shorts. Being that I have never been to Europe, I can not advise him on this matter, but I would think during the summer men would wear shorts. Am I wrong?</p>
<p>What would you advise a 22 year old to wear to the game, out and about during the day, and in the evenings? I have no idea what all the boys will do while touring; I would assume the usual tourist stuff as well as watching other games in the pubs!</p>
<p>okay, no saggy baggy droopy pants…we never saw them when we were there last year, expect on tacky amercian teen boys</p>
<p>so many people will be there this summer to see the world cup, shorts won’t’ be noticed at all, cause everyone is a tourist and no one will care…it the WORLSD cup remember, so the dress makes no difference, expect those awful droopy pants…those are only in america styles, cause , well, ick…</p>
<p>my concern would be pickpockets…its gonna be a great opportunity for that, so warn him to put wallet in front pocket, and pin it closed, and a money belt is not a bad idea…cause remember, he is 22, so a few beers may be had, and he doesn’t want to lose his wallet etc</p>
<p>As soon as he gets there, he should get a world cup shirt and wear that, cause everybody else will be!!!</p>
<p>Stay away from logos (Polo, Hilfiger, etc.). It’s like wearing a neon sign that says “American Tourist!”.</p>
<p>I personally wouldn’t wear any team’s shirt to the event (World Cup general merch is fine). Football fans are notoriously rowdy and aggressive (anyone see the racism special on ESPN?).</p>
<p>Oh please, you can wear anything you can at home. The real joke in Europe is that Americans wear white socks. But really, I wouldn’t invest a dime in new clothes. In Amsterdam, most people are too high to notice what anyone is wearing. Berlin is a cosmopolitan city where anything goes. Munich, well the Germans always find something to complain about. So unless they’re going to top restaurants, in which case a jacket over the khakis is necessary, don’t give it a second thought.</p>
<p>I stand by the not wearing the basggy saggy droopy fall down pants…just cause I can’t stand them, and to be honest, with those crowds, comfort is paramount</p>
<p>Oh that is just ridiculous. Why do Americans think they can (or even want to) look like Europeans? Europeans do not wear shorts as much as we do, but young people certainly do, and especially in the bigger cities. Can you spot a European tourist here? Yes! But who cares???</p>
<p>Perhaps the only exception as I see it are tourists (of all brands) who have their noses buried in a guide book or a map (or behind a camera), and I don’t think it matters what they look like, I think it matters that they’re missing what’s going on around them.</p>
<p>I wasn’t as concerned that he looked like a tourist as much as would it be inappropriate to wear shorts, at least to the game. I believe once my son speaks, it will be a dead giveaway that he is american!</p>
<p>I have questioned my son and have found out that a few of their plans are to visit Dachau, the BMW plant, a few art museums, and the Tivoli Gardens as well as a few pubs and any where there is food; this boy loves to eat!! I am sure there are other things they will be doing, but mom here does know it all.</p>
<p>I believe they are only staying in hostels and in Berlin they are staying at one of the boys professor’s house! So my next question is-how does one pack when they are moving around a good bit? My son can not fit 2 weeks worth of clothes in a backpack. One of the boys, the one that has traveled a good bit, is taking underclothing that he can throw away!! I know there is a better idea than that. I am assuming that my son’s rolling duffle that I thought he would take might not be a great idea??</p>
<p>We took 5 weeks of clothes in a backpack - the large travel kind with shoulder straps and padded waistbelt that can be stashed inside a zippered back so that they won’t get snagged on the luggage carousel! And both of my early teenage kids carried their own backpacks. Look at the Rick Steves website for packing lists and packing tips. You need a lot less than you think! Regarding shorts: when we were in Denmark our relies walked around in shorts, eating ice cream. We were FREEZING in our winter jackets at the same time and temperature. It’s safe to leave the shorts at home; he probably won’t get heatstroke and that is one less thing to carry. :)</p>
<p>It’s very easy to fit 2 weeks worth of clothes in a backpack. Plan on doing laundry once. You need 2 pairs of pants, a pair of shorts, 6 shirts, 6 underware. You wear the 7th shirt, second pair of shorts, and 7th underware. You wear the one pair of shoes. Everyone does it. I’ve travelled through Europe and Asia with kids from all over the world, all had only a backpack and none had throw away underware.</p>
<p>My H can pack 2 weeks worth of clothes in a backpack,and come home with only half worn…most guys are different, i have to tell you, when I see what my Ds need to carry in contrast, egad…remind son that if he wears the same shirt ten times in two weeks, no one cares, so long as he doesn’t smell funny…jk</p>
<p>i would bring a light rain proof wind breaker, it is summer, but it could rain or get chilly </p>
<p>If staying in hostels, check if they have linens, some do some don’t, also, flipflops for the showers, cause ewwww, and a combination lock (think school locker) many hostels have lockers to put belongings in while out, many hostels provide shampoo and have laundry facilities as well</p>
<p>citygirlsmom-Thanks for the tip on a lock; it would be great if there are lockers. As a college student, he is well aware of flip flops for the shower! I will have the boy that made the room reservations to check about linens; I would have never though to look into that. Can you tell I am not a seasoned traveller?</p>
<p>Well, I just got back from five days in the UK, and in Oxford many people were wearing shorts - students, townies, and tourists. No polo shirts in evidence, students were 85% in tee shirts and jeans or jean shorts. So no worries. He might want to bring one or two pairs of nicer pants and shirts for when he goes out in the evening.</p>
<p>The trouble is, Europeans wear a different style of jean which is not easily available in the US. Sometimes, European style clothing is marked down in US department stores. We’ve had good luck finding Euro style jeans and t-shirts at Nordstroms.</p>
<p>Not sure how old your son is but if he wants to go to clubs, he should get online and check out dress codes for clubs. My son complained that he didn’t have the wardrobe required to get into clubs in London.</p>
<p>I know I sound really dense, so please forgive me. If my son wears khaki long pants or khaki shorts with a short sleeve polo shirt (yes, they are Polo brand) other than looking like an American, is there a problem with this? As I mentioned before, he does also wear t-shirts, but most of them are from vacation spots, local sports teams, local bars, and frat shirts. I would be more concerned with him wearing his t-shirts as some of the sayings on then are not something I would want him wearing other than on campus!</p>
<p>Now that I’ve gotten past the clothing, he is staying in hostels; would it really be better for him to have a large knapsack for his luggage vs. a larger rolling duffle? Seems like people like the back packs better. Is it really stupid for him to use something that can’t be carried on his back? I think this rolling duffle has sholder straps, but it is a long piece of luggage so I would think walking with it on his back would be bulky.</p>
<p>The boys will all have ipods, cameras, and cell phones; will they have access to outlets at the hostels to charge these items? I was thinking maybe for them to take some sort of power strip for them to all use to charge their stuff. I don’t think everything would need charging everyday.</p>
<p>converter: better keep that in mind. Don’t want to fry your “stuff”.</p>
<p>You haven’t mentioned how these guys are transferring place to place. Catching a train while dragging a rolling back isn’t fun. Stuffing a rolling bag into a locker can be hard also. People have preferences on baggage. All folks here can share their experiences but think of the style of travel. How many days in a particular city w/o trains/plains/buses.</p>