I have been following this comm for a long time! Now my time is nearer, I really need to consult everyone. Please guide me!
Hey guys, I have a travel journal set up at www.xezabelx.com so please check it out. I have a lot of questions regarding my 4.5-month European backpacking trip that starts in early August through mid-December!
1. Here is my itinerary for the 4.5 months. Is it plausible? I plotted it according to the official Eurail map I downloaded in PDF from the site, following its tracks so I get to the next closest place possible in the shortest time. I’ve even opted out of visiting Portugal, sadly, because it was too far in for me. I might make time for it if I can. Each city, I would be staying for at least three nights, more in bigger cities and affordable ones like Eastern Europe. Give and take the travel time. Here:
Europe
9/8-16/8: London, England
17/8-20/8: Stockholm, Sweden
21/8-24/8: Copenhagen, Denmark
25/8-28/8: Hamburg, Germany
29/8-3/9: Prague, Czech Republic
4/9-8/9: Budapest, Hungary
9/9-13/9: Bucharest, Romania
14/9-19/9: Athens, Greece
20/9-24/9: Rome, Italy
25/9-29/9: Florence, Italy
30/9-3/10: Munich, Germany
4/10-9/10: Venice, Italy
10/10-13/10: Milan, Italy
14/10-17/10: Lausanne, Switzerland
18/10-21/10: Geneva, Switzerland
22/10-25/10: Lourdes, France
26/10-30/10: Madrid, Spain
31/10-4/11: Barcelona, Spain
5/11-6/11: Ibiza, Spain
7/11-10/11: Bordeaux, France
11/11-19/11: Paris, France
20/11-23/11: Amsterdam, Netherlands
24/11-27/11: Cologne, Germany
28/11-3/12: Berlin, Germany
4/12-8/12: Vienna, Austria
9/12-12/12: Salzburg, Austria
13/12-16/12: Nuremberg, Germany
17/12-18-12: Frankfurt, Germany
I am a Singaporean, flying from Singapore Changi Airport to London-Heathrow in August. From there, I will most likely take a cheap flight up to Scandinavia, reaching Sweden as you can see. I haven’t really considered any airlines but I checked that the prices would almost be the same to taking Eurostar to Paris or Brussels, am I right?
2. I will not be going alone. I will have one female and one male friend, both Americans, with me on this trip. We will be staying in hotels and divide the price by three. That’s plausible, too, right? And how much is advisable for a verrrrrrry budget stay per day? I have always been living on simple things. I don’t eat a full breakfast, I almost always skip meals (not a bad thing, it’s a habit because I’d rather spend it on sights and sounds) so I can get by on simple sandwiches and yogurt. According to Rick Steves’ daughter here, she gets by on almost 70 USD a day. Is it possible if I do less? I read that it is possible you’d spend only €20 on some days and as much as €100 on more "happy" days. Give and take, what would you suggest?
I do these things:
- clubs
- museums
- natural scenery
- walking
- simple things like people watch, chill at a fountain, photography to pass time
I don’t need restaurants or souvenirs (maybe just a few) and I can be pretty Scrooge when it comes to budgeting. I will most likely pass a pricey attraction but I’d pay for concerts and music festivals and amusement parks!
Right now I have about 2000 USD and will be saving at least 400 USD for 7 more months making my total spending amount (for food, accommodation and attractions) about 2800 USD more, about almost 5000 USD in total. For four months excluding travel fare (rail and plane). Crap… Sounds little of a sudden. How much should I save? How much should I bring for a simple, easy, budget trip? And I plan to couchsurf too towards Christmas. But here this couple did 5 months on 80 USD for TWO people. :O Help? Let me know what you think of my budget. How much more do I need? The most, I’ll skip Scandinavia entirely, probably cut the Christmas markets (but the reason I stretched it is to enjoy a long time in Europe until the Christkindlmarkts in Germany and Austria, thus it being placed at the end of my trip). Or maybe I will cut Greece out as well since it’s pretty out of the way.
3. I plan for two Eurail passes (Global Youth Pass: 10 days within 2 months) which is 580 USD each, making it 1160 USD. Is it better than getting the 3-month pass? Considering my number of stops, I’d possibly cut a few more places.
Europe
9/8-16/8: London, England (possibly squeezing in Ireland for Scandinavia that was deleted)
17/8-20/8: Stockholm, Sweden
21/8-24/8: Copenhagen, Denmark 25/8-28/8: Hamburg, Germany
29/8-3/9: Prague, Czech Republic
4/9-8/9: Budapest, Hungary
9/9-13/9: Bucharest, Romania
14/9-19/9: Athens, Greece
20/9-24/9: Rome, Italy
25/9-29/9: Florence, Italy
30/9-3/10: Munich, Germany (for Oktoberfest)
4/10-9/10: Venice, Italy 10/10-13/10: Milan, Italy
14/10-17/10: Lausanne, Switzerland
18/10-21/10: Geneva, Switzerland
22/10-25/10: Lourdes, France
26/10-30/10: Madrid, Spain
31/10-4/11: Barcelona, Spain
5/11-6/11: Ibiza, Spain
7/11-10/11: Bordeaux, France
11/11-19/11: Paris, France
20/11-23/11: Amsterdam, Netherlands
24/11-27/11: Cologne, Germany (Germany and Austria for Christmas markets)
28/11-3/12: Berlin, Germany
4/12-8/12: Vienna, Austria 9/12-12/12: Salzburg, Austria
13/12-16/12: Nuremberg, Germany
17/12-18-12: Frankfurt, Germany
EDIT: Definitely I will make day trips and visit other smaller towns and cities like those mentioned in the comments suggested below. Thank you all. <3
The most I’d cut is this… I think. Suggestions? I still plan for four and a half months though. Is it possible to do my first schedule above with 5000USD over four and a half months?
Thanks for reading!
Post will be deleted by the weekend thanks!
