Backpacking?

Question

i am planning on bacpacking through europe in the summer for three or four weeks. is this long enough? i was thinking of going with either one or three friends, any great places to go, cheap accomodation, cheap transport? how much money will i need roughly, for food, accomodation, travel, experiences, bars, etc

preferably anyone who has done this recently

Answer 1

I went backpacking around Europe about 15 years ago (when the rail tickets only included Western Europe in the ticket). i did eight countries in 4 weeks and I was rushed. I was continually on the move and just sightseeing without really experiencing life in the cities I was visiting (I was averaging a ocuple of nights per town/city).

Four weeks is long enough to cover half of Europe if you are rushing around and just sightseeing. However, what I would suggest is to select about four countries and spend the four weeks visting those countries. Europe is just too big to cover properly in a month.

Transport would be by rail. If you are European, you can get info on Interrail ticket http://www.interrail.net/ or a Eurail ticket http://www.eurail.com/ if you are non European. You can buy the tickets from Rail Europe - do a google search from your own country so that you are directed to the Interrail or Eurail sections appropriately.

Accomodation will be in youth hostels. There will lots of Internation Youth Hostel Federation (IYHF) hostels around, as will independants. The IYHF hostels run underthe brand name Hosetlling International (HI) and their website http://www.hihostels.com/ can be used to book the major HI hostels. However, if you are interrailing, there is not much in booking because your plans are likely to change on a day to day basis - you may as well get to the city and turn up at the hostel. Hostels also have kitchens so you can buy food at the supermarket and cook yourself.

However, if you are going during the peak summer months (July and August), just turning up may not be a good idea as they may get booked out. I would travel May/June or September/October. The climate will be more comfortable, the season will still be open and less crowds.

Have a flick through the Lonely Planet http://www.lonelyplanet.com/ publications for Europe for ideas. However, Greece is a good country to visit. Paris and London are great cities, as are their respective countries. Not sure I enjoyed Germany as a tourist, although Berlin is another great city.

The closer you get to the Med, the cheaper it becomes.

Answer 2

Two or three weeks is not a lot of time to see one country, let alone Europe; but if that's all you have make the most of it. Concentrate on three or four places that you can get the feel of, instead of doing multiple countries. You'll need at least a few days to absorb the culture. I suggest you go on line to RickSteves.com Rick Steves wrote the guide book "Europe Through the Back Door", and he is a wealth of information to make you trip enjoyable. He know the best places to stay, and the best ways to travel on low money.

Answer 3

Backpacking around Europe I have not done. But I have lived here for almost 22 years off and on. I am an American working for the US Government. But I do travel a lot with my Harley Davidson around Europe.

Highly recommend a membership with the international hostels.
http://old.web02.djh.de/international/html/

Then get their guide to Hostel around Europe.. No cheaper way to go other then sleeping in the forest illegally.

The Hostels in Europe are usally clean and cheap, more so then in North America. Some are actually comparable to hotels.

Have fun.

Cheap transportation for long trips
Http://www.bahn.de German train site. They offer trips like from Munich to Budapest for around $40 round trip
http://www.ryanair.com budget airline in and around Europe. Some flights as cheap as $0.05 yeah.. 5 cents. Book early and with an open itinerary you could fly to all the main places in Europe for next to nothing.

Answer 4

you can go for that long, just choose your places. if you buy some lonely planet books it will give you up to date info on where to go, what to see, where to stay and how much evereything costs. i've backpacked around the world and they were brilliant.