Any advice about travelling this summer!?

Question

Im 21 and im sick of my 8-5.30pm job! Before i settle down etc i want to travel... so this summer im going to do it.

Im british and want to stay in the E.U this year, possibly travelling and working in summer hotspots like Greece, Ibiza and Spain.

Any advice like how much money we will need to cover accomodation and food.

This is my first time travelling, so any advice would be fab. also i wouldnt mind hearing of any past travelling trips!?

thanks guys, hope u all have a fantastic summer!

Answer 1

well your right to travel. I went to Crete last summer which is really good greek island for fun. i worked and lived in hersonnasis which was full of bars and restaurants..... I Loved it. i ended up working behind a bar even though I had no bar experience but I soon learned I got to meet different people everynite and the tips you make are brilliant. Our accomodation was right beside the beach and it was just so relaxing after the mad nightlife over there. I would recommend you to bring at €2000 with you so that you can live comfortable. it means if you don't get a job straight away that you can still afford to go out and sightsee during the day.I will advise you that if your renting a moped or car over there to watch the roads as they don't seem to have any road rules over there!!!but all in all my summer in crete last year was the best time ever and i met some of my bestest mates over there.

Answer 2

Once you start travelling it becomes very addictive! Many British people talk about living abroad, very few actually do it.

I think you are wise to stay within the EU if you are not a seasoned traveller. You can always go further afield at a later stage. I am British and have spent most of the last 9 years living abroad (Finland, Cyprus, Japan, Hong Kong, South of France). I am in Slovakia now. Each place has been very different.

Finding a job is not always easy. Bear in mind that you will most likely be earning a local salary which might not be as high as your current job. Try to be as flexible as possible, and accept different work practices.

Have you thought about getting a job as a holiday rep.? It would probably be safer for you to arrange employment before you go. (I haven't always done this myself!) All the major British holiday companies recruit for the summer season in the destinations you mention, plus your accommodation would be sorted.

Good luck!

Answer 3

Greece go to Mykanos or Corfu for island fun. Athens is great for the culture and the Acropolis. Lets see there is Mount Olympus, Thessaloniki( I lived there for a year) Temple of Delphi is a lovely day trip from Athens. Crete is a beatiful Island. Rent a moped and travel all around. As fars as spain goes. I have only been to Costa Del Sol in Nerja. It was a beatiful and fun place, but it has been thirty years since my visit. I now go to Costa Rica. I highly recomend it and you can live the whole summer on $3000.

Answer 4

Often in tourist areas, accomodation and/or food is provided by the employer - it depends. This you can negotiate. In any case, bear in mind that -at least in Greece- you will be exploited as a summer worker. In general, accommodation tends to be rather expensive in August - it also depends on the lenght of your stay at one place (as a tourist it can vary according to place and time, but don't expect something less than 20 euros per person.
If you choose to work, the money is not great, I mean you will barely cover your expenses (i.e. booze) it is however fun to combine work and holiday. In any case, April is a good month to start searching for a job in bars, hotels, travel agencies, souvenir shops etc.

This might help you, it used to have postings of jobs in the hospitality sector.
http://ec.europa.eu/eures/main.jsp?lang=en&acro=job&catId=482&parentCategory=482

Answer 5

I'd suggest you buy an interrailing ticket for 2 or 3 zones, so you can travel France, Spain Portugal, Italy, Switzerland ... or alternatively try the BusAbout option ...

Where to Stay:
You should plan on staying in hostels, that way you will only have to pay about €10 to €15 euros a night for a bed in a comfortable, safe, clean place (usually close to the sights) plus you will meet loads of other like minded travellers like yourself who want to see the same things as you...and have fun too!

For working:
Ask in the hostels, you can hopefully either do a few days work and sleep for free, or they'll tell you about jobs in local bars!

Budget:
Generally, you can take the cost of a hostel bed and multiply that by 3 to work out how much your daily budget is for any given city. For example, if the Gothic Point Hostel in Barcelona is €13 euros a night, then you daily budget for Barcelona is about €39 euros and your monthly budget in Spain is around €1200 euros (maybe some less if you spend a long time in the south). If the cost of the bst, nicest hostel in Florence (Ostello G'Allo D'oro) is €18, then the daily cost of Florence is around €54 euros...

What to Read:
You should buy a copy of Lonely Planet - Europe On A Shoestring or maybe Let's Go Europe to give youself some ideas...and perhaps Rough Guide First Time Europe as well

My suggested dream itinerary for 3 to 4 months in Europe:
Take a cheap flight with Ryanair to Portugal, visit Lagos and Lisbon, head into Spain and work your way through Rhonda, Sevilla, Granada, Cordoba, up to Madrid, take day trips to Toledo and Segovia, head to Salamanca and Santiago De Compostela before taking the northern route to San Sebastien via Leon, then Bilbao, and finally Barclona ...

From Barcelona, get the ferry to Italy, see the Almafi Coast and Sorrento in the south along with Napoli before hitting Roma, then go through Verona on your way to Florence, with day trips to Assizi and Siena .... finish Italy with a few days at Cinque Terre

Now, either head North to the Swiss Alps for a little while (bearing in mind Switzerland is extremely expensive) then go to Germany and see Berlin, Potsdam and Dresden, before you head into France for your final few weeks

Or head south to Greece then Turkey
Or head east to Croatia and the Balkans

now THAT'S A TRIP to remember :)

And I haven't even mentioned all the stunning cities and towns in Estern Europe (Prague, Budapest, Krakow anyone?) or the Balkans (Split, Zagreb, Trogir, Pula, Dubrovnik in Croatia and Sarayevo and Mostar in Bosnia)

Oh, what about Turkey ... Turkey is a fantastic country, brilliant history, great beaches, nice food... easy to travel!

Travel Within Europe:
to get around, you can also save money on the long trips by using the budget airlines like Ryanair, Vueling (in Spain), and maybe Easyjet (links below) - you can search for cheap flights within Europe on the SkyScanner.Net website (link below). But you would also need an interrailing ticket or a BusAbout pass too...

To find hostels use Hostelworld.com

BUDGET:
To work out your budget, take the cost of a hostel in your city, and multiply that by 3, so if the best hostel in Barcelona costs €18 euros, then your budget for Barcelona is around €54 euros a day ... but of course it's cheaper in the South ...

What to Bring:
A good rucksack, some lightweight, durable quick-drying clothes (3 of each!), a good guidebook, phrasebook, deck of cards, a yearning to see more and more, have fun, meet people, and a sense of adventure!

For more advice, you should ask on the Lonely Planet Thorntree - it's the worlds largest independant and backpackers travel forum...

A couple more sites to check out might be GapYear.Com ... or STATravel.Com

Finally, consider going to some of the great European festivals while on your travels... like La Merce in Barcelona, or St James Day in Santiago De Compostela, or the Rhine in Flames in Germany!

I put some links below...

Hope that helps, Happy Trails

Philip