Trip Through Europe 2006-Tight Budget!

[hawky018]

5 friends and I are planning a trip through Europe next summer after graduation and several of us are on a tight budget. I could really use some advice on flights, trains, and especially hostels. If we can keep our hostel costs low and use the hostel system the best way possible, it would really help us out. We are planning on spending between 3 and 4 weeks in Western Europe. Any and all advice is welcome and would really be appreciated!

[ivybell]

Try Eastern Europe unless you are totally set on Western Europe. Fly into Frankfurt then go to Poland, Czech Republic, Croatia, Bosnia, Hungary, etc. I've heard great things about Poland and the others, and was just in Croatia and Bosnia. Both are quite nice, and the coast of Croatia will be warm and sunny, it is also very Italian influenced on the coast-similar food, geography, roman ruins. Much cheaper-$50 dollars a day at most including transportation was what I spent, with some countries a little less.
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[Atle]

Sounds like you are really set on Western Europe, but a good way to make your trip a lot cheaper would be to spend say 40-50% of your time in Eastern European countries as Ivybell also suggested. Poland and the Czech Republic are two great alternatives, and it's not like they are less fun alternatives - Prague for instance is totally awesome, with its great nightlife and beautiful scenery, so is Krakow in Poland.
HAVE FUN!

[ivybell]

Sorry, I should have given some advice on the West also. It will really depend on where you live as to where the cheapest flight to Europe will be. Usually Frankfurt, London, and Amsterdam are the cheapest, but it also depends on if you want to see the UK or not. Once there, Ryanair, Easyjet, Skywings, bmibaby, Snowflake and other budget flights might work. Buses are often cheaper than trains, but not always, try www.lonelyplanet.com for a listing of sites with the prices. They are also a really good forum for all sorts of information. I'm guessing you're from the US, so I'll say that I've found most hostels to be an average of $20.00 a night, a little more in say, London, Paris, and less in Eastern Europe. Most are quite nice, you can be as social or anti-social as you like...most are clean, comfortable and well placed in the cities. They often have kitchens and sometimes breakfast so you could save money in those ways. Otherwise, finding food at markets and grocery stores should help keep your costs down. Many of the museums and the like are free in London, and if you can prove that you are under 26 or a student, many other countries will give you a discount on those kind of sites. Don't try to fit too much in-more frequent traveling will cost more and try to use over-night trains on long journies so you don't lose a day and then also have to pay for a room. Come up with a general plan, but not one so tight that you leave no room for flexibilty. Don't spend all you time in big cities, the cost goes down grealty as you move out-by alot in the UK, London versus Bath or Wells is quite a change even for little things like a bottle of water. Read, read, travel books, magazines, maps, forums, then go and have fun. You can always get a job when you come back, so don't sacrifice your health, safety-espcially if female-or experience for a few dollars. Hope this helps. Sorry if a bit jumbled, just typing as it comes.
_________________
In three words I can sum up everything I've learned about life: It goes on.
Robert Frost

[hawky018]

I really appreciate all three of your responses. We have considered Eastern Europe as well, especially Prague and Austria and Poland. I didn't realize Krakow was an exciting place so thank you Atle. If it really is that much cheaper, we may consider changing the itinerary a bit. Grocery stores also sound like a good idea and it's good to know that museums and such can be cheaper if we're under 26. In terms of the hostels, is there some kind of universal hostel card or association-i've heard rumors of it but im not sure if it exists. Also, will reservations be needed in advance or are they pretty much open to walk into on a nightly basis? We were guessing around 20 dollars a night so it's nice to know that's true. Thanks ivybell for all the help.

[apreble]

I think I ended up paying about 25 EUROS average at a hostel. I think that's about $30 USD. I haven't known anyone to use a hostel card to their advantage. There are some organisations that you can become a member of- like (HI), but those hostels were usually full of families or large school groups. Depending on when and where you're going, you will need to make reservations. I had trouble starting the first week of June until I left at the end of July. I would always have to get on the internet to book a hostel in advance if I didn't want to spend an entire day looking for one with space when I got to a new city.

If you really want to go on the cheap, sometimes campgrounds will rent cheap tents or cabins, but usually they're not very convenient.

About eating in grocery stores: I really don't recommend it too often. Part of traveling is to experience the food of the country/region, unless everyone's a super picky eater. I was traveling alone so I wouldn't usually save money if I was going to the grocery to cook only for myself. I would also ALWAYS forget my food in the fridge, and it's pretty hard to keep up with foods that need to stay cold if you move around often.

Some countries are more expensive than others in W. Europe, too. Usually the further south you go, the cheaper it gets. Southern Spain, Portugal, and Italy are all pretty cheap. In the last several years, anything in Italy Rome or above seemed about as expensive as Paris.
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[Andronemi]

Before you make a decision on where to go, please take a look at a few Romanian travel sites - worth your time. To the point: one day trip would cost you $30 on average in eco resorts down the Carpathian mountains. Drop me a line for more questions. ;
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[kbazz1222]

then i was ever able to plan alone.
The same 25 days would of cost me between 3000 or more
Even other tour companies of the same type seem more expensive.

[snowguy716]

Do the hostels.

I was in Austria for 4 months last fall and will be there for 4 more this spring.. and I must say, it's well worth it.

Vienna and Munich both have a hostel called Wombats. We stayed there and it was well priced. The breakfast was EUR3.00 and it was pretty extensive. They also had a bar in the hostel that offered a happy hour and cheap drinks.. so you can save money that way and meet people from all over hte world. (We actually met a bunch of Canadians, some Australians, and of course Germans).

As far as eating out.. most European nations make restaurants post their menus outside the premesis, so you can check on prices before you go in. Keep in mind that, at least in Austria/Germany, that while the food is moderately priced, the drinks are very expensive. A small (like 8 oz.) of coke is around $3.00 and that doesn't include refills.. so I would recommend drinking water.. Water in Austria is safe out of hte tap, and the locals do drink tap-water. (It's also safe in Germany)

I visited Budweis in the Czech Republic in November and we ate at a delicious restaurant. We're talking a full plate of food with dessert and drinks for around $8.00.. you could easily have made it out for $5.. but our Czech friends complained to the waiter about "ripping off tourists".. so watch out. I also experienced problems in Italy with this.. so keep that in mind.

I would strongly recommend Austria and/or Germany. They are a bit more expensive, but you can do it cheap if you research right and are not afraid to look around.

#1 give-away of American tourists in Europe: (Besides hiking backpacks and baseball caps)... loud, guffawing laughs and saying "ummm"... I could always recognize my countrymen/women when they said "umm" because Austrians say "emmm"... I know it soudns weird, but it's true.

[WhirledPeas]

You can see prices of hostels & read reviews of them on hostelz.com. Another feature that I liked is when you enter in a city, some people have reviewed the cities and tell you what was fun, what was a waste of money, whether it was worth going or not.

Also, read about whether hostels have kitchens or not, and stay in the hostels that have kitchens and free breakfast.

My advice: If any of your friends have birthdays coming up, they can maybe ask their parents for a plane ticket, a eurail ticket, or a good backpack as a gift.