Trying to start planning a 3 month trip to europe with my partner in september this year where 24! so looking for some suggestions where you guys have been? is it worth doing contiki or bus-about for a month or have people just winged it! Any suggestions would be great maybe a top 5 of where you have been and why? would be great so we can start shortlisting places! main countries atm we deffintly wanna see are Germany , Italy , France , Greece , England
Europe trip : )
- Thread starter tomlemke
- Start date
Depends on what kind of traveler you are.
Personally Im not a fan of the paid tours. You get lumped onto a bus and driven to all the usual spots - filled with other group tourists. Mostly these places pay a % back to the tour operators - so you may not get to see 'the best' but just the highest paying.
If you like a place, too bad, we are leaving tomorrow.
There are "jump on/jump off" tickets you can buy, which serve you better and give you more options. However, you are still stuck on the path you picked. If you want to detour off that chosen path, its going to be complicated and costly.
When I back packed, I picked a starting point and booked in for 7days. Then made decisions as I went. Its far more flexible, and you see things you never would have otherwise. However, there are some 'risks' involved and a lot of people cant handle that level of 'unknown'.
You choices of places are fairly bog standard and you cant go too far wrong.
With that list I would fly into Turkey (Istanbul from Aus) get a few days there, chuck in Greece on the way in.
Personally I would add in Prague to that list. As well as Iceland.
Otherwise there is a lot to see and do in each of the countries selected. I trust you are traveling by land to get to each place?
Have fun
Blacky
Personally Im not a fan of the paid tours. You get lumped onto a bus and driven to all the usual spots - filled with other group tourists. Mostly these places pay a % back to the tour operators - so you may not get to see 'the best' but just the highest paying.
If you like a place, too bad, we are leaving tomorrow.
There are "jump on/jump off" tickets you can buy, which serve you better and give you more options. However, you are still stuck on the path you picked. If you want to detour off that chosen path, its going to be complicated and costly.
When I back packed, I picked a starting point and booked in for 7days. Then made decisions as I went. Its far more flexible, and you see things you never would have otherwise. However, there are some 'risks' involved and a lot of people cant handle that level of 'unknown'.
You choices of places are fairly bog standard and you cant go too far wrong.
With that list I would fly into Turkey (Istanbul from Aus) get a few days there, chuck in Greece on the way in.
Personally I would add in Prague to that list. As well as Iceland.
Otherwise there is a lot to see and do in each of the countries selected. I trust you are traveling by land to get to each place?
Have fun
Blacky
I second what Blacky has said with it depending what kind of traveller you are & skipping paid tours. They're very fixed & you're stuck with whoever is on the bus. I personally haven't done the jump on jump off but that does give you much more flexibility. I tend do spend more time doing less .....if you want to see all the main sites either of the options above would work. If you want to be able to wander a bit, find out the fabulous, but a little off the tourist trail options, have the flexibility to stay an extra week cos you're sick of moving or just love where you are then flexibility is key.
At 25 I spent 3 months working in a pub in Edinburgh (TERRIBLE pay!!) then found a pal, bought a pushy & spent 3 months cycling through France, Belgium, Netherlands, Luxembourg, Germany, Italy & back into France. We linked a couple of sections with trains. I loved travelling that way and met so many people I would otherwise not have met. In 3 months we paid for camping only twice, either camping wild or with people along the way. Amazing experience. Till my buddy's bike got stolen then it all went a bit pear shaped, but anyway!
Train travel in Europe is easy & that's another option you could consider. There used to be train passes you could buy, I'm guessing they're still available which are pretty economical and a good way to cover lots of ground & still see some of the scenery. Will have a think about my top 5 places in Europe
At 25 I spent 3 months working in a pub in Edinburgh (TERRIBLE pay!!) then found a pal, bought a pushy & spent 3 months cycling through France, Belgium, Netherlands, Luxembourg, Germany, Italy & back into France. We linked a couple of sections with trains. I loved travelling that way and met so many people I would otherwise not have met. In 3 months we paid for camping only twice, either camping wild or with people along the way. Amazing experience. Till my buddy's bike got stolen then it all went a bit pear shaped, but anyway!
Train travel in Europe is easy & that's another option you could consider. There used to be train passes you could buy, I'm guessing they're still available which are pretty economical and a good way to cover lots of ground & still see some of the scenery. Will have a think about my top 5 places in Europe
Another option is to buy a car. When I was 24 we flew into Frankfurt, the next day bought a VW combi at a 2nd hand car market, then registered it, insured it, and picked up our hang gliders we had freighted separately from Australia. Then spent 3 months driving following the Alps down to the Pyrenees, hang gliding when we could. Drove 10,000 km and sold the car for a profit.
We didn?t see many cities, were more interested in the mountains but a car gives you real flexibility especially one you can sleep in, but if you?re more interested in cities only maybe not the best way.
We didn?t see many cities, were more interested in the mountains but a car gives you real flexibility especially one you can sleep in, but if you?re more interested in cities only maybe not the best way.
Considering the amount of time you're going for, i'd do a mix of both. We went last July for 6 weeks and a mixture proved great for us.
We did at 17 day (TopDeck) bus going from Paris -> Switzerland -> Italy -> Austria -> Amsterdam -> Belgium -> Paris which was great as you don't have to worry about anything (a half empty bus made sure there was plenty of room, some of the others we saw were quite jam packed)...where you're sleeping that night etc etc. We then mixed it up with 14 days of blind travelling, e.g. we picked a few countries that were close by to each other and went there. Did Belgium -> Berlin (horrible over night bus, would rather fly next time) -> Prague -> Croatia.
Then we did another "paid tour" which was sail croatia (by Bus-A-Bout) for 7 days where they visit all the different islands etc. Then spent a few more days in croatia.
After this, we still had another few weeks where we had nothing planned so we just picked two countries that we really enjoyed when we had the quick visit and went back to them. Ended up using Air BNB and getting an apartment in Paris and just doing whatever for a week and then same in Belgium.
I'd also say that Flying is cheaper than using their rail system, and if it's anymore than a 12 hour bus ride just do the 1-2 hour flight
We did at 17 day (TopDeck) bus going from Paris -> Switzerland -> Italy -> Austria -> Amsterdam -> Belgium -> Paris which was great as you don't have to worry about anything (a half empty bus made sure there was plenty of room, some of the others we saw were quite jam packed)...where you're sleeping that night etc etc. We then mixed it up with 14 days of blind travelling, e.g. we picked a few countries that were close by to each other and went there. Did Belgium -> Berlin (horrible over night bus, would rather fly next time) -> Prague -> Croatia.
Then we did another "paid tour" which was sail croatia (by Bus-A-Bout) for 7 days where they visit all the different islands etc. Then spent a few more days in croatia.
After this, we still had another few weeks where we had nothing planned so we just picked two countries that we really enjoyed when we had the quick visit and went back to them. Ended up using Air BNB and getting an apartment in Paris and just doing whatever for a week and then same in Belgium.
I'd also say that Flying is cheaper than using their rail system, and if it's anymore than a 12 hour bus ride just do the 1-2 hour flight
thanks for the response blacky i love the way you travelled but my partner likes having everything pre planned so hopefully we can have abit of both worlds we were thinking top deck because we thought you could pick how long you wanted to stay in each place i personally hate being rushed through every place just so you can say you have been their! my uncle actually told me yesterday to fly straight to istanbul then to the greek islands as it is almost the end of the season! ill check the other places uve mentioned and try and work out a route! thanks again
Haha - did our little conversation this arvo get you pumped up?
I'd give the tours a miss and do it yourselves. There's more freedom and flexibility.
I'd go east too - some of the Eastern European countries are amazing and relatively cheap. Montenegro for instance has some of the nicest beach towns I've ever seen. Bulgaria is awesome - lovely nature, good food, easy to get around and cheap.
Poland, Czech Republic, Slovakia, Hungary - all of the baltics, it's all awesome.
Western Europe is great too - and it's worth seeing the famous places but the money just doesn't last in those places for a young traveller.
I'm sure we'll talk more about this!
Cheers
Jamie
I second what Blacky has said with it depending what kind of traveller you are & skipping paid tours. They're very fixed & you're stuck with whoever is on the bus. I personally haven't done the jump on jump off but that does give you much more flexibility. I tend do spend more time doing less .....if you want to see all the main sites either of the options above would work. If you want to be able to wander a bit, find out the fabulous, but a little off the tourist trail options, have the flexibility to stay an extra week cos you're sick of moving or just love where you are then flexibility is key.
At 25 I spent 3 months working in a pub in Edinburgh (TERRIBLE pay!!) then found a pal, bought a pushy & spent 3 months cycling through France, Belgium, Netherlands, Luxembourg, Germany, Italy & back into France. We linked a couple of sections with trains. I loved travelling that way and met so many people I would otherwise not have met. In 3 months we paid for camping only twice, either camping wild or with people along the way. Amazing experience. Till my buddy's bike got stolen then it all went a bit pear shaped, but anyway!
Train travel in Europe is easy & that's another option you could consider. There used to be train passes you could buy, I'm guessing they're still available which are pretty economical and a good way to cover lots of ground & still see some of the scenery. Will have a think about my top 5 places in Europe
great advice! we do like the finer things when we travel, happy to stay in backpackers but also want to stay in a few nice hotels! we love all the touristy stuff! not a big fan of doing massive hikes if theirs a bus or a bike we'll take the easy way haha!
your adventure sounds awesome you must of been fit by the end of it hopefully your mates bike got stolen at the end of your adventure! Ill make sure i do some research on the places you mentioned their seems to be so many great places hopefully we can get a lot in and 3 months isn't to short!
thanks again for your input!
that would of been an awesome experience was it hard to get the car rego'd I've been looking at a few nice european hire cars $70 a day for a bmw m3!
i bet not many people could say they hang glided the swiss alps that must of cost a fortune to ship the hang glider over their!
Considering the amount of time you're going for, i'd do a mix of both. We went last July for 6 weeks and a mixture proved great for us.
We did at 17 day (TopDeck) bus going from Paris -> Switzerland -> Italy -> Austria -> Amsterdam -> Belgium -> Paris which was great as you don't have to worry about anything (a half empty bus made sure there was plenty of room, some of the others we saw were quite jam packed)...where you're sleeping that night etc etc. We then mixed it up with 14 days of blind travelling, e.g. we picked a few countries that were close by to each other and went there. Did Belgium -> Berlin (horrible over night bus, would rather fly next time) -> Prague -> Croatia.
Then we did another "paid tour" which was sail croatia (by Bus-A-Bout) for 7 days where they visit all the different islands etc. Then spent a few more days in croatia.
After this, we still had another few weeks where we had nothing planned so we just picked two countries that we really enjoyed when we had the quick visit and went back to them. Ended up using Air BNB and getting an apartment in Paris and just doing whatever for a week and then same in Belgium.
I'd also say that Flying is cheaper than using their rail system, and if it's anymore than a 12 hour bus ride just do the 1-2 hour flight
this sounds perfect for what we want! who did you book through? is bus a bout a non stop party? where keen to do abit of partying but don't want to be to hungover to enjoy each city! is the air bnb easy to organise ill have to do some research on it sorry for all the questions!
haha yeah my partner would kill me if i made her sit on a bus for 12 hours hahaha defiantly worth paying the extra bucks!
Haha - did our little conversation this arvo get you pumped up?
I'd give the tours a miss and do it yourselves. There's more freedom and flexibility.
I'd go east too - some of the Eastern European countries are amazing and relatively cheap. Montenegro for instance has some of the nicest beach towns I've ever seen. Bulgaria is awesome - lovely nature, good food, easy to get around and cheap.
Poland, Czech Republic, Slovakia, Hungary - all of the baltics, it's all awesome.
Western Europe is great too - and it's worth seeing the famous places but the money just doesn't last in those places for a young traveller.
I'm sure we'll talk more about this!
Cheers
Jamie
yeah you got me so keen haha your probably ready for a holiday after all loans u've had to set up for me haha! sam told me she had put in for holidays when i got home so thought i better get cracking sorting out where we are heading!
what month did you go? will everywhere still be fine in september october november or does it start getting fairly cold?
Didnt read all of above so apologies if repeating. So many options in Europe I dont think you can really go wrong. I really enjoyed Cesky Krumlov in Czech Rep, floating down a river drinking beer. Greece/Greek Islands are also good fun, as are Croatian Islands. I would recommend not planning an itinerary - pick up what is good when you are there.
Nah busabout is definitely not a non stop party. Sure, each night you generally get quite drunk but it's quite tame really. Our bus of 20 people had 4 couples and the rest singles/friends (generally people were travelling in twos).
Air BNB is simple, have a play around with it with reviews and booking dates (without actually booking), we were booking 2-3 days in advance (once or twice the day before). There are quite a few posts around SS regarding Air BNB.
With busabout, all breakfasts are included and most dinners. A couple of hotels, couple of sub letted houses, some caravan parks (I believe they are owned by a third party (generally not alot of randoms outside of those on the tours with) - we only had one night where there wasn't another tour in town at the same time as us, so you do get to mingle with the others groups and aren't confined to the people on your bus (if you hate them for example).
Age groups were 19-28 (we were 24 at the time)
Be really careful about bus tours. I met my wife on a Contiki tour.
Contiki was party party party- that was in the US. 18-35 yo.
As has been stated, it depends on what you want out of travel. It is a good way to go if you haven't travelled much before, and especially if you haven't been to Europe. Just like cruises- it suits some but not others.
I really got a lot out of Airbnb in Central America recently- I wrote up a post.
Contiki was party party party- that was in the US. 18-35 yo.
As has been stated, it depends on what you want out of travel. It is a good way to go if you haven't travelled much before, and especially if you haven't been to Europe. Just like cruises- it suits some but not others.
I really got a lot out of Airbnb in Central America recently- I wrote up a post.
I'd go independent so that you have flexibility, some places you may love more than you thought and some places you may dislike more than you thought. Hard to make recommendations, depends on your tastes and there are so many options.
I suppose you have to see Paris! Personally I think France has a little of everything, lovely countryside, the southern Alps region is stunning with incredible high mountain walks. Then across the alps to Italy maybe. Amazing. Then across Italy to Slovenia. I like mountains so you might not want to do it that way, but it's an option.
Probably good to research Greece as they've over developed alot of it, but again depends on your tastes and typical Greek villages are stunning. Barcelona is beautiful and fun. Austria has beautiful architecture, culture and scenery.
I guess just pick some of your must sees and the rest will be for another day.
Too many options, lucky you've got plenty of time.
I suppose you have to see Paris! Personally I think France has a little of everything, lovely countryside, the southern Alps region is stunning with incredible high mountain walks. Then across the alps to Italy maybe. Amazing. Then across Italy to Slovenia. I like mountains so you might not want to do it that way, but it's an option.
Probably good to research Greece as they've over developed alot of it, but again depends on your tastes and typical Greek villages are stunning. Barcelona is beautiful and fun. Austria has beautiful architecture, culture and scenery.
I guess just pick some of your must sees and the rest will be for another day.
Too many options, lucky you've got plenty of time.
Organised tours tend to be in and out of cities very fast. Organise your own holiday and take your time look around. Talk to taxi drivers.
My favourite cites so far have been Vienna and Salzburg. Over 150 galleries and museums in Vienna. Figlmuller in Vienna for wonderful schnitzel! A concert by the Mozarteum Orchestra Salzburg is a must and a Sound of Music tour of course. A hot chocolate in Cafe Tomaselli was also a must for me.
Prague is also a favourite, amazing history, the Mucha museum there was fantastic. Check out St Vitus Cathedral. BTW Mucha`s Jewelry Shop at the Muse Carnavalet in Paris is extraordinary. Walking around The Lourve I must have looked like a village idiot with my mouth open in amazement, to see all those works I had only seen in books left me speechless. Didn't have time for Muse d'Orsay, next time
If you get to London, the secret cabinet war rooms are marvelous.
Next trip we also plan to visit Riga in Latvia to have a look at the Art Nouveau architecture.
2 things, walk around lots and take city tour buses where you can hop on and off as you like.
My favourite cites so far have been Vienna and Salzburg. Over 150 galleries and museums in Vienna. Figlmuller in Vienna for wonderful schnitzel! A concert by the Mozarteum Orchestra Salzburg is a must and a Sound of Music tour of course. A hot chocolate in Cafe Tomaselli was also a must for me.
Prague is also a favourite, amazing history, the Mucha museum there was fantastic. Check out St Vitus Cathedral. BTW Mucha`s Jewelry Shop at the Muse Carnavalet in Paris is extraordinary. Walking around The Lourve I must have looked like a village idiot with my mouth open in amazement, to see all those works I had only seen in books left me speechless. Didn't have time for Muse d'Orsay, next time
If you get to London, the secret cabinet war rooms are marvelous.
Next trip we also plan to visit Riga in Latvia to have a look at the Art Nouveau architecture.
2 things, walk around lots and take city tour buses where you can hop on and off as you like.
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If you get to Prague make sure you take a visit to the "bone museum" the Kurna Horna I think it is called.
Really cool old church decorated with thousands of human remains. Kind of sombre but pretty cool. The highlight is a chandelier made using an entire human body.
Switzerland was good also - and will second Vienna.
Blacky
Yew, glad I missed that place! Eastern Europe was so good and reasonably priced.
We went to Europe last year in August and September and the weather was very warm, some days over 30 degrees even in Sept. I wouldn't go any earlier in Summer as it will be too hot.
if you are doing 3 months, citron or reanult car buy back option would be lot cheaper and better. you just need to get use to driving left hand drive!
as you are going in September,
I would do England, France, swiss etc in beginning and leave Italy, Greece for alter part of tour, as it will start getting cold .
give a flick to paid tours!
as you are going in September,
I would do England, France, swiss etc in beginning and leave Italy, Greece for alter part of tour, as it will start getting cold .
give a flick to paid tours!
