So you want to go on a Eurotrip!?
Whether you wing a Eurotrip or plan each day down to a tee will completely depend on you as a person. Some people pack a backpack, book a travel ticket and go on their way! However, if you’re more of a planner but have no idea where to start you’ve come to the right place!
As a great lover of Interrail this blog will be slightly skewed towards using Interrail as your travel provider but a different form of transport may suit you better.
This is also a complete planning guide so you may wish to follow some parts but wing others! (Warning - as a European citizen I have not covered applying for Visas)
The benefits of planning a Eurotrip in advance are:
- You will get to ALL the placed to want to go to
- You guarantee yourself accommodation, get the best rates by booking in advance and avoid wasting time roaming around looking for somewhere to stay
- You will fit in the activities you want to do instead of arriving in a new city and not knowing where to start!
- Choosing your travel provider!
Whether you opt for Interrail or Busabout could dramatically change your Eurotrip route. Different companies cover different countries and some are more flexible than others. In my experience, Interrail tickets are very flexible, are usually the cheapest way to travel and cover the most European countries (30 in total!).
They do however only cater to Europeans so if you are from beyond the EU then Eurail is the alternative; it essentially works in the same way as Interrail but covers a few less countries (24 in total).
If you prefer buses to trains then Busabout may be a better option, Busabout can also work out cheaper if you are over 25 but only covers 9 countries in Central Europe.
If you are traveling heavily around Eastern Europe then check out individual train costs, it may be cheaper than buying travel tickets which are priced to cover the expensive train tickets of Central Europe.
The countries you are visiting may affect your choice between bus or rail too. For example if you want to travel around Greece then international trains have been suspended indefinitely and some countries such as Bosnia-Herzegovina do not have a very extensive rail network, so in these cases a bus ticket may be more suitable than a train ticket.
There are a large variety of travel providers around so if the three i have mentioned arent suitable then get googling!
www.interrail.eu
www.eurail.com
www.busabout.com
- Choosing your route!
My favourite way to do this is to get a map of Europe (google maps will do!) and pick out where I want to visit! This gives a visible route as you can see which cities are close to each other and you may even get an obvious starting and finishing point by doing this.
Check the destinations are included in your travel ticket (there’s no point planning on going to Belarus with an Interrail ticket when the furthest Eastern country covered is Poland.. it won’t end well!), then we have some decisions to make!
Decision 1 – Am I willing to travel overnight?
Decision 2 – How long am I willing to travel for in a single stretch?
You’ve picked where you want to go and have a visible route, now check how long it will take to get from place to place (for Interrail use http://www.interrail.eu/plan-your-trip/interrail-timetables and enter your departing and arriving stations).
For long journeys overnight travel is sometimes available, if you are willing to travel overnight you may sleep through a very long journey and save yourself a night’s accommodation. However, overnight trains usually charge extra.
If you’d prefer day trains or if overnight travel isn’t available for some trips then decide how long you can stand travelling for!
My personal limit is 8 hours. To break up a journey see what lies between the two destinations, you may see a city you fancy trying, or just pick somewhere random! Don’t be afraid to go somewhere you’ve never heard of, you may find some surprising little gems!
www.google.com/maps
interrail.eu/plan-your-trip/interrail-timetables
- Getting there and back!
You now have a route and a way to travel but how are you getting to your starting point and getting home from your finishing point? If you live near your starting point then this won’t be much of an issue but some European travel tickets don’t include your country of origin.
If you’re from Britain you’ll want to check out flights and the Eurostar. If your route is a loop and doesn’t have a clear starting and finishing point then you can take your pick! Check out some flight prices and see where would be cheapest!
www.ryanair.com
www.easyjet.com
www.flybe.com
www.eurostar.com
- What to do when you get there!
Coming up with an itinerary will help you decide how long you want to stay in each place.
Some of the cities you’ve chosen you will have chosen for a reason and already have an idea of what you’re intending to do when you get there.
For example if you’re going to Rome you might have an itinerary of the Colosseum, the Trevi Fountain and Vatican City forming in your head. Definitely go and see those things!
But also be aware that there will be great things to do in the places you’ve chosen that you’ve never even heard about! Check out a few blogs and use sites like Trip Advisor for inspiration.
There’s also the issue of finding your way to the places you want to go to, for this you have a few options:
Option 1 – Google map EVERYTHING so you have directions to EVERYWHERE!!
Option 2 – Wing it and follow the signs! (Some cities are better at directing tourists than others, in Berlin you can get away with this, in Timisoara you will struggle)
Option 3 – Get a city map on arrival! (Many hotels and hostels will have a city map to give you or sell to you. If they dont, you should find one in a tourist information centre. Along with mapping out the entire city they will highlight things like local historical areas and points of interest.)
www.travelersblog.co.uk
www.tripadvisor.co.uk
www.lonelyplanet.com
www.frommers.com
- Finding accommodation!
The earlier you book accommodation the more likely you are to find somewhere cheap and highly rated and booking before you turn up in a city saves you wasting time looking for somewhere to stay.
Hostels are considerably cheaper than hotels; in some countries you can book a bed in a hostel dorm for as little as £6! Don’t be apprehensive about staying in hostels, the majority of people staying there are young travellers and you’re more likely to make a friend than run into any trouble.
If you are apprehensive about staying in a hostel with the opposite sex then you can book male or female only dorms. In more expensive cities such as Venice or Paris you may find a hotel as cheap as hostels if you’re travelling in a group.
www.hostelbookers.com
www.hostelworld.com
www.booking.com
Now all there is left to do is get traveling!! :D
