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I'm planning to go in Europe next year with some friends of mine (all around 18 years, I'll be 19). The thing is we don't know which way to travel will be less expensive. There are many choices.
1) Car (Buy back thing)
2) Train
3) Low cost planes
4) A mix of these
So here's the situation, I'm afraid that by traveling with train/plane we'll end up spending more money than if we would rent a car. Why? Because we are 5 people and if we calculate all the thing up, maybe everything divided by 5 will be more economic than paying each time for traveling! What do you think? I've seen some buy backs starting from 1000$ for 17 days. But the thing is I don't know how much it will cost for gas and tolls... Is there any calculator for that? (We plan traveling pretty much)
Also, I've heard about the EuroRail pass or something like that? Is this worth it? What do you know about it? Are there other things like that?
I'm also interested in renting a motorcycle to travel in the Alpes (if we don't get a car). Is it a good idea? Any routes to suggest? Any places to suggest renting under 21 years old?
PS: I know that at 19 years old most of you will tell me that's impossible to rent, but the buyback thing at Renault is starting at 18 years old, so no worries about that. For the motorcycle, I don't know!
Finally what are the pros and cons of travelling by car VS travelling by train/plane
I know it's a lot, but I hope some of you will answer. Thank you!
Short resume :
1) What is best car/plan/train/mixing of those? Pros and cons about each
2) If plane/train is the best, what do you have to suggest (EuroPass or other things like that)
3) Do you know any calculators that, once the road trip is +/- planified, will calculate the price of tolls? Gas is easy, tolls, I don't have any idea
4) Renting a motorcycle? Or even a bike for a roadtrip in the mountains? Anything to suggest? Could I rent a motorcycle with my friends?
Budget : Around 5K$ for the whole trip of around 21 days, a month
Travel companions : Friends
Part of Town : Mountains, Bruxels, amsterdam, all the places to visit in Europe
Thanks again!
2) Buy individual tickets instead of a rail pass and book as early as possible to save money. Read more about rail passes: http://www.seat61.com/Railpass-and-Eurail-pass-guide.htm.
If you wish to explore the countryside, you'll be able to rent a car for couple of days.
To know more about train travel in Europe, visit http://www.seat61.com.
http://www.viamichelin.com/
You're not going to "all the places to visit in Europe." Define your interests or itinerary better to get better answers.
Post your budget in Euro (xe.com) and define what it includes. Air to Europe? If it's everything in Europe for all 5 people, it's not enough.
What kind of car are you planning that 5 people would be comfortable in?
Anyway, we can't give you specific advice unless you post here your ideal itinerary and also the amount of time you have to make your trip. Enjoy your travel
Yeah, I should've explained myself a little bit more. What I wanna do is do a school trip with school and land in Greece, from then on (after the school trip ends) I want to go with some friends and continue in Europe! Our main goal is to go to either one of these festivals : Tomorowland or Creamfields. First is in Belgium, Brussels I think and the other one in UK. On our way there, we thought maybe taking a plane from Greece to land somewhere more near to those 2 destination (around 2000km or even lil more) or going directly from Greece! Also, the goal of being so far of our destination is to be able to drive or travel to some cities and visiti them and/or experience nightlife there. In resume, this is the point of the trip!
2) Budget in Euro
4000
3)What kind of car are you planning that 5 people would be comfortable in?
Comfort isn't a must, we might just look for the most fuel economic, and less expensive car there that would fit normally 5 people and their luggages. My parents suggests something similar as a Reanaul Scenic. A mini-van-like,
4) I'm normally not a fan of rail passes, but you could investigate the Eurail saver pass for, perhaps, 3 countries. Up to 5 people get a 15% discount if they all travel on one pass, but it's first class only
This is only with trains? It has nothing to do with the public tranport in those cities, right? And we only have an X amount of countries? I'll do my research aboiut this, but you guys have an official site and/or name for this?
@Lucacic : I'll be considering making an sketchy travel plane ASAP and post it on here so you guys can help me more! But I wanted to know where to start, what places are worth visiting for our age? We don't want ONLY to part and will surely enjoy beautiful views, and maybe some beach. I don't know where to start, You can do SO many things in Europe!
Also : The drivers must be at least 18 years old and hold a valid driver’s license.
There is no maximum age limit.
Source : http://www.renaultcanada.com/buy-back-cars/achat-rachat-drivers.aspx
http://www.lonelyplanet.com/thorntree/thread.jspa?threadID=2153476
is the 4000 eur per person? does it include the flights to Europe or are they already paid for?
Ps : thanks for the link. I'll read it
Thanks for the explanation in #8. Now it's much clearer what you want to do. For passes, they sell different kinds: "Global" for all of the countries they have agreements with,, and also passes which cover a smaller number of countries for a lower price. There are no international trains from Greece at the moment, so you will have to think about whether a pass makes sense for you. And correct, the passes cover only transportation from city-to-city, and not local transport within a city (with the notable exception of S-Bahn in Germany.)
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Europe roadtrip
Hello everyoneI'm planning to go in Europe next year with some friends of mine (all around 18 years, I'll be 19). The thing is we don't know which way to travel will be less expensive. There are many choices.
1) Car (Buy back thing)
2) Train
3) Low cost planes
4) A mix of these
So here's the situation, I'm afraid that by traveling with train/plane we'll end up spending more money than if we would rent a car. Why? Because we are 5 people and if we calculate all the thing up, maybe everything divided by 5 will be more economic than paying each time for traveling! What do you think? I've seen some buy backs starting from 1000$ for 17 days. But the thing is I don't know how much it will cost for gas and tolls... Is there any calculator for that? (We plan traveling pretty much)
Also, I've heard about the EuroRail pass or something like that? Is this worth it? What do you know about it? Are there other things like that?
I'm also interested in renting a motorcycle to travel in the Alpes (if we don't get a car). Is it a good idea? Any routes to suggest? Any places to suggest renting under 21 years old?
PS: I know that at 19 years old most of you will tell me that's impossible to rent, but the buyback thing at Renault is starting at 18 years old, so no worries about that. For the motorcycle, I don't know!
Finally what are the pros and cons of travelling by car VS travelling by train/plane
I know it's a lot, but I hope some of you will answer. Thank you!
Short resume :
1) What is best car/plan/train/mixing of those? Pros and cons about each
2) If plane/train is the best, what do you have to suggest (EuroPass or other things like that)
3) Do you know any calculators that, once the road trip is +/- planified, will calculate the price of tolls? Gas is easy, tolls, I don't have any idea
4) Renting a motorcycle? Or even a bike for a roadtrip in the mountains? Anything to suggest? Could I rent a motorcycle with my friends?
Budget : Around 5K$ for the whole trip of around 21 days, a month
Travel companions : Friends
Part of Town : Mountains, Bruxels, amsterdam, all the places to visit in Europe
Thanks again!
1
1) Pros of train travel: ecological, comfortable, usually faster than a car and sometimes faster than a plane, fairly cheap, views, direct connections from city centre to city centre, less stressful than driving in big cities, no parking fees...2) Buy individual tickets instead of a rail pass and book as early as possible to save money. Read more about rail passes: http://www.seat61.com/Railpass-and-Eurail-pass-guide.htm.
If you wish to explore the countryside, you'll be able to rent a car for couple of days.
To know more about train travel in Europe, visit http://www.seat61.com.
2
You can play around with this:http://www.viamichelin.com/
You're not going to "all the places to visit in Europe." Define your interests or itinerary better to get better answers.
Post your budget in Euro (xe.com) and define what it includes. Air to Europe? If it's everything in Europe for all 5 people, it's not enough.
What kind of car are you planning that 5 people would be comfortable in?
3
I'm normally not a fan of rail passes, but you could investigate the Eurail saver pass for, perhaps, 3 countries. Up to 5 people get a 15% discount if they all travel on one pass, but it's first class only. If you choose, for example, France, Benelux (counts as one country) and Germany there is far more than you could possibly see in 21 days.6
Flying is surely time saving, especially if you plan to make big distances, and can be really cheap if tickets are bought in advance. Fuel prices are incredibly high at this times, so maybe consider of taking plane if you have to cover a big distance from one place to another of your itinerary. Otherwise, if you plan to spend some days in a certain area, a car will be a very good way to get around, especially if it's 5 of you sharing the costs. I also didn't know that Renault is open to car hiring for people under 21... also, are you sure that you'll be able to find these agencies all across Europe?Anyway, we can't give you specific advice unless you post here your ideal itinerary and also the amount of time you have to make your trip. Enjoy your travel
8
1) You're not going to "all the places to visit in Europe." Define your interests or itinerary better to get better answers.Yeah, I should've explained myself a little bit more. What I wanna do is do a school trip with school and land in Greece, from then on (after the school trip ends) I want to go with some friends and continue in Europe! Our main goal is to go to either one of these festivals : Tomorowland or Creamfields. First is in Belgium, Brussels I think and the other one in UK. On our way there, we thought maybe taking a plane from Greece to land somewhere more near to those 2 destination (around 2000km or even lil more) or going directly from Greece! Also, the goal of being so far of our destination is to be able to drive or travel to some cities and visiti them and/or experience nightlife there. In resume, this is the point of the trip!
2) Budget in Euro
4000
3)What kind of car are you planning that 5 people would be comfortable in?
Comfort isn't a must, we might just look for the most fuel economic, and less expensive car there that would fit normally 5 people and their luggages. My parents suggests something similar as a Reanaul Scenic. A mini-van-like,
4) I'm normally not a fan of rail passes, but you could investigate the Eurail saver pass for, perhaps, 3 countries. Up to 5 people get a 15% discount if they all travel on one pass, but it's first class only
This is only with trains? It has nothing to do with the public tranport in those cities, right? And we only have an X amount of countries? I'll do my research aboiut this, but you guys have an official site and/or name for this?
@Lucacic : I'll be considering making an sketchy travel plane ASAP and post it on here so you guys can help me more! But I wanted to know where to start, what places are worth visiting for our age? We don't want ONLY to part and will surely enjoy beautiful views, and maybe some beach. I don't know where to start, You can do SO many things in Europe!
Also : The drivers must be at least 18 years old and hold a valid driver’s license.
There is no maximum age limit.
Source : http://www.renaultcanada.com/buy-back-cars/achat-rachat-drivers.aspx
9
please read this:http://www.lonelyplanet.com/thorntree/thread.jspa?threadID=2153476
what places are worth visiting for our age?
the places you're interested in. There are no standard answers, standard places, standard itineraries. is the 4000 eur per person? does it include the flights to Europe or are they already paid for?
10
4000 per person and it doesn't include airplane. But my dad told me about some flight that depart from Toronto to place 1 in europ and depart from place 2 back to toronto for something around 700$ CAD / 550€ with air transat! And the budget is not definitive, if we need to put more and it's worth it, we will! Also we don't expect high quality hotels, just a place to sleep! Somekind of youth hotels or I don't know how you call them in English ( French : auberge de jeunesse )! Anyone got any site to suggest or some prices / day?Ps : thanks for the link. I'll read it
14
Airtransat does indeed have some good deals. You will need to plan carefully since for some cities they only fly on some days of the week. The advice you got to fly into one city and then back from another is good and will save you time and money. It's called an "open-jaw" or "multi-cty" ticket.Thanks for the explanation in #8. Now it's much clearer what you want to do. For passes, they sell different kinds: "Global" for all of the countries they have agreements with,, and also passes which cover a smaller number of countries for a lower price. There are no international trains from Greece at the moment, so you will have to think about whether a pass makes sense for you. And correct, the passes cover only transportation from city-to-city, and not local transport within a city (with the notable exception of S-Bahn in Germany.)
