45

What me and my partner do is sit down and discuss the places that we are most exciting about and then move the rest to the 'for next trip' pile. You can't see everything and that's ok, gives you a reason to go back :)
Love that!

46

You don't have to book ahead at that time of year. ust pick a place that looks good to you.

47

When we were looking at hostels we were mostly just trying to get an idea of cost, which is a lot more reasonable than we thought. A hotel for the weekend here cost as much as 4-5 days at some of these hostels! We are both already scouting 2nd jobs and saving money for this trip, thank you all of you for the help! We will be in touch! Now I'm gonna get my butt out of bed and to the library for some travel books :)

48

Hi there, I think your itinerary needs to be lengthened by about a week. Remember travel time takes up quite a bit for instance when you get to the UK you still have to travel to nottingham. I also see you are using budget airlines, be very careful & don't miss any flights/or arrive there just as they close the flight, as it will cost you a fortune to buy new tickets, that is sort of their gimmick. And, if you don't print up your boarding pass yourself they charge 50 euros pp. Their luggage restrictions are also severe and they charge to check bags, 20 euros per bag. You also need to check where they will be flying into many times the smaller airports they use are a considerable distance from the city you plan to visit. For example going from Paris to Barcelona, the airport in Paris is a good 1.5 hour from paris & in Spain, they fly into Girona which is north of Barcelona another good 1.5 hour, and you are dealing with traffic & you will have the added expense of the bus to and from the airport, they usually drop you in metro stations so you can use buses and subways. If you are prepared deal with low cost airlines in Europe and you allow plenty of time using them it won't be a problem for you. However, if you are accustomed to any kind of polite customer service, etc, forget it. Barcelona, I'd go to Valencia or Salamanca. Or if you really want to go to Spain, stay in Girona, take the bus into Barcelona day trip and take a day trip north of Girona. Depends what you'd like to see. On your return from Greece to Rome, I'd take the train to venice and then go to florence. (You will find reasonable hostels in these three italian cities). The train is not that long and the countryside is beautiful. Hostels are pretty standard in Europe and are fairly basic, many of the cities don't renovate buildings hundreds of years old, but you won't be spending anytime there anyway just to sleep. Try and stay nearer to train hubs otherwise you will be hawking your luggage all over town. ATM's are v. safe to use and are absolutely everywhere, western union is an expensive way to get money, from the US. If I were you I'd sit down & do a good search online find the 10 things to see, @ each location, pick 3 or 4 items, (some people want to eat, or go to the beach, art galleries, museums, churches, etc so pick what you like) don't drive yourself crazy if you can't get in somewhere there are tons of things to see & sometimes just grabbing a coffee and sitting down can be an experience in and of itself. Just remember everyone is traveling to pretty much see the same attractions as you are, so go early AM or after 3pm, and check the days they are open. If you need to get your train tickets at the stations most are automated & easy to use, but again go early as soon as they open NOT the hour before your train is about to leave. The train from Italy to Zurich is a sleeper train. At the time of year you are traveling you should expect to pay 30 -35 euros per night per room, most will give u a basic breakfast, eat locally were you can and stay away from the main drag touristy foodie joints, bring good walking shoes, yer camera and be prepared for the US $ to euro exchange rate. Just remember it's not america (no disrespect) try to say to yourself that you will return, don't go mad trying to "see" everything because believe me you will "see" nothing. Hope this helps ENJOY!!

49

#49 - nice tip, can you explain how it works? ......return from Greece to Rome, I'd take the train to venice.....

50

kudos to you for being flexible and listening.

Now, about Greece: for 5 days i personally wouldn't bother. you need at least a week to see Athens + 1 island. 5 days will just be rushing in and out of Athens, getting on a ferry, a quick stopover on an island and then doing the whole thing in reverse.

I am not sure what 'military style' refers to but personally i've never travelled with more than a 45L backpack. everything you need fits in there, unless you go camping and are bringing gear. Which you aren't.

also, if your bags are more than 55cm tall you may have to check them when flying... which you want to avoid.

51

also, if your bags are more than 55cm tall you may have to check them when flying... which you want to avoid

the bags we are looking at are not much larger than the average school backpack but they expand a great deal if you need them to. My uncle is going to take us around Greece personally, hes lived in all parts of Europe for about 6 years now and currently lives in Bavaria. He will be meeting us once we get to Italy and taking us into Greece, he said we would need at least a week as well, which I am trying my best to convince Bryan of, took begging to get him to agree to 30-34 days hahahaha! He wanted to go for 2 weeks and only see London, Belgium or France.... But if we have to cut it out..trust me I would die a little missing Santorini alone...then we have to :(

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PLEASE remember that this is very unlikely to be your only trip to Europe. You don't need to do and see everything. If Italy and Greece are high on your list, then go to Italy and Greece. It's better to spend time seeing an area more thoroughly then to revisit because you didn't have enough time to see the major places.

You could easily spend 5 weeks in Berlin, London, Belgium and Northern France.

Ruth

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-PLEASE remember that this is very unlikely to be your only trip to Europe.-
@everbrite We are most definitely hoping this will not be our only trip but if we can see more we would love to do it :) If I had it my way would fly over there and not come back till my passport expired! I have worked 2 or more jobs ever since I started working and have never seen much of a reward, I consider this a reward for 12+ years of hard work and dedication. I have one job that I am basically working for free at because that entire paycheck goes straight to savings, i never even see it, just so I can see a new part of the world every year from now on hopefully until the day I die :)

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