How much to budget and when to go to Europe

It will be difficult to spend 4 month as you have only March, April, Mai and later September, October and November. With your 15 cities, 3 countries, the Alps and some of the 3000 islands in Greece you need more than 4 month. Beside this what kind of passport you hold? If not from the EU you will have another problem after the first 90 days of your trip.

I was planning on only seeing Santorini, Mikonos, Ios and rhodes. I have a New Zealand passport and I'm applying for a british one.

Thank you for your quick answer. I would start reading the two first threats of the Western Europe branche first.

Regarding France, your three cities make no sense. Paris-Colmar-Bordeaux form a huge triangle of distances.

Most people here say that the minimum budget, which covers a hostel bed, very basic food and drink (takeaway and grocery stores), only the occasional admission to a museum or site, and minimal long-distance transportation is about 50 euros per day, give or take maybe 5 euros. That's an average, so some cities will be more expensive, some less. However, you mention food and drink as being important, so sitting down for restaurant food will add anywhere from 15 euros to 50 euros per meal (and you can spend more), and going out for a night of drinking can get quite expensive (up to 10 euros a drink in Scandinavia, or in top nightclubs).

My advice: pick up a copy of Lonely Planet's Europe on a Shoestring, and start crafting an itinerary, a basic to-do list in most cities, and start adding up the prices for the kind of lifestyle you want to lead on the road. If a couple of beers from the local grocery store, that's going to be a significantly different budget than a night out in swanky nightclubs in major cities.

Train transportation information can be found on www.seat61.com, with information on rail passes, etc.

If you have the budget for 4 months,I'd look at starting in the south around March,and finishing end of June.....maybe save the non-Schengen part for the last month? (UK etc.)

No need to book much in advance with a trip this long...just a place to fly into,and one to fly out of.....

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