Hi,
I am planning on backpacking Europe by myself in November. I will be starting in Paris and was hoping to make my way South. I would like to see Scandinavia but am not sure if it will be too cold by then. I wish I could do this trip earlier but it seems like November is the only possible time.
Does anyone have any advice for the best places to see during November? Honestly, I am up for going anywhere. I want to get a train pass, am not opposed to spending a healthy chunk of my time on the train, and to see as many new sites while having as great/fun an experience as possible. I am hoping this will be an independence-affirming trip.
I have about 2-3 weeks time to do it. My budget for everything will most likely be a couple thousand dollars. And I will buy a youth rail pass and stay at hostels to save money and to give myself more opportunity to mingle with fellow young backpackers.
Who has any advice for good route ideas? Maybe it would be best to go South because it is so cold? Any cool festivals anywhere in November? Does anyone have their own Europe backpacking experiences in November that they could tell me about so, perhaps, I will be inspired to plan something similar?
Thanks!
Maggie
Well for 3 weeks that is about $47 per day. That's a bit on the low side on average. First of all, whether it is 2 or 3 weeks, trying to visit places from Scandanavia (where exactly? It's a big region) to southern Europe is way too ambitious. Do the math. To travel from Stockholm to Barcelona straight through on the train would take you something like 2 days. Even though you say you don't mind spending a lot of time on the train, is all you want to see from the train and inside train stations? Do you want to spend days getting somewhere only to turn around and leave? My advice: staying longer in fewer places.
Traveling in the winter is different. You don't have the "summer culture" of travel like you do in June through August. Fewer people are out and it is a bit harder to make contact with the locals. But different doesn't mean bad. The advantage is that the arts season (concerts, plays, etc) starts in the fall. Cities like Paris are full on locals, not just tourists. People are going about there normal lives.
If I were you, I'd visit Paris for 3 or 4 days, including some day trips to places like Reims or Chartres, then visit some other places in France heading south. Visit some destinations in Spain OR Italy; places you have looked up and want to visit. And that will probably be enough. I am assuming you have to come back to Paris on your return. You could come back to Paris via a different route.
Go to the bookstore or library and get some guidebooks and start digging. There is a lot on line too; a lot just on the FAQ pages here at TT.
Leave Scandanavia for another time. It is better to visit there in early to mid summer any way. The summer is short up there. Let me know if you need more details.
Planning is half the fun.
Thank you for your advice. It is hard for me to access travel literature right now because I am living abroad in rural Japan. I will be in Paris all month in October, and will be traveling around other parts of France that month too. Then I figured I will still be in Europe in November and should have a couple thousand dollars left, so would like to do a bit of traveling. I've always wanted to backpack across Europe. Maybe I should save that for the summer season some year when I have more time and money.
Then, I was thinking southern Italy or Greece would be nice because they would be warmer, but it seems like it would also be better to save those for the summer when I can enjoy the beaches. Basically, I want to find a place to travel that is actually really lovely in November. I wonder if there is an area that, in its own way, is just as nice and interesting in November as it is during the summer months...
Going to Spain and Portugal and maybe even working my way down to Morocco could also be a possibility...
I will also browse the forum info boards more for more ideas and post again if I think of anything else!
Well, I think lajatee ment 2000 $, right? Then it's not a problem at all.
But you have to descide what you wanna see, if you're only going for the capitals then you have time to see some. But if you want to see more of a country then perhaps 3 countries is enough.
About scandinavia, well it depence on what you think is cold, but it's raining sometimes snowing and it's dark so skip the scandinavia and come here in june another year instead.
Yes if you wanna walk around in t-shirts then I guess you have to go to southern europe, but otherwise you have some great places in the middle of europe as well. You know London, Wienna, Prague and Budapest are really great cities.
Another thing is perhaps skipping the youth rail pass and buy train, buss and plane tickets instead. Ryanair and easyjet can be quite cheap actually.
You won't be walking around in t-shirts in November, even in the far south of Europe. With that said, November can be a nice time to see some of the Mediterranean. If you only have 2-3 weeks, I would suggest you decide on one region of Europe and focus on just 2-3 countries. Unless you're just going to tour through Europe from capital city to capital city, traveling constantly, the rail pass probably won't be worth buying. You say that you want to have as great/fun time as possible. But I don't think that's what kind of trip you'll be having if you're spending most of it on the train. Slow down and see some things and I think you might have a better trip.
If it were me, I'd go from France and head over to Spain and Portugal, which will certainly keep you occupied for 2-3 weeks. Again, no need for a rail pass with that kind of trip.
Dave
Maggie,
My original advice in #1 stands. Even if you don't have access to travel literature, you obviously have access to the Internet. There is tons of stuff on line. Just look at the links in the FAQ pages here at TT and you will find a lot.
Another good thing about traveling in November is that everything isn't so crowded. You can experience Barcelona, for example, without too many of the massive tour buses around (there are always lots of visitors to Barcelona though). You might do as I suggested above and visit Barcelona, some of the other places in Catalunya and some of the Pyreneen town in France and Spain as well. It might be a good time to see Carcassonne, for example. Dig a bit and you'll find a lot of info.
I agree that you might not want to get a rail pass; it probably won't be economical if you are only visiting France and Spain or Italy.
Badger
If weather is a concern, stay south in November. Spain, Italy, Portugal, Greece, etc shouldn't be too bad. Southern France should be okay, but it does get chilly there.
#6,
Are you speaking from experience? Have you actually lived in those places in November? It can be cold and rainy in those places (don't know about Greece) in November.
Just need to come prepared. Actually, just buy rain gear as you need it. They have stores in Europe.
OK, this is really great advice. Thanks Badger and co. Is there any particular reason you guys are recommending moving through Spain as opposed to through Italy on toward Greece? I have always been fascinated by Greece and it might be more meaningful for me to go there than to Spain. Either way, I'd love to travel through Italy again. What about the Italy-Greece Youth rail pass? That might still be a good deal for me. It is good for 4 days of travel + half off the ferry from Brindisi to Corfu.
I am also wondering, has anyone ever tried WWOOFing in Italy? That would be my other option... just sticking to Italy and spending a few weeks on an organic farm there. It would save money too. Only thing is I've never WWOOF'd before so I don't know what it's like.
Thanks again for all your great advice!
Maggie
Hi Maggie,
I don't think anyone is recommending Spain over Italy/Greece. I use Spain as an example only because I know it better than Italy. Whether you choose Spain or Italy/Greece depends on what you are most interested in. Do some research on both options and see which appeals to you the most. I loved N. Italy too; so much to see there; love the food!
A 4-day rail pass? I didn't know that existed. There are so many options these days, it is hard to keep them all straight. The general consensus seems to be that Continent-wide rail passes like Eurrail aren't a good deal if you are only traveling in the south of Europe because transport is cheaper there. You should look up the cost of the trains and boats you want to take and see if the pass is a good deal for you, for this trip.
Don't know anything about WWOOFing so can't help you there.
Badger
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