| m_758108:53 UTC13 Jun 2007 | Hi Guys!
At the start of September, and for the very first time, my partner and I are heading over to London for 4 days, then from Paris we'll be doing Busabout around the following countries
-Belgium
-Netherlands
-Germany
-Czech Rep.
-Austria
-Italy
-France again...(Nice)
-Spain (Barcelona only)
We will be doing this for around 7 weeks, and I've heard that you can do this with a budget of around 100 euros a day. Is this budget per person? and, will this cover some private rooms, the occasional restaurant meal and some entry fees to museums, tourist places etc.?
Flights, Busabout, insurance, accomodation for London and flights within Europe have all been paid for. Any info on budget will be greatly appreciated, as this is basically all we have to worry about now before we go.
Cheers!
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| gawkabout20:58 UTC13 Jun 2007 | I live in Seville. I've never met an unhappy contiki customer yet. Congrats on doing it. YTou'll get to know folks from all kinds of countries. Fantastic!!
One reason I like bp'n is getting to hang out, quality time style with 'em.
Its also why I like to travel real slowly, plus time to hear more about a place from od sources.
-----------------
WHAT THEY TELL YOU IN THE SECOND CONVERSATION,
IS WHAT THEY WANTED TO, IN THE FIRST.
Why go home so early? What do you really have to rush back to.
You'll be in the most fun school in the world.
Ç(:)
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| daveelmstrom21:40 UTC13 Jun 2007 | The basic daily budget for a backpacker is about 40-50 Euros a day, not including transportation. That will pay for a hostel bed, very basic food and incidentals. Given your criteria of occasional private rooms, restaurants and tourist attractions, you're probably looking at somewhere in the 50-80 Euros per day range, per person. That will vary depending on how nice you want the private rooms and restaurants to be, and how often you use them.
The normal caveats: That's just a guesstimate based on my experience. Everyone has their own particular level of what "low budget" means, and it will vary considerably from country to country, city to city.
Dave
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| amazingview22:13 UTC13 Jun 2007 | You should be okay. This site has a Top Ways to Save Money in Paris page that should be helpful in saving you a few euro in France.
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| gawkabout23:45 UTC14 Jun 2007 | Take a train, at some point so you'll see the benifits. ake a cable type bicycle lock, with comination lock gizmo, on it. It's the only mode de transpo that gives you those chummy learny type benifits.
Have fun!
------------------------------
THE MOST VALUABLE TRAVEL IS DONE WITH THE EARS.
:)
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| tony_b07:41 UTC15 Jun 2007 | Bear with me if I don't answer your budget question but there's something about this itinerary that leaps off the page.
UK, France, Belgium, Netherlands, Germany, Czech Republic, Austria, Italy, Spain (Barcelona only). I count nine countries in seven weeks, less travelling time. Travelling time will take up at least a week so that means you have six weeks to 'visit' nine countries. At best, you'll be visiting nine cities, rather than nine 'countries'. Is that what you want to do on this trip?
Your list would be more realistic if it read "London, Paris, Brussels, Amsterdam...etc". I think you'll be "citied-out" long before your seven weeks is up. It's going to be three days in one city, then a day's travelling, and then another three days in the next city...and so on. That can be really tiring because that's what cities are like when it's non-stop.
In practice, each journey will take up most of a day door-to-door, whether that be a flight or a bus. Most of those journeys will be fairly tedious if they're done by bus because the bus will take the main highways which, in Europe, are rarely scenic.
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| gawkabout19:22 UTC15 Jun 2007 | We've only heard of the most famous places. And you're wanting the most expensive ones.
Discuss what it is you two really want to gain from this trip.
The sooner you learn how to do it cheap, the sooner you can come back.
That's trains and youth hostel's job. Those are the places you'll get to hang out with like minds.
I don't mean just hang there half a day. Over breakfast (which is free, if you shop for 'em well.). Or after a full day.
Catching trains and things can take half a day. And getting your bearings the first day, 1/2 day, including breakfast.
That's before ten am. They quit serving then. You'll need it. WWalking and confusion, and overwhelmed at all the new. It takes energy. Eat carfully, not just cheapest.
Get a business card or get them to mark your map, where you're staying. ooooohhhh!
Been there, done that. Lost the T shirt.
__
Have a great slooowwwww trip.
The "go back and see it right someday" theory is bogus.
Savor the chance.
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| m_758108:23 UTC17 Jun 2007 | Cheers Guys,
Thanks for the budgeting info!
Yeah, unfortunately the whole Busabout route is pretty much set in concrete and mainly does visit large cities, with the exceptions being Bruges and Cesky Krumlov and at this stage cant be changed. We can probably do some day trips out of the large cities, but I'm not really worried about seeing anything outside of our itinerary at this point as im sure we'll be back in the future.
Heres the rough itinerary with compulsory city stops...you can stay at smaller places in between, and we may do that depending on time. I realise it will be hectic, but we're not going on this trip to relax.
-France (Paris)
-Belgium (Bruges)
-Netherlands (Amterdam)
-Germany (Berlin, Dresden)
-Czech Rep. (Prague, Cesky K)
-Austria (Vienna, maybe St Johan)
-Italy (Venice, Rome, Pisa or Florence or both)
-France again...(Nice)
-Spain (Barcelona only)
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