First time to Europe

Hey Everyone,
Im currently planning on backpacking europe next spring for 4-6 months. I'm very excited about the trip and am starting to save like mad. I just graduated high school last june and have a huge desire to see different parts of the world before heading off to college/university. I am dying to see a variety of places there, but am mostly looking forward to England, Ireland, and Scotland. If all goes as planned and i am able to leave next april i will just be getting ready to turn 19. I was wondering if anybody has any tips or advice for a young first time solo backpacker? My biggest concern at the molment is how much cash should i bring along with me to survive after i purchase my plane tickets, rail pass, etc. Any advice will be greatly appreciated.

Thanks in advance,
Kyle

Awesome site btw!!!

Hey Kyle,

Sounds like what I did! Right out of high school, saved for about 8 months and then did a lot of backpacking.

Bring LOTS of money...as much as you can. Well, at least have lots in your bank account. You can access it there with your bank card (just note there's a $3 fee I think for each transaction).

A good healthy budget is $50 a day, at least. Europe is quite expensive, the only cheap things are generally alcohol (which is a big plus for those of us backpackers )

You don't need to bring too much gear - Get a good guidebook (LonelyPlanet Europe on a Shoestring...You can find it on this site under guidebooks). Don't bring too many clothes since you'll probably be wearing the same thing most days, and don't bother with a big bulky sleeping bag.

If you've got any spcific question, I'd be happy to help you out.

Cheers,
Matt

Hey, thanks a lot for the info. Its a big help talking to people who have experience backpacking. As far as plane tickets go would you recommend buying a round trip or a 1 way ticket? I was planning on buying 1 way to keep things more open but i've heard that buying a round trip can save money. What do you think?

Thanks again,
Kyle

Round trip.

You can always change the dates if you plan on leaving sooner or later than you planned...It's better than having to suddenly get a one way and paying a tonne of money for it.

It's generally cheaper to get the round-trip ticket. Check out some of the site listed in the Cheap Flights section of the website, some of them have great deals fro international flights.

Cheers,
Matt

50 DOLLARS A DAY?!?! Wouldnt it be easy to just get a eurail pass and sleep on the train every night?

Don't get to see much of one city that way though do you? You'd end up spending all your time in train stations. Not much fun.

If you're of British descent, you could try for an Anscestry Visa and work for a few weeks or whatever in England/Wales/Scotland/N. Ireland. That could stretch your stay and your money considerably.

eurorail passes are pretty damn costly these days as well.

The $50 a day can be a stretch in some countries, especially England and France until you learn the ways to make your money stretch. Matt is right about sleeping bags and clothes tho. I brought a sleep sheet and i used it once and that was when i crashed in a university dorm in Romania with some locals we met. I brought about 5 pairs of clothes and i could have went with 3 easily. You get used to wearing dirty clothes As for the rail pass, its really usefull to have if your traveling a lot, but as for it saving you money since u can sleep on the trains. You need to buy reservations for sleeper trains anyway which can cost as much as a hostel room so you dont really save money. And yes. roundtrip ticket will probably cost you 1/2 as much as 2 one way tickets.