Rob102013

Hey all!

So I am going to be studying abroad in Munich, Germany. I will be studying for two semesters there and don't plan on going home in between semesters because I want to travel around in Europe. Planning on traveling solo but not sure considering I might meet someone else who wants to go along when I get to Germany.

Basically I am hoping that I will be able to hit all (or some) German destinations during the 1st semester and also visit Scandinavia (Sweden and perhaps Norway) during the Christmas break since I have family there.

So to the reason of my post now. From mid-February to mid-March I have a semester break and will hopefully have allocated about 2,000 Euro for traveling after already getting the rail ticket out of the way. Here's what I was thinking for a very basic outline of major cities to hit starting from Munich:

-Amsterdam

-Paris

-Madrid

-Barcelona

(perhaps ferry to Livorno from Barcelona, maybe train to north Italy)

-Florence

-Rome

-Sicily

-Bari

(ferry to Patra)

-Athens

-either train along coast to Croatia and back up to Munich or Ferry back to Italy and hit Venice on the way back to Munich

Some quick notes in addition to this rough outline for what I'm looking for advice/help wise from you guys:

1) Any city recommendations would be wonderful and very much appreciated I don't really know what I want to see yet other than I absolutely want to see Amsterdam, Paris, Madrid, Barcelona, Rome.

2) Is my outline a little too ambitious or possible within a month? I have time after the 2nd semester before I come home to possibly visit some of the other things that I can't fit in

3) Any thing else would be very much appreciated and I would be very grateful!

Let me know if you want me to provide any further information!

jamikins

Maybe I missed it but how much time do you have for travel?

sparkchaser

That's a lot of stuff to see in a month. How much time do you have exactly and what is your budget?

Rob102013

I am not sure exactly on dates just yet but I expect about 28-30 days. Budget is hopefully $2000-2500 with Eurail train pass already taken care of.

sparkchaser

I think it's a very ambitious schedule. Figure travel days to pretty much eat up a whole day, if not more. That means you actually have less time than you think you do.

mgnapoli

You have to visit Copenhagen, one of the most beautiful cities in the world with lovely people to match. I would choose Copenhagen over Stockholm any day.

Rob102013

I very much want to visit Copenhagen actually so thank you for the recommendation. I've been thinking of making a somewhat smaller trip hitting Amsterdam, Copenhagen, Stockholm, and Oslo after my second semester so in summertime next year.

longhorn55

My daughter did a year of study abroad in Ireland. Since she was on an island, train travel was not an option for her and she had to get to the Continent by air. Depending on your destinations, air travel may be a better option than train travel. Since there are a number of discount airlines in Europe, consider using them in addition to the trains. (My daughter used Ryanair a lot since she was in Ireland. She said once she figured out all the restrictions and got accustomed to their odd flight schedules, which sometimes required an overnight in an airport, she saved a lot of money.)

Another recommendation from my daughter is using the website, HostelWorld.com, to research and book your hostels. She said that she found their user reviews to be quite accurate and she was never surprised by any of the hostels she booked on that site. What they promised is what she got.

Southam

Airlines: www.skyscanner.com
Rail: www.seat61.com and www.bahn.com
You will find the European airports usually have comprehensive websites.
It's possible, as you make new friends, that you will want to join them on weekends in some of these destinations rather than packing all travel into your break.
Basic strategy for shopping: All budget airlines (and some of the big ones) are much cheaper for inter-city travel if bought as far ahead as possible. Yes, this reduces your spontaneity but leaves you with more cash for extra travel.
That's also true for some of the long-distance trains. Your pass may wipe out that advantage. I hope you aren't tied down to going only where the pass applies. And be sure to check out the pass requirement, on some trains, to reserve a seat separately, both a nuisance at extra cost and a restriction that forces at least a little bit of advance planning.
Enjoy your adventure.

kybourbon

Budget airlines make more sense for much of this. In addition to skycanner, look at www.whichbudget.com.

A rail pass may get you on a ferry, but it doesn't get you a cabin. Same thing for overnight trains, you have to pay additional supplements (also on all, but the slow R trains in Italy). Sometimes an advance purchase discount ticket is cheaper than the supplement. You can read about supplements you must pay here:

http://www.ricksteves.com/rail/pdfs/reservations.pdf

I would take a budget airline to the farthest point (Madrid? Athens?, etc.) and work your way back.

Tabernash2

Try STATravel.com

https://www.STATravel.com/

They specialize in student travel.

Hans

For one month it's way to ambitious and mid-February isn't really the most wonderful time of the year in Northern Europe.

If you stay a year in Germany, you have many opportunities for doing city trips on a long weekend. If you book the flight early enough, it can be very cheap.

With your schedule, you have only a few days in each city. You might as well fly in on Thursday afternoon and return on Sunday evening.