Hello,

My friend and I (22yr F) will be backpacking through Europe from the end of May through the end of June (a little short of 5 weeks) for the first time. We've both had a little experience with Europe but never for this long and not by backpacking.

We're flying in to Munich and want to hit up Prague, Budapest, Viena, Salzburg, Venice, Florence, Bern (the Alps and some really nice train ride my father told me about), and then maybe head up to Paris or Amsterdam before heading back to Munich where we fly back from. We're planning on traveling by train and purchasing a flexipass. We both love exploring cities, but we also like to enjoy the wilderness (alps and maybe bavaria). We're hoping to get a mix of both, though our main focus is seeing the cities. We'd also maybe like to take a break from everything and visit a beach.

So i guess my question(s) are: How many days is it worth spending in each of those cities? Should we get the 10 or 15 day flexi pass, considering Prague isn't covered by the eurail passes? Which are the best hostels to stay at in those cities and do we have to book them in advance? Any other recommendations?

While you may get some replies here, I suggest the hostal questions for Lonely Planet. That is the travel style of many more people on that site than this one.

10 cities and the Alps and other countryside places in about 33 days may be taxing. There's a lot of distance between those places, most have lots to see.

Look at http://www.bugeurope.com to get lots of hostel reviews.

But also start figuring out the transportation logistics so you can see exactly how long it will take between each place (and remember the checkout lines, the checkin lines, the walks to and from the train station, etc.). You'll be spending a lot of time in transit as opposed to seeing things on the ground.

To decide what pass (if any) if the best you really need to have an itinerary mapped out. It's really just one big math problem.

Ditto the suggestion or reading over on The Thorn Tree (BB at Lonely Planet website) where there are many more posters your age who backpack.

As far as how many days per city, personally I prefer 5-7 days in each location, but that wouldn't allow for you to get to all the places on your list.

Hi Daina135,
You will find many of us older folks on this forum prefer to stay longer periods in fewer places, but that is often not the way most young folks like to travel. So, if you really want to see all the cities you mention in a little less than 5 weeks, here is my rough estimate of how I would allocate that time, if this were my trip: Prague 4 days, Vienna 2 days, Salzburg 1 day, Budapest 2 days, Venice 3 days, Florence 3 days, Rome 4 days, Bern/Alps 3 days, Paris 5 days, Amsterdam 3 days, Munich 2 days. That is 32 days <i> without allowing for travel time between cities </i>. So you will have to shave anywhere from a few hours to half a day or more from each city for travel to the next. You can save some time by taking trains very early in the morning or in the evening. You need to get some good guide books (many public libraries have a good selection, although the most recent editions are usually checked out -- see if you can get on a waiting list for those) and start reading about these cities so you can decide for yourself how much time you may want to spend in each. If you have a rail pass, you can adjust your plans as you go. And you may find that you want to drop one or two cities. (You notice I added Rome, although it wasn't on your list. Maybe that is because you have already been there and you will want to drop it.) Do check out the Lonely Planet Thorn Tree forum recommended by previous posters, but you are still welcome here too.

take a look at thorntree.lonelyplanet.com