jenvic

Hi

I'm 21yrs old and am trying to plan my first trip to Europe, which will also be my first solo travelling experience, and I'd like to get some advice on the best places to visit. I'll be going from early October to mid November (5 weeks). I'm interested more in the cultural and historical side of things, as well as some good shopping and food, but am not too phased about the night life.

So far my plans include a week in London and then from there I'm not sure where to go. I'd like to spend more time in less places, to really get the full experience, rather than just a taste test. I was thinking of spending most of my time touring France (Paris, Lyon, Provence, Nice, Bordeaux), as it's a place I've always wanted to go and can speak enough French to survive. I like the idea of the Fodors 'Best of France' itinerary http://www.fodors.com/world/europe/i...-of-france-57/ (with a few modifications of my own). I was also contemplating Brussels for a few days, but am really not sure. There are many countries I would love to visit, like Italy, Spain, Greece etc. but thought these countries might be better experienced with another person, so might save them for another time. Was also contemplating exploring the UK a little more too..

Basically, I would just love any advice you could offer about the best places in Europe to visit for a first time solo traveller as well as the best cities in France to see.

Thanks!

Michel_Paris

Part of the answer may depend on your budget. Paris can be expensive, but you could spend a lot of time there.

Are you driving, train?

In France, Paris, Loire, Lyon, Dordogne and the Provence are good area, but it wouild eat up a big chunk of your time.

I'd fly to London, spend time there and area, TGV to Paris, time there, then hit the road.

Teo other cities that I found to have a nice blend of art, architecture and food were Amsterdam and Vienna. Then of course, Rome and Venice are on any list.

My last big trip was to Turkey. Istanbul is a truly fascinating city.

With five, weeks, it would not be unreasonable to do a week per area. Lyon I spent 4 days and could have done a couple more.

There is very good info on Dordogne here, there are a few real experts around.

I ramble...

I did a 10 day driving tour of the Loire, leaving Paris and returning via Chartres. I covered a lot during that time.

jenvic

hey, thanks for your advice! I guess I have a reasonably modest budget. I plan on staying at cheaper hotels, rather than hostels. I'd like to spend at least a week in Paris because I know there's so much to see and experience. I will be train-ing it most of the time and using public transport. I'm not really confident enough to drive in another country, especially on the right hand side of the road(i'm from Australia).

I would like to maybe spend about 5 days per city. Thanks for the idea about Dordogne. I shall check out some of the info on here. Thanks!

Michel_Paris

The Dordogne, for example, would best be seen by car. Public transport may be more difficult. Same may apply to Loire and Provence. You could hop from larger city to larger city though.

Train system is France (and Europe in general) is quite good.

There have been some good threads here about hostels in Paris. Another thread, just a couple of days ago, had an appartment for US$99/night.

http://www.vacationinparis.com/apts/id_100.htm

An appartment might wokr out both financially, and as a neat experience.

jenvic

hey, yeh I just checked out some info on the Dordogne, fell in love with it, then realised of course it is best explored with a car. Might have to save it for another time. I guess the larger cities are the best way to go. I was thinking Paris, Lyon, Nice, Bordeaux. The train system seems pretty good.

The apartment looks good, but I worry that I'd be too lonely in an apartment on my own. I think I'd rather spend time in a hotel where at least there are other people around to meet.

Mimar

The Dordogne is hard without a car. And Provence is best seen with a car. Though you could spend a day or so in Aix-en-Provence or maybe Avignon.

Yes, Nice would be a good base. It is a pretty city and has excellent transportation connections up and down the coast (Antibes, Cannes, St. Tropez, Monaco) and inland, via le train des Pignes. Lyon would make a good stop also. And/or maybe Montpellier.

And, while you're in England, you could spend a few days outside London. I love the English countryside. Oxford and Bath combine well and have a lot to see. York is very compact and will keep you busy for a couple days.

Being on a budget, you can save a lot of money buying train tickets ahead of time, both in Britain and France. Just choose the option of picking up the tickets at the station.

Michel_Paris

I've also heard good things here about Strasbourg, on TGV line. I did a day trip by train to Reims...nice cathedral, champagne cellars. Chartres would be another cathedral town.

I took a train from Lyon to Chambery, very scenic, little villages, at the base of the Alps.

texasbookworm

Since you're wisely planning so far ahead, you might play around with the idea of 2 weeks in London to start with, taking several (5,6?) day trips via train or bus. You could go to Salisbury/Stonehenge, Bath, Oxford, Cambridge, Dover, York for example each for a day via a train or bus. Other places within public transport reach, too. Staying put in London might cut down on the cost if you got a break somewhere for extended stay and you wouldn't have to mess with luggage because you'd have a place to come back to every night. This would still leave you with many days in London. You could intersperce London days with travel days. This would still leave you with 3 weeks on the continent, too. Just an idea. (My husband and I did 2 weeks in London with 5 day trips in 2008; we used a EngRailFlexPass which allowed us to just show up and take any train any day for the 4 train trips and we rode a coach to Oxford. It was great. We just returned from 13 days, 9 of which we drove all over the Island, which was also great [I'm working on the TR!] but I do understand your hesitancy to rent a car.) Also I do hear what you are saying about meeting people in a hotel, but here's a B&B agency to look into maybe which might have some places that would give you a discount for extended stay--AtHomeinLondon. We had a great B&B in the Belgravia area which discounted the fee because we stayed 14 nights--but we are a couple and so weren't concerned about being lonely. Again, just a thought.

Michel_Paris

London tends to be an expensive place to stay. People here have used Priceline to get some good deals. I've stayed at B&Bs in the Bloomsbury area, and they can be a good deal, compared to a hotel, especially when you factor in a big breakfast.

frogoutofwater

I have done a lot of solo travel and one of the things I like to do when I have the time is spend a week or so taking a "language study" holiday. It's a great way to meet people - you get to know your classmates and the school often organizes activities. Classes provide a bit of structure to your day, so you don't just loaf around, and you often can sign up for as little as 2 hours in the morning (although 3-4 is more usual), and then you can sightsee afterwards. Homestays (or dormitories organized by the school) provide an affordable accomodation option. Some schools have branches in more than one city, so you can study for a week in one place and transfer to another. And, finally, studying a foreign language looks good on your cv, not to mention deepening your understanding of a culture.

Since you're interested in France and speak some French, you could take a course there. I would recommend against Alliance Francaise in Paris (it's a bit of a factory) and would suggest instead a smaller city (or a different school in Paris). Look for schools that belong to the SOUFFLE, a quality association for French language schools. I've studied in Strasbourg, Grenoble and Aix en Provence, and my next destination will be Bordeau (Bordeaux Language School).

You also could split your time between France and another country - and learn another language. Why not try Spain? Barcelona, for example, is a fabulous city and a little cooler than some of the other Spanish cities in the summer. I really like the Don Quijote schools: I've been to the ones in Barcelona and Madrid.

PalenQ

You are traveling in late autumn when days are short and weather can be wet -i'd stick to the major cities that can be enjoyed in any weather -like Paris, Rome, Florence, etc.

I would start in the north and work south as the weather deteriorates.

And i'd take trains, just like i did when i did a similar trip at your age - and younger folk often travel quite a bit and thus investigate some kind of Youth Eurailpass - for folks under 26 - and you will meet lots of other young folk you age from all over the world on trains.

Overnight trains can relocated you over vast distances during the night and save on a hotel/hostel cost to boot. Anyway for lots of great info on planning a European rail trip for novices i always spotlight these fine sites- www.seat61.com; wwwricksteves.com; www.budgeteuropetravel.com - download the latter's free and superb IMO European Planning & Rail Guide for suggested itineraries and loads of into on rail travel in each country.

If you work you way to say Greece (Eurail Youthpasses give you free overnight ferry travel between Italy and Greece) then you may want to book a cheap flight back to your departure city or better yet fly open jaw -fly into London and fly back from Athens, etc.

lindy27

If you want to spend a long time in each location you can still consider doing several countries, either London, France and Spain or London, France and Italy. Flying into London and out Rome or Madrid.

Larger cities, in my opinion, are easier with trains and in the offseason.

You can also get private rooms (own bath and double bed) in most hostels which would be a great way to meet single travelers your age but still have privacy. Hostels seem to have more people in the public areas where you could meet them than hotels or B&B's.

PalenQ

A great resource to take along is Let's Go Europe - written by college kids your age- to me the very best source of info on budget digs -hostels, youth hotels, pensions, B&Bs, etc. In any major library or bookstore.

jenvic

Wow, thanks so much everyone! It's been an information overload. You've given me lots of great advice and things to think about that I hadn't considered.

From some of your advice I think I'll try and base myself in larger cities (for transport reasons and PalenQ's advice that "the major cities that can be enjoyed in any weather") and then make a few day trips to other places I want to see. I'm going to look into some rail passes, hopefully organising them before I go might save some money too.

frogoutofwater: thanks for the idea about the 'language study'. I hadn't considered that, but it could be a pretty cool idea.

lindy27: I was actually meant to go to Spain with a friend who's overseas at the moment, but her plans changed so I got rid of that idea, but I think maybe it deserves another thought. Or Italy could be a great option too.

Thanks again for everyone's help!

DalaiLlama

This might open up options and save you TONS of money: www.eurolines.com. When the going gets tough, the tough take the bus...

PalenQ

marking for later comment

jenvic

hey, thanks PalenQ for the tip about Let's Go Europe! The website has a lot of great info, especially in regards to accommodation, so I might have to look out for one of the books to bring with me. Could come in very handy.

DalaiLlama: I checked out the Eurolines website, but was a little confused. I think I discovered that they only do bus trips from country to country, not from city to city (eg. Lyon to Nice)? I wish I could say I was tough enough to sit on a bus for 9hours (London to Paris) but I don't think I am haha. Although saving money would be great.. I'll keep it in mind.