Butterfingers, there are concerts and festivals all over Europe in the summer. Even the old guys still perform. Fleetwood Mac is at Werchter in Belgium and at Pinkpop (NL) this summer. My son went to Sziget in Budapest with friends when he was 17, and absolutely loved the atmosphere there. Just imagine, in 20 or 30 years time your children will say the same thing you are saying now.
And to reassure your parents; Europe is a very safe place, actually safer than it was in the 70s and 80s if you look at crime rates. Certainly safer than the US.
You will find lots of people your age traveling around Europe in summer. Stay in hostels; best way to meet lots of people, and book these in advance so that your parents know where you are staying.

Just go for it; make a plan with an itinerary, show them that you can do this. I would have no hesitation letting my children travel with a friend at 18 (not that I could have stopped them anyway).

Oh and do try to include Berlin; my kids loved that.

Don’t forget the 60’s and not just in Europe. I was fortunate to go to a little club in Boston called the Boston Tea Party, during my semester break in January 1969. There were two bands playing. None of us had ever heard of either one.

The club was dingy and small. It held only 400 people, in a wide but narrow hall-like interior, We were all sitting on the floor, and I was one of the few not stoned.

Before rock ’n roll moved to arenas and stadiums, places like the Boston Tea Party celebrated the psychedelic movement. MC5 once encouraged club-goers there to burn the place down and take to the streets.

The lead band was put together as a replacement for another band, and they were doing a “North American Tour”. They had other then unknown opening acts like Alice Cooper and Taj Mahal for this “tour”. That night in Boston, one of four nights there, the opening act was an American group called Raven.

This headline group only had material for one hour, so they mostly jammed, with lots of long solos including an intense solo by a drummer, so intense that he broke his drum head. The Raven drummer popped out from behind the stage to lend his drum to keep things going.

They had four full houses with a total of 1,600 people paying something like $3 a pop to listen to these groups. Besides me, Aerosmith’s Stephen Tyler claims, as a teenager, to have been one of those 1,600.

Anyway, the drummer who split his drum was the legendary late John Bonham, and the headline group in that small club was Led Zeppelin.

From the web: “For $3 or so, (besides Led Zeppelin), you could see acts like the Grateful Dead, The Byrds, Neil Young, Frank Zappa, Pink Floyd, Cream, Fleetwood Mac, The Allman Brothers Band, Joe Cocker, Led Zeppelin, Jimi Hendrix, Dr. John, Buddy Miles, Santana, Taj Mahal, Ten Years After and Sly and the Family Stone. The Who commanded a premium of $4.50 for their Tommy concert. Unknowns Rod Stewart and Ronnie Wood, later of the Rolling Stones, played as part of Jeff Beck."

You sound very sweet Butterfingers, just the right kind of traveling companion. It's great you are considering your parents' concerns, and I bet you will be able to convince them that their baby girl can handle it. If you're going this summer, you better get to it! Have a blast and be sure to do a trip report for us.

Denmark in July is just one long party. Surprise your parents by going somewhere they don't know

In 1967-68, on a Thursday at the Fillmore (or Winterland) in San Francisco you could see 6 hours of music for $3. Three acts each playing two sets..from 9 pm to 3 am...AND Bill Graham (the promoter) had barrels of free apples and lollipops there...A N D...you got the poster for next week's concert for free. Among those I saw were Cream, The Dead, Staples Singers, Jefferson Airplane, James Cotton Blues Band, and probably the best live act I ever saw, Sly and the Family Stone, who closed their 2-3 am set with a ten minute version of Try a Little Tenderness...tore the place down.

...did we get off topic?

Humor your parents...convince them...and have fun in Europe.

ssander

If your dad lived in Germany when he was 18, how can he object to you going? It has certainly not become more dangerous since then. On the contrary.
And with mobile phones, skype, facebook they can keep in touch with you easily. You can send them a daily whatsapp to let them know where you are.
I bet your dad didn't do that when he was living in Europe.

I wonder -- could you tell us what you learned from your similar posts last year?
https://www.fodors.com/community/eur...nning-1651212/
https://www.fodors.com/community/eur...-trip-1651065/
It might help us understand what you still hope to learn.

I understand the OP went with his dad last year and now wants to go with a cousin.
To most of us the idea of parents not allowing 2 18-year olds to travel to Paris and Germany is a bit odd.

It seems to me that quite a few children are quite experienced with telling their parents they are doing one thing while they are actually doing something else. So there is nothing preventing you from filing an official plan with your parents and then doing what you really want to do instead. Obviously (and perhaps unfortunately) there are mobile phones now to keep in touch constantly. Back in my day when I started solo travel at age 17, I didn't have that complication. Then again, I also had full support from my parents (if only they knew!).

If all else fails, just point out to your parents that you will be much safer in Europe than in your own country.

That's great. Seeing that you are interested in music, have a look at the festival calender if there is anything you want to see. You can plan your trip around that, if you can get tickets.

I am glad to hear that you had another talk. Having that dialogue sure helps in maintaining a good relationship for all of you. You may not fully realize it now, but having that is something you will cherish as you get older. Have fun planning your trip!

well done, good luck

Hi Butterfingers,
Your willingness to seek out a wide variety of input here demonstrates that you value good decision-making. That quality will serve you well on all your future travels, not to mention regular everyday/workday matters. I embarked on my first trip at age 19, so I admire your pluck.
There is a brand-new taxi service that has opened in Paris, with a branch in Berlin. The link is below.
All the best!
I am done. The end.

https://chethondo.wordpress.com/2009...ing-in-a-taxi/

Now you can surf in Englischer Gardens!

https://www.google.com/search?q=engl...ih=625&dpr=1.5

And the Chinese Pagoda beer garden in the park is neat too:

https://www.google.com/search?q=engl...w=1280&bih=625