StannDarshh

Coming from America, where there is absolutely 0 tolerance for both public drunkenness and public drinking, we can manage. My questions are not based around the social norms of a place, nor am i trying to break any laws, i will abide by local jurisdiction and drink where is prohibited. I strictly want to know is 115 dollars per day is okay, and if buying a bottle of alcohol to be consumed where prohibited is feasible.

raincitygirl

Stann Im not sure that rail pass is worth it. You might do better by buying point to point tickets as you change locations.
A good place to get an idea of rail costs and scheduling is a site called the man in seat 61.
Try www.themaninseat61.com

Someone gave you a good tip to check out lonely planet, there are more young, budget travellers there.
You might get the locations and prices of some good hostels there. It has been so long since I stayed in a hostel I couldn't even guess at the cost.

Yes I think it is feasible to buy a bottle and share it between you in your hostel or budget hotel. That will stretch your party budget further.
The water in Europe is safe to drink so don't waste any of your money on bottled water, in fact take your own water bottle with you to fill up. And as someone else said, don't bother with soft drinks there, very expensive compared to home.
You can make your food budget go further by eating from food stands or getting picnic things from supermarkets.
Take a big bottle of Tylenol with you for all the hangovers...
Have a great time, meet some other young people, be safe. You can go back later when you are our age to have a different kind of trip.

Doppio

Why did you start another thread?

Doppio

>>>>><i>, i will abide by local jurisdiction and drink where is prohibited.</i>

Where might this be? What local jurisdiction allows you to drink where drinking is prohibited?

>>>>>><i> I strictly want to know is 115 dollars per day is okay, and if buying a bottle of alcohol to be consumed where prohibited is feasible.</i>

Yes, it's feasible. However, you don't want to consume a bottle where it's prohibited. Unless of course you are in that local jurisdiction above that allows that sort of thing


Are you drinking now?

Russ

This is one funny thread.

You should have plenty of cash to keep yourselves buzzed 24/7, "StannDarshh."

Is it our Puritanistic American drinking age laws that make 20 the new 13?

unclegus

115 dollars a day is a pretty good budget, but in places like Switzeralnd could be a bit tight and almost impossible in Sweden.In Hungaruy and the Czech Republic it is a generous budget.
Last time I was in Sweden (about 7 years ago ) a beer was about $10 but last year in the Czech republic a beer was less than $2 and in some places just over $1 (I am useing a rough conversion from the GB£).
I am a regular visitor to Prague and the Czech Republic so can help with info on that area,the other areas though I have visited its been so long any info I have will be pretty useless.
This website will help with Prague and the Czech republic,good section on cheaper accommodation and some discount vouchers as well.
http://www.livingprague.com/

socaltraveler

Hope you guys have a good trip, but so far I am not sure what you really want to do or see in Europe besides getting a buzz on before drinking lightly in pubs. Perhaps an all-inclusive resort in Mexico is a better idea. And Lonely Planet might be a better place for your queries.

justineparis

Never mind old fart on here ( and I am 50 myself, but not an old fart which is not an age but a mindset)

I partied across europe for three months when I was 23, best time of my life,, had so much fun.

I would skip Sweden , its too far out and too expensive and you don't have enough time.

Order house wine, avoid hard liquor and coctails tres $$$ Get a bottle of 6-7 euro wine from grocery store and pre drink before clubs.. clubs can be money drain, better to find pubs and bars.. dance clubs often charge huge admmittance fees with drink miniums, once agian $$$.

If you want a coke, buy a can from a corner store, order it out can be pricey.

Buy bread and meat / cheese and make sandwiches for lunch, picnics are cool .
Some hostels have simple kitchens you can use to heat up food.

Sometimes a triple hotel room can be cheaper then a private room in a hostel, hostels can be cheap if you are ok in the 10-12 person dorms. Hostels charge per head, hotels usually charge per room.


Go and have fun, I spend majority of my visiting time in Europe now in Cathederals, museums and galleries, and love it, but I remember just being young and having fun.. DO however do a bit of research and try to see at least one or two of your own "must sees" in each destination..

You can and will likely go back later for more indepth touring.

PS Watch your money, keep stuff in a moneybelt , all except one days cash , do not access moneybelt in public.Pickpockets love drunken fools.

If you are female , watch your drinks at all times. do not let strangers buy you drinks unless you watch bartender pour it and hand it to you .Do not walk home dead drunk alone late at night, this goes for MALES and females, thats kind of dumb anywhere.

justineparis

Ps while public drunkeness is an issue, public drinking is not a huge issue in all places, for instance it is absolutely permitted to bring some wine/booze onboard a train with a picnic lunch..

Also forgot to add, skip Switerland too, its gorgoeous but outrageously expensive, even the McDonalds.lol

Plus to keep budget in control its better to move less. I wouldn't use a rail pass myself but prebuy point to point tickets, for 2 weeks I would look at Berlin, Amsterdam and Prague , with maybe Budapest as an extra.. you only have 2 weeks and you seem to forget that each day you travel is minimally a 1/2 day lost to doing anything but sitting on train or in train stations..lol You don't want your holiday to just be a tour of train stations right?

nytraveler

Agree - with 7 drinks per person per day you won;t remember anythng you see anyway. Where did that number come from.

Is this a drink around the world a thon?

Much better to stay home and save the money if you will spend the whole time n a drunken stupor.

Separately, although europe is generally a very safe place - if you leave a pub or club drunk there is a reasonable chance you will find yuourself without your money and your passport.

Really - drunk is no way to go through europe - or life!

nytraveler

Sorry - 7 drinks a day over 16 hours means that you will be drinking starting at breakfast and regularly all througout the day - which means IMHO - that you are all alcoholics. And probably will have no livers left by the time you are 40.

And double that warning - if you walk around "buzzed" all the time, not only will you miss eruope, you will probably run a good chance of being scammed and/or rolled - and you run a good chance of making yourselves obnoxious to all around you.

I am NOT a teetotaler. Not do I have a problem with your age - our DDs were allowed wine with meals from the time they were 15. But we - and they - drink in moderation - not to spend our lives "buzzed" - how boring!

StCirq

So you're going to blow $2700 apiece just to be drunk all over European train stations? Weirdest vacation idea ever. Why bother? You can be even drunker at home on that budget.

nytraveler

When you say buying a bottle of "alcohol" what do you mean. Wine and beer are cheap. Hard liquor and mixed drinks are expensive - unless you are willing to drink Old Rot Gut - and buying mixers is not cheap either. Soda is expensivein europe - like 3 euros for a tiny (8 oz) can of Coke.

justineparis

nytraveler, sorry where did you pull that number out, it is not 3 euros for a can of coke at a grocers, you can get a six pack for 3 euros though.

StCirq

But it's 3 euros or more for a coke at a café. Soft drinks are outrageously expensive.

justineparis

But op will mostly be drinking before hand , not in bars or cafes.. and I already mentioned to buy coke in a store, many posts ago .
And , coke can easily be 5 euros in a cafe or restaurant.

StannDarshh

I guess i should phrase my questioning more tentatively from now on. We are not alcoholics, but we are budgeting accordingly. Since i have posted this i realize that i must narrow down the cities that i travel to. We limit 7 drinks per day, not saying we will drink throughout the day, but rather want to ensure that we budget enough to be able to if we wanted to. After all 7 standard drinks (1.5 oz hard alcohol, 1 beer, or 1 4 oz lass of wine) isnt too hefty for college kids. Our goal is to not spend 2700 dollars to get drunk in Europe, its to spend 2700 while drinking, engaging in new cultures, and exploring a new exciting land. Again, i know i must reduce the span of my travels and the amount of places i wish to go, which can be done, i just want to make sure i have budgeted enough money to have some college-level fun.

StannDarshh

Justineparis, thank you for your level headed response, at least some people remember what its like to be a young traveler. i appreciate your response (as well as other too )

Russ

"We are not alcoholics... After all 7 standard drinks... isnt too hefty for college kids. "

Surely, there are some "college kids" who drink that much or more. But many of those are alcoholics in training. The NIAAA (National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism) offers the following research-based thresholds beyond which moderate drinking ends and "at risk" drinking occurs (they have no special category for "college kids"):

"For men:
No more than 4 drinks on any single day AND no more than 14 drinks per week"

You are planning around a weekly drinking schedule that is 3.5 times higher than the NIAA threshold.

"People who are alcoholic often will spend a great deal of their time drinking, making sure they can get alcohol..."

Planning a Europe budget around alcohol is a clue that you should reconsider your self-diagnosis.

socaltraveler

Oh for god's sake, what an attitude. Most of us were young travelers at one time (six weeks for me as a college student), or have also sent our young college student children traveling. I have never seen a budget question that from the getgo was concerned with enough money for alchohol consumption. And sorry, 7 drinks a day are a lot of drinks, maybe less so if you are sitting poolside or on a beach, but for a long and busy day of touring, seems excessive. I do remember when one of my daughters had an opportunity to travel to Europe with a soccer team in college. In addition to playing soccer, the coaches arranged touring opps in the cities, and allowed them the freedom to do the cafe thing at night. Her comment to us when she returned was that a few of the girls, having partied hard every night, would sleep in, too hungover to sightsee. She also said that a) in her opinion they 'missed' Europe and b) their parents, who were paying, should be really pissed. .

The thought of you boys chugging a bottle or a six pack to get a cheaper buzz before hitting up a pub or three simply makes me wonder what this trip is about. There are college students all over Europe, and many do ask questions here. I don't think the majority define 'college-level fun' by alchohol consumption. And do pay heed to the comments about losing your shirt, wallet and passport while inebriated. Nothing says 'hey pick-pocket' faster than a group of drunk American kids.