Is AUD$2500 enough for a month in Europe?
 

Hello!

In July this year (2012) I'll be travelling with my sisters in Europe for a month. My return flight has been paid for.

At this stage, our plan is:
-Fly into London and stay with my sister (free accomm) for about 6 days, do trips to Bath, Oxford, etc.
-Get to Paris (probably by rail) and spend around 5 days there, visit Versailles, usual attractions, etc.
-Travel to Loire Valley and visit about 5 chateaux for around 3 days
-Explore one other region of France for around 3 days
-Go to Brussels & stay with a friend (free accomm) for 3 days
-Go to Spain (just one city) and stay in a friend's apartment (free accomm) for 4 or so days
-Return to London, explore a little more, before flying back.

As you can see, I've got free accommodation in UK, Belgium and Spain. France is the only place where we need to pay for it.

I'm a uni student, and pretty frugal, so won't be spending up big everyday, but I do want to be able to enjoy the places we visit. I'm interested in visiting museums, art galleries, cathedrals, etc. I'm not a big party animal. I'm planning to save at least $2500, but would that be sufficient?

I've been to Europe once before on a music tour when I was in high school.

Any estimations/comments/help would be greatly appreciated!
Thanks for your help!

In London, almost all the museums are free, but most everywhere else they charge -- sometimes quite a lot. You have free accommodations in a few places, but there are costs . . Like the train to Bath and such.

AUS$2500 is about £1700 or €2000.

oops - didn't mean to click post . . .

W/ couch surfing and free rooms w/ rels, you could manage. But if you have to pay for a hotel or hostel in Paris it will be tough IMO.

The travel between cities will eat up a lot of money.

You'll be spending on local transportation everywhere, museums and local attractions (you won't afford all of them!), accomodations in France (at least $500 there alone), snacks and things, etc, you'll probably lose a couple of pounds :) but yes, you can do it!

Assuming you are away 28 days out of which you have to pay accommodation for 11 nights and also assuming you are talking $A this gives you approx Euro 69 per day out of which you have to find accommodation for 11 nights, your food, local transport costs, museum and gallery entries (though you could stick to free ones) and incidental expenses. I hope you are not including intercountry travel in this budget as I think you wouldn't have a hope. As it is, this is an incredibly tight budget, you would need to find super cheap accommodation, eat super cheap food etc. Why not stay longer where you have free accommodation and keep the other places for a later trip? If that is agreeable to your hosts of course. Good luck!

Or -- JUST visit the places where you have free digs. You won't be a starving student forever :)

Hi

If you're staying for free for at least half the time, cook your own meals, buy food supplies and booze from the markets or supermarkets I reckon you can do it. The big issue will be the cost of transport. This may well be the issue that's the "gamebreaker". Either way good luck, sounds like a great plan.

A uni student on a backpacking trip? heck yes, it is doable. You will see a different Europe than the typical Fodorite, but it will be a very worthwhile Europe. :)

If you do not travel to all of those counties then maybe. Transport costs money and exchanging money to different currencies costs money .

It doesn't sound like much money to me but I'd suggest looking on websites and check the cost of transport for one thing. I think the train travel, or budget airlines, will really add up. Also check online on hotel or hostel websites to see how much accommodation is going to cost you.

If you do travel from London to Paris by Eurostar, the cheapest fare is when they first release them, which is (I think) 120 days before your travel date. It might be 90 days. If you can make a note of the day they become available and book then, you can save a lot of money.

Same thing with cheap airlines, book as soon as fares come out. You might be able to get a cheap fare from Spain back to London, you could sign up for email alerts for Easyjet or Ryanair to see when they release the flights for the next season.

Kay

For your flight from Spain to London, also check Vueling. Just note that the first price they bring up is not the final price because they add taxes and stuff onto the initial fare.

eurocheapo.com pretty easy if frugal have done it for that
when backpacking in the past. hostelbookers.com cheap everywhere www.3ducks.fr lots of fun and cheap.
cheap euroeconoflights best skyscanner.net though
eurolines.com pass usually chapest goes all over Europe.
backpackeurope.com good site trip cover columbusdirect.com

Good luck!

A couple more comments:
Youth hostel rates in Paris run about EUR30/night for dorm style housing. The Eurolines fare from London to Paris is about EUR30 RT. This leaves you about EUR50/day for other expenses. You won't be eating fancy but you don't need to.

If you do take budget airlines, remember the baggage restrictions and make sure that the luggage fits as stowing baggage can be spendy.

From my experience, your greatest expenses will be for the Loire Valley, how are you getting around? Will you be renting a car or taking trains and buses? Your daily expenses will be greater due to the transportation and the hassle of getting to the chateaux and back to where you are staying by bus or train. Both of those transportation methods will severely limit which chateaux you can visit and how long it will take to travel to and from them. I just don't see that only 3 chateaux would be worth the expense and hassle, if you don't rent a car, which would allow you to see 2/3 chateaux per day. But, if you still want to do it and rent a car, look into staying at Formule1. Their standard room will sleep 3 people. However, the Formule1, at least in Orleans and Tours are not near public transportation.

I agree - skip the Loire Valley and you'll save a bundle. There are plenty of things to do in and around Paris, including castles.

To cut down on your travel time and travel costs I'd suggest going from London to Brussels and then work your way south via Paris then the Loire Valley which is half way to Spain anyway. You can always use coach travel (buses) between cities to save money.
You can eat reasonably especially away from the tourist centres if you look at where the locals eat and you'll get better food that way.

I don't think your plan makes sense in directions with the Brussels segment UNLESS your one other region of France is, in fact, between Paris and Brussels. It could be, do Alsace. But I think it would make much more sense to go to Brussels before Paris, and then go from Paris to Spain. The Loire valley is definitely not half way to Spain from Paris, it is West of Paris (okay, a bit southwest, but still not halfway to Spain). Five chateaux are really not going to be that fascinating IMO, why so much interest in those big old stone houses where wealthy people lived, which are mostly empty. I'd cancel the whole Loire trip myself, I could think of so many things more interesting and in a more logical path on the way from Paris to Spain.

If that's al you WANT to spend go for it. If that's absolutely all you CAN spend I think you're going tohave a very hard time - given the cost of many sights, transit within and between cities and even the most basic food and lodging. My younger dauther went with some friend last summe for 6 weeks and it coast her about $8000 US. Granted they stayed in modest hotels with AC - but they didn't shop, didn't doa lot of nighlife - but did see all the sights, not worying about enrance fees or cost of trains for day trips.

At the end they met a couple of girls who had run out of money and still had 4 or 5 days before their plane left. The leant them enough for a hostel for the night and to contact somone at home - who I think had to wire them a lot more.

So - if you have extra in your cheking account in case of emergency fine - otherwise I would be rally hesitant with that amount. (Maybe you can just stay where you have free rooms.)

I agree with some of the other posters: make sure that you do have some extra money just incase you do end up needing it, and skip out on the Loire Valley, as it will make things a lot expensiver.

Otherwise, $2500 should just be enough. To save money at museums and sites, you can try to plan your visits on days where entrance is free or reduced. You should also take your student card, and a uni enrollment certificate, as a lot of the museums have reduced prices or free entrance for students.

Do not buy groceries or eat at resturants close to the monuments, as they will overcharge ($3 Euro for a bottle of water instead of $.30). If you are eating out, most resturants have a menu you can view before taking a seat, so make sure the prices listed are reasonable, and remember they add service charges or seating charges (in which case you could just find a bench and eat there instead).

If you want to stick to your plan to visit the Loire Valley, consider hiring a bicycle instead of car or bus. More fun too!