Fodor's Travel Talk Forums - I've got some time, where do I go?

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I've got some time, where do I go?

Hi Sometime in the near future my life obligations will be nominal. I want to take this opportunity to travel of which I am asscustomed to. Since I was a kid I have had deisres to travel all over Europe and the surrounding areas. I am young(will be 27 when I get to go *crosses fingers*) so I can nonstop for a bit. The time frame would be around august/september and I would like to be over for 3 to 4 months. Money could be a issue, depends what I can learn. My goal right now is to have at least a thousand dollars a month(if not more) plus airfare. I know about a eurorail pass, so that would be my main mode of transport and of course my feet. I have vast interests such as, muesums, history(especially WW II in Germany and areas affected), culture, you name it I would like to experience it. I would like to attend the tomato festival in Spain I thought? I guess I am asking for ideas and fesabliity of my idea. I can always change the time frames too. Maybe go from winter to spring and try to catch some of everything they do over there. please throw me ideas, books, web sites, anything you got. Thank you for reading.

Welcome to the Fodors "Travel Talk" forum for Europe. Questions like yours come up from time to time, and many answers begin with the advice to start with a "reading fest" - - about the places you always imagined you wanted to see in europe - - and places you'll stumble across in your reading, that you never heard of before. If I were in your shoes, I would plan more than one trip, rather than one 3 month long trip. You can probably get so much more out of THREE trips - - one for two weeks, then one for three weeks, and then one for four weeks - - and cost you less than one for twelve weeks. September can be a great time for Europe (although more and more people are discovering this); many here on this board think that August is one of the worst months. I have only ever been in the Alps in August, and found it fine - - warmer places can be oppressively hot. If you have any interest in a trip planned and designed by and for the folks who come to this board, I invite you to take a look at http://www.geocities.com/rexbickers/...oritesTrip.htm or http://communities.msn.com/RexBickers/messageboard.msnw to learn more about the trip we are planning to the South of France and northern Italy for September 19-October 2. But, don't let me or anyone else dissuade you from doing exactly what YOU want to do. You'll find an amazing amount of friendly and helpful advice here. and the more you ask, as your plans evolve, the better the answers you'll get. Best wishes, Rex

Rex, that is great advice. So why am I plugging my ears right now, waiting for the sh-- to hit the fan?

Hi Jim - I'm from Minneapolis and have lived in England for 15 years, which gives us easy access to Scandinavia and the Continent. Rex said: >If I were in your shoes, I would plan more than one trip, rather than one >3 month long trip. I think he's right. If I were you, I'd hit the capitals for sure. Especially London, Paris and Rome. But don't miss the fjords of Norway or the city of Venice. They are both must-sees if you can. And have you considered a trip on the Orient Express? Kewl!

I had the opportunity to go to a 6-week summer program in England so a friend and I backpacked for the 1st 6 weeks of summer and every week-end of the program. I loved every minute so spending 3-4 weeks seems fine. From your info, I would spend some time in Berlin--absolutely incredible city with lots of history, museums, culture, etc. Then go into Poland--Krakow with side trips to Auschwitz/Birkenau and Zakopane (resort village in Tatras Mountains), Gdansk, Warsaw for the contrast between cities destroyed/left whole in WWII. From there it is an easy trek to Prague, Vienna and Budapest--to contrast the major cities of an empire & how they are similar yet so different because of their being west/east and the way Prague & Budapest have evolved after the opening to the west. Another reason is that Eastern Europe is much less expensive and you can make up for some of the western cities. Florence is a beautiful city and I enjoyed Interlaken and the surrounding cities & Alps. We were based in Canterbury during class and it is such a nice city with easy access to places (England is small enough that you can see a lot in a day).

Oops! I meant 3-4 months!

Hi, Jim. Wow. Euope for 3-4 months! In August, heat can be sweltering, and places my be crowded. So why not start north and follow the sun south as days get shorter? In August days in Northern Norway are still very long, temperature is ok, and the vacation period gets to its end. Or start in Bergen, and discover the Fjord County before going to Oslo, then Copenhagen, then..., and may be ending up in Rome or Madrid late October. Bjorn, Oslo

Incorporate Rex's idea of separate trips by thinking of consecutive 3 or 4 one-month trips instead a threeorfourmonth trip. Divide Europe into 3 or 4 parts, then plan each separately. That might help with railpass logistics - there are so many different Eurail passes as well as individual country passes that looking at them for a four-month trip is overwhelming. Check also www.europebyair.com for cheap flights within the Continent. Ryanair also offers low fares. Go to the expensive parts of Europe first; if you run low on funds, it's easier to live cheaply in, say, Greece than it is in London. $1000 a month sounds like a lot, but divide that by 30 days - that's $33 a day, which barely covers lodging unless you stay in hostels. You have to eat, take local transportation, and pay for museum admissions. An example: in Paris, a single room will cost you at least $35; a hostel will cost you about $20. Unless you eat only food from a supermarket, your food will be at least $20 a day; subway tickets are at least $1; most museums are between $5-$10 each. Plan on at least $1500 a month ($2000 would be better). You might be better with a 2-month trip, well-funded, so you get to see everything you want, rather than a 4-month trip that consists of no restaurants, cheap sleeps and free admissions.