Hello!

I'm a 19 years old guy from Québec, Canada, and I'm planning a trip alone in France, possibly at the end of January till mid February 2017. I would like to travel with only a backpack and stay in youth hostels.

I was wondering if anyone ever backpacked in France during winter, and if it's a good idea? If possible, I would like as many advices about what clothing should I bring, if backpacking is a good idea during winter or if I should bring a suitcase, and what would be the minimum amount of money that I would need for this trip? I am not the kind of guy that buys a lot of souvenirs or goes partying much.

I also wish to meet new friends during this trip!

Thank you for your time

Do you visit museums? Like tours? Self cater or splurge on food? Your "minimum amount" depends on a whole bunch of stuff. Most trips, I don't buy souviners and I rarely party...but I love food, and so my budget is often something like 15% lodging, 20% museums, 65% food. Yours might look very different.

Pack light. Take comfortable, broken in shoes. I've travelled with both backpacks and suitcases, I like both, and it kind of depends on how much I'm moving around. If it's a fairly fast paced trip and security is priority, I take a backpack. If I'm shopping or I need nice clothes, or maybe I'm using one place as a base, I take my hard side suitcase. Suitcases almost never fit in hostel lockers. And they take up precious floor space at a hostel too. But I've had plenty of Australian roommates who travel with those massive suitcases, so ymmv. I don't like worrying about carrying a lot of stuff and I only take a weeks worth of stuff, no matter how long I'm traveling. Id rather do laundry than drag a huge bag onto transit, but I've met a lot of fellow hostellers who prefer the reverse.

I also prefer doing laundry than carrying a lot of stuff. Moreover, if you are planning to stay in hostels, there is often a list of services on their web-site. Choose those with laundries. It is important to have thermal underwear, very useful thing if you are going to the North France (you may know it, you are from CanadaI had an opportunity to make friends with a couple of hosts in France swap-house.com/host/france/, 'cause very often the hostels have no free bed. They allowed to do the laundry and even took to the family restaurant with an awesome onion soup. Casual clothes will be ok even for dinner, they don’t bother much about that.

Hi jeje977, welcome to Fodors. I think you can backpack in France during the winter without problems. I have done backpack in Europe in winter, though it's not my favorite season but I've managed. If you pack light, you don't need a suitcase. Bring some good waterproof shoes, good scarf, and waterproof coat (otherwise you'll need umbrellas, it rains a lot in France). Don't wear short

For the minimum amount of money, take a look at booking.com for a hostel for your travel dates, choose the cheapest one and you will have an idea of the amount. Double that amount and you might have the minimum amount of your expenses - minus transportation.

For transportation, take a look at http://www.voyages-sncf.com/ for the trains between French cities. If you will be in Paris, a pack of 10 subway/bus tickets costs 14.5 Euros. There, you can do a simple addition and see your total expenses ^^

Yes no problem -Paris has tons of hostels and youth hotels. Suggest you get a copy of Let's Go France -written by folks your age for trips like yours - superb coverage of hostels and youth hotels (less institutional places). amazon.com carries it.

Stick to main cities -say Paris and Nice areas and do day trips from those- you only have a few weeks- countryside can be grim in winter- most of France never gets really cold - rarely snows in Paris but could- Nice and environs should be like spring in Quebec.

Trains are great -good sources: www.ricksteves.com; www.budgeteuropetravel.com and www.seat61.com.

and what would be the minimum amount of money that I would need for this trip?

3 weeks

IMO

hostels = $25-30/nt- cheaper in small towns

food -hostels include breakfast - eat out of supermarkets or street snacks for the rest- hostels usually have rooms you can fix your own food- say $30/day

Transportation -well depends of course on how much you travel and by what mode- a train pass could be cheaper if a youthpass - under 26 or a series of discounted tickets or now regional buses run everywhere for just a few euros.
$30/day but could be more or less depending on where you go and how much you travel.

Paris will cost more on accommodations and incidentals.

But I think $100 US a day could be a ballpark figure if you do not go to restaurants or cafes.

Hostels are great places to meet folks you age - especially some of the more popular youth hotels in Paris.

The advantage is the hostels won't be so crowded, so that is one thing. As well as other sites and museums, of course.

As for backpack vs. suitcase--I don't think the fact that it is winter makes any difference in this regard. If you are a backpack type traveler and like that way to pack your stuff, it's just as good in winter as summer. Presuming you can get it all inside your backpack (summer clothing is lighter weight and less bulky). You aren't going to be hiking, I'm sure, so the backpack is just a way to move between hostels/hotels, the same as other people use a rollerbag suitcase. I personally have no desire whatsoever to carry my belongings on my back (and don't really understand why that is appealing to anyone), but lots of people do it so they must like it. Hiking in the outdoors and camping where you have to, that makes sense to me. Moving around cities on trains and metro, and to/from the airport and then checking into a hostel or hotel, it doesn't make sense to me. But I know that's what a lot of young people do, if you find it easy to carry your stuff that way, it's fine.

I've never stayed in a real hostel, just some budget inn type places, so I suspect the norm is backpacks there, I don't know if they would think you are odd if you have a rollerbag or not.

To be honest, I suspect it could be easier for you to travel with a lighter/smaller daypack on your back with some stuff, and then a smaller rollerbag for other stuff (maybe 22 inches), than to have one big backpack carrying everything. I find it easier to split things up that way.

What I find amusing is I have a 26 yr old nephew who travels with a humongous suitcase (probably about 28"), much bigger than I ever use or even own, and that's his norm. As someone above said, some folks in hostels will have suitcases. I do not understand how a suitcase cannot fit in a hostel locker but a huge backback even bigger than a 22" suitcase could.

How this hostel is a great location in Paris, and I notice they call themselves "a backpacker hostel", I think that's just the lingo. But they list luggage check as one of their services, actually. So some people are bringing suitcases.
http://www.youngandhappy.fr/our-services/

Looking at the small lockers in one of the bedroom photos, which looks kind of like a dresser drawer, there isn't any way in the world you could fit a huge backpack in there, either. I think those are just for your valuables, mainly, as they lock. And there are several other photos showing those hardsided rollerbags, probably about 22".

Hi!

Thank you all for your answers. Yes, I do plan on visiting museums, historical sites and all, which is the reason why I don't feel like bringing a suitcase since I don't feel like carrying it around and I don't know where I'll be staying and for how long.

Also, I don't really plan on staying in Paris since it is the only place I have visited in France for now.

Christina- lockers in hostels vary a LOT in size. Backpacks can squish down and they often in the larger lockers. Hardsiders rarely fits in any locker- usually it's the wheels that are the problems. I've had a few roommates that I wouldn't even trust around my clothes- it's not often but it does happen. And I've also shared a room with a huge tour group of teenagers- there was literally no place to put my suitcase as they had claimed all of the floor space with their massive suitcases.

Anyway, jeje- if you use a backpack, don't take one of the huge ones. Only take a size that you can carry easily when packed- it's the best way to limit yourself if you tend to overpack also keep in mind that many museums I've been to won't let you tote any backpack around and some will refuse to let you check something that is clearly luggage- like a backpackers backpack! So that aspect doesn't really weigh into re: roller vs backpack.

get a pack that has wheels and also converts to a pack you can carry on your shoulders- wheels are great - can wheel even heavy luggage for miles.

Luggage is a necessary evil and less is better. Packs with wheels are versatile but tend to be heavy. Both backpacks and rolling suitcases can work but check the weight of your bag empty. You don't want the first 3-5kg of your bag to be the bag itself. Soft bags (as opposed to rigid suitcases) are more versatile as they squish down and can adjust more easily to their contents. Pack as you would for a week (or less), rinse underwear in the sink. Take clothes that layer. Although summer clothes are lighter, you don't need as many in winter. Probably in your circumstances, I'd take a backpack of about 45 litre capacity and forego the suitcase.

Pack light -fill your bags then take half the stuff out.

Especially on trains light is better -lots of walking in stations.

I don't think it matters if it is a backpack or a small rolling suitcase, the important part is that you pack light, and not have a huge backpack OR suitcase to drag around.

Budget considerations depend how much you will be moving around. Staying in one place for a week costs less than going to 5 different towns in that same time, for example.

I think you need at least 75 euro (106 CAD) per day for the trip, in addition to having a plane ticket over and back. And that IS a minimal, no-frills amount.