DecTravel22

Hi everyone,

My names Declan and I am a 21 year old Scottish male looking for some tips, tricks and ideas regarding travelling throughout Europe solo

I知 looking to buy a 3 month long interrail pass to assist me in doing so. I知 looking to see a good enough amount of cities/villages to enjoy myself, yet also don稚 want to cram my itinerary too much as it could get hectic. Any tips on the ideal amount of places I should visit, taking travel time and relaxation into consideration would be much appreciated!

I am looking to see the main big cities ie Rome, Paris , Berlin etc , but also maybe stop by some relaxing scenic places for some down time before I head off in my next location.

Hope to here back from you guys soon! Thanks.

bilboburgler

Hi Declan, we may not be the right demographic for you and there might be better/young sites for your research. When I did this sort of thing I used to choose university towns with good train links so that no matter what I could find a cheap good meal and someone to talk to. The big cities tend to be expensive but if you look at the route from Berlin to Prague on the map you are in the old East Germany and you will find everything dirt cheap, often beautiful and with some lovely countryside.

laurie_ann

You might check out a few books geared to first time Europe travelers. More about how to plan than what to exactly see or do. You can buy or browse in the library to see what inspires you.

Rough Guide to First-Time Europe

Rick Steves Europe Through the Back Door

Let's Go Europe (my then boyfriend gave me that for my 18th birthday, that's how I knew I would marry him, and then I did, and yes they still make this book)

DecTravel22

thanks !!!

thursdaysd

If you are planning on a lot of train travel this is a good site to know about: https://www.seat61.com/index.html

In addition to the books already suggested, you might look for Lonely Planet's "Europe" and "Europe on a Shoestring", also "Europe by Rail".

I find printing off blank calendar pages helpful for planning. Also a "Rail Map of Europe".

Surfergirl

I totally agree with the above poster's comments on Let's Go and the Man in Seat 61, Mark.

I've actually been using Let's Go! for the last 40 + years . . . Harvard students started this about 60 years ago . . . and while it is geared for the younger, backpacking, first time to Europe traveler, it still has terrific information for traveler's of all ages who find it fun to learn about great pubs with music and good nightlife, as well as practical stuff like where you can take your clothes to a cheap laundry when not washing your stuff in a hotel sink.

https://letsgo.com/

That book, plus man in seat61 are both super helpful if you like to travel by train around Europe, which is another thing I've done alone (when I was 20, 25, and 30) as well as with a husband, and with a kid. (about 15 times).

The Europe rail map is also super handy, as well as going to various websites to check on train routes, hours of service, and how long they will take. Before the high speed trains in Europe, I used to take a train from point A to point B overnight to avoid paying for a hostel or cheap hotel. So places I'd visit would necessarily be an overnight train ride. I ended up in Munich a lot (in the days before East Berlin had opened up).

What time of year are you planning to travel? If in summer, Norway, Sweden, Denmark, and Finland are wonderful places to visit, and while not cheap, the universities there usually open up to young travelers and they can be a bargain.

dreamon

Even though three months is a wonderful opportunity, it will go surprisingly fast and you need to be selective about which countries/regions you choose to visit. When I did what you're planning, I chose a starting point and ending point and meandered between them with no real plan ahead of time. It's a little harder to do that nowadays, with so many people booking places to stay and trains, etc, well in advance but certainly possible to be flexible. Avoiding peak season helps, if you can, and the weather is much better, especially if you want to be active. If you want to work out how many places you can visit, a super rough starting point is an average of 3 nights in any one place (and hopefully longer in many places). I recommend mixing up cities, small towns/villages, mountains and beaches. I find visiting multiple places in the same small region the most rewarding. There is always a tussle between using a place as a base for day trips and moving on more frequently.

For solo travellers especially, I suggest staying in hostels. They are less expensive and allow you to bump into fellow travellers (from whom you can glean great ideas of things to see and do). There are several hostel websites but one to start with is hostelworld.

I agree that seat61 is a wonderful site. I also love rome2rio when starting to work out how to get from A to B. It generally also provides links through to transport providers so you can check timetables more precisely. It doesn't have every route but it has heaps. Where it doesn't show transport, just use google search.

The other thing I strongly recommend is to travel as lightly as you can with regard to luggage. Luggage is a necessary evil and less is better (you can always shop enroute).

I wish I were in your shoes! Have a great time.

Seamus

Declan, a great planning resource for the sort of rail based trip you describe is Europe by Eurail which has been around for 40 years but is periodically updated, last time being 2021. I used it when first traveling to Europe and it was quite helpful. It is premised on using your rail pass to get between base cities from which you do various day trips.

KalinaMileva

I think hostels are a really great way of meeting people and building relaxation time into your trip. Just take the time to research them well and book before if possible so you don't get scammed!! You also will chat to fellow travellers whilst you stay there and can get some top tips on the hoof that you may never have found on the internet no matter how hard you plan before you go!

TDudette

DecTravel22, Just seeing this and think you have some excellent advice above. When DH and I first planned a trip (Rome, Florence, Venice), we looked at guided tours to get an idea of how long they stayed in each city. We wanted more in Venice so used that gauge less. Rather we noted the things we wanted to see and went from there.

We bought a guide book for each country/area, marked what we wanted to see, then went to the library and read some more.

Here's what worked for us:

1. We always stayed in hotels but were 20 years older than you;
2. ​​​​We based for fourｱ days and took day trips;
3. We tried to base in university towns;
4. We had duffel bags on wheels..no checked luggage..bags were small enough for overhead bins on trains;
5. We usually went for two weeks and took 3 changes of clothes... went to laundry mats or found local wash and folds...hotel laundry was really expensive;
6. We often took local tours...someone else bought all the tickets and took us to the front door.

Hope you'll report back about your trip!

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