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Hi All
Well - my RTW trip was cut somewhat short by the intervention of my wife. She wanted to go on the leg from Hong Kong to Singapore and not come back to the US by herself. Ergo, I did almost 2 months in the Pacific and Pacific rim. Trip reports to follow.

Now for the other half of the trip. Will fly to Istanbul the first week or so of May. Do some of Turkey, Greece, then go up the eastern side of the Adriatic through Bulgaria, Romania, Croatia, Monetnegro, over the top of Italy, a piece of Germany, France, Spain, Portugal, Gibralter, into Morocco, and eventually fly home from Casablanca.
Will be traveling on a Eurail pass when possible. Also will rent a car in various places (Romania), but car rental companies evidently wont allow me to rent in Bulgaria and return in Austria for instance.
I need several things. I like scenery, people, food, wine, some castles and generally letting the trip take me rather than the other way around.
Any advice on car rental, hotels, things that are must see, caveats, scams, or any info on places to stay (not too expensive) will be appreciated. Not sure at this point how much time to allot in each place, but leaning toward weighting the trip in the direction of eastern Europe - not the west since I have been there a couple of times.
I will be traveling alone, and with a backpack as I did throughout the pacific.
Any thoughts????
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Michael

We were able to rent in Hungary and take the car to Romania. Depending on what you want to see, such a round trip might actually make sense, using Hungary as a base to see both Romania and what used to be Yugoslavia. To see my trip report covering Hungary and Romania, just click on my name.

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Michael

What car company did you use?

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Fodorite014

Hi,

What a lovely trip!

Will a eurail pass really save you money? Train travel in eastern Europe is still very cheap. In Turkey trains are not too usefull, especially if you want to travel along the coast where you will have to use buses. In Spain train lines seems to branch out from Madrid with the exception of the line from Barcelona to Alicante. I've found myself spending more time on buses than on trains in Spain.

Before traveling in eastern europe I have compared prices for an inter rail pass with prices for tickets spot to spot, for example Berlin - Prague - Budapest - Sighisoara - Brasov - Bucharest - Istanbul, and found out that the pass was more expensive so I bought tickets on the way.

Have fun on your trip!!! IMO you have picked the best parts of Europe, especially Turkey, Romania, Hungary, Spain and Portugal. Would love to go to Montenegro and Albania, I have never been there. Be carefull when entering shops in Morocco though, don't get forced to buy things you don't want Some places in Morocco could be hard work when travelling solo, Tangier in particular. Getting on the train from Tangier to Rabat was a relief.

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Hoxa61
Thanks for your response. I actually have had a 2 month 21 country eurail pass for the months of May and June given to me. I will use it as much as I can.
Can you expand a little "Tangier can be hard work when traveling solo" Do you mean its dangerous or just generally difficult to get around in.

Again thanks for your help.

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StCirq

Tangier isn't "hard work when traveling solo." It's just hard work, period. It's best skipped unless you want to visit the Tijuana of Morocco. Its sole purpose is to hassle tourists who show up thinking they are about to experience something exotic and African; in reality it's just a touts' paradise. If you want to visit Morocco, one of the world's most wonderful countries, skip Tangier and go inland and down the coast.

Michael

I used Thrifty in Hungary, not the international office of the U.S. firm.

Fodorite014

Hi,
You got the answer from StCirq. Tangier is not dangerous, just exhausting because of the hassle which is a pitty since the city is beautiful. You need to be firm about what you want to do and what you don't want to do, even on the short walk from the port to the railway station and be prepared to get some rude comments from some of the touts when you turn their offers down. Once out of Tangier, things will get easier.

Anyway, your trip seems to be just marvelous. I envy you!

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Hi All
Thanks for your input - it is really appreciated. As it turns out, due to a couple of people who want to hook up with me on a couple of legs of my trip, I will fly from here to Casablanca, and do the trip outlined in my original post - in reverse. I will start in Casablanca and end up in either Istanbul or Athens and fly home from there.
That means that I would go from Casablanca toTangier - or through Tangier enroute to Gibralter. Based on your previous assessment of Tangier, would you advise a couple days layover there, or stay on the train until Rabat?
I dont like to be hassled by touts, but I also dont give in to their pressure!
Also, how does one get from Morocco to Gibralter. I assume that there is a ferry of some sort. Any hints?

Thanks again
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Michael

My impression is that Casablanca, Rabat and Tangier are the least interesting cities in Morocco.

Fodorite014

Agree with Michael. You should not just rush through Morocco seeing only Casablanca, Rabat and Tangier. From Casablanca you can travel south to Marrakech and after that heading north towards Fes. There are frequent ferrys crossing from Tangier to Algeciras in Spain. I wouldn't bother staying in Tangier. I've done so once and that was more than enough. I would also skip Rabat. I find Rabat more pleasant than interesting.

bilboburgler

rabat centre is ok as are any of the four royal cities, its just Tangier and Casablance that are a bit scummy

Michael

If three cities: Marrakech, Meknès, Fez.

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