mowgli
Junior Travel Member
Posts: 7
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Post by mowgli on Apr 27, 2006 9:46:12 GMT -5
Hey, me and a mate are planning a trip to UK/Europe from June till november this year, and i thought i had things pretty sorted till i came on this site!
Were planning on stayin with relatives in UK for a month, then going to continent for 4 months. First off i was planning on buying the Eurail pass with unlimited travel etc., Is this a good idea?, we plan on visiting a quite a few countries, 8-10 possibly more. And wats the deal with extra fees with the Eurail, will i have to book all my journies?
The same with hostels, everyone keeps saying to book in advance, but we sort of wanted to go with pnly a loose itinerary, not have our exact dates of each city planned, just go wherever takes our fancy, is this a bad idea?
And with booking hostels online, do you need a cxredit card, neither of us have one, will this pose a problem? How do you book online, are their fees involved.
Sorry for long post, but just so overwhelemd, the trip seems a lot more complicated now!!
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Post by euroman2006 on Apr 27, 2006 11:15:41 GMT -5
I cna answer a few of these questions, but you'll have to wait for the more experienced travels for some others.
Firstly, in my trip this summer (of course it is mostly in June, which will be busier than the latter half of your trip) we are booking ahead and some hostels are already booked up for the times we are going. However, if you look online at the next week or so, alot of them still have space (I think) so by the time fall rolls around and the students are back in the uni, you might be able to just do it on the go. Maybe planning a few days ahead. Again wait for others to agree with this or not.
We booked through hostels.com and they allow American debit cards; although airlines like Ryanair and such do not, only credit cards.
As far as the train goes.. I would say depends on what you want to do. You will need to way the options on whether spending more on flexibility or less on less days to travel.
hope this gets you started a bit at least.
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Post by Eagle on Apr 27, 2006 11:28:03 GMT -5
mowgli, welcome to the Boards! I'm not sure I can answer all your questions, but will offer a few suggestions.
As far as staying in Europe for a period of 4 months, I'm not sure whether non-EU residents are allowed to stay longer than three months under the terms of the Schengen agreement. I've heard that Schengen Visa extensions are very rarely (never?) granted. Your profile didn't indicate where you're from, but I'm assuming you don't presently live there??? Hopefully some of our members living in the area can confirm this?
With respect to buying a Eurail Pass with "unlimited travel", I believe the maximum time available on any of the passes is three months. In order to have a Eurail Pass to cover a four month time frame, you'd have to buy two of them and they can only be purchased outside of Europe. You might find that buying point-to-point tickets once the pass expires, is your best option.
You may have seen this in other posts, but BE SURE to validate your Eurail Pass before you use this the first time! You'll have to present the Pass and your Passport, and the pass will be "stamped" or whatever.
There are some extra fees required even for those with a rail pass. These include reservation fees, Couchette reservations and I believe "supplements" for the high speed trains? AFAIK there's no way around the fees; you'll have to include a bit extra in your travel budget for these.
You won't have to book all your journeys, but it would probably be a good idea to make reservations once you know when and where you'll be travelling. In other words, once you and your mate have decided to move to another city, make a reservation a day or two before the trip.
With regard to booking Hostels / lodgings, you will probably find that booking ahead is the best idea during July & August (peak tourist season), but at the other times you may or may not need to pre-book. Again, a couple of days before you'll be moving to a new city, book your lodgings.
I believe you WILL need a credit card for booking lodgings over the net or by phone. A credit card is also a good idea to cover for "unexpected" expenses. I've never encountered any "fees" for booking, but usually a deposit equivalent to one nights lodging is required; if you fail to show up on time, this is forfeited.
I don't know for sure, but if you're staying in a "chain" Hostel ((HI / YHA) you may be able to take care of booking your next stop by paying the charges in cash at the place you're staying at the time? If they're both from the same chain, they may have some way of transferring funds?
Don't apologize for the "long post" (my replies are usually longer!). That's what the Boards are here for.
Hope this has been some help. If you have any other questions, I'm sure the group here will be able to offer some great suggestions.
Cheers!!!!
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Post by WillTravel on Apr 27, 2006 12:15:25 GMT -5
You could manage the four months in continental Europe if you spent 90 days in the Schengen zone countries, and one month in other countries outside the Schengen zone. But definitely research this some more so you keep on the right side of the law.
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dig
Full Travel Member
Posts: 11
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Post by dig on Apr 27, 2006 14:09:22 GMT -5
Could help a lil' bit. .
The following EU countries do not participate in the Schengen Agreement: Cyprus, Estonia, Ireland, Latvia, Lithuania, Malta, Poland, Slovakia (after watching the movie Hostel I don't think I will ever go here haha), Slovenia, the Czech Republic, Hungary and UK.
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mowgli
Junior Travel Member
Posts: 7
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Post by mowgli on Apr 27, 2006 19:14:01 GMT -5
Hey, thanks for the replies. I'm from Australia, but have a british passport as well. Ive read australian citizens do not need a schengen visa for stays up to 90 days, does this mean 90 days for all of schengen territories together?. If so we'll probably just go to the continent for three months, Well maybe a credit card seems the way to go then, so as to increase our chances of staying in some of the better hostels Cheers
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Post by Jules80 on Apr 27, 2006 20:04:53 GMT -5
if you have a british passport than the schengen visa doesn't apply cause you're also an EU citizen. i guess it depends on if your mate also has a uk passport or not.
Jules
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tmbock
Junior Travel Member
Posts: 3
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Post by tmbock on Apr 28, 2006 19:16:01 GMT -5
Hey, me and a mate are planning a trip to UK/Europe from June till november this year, and i thought i had things pretty sorted till i came on this site! Were planning on stayin with relatives in UK for a month, then going to continent for 4 months. First off i was planning on buying the Eurail pass with unlimited travel etc., Is this a good idea?, we plan on visiting a quite a few countries, 8-10 possibly more. And wats the deal with extra fees with the Eurail, will i have to book all my journies? The same with hostels, everyone keeps saying to book in advance, but we sort of wanted to go with pnly a loose itinerary, not have our exact dates of each city planned, just go wherever takes our fancy, is this a bad idea? And with booking hostels online, do you need a cxredit card, neither of us have one, will this pose a problem? How do you book online, are their fees involved. Sorry for long post, but just so overwhelemd, the trip seems a lot more complicated now!!
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Post by MuvverRussia on Apr 29, 2006 12:19:26 GMT -5
Hey, thanks for the replies. I'm from Australia, but have a british passport as well. You'll be fine with a UK passport. That said, your mate needs one too, otherwise you could have some problems with Schengen. The 90 days are for all the Schengen countries btw, I'm not sure if they run continuously though (I'm sure someone else will have a better idea about this). Best bet would be to do 3 months in Western Europe (basically Schengen), then go to Eastern Europe for a bit. As long as you fly back from a non Schengen country then you'd be fine this way. It's always worth bringing a credit card too. Whilst it won't be an issue for you, UK immigration requires you to prove means to support yourself during your stay. Flash a credit card at them (both the limit, or the amount currently on it doesn't matter) and you're through.
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Post by WillTravel on Apr 29, 2006 19:44:13 GMT -5
I believe the 90 allowed Schengen days are out of a 180-day period. But of course anyone wanting to stay in Europe for a long period of time should check out the official government web sites for the latest and most accurate information.
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Post by WillTravel on May 9, 2006 21:27:42 GMT -5
But Great Britain is part of the EU, so people with a British passport are free to move about the EU.
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Post by MuvverRussia on May 10, 2006 3:57:12 GMT -5
Are you sure about the British Passport thing? They are NOT a part of the Schengen agreement. In fact that is why you can stay for six months, not 3 in the UK Completely, totally sure. EU regulations means that someone with an EU passport has equal rights to live and work in any other EU country (there are some exceptions for the new EU member states though). All you have to do is (sometimes) register with the police and/or immigration there - this is only if you're moving country for an extended period (think years) though. In fact it's not just for the EU. Other EEA (European Economic Area - basically an amalgamation of EFTA and the EU) countries (including Switzerland, Norway, Iceland and Liechtenstein) also guarantee the right of EU nationals to work and live freely in their countries.
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Post by uberbackpacker on May 13, 2006 19:34:47 GMT -5
Hey, Go to www.hostelworld.com and you will be able to book hostels ahead of time very easily that way. I've done it many times, it's easy and reliable. You don't really need to book hostels ahead, but it gives you piece of mind when you first arrive to a new place and takes away a lot of the work you have to do every time you show up somewhere new. I usually only book ahead when I'm going to a new, busy places, and if I feel that because it is peak season, there might be a delay finding somewhere quick. I don't like to spend too much time looking around for a place to stay when I first arrive, I'd rather be at a pub or European cafe somewhere sipping coffee or beer. (this is a sales ad...not permitted so deleted)Cheers
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cher1e
Full Travel Member
Posts: 31
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Post by cher1e on May 13, 2006 20:26:49 GMT -5
I'm also not a credit card fan, but there is another option. Many banks (ie ANZ, NAB) are issuing Debit Cards which are like your normal savings account but have the functionality of a credit card so by using your savings you can shop online or whatever you want because its all through Visa... hope it helps
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Post by MuvverRussia on May 14, 2006 8:17:01 GMT -5
Go to www.hostelworld.com and you will be able to book hostels ahead of time very easily that way. Alternatively book through this site. You're booking the same hostel, paying the same price, but guideforeurope get a cut .
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