22 yr. old girl to Europe alone, June/July 200

[sbuchanan04]

Ok, so my friend and I were planning on backpacking through Europe this summer, June/July. I bought my ticket and she bailed. So, I decided to go alone! I want to be there 60 days, and I am flying into Paris. THis is my only plan.

My ticket is one-way because I didn't know what city I wanted to fly out of or when. I want to spend my of my time in a smaller, Italian village of the Eastern Coast. I want to have a more sincere European experience than a big-city-tour.

I will be staying in hostels, but I haven't decided on a Eurail Pass yet.

Oh, and I only have six thousand USD. This is not including the flight to and from or the Eurail pass!

I need advise and tips!!
Thanks so much!!

[WillTravel]

I wouldn't go with a one-way ticket. There are immigration complications that can rise, and you could be sent back before ever getting out of the airport. That is - unless you have a EU passport. So look into that.

[madamtrashheap]

sbuchanan04, welcome to the Boards.

WT has a very good point - going on a one-way tickets will cause issues that you don't need at the start of your trip. As you've already purchased a one-way ticket to Paris, you at least know where you'll start from, so the next step is to do a little more research into countries and then cities that interest you and an itinerary will start to take shape. And then the best forms of travel for each sector will also fall out of those decision. I realise you want to go with the flow and not lock too many cities in to dates, but you'll be travelling in the peak season, it's not too far away (only a few months) and you'll find that you'll spend more money on "unplanned" stops or accommodation if you leave it until the last minute. There are, of course, exceptions to this, but it's something to keep in mind.

For your "smaller Italian village of the Eastern Coast", did you already have somewhere in mind?

And don't discount the "big cities" - the reason people go there is that there are things worth seeing, doing and experiencing in these places too. And the big cities have "small" sides to them too, it would be a shame for you to miss out on these things because the cities are "too big".

For your Budget, have a look in the Currency section and the Pre-Planning section of these Boards as there are a lot of Posts dealing with budgets and daily costs in these sections.

Having said all of that, I'd also like to add a well done for keeping your plan to travel! Travelling alone is a good way to see what you want when you want, and you'll find that you're not alone for long if you don't want to be as there will be plenty of like-minded people you'll meet along the way to share the experience with. Once you've started to piece a rough itinerary together, get back to us and let us know what your interests are (other than smaller cities) so we can make more suggestions for your trip.

[sbuchanan04]

Thanks ya'll! I didn't even think about complications with a one-way ticket! I have a rough plan that worked through several times, and this is knida what I am going with:

Fly into Paris- stay 3 nights.
TAke train to Nice- stay 3 nights
Take train to Milan-3 nights then up to Lake Como(Brunate) for 3 nights.
Train to Cinque Terre for 3 nights
Train to Florence for 3 nights
Train to Rome for 4 nights
Fly to London for U2 concert in hyde park- 4 nights
Fly to Ancona-1 nights
Ferry to Hvar, Croatia-6 nights
back to ancona, then straight to Bologna for 1 night
Fly to Barcelona-3 nights
fly to dublin-2 nights
fly back to NYC

How does this sound?

[herrbert]

I am not a big fan of Milan. Ask yourself what you want to do there. Apart from the last supper painting, and the Duomo, there is not a lot to see. But then again it is a big shopping city. (as a backpacker maybe tempting, but with a budget in mind, and limited place in your bag, maybe a little bit too tempting?

I would also reconsider about the one nighters. Ancona and Bologna. Either visit them when you are in Italy before, or skip them. Instead try to get a cheap ticket directly to Croatia from London. (there should be charters in that time of year to at least Zagreb and Dubrovnik, and maybe to a few destinations more.)

[Eagle]

sbuchanan04, I have a few comments and questions to add...

First, I have to agree with herrbert in suggesting that three days in Mlan wouldn't be my first choice. Is there a reason you chose Milan for three days?

I'd suggest travelling from Nice to the Cinque Terre, then Milan (or wherever) and then Florence. Also, is there a particular reason you chose Brunate? You might find that Varenna, Menaggio or other places on the lake are more interesting to visit.

I definitely agree with MTH that it's great you've decided to carry on with your trip even though your friend dropped out.

Is there any possibility of changing your one-way ticket to open jaw, now that you have a reasonably good idea of your first and last stops? You might find when travelling with a one-way ticket, that you could be taken aside and questioned by authorities.

Cheers!

[mjb0232]

Hey! I am sort of in the same boat as you are in....I am 20 (will be 21 in July) and will be backpacking through France and Italy alone in July. I've had a lot of people telling me I don't need to do this alone. What do you think? Have you experienced the same thing? I honestly don't feel threatened about it but maybe that is naiive on my part.