first backpacking trip - help!

[daisy]

Hey everyone,
Im an 18 year old female planning my first backpacking trip to europe this summer. I will be traveling alone. I have done a lot of research but still have a lot of learning to do.
Im planning to leave at the beginning of July 2010 and return in mid August for a total of 45-50 days.
I haven't figured out the exact route of my trip and would appreciate any advice on
-how to get around
-which cities or places to visit
-how long I should stay in each area

The countries I have narrowed it down to are
France
Italy
Croatia
Greece
Turkey

If I have time I would also like to squeeze is Switzerland and go hand gliding?

[daisy]

ok so no one seems to have replied yet. I know it's a very rough itinerary but i really do need lots of help planning this trip. since I am so young many people have tried to talk me out of going on the trip, and without good research and a plan, my parents won't allow me to leave. So please please, if anyone has any suggestions at all, help me out!!!

[WillTravel]

Hi daisy, it seems you are a sensible person so I doubt you are too young. I can advise a bit about France and Italy, but not the other three countries as I haven't been to them.

It's too early to book flights, but I think the wisest choice would be to fly into one city and out of another from whatever airport you are near (which is?). You will have to compare prices, but it might be cheapest to fly into Paris and out of Rome, for example.

For the in-between places, I think budget flights would be your best choice most of the time. See www.whichbudget.com and www.skyscanner.net . However, at this early date you will not be able to book these flights.

If you did squeeze in Switzerland, keep in mind that it will be expensive, particularly if you go hang gliding, so make sure to save extra for that. Also, if you did squeeze in Switzerland, it might be best to do trains from France to Switzerland. Also, although it's otherwise expensive, Zurich is sometimes the cheapest city to fly into.

It's really hard to say how long in each area. I tend to think 4-5 nights in Paris might be about right, particularly if it's your first stop. You could do one or two daytrips. Are you interested in seeing other parts of France also?

For Italy, it's hard not to recommend Venice, Florence, and Rome. That's all I have seen, and they were wonderful, but I really want to see some smaller places too. I'd want 12 days for all 3 (could easily be more).

Are you planning to stay in hostels? For the places you have mentioned, I'd allocate about 20-30 Euros per night if so, just for that.

I think even with budget flights, you have to expect that you will spend at least $1000 USD getting around between these places. Probably better to just say 1000 Euros for your transport costs (more or less), including local transport.

Then there are the costs of food, drink, admission fees, fun tours and adventures (like hang gliding), miscellaneous stuff.

[daisy]

Thanks so much for all the advice WillTravel!
I will be flying out of Toronto and was planning to buy my ticket to Paris, in January or February as I think they may be cheaper then?

I definitely want to travel to a few other areas in France, however prices may be a bit of an issue. I'd say 4 nights in Paris and 3-4 nights in other areas of France. Any suggestions of places/your favourites?

Venice, Florence, and Rome sound amazing but as you said I'd also really like to see smaller places where I can see the real culture of Italy rather than their tourist attractions. Thats my main goal on this trip.

I am planning on staying in hostels, and was wondering if it's smarter to book hostels in advance or to do it as I go? If so how was in advance would you recommend?

As for transportation, would flights be cheaper or if i bought a eurorail pass?

[WillTravel]

I agree with seeing some smaller places. But you will definitely feel and experience Italian culture in big cities, too - particularly in Rome. So I'd suggest that with your interests, still keep Rome on the itinerary, but consider some other places like Siena, Bologna, Ravenna, and Orvieto. I'll let others speak to the possibility of going further south in Italy.

As you are traveling in the off-season, you might be fine with booking on the go, although I personally favor having a plan. Even in the off-season the best places often fill up quickly. For example, in Rome, you could stay here, which would also give you a chance to be in a typical Roman neighborhood:
hotels.lonelyplanet.com/hotel/Rome-La-Foresteria-Orsa-Maggiore-P130067.html

So far as I can see, Eurail passes are usually not something that saves money, particularly with an itinerary like you have. They are worthless in Italy for sure. You can often save money on train tickets by planning in advance (up to three months). Budget flights have to be planned in advance to get cheap rates. So the cheapest methods of transportation definitely require preplanning. But in Italy particularly, train prices are not that much even bought right at the last minute.

[daisy]

The other cities in Italy sound very good!
Any suggestions for cities other than Paris in France?
And I was wondering what you thought in terms of safety? Are hostels safe for a solo female traveler?
Also if anyone could give me tips for croatia, greece, and turkey i'd really appreciate it!!!

[WillTravel]

Daisy - I misread. I see your trip is in the summer. I would recommend prebooking for summer trips. This way you can have your pick of the best hostels, and choose ones that have lockers, good reviews, good locations, etc. I think hostels are safe for women, but if you read reviews you can choose the hostels that are set up in more pleasant ways. For example, it's quite rare, but a few hostels have coed shower facilities, which many women wouldn't want. Or, for example, one hostel I stayed at did not have sinks near to the toilets, so you either had to wash your hands in the shower, or head back to your room to wash your hands. So by reading reviews, you can avoid picky little problems like that.

[Eagle]

daisy,

First of all, welcome to GFE! I have a few comments as well.

ok so no one seems to have replied yet.

With work and other "daily pressures", it sometimes takes us few days to respond to posts.

My first comment concerns the time frame of your trip. Is there any possibility you could travel at a time OTHER than July and August? Europe tends to be hot and crowded at that time of year, so it's not the most enjoyable time to be there. In addition, especially in Italy many of the locals take their holidays for the entire month of August, so some tourist facilities may be closed. Keep in mind that if you start in France, the weather is going to get progressively warmer as you head south towards Greece and Turkey and it could be really HOT in mid-August!

Given the fact thay you're 18 now, I'm assuming that you'll be 19 at the time you head to Europe? It's not unusual for people of that age to be Backpacking around Europe at that age. However, as a parent myself, I can understand the concerns that your parents have. My children are all "boys" so my concerns are a bit different, but my middle Son went to the U.K. at 18 and didn't have any problems.

Your parents would probably be somewhat more comfortable with the idea if your trip was planned extremely well, and they might be less anxious if there was some way to contact you to make sure you weren't having any problems. Therefore, you might consider travelling with a Cell phone. I can provide details if you're interested.

As this is probably your first trip to Europe, I'd highly recommend reading the Guidebook Europe Through The Back Door before you get too far in your planning. It will provide you with a LOT of information to help you have a great and trouble-free trip to Europe. Pay special attention to the "Rail Skills" chapter!

I'd suggest using "open jaw" flights for best efficiency. Even if they do cost a bit more than a standard "return flight", they're often a much better value when all factors are considered. You won't be able to decide on the flight details until you have a more definite idea of your Itinerary.

You've provided a list of countries but no mention of which cities you want to visit or which sights in each city? You might want to check a few country-specific Guidebooks to get some ideas on what interests you. Another good source of information for travel are the various travel programs on TV, such as Pilot Guides, Rick Steves or even Don't Forget Your Passport (it's a bit of an older production but is Canadian which is nice). Check your local PBS channel or Outdoor Life network to see what's available in your area.

As you're flying from Toronto, you should have fairly good availablitly of flights, especially with Air Canada. You could also look at Air Transat which operates flights to Europe from about May to October (they switch to the "sun" destinations in the winter, such as Cuba, Dominican Republic and Mexico).

You mentioned "hang gliding" in Switzerland. I'd suggest that you consider a visit to the Lauterbrunnen Valley and the small farming village of Gimmelwald, which is a BIG FAVOURITE of many here (including me). You might want to check their website at www.gimmelwald.ch for more information. The www.mountainhostel.com/ is legendary and I've never heard of anyone that didn't enjoy their stay. Of course, there are other options in Gimmelwald, such as Esther's Guest House.

You won't be able to decide whether a Eurail Pass will be cost effective, until such time as you have an Itinerary and an "order of cities" somewhat finalized. Keep in mind that Rail passes do not include reservations fees that are compulsory on some trains, especially the fast trains such as the TGV in France that travels at 300 kmH! You'd have to pay those fees separately. Rail passes are more effectice for the more expensive and longer runs. Especially in Italy, P-P tickets are often a good value. There is a HUGE number of different passes available, so you'll want to make sure to choose the best pass for your needs.

Given that the countries you specified are somewhat "geographically diverse", accurate planning of transportation links is going to be very important (especially Greece, if you're planning to visit any of the islands).

I can't comment on what types of issues a single female might encounter in Turkey (or indeed the other countries), but hopefully one of the group here will be able to provide some information on that. Could you provide a bit more information on why you chose those particluar countries, and not some of the other popular spots such as Ireland, the U.K., Germany, Netherlands, Spain, etc.

Good luck with your planning!

[daisy]

good to know! haha

[Eagle]

daisy,

One thing I forget to mention concerning Hostels. You might want to have a look at the www.hihostels.com/dba/continent-Europe-EU.en.htm# website. As they're part of a chain, the facilities tend to be somewhat consistent from one location to another. Breakfast is usually provided, either with the cost of the room or for a small additional fee.

Note that some properties have co-ed facilities so if this is a concern for you, it would be a good idea to specify your preference at the time of booking. I stayed in one Hostel in Switzerland with five males and one female in the same dorm room. Everybody behaved themselves of course.

You'll want to add a Towel and soap to your packing list and perhaps a Sleep Sack (silk is best). Sleeping Bags are usually prohibited at Hostels, due to the possibility of "contamination" of mattresses, etc. Most properties (especially HI) will provide a sleep sack in the cost of the room.

You may wish to purchase a HI membership, as it provides better pricing and preferred booking over non-members.

Happy planning!

[daisy]

eagle, thanks for all the info!
Unfortunately I am currently 17 and will be 18 by the time of my trip, therefore July and August are the only times I can travel as I have school until June and begin university in September.

I did take a trip to Vienna, Budapest, and Prague in the summer, however it was with my family therefore a much different type of trip. But I will definitely read the guidebooks you suggested.

When would you say is the best times to buy my ticket to Paris? Would earlier be better? And in order to buy the open jaw ticket, do I by the ticket for my return from the destination I choose to leave or does open jaw mean that I can fly out of anywhere, whenever?

Do the eurorail passes have any deals for inner-city transportation such as subways and buses or do they just include the train? But from the feedback I have received so far it seems that I might be better of using budget airlines, and you are right in saying I should pick my cities first.

I don't have any concerns towards co-ed hostels, but I am wondering if there is an age requirement to book the hostels?

In terms of picking the countries, it was definitley. My trip is nearly as long as I wish for it to be! I really want to experience Europe and to me that includes seeing the tourist sights as well as the hole-in-the-wall places that locals enjoy. I would have loved to go to Germany, but it seems a bit out of the way and I hope to return to europe in the future and see Germany along with Norway, Denmark, Netherlands and the UK. However for my first time Im trying to start of with a few countries that are a bit more tourist friendly.
I also really wanted to go to Ireland but it is also out of the way, and I don't have a strong urge to visit England, at least not on my budget. France and Italy just seem to be a good place to start. As for Croatia, I am dying to visit the Dalmatian coast and visit Dubrovnik and Split. I want to spend most of my time in Greece on the Islands but will definitely spend a couple days in Athens and on the main land. Finally Turkey seems amazing. I am glad it is the last country I plan on visiting as it will probably be the hardest to adjust in. They seem to have a strong and different culture which is exactly what I want from this trip. I also have a cousin in Istanbul which I may stay with for a few nights.

If there are any countries or cities that you think I am missing along the way or places that you have enjoyed visiting in the past please let me know. I am always up for suggestions!

[daisy]

Oh and could you also tell me about the cell phone/ways to contact home

[WillTravel]

Germany is not out of the way, really. Quite often the cheapest flights are to Germany, and it's really in the center of Europe with excellent, cheap connections to and from all sorts of cities. You can get from Paris to a German city by train in about 4 hours. Germany is extremely tourist-friendly.

For cellphones:

I have Fido. It used to be the case that turning on your cellphone in Europe was very risky because if anyone called your voice mail, you'd be charged at the huge roaming rate, even if you didn't listen to it, and even if you had turned your cellphone off again. However, Fido just changed their policy, and it's now safe to turn on your cellphone in Europe.

You can get a plan with Fido that allows you X number of minutes for a fixed price. You can also text people for about 50 cents per message. Either of these would work very well for quick contacts with your family.

If you don't have Fido, there is something equivalent with other Canadian cellphone providers, I imagine.

You can also log in from Internet cafes or your hostels and send home emails, and you can buy a phone card at a local corner store and phone your friends and family from payphones.

[daisy]

I was thinking of renting a cell phone once I arrive in europe? Would that cost a lot more than phone cards ?

[WillTravel]

I'd say don't rent a cellphone. I've read too many nightmare stories where the company charges huge sums of money because of some hidden terms. It would definitely be more expensive than the odd 5-Euro phone card as well.

I think I have noticed some hostels being set up with Skype on their computers, so that's another possibility.

If you really wanted your own cellphone for continual use, rather than using your Canadian one occasionally, then I'd buy one in Europe and get prepaid minutes. But unless you want to make lots of local calls, I can't see it paying off either. Or take an unlocked cellphone from home, and buy minutes in Europe.

Your cellphone has to be either tri-band (with some other restrictions that I can't recall) or quad-band. I think Eagle might know more about that.