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Hey everyone, I'm 19, male and in college, hoping to travel to Europe this summer but need a little help and advice from people who have been before or who know more then me. After airfare my budget is around 1200-1500 dollars, give or take a few hundred. I'm also hopping to spend 2-3 weeks in Europe. From what I've heard rail passes are the way to go because I want to do 2 countries (Ireland & UK), and I'm okay with staying in hostels and living as cheaply as possible, so any tips or advise at all to help achieve that or just advice in general would be loved!!! (Also one of the points I'm unsure of is the expense of food, as is whats the cheapest way to eat in europe?)
A rail pass is definitely not the most cost effective-way if you will only be there for 2-3 weeks. The standard British rail pass is only good for England, Wales and Scotland. You need an add-on to include Ireland. The pass costs hundreds of dollars. Just book separate trips between destinations and price train vs bus and see what works better. Sometimes it's more sensible to pay more for a train than a long bus, sometimes not.
In the UK the cheapest places to eat are chip shops, kebab stands and the pub.
If you are only going between England and Ireland, bus travel is probably cheaper than train.
Spot-on re : the food. However you can't GO between England and Ireland on a bus; you will have to take a ferry (can be a rough passage) or fly one of the cheap airlines like Ryan Air. Some you can book ahead, others you should wait till you're in the UK. Ireland has the best tourist operation in Europe and a visit to their website (Irish Tourist Board/Bord Failte) would be a good start. Prepare for VERY high prices for food, not so much for lodging.. Have a wonderful time!
IIRC, London Heathrow hits you with some high departure taxes. So flying into London, then ferry/discount carrier out of alternate London airport to Dublin ,and then going home from Ireland might save you $100 compared to going the other way around.
Hey everyone, I'm 19, male and in college, hoping to travel to Europe this summer but need a little help and advice from people who have been before or who know more then me. After airfare my budget is around 1200-1500 dollars, give or take a few hundred. I'm also hopping to spend 2-3 weeks in Europe. From what I've heard rail passes are the way to go because I want to do 2 countries (Ireland & UK), and I'm okay with staying in hostels and living as cheaply as possible, so any tips or advise at all to help achieve that or just advice in general would be loved!!! (Also one of the points I'm unsure of is the expense of food, as is whats the cheapest way to eat in europe?)
If I understand what you are saying, you are going to have a budget of around 1500 US dollars for 2-3 weeks in Europe and/or the UK. The current exchange rate is around .62 to one dollar in British Pounds and .74 cents to the dollar in Euro's. So, if you stay in the UK, really your 1500 bucks is more like 900 Pounds (give or take). And, you truly think you can last 3 weeks with that kind of money? London is a vERY EXPENSIVE city. Not just the exchange rate, but everything else. Same holds true for most places in Europe.
So, let us say you want to stay at hostels and you average 20 pounds a night (very low) that is going to eat up almost half your money. So, for three weeks you would have about 450 pounds (give or take) to live off of. Food, entertainment, travel (god I hope you don't drink alcohol, the average cost of a pint in London is $5.50), etc. Do you want to go into anything and actually see it? Not just take photos on the outside? Most of these places cost money. Although, the British Museum and other museum's are free to get into. There are passes, etc you can look into, in order to reduce costs, however they still cost you money. You MAY and I mean MAY, just be able to pull it off. However, I doubt it.
Here is a slight suggestion: Spend one full week in London. There is a lot to do and see there. With your money, you maybe able to pull that off and actually enjoy yourself. That way you can your bearings, ideas, etc and plan for bigger, better trip in the future.
Best travel advise I ever got:
Pack half of what you think you will need and bring TWICE the money.
If I understand what you are saying, you are going to have a budget of around 1500 US dollars for 2-3 weeks in Europe and/or the UK. The current exchange rate is around .62 to one dollar in British Pounds and .74 cents to the dollar in Euro's. So, if you stay in the UK, really your 1500 bucks is more like 900 Pounds (give or take). And, you truly think you can last 3 weeks with that kind of money? London is a vERY EXPENSIVE city. Not just the exchange rate, but everything else. Same holds true for most places in Europe.
So, let us say you want to stay at hostels and you average 20 pounds a night (very low) that is going to eat up almost half your money. So, for three weeks you would have about 450 pounds (give or take) to live off of. Food, entertainment, travel (god I hope you don't drink alcohol, the average cost of a pint in London is $5.50), etc. Do you want to go into anything and actually see it? Not just take photos on the outside? Most of these places cost money. Although, the British Museum and other museum's are free to get into. There are passes, etc you can look into, in order to reduce costs, however they still cost you money. You MAY and I mean MAY, just be able to pull it off. However, I doubt it.
Here is a slight suggestion: Spend one full week in London. There is a lot to do and see there. With your money, you maybe able to pull that off and actually enjoy yourself. That way you can your bearings, ideas, etc and plan for bigger, better trip in the future.
Best travel advise I ever got:
Pack half of what you think you will need and bring TWICE the money.
Thanks for the advice! It's realistic and good to know, I think I may look into Woofing and couchsurfing as an alternatives to doing hostels the whole entire time to maybe save some expenses and do megabus as my way of travel and perhaps camp a little bit as a cheaper alternative. But I'll take you're advice and let that play a big roll in the way I plan for this trip!
Thank you everyone one else as well, megabus looks very promising, and for food I think I'll just cook for myself and keep that cheap. Thanks!
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