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It was years ago but we went from Paris- Barcelona- Madrid- Algeciras (then boat to Morocco)- Nice- Venice- Milan- across the Swiss Alps to Mannheim, Germany- Brussels- London. All by train with a Eurailpass over a 6 week period.
Just wonderful! Can't wait to do Europe again by train. Read, eat in the dining car, look out the window, talk and sleep in a couchette (train bedroom). And train stations are usually right in the middle of town (unlike airports). Lovely!
Thanks for the advice you guys! It's a big help! Anyone know the average rate for a hostel?
It can vary quite a bit according to location and the hostel itself.
Big cities like London or Paris can cost more, ditto anywhere in Scandinavia.
It is not unheard of to find a bed in London for 10-15 euros nightly, but the average is probably double that.
I think we paid about 20 euros per person at Le Village in Paris a couple years ago, it's probably a few euros more these days. But often you get a breakfast (a meager one) with that. Add internet access and baggage storage and it's a pretty good deal when compared to fancypants hotels. But not all hostels are the same and the way to research them is word of mouth or a good guidebook.
Ryanair flight tickets are usually cheap, but do be aware that usually the taxes are far more than the ticket price (but still ends up being quite cheap). I used this airline to fly from Frankfurt to Montpellier a few summers ago. It was only $34 for one-way ticket. Catch: had to take an hour and a half long bus ride (I am NOT exaggerating) from Frankfurt city out to smaller airport Ryanair uses. This cost an additional 12€ (one-way). You are not allowed much as far as baggage weight, either, so keep that in mind, too. Other than that, just the usual airline fun (kids kicking seats, etc lol). They do offer great deals, but be very, very careful to get ALL the info before you buy a ticket!
Total Per Day: 200 Euros Total For 2 Weeks: 2800 Euros Total For 3 Weeks: 4200 Euros
Danny
Do yourself a favor and get a Lets Go Europe. It is written by Harvard STUDENTS on a budget. It will outline all your cots and provide addresses and phone numbers. If you are only doing England, Amsterdam and France and not constantly on the move, the Eurail might be a waste of money. There used to be a Eurail Youth Pass for 26 and under. I think these passes do not allow you on the Eurostar.
The trick with Ryanair is that you do not fly out of the major airport AND if you are overweight on your luggage you are busted a big fee. You must check in 45 min before or the desk is closed. It can cost you 30 bucks to get to a different airport. Also that 3 Euros does not include the 3 Euros plus in taxes and fees. Still not a bad deal. I flew my family of four from Rome to London (Stanstead) return (1€ or free) which ended up about 200 bucks for the flight. Still 50 bucks roundtrip per person is great.
You should be able to do better than 40€ on your hostel. Funny, I just booked the Doubletree in Philadelphia yesterday for three nights in July on Priceline for 65 bucks a night.
60 Euros for food is quite generous. If you are on a budget, many meals can be had at the grocery store. In Nice you have the Vietnamese who have come in that sell tasty Vietnamese sandwiches for 2 or 3 Euros.
Things in Europe have used to be a third the price in the States. That has reversed so that things here cost perhaps as much as double. Gas is not 9 bucks a gallon. Plan well. A mistake used to make a cute story. Now it costs a hundred bucks and ain't so cute.
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