For my 30th birthday I'm planning a 12 day trip through Europe. I'm thinking London, Paris, and Rome, maybe Madrid if there's time. Can you please offer me tips? I've only traveled internationally once before.
Here are my questions. Pleas answer as many as you can:
- How much should I plan to save for the trip?
- What are some good travel websites?
- Is it better to stay in hostels or hotels? Are the hostels more for people in their early 20s?
- How much should I pack? I was thinking of just two carryons.
- Would it be better to fly into London and fly out of Rome or would it be better to do the trip roundtrip from London?
- What about traveling within Europe? Ferries? Buses? Trains? Eurorail? Planes?
- Are these friendly cities for a girl traveling alone? I'm excited about seeing the sites, but I'm also hoping to meet some people and go out a little.
- I have a cell phone I got in China. Can I just change the SIM card and use it in Europe or will I need to buy a phone once I get there? (I have Verizon, so I can't change a SIM out of it.)
- Will travel be difficult in France and Italy? I speak English, and just a little bit of Spanish.
- I'd also like to stop in Madrid if I can, is that feasible given that I'll be there from 12 to14 days or should I nix it?
Thank you so much!|||Hi from tropical UK...not. We're getting battered by another big Atlantic storm.
Europe can get bad weather, even in sunny Spain. Sunny Spain gets floods and howling wind at times so come prepared for anything.
Mentally that is. Don't pack loads. Get stuff where you need it.
Go home with an interesting wardrobe.
To travel, go empty and come back full.
Last trip to Peru for a 1-month tour round I took a small shoulder bag.
Snacks for the flight. Washing kit, one change of shirt socks and undies,a camera, a phone and a book. Notepad and pens.
Money belt for the cash, cards, passport, tickets and insurance papers.
Off the flight,into the shops for some local clothes at local cheap prices, then to the hostel.
Came back with an 80 liter pack and a big suitcase both loaded with local goodies and no extra baggage to pay.
Some hostels have an age limit of 45 or 50 years old for dorms but most have no age limit..
They're not just for young folks. In Bomvu backpacker hostel in South Africa I met a 70 year old Dutch lady who sold her house so she could go travelling for the rest of her life.
There are thousands of young single girls travelling around the world and staying safely in backpacker hostels.
Hundreds are in Africa in places some grown men wouldn't want to go.
I met loads of girls from lots of countries, never heard a single hard luck story.
Have no fears. Normal street sense, you'll be OK anywhere in Europe and if you want to try South Africa you'll be fine there too. Just use some street sense the same as at home.
You can get friends in minutes in any of the hostels. No prob.
Shop together for food, cook together, have a fusion feast.
Saves money, and it's fun.
Go out together, keep each other company. Six nationalities hitting a nightclub or a funfare together...waheeeeeee
Maybe find somebody going your way and you get a travel companion for a couple of days.
It happens all over the world.
A Eurail pass can save money on a long trip covering several cities but for your trip of only a couple of weeks you'd be better off flying to Rome if you go there.
London to Paris is much quicker and cheaper by train than flying it..
.Eurostar beats the airlines. 2 1/4 hours, city center to city center.
$55 each way if you book in advance.
Madrid is terrific. So are Seville and Valencia which are easy by fast train from Madrid and in the north there are Bilbao and Santiago de Compostella.
Pure magic.....wonderful places to visit.
You've only got a few days. A few in London, a few in Paris...
Rome or Spain. No brainer.
Italy is a mess right now and it's more expensive than Spain.
I love Italy and Italian food, but in Spain you can eat well too and cheaper and Spain is just glorious for a visitor.
See Spain easily from Paris and fly home from Madrid's lovely Barajas airport.
And see at least Valencia and Seville for a couple of days each or even a day trip. Both can be done by fast train from Madrid.
Buena suerte.
You can get a basic phone from second-hand shops for $10 or less and buy a pay-as-you-go SIM card for a few dollars or bring your own phone and just buy a SIM.
If it has 1800MHz. it'll work all over Europe.
France speaks French. Most places you'll find enough English so you can eat and find a bus station and a bed..
In the hostels there are always English speakers, all over the world, and even in some parts of Paris, if they have to speak English..
Paris speaks Parisien French. All other languages there are spoken by social inferiors and nobody wants to be that..
Not always that bad, but...in Paris, you're in Paris.
At least try to speak the lingo, and in your beautiful deep sorrowfull eyes show the enormous shame you have that your Parisian isn't absolutely perfect.
It helps with getting good service, haha.
You could even get a smile....ahhhhh, lovely Paris.....
Suggested itinerary...London 4 days..Paris 4 days...then enjoy Spain. You'll have a much better time in Madrid than in Rome.
A 3 country Eurail pass will do you fine and will give day trips from London (to Windsor!!!!), the train to Paris, day trips from Paris (eg wonderful Versailles), train to Madrid and from there day trips to Seville and Valencia.
That's a packed vacation......you'll need a vacation when you get home,haha
BTW...the UK isn't a country. It's a Sovereign State with four constituent countries. England, Scotland, Wales, and Northern Ireland.
http://projectbritain.com/britain.html|||I made a travel blog where nationwide travel experts will call you http://www.chip-tickets.com/travel-guide鈥?/a> they are experts on travel destination.Find out more..|||You only have 12 days, and you want to cover a continent? You need to get real, pet.
London is the capital of the COUNTRY known as the United Kingdom, Paris is the capital of the COUNTRY France, Rome the capital of the COUNTRY Italy, and Madrid the capital of the COUNTRY Spain. Europe is in fact a CONTINENT that covers approximately the same area as the continental United States - so it's big.
4 COUNTRIES in 12 days is a really bad idea. You won't have time. 3 is pushing it. I suggest just picking two. Don't forget that you will lose an entire day travelling between those destinations, so why spend a third of the time in airports?
To choose, I suggest getting yourself down to the travel section of your local library and reading up on all those places and paying attention to the news of all those places also before deciding which destinations you're picking. Fly into one, travel onto the second, and fly out of that. (You can take the train between London and Paris via the Channel tunnel.) If you're only travelling for a short time (12 days) and between 2 destinations, a Eurail pass might not be worth the money.
For London or Paris, you'll need 鈧?00 per day, a bit less for Rome and Madrid. For accommodation, look at www.hostelworld.com, read all reviews before booking. If you're travelling alone it will cost you more to stay at a budget hotel, but you will have more privacy. If you are sensible, travelling alone won't be a problem. However, do not leave important documents or personal items in the care of someone you don't know.
As regards carry-on bags on flights, consult the airlines for this. One carry-on bag is permitted, you may be charged extra for a second one, depending on the airline.
I'm not sure about cell phones, but I know that many places now have free (unsecured) wi-fi, so if you have a smartphone, you would be able to go online for free.
Spain, France and Italy have been dealing with foreign visitors for CENTURIES. English is NOT going to be a problem, but it is better to play it safe, and not assume that everyone you meet there will have fluent English. A positive attitude and sense of humour help a lot, and don't forget that good manners are universal.|||1. Those are expensive cities. I'd say 125 euros per day at the very least excluding hotel
2. http://wikitravel.org/en/Main_Page is coming along nicely. Tripadvisor.com is good for hotels and restaurants.
3. That would depend on what comfort level you prefer. Hostels are dirt cheap and therefore attract young people.
4. depends on how much of a clothes hog you are. Personally I never travel with more than I can comfortably carry. Do consider you might want to do some shopping over here.
5. Explore both, see what ticket prices are like
6. London-paris. I find eurostar is a relatively comfortable and hassle free solution. Paris-Rome I'd fly.
7. Relatively. They're also big cities with big city problems. In France and Italy English isn't widely spoken beyond the basic level which may hinder you
8. Any GSM phone that can do 1800mhz will work.
9. You'll manage but learning a few words of the local language would help.
10. Not at all feasibly. As it is you're already at a time level where you won't have much time in any of these cities. Don't forget travel times.|||1) I don't know what level of accomodations / luxury you're used to, or how you
plan on getting around or even what time of year. The more $ the better though,
especially with a strong Euro.
2) Hostels are often cheaper. Hotels will probably be safer if you have valuables.
3) No room for souvenirs? How often do you plan on changing into new clothes,
and will you have time to do laundry at least once? If going in summer it can be
unpleasant to wear the same clothes more than 2 days in a row.
4) Depends on how you are going to other places in your interary. Taking limited
past travel experience into account however I would suggest u start with London.
5) Entirely up to you, distances are shorter than in most other parts of the world.
What is your budget? Do you want to see sights while getting around, or is time
of essence?
6) Never been to London or Madrid, Paris has a good nightlife, not been to Rome
since I was a kid.
7) Depends on the carrier. Keep in mind voltage may be different than what your
appliances are used to. Do you use your cellphone much? Given roaming costs,
you might want to consider getting a temporary number (and phone) while there.
8) With people your age, most have at least studied some english - but levels of
fluency and willingness to practise vary. Just like I said earlier, don't expect all to
speak it perfectly. Make an effort to learn at least a few basic words and phrases.
9) See how it goes and how much time you have. I hope you go to Madrid though.|||Save as much as you can!
I went to live in the UK for a couple of years and then travelled by myself in the holidays every 6 weeks or so (I did travel with one other person a couple of times but predominantly me, myself and I).
I stayed mostly in hotels for a couple of reasons as I wanted to sleep in my own room and to stay in a hotel was the same/slightly more/slightly less than having a private room in a hostel. I did stay in a hostel for one night, and it was great to meet people, but I hated sharing a room. The other advantage to hotels as they supply breakfast (almost always) while hostels do not (almost always not). This turned me to hotels.
You type of luggage is up to you, some like backpacks others like wheely suitcases, I like the latter. It is a personal choice, I liked being able to access my stuff more easily, I don't like having the weight on my shoulders but it it can be harder to get over surfaces, up and down stairs etc. So it is up to you.
If you can do the in one airport and out another , it would save time, but it is often cheaper to go in and out the same airport.
I would say spend an absolute minimum 3 days and preferably 5 days in each of those cities, so I would definately drop Madrid and focus on the other 3.
Trains are fantastic in Europe and you can Eurostar from London to Paris in only a couple of hours. It is a great way to travel as well.
As I said, I traveled by myself and while I was based in the UK,( near London), I never felt scared or fearful when travelling. I speak only a few phrases in French (and a little more German) but that was it and I survived, although I will say the most language issues I had were in Paris, but you can keep asking people, get them to write it down or just muddle it out...get some good maps. I found a range of laminated maps which were fantastic that did not rip, were great in the rain too! If you get lost you can always find your way with a map.
If you get lonely or feel you will, I can recommend doing some day tours. I went to Versailles from Paris on a half day tour, and to Pompeii from Rome (try and add on Sorrento/Capri!!!). You can use something like viator.com. I like these tours for several reasons, you get taken to places a bit more out of the way, include lunch (almost always) on full day tours, often quicker entry to places and the guides are usually great. I got a lot more out of Versailles than my sister, who went by herself did (as it is surprisingly empty).
I had a UK phone and can't help with that. I had no issues with vodafone.
Hope this helps.
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