3 Tips Before You Backpack Europe
1. Some countries aren’t worth it in the summer
Europe’s population doubles during summer break, I would put money on it. Because of that, the best time to travel Europe is October through April but a lot of people don’t have that kind of flexibility… leaving summer as their only option. If that’s you, don’t get discouraged. The crowds are definitely large and in-charge but you can still escape them if you know where to go. Plus, the summer sun in Europe is truly out of a fairytale.
Now, if you’re always wanted to see the Eiffel Tower or Big Ben then by all means, make it happen. Just be prepared to fight your way through the hordes. As long as you know that they’ll be there, they aren’t too bad. Plus, if you know that your next stop is going to be less packed with tourists, it’s a lot easier to bear!
So where to go?
Eastern Europe is far less popular with international tourists than the Western side. The farther east you go, the fewer crowds you’ll see. Think the Balkan coastline, the Slovenian mountains, Polish countryside, and Baltic cities… not only will there be fewer crowds but your dollar will go infinitely farther than in London, Paris, and Barcelona. If you’re heading to Europe towards the tail end of the summer and maybe even the first part of September the Mediterranean coast is going to be quieter than mid-summer and the water will actually be warmer since it’s been heating up all summer.
2. Combine planes and trains
I thought getting around the entirety of Europe by train was going to be easy as pie but that’s not really the truth. If you want to get the cheapest possible route across the continent you can take 20 different regional trains but you’ll spend two days doing it. (This can be fun in and of itself so I don’t not recommend it.)
Omio.com will give you the best idea of which option is going to be cheapest for you – trains or planes. If it’s trains, use Omio.com to find your tickets. If it’s planes, use Kiwi.com to search for the cheapest flights. However do not – I repeat, do not – buy a flight with a 4+ hour layover because it’s the cheapest. I did this when flying from Prague to Naples and spent an entire 5 and a half hour layover wondering why I was sitting in the Milan airport waiting for a plan to take me to Naples when I could have left the airport in Milan and taken a train from Milan to Naples in less time. I was so focused on finding the cheapest plane ticket – because I knew it was cheaper to fly than to train from Prague to Naples – that I completely overlooked that the first leg of my flight will already get me to the country of destination. Once you’re in a country and you can take regional trains without having 1, 2, 3, or 4 transfers it is absolutely time to get on that train.
Also, when considering the cost of your tickets do remember that when you buy overnight trains, which will cost significantly more than other tickets, you will be saving money on accommodation that night so sometimes it really is worth it! But also keep in mind that not all “overnight” trains are sleeper trains. Sometimes an overnight train will include 2 or 3 transfers in the middle of the night and usually one of those transfers includes 1 or 2 hours spent in the train station waiting for your next train.
3. You won’t save money with a hostel every time
Everyone is going to choose themselves whether they want to hostel, couch surf, whatever. I’m only here to let you know that hostels in the summer time are 2 or 3 times what they are during off-seasons. Sometimes it can’t be helped and in places like Amsterdam and London they still are the cheapest option, especially if you’re a solo-traveler. But if you’re traveling with at least one other person it is always worth it to check Booking.com for a hotel room or apartment to split. Especially in more affordable cities like Budapest and Prague you will end up spending the same or less per person to stay in a far nicer place!
A recent trip to Budapest really taught me this lesson: a friend and I were going to stay at a hostel for two nights and it would have been $30 each for us per night (a great deal) so $120 total. Like most hostels you have to pay to use towels, lockers, etc. You can bring your own but we were flying Ryanair so… yeah we didn’t have room in the backpack for anything other than necessities. While in Budapest we also wanted to go to two of the thermal baths and you need to either bring or rent your own towel ($5-$10). So instead of paying for a hostel bed, lockers to keep our stuff safe, towels to use at the hostel, AND towels to use at the baths, which would have increased our total to ~$160 or more we spent $150 on an AirBnB next door to the historic New York Cafe with two rooms, a renovated bathroom (and as may towels to use as we wanted), and air conditioning. (The picture above is the AirBnB which, yeah, was way, way better than a hostel.)
Bonus Tip: Do the walking tour
On your first day in a new European city doing a walking tour has got to be one of the best activities. Of course you learn a lot and see a ton of sights all in one excursion but it also allows you to get your bearings and have a much better handle on where you are and what you want to do with your time in the city. Plus, the walking tour guides always have incredible food and bar suggestions because they are almost always locals.
Every city has free walking tours available – but make sure to tip at least 10-20 euro, depending on the cost of living of your destination (most paid walking tours start at 35 euro a pop!).
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