Quote:
Originally Posted by googspecial
Hey guys - Any tips, suggestions and/or advice?
To kind of reiterate the post post... I too am planning a trip to Europe for 3 weeks ish end of August into September. I have a wedding to attend in Scotland (Central). I was then thinking of hitting some of the cheaper more Eastern countries in Europe afterwards. Started looking at flight prices and it appears Istanbul is one of the cheaper places to return to YYC from.
I am looking at Edinburgh>Krakow>Budapest>Zagreb>Beograd>Sofia>Istanbul. Few days in each city.
Is this too ambitious? I realize that's quite the whirlwind trip. Any places I SHOULD go? And/or skip out? Train vs Bus travel? This is my first major solo trip as a young professional. I am in my mid 20s.
Thanks guys!
[EDIT] I have been to Europe once prior in highschool, (France & Tunisia) as well as a SE Asia tour with my then boyfriend after college
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That sounds like a great plan! I had a similar plan last summer (also my first solo trip, also mid-twenties young professional). I would book the flights and if you aren't sure how long you will be in places don't worry too much about the trains. I never booked a hostel more than a day in advance (sometimes not at all) and was completely fine, but it doesn't hurt for peace of mind if you already know where you are going.
Trains are reasonably cheap (watch out for weird European holidays that you don't know about and the trains are full randomly). Even if you book only a day or two in advance you'll be fine. Trains are certainly a great, unique part of the journey that you can't get in North America.
Buses are less nice and slower, but often ridiculously cheap. Worth considering if that's your angle.
If you are in the Budapest area, would be worth taking a day or two over to Vienna which isn't too much of a hike over (although not on your route at all). One of the nicest cities I have seen and lots of festivals, music and so on. I really liked it and was surprised given it's reputation of being more fancy. Great hostel crowd.
I maintained a similar pace as you seem to be suggesting, about 3-5 days in each city. I had more time so ended up stretching my favourite cities longer at the expense of the "monument chasing" approach of knocking off as many bucket list locations as possible. This approach worked for me, but there is no wrong way to travel though!
Happy travels!