[Harpoon]

Ok, I'm going to go around Europe for 2 or 3 weeks shorty. This is very last minute and it's still being planned but the current situation is to fly to Poland, spend a few days there, then go around that area of Europe, end up in Germany, see a few of my friends and fly home. I'll be travelling alone and staying in hostels.

I'm going into STA Travel on Tuesday to fully plan it but has anyone got any suggestions/tips/hints in the mean time? Apologies for the lack of detail, as said this is very last minute.

[tpxvs]

STA is ridiculously expensive?

[Tinberry]

Try to plan and book things independently if you can. STA will likely rip you off. What are you using them for? If its flights search online yourself to check the cheapest price. If your getting railcards you should probably be able to get these once you arrive.

[Harpoon]

I most probably will book everything independently, I just want some advice as what is possible with my money and where I should look to go.

[Harpoon]

Ok, update. Went into STA Travel and they weren't much use. So what I've decided to do is fly to Poland, most probably to Krakow then just decide what to do from them. After that, I'm going to end up in either Germany or Belgium and fly home from their.

What do people think to not booking a return flight home and just leaving it open? I would like to keep my options as free as possible but equally I don't want to get a last minute flight that costs loads just to get home.

One other thing, is it worth getting an interrail pass for Eastern Europe which is where I'll be spending the majority of my time (Poland, Czech Republic, Slovakia, Hungary, Austria) etc?

Any ideas on any of this would be welcome

[Basshunter]

(Original post by Harpoon)
Ok, update. Went into STA Travel and they weren't much use. So what I've decided to do is fly to Poland, most probably to Krakow then just decide what to do from them. After that, I'm going to end up in either Germany or Belgium and fly home from their.

What do people think to not booking a return flight home and just leaving it open? I would like to keep my options as free as possible but equally I don't want to get a last minute flight that costs loads just to get home.

One other thing, is it worth getting an interrail pass for Eastern Europe which is where I'll be spending the majority of my time (Poland, Czech Republic, Slovakia, Hungary, Austria) etc?

Any ideas on any of this would be welcome

http://www.eurail.com/eurail-passes/select-pass

I think you should plan your trip before you go...It'll save you money and your travelling won't be haphazard. You can afford to leave things open if you're willing to spend lavishly. Europe is expensive otherwise. :/

[Harpoon]

(Original post by Basshunter)
http://www.eurail.com/eurail-passes/select-pass

I think you should plan your trip before you go...It'll save you money and your travelling won't be haphazard. You can afford to leave things open if you're willing to spend lavishly. Europe is expensive otherwise. :/

It would be the 10 in 22 pass that I'd go for. And I'm aware of that but I don't want to be tied down to a fixed itinerary, I like the flexability of being able to do what I want when I want.

[standreams]

(Original post by Harpoon)
Ok, update. Went into STA Travel and they weren't much use. So what I've decided to do is fly to Poland, most probably to Krakow then just decide what to do from them. After that, I'm going to end up in either Germany or Belgium and fly home from their.

What do people think to not booking a return flight home and just leaving it open? I would like to keep my options as free as possible but equally I don't want to get a last minute flight that costs loads just to get home.

One other thing, is it worth getting an interrail pass for Eastern Europe which is where I'll be spending the majority of my time (Poland, Czech Republic, Slovakia, Hungary, Austria) etc?

Any ideas on any of this would be welcome

Hi,

STA have their uses but to the best of my knowledge don't deal with low-cost airlines. For the kind of itinerary you're looking at, you want to be flying with a budget carrier to Poland and flying back with the same or another carrier from Germany.

Never leave booking low-cost airlines to the last minute- their business model is based on selling advance tickets cheaply and then increasing prices the nearer you get to the departure date.

Getting an Interrail pass for Central Europe (btw. Eastern Europe is Russia, Belarus etc...you won't endear yourselves to locals in Poland, Czech Republic etc. if you call their countries 'Eastern European') is a waste of time- fares in Poland, Slovakia etc. are cheap enough that advance purchase is unnecessary. Interrail really only is cost effective in Western Europe.

In summer, booking hostels in advance might be wise, at least in larger cities.

Incidentally I was planning a trip to Poland and the Slovakian Tatry this Autumn but decided to go somewhere a little less touristy- however the Ginger Monkey hostel in Slovakia looked great.

In the Czech Republic I recommend spending time in South Bohemia in and around Ceske Budejovice and Cesky Krumlov- great part of the country. You didn't mention it but Slovenia is also worth a visit.

[Harpoon]

(Original post by standreams)
Hi,

STA have their uses but to the best of my knowledge don't deal with low-cost airlines. For the kind of itinerary you're looking at, you want to be flying with a budget carrier to Poland and flying back with the same or another carrier from Germany.

Never leave booking low-cost airlines to the last minute- their business model is based on selling advance tickets cheaply and then increasing prices the nearer you get to the departure date.

Getting an Interrail pass for Central Europe (btw. Eastern Europe is Russia, Belarus etc...you won't endear yourselves to locals in Poland, Czech Republic etc. if you call their countries 'Eastern European') is a waste of time- fares in Poland, Slovakia etc. are cheap enough that advance purchase is unnecessary. Interrail really only is cost effective in Western Europe.

In summer, booking hostels in advance might be wise, at least in larger cities.

Incidentally I was planning a trip to Poland and the Slovakian Tatry this Autumn but decided to go somewhere a little less touristy- however the Ginger Monkey hostel in Slovakia looked great.

In the Czech Republic I recommend spending time in South Bohemia in and around Ceske Budejovice and Cesky Krumlov- great part of the country. You didn't mention it but Slovenia is also worth a visit.

Thank you for this, it's been really useful

[standreams]

(Original post by Harpoon)
Thank you for this, it's been really useful

You're welcome. If you want any info about Slovenia or the Czech Republic, let me know. I'd also suggest visiting Ukraine at the expense of some of the other places, but you'll have a good time in any of those countries you mentioned.

[Harpoon]

(Original post by standreams)
You're welcome. If you want any info about Slovenia or the Czech Republic, let me know. I'd also suggest visiting Ukraine at the expense of some of the other places, but you'll have a good time in any of those countries you mentioned.

Ok great! I have actually thought about visiting the Ukraine as well. One other thing, would you recommend booking my return flight home before I go? I ask this as I don't know what my plans will be and which city I will end up in last so I don't want to have a fixed city and date to go home at? Or would this be a bad idea?

Thanks

[standreams]

(Original post by Harpoon)
Ok great! I have actually thought about visiting the Ukraine as well. One other thing, would you recommend booking my return flight home before I go? I ask this as I don't know what my plans will be and which city I will end up in last so I don't want to have a fixed city and date to go home at? Or would this be a bad idea?

Thanks

Hi,

You should definitely visit Ukraine but do some research first. It's not quite as 'easy' as travelling elsewhere in Europe for various reasons, but is definitely worth visiting and not too daunting if you're fairly independent and self-reliant. It gives a reasonably good idea of what Russia is like but without the visa hassles and expense. Kiev is a great city- beautiful and with enough things to see/do to keep you interested but without hordes of tourists (apart from during the Euros I guess). Being a big city it has a bit of a buzz about it which I find lacking in some other places. It might not be quite as beautiful as say, Prague, but also is far less 'Disneyfied.' I've heard amazing things about Lviv too. Both places to be seen now rather than in 10 years time when they'll be full of tourists. You can fly cheaply to Kiev with Wizzair, and then take an overnight train (fun and usually a good cultural experience!) to Lviv and cross to Slovakia/Poland from there.

I recommend booking your return flight solely because turning up at the airport and booking last-minute costs a lot more nowadays- it used to be the case 10 years ago you could get cheap last minute standby flights- those days are well and truly over. If you decide to change your plans and don't want to be restricted, then forego the hopefully cheap pre-booked flight home and take an overnight coach from Germany/Belgium (even last minute coach fares aren't usually too expensive).

[Harpoon]

(Original post by standreams)
Hi,

You should definitely visit Ukraine but do some research first. It's not quite as 'easy' as travelling elsewhere in Europe for various reasons, but is definitely worth visiting and not too daunting if you're fairly independent and self-reliant. It gives a reasonably good idea of what Russia is like but without the visa hassles and expense. Kiev is a great city- beautiful and with enough things to see/do to keep you interested but without hordes of tourists (apart from during the Euros I guess). Being a big city it has a bit of a buzz about it which I find lacking in some other places. It might not be quite as beautiful as say, Prague, but also is far less 'Disneyfied.' I've heard amazing things about Lviv too. Both places to be seen now rather than in 10 years time when they'll be full of tourists. You can fly cheaply to Kiev with Wizzair, and then take an overnight train (fun and usually a good cultural experience!) to Lviv and cross to Slovakia/Poland from there.

I recommend booking your return flight solely because turning up at the airport and booking last-minute costs a lot more nowadays- it used to be the case 10 years ago you could get cheap last minute standby flights- those days are well and truly over. If you decide to change your plans and don't want to be restricted, then forego the hopefully cheap pre-booked flight home and take an overnight coach from Germany/Belgium (even last minute coach fares aren't usually too expensive).

Brilliant, thank you!

[Tinberry]

(Original post by standreams)
You're welcome. If you want any info about Slovenia or the Czech Republic, let me know. I'd also suggest visiting Ukraine at the expense of some of the other places, but you'll have a good time in any of those countries you mentioned.

Hey standreams, you seem to have done a fair bit of travel in Europe. Was this recently? I just wondering I you know much about bus travel. Everyone always talks about rail cards or cheap flight but is busing it an option?
Did you do all your travel in one go? How long did you go for?

Thanks

[donal842006]

if your looking something "organised" try interrailingpackages

[Harpoon]

(Original post by donal842006)
if your looking something "organised" try interrailingpackages

I don't want anything "organised".

[Harpoon]

Ok, I'm not doing this anymore, I'm going on part of the Tall Ships Race instead

[standreams]

(Original post by Tinberry)
Hey standreams, you seem to have done a fair bit of travel in Europe. Was this recently? I just wondering I you know much about bus travel. Everyone always talks about rail cards or cheap flight but is busing it an option?
Did you do all your travel in one go? How long did you go for?

Thanks

Hi,

Sorry for my late reply- I've been in Italy on holiday. I haven't actually travelled that much in Europe, and the travel I've done has always been short trips (apart from one 6 month period where I lived in Spain). There are plenty of countries I have yet to visit.

Rail cards are not worth it for travel in Eastern Europe, where the cost of rail travel is cheap. All European countries have bus services and there are coaches from London to pretty much everywhere. Travelling to somewhere from the UK by coach can be cheaper than flying, but I don't think the cost savings necessarily balance out the loss of time (unless only going as far as Belgium or northern France).

Whether it is worthwhile or not to travel by bus within a country depends on the country. In Switzerland for example, trains are the way to go and the bus is used just for reaching those mountain areas where there are no trains. Conversely, in Turkey and Spain bus travel is often quicker and more convenient than train as those countries have fairly limited train networks.

[Tinberry]

(Original post by standreams)
Hi,

Sorry for my late reply- I've been in Italy on holiday. I haven't actually travelled that much in Europe, and the travel I've done has always been short trips (apart from one 6 month period where I lived in Spain). There are plenty of countries I have yet to visit.

Rail cards are not worth it for travel in Eastern Europe, where the cost of rail travel is cheap. All European countries have bus services and there are coaches from London to pretty much everywhere. Travelling to somewhere from the UK by coach can be cheaper than flying, but I don't think the cost savings necessarily balance out the loss of time (unless only going as far as Belgium or northern France).

Whether it is worthwhile or not to travel by bus within a country depends on the country. In Switzerland for example, trains are the way to go and the bus is used just for reaching those mountain areas where there are no trains. Conversely, in Turkey and Spain bus travel is often quicker and more convenient than train as those countries have fairly limited train networks.

Thanks for the info.
Yes I wouldnt be likely to book a bus if it was only a small saving. Being stuck on a coach for hours on end for the sake if a few pounds seems a waste of exploring time.

I would probably also be headed out on several trips rather than one long one. I hope to do Central Europe, Eastern Europe and maybe Scandanavian Countries.
Ill need to do a bit more research to plan routes but thank for the tips