anonymous
Traveller
2469 comments
Posted 15 years ago
Hi,
Not too sure where to post this :)
Me and 5(or so) friends plan to go InterRailing next July/August for 22 days with a global pass.
Now this is the bit you will probably say that is way too hard:
We plan to go to 20 countries (2 of which passing through) in those 22 days.
We start in London Paris - Luxembourg City - Berlin - Prague - Krakow - Bratislava - Budapest - Belgrade(2 nights) - Sofia - Thessalonika(2 nights) - Skopje - Belgrade - Sarajevo - Zagreb - Ljubljana - Venice - Innsbruck(via Zurich) - Freiburg - Koln - Amsterdam(2 nights) - London (via Brusslles)
This is a rough plan so there is obviously some scope for movement. We plan to get the train to the next place in the morning and stay one night in each place, except those stated and not Paris or Sofia, this is not excluding night trains.
We are wondering how much it will cost for food etc., accomodation (about 18 nights in hostels, we dont mind the cheaper ones) and the annoying supplements which have to be paid. A rough estimate is good :)
What countries out of those have a poor reliability in train times? and how bad are they?
Any really unsafe countries you wouldnt recommend?
What are the general rules at borders for taking alcohol across? As we will all be 17 and make have to buy some alcohol in countries where we are legal and keep it for those that we are not. Or are countries not very strict in asking for ID?
We plan to do many countries as we feel it is possible(and we want to prove those wrong who laughed at the idea) and we are not going to some of the places for a specific reason(like cool places there) which means we dont really need to spend days there. So I would prefer it if you didnt just reply saying its too hard :)
Thanks in advance
EuroTrip10
SiDUDe
Traveller
752 comments
Ok here we go...
First of all my opinion is that you have too many people, and are planning to do too much. You wont be able to decide what to do as a group and will inevitably end up splitting up, and you will be absolutely shattered by the time you are half way through with all that travelling! But thats just my opinion and you are free to go for it, it will certainly be an adventure.
I usually spend around €1500 in a month including the ticket etc, eating out quite a bit etc. In western Europe budget around €20 for a hostel, in eastern maybe €10-15, but check out [ux]https://rail.shop/hostelworld[/ux] for more info. Supplements are all listed on this site, so there is nothing to do except trawl through your trains and find them out im afraid.
All of the eastern European trains can be pretty poor reliability wise, though its usually only a few hours. They are old, hot and uncomfortable, but this is part of the experience no? Occasionally something will happen and the line will be closed for a while but this is unlikely.
Out of those countries the most dangerous are probably the Netherlands (Amsterdam is so full of tourists that petty criminals can have a field day) and maybe Greece (especially if you are a woman). Saying that, I would recommend them all as none are as dangerous as London, and I live there!
You shouldnt have a problem with alcohol as long as you keep within the customs limits (something like a 1l of spirits per person + wine + beer but you can find it on the fco website somewhere i think)
Any more questions?
anonymous
Traveller
2469 comments
Ok thanks for your answer.
Yeah, we thought we'd just go for those countries for the adventure. Resting is what the rest of the school holidays are :P Someone said we could film it, but I have a feeling that could really be pushing it haha
Other than people wanting to do different things. What are the main issues with having 6 people? We plan to book hostels in advance.
I know I need to go through all the supplements on this site, but do nearly all trains that go between countries have supplements?
It'll probably be all boys, so Greece wont be a problem :) what exactly do they do there?
Thanks again, much appreciated.
EuroTrip10
SiDUDe
Traveller
752 comments
Well the main problem is agreeing where to go and what to do - and getting into hostels. But if you want to keep your trip fairly rigid then that might not be such a problem.
Pretty much all overnight trains have suppliments, and some long distance and high speed trains during the day do to. Look out for compulsory reservation in the timetable as this means there will be a charge
anonymous
Traveller
2469 comments
Thank you for the help.
Ill keep you updated on how our plans progress - and will no doubt have more questions :P
EuroTrip10
NillerDK
Traveller
49 comments
Be sure to note that your travelling in the high season, so if you know when your arriving in the bigger cities, book your hostels a couple of days in advance. Not all places have room for 6 people if you just show up at their doorstep.
And you might want to make a list of the 10 cities you want to see most before you travel. Beacuse when you guys first get started and are on the run, you can be sure that there are places where you get this feeling this is it and want to see more. So just in case. And of course, plan your trip according to the night trains, it will save you both time, and money on hostels. Arrive in the morning and find some lockers at the station for your bags, and then you can leave for the next city again in the evening.
anonymous
Traveller
2469 comments
Yeah, we do plan to book hostels in advance do you guys recommend [ux]https://rail.shop/hostelworld[/ux] ?
Btw do most hostel's (plus night trains) have plug sockets? So we can charge the few electronics we take.
EuroTrip10
NillerDK
Traveller
49 comments
I've only used [ux]https://rail.shop/hostelworld[/ux] , and that worked fine.. And all the hostels i've stayed in, had sockets, but in the trains, its a 50/50 shot.. Most night trains, and highspeed trains does, but dont expect too much..
paulthebob
Traveller
12 comments
Personally speaking, I think you're being really optimistic with your travel plans. By no means impossible! Just very optimistic.
I say that because this year I visited 19 different countries and it took me 35 days, despite maybe only spending 1 night in some places. I'd recommend you use the night trains a lot as these, even with reservation, are a lot lot cheaper than some hostels, especially in western europe. Maybe not as safe or homely but if you keep your valuables tucked into a bag by your legs - you're set. Also, don't expect comfort on night trains...
Also, it cost me £3000 in total. Hostels in Belgrade (I'd recommend Hostel Belgrade - book it using [ux]https://rail.shop/hostelworld[/ux] ) were very cheap. Hostel Belgrade cost me £8 a night. That's a fairly normal price for that part of the world where you can live like a king for very little, but beware, I was in for a real shock whenever I arrived in Vienna and spent £15 on eggs on toast and a glass of orange juice.
You'll absolutely love Belgrade - one of my favourite cities now. So so cheap. Try and get to the river-boats which are huge clubs. Though you require tickets for all of them, I managed to talk me and my friends into the last one we tried and had a killer night until 6am where we hopped in a taxi who drove up steps and beeped his horn at people walking/parked on the pavement and took us to a pizzeria.
Gota love Belgrade...
Problems I think you'll have are mostly to do with the headcount. 6 or even 5 is a bit of a crowd and finding hostels that will accommodate all of you will be next to impossible unless you book maybe more than a week or 2 in advance. Some towns I visited had NO beds at all in ANY hostels - so bring a bivvy bag (google it) in case. Don't assume that even the bigger cities will have beds - in high season - they wont. More than once I had to resort to a hotel due to my assumption of oh, it's Munich, I'm sure there's at least one bed in a hostel somewhere.
Good luck and enjoy your trip!! It will be the best time of your life!
Flo
Traveller
10724 comments
[quote]I was in for a real shock whenever I arrived in Vienna and spent [b]£15[/b] on eggs on toast and a glass of orange juice.
[/quote]
Where in the world did you go!? :D