TrainHard
Traveller
3 comments
Posted 12 years ago
Hi everyone,
Ok so I'll be going on my first trip through Europe with a couple of friends in August.
We have a rough plan, that needs to be stuck to largely because we end in Crete for a week, and start in Paris.
With that in mind how much money do you think we would save if we pre book hostels now and in July, as opposed to a day or two before? I don't want our plan to be too rigid but money is the main priority.
o)
Thanks in advance!
Flo
Traveller
10724 comments
Hej,
this is hard to tell and varies from city to city. In Paris for instance I would recommend to book early, as good hostels are sparse and you might end up paying high prices for bad quality. Especially when travelling as a larger group you dont want to end up without a decent place to sleep (too often, that is). ;)
You might also consider cheap hotels as Formule 1, Etap and the like which usually are decent quality at a reasonable price, although a bit away from the centre.
So, I would not worry that much about price, but that you get rooms for your group (3, 4, 5, 6,... people?). Therefore I recommend to always check booking sites as [ux]https://rail.shop/hostelworld[/ux] while you are travelling and book as soon as you see that only few decent places have enough beds available.
Flo 8)
TrainHard
Traveller
3 comments
Thanks for the reply.
I'm going with two other friends, so a group of 3.
I think I'll book Paris, a city in Belgium, and Amsterdam, also Athens as we need to be there before going to Piraeus for our ferry to Crete.
Apart from that we can have a flexible route through germany and some more eastern countries, and book whilst travelling.
Do you know if international trains are still not operating from Sofia to Thessalonika, because this is a route we planned on taking?
Flo
Traveller
10724 comments
OK, as a group of three the situation isnt that critical, although making advance reservations for Paris and Amsterdam are a good idea. :)
In Belgium you can stay at either Gent, Brugge, Antwerpen or Bruxelles, all places are very close to each other with frequent connections.
Still no international services to Greece; there are rumors that the Skopje - Thessaloniki service will resume at the end of summer but nothing official until now.
TrainHard
Traveller
3 comments
Ok thanks for your advice.
I have no idea how we're going to get into Greece now! Train to Kulata in Bulgaria and bus maybe?
Flo
Traveller
10724 comments
Best option are direct buses Skopje/Sofia/Istanbul - Thessaloniki. If you are adventurous you can go to the last station then cross the border (on foot, maybe taxi or minibus) and then continue from the first station served in Greece. This would be Strimon and Dikea (when coming from Bulgaria) currently.
TrainHard
Traveller
3 comments
I think we will take the bus then. Thank you very much for your help.