Independent Travel Advice Needed!

Vag

Hey guys, looking for a bit of advice. I’m interested in doing a bit of independent travel possibly this summer. I’m thinking of maybe seeing a few cities/countries/sights in Europe. I am a total beginner at this so I’m looking for any information people can give me as to how to get started. Are there any websites, online resources/communities, travel agents even, that people have used in the past and found useful or even avoided? How have others gotten the ball rolling on this? Any tips or thoughts on this would be much appreciated!:D

FouxDaFaFa

If you're thinking of Europe,the most common means of travel you'll hear put forward is train. If you're staying in Western Europe, where everything tends to be quite expensive, consider an Interrail pass. This will mean you can travel on trains a number of times within a set period of time with the one ticket. If you'll mostly be in Eastern Europe (or taking train routes that are cheap enough) it's worth looking to see if just buying point-to-point tickets as normal works out cheaper than a pass.

There are some very helpful forums out there, as well as this one.
Main ones I would suggest are Thorn Tree, Trip Advisor (this is also where you can check accomodation and attraction reviews) and BootsnAll.

Can probably be of more help once you know your route.

Adiboo

Would also recommend the Thorn Tree forums. Have always consulted them before any trip that I have taken.

Vag

Cheers for the tips! Now that I think of it I had stumbled across trip advisor before. Any other thoughts on this would be welcome. Has anyone done Europe alone and what were their experiences? Any recommended sights/routes? I'm also just thinking of the language barrier - I only have Leaving Cert French. So unless it involves regarder a la tele or going to the biblioteque it may not be much use!

FouxDaFaFa

Vag wrote: »

Cheers for the tips! Now that I think of it I had stumbled across trip advisor before. Any other thoughts on this would be welcome. Has anyone done Europe alone and what were their experiences? Any recommended sights/routes? I'm also just thinking of the language barrier - I only have Leaving Cert French. So unless it involves regarder a la tele or going to the biblioteque it may not be much use!

Can't offer much as regards the "europe alone" element but I wouldn't worry too much about the language. I'm assuming that you'll pick cities that are pretty well-trodden by tourists so there will often be bilingual signage and a good understanding of english (in westen europe moreso than eastern). That being said, I think it's common courtesy to learn a few phrases of each language you'll need. It will be appreciated.

If you do find yourself in a situation where you don't speak the language and they don't speak english, it's not the biggest deal in the world. You'll make yourself understood eventually. Books like this can be useful. They look a little silly but they get the job done, particularly if the language barrier is too extreme to overcome with any amount of charades.

Vag

Yes I think that's a good idea to learn a few phrases....all part of the experience I suppose. Also, I would probably be thinking of sticking to the touristy routes....don't wan't to end up in any "Hostel" type scenarios!:eek:

FouxDaFaFa

Vag wrote: »

....don't wan't to end up in any "Hostel" type scenarios!:eek:

Well, hostels have really come into their own in recent years. Some are like motel/hotels. I wouldn't rule them out completely. You can get private rooms or female-only dorms for a really reasonable price. Especially when travelling alone, your accomodation will be one of the main costs.

Vag

No I mean "Hostel" the movie!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4d5_lrn9v-g
But yes i think that hostels will be making up most of my accomodation.