My friend and I are backpacking thru Europe mid-June to mid-Sept. No set schedule/plans, so just looking for ideas of fun stuff to do, sights to see, etc. besides the obvious main sights. Planning on Ireland, UK, Spain, Germany, France, Italy, and Greece in no particular order besides starting in Ireland and ending in Greece :)
Hey all, my friend and I are meeting in Ireland mid-June and going on a 3mo backpacking trip starting in Ireland then going in no particular order to UK, Germany, France, Spain, Italy, and Greece. We have no set schedule at this moment. We\'re kind of planning excursions on a whim. I\'m in charge of hostels so I\'ve been looking into them in each country and have a few in mind. The few things that we do have set in stone are the Benicassim Festival June 12-15 in Spain, horseback riding in Ireland, and planning to do a Scavi tour at the Vatican whenever we\'re in Italy.
I was just curious if anyone had any suggestions of places they went and loved, tours, fun stuff (i.e.
my friend found something -I\'m forgetting where- where we roll off a ramp in a huge inflatable ball lol), nightlife, etc.
My friend is currently in Costa Rica for the month before she heads to Europe so I\'m trying to get some ideas before we meet up!
We both love museums, nature, and just having fun. We\'ve got listed all the major sites and whatnot to see and do, so any off the beaten path suggestions would be wonderful 😊 Hope everyone is enjoying their day today and thanks again for any suggestions you can think of!
Reply to this Haha, yeah I don't remember where she said it was, but you're basically strapped in and I believe you stay upright while the outer part of the ball is spinning. I'll have to see if I saved the link at home on my laptop.
Reply to this Ah ha! I found the link! http://www.spheremaniabarcelona.info/ 😊
Still looking for any suggestions anyone may come up with!
Reply to this ok well. I suggest because you start in Ireland to go west and then north. From belfast take a ferry to Stranraer in Scotland and explore beautiful Scotland before going south by train to London from where you will catch the Euro star to Paris. You could slowly go south and do the french riviera. After, you could reach Barcelona. I recommend Barcelona, Valencia, Granada and Sevila in Spain. You could then catch a cheap plane to Italy where you could visit roma, Cinque terre, Milano, Firenze, and Venise. From Venice you could catch a free ferry using the Eurail pass to Corfu Greece.
The pink palace is crazy and it is one of the best hostel in the world. They do night transportation to Athens where you can catch a boat to an Island.
hostel:
Dublin: Isaacs
Galway: Sleepzone
Belfast: Vagabond
Edinburgh: Backpackers
London: Astor Museum
Paris: St Christopher
Nice: St Exuperie
Barcelona: San Jordi
Valencia: Home
Sevila: ole
Roma: Mona Lisa
Corfu: Pink Palace
I am using couchsurfing a lot recently so I am going less and less to hostels, but I consider it one of the best thing about Europe. A city could be boring to your point of view, but a good hostel can change it all.
If you have question, you could check my blogs from the part 2 and 3 of my last trip. I been to all those countries many times.
Nick
Reply to this Thanks Nicholas for your suggestions! I'm not sure we're going to make it to Scotland just bc of our budget but I'll definitely keep it in mind. We are planning on going to Barcelona, Sevilla, Madrid, and most all of the places you listed so I will def look into those hostels you mentioned.
We're actually planning on staying at the Pink Palace, duo good to know or lives up to it's reputation 😊
I'm actually a member on a couch surfing spite, but have yet to use it, thanks for reminding me of it though as well!
Thank you again for the suggestions, and I'll make sure to check out your blog!
[Edited: 2012 Apr 11 17:54 - passecj:29296 ]
Reply to this Madrid is by far the boringnest place in Spain. My point of view.
I forgot to mention Germany is an amazing country.
Munich has amazing hostel like the wombats. Berlin is great and it is the cheapest west europe city. Sleep at the berlin backpackers for 7 euro + free breakfast. Enjoy 50 cents beer on the S-bahn going there.
Reply to this Hi, Germany really is nice. I like Berlin a lot. They also have (as probably a lot of big cities) a museum pass (e.g. for 3 days) with which you can also use the local transportation for free. I have only slept in hotels so far, so don't know about hostels.
I also liked cities like Nuremberg and Muenster, although these cities are more like historically interesting. Also nice is Leipzig. Big art scene, a lot of galleries and internationally known artists at the "Leipziger Spinnerei" and all over the city. The "Hostel Unschlagbar" is really nice.
Reply to this Have you ever been to Burgundy, France? It's a really pretty place and accommodations are rather inexpensive. I know a place: Fairway Hotel, which doesn't really cost that much. Look here: : <snip>
[Edited: 2012 Jun 06 03:15 - The Travel Camel:11053 - No dropping of such links on this forum, thanks.]
Reply to this No I've never been to Europe at all until this trip. Thanks for the link Laurenne! I'll check it out and keep it in mind for sure 😊 Only a week now until I leave!
[Edited: 2012 Jun 06 00:37 - passecj:29296 ]
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