I just booked my flight to London town! And get this – the flight that’s taking me all the way there from Southeast Asia only cost about $300 USD! Thank you John and Air Asia. I heart you.
As you know, I’ve been meandering around Central and Southeast Asia for quite some time. More than double the time, in fact, than I had planned on. It’s so easy to get sucked into the slow pace of life here and the ridiculously low cost of travel. But I think I’ve gotten my fill for now. And with such affordable airfare to Europe, how could I possibly resist?!
When I first thought about traveling the world, it was alllllllll about Europe. I’d been there in ’06 and had totally fallen in love, especially with the South of France. I had my heart set on the Mediterranean region as my starting point for this round-the-world journey.
But desperate circumstances in my pathetic LA life had me eager to leave the States as soon as possible, and that wound up being in late fall of 2009. And the last thing I wanted to do to start my epic journey was be COLD. So I spun the globe to the other side and decided on New Zealand / Australia where it would be sunny and summery instead. Good choice, as it turned out, because that winter in Europe was quite the nasty one! Instead of freezing my bum off, I was soaking in the sun and exploring the world down under wearing flip flops and bikinis and the occasional snorkel mask. A wise choice indeed!
Theoretically, I would follow the sun and be in Europe by June of 2010. But as I mentioned, the easygoing lifestyle in Asia got the better of me and I’m still here in 2011! I did have some unfortunate financial issues a few months ago that had me somewhat stuck in Asia – money was running dangerously low, my bank account had been hacked, money had been stolen, had to cancel my cards, had zero access to my cash, etc. But every misfortune was an opportunity in my eyes. I got to explore far more of the eastern hemisphere than I had planned and have really gotten a feel for the local culture. Absolutely priceless.
But it is time to move on.
The European leg of my world tour commences in March! It’ll still be cold, but at least it will be warming up for spring time while I’m there. And if the money lasts (questionable but hopeful!), I could spend some of my summer there too.
The money thing is freaking me out a little bit. But I refuse to return home to the States in the direction I came from – I set off to travel around the world and that’s precisely what I’m gonna do.
I don’t exactly have a plan yet though. I do know I wanna go to Ireland, Holland, Spain, France, Italy, Switzerland, Austria, Czech Republic, Croatia, and Greece. Sweden if I can afford it. Maybe Albania. Maybe Scotland. Maybe Germany. I also wanna wander into Africa a bit to see Egypt and Morocco.
Sheesh, that sounded perfectly feasible in my head, but now that I’ve listed it all out, it sounds outrageous. Have I completely lost my brain?! We’ll just see how it goes. Whichever countries I don’t make it to, I’ll just have to save for next time 😉
To be honest, I’m nervous about going to Europe. By the time I get there, I’ll have spent nearly a year getting into the Asian groove. The idea of spending more than $1 USD on a meal sounds ludicrous. And having to wear real shoes and a jacket just sounds awful. But I have about two months left to indulge, so until my European adventure comes calling in March, you can find me in my flip flops, at a Vietnamese streetside food stall, filling my belly with nem nÆ°á»›ng, bắp xà o and bún riêu for literally pennies. I may throw in the occasional $1 pedicure, or 90-minute oil and hot stone massage for $6. I don’t think I’ll be finding those anywhere in Europe!
That said, I am seeking advice on how to do Europe in the absolute cheapest way. My life savings is dying a slow but wonderful death, and I am determined to see as much of Europe as I can with what life support is left. Couchsurfing is my key strategy for accommodations. But what about the other major expense of transport?
- Should I get the Eurorail Pass or is that too limiting?
- Should I just wing it by buses, trains & cheap flights as I go along?
- Besides Ryan Air, what other budget airlines should I know about?
- Is it easy to travel from country to country by bus?
My stats tell me you’re out there, people, and I know you’re shy! But I am sincerely asking you for your opinions, your experiences, your advice. I’d really appreciate it. You can post anonymously too, or just email me.
Countdown to Europe begins NOW!
that’s so awesome! you’re so lucky. i’d love to go to europe! i guess i will have to live vicariously through you for now 🙂
Wonderful! You’re going to have a GREAT time in Europe! German Wings is another good low-cost air carrier in Europe but there are TONS!
Europe is supposed to be the best place to couch surf, so give that a run.
so far, i’ve received the following suggestions for cheap travel in europe:
– german wings (thanks connie!)
– easyjet (thanks simon and mom!)
– aer lingus (thanks mary, even though i thought this was a joke – what a phallic, triple-x sounding name. makes me feel dirty!)
– my spanish friend recommends viajar.com, a search engine that includes planes, trains AND buses. thanks borja! the site is in spanish though – thank goodness for google chrome translations!
– simon recommends national express & megabus for buses; and getting the oyster card for general transport in london.
it’s a great start, thanks everyone! i’ll take all the suggestions i can get.
more more more!
Aer Lingus has crazy good deals, and so does CheapOAir sometimes. TravelZoo has some good packaged deals, too.
We’re going to be in Italy on June 22, if you’re still around we should meet up! And we’re going to Ireland afterwards (I am pretty sure) through July 8…
Anyway – my advice would be to do a little planning ahead while there, and look for online deals whenever possible – when we were in Ireland in ’09 we took a train from Dublin to Galway, and at the ticket window the tickets were 50 Euro each way (OUTRAGEOUS), but online they were only 10 Euro! So we used an Internet terminal in the train station and saved a ton of money.
I had a Eurorail pass in ’02 and it worked really well, but be aware that not all passes go to all countries. For example, my Italy/France/Austria pass didn’t go to the Czech Republic, etc.
Also – GO TO PRAGUE. You will love it, and it’s incredible, and cheaper than many places in Europe.
That’s all for now! 😉
you rock, adriana!!! thanks for the GREAT tips. we definitely have to meet up in italy if we’re there at the same time!
Agree with Aer Lingus and EasyJet. Since your time is flexible you will be able to get GREAT deals, I went from London to Malaga for 22 pounds.
Taylor lives in London – email me if you want to meet up with him – sure he would take you out on the town.
awesome. thanks mike!
Had a few tips for you based on my European travel experiences.
If you go to Czech Rep, make sure to swing by Cesky Krumlov for a couple days. Cozy medieval village with great brewery. Krumlov House is an amazing stay.
Hvar is my favorite island in Croatia, you will love it. I’ve stayed at the Green Lizard twice.
thanks scott! hvar has definitely been on my radar, hoping the sunshine makes it there at the same as me (late april/early may). hoping to be in prague shortly after that. cheers!