Questions

[LobsterRock]

hey you guys... i'm planning at Europe trip sometime in the fall of 2004... and had a couple of questions... just wondering when do y'all ussually start planning?? is a year in advance to soon or should i just chill out a while and wait before i start planning... also how does is Euroep gonna look say in oct and nov.. climate wise? and as far as certain things i might wanna do being open? any help is appreciated in advance... sorry for all the questions just tryin to get some info...

[TUI]

Well I always start planning around 8 months to a year in advance, so I dont think thats to extreme at all! Remember, the mor eyou plan the less you worry while your there, sure ya wanna keep yourself some space to have the freedom to do whatever you feel fits at the time but definatly have a good plan to start out, espesially if its your first time.

October and November just so happen to be some of my favorite months for travel in Europe (well September is preferrable for me) because its not so crowded. Im not going to suggest that you not reserve your hostel beds in advance, but I never did at that time of the year and always found beds with no problems. Going in the fall allows you to go when the summer crowds are gone and there will still be people over there so the social scene is still decent.

What places are you looking at visiting?

[LobsterRock]

places i'm going?! as much as i can fit into a 2 month stay... the essentials of course, london, paris, madrid and barcelonia, italy as a whole, amsterdam i know that just these few cities want take up 2 months....and i wanna mix it up some... not just big cities i would love to see some of the countryside.. i don't know much about eastern europe... any suggestions as far as cities or countries to see in eastern or western europe... i'm pretty much open to anything... i'm planning early.. but i want it to be an adventure...

[joanofarc]

here are my two centavos:

i'm heading out for a small tour of western europe, leaving october 15, 2003.

i bought my tickets back in march - you know what - i feel like i've already been on that trip - twice!

of course i only speak for myself here, and i am a novice backpacker, at best - but i really just wore myself out with all the planning i have done. damn, not to mention some of the purchases i made - for instance, i bought, because the weather will be quite cold when i arrive, a rain coat and a warm fleece for the trip about 3 months ago - now that same shit is on sale nearly half off!

-in the end-

i say: do plan in advance - especially if you're going i the height of tourist season (BOOK ACCOMODATION!), but also be chill with it. go with the flow and think of the unexpected stuff that might happen to you as a result as part of the adventure - at least that's what i'll do for my next trip - chill.

shit, i know a lot of this has to do with the current economic/political situation - but even the ticket i bought in march $640 r/t ... i could buy today for $589 - no joke!