I need guidance on Eurail budget accommodations and like to explore alone - no packages please!!!?

Question

I am 23 years old (Indian national) and want a month-long vacation in Europe around September and October (Is that the right season?????) - maybe I go in an off-season (lol). I just confirmed I am eligible for Youth Pass - I would like to use it for Austria, Belgium, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Holland, Hungary, Italy, Luxembourg, Norway, Portugal, Republic of Ireland, Romania, Spain, Sweden and Switzerland.

I need a one-stop resource for Budget hotels (not Hostels or B&B's) at around $30-60 per day (Is it possible??) around Eurail destinations - also, I prefer Vegetarian food (How to arrange?)

Any help or inputs would be appreciated - thanks.

Answer 1

Best Answer - Chosen by Asker

I think you're VERY ambitious in your travel plans. I did eurail some years ago, spending a month like you plan to, and didn't cover nearly this many countries. You will be exhausted and not really get to see very much - except from the windows of the train. I have to say, I'd advice you to try cutting it down a bit and choose either a northern or a southern (eastern or western) route. I think you would be happier with that choice in the end.
Vegetarian food shouldn't be too much of a problem. Many restaurants offer vegetarian alternatives, and if you plan to ever make your own sandwiches f.ex., that will make it even easier.
Hotels at $ 30-60 per night might be difficult, but not impossible. Also you can consider sometimes riding the train at night and getting a "free" place to sleep that way.
Try www.etaphotel.com f.ex., and also try simply looking up budget hotel on Google. But you might want to consider not completely ruling out youth hostels. Many are of very good quality, and you can even get single rooms in many of them.
September-October is a bit late in the year, especially if you want to go to northern Europe as you say. In northern Europe June/July would be perfect for nice summer weather (although it's always a gamble), whereas southern Europe might probably be nicer in May/June and again in September. These two periods I mentioned last are also a little off-season, so you can avoid the worst of the summer throngs.
Oh, another great tip - travel very light, you can always buy extra stuff under way if you need a new t-shirt or towel or whatever. And perhaps bring old stuff instead of new, that way you can just throw it away afterwards (like worn-out towels).
Good luck to you and I hope you have a wonderful vacation :-)

Asker's Rating:

Asker's Comment:

Thanks to both of you - and some great news on this website on off-season travel http://goeurope.about.com/od/europeantri…

Answer 2

September-October are quite off season and it's could be all rainy and grey all through your vacation, so pack for cold and wet weather, especially if you plan to travel to Scandinavia. at $30-60 hostels, BBs and Guest Houses are your best bet, but since it's off season's you could get some good deals in hotels as well. Each country's tourist-info should be quite helpful!

Vegetarian food is usually quite easily arranged. Only the East European countries might be a problem but they usually provide some veggie option.

Your list of countries is quite long for only a month, so you need to plan your route quite well and work out the schedules and timetables. Especially Scandinavia is bit off the route, so it might take quite a bit of time. If you travel as far as Finland, you might want to consider doing a round trip e.g. Norway - Sweden - Finland and go back to Continent via Poland or Estonia to save time.

I hope this is helpful! Good luck and happy travels!