First solotravel to Europe!
Hello! I apologize in advance for how long this will be, I am not very educated in terms of international travel. (-: Some background: I am a 19 year old female in the United States thinking about going to Europe for 2/3 weeks next summer. I have never been outside my country but I have always wanted to see this world and experience different cultures, and I figured western Europe would be a good place to start. I would’ve loved for someone to join me on this journey, but everyone seems to suggest that I wait until I’m older or that it’s unsafe. I disagree, I will never be this young nor have this little responsibility again in my near future. I want to travel before I have commitments here such as children or a salaried career that would make it harder and more expensive. My mom told me people will be telling me not to do certain things for the rest of my life, so why should I start listening now? I agree with that, so I’ve decided to go alone. Nothing is set in stone, and I am open to as many tips/suggestions as possible! The places I am interested in are London, Paris, Berlin, and Amsterdam. I also have family in Norwich, so I think I will pay them a visit as they are willing to come pick me up in London. I am thinking 3 days per place. I plan on staying in hostels at each place except for Norwich (because of family) and maybe Paris, as my friend tells me she wasn’t able to find a nice one when she visited.
Some questions:
Is 3 days enough time to enjoy and take in each of these places?
How much would you suggest I save? I have a part time job, but I make most of my money from investing in the stock market. I currently have around $3000 for plane tickets and my time there, but I have all of this year to save so it could easily double if needed.
I know the rules say no low effort posts, but I haven’t had any luck finding information helpful to me regarding this...Is there somewhere I can easily learn about the public transportation? Is it best to buy train tickets early or the day of? Or a good idea to buy a select Eurail card? This is what has me most concerned. I am trying to learn about Oyster cards and the “tube” in London or the trains and buses in the other places. I fear I won’t be able to figure out how to get somewhere making me miss a train or even a flight! I’m very interested in visiting a lot of museums during my stay, so I would just like to be educated about where I’m going and the best way to get around.
If I were to avoid going out at night and keep my wits about me (taking precautions I already do at home and just being aware of my surroundings in general) is western Europe generally a safe place for young women? I’ve read about a lot of scams but I haven’t read anything I could see myself falling for. I am not nor have I ever been afraid to be confrontational/say something or remove myself from a situation when I am uncomfortable.
Do I need to learn French, German, Dutch, etc. in order to properly communicate? I have already taught myself basic phrases in all of these languages (“do you speak English?”, “I’m sorry, I don’t speak ...”, “please”, “thank you”, etc.) But do I need to be more fluent in them? I was unsure since English seems to be a pretty universal language.
Thank you to those that took the time to read and reply!
Submitted February 26, 2019 at 09:07PM by jreich527 https://ift.tt/2BUtqcK
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