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I am going interrailing with two of my friends (all of us are 21 years old and male- if that helps?) from the end of July to mid August. We are getting the 22 day global pass and are actually starting in Barcelona as we have got cheap flights to get there. Although it is only 22 days pass that doesn't include 3 nights in barcelona (as we are not using the pass til we leave there as we wont be using it in Barca); so we will be going for 25 days. The route is:

Barcelona

French Riviera

Milan

Munich

Prague

Berlin

Amsterdam

Brussels

London (Home).

The plan is to stay 2 or 3 nights in each city. None of us have done the whole travelling thing before and so don't quite know what is right and wrong in terms of money and what to take (how much clothing, do we take a lot of cash or rely on card machines, etc). One of the main issues that I have is the amount of money I am going to need. I think I can get around £1700 (after plane and interrail tickets) in money to take on the trip. So obviously that has to cover everything, from accommodation to food to going out. So that should give me about £68 a day.. Is that going to be enough in the places we are going? What are the places on the list that will cost me most? Obviously we will be drinking, etc in the nights and sightseeing during the day, so I am worried this won't be enough money. I am assuming that barcelona, french riviera and milan will be the big hitters in terms of alcohol costs and accommodation prices? Basically just asking you guys (and girls) for some guidance about money and what to expect to be spending for what in the places we are visting. Also any help on what I should pack (such as essential items that I wouldn't want to not have in my luggage) and how many sets of clothing, would also be very helpful.

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    Valid questions, but it might be worth splitting this into more than one question? We try to ask questions that can be definitively answered, and you're asking some quite subjective questions - 'is it enough money' - for example, some will hitch and sleep under the stars, others want quality accom and food, so it's tricky to answer without starting a discussion. – Mark Mayo Jun 29 '12 at 4:41
  • Saying that, @MastaBaba has made quite a good attempt at answering it while covering some of the vagueness. Definitely worth checking out the budget and other similar sections on how to save money in Europe - we do have quite a bit on hostels and avoiding tourist traps too. – Mark Mayo Jun 29 '12 at 4:44
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    Sorry again about all the vague questions thrown into one thread. If I have any other questions I will make sure they are more direct and about one specific thing. – ben Jun 29 '12 at 10:48
  • Great! We look forward to the questions. Europe is awesome, you'll enjoy it! – Mark Mayo Jun 29 '12 at 16:17
  • have you checked out interrailingpackages? – user2728 Jul 1 '12 at 11:39
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70 pounds a day can be more than enough for traveling in Europe. It can also be quite inadequate.

It simply, and obviously, depends on what you want to spend your money on.

Accommodation can be a killer, but if you stick to dorms in hostels, accommodation shouldn't be more than 20 euros per night. And if you plan ahead and use a service like http://www.hotelscombined.com/ or http://airbnb.com/ you might even find rooms for less, particularly because you are three.

Whether your remaining daily allowance is enough completely depends on you. A fancy bar in a tourist hotspot can charge up to 10 euros for a pint. While a tucked away little cafe on a side street might only charge 2.50. And buying your drinks at a supermarket and then drinking at your hostel could be even cheaper.

On bringing cash, take some cash, just in case, but ATMs are everywhere.

On what to pack, there are plenty of resources online to help you figure that out. For example: http://www.wikihow.com/Pack-for-a-Trip A general piece of advice: bring less than you think you need.

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  • Thanks for the detailed response, particularly the website links! I am pretty sure we will just stick to cheap hostels to save money for going out. We aren't very fussy on where we drink either so the cheaper places or supermarkets sound fine with a fancy bar thrown in every now and then! Thanks again for the help; greatly appreciated. – ben Jun 29 '12 at 10:46
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From my more-than-ten-years-ago trip (before the €), I have two advices:

  • Get your money from ATMs. This is the most convenient way to limit change fees and carrying too much money.

  • Travel by night. Your days will be available for visits and you will spare some money on accomodation.

About packing and travelling light, the best site I know is onebag.com.

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  • Cheers for the reply and clear answers! I think the travel by night idea is something we will definitely look at doing; particularly the longer train journeys. Thanks! – ben Jun 29 '12 at 10:44
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    I'd second the night travelling. We went through Europe by rail and took almost all our trips by night (Prague to Munich, Munich to Venice, Rome to Paris). Saves on accommodation and gives you more sightseeing time, but I'd only recommend it on direct trains. If you have to switch trains, do it during the day while you're awake. :) – dlanod Jul 1 '12 at 23:29
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Just as a side advice. If you are travelling with an Eurail pass through France, you may have difficult on reserving trains that leave from or go to France. I don't know why, but it seems that in France they limit the amount of seats destinated to Eurail passes. I had to buy full tickets to travel from or to France, so I suggest you consider having this kind of expense on your travel. I didn't have this problem in any other country.

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  • This is true for any fast connection across the french border. But keep in mind that you can always take any regional trains without reservation for free. Taking those trains consumes a lot of time, but still takes you across the border. – Daniel Oct 1 '15 at 10:24

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