Pack as little as possible. 2 weeks is a very short time- you can really get away with just a few items. Always reserve a hostel bed in advance and only stay in places that you know are decent (from friends or many online reviews). I ended up getting stuck in a sleazy hostel in Paris in what turned out to be a prostitution area. Talk to other backpackers wherever you go- they could have very good advice about your next stop. Be careful of creepy locals.
Yeah, don't!Any Advice on Backpacking in Eurpoe?
My friend did it for 3 months and her best advise was to take the buses in Europe. It saves a lot of money rather than taking a cab or something! Have fun!
Well, for such a short stay, it seems like common sense would be your best defense. There is a great site called www.startbackpacking.com that has links to safety warnings for all over the world.
Also, make sure to keep your passport safe and on you at ALL times, because American passports are in high demand on the Black Market.
Lastly, I don't know how old you guys are, but wearing a fake gold wedding band can help cut down on harassment from the horny local men looking for "easy" Americans. Good luck and have fun!
Take as little as possible with you....lugging around a lot of clothing etc get tedious VERY quickly, especially when you are tired and have been up and about all day. 2 weeks is not a long time...i did part iof Italy in around 12 days so I don;t think you are going to see very much at all....cut out some places..France is large..I spent 5 days in Paris alone and did not see it all!
I only had one real issue with safety when I was in Barcelona when some gypsy woman tried to pin a flower on me and was talking all the itme about it...another woman was coming up behind me, but thankfully it was one of the few times I was travelling with someone and knew what was happening and pulled me away.
I travellled by myself for 85% of my time and usually started early in the day and finished early but in the summer time its not such an issue eg walking around in the dark..just use your common sense....don't advertise things eg camera, expensive jewellery, clothing, keep you bags close ( I used to carry my day pack on my lap on buses/trains etc rather than leave it on my back) and keep it closed and even have a lock or some deterrent to stop pickpockets. Keep expensive things inside the main part of bags and nothing or little in outer pockets that are easily accessed.
The saying is pack half as much and take twice the money you think is a good one....you can always buy some clothes or a little travel umbrella, if you need them as well, make sure your shoes are ready for long days and well tried before you go.
http://www.ricksteves.com/
This guy has all the answers you need- he's bakpacked Europe every summer for 35 years. His book Europe Through the back Door is all about travel skills and tips for first timers. The library will have it if you don't want to buy it . (but I think it's worth the money- his advice will save you money and make your trip and planning MUCH better.
Here's a few thing he talks about- doing laundry while travelling, finding toilets, how to pack, how to read train schedules, hostel skills, eating on the road, finding cool places away fom the crowds, how to find great free things like free museum days, etc etc.
BTW, you are trying to cover WAY too much in 2 weeks. Pick one or two of those countries. It takes about 2 days just to get to Greece unless you fly, and another 2 to get out. You are vastly underestimating the time it takes just to get between cities, never mind countries! It takes several days to see a city, and a day of travel between them- including getting from your hostel to the station, train time, and finding your new hostel in the next city. Use night trains to maximize efficiency- you'll wake up in a new city and be ready to go.
Here's an example- say you're in Rome and want to go to Athens- it's a train to Bari or Brindisi, waiting overnight for the ferry connection, a day on the water, and several hours from the coast of Greece to Athens.
Don't make the mistake of spending all your time on trains to try and "see as much as possible"- you won't you'll just spend your whole trip stressing over train connections, and you'll miss the best part of these counries, which is the smaller cities and towns. Don't go to Naples or Nice or Milan just because you've heard of them- thee are MUCH better places to use your valuable time. If it was my first time and i had only two weeks, I'd personally spend the whole thing in Italy- Cinque Terra, Florence, Venice, Rome, Pompeii, Sorrento, and Capri/Amalfi, or maybe to Sicily (Taormina), with maybe a side trip to Ljubljana (Slovenia), Istria (croatia) or Salzburg (Austria). Greece is amazing, but it takes time to get around- and Athens is not the best part of Greece, not by a long shot- you'd need time to get to the islands or to Peleponnese or something.
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