"To travel and see the world."- every twenty something in the universe.
PSA- I AM NOT A BLOGGER. I wrote this in like an hour without proofreading it, so please excuse the typos. Please let me know and I'll fix them. lolz. bye.
The Euro trip is probably one of the most popular among Americans. Europe is an ancient world full of culture and fancy intricate churches. I had been in Europe four years ago when I studied abroad in Seville, Spain and I absolutely fell in love. (GO TO SEVILLE). I wanted to go back but would always run into the issue with time and money. Every college student knows the struggle. During my procrastination hour on finals week, I decided to explore plane tickets to Europa. To my surprise I found shocking low prices and made an impulse decision to purchase two. Hubs and I traveled 8 cities right after my Masters graduation. I am lucky I have a husband who likes to adventure as well, even though he is the worrier of the two lol. Adulting can wait. BEST DECISION OF OUR LIFE. LOL. I wish we would have had time to stay at least a month, but jobs and responsibilities are real. So now I want to share that experience with you, so maybe you too can go for an adventure!
PLANE PLANE PLANE TICKET
Flights to Europe can be outrageously expensive. Flights to Mexico hit the $1,000 every Christmas season. The trick to finding good prices on airfare is time. You want to get the tickets far in advance when ticket prices are not so demanding. My favorite site for flights is skyscanner.com. You can search different departure and arrival cities to compare prices. Always try to go to the least expensive city. In my case, I was able to find tickets for under $800 dollars from Cincinnati to Dublin. I always like to look for tickets with the least amount of connection flights and layovers. Make sure you research the city where you will have a layover. We payed a little extra to have a shorter route and land in Toronto, Canada. through Air Canada. Flight times vary depending on where you fly from/to. The airlines usually provide a coupe of meals and some sort of entertainment (movies, music, wifi...). Make sure you bring your phone, book, music, or whatever to keep you entertained. I would also highly recommend to fly out at night, that way you get to sleep on the plane.
WHERE DO I STAY
Room and board are another expense that people worry about. This expense depends on what you are looking for and how much you want to spend. For this trip, we decided to use hostels and rent apartment rooms. My favorite websites are hostelworld.com and airbnb.com. I highly suggest to research and compare prices for hotels, hostels and airbnbs to make sure you are getting the best price. Some hostels are as low as 12€ a night!
WHAT ABOUT FOOD
Food can be very expensive when you go out to eat three times a day. Food expenses vary city by city depending on what you are looking for. Obviously you want to splurge at least once in a city to get the cultural experience, but you can survive off of bacadillos. The supermarket can become your best friend when you can purchase a fresh loaf of bred, a packet of chorizo, and slices of cheese all for 3€. Take advantage of grocery snacks to keep with you at all times.
WHAT DO I PACK
Backpack. Backpack. Backpack. Packing light is essential especially if you will be traveling a lot during your trip. Make sure you pack clothes you are able to roll in a ball to make more space. Tennis shoes are a must, so buy yourself a cute pair. Sandals for showering are also essential. I added a pair of Jessica Simpson Ballet Flats and White Mountain Black Embellished Wedges to look a little dressier. COMFORT OVER CUTENESS THO. I would also advise you to pack clothes you don't care about much, and even buy some dresses from Walmart. This way you aren't worried about your favorite JCrew slacks getting ruined and you can leave a shirt or scarf behind if you buy something new abroad. Try to pack all your essentials like shampoo, bandaids, sunscreen, water bottle, kleenex, toothbrush, toothpaste, face wipes, lotion, and anything travel sized that you may need. It is easier to bring them with you than trying to find a store that sells travel sized items. For makeup I only packed waterproof mascara and a concealer. For hair I packed a hair straightening lotion, nourishing spray and travel sized hair spray. DO NOT CARRY YOUR HAIRDRYER AND HAIR STRAIGHTENER WITH YOU. They are unnecessary and will take up a lot of room in your bag. Every country has a different outlet and it could break your hair accessories. Instead invest in hair creams. Also, make sure you pack things that you can dress up in different ways. I made the mistake of packing 4 cream shirts with black stripes. FOUR SHIRTS THAT LOOKED THE EXACT SAME LOL. I'll post a detailed list later.
TRAVEL WITHIN EUROPE
For our trip we visited 8 cities in 11 days. INSANE, RIGHT? But it was super easy and super convenient. And let me tell you, we flew to most cities. I know you are probably thinking, that must have been a fortune. Airplane tickets in the US start at like $200 dollars. Flying in Europe is much cheaper. You always want to check all forms of transportation to compare times and prices. For flights within Europe we used ryanair.com. Some flights were as low as 25€. Crazy. Since the tickets are so cheap, there are a lot of hidden fees you need to be aware of. First of all, download the Ryan Air app to your phone. YOU NEED TO DO THIS to check in BEFORE you fly. The check in fee at the airport is 50 EUROS! This is where your backpack becomes super convenient. If you have a backpack that weighs less than 50lbs, you are good to go! Checked in luggage ranges from 50€-80€. Make sure you look at the height and weight dimensions when you are packing. You don't want to end up with extra fees! You also want to PRINT EVERY TICKET OUT. Since you will have an American passport, you will need to get your ticket stamped every time you are leaving a country. During our trip, we also used the Renfe Train www.renfe.com for one of our trips. Train tickets will be very expensive but it is definitely worth it when you are traveling long distances. We paid 90€ for two one way tickets for a trip that would have taken 6 hours on a bus--it only took 3 hours on the train with seats that folded back all the way! So clutch. For cheaper transportation there are also a lot of bus companies that will transport you within a country. We traveled by bus in Italy and we used flixbus.com. The bus was super convenient and takes you straight to your destination city.
Now for my favorite, our itinerary! Literally a trip of a lifetime!
Day 1: Flight
Our flight left Cincinnati at 5:00 p.m. and stopped in Toronto, Canada. We flew all night and arrived to Dublin at 10:00 a.m..
Day 2: Dublin, Ireland
JUST TOUCHED DOWN IN DUBLIN TOWN. Dublin was a very fun chill city. The diversity is insane! There are restaurant from all over the world in every street. We found a Mexican restaurant in every street haha. It was great. We enjoyed AMAZING fried calamari at a Cuban restaurant at night. We flew straight into the Dublin airport and took an Airlink bus into the city. These buses will pick you up in the airport and take you to various location in the city. The cost is usually around 6-7€ one way per person. We decided to stay in the city center in every city. We stayed at the Kinlay House Dublin hostel for $36. You can stay for less depending on what room you choose. We decided to go with a room with less people since it was our first time at hostels, (and Rafael was scared lol). Make sure you are looking at location above all. You want to pay more for a good location (city center, close to museums, monuments). During our fist day we decided to tour on our own and walk around the city. We saw castles, building, churches, and tried some of their local restaurants. Dublin is known for its many pubs and the Guinness brewery. Their college park is a beautiful sight! It rained most of the night so we were lucky we had packed an umbrella. Definitely check the weather before you leave!!! For more information on food, let me know!We flew out very early the next day, it was nice the hostel had a shuttle that picks you up and takes your straight to the airport for 7€ each!
Flight from Dublin to Paris: $42 for both
Day 3: Paris, France
PARIS IS A DREAM. When you arrive to the airport in Paris, you need to take a bus or train into the city! Budget in 30 euros for this. They usually range in price. We took a bus then took the metro to the Eiffel Tower. The Eiffel Tower is a must see, obviously. It is beautiful and surrounded by gardens. It rained when we were there so it was unfortunate, but definitely less crowded. We stayed at Aloha- Eiffel Tower hostel, which was located one mile away from the Eiffel Tower and near a metro, $70. It was a little confusing to find it at first, so we took a taxi. Taxis can be very expensive in bigger cities. We paid 12€ for one mile. At the hostel we met a girl from Australia who was backpacking on her own. We teamed up and conquered the Louvre museum, which is also a must see. You do need to take advantage of the metro system because PARIS IS HUGE. Budget in at least 20€ for public transportation. We got pictures with the MONA LISA and various other statues. The museum is amazing and the art work is to die for. We walked around the gardens and fountains to look at different garden statues. We then went to Notre Dame Cathedral which is walking distance from the museum. Definitely eat as many pastries as you can while in Paris. Paris is one of those cities that you will need at least two days to cover. It is beautiful and full of culture. Make sure you budget museum admissions and food! We took a taxi to our bus stop that would take us to the airport, so budget in another 15€.
Flight from Paris to Venice: $58 for both- Ryanair
Day 4: Venice, Italy
VENICE IS BREATHTAKING! When you arrive to the airport, you will find that it is an hour away from the city of Venice. You will need to take a bus into the city which is around 16€ per person. The bus is direct and it will take you directly to the city bus stop where you will take a water taxi into the islands! You need to buy a day pass or 2, however many days you plan on staying, to travel by boat taxi around the city. Venice is a city over water, SO YOU NEED THIS. We stayed at Generator Venice hostel which was located on an island in the city. We paid $78 dollars for both, but it was one of the best hostels ever! It has a bar where they have karaoke night and various events. They have a pizza restaurant to the right that has AMAZING pizza and the best prices. Don't spend too much money on the fancy restaurant across the river since they are more touristy, make sure you try the authentic pizza! You will definitely want to explore the main strip that is filled with shops, bungalows, churches, museums, plazas and beautiful architecture. Venice is a relaxing city that has outpouring beauty. IT IS A MUST SEE. At least for a day. It is pretty small, so one day gives you enough time to cover the essentials.
Flixbus from Venice to Genova: $50 for both
Day 5: Genova, Italy
GENOVA IS LEGIT. Genova was definitely our random city we decided to visit. We had not even looked it up on google, but a good friend told us it was pretty (Hi Ben). The thing with traveling is that you should always be excited to discover something new, something unknown. This little city ended up being beautiful and probably the most authentic to an Italian experience in the west coast haha. Genova is located in the west coast of Italy where you will see many cities in big green hills and mountains. Our flixbus took us to a central bus stop in Genova, where we found a group of American college girls who were studying abroad and were staying at the same hostel as us. We stayed at Ostellin Genova, and boy was that tough to find! It is located in a central location in the city, but it is on an alley on a hill. From the outside, it looks like you are going to die. From the inside, it is a nice warming homey place. Probably one of our favorites. The people who work there are THE KINDEST people you will meet. They definitely want you to feel like you are at home. We payed $52 for both. Breakfast was also included. We met a guy named Tim from Pennsylvania who had been traveling and volunteering abroad. He joined us and we went for an adventure around town. We didn't do any formal tours, but we used a map to look for important monuments and streets. We ended up lost several times and saw many prostitutes and people living under a bridge, but it was definitely a cool adventure haha. The city is beautiful and it is not that touristy yet. You won't hear a lot of English or Spanish being spoken, so it is a big plus if you can brush up on your Italian before visiting. The architecture was phenomenal and you could climb up on a hill to see the city view. At night we bought a bottle of wine and drank it at the hostel with other backpackers. We ventured out to the bar scene where we found good pizza and expensive drinks. It was a great time. I encourage you to go out at night if you can! We always felt safe walking back at night.
Flight from Genova to Rome: $140 for both- Delta Airline
Day 6: Rome, Italy
ROME IS A MAGICAL CITY. Rome is huge and if you can, allow yourself at least two days to see everything. We took a train into the city that was around 22€ a person. The train station in the city is at a central location near a lot of hotels and shops. We stayed at Papa Germanos which is not a hostel, but we booked it through hostel world. For the first day we decided to rent a hotel to get a little more rest. We paid $100 for one night, but it was definitely worth it. It is located just 4 blocks from the train stop which made it super easy to find and travel. The hotel is more apartment style and it is super clean. Since Rome is so big, I highly recommend getting a Hop-on Hop-off tour bus. These buses are around 22€ a person and will take you to all the major monuments. You need to go see the fountain that was featured in the Lizzie McGuire movie, because duhhh, beautiful. You also want to see the major monuments like the coliseum and Vatican City. We went inside Vatican City but the line to enter the church is 3 hours long. Since we were only there for a day we decided to skip it and come back to Rome in the future. You want to plan your time well to see the most you can! Use public transportation as much as you can in the city as well. EAT GELATO! They have a lot of restaurants that sell pastries and pastas that I would recommend. Again, use the markets! Rome is expensive. Do not go on a Sunday because everything will be closed! It is a Catholic city, after all.
Flight from Rome to Ibiza: $62 for both- Ryanair
Day 7 and 8: Ibiza, Spain
I TOOK A PILL IN IBIZA. Ibiza is Europe's Miami, and I love Miami. We arrived to Ibiza in the afternoon and our AirBnB host picked us up from the airport- 10€. Ibiza is a big island, so you want to plan for transportation. Our AirBnB hosts were Ova and Ramona. They were amazing host and the location was prime! We payed around $110 for two nights https://www.airbnb.com/rooms/2694086. What we learned about Ibiza, is that it is a huge island. In fact, the island is made up of several towns and cities. Most people that we met said they rented a car to explore the different beaches. Since we were only staying for a short amount of time, we used taxis and city buses to get around in the island. Night life is very popular in Playa den Bossa, where our apartment was located. The party season starts the last week of May and it goes on through September. EVERYTHING IS VERY VERY EXPENSIVE IN IBIZA. So one of our common tricks to going out is- pregame. Buy yourself cheap sangria and tinto de verano. These cost less than 2€ at most grocery stores. We were really lucky in finding some lovely Italian ladies who were in Ibiza celebrating their college graduation. We met them outside a liquor store at a bus stop and we asked them if we could party with them haha, luckily they said yes and they didn't kill us. They were seriously so much fun and the sweetest girls ever. The most popular club in Ibiza is Pacha, which has a cover of around 50€. Drinks are around 10-30€. Since it was off season, we decided to go dancing at Keeper Ibiza, which is a dance bar that plays Latino and top hits music. IT WAS A BLAST! Ibiza is known for drugs and such, so you want to be careful when ordering drinks, but we had no issues! The next day we bought a roundtrip boat ticket to Fromentera Island. The island is very popular among tourist and it is an hour away by boat. Our tickets were 50€ for both, but they came with two bike rentals. RENT BIKES! They were so nice to have to get around to the different beaches. THE ISLAND IS AMAZING!!! The water is blue and clear and the island is secluded. We rode our bikes into town and explored other beaches. We also packed sandwiches and snacks from the store in Ibiza. It saved us a ton of money and time. Our backpacks also came in handy! Wear athletic shoes for riding your bike and hiking! We also visited Port Ibiza which is the capital of Ibiza. It is more touristy and has a lot of shops and restaurants.
Flight from Ibiza to Valencia: $48 for both- Ryanair
Day 9 and 10: Valencia, Spain
I WANT TO MOVE TO VALENCIA! Valencia hit us in our heart. It is beautiful. I had mentioned previously that we had studied abroad in Sevilla, Spain one summer 4 years ago, and man did this city bring back Spain memories. Valencia is located in the Eastern part of Spain. The city is full of beautiful architecture and lively people. We took a train from the airport into the city which was around 14€ for both. We stayed at Up! Hostel Valencia and it was one of the newer hostels we have stayed at. The facility was huge and brand new. It is located inside the train station in a FANTASTIC location in the heart of the city. We paid $38 for two nights. Ridiculously inexpensive. Valencia is also not as touristy as other Spanish cities, which means prices are great! We took a walking tour in the morning which was around 3 hours long. You want to walk and explore everything! Valencia is full of history as well as visible culture. The Mercado is a place you must visit. There are many museums and churches that are open to the public for a small charge. The plazas are beautiful and make you want to sit at a cafe while you drink sangria and eat bocadillos. Valencia is also known for their parks built on top of an old river. You will see families picnicking and out and about everywhere. The liveliness of the city is so contagious. Valencia is also known for its seafood and Paella. Rafael and I took a city buss into Playa Portolito or Patacona to have wood fired seafood paella. IT WAS SO WORTH IT. Paella is a traditional dish and ranges around 30€ for two people depending on the ingredients. Obviously we are foodies and will go for the most legit. The coast is so pretty and very relaxing. It was a little chilly when we went, so the area was very calm. At night we visited Cerveceria 100 Montaditos--classic. 100 Montaditos is a tapas sandwich shop that sells little bocadillos for 1€. Their beer and tinto de verano range from 1.50€-2.50€. It is one of the most popular spots among college students and the Spanish locals. We then went to local bars and sat in their patio to enjoy more tinto and watch the night go by. You will fall in love with Valencia and you will want to live there forever.
Trains from Valencia to Barcelona: $90 for both- Renfe
Day 11: Barcelona, Spain
BRUSH UP ON YOUR ESPAÑOL, WE'RE BARCELONA BOUND SO SMILE. Barcelona is another one of those huge famous landmark cities in Spain. It is blooming with people from all around the world. The city is very diverse and definitely has that beach big city feel. We were only in Barcelona from 10:00 a.m.- 6:00 p.m., so unfortunately we did not get to see everything. We took a train into Plaça de Catalunya which is one of the most central plazas in Barcelona. The signs were a little difficult to read because Barcelona has two official languages of Spanish and Catalan. It was fascinating to see people code switch from one to the other (sociolinguist geek alert). The plazas are huge and are filled with flowers and beautiful fountains. Barcelona can also be very expensive if you stay in the tourist areas, so we decided to go to the college area to eat. You will have around a 15 minute walk to get to Plaça de la Universitat. This area is blooming with students and professors and a million cafes, pubs and restaurants with college friendly prices. We then took a city bus to the beach! It was too chilly to get in, but the beach was still packed with people tanning, picnicking, skating, running and everything else. We walked around the beach and the city and saw some landmarks and enjoyed coffee outside cafes. We wish we could have had more time to explore the city! We took a train back to the airport which was around 8€ for both.
Flight from Barcelona to Dublin: $85 for both- Ryanair
Day 12: Dublin, Ireland
Since our round trip was from Dublin, we decided to spend one last night in the Irish city. We arrived around midnight after our flight got delayed in Barcelona, but we still managed to go out and experience the authentic pub life. We stayed at the Kinlay house again-$30, and purchased a round trip bus pass from the airport that was 28€ for both. We went to a bar in the Temple Bar area that had live music and was packed with both Irish and tourists. We ordered one Guinness beer and one apple cider from tap, and they were 14€! Definitely on the pricier side because of the touristy area. We ended up hanging out with two lawyers who were absolutely hilarious. They made our night by talking about law, America, how Trump sucks (at least 5 Europeans talked to us about their hate towards Trump while abroad haha), and Beyonce. The night was absolutely worth 14€. In the morning we ventured out to look for an authentic Irish breakfast, and oh WE FOUND IT. If you are looking for that sausage, check out O´Neill's! The second time in Dublin made us appreciate the city so much more! Probably because it wasn't raining the second time around haha. Our flight left Dublin at 12:30 p.m. and we headed back to Toronto then Cincinnati.
PRICELESS
So after breaking it up for you, a 12 day Eurotrip for 2 people visiting 8 cities comes down to around $3,500. That's $1,750 per person including round trip airfare, flights within Europe, trains, boats, taxis, bikes, hostels, hotels, museums, food, alcohol, and an adventure of a lifetime. $3,500 may still seem like a lot, but our honeymoon in Cancun was more than $4,000 for 5 days! I am not bashing on Cancun (because seriously, if you are looking for a honeymoon spot go to Hyatt Zilara Resort! Hello presidential suit and private concierge! ¡Gracias otra vez mom and dad!), but I am saying you will get a lot for what you pay for.
So how can two broke college kids afford Europe? HUSTLE. HUSTLE. SAVE. SAVE. SAVE. WORK. WORK. WORK. WORK. WORK. WORK. We try to save money by having a budget on groceries, downloading the Kroger coupon app on our phones, going out to eat a couple of times a week, pregaming every time we go out to not spend so much at the bars (Thanks Luke and Parker!) and just overall saving money. You can wait until you have a full time job and you are getting a big retirement check, but you can also venture out now while you are still young and wild. Anyway, I thought I would share our itinerary with you in hopes to help any of you thinking about traveling! DO IT. Collect memories, not things. Let me know if you have any suggestions to add to this, or if you have any other questions!
