Someone requested I compile 10 suggestions for backpacking in Europe. Now, everyone is different and the experience varies but the below is what I would espouse as my opinion to anyone asking me about the trip. These suggestions are more general as each place is different and if I got into specifics, it could turn into 500 tips! I am happy to answer any questions about specific places, hostels,etc... I am actually going to give you 11 because there is one that you probably wont find in a guidebook and it really does not fit in with the first 10. :)

1.If you are really concerned about your budget, make your best effort to plan a route so that you may compare different travel options. Like I mentioned in my previous hub, I probably could have spent less on transportation had I did some more investigating. I just bought a RailPass thinking that is automatically the best way to go. It may not be. I saw that a lot of point to point tickets were cheaper than I would have thought. Also remember that with or without a railpass, you often need to make seat reservations and they are not free. The cost is usually a few euros and it varies. Overnight trains are also more expensive since you need to pay a supplement to cover sleeping accomodations. That is not covered on a pass. There are also cheap flights within Europe. Overall, I know that I spent a lot more on travel than I needed to.

2.While it is extremely tempting to try to cover every inch of the continent, or the whole West or Eastern part, give some thought to where you really want to go and not where you think you should go because that is where everybody goes when they go to Europe. Give yourself at least a few days in each place. If you really do not like somewhere, you can leave early. If you are going just so you can rattle off a huge list of cities and countries to impress people, you will be wasting your money because everything you could potentially gain from opening yourself up to this experience will be lost.

3.Hostels fill up fast. If you are going during the summer months, Europe is a madhouse. Going during this time requires a bit more planning in my opinion. Because of the influx of visitors, accomodations fill up quickly and you may having trouble finding places to stay, especially on the weekends. You may end up with either subpar places or having to spend a lot more than you were anticipating.EUROPE IS EXPENSIVE!!!! If you are picky about your accomodations and do not like having to be in the rooms with 10 or 12 people, or even more, book your dates as soon as possible. I have seen hostels in Amsterdam post 20 and 30 person dormitories on the booking site. Some may like that atmosphere but I surely do not. I also booked single accomodation many times as I really like my privacy and that ate into my budget. I took my trip mid September so I went when peak season was winding down. I was able to book accomodation just a few days in advance and I really did not encounter any problems. However, one thing that I did not realize ended up causing me a bit of a problem. I thought to myself that if I was running low on cash ever, I would just charge my hostels. Unfortunately, what I found is that many of the hostels available to me only accepted cash. Do not assume you will just always charge your accomodation to preserve cash for actually doing stuff. You may not be able to.

4.If you cannot do without the comforts of home, stay there! Backpacking is not for everyone. When traveling in Europe for extended amounts of time you will be constantly encountering new ways of doing things because you are interacting with so many cultures in such a short time. It seemed like every laundromat I went to operated differently and the task always started out with a few minutes of confusion and then someone usually helped me as they saw I clearly had no idea what I was doing. You are going to be sharing rooms, dealing with other people's noise, getting lost, the cold shower here and there, being dirty and tired from traveling on an overnight train, coffin like couchettes, and people clearly throwing attitude once they see you are American(for me, this did not happen that often). Traveling of this nature can be difficult and it is not like an island getaway. You are nomadic living out of a backpack with the same clothes week after week. Invest in a pair of comfortable walking shoes, it is well worth the money.

5. The European lifestyle is very different from the American way of living. One aspect where this is clear is customer service. Not to say that Europeans are rude but they just view things differently. I cannot remember how many times I was in a restaurant waiting for someone to come over to me to take my order. You often have to get their attention and let them know you are ready. Also, the common pleasantries such as "Hi, how are you doing today" are often not exchanged. While we often find these exchanges to be fake and without real intention of engaging, it can be disorienting to be somewhere where they are not practiced. My main point is do not get all bent out of shape with stuff like that. Every culture has their own way of doing things and it has nothing to do with you.

6. No matter when you go to Europe, there will be tourists everywhere. One of the most popular destinations in the world will always be busy. I guess it depends on how long you are planning to go but try to aim for the offseasons or end of peak. I took a 6 week trip that started in mid-September and ended the beginning of November. I started out in Budapest, made my way west and when October hit, I was just getting to Spain, Greece and Italy. I managed to always be in mild weather. It was cheaper and less crowded.

7. There are many cities whose transportation basically runs on an honor system. You are easliy able to board a train, subway or bus without buying a ticket. If you get caught however, the fine is several hundred Euros and they are becoming less lenient with the "I do not live here ,I did not know" excuse. I did this a couple of times and at one point, I thought I might get caught. I was on a subway in Berlin and it looked like someone was checking tickets. He was getting near me but by some lucky thing, my boyfriend called me that second and I got up to stand near a different part of the train to take the call. Had he asked me for a ticket, I do not know what would have transpired.

8. When staying in a major city, be sure to look into what daytrips are available in the area. It can give you a chance to see the country from a different perspective. Bratislava, the capital of Slovakia is just a 45 minute bus ride from Vienna. In less than an hour I was able to go to a whole new country for the day.

9. Give yourself time to relax and recharge. Do not fill your day with activities wall to wall. Traveling of this sort is tiring and there may be times where you do not feel like sightseeing for 8 hours straight. Honor that and go to a local park or sit at a cafe and just people watch. These sorts of moments can be just as meaningful as seeing the Acropolis for the first time. Like I had mentioned earlier, do not do things that you think you should do. The Louvre in Paris is obviously one of its most famous attractions and I do suggest seeing it even if you do not like art. But if you really have no desire to meander around a museum, don't pay the money to get in and wander around for hours if you really would rather check out the cool dive bar your roomate suggested. If you do not care about seeing the Mona Lisa, don't.

10. Really truly pack as little as you can. If you need something, you can get it there, I assure you.I remember being in a hostel in Paris ripping out the pages of the countries I was heading to after that just so I could throw out the rest of my guidebook, Lugging that pack around can get cumbersome and the less you bring the better. A great suggestion for clothes is to get something called a Pack It Folder. Try to get a pack that has a detachable day pack(bookbag). That way you can have something to carry throughout the day and you can attach it to your regular pack when you are on the go between stops.You can do laundry and wear the same two pairs of shoes for weeks or months at a time. This is the kind of trip where you are roughing it a bit so do not bring things that really are not necessary.

11. Walking around a lot, you will want to stay hydrated with good stuff, like water, especially if it is hot out. Do not drink too much though as you may find yourself having to go and there are no public bathrooms around. I cannot believe I am sharing this with you, but there are several spots in Europe that were marked with my DNA. Yes, I found secluded areas and peed outside! The reason I am mentioning it is because it happened to me a lot.You are doing a lot of sightseeing and out and about for long periods of time. If you come across a bathroom anywhere, try to use it before you move on. In Europe, you often have to pay to use public restrooms so have some coins on you. It was usually about .50 cent Euro.

Enjoy Europe! Do not hold off any longer on going if you have the means to do it. It is amazing and I cannot wait to go back.