How Realistic is it to see rest of Europe??

Greetings

One of the reasons why I accepted a position in UK is to use England as a Staging area to see rest of Europe.

I am curious to know how many of you really had a chance to travel to rest of Europe? I may be a bit naive but I am hoping to visit one European City every month, at least for 4 days (2 weekend + 2 days vacation). I am especially interested in seeing Italy, and Spain.

I am a single traveler and usually ok with just 2 or 3 star hotels. How much on the average would this set me back?

Cheers

Is it realistic?  That depends on how much money and time you have!  I don't know how much it would set you back--I'm used to staying in hostels!  You might want to check hostels out--some of them are wonderful and of course very inexpensive.  It's a great way to meet people, too.

It depends on how close you are to an airport with good flights to a variety of cities. Are you going to be in London? If so, you shouldn't have a problem! I'd love to do more traveling but, in addition to having a bf who can't leave the office, I'm also nearly a three-hour drive from an airport of any size - and even then, it won't get me anywhere I want to go in Europe. It's still definitely doable, but not as an every month sort of thing as you're describing.

There are loads of budget airlines that make it more possible than it used to be.  We planned to do the same as you after DH got here (one city per month) but things got in the way (wedding, moving job, moving house etc) and so far we've only managed to get to Ireland but we're definately back on track to start the monthly european plan in 2008. 

If you're flexible with where you're going and when you're going...and you live close to a major airport...then it makes it even cheaper.

Try this link...basically you just put in the date, the maximum you want to pay (excluding taxes) and it'll tell you all the flights and destinations that are available...takes a bit of working out, but try putting in dates around 4 months ahead for flights under £5 and you might be amazed!

http://flightchecker.moneysavingexpert.com/

High speed Eurostar makes trips to France and Belgium a lot easier and cheaper than before.  There are lots of cheap airlines which you can use to get to places around Europe as well.

But..hang on...if you spend time jetting around Europe, you might make the mistake of missing out on all the great places in the UK.  I know quite a few people who have been in the UK for several years and have travelled around Europe but haven't been anywhere in the UK other than London!

Vicky

Based on our experience, I would say that it is definitely possible.  We moved here after plans for a 3-month backpacking trip fell through and I'm so glad we did.  We've done a mix of trips and will have seen quite a bit of Europe by the time we return home in 2008 (we moved here in August 2006).  Just to give you an idea as to where we've been, I've copied the list from our blog  (including places we've booked for 2008).  Our budget is 10,000 pounds per year for 2 people, but we typically stay in hostels or do camping tours.  We also eat almost all our meals from grocery stores.  I definitely second Vicky's recommendation to see the UK, that's all we could afford to do when we first arrived and I'm so glad we did!  Oh, also if it helps I get 29 days of vacation and we always plan trips during x-mas, easter, and bank holiday weekends to take advantage of having those days off.

2008 Travels
Netherlands - Amsterdam
Germany - Berlin
Czech Republic - Prague
Austria - Vienna
Hungary - Budapest
Romania - Bucharest, Brasov, Cluj Napoca
Bulgaria - Black Sea Coast
Turkey - Gallipoli, Istanbul
Greece - Athens, Meteora, Kavalla
France - Brest, Dinan, Mont St. Michel, Bayeux

2007 Travels
Portugal - Lisbon, Sintra, Cascais
Spain - Barcelona, Madrid, Toledo
Ireland - Galway, Aran Islands, Kinvara, Dingle Peninsula, Ring of Kerry, Killarney, Kenmare, Kinsale, Cork
Belgium - Brussels, Bruges, Gent
Monaco - Monte Carlo
France - Calais, Paris, Avignon, Antibes, Nice
Scotland - Edinburgh, Stirling
Italy - Milan, Venice, Bellagio, Como, Cinque Terra, Pisa, Florence, Rome, Vatican City
Wales - Tintern, Blaenaforn, Brecon Beacons, Monmouth, Snowdonia
England - London, Stonehenge, Salisbury, Wells, Glastonbury, Bath, Stratford-upon-Avon, Coniston, Coventry, Nottingham, Avebury, Winchester, Gloucester, Portsmouth, Dover
Switzerland - Zurich
Germany - Frankfurt
Egypt - Cairo, Luxor, Aswan, Abu Simble, Alexandria

2006 Travels
Wales - Cardiff
England - Warwick, Ironbridge, Oxford, London, York

Excellent posts thank you.

The whole concept of Hostels is a bit foreign to me. I never stayed in a Hostel even when I was in college and it just conjures up some strange images. But of course this is just my ethnocentrism and bias. But I really like to explore UK first and during spring/summer concentrate on Italy and Spain.

I already looked at some flights and it seems really cheap, so doing a 4 day visit to a particular city does seem very viable.

Any issues with US Passports? Did you experience any problems going anywhere else in Europe with a US Passport?? I have a 5 year UK Work Permit and entry clearance.

After my six months living in England, I spent 6 weeks traveling around Spain, Portugal, France, Germany, Italy and Greece on a Euro rail pass with my best friend. We tried to get overnight trains when we could and the rest of the time we stayed in hostels. I think the entire trip ended up only costing around $1,500 total, but we were really roughing it. At one point we went at least 5 days without a shower! The most expensive part was the admission fees in to all the museums and stuff. Hostels are fun, you get to meet alot of people from alot of different places. I had no problem going anywhere with my passport.

Sometimes being near a smaller, regional airport might be a benefit.   I'm right out in the wilds on the Norfolk coast, but it's only a 40-minute drive to Norwich airport, from which there are direct flights to quite a number of European destinations, including regular "shuttles" to Skippol (Amsterdam) which is a major hub for further afield.

I'm right out in the wilds on the Norfolk coast, but it's only a 40-minute drive to Norwich airport

Forty minutes to an airport makes you seem very cosmopolitan compared with us, Paul! 

I can get to Paris and a few places in Spain from where I am, but there was no way to get me to Munich earlier this month. 

A tip on finding low-price hotels: I only stay places that have decent reviews on tripadvisor.com. There are reviews from all over the world there. The one time I stayed someplace that didn't even have a listing on that site was the most nightmarish experience in a hotel/B&B in my life!

Also, you have to read between the lines of the reviews. If someone says the place is horrible because the room was small and the furnishings were old, you've got to keep in mind that is what you will get if you're going for a budget room. However, if they say it's bad due to constant noise or filth or crime, you know to avoid it! I've found some very well-located hotels (basic but safe and clean) at great rates using tripadvisor.

I understand you'll be in Uxbridge, that puts you very close to Heathrow.  The good news is you can get virtually anywhere from Heathrow, the bad news is, they tend to be the most expensive flights.  Much cheaper flights depart from Luton and Stanstead which means a bit of a trek to get to the airports.  You could be looking at hundreds of pounds difference potentially because EasyJet and Ryanair only fly out of those 2 (maybe Gatwick for a few flights but not much help to you!)

As long as you have the money you can get almost anywhere from England to Europe, it's quite well connected.

A tip on finding low-price hotels: I only stay places that have decent reviews on tripadvisor.com.

Amen!   

When I first moved over here, I thought we would travel more than we did. We were only in the UK for about a week before we found our house, started the house buying procedure, then I got a new job, then before we knew it, bang...its 4 years on...then all of the sudden its 6 years on, we got pregnant...had baby. We intended to do some travelling, but life got in the way! We did go to Asia and back and forth to the states quite a bit, and a trip to Barcelona to see a friends band.....but really, we got on with life. Plenty of time to travel when the kids are grown!

When I first moved over here, I thought we would travel more than we did. We were only in the UK for about a week before we found our house, started the house buying procedure, then I got a new job, then before we knew it, bang...its 4 years on...then all of the sudden its 6 years on, we got pregnant...had baby. We intended to do some travelling, but life got in the way! We did go to Asia and back and forth to the states quite a bit, and a trip to Barcelona to see a friends band.....but really, we got on with life. Plenty of time to travel when the kids are grown!

For those of us who aren't going to have kids (or who don't have them yet) the decision to travel *is* getting on with life.  For me it was anyway, I simply could not put it off any longer without resenting myself.  It was the best decision since I had a great time and also met my husband!