Backpacking across Europe.

You can try to find a place to sleep on:
http://www.couchsurfing.com/

I suggest you to get a few travel books like RS, Fodor's, Frommers etc and familiarize yourself with Europe.
This forum is not really the best place to find budget accomodations, but you can find it online if you do a google search.
You can stay in hostels to save money. Expect to about $30/day depending which county you will be travelling to.
Greece is cheaper than UK though.

As Maria said couchsurfing is a good place. You can sleep for free in other people's homes.

Thanks Maria for the Couchsurfing site.The guidebooks are a lot of help and I've checked out Frommer's.
But I'd like to know what it takes to be backpacking in Europe, especially if I know only english.
Also are there ways and means to earn some money on a day to day basis?Coz I'm going to need it if i want to have any chance of making it to the end.

I am also new to travelling and i have found that the "Travel Tips" and "Graffiti Wall" links at the top of the page helped me with a lot of useful information.

"Also are there ways and means to earn some money on a day to day basis? Coz I'm going to need it if i want to have any chance of making it to the end." We don't seem to have a lot of people on this Helpline who backpack through Europe: a few but not many. Thus we may not be the best source of advice for you on that. Regarding your mention of working your way across Europe, two challenges for you to be aware of: not speaking the languages of the countries where you want to work is going to be a problem; and the EU countries have legal restrictions on non-EU citizens working. I wish we could be more encouraging but one thing Rick Steves has said in one of his books may apply to you: that he is concerned about sending people to Europe with too much confidence and not enough money.

Its not that I won't be having money.And i agree, that going into an unknown place/country without proper preparation and lack of funds is an invitation to disaster,so i only asked it as a precaution.
Also,is there a place where i can find like minded people,i.e those who want to or have done any form of backpacking?I'm doing this for the first time,I've traveled in my own country, but never off the beaten track.
So this is a big first for me.Hence I'm looking at all possible sources of information.

I'd like to clarify on one thing.My sole purpose is travel through europe.I'm not in any way planning on working there to pay for my trip.
It was just a question for gathering information.
As I said, I'm new to this.But that doesn't mean I don't have the means to make this trip.
So every bit of information is and will be helpful

Mayuresh, you are the one who said... Are there ways and means to earn some money on a day to day basis?Coz I'm going to need it if i want to have any chance of making it to the end...

Saying you're going to need to work along the way is different than asking what the chances are of picking up extra money along the way. It sounded to me like it did to Kent -- you need to work along the way.

OK Nancy,I get your point.I'm sorry if I appear not to be clear on where i stand.
The thing is I'll always keep enough money to get myself a ticket for home.
So if at any point of time i realise that i don't have the resources to go any further,I'll get back home.
As i can see now that its difficult to get work in the EU,I'm now in a better position to plan my trip.
I have a budget of about $4K.
So may be this time i'll just visit greece and italy if possible.
What do you suggest?In what way can i manage on this budget,while maximize my exposure to the continent.

First - read this link http://www.ricksteves.com/graffiti/helpline/index.cfm?topic=8626

I spent 5 weeks backpacking around Europe and ended up spending €40/day - this included rail transportation. We went Ireland-Spain-France-Switz-Austria-Italy-Greece. We used the global rail pass, although I'm not sure it would be worth that now. (In 2004 it was $700 for 1-month unlimited youth pass).

You say you have a budget of $4,000 - is this USD? And does that include your ticket home? Assuming it's USD and does NOT include your ticket home, you will have approx. €2,500 for your trip.

You could definitely see more than just Italy and Greece, but you really need to decide how long you are planning to stay. Staying in hostels, eating picnics and cheap take-away and seeing 1-2 sights a day would run about €50/day. (€25/hostel, €15/food, €10/sight).

I've backpacked through Europe before and relied on the Let's Go Europe as it is meant for the budget traveler. I stayed in hostels, got most of my food at the markets/grocery stores, and took adavantage of all the free walking tours/sites that each city has to offer. I never ate at any sit down restaurant as it was too over my budget. At most sites (colliseum) I didn't pay to go inside, I just took pictures of the outside. I have never been a museum/art gallery person so it was easy for me to cut alot of those out (except for the major ones of course). It really helps if you have a student card (ISIC..I think it is called) as it is internationally recognized and gives you great discounts at most sites. Take advantage of thye big breakfasts that the hostel serves...I would eat big at breakfast and woudn't really need lunch. Focus more of your trip on cheaper cities. Stay away from the UK or Northern Europe if you need to! You can always come back when you can afford it next time!

"Let's Go Western Europe" was our bible when we backpacked. Check out the individual country books as well for lots of recommendations on hostels and restaurants. It's written specifically for those on a budget and geared to the "younger crowd".

You will find that Greece, Spain, and Portugal are still relatively cheap, as well as eastern European countries. However, even the more expensive ones (Italy, Ireland, UK, France) can be done on a budget if you plan ahead and do your homework.

Go to RailEurope.com or the Railpass section on this website and look at their railpass prices if you think you might like to see several countries by rail. If you are only seeing a few countries, it's probably best to just buy the rail tickets individually. There are also a lot of budget airlines you can take between cities.

After you've decided which countries you want to see, go to the library and get Let's Go, Rick Steves, and Lonely Planet for those countries to get started planning.

I spent about a month backpacking through Madrid, Barcelona, Lucerne, Munich, Florence, Rome and Venice. Honestly, I don't know how much I spent and I didn't adhere to a strict budget every day (big mistake!).

Some tips, like the others have said, are to stay in hostels, eat carry-out and picnic meals, visit free sites or just visit the outside, get a Eurail pass, walk a lot and just explore.

I don't think language will be a problem. So many people know English, and you can get pretty far with hand gestures.

Switzerland was also expensive. I can't remember how much our hostel was there, but it was the most expensive the entire time--but I think they served the best breakfast! I found Spain and Italy to be the least expensive--however, this was in 2002, when the Euro and dollar were almost equal.

You're going to have a great time! It's a great experience, and I wouldn't take back anything I did or any of the choices I made. I met some great people along the way, too.

One of your posts makes it sound like you are flying into Europe on a one-way ticket and are hoping to possibly find ways to earn a few dollars to help you along on your trip. If this is correct, you should be aware border control agents in many countries may grill you about your intended stay in Europe...meaning, they will be asking how long you intend to stay and might ask you to show proof of a return ticket as well as evidence you have sufficient funds to cover your time in their country.

I think they like to question people who are carrying a backpack. I was grilled quite a bit by border control about this stuff when I backpacked Europe last year.

Speaking only English is not much of a problem if you are sticking to metropolitan areas. If you are out in the country, it can sometimes pose problems - though if you find a younger local, they almost always know some English from school.

Thorn Tree has more backpackers on their boards.

Hello Mayuresh. If the total money that you can spend for the trip is equal to 4000. U.S. Dollars, you can go to several countries, and it can be a pleasant trip. You said you plan to "backpack". Backpacking is : walking, carrying a backpack (containing a tent, and a small stove for cooking food), and sleeping outside. Is that what you want to do ? Or, do you intend to travel in railroad passenger trains, and sleep at Hostels ?
I recommend : read the book "GREECE" from Lonely Planet. And the book "Rick Steves' BEST OF EUROPE".
Then, plan your trip. You can read precise directions for going to hostels in a LET'S GO travel guide book. Those books list many hostels. In this trip, I suggest do not go to England or Amsterdam or the Scandinavian countries. (they are expensive, and a very long distance from Greece).
If you fly to Athens, be at Athens only two nights. The Tempi hotel is low cost, it has a kitchen. Ride on Ferry to the island Naxos: camping on beach. Bring a small tent.

And read the book "EUROPE THROUGH THE BACK DOOR" by Rick Steves. It explains how to travel in Europe.

I suggest : plan to be in Europe a total of 25 days. It could be more days if you will camp on a beach at an island of Greece. There are camping sites in Germany, but I recommend sleep in Hostels in Germany (in Bavaria, and at Bacharach).

Look at Lonely Planet's Thorn Tree forum. Rough Guides must have a comparable help line as well.

Mayuresh : Traveling in Europe, approximately 25 days, I suggest go to GREECE, ITALY (fly from Athens to Rome), SWITZERLAND, GERMANY (Bacharach at the Rhine River), FRANCE (high-speed train from Koblenz in Germany to Paris). Fly from Paris airport to INDIA.