Europe on Budget in your 20's

Does he intend to stick to the big cities?
As a young man, is he looking for 'lively' destinations?
Besides Amsterdam, he needs to list up to 8 other places that are of appeal.
I am not sure re your budget, but firmly believe you need to be realistic about costs, and what minimum standard of accommodation is acceptable. There is no point in travelling if you don't have funds left to enjoy yourself while there. Similarly, if you are not going to be happy in cheaper hostel style accommodation.

Wendy, why didn't he post this question himself?

Yes, it's much too broad a question as Europe is a big continent. Suggesting an itinerary is pretty much impossible without knowing what he's interested in. He really needs to do some research on his own. That's a big piece of travel planning, and there have never been more resources at hand to do that with than there are now.

You'd probably have little argument with these seven cities all being high on any backpacker's lists.
Spread over four weeks, spending four nights in each city, and you end up with a fairly well paced trip.

London
Paris
Amsterdam
Berlin
Prague
Budapest
Barcelona

I agree with Kathy. If he's going to be on his own, he needs to do the planning himself. Overall Western Europe is significantly more expensive than Eastern Europe - beds, food, sights.

Thorntree - the Lonely Planet travel forum - is probably a good place for him to start. It's geared to his demographic.

One thing to keep in mind is that city-to-city transportation can be a big part of a backpacker's budget. It will help if he doesn't try to cover a huge area.

Having been to Berlin last year, I'd say it seemed full of young people and would probably be a very attractive stop for your son. But it all depends on his interests.

Those are all great cities and if you have never been to Europe, they are high on any list.

Still, large cities are more expensive. Of course, public transportation is available and not always good in smaller cities.

A month in Europe sounds like a lot, but I would advise not trying to cover wide geographic areas. Having been all over Europe, I have my favorites, but I love ancient history and Italy would be at the top of my list.

One trip could start in Rome, then Florence, Venice, then moving north to Vienna or Munich or both (visiting sites in Bavaria). Take in the Romantic Road or head up to the German Rhineland then to Amsterdam, Brugges, Brussels, on to Paris. From Paris on to London. This trip would call for 10 days in Italy, 5-6 in Germany, 5 in Netherlands and Belgium and 5 in Paris. That amounts to a few days less than a month that could include a side trip to Prague or Luxembourg as well as visiting some sites on day trips outside of London like Stonehenge, Salisbury or Canterbury.

Budget per day depends on his expectations, what he hopes to cover during the day and where, exactly, he is going (some cities/countries are more pricey than others). Assuming he's not interested in joining the couchsurfing community and wants to eat something other than instant ramen noodles and sleep in a central and safe place, you could roughly break it down as follows (prices shown are cheaper outside of major cities):

Lodging: Hostel bed in shared dorm room (assuming quad room - the more beds, the price can go down further) 30-40 Euro; private room in a hostel - 55-75 Euro.

Food: If hostel doesn't include breakfast, assume 6-8 Euro for a coffee to go and a breakfast pastry or bread. For lunch - takeaway sandwich/drink 10 Euro or a lunch entree and drink in a restaurant 15-20 Euro. Dinner - fast food or hot takeaway meal from grocery 10-15 Euro, otherwise, dinner entree and drink in sit down restaurant 25 Euro and up (look for chalkboard specials where you get 2-3 courses for a fixed price).

Sightseeing: Depends where he's going and what he wants to do. He needs to do his research for this one and go online to look up what he wants to see and total up the admission costs. If he's a student, he may get a discount at some places. Some sights might be free on certain days of the month or pay what you will. Again, his research will tell him what, if anything, he has to pay for admissions.

Transportation: No locations identified except Amsterdam. Farther he travels, the more he'll pay. If he wants flexibility with his schedule and doesn't want to be tied to specific travel dates, he'll pay more for trains, ferries, long haul buses and short haul airline tickets. If he's willing to settle on dates and book in advance, he will get cheaper rates. He needs to develop his own itinerary and then price it to see if it makes sense to just stick with point to point tickets, or if a pass (e.g., rail pass) even makes sense and if he's willing to deal with any restrictions or black-out dates/times a pass might have.

For local transportation, depends how long he's staying in any one place to see if it makes sense to get a transit pass for subways/buses, where he's staying in relation to what he wants to see, and how much he is willing to use other methods of getting around within a city (walking, bike).

No one on a travel board should be giving him advice on itineraries. If he's in his 20s and has got it in his head he wants to spend a month in Europe, then he very likely has his own ideas of where he wants to go and what he wants to see. If he doesn't, and he's relying on you to pull the entire trip together for him, including telling him what countries to visit, then he shouldn't be going.

There are guidebooks written for student travelers. Some examples: Lonely Planet shoestring guides, Let's Go, Rough Guide. There are a number of web sites, such as Nomadic Matt.

Sorry, but too little info has been provided to give any sensible answers. Travel within Europe is best booked 3 to 6 months in advance, depending on the type of travel (air/train etc). Hostels maybe fully booked by now too.

He needs to decide where to go, not us, but for the best value, avoid Italy and Switzerland. Berlin would suit his needs potentially and is good value. It needs a minimum of 5 full days there. London is also expensive. Does he want cities or beaches? Rome2rio.com will help in route planning.

Countries such as Croatia will still have decent weather in September and offer better value for money. Plitvice, Split, one of the islands and Dubrovnik will take at least 10 days. More if Mostar etc is added.

Great that your trip is going to be a month in Europe. That' good for the first trip over. Hostels is the best way to go unless you include university dorms where you should book in advance. In the hostels you'll see lots of others in your age group. I would suggest a number of places with built in down time...Amsterdam, Berlin, Frankfurt, Vienna, Munich, Salzburg. What's the geographic extent of plans? Is there one? Do you plan spending the whole month in one or two countries? That would not be a bad idea either depending upon your specific interests. Dorm rooms in hostels are the cheapest. My first trip over was on a shoe string budget, stayed just about exclusively in hostels in dorm rooms, you get used it. I didn't know of the university dorm option until later trips.

Thank you all for the input and advice. For those who felt it necessary to ask why he wasn't doing his own research, as it happen he is doing his own and did not ask for my assistance. I happen to be on RS a lot lately for my own trip and thought I would pose the question hoping for some feedback from younger travellers.

I'm in Europe at the moment staying at hostels while I'm not in my 20s a lot of people are. Berlin and Prague were by far the post popular cities with young people. Most were travelling on there own or in small groups. A few where using Busabout a backpacker bus that you hop on and off in different cities (think you may need to book a few days in advance ). I have found that without booking far in advance the bus is much cheaper last minute.

See a variety of budget sleeping and eating tips at https://www.ricksteves.com/travel-tips/sleeping-eating, including the hostels article. That suggests an average price range for a hostel bunk at $20-40 per night and the higher end is most likely to be found in the big cities. Adding some smaller towns in the mix gives you a variety of experience and may also help to balance the average budget. A hostel with a kitchen lets you do your own cooking, but supermarkets also offer lots of prepared food.

Most guidebooks will include a budget summary particular to the country covered as well as specific pricing details for the sites and accommodations covered. Here's an edited summary from Rick's Best of Europe (2015):

Five components make up your trip cost: airfare, surface transportation, room and board, sightseeing and entertainment, and shopping and miscellany.
Airfare: A basic round-trip flight from the US to Europe can cost, on average, about $1,000–1,800 total, depending on where you fly from and when (cheaper in winter). Consider saving time and money in Europe by flying into one city and out of another--for example, into London and out of Rome.
Surface Transportation: Your best mode of travel depends on the length and scope of your trip. Train passes normally must be purchased outside of Europe. Or you may save money by buying tickets as you go or in advance for longer trips.
Room and Board: Students and tightwads can enjoy Europe for as little as $60 a day ($30 per hostel bed, $30 for meals and snacks).
Sightseeing and Entertainment: In big cities, figure $15–20 per major sight, $7–10 for minor ones, and $30 for splurge experiences (such as walking tours, concerts, or gelato binges). An overall average of $35 a day works for most. Don’t skimp here. After all, this category is the driving force behind your trip--you came to sightsee, enjoy, and experience Europe.
Shopping and Miscellany: Figure $3 per postcard, $4 per coffee and ice-cream cone, and $6 per beer. Shopping can vary in cost from nearly nothing to a small fortune. Good budget travelers find that this category has little to do with assembling a trip full of lifelong and wonderful memories.

If your Son stays in hostels, Zimmerfris, and small inexpensive hotels, I would say a range of $50-$100 per night.
Eating cheap means finding a roll and coffee for breakfast, lunch a sandwich, etc. say another $25-$40 a day for meals. Transport depends entirely on method. Not sure what a Eurail pass is these days.

Museums and some sites do charge admission.

He really needs to form some outline of itinerary unless he truly wants go where the wind blows him. If he is under 25 the global youth rail pass is $701 [for a whole month] and would be the easiest way to travel on a whim. Say he's in Berlin and meets people who are then going to Prague while he has a pre-purchased ticket to somewhere else - he would have to forfeit his paid for ticket and buy another if he wanted to join his new friends. If he is not the sort to to whim then prepaid tickets might be cheaper..