Proposed Budget

Hi Matthew, In June and July of 2011, my daughter and I spent 7 weeks in 6 countries, some of which are known to be cheaper than those you have chosen. We had a budget of $10,000 without airfare (used miles). We averaged $100/night for hotels and $100/day for food and entry fees, plus transportation. We booked our rail tickets ahead to save money and did not use a Eurail pass. We probably ate a sit-down meal 6 times a weeks, in other words, rarely more than once a day. We did not pay for breakfast at any of the hotels. If it wasn't included, we ate elsewhere. All this is to preface that I believe your budget will not be sufficient. The entrance fees to many museums, etc. were free for my daughter, but some of them added up for me. We tried to keep our food budget to $50/day and I think we were able to average that. For example, in Athens, we splurged on a taxi from the airport, but then ate Gyros for 2Euros/each. So you will also find ways to save $.
After we returned home, some friends hired me to book a 9 week trip for them. And although I was able to find them hotels to average $100/night, they are 'foodies' and blew their budget on 3 sit-down meals/day. Know yourself. Much of the pleasure of the trip for them was the wonderful meals. Be realistic on what makes travel a pleasure for you. You haven't budgeted for museum entries, canoe rentals, or any sit-down meals. Are you sure that is how you want the trip to go?

Hmm.. I'll go one by one: Driving cost: $115 - Is this to the airport in the states, or in Europe? If Europe, where is the budget for the car rental? Airfare: $2000 - This is doable, but you might want to budget more for airfare. During the summer months, prices to Europe tend to be higher (up to $1500), which means there is a chance that you will not be able to find sub-$1000 fares. If this price includes airfare within Europe for two as well, then I would say this is optimistic. Eurail: $1574 - I am sure that you have priced this out, so that is what it is. For ease of use, sure. Lodging: 34 x 70/night - $2,380 - I think this is low. $70 won't buy you much outside of a hostel in larger cities (which is a perfectly valid option!). $100 a night, average, is probably where I would put this for two people. Meals: $30/day x 42 - $1,260 - $15 per person, per day seems low to me overall. Just to give you a reference, one big mac value meal in Denmark will run you $12 and that is average/low for Denmark for lunch. I personally think that you will have a hard time sticking to that limit, even with self-catering. $25-30 per person seems more reasonable, including a night or two of splurging for a nice restaurant and some nights of bread and cheese. Even a bump up to $20 per person would be less stressful. Food: $2100-$2520 Lodging: $3400 Rail: $1574 Airfare: $2000 (Keep an eye out starting now!) - $3000 Driving: $115 Gifts/Souvenirs: $200-500 Museum Entry/Sightseeing: $1000 Local Transit: $500-2000 = $10,889 to $14,109. That comes out to $130 to $167 per person, per day. The bold are some expenses that I didn't see listed. Transit can be pricey. For example, a 24 hour unlimited card in London is $15 per person. In Denmark, it's $22. You can pay one trip at a time, but many times it ends up being more expensive to buy single trips. Hope this helps some!

I'll just offer a few general comments: "Ireland>England>France>Switzerland>Italy>Austria>Czech>Germany>Denmark>Ireland" If you haven't purchased your airline tickets yet, consider purchasing open jaw tickets. That way, you won't have to circle all the way back to Ireland. Even if the open jaw tickets cost a little more (which they may or may not), you will more than make up for the difference by not having to return to Ireland. "Eurail: $1574 (15 days within 2 months)" Don't even consider this until you've finalized your itinerary. Then, check the cost of advanced purchase 2nd class discounts for all of your long distance rail trips on the relevant national rail websites, and ask the contributors on this board about regional rail deals for your shorter trips. And also consider all of the supplements that the national rail operators dump on top of the cost of a rail pass. Your proposed itinerary just might contain enough long distance train rides to justify the cost of rail pass, but I'm betting it probably won't once you consider all of the above. "Meals: 42 Days* $30= 1,260 (30 dollars average daily)" Seems overly optimistic to me for two people, especially since that some of your time will be in Switzerland and Denmark. Be prepared for sticker shock! "Driving Cost: 115 (round trip gas, and tolls to airport)" What segment do you plan to drive? $115 will barely fill your tank once, unless you can sidetrack into Luxembourg. Some countries on your list have no tolls, others require the purchase of a vignette sticker.

Thanks for the input! I think I will reevaluate my budget, and we might end up trimming our time there. A little more information: The 115 is the trip from our house to the airport (CHI) including gas and tolls. I am pretty confident in that number. Our situation is somewhat confusing, as if my brother and his wife decide to come with us for part of the trip that will change our itinerary somewhat. Flight: We are considering a couple options: 1. Fly into Dublin (Currently $868 round trip), then take ryan air to london, then either eurostar or ryanair to paris. I am a little worried about unforeseen fees (checked bag and train from random airports to hotels) 2. Fly into paris and out of billund, DM This costs 1,012/person (cutting out dublin and london)-we will do this if my two siblings don't join our trip.

Lodging: So, if we went for 42 days, 34 or so would be spent paying for lodging. We really aren't concerned with luxury. Really the main thing I am looking for is a decent location, safe, and a door with a lock on it. I am perfectly fine with hostels if we can find one with a lock on our door. Do you think we need more than 70/night? If not, then I think we will have to cut a week or so out of the trip. Meals: Yeah I can see your points, We might have to bump that number up to 50. I was trying to account for the time we are with my friends (8 days). They are pretty wealthy and I can't imagine they wouldn't make us meals for those days. Other thoughts: My wife and I are pretty frugal (I can't see us spending much souvenir wise/ we are perfectly happy finding a grocery store in each city. The museum/attraction fees are a concern. I am also worried about local transit costs...etc Additionally, it is a bit hard to account for my siblings possibly joining our trip. They would help supplement our food and housing. Additionally a group of friends is considering joining us in italy...Thanks again!

"I recently bought a few Rick Steves books" Just be aware that he omits almost all of northern Germany. Because your direct route of travel will pass through here, you may want to heavily supplement your research with other guidebooks that offer a better scope.

Looking at your plan, you want to visit 10 countries in 42 days. That is 4 days per country. Sounds like fun. You haven't included travel time to go to all of these places. Which cities are you planning to visit in each of these countries? Without knowing that information, it is difficult to give much advice. You might want to reconsider this and either cut down the number of countries and also get specific about the cities. If your one German city is Berlin, but you then want to go to Austria, you will spend an entire day on the train. Get out a map and look at your plan. Figure out how you are going to get from point A to point B and how long this will take. Stop using dollars and switch over to euro to plan. $30 a day for meals for 2 people is way too low. Can you do that in Iowa? Some countries will cost you way more than that. Countries ike Switzerland and anywhere in Scandanavia. England and Austria aren't cheap either. $70 per night is also quite low. Have a look on some hotel booking websites to see what you might get for that amount of money in all of the cities that interest you. Yes, you can find places, but you may have to go to some websites like airbnb to find them. Have you priced gasoline in any of these countries? It is running about $9.50 a gallon in Germany right now.

Is someone driving you to the airport? If not, figure in parking fees. Your Danish and German friends may be wealthy, but you should still take them out for a meal, and buy them a gift. While a cheap trip can be fun, counting every penny is not.

Matthew,, rookie mistake, thinking in dollars. Think in Euros , then convert to dollars. 30 dollars a day for food is 23 euros.
70 dollars for hotel/hostel is 53 euros. These are very very tight... in fact in some places even finding a hostel for less then 30 EUROS a day each may be hard.. and it will likely still be a dorm room with up to 8 other people in it. Food you might manage, if you never eat out but just buy grocerie,, but 40 days of sandwiches made on the park bench is going to wear thin, fast. I think you should do two things to bring budget in line. Shorter visit, and cut out some of your travel. Even with a pass , every time you move it costs you. I would also look at cutting some of your more expensive destinations out . Have you counted on transport costs within the cities, you can't walk everywhere, every day,, some of these cities are large and the sites are not always grouped within walking distance of each other! I think allowing 70 euros( for both) a day for sleeping and 25-30( each) euros a day is as tight as I would even consider going.. and that works out 150-160 euros a day, thats almost closer to 200 dollars a day , not the 100 you have for food and lodging, and that is still going to be very very tight.. in some places like Switzerland its mind blowing expensive. Why not rethink some destinations, northern countries can be pricey, Spain and Portuagal are cheaper. Also it doesn't help you are going at peak season, you won't find alot of deals... Remember there are little hidden costs.. things will add up.

When looking at lodgings, if you don't mind staying with people, check out airbnb.com...we used it for 5 stays last year in Florence (an amazing self-contained place for $45 a night...and close to city center), London(65), Villefranche (45), Paris and Bath were our most expensive stays at about $90 (and I had $25 off Bath fr airbnb for leaving a review for our other stays). I think a lot of people will either offer breakfast, or allow you to use the fridge to put food in...some even allow you to use kitchen or may have a fridge/hotplate avail. Our hostess in Villefranche even cooked us supper! Airbnb site will show you the prices in US dollar. It's not too hard to eat cheap - if breakfast is included, eat big...I found most days we were so busy sightseeing, we didn't have time for lunch, or we'd grab a pizza slice or baguette and ham. Have picnics, go to the local markets and pick up stuff - you could prob have a nice picnic for like 10euro that would keep you stuffed for the afternoon/evening...and splurge every once in awhile on a nice meal...

While I don't entirely disagree with the generally pessimistic responses you have gotten so far, I also have some encouraging news. We have real-world numbers to share from our five previous lengthy European trips. Saving money can be done without any sort of hardship, but it takes a lot of work and research. The following costs (in US$) are for our family of five with three children. Roughly speaking, the addition of each child adds about half the cost of an adult, so the comparable projected cost for two adults is listed in parenthesis; Food; $54/day ($31) Lodging; $135/day ($77) Ground Transport; $60/day ($45 - nudged higher to account for no savings for fewer people with a car rental)
Entertainment/Admission/other; $48/day ($28) For food, we buy groceries and eat the occasional pizza/street vendor food. We rarely eat at service restaurants. For lodging we use hostels for most short stays and apartments for longer stays (more than three nights). For ground transport we use a combination of small car rentals and point to point train tickets (plus the occasional bus). We bought rail passes just once and our ground transport budget doubled as a result. Never again. Admissions are a must, but you can still make wise choices. Many great things to see are free. My favorite thing to do is simply stroll, observe and take photos - all free. Two of our trips were about five weeks in length and the total cost for each (INCLUDING airfare) was about $14,500. Using the formula of 1 child = 1/2 adult, that works out to $8,285 for 2 adults So you are not really that far off. Another plus; keep in mind that your six weeks away from home result in quite a lot of savings in your regular "at home" expenses. No food or gas - less electricity, etc. So factor that in, too. Good luck!!

Pizza slice or ham baquette sandwich , usually around 5 euros each in Paris, so thats 10 euros there for lunch, and thats drinking tap water you will keep in a reuseable bottle..and now convert to dollars.. 13.50 dollars for one lunch, that leaves you `17 dollars roughly for dinner( between both of you!), ( another sandwich? ) and breakfast, its not always included, sooo... you see, it adds up even when you try to do it cheap. If you see less places but stay a week in each in an apartment you could do it cheaper, buy groceries and eat in and pack a lunch.
Also check , some hostels will have kitchens you can use.. not all, but some.

'rookie mistake, thinking in dollars' It's not a rookie mistake at all. It's what suedo-sophisticated people try to pass off as a rookie mistake. Your income is in dollars. You've got to think of your outgo in dollars as well, eventually. Unless you're loaded or want to blindly bust the bank, think in any currency you want - - probably dollars. Example: if you've ten grand to spend and you want fifty days on the road, that's two hundred bucks a day. Period. That's the max. You can stick in the back of your mind that the number works out to about a hundred and fifty euro, but that's a far as you need to go. Use the local currency to compare prices. Example a fifty euro hotel room is cheaper than a sixty euro one. Duh! You've got to know that the range in the example is something like sixty-five to eighty bucks to know if it fits your budget expectations. I spend a quarter of my life in dollars, a quarter in pesos, and the rest mostly divided among yuan, sterling, and euro - - with maybe three or four other currencies tossed in during any given year. I haven't the damndest idea how sterling converts to euro, but five minutes after I wake up in the morning I know exactly how each one is doing against the dollar. If I walk in with a sack of apples that cost 10 ars, my wife bawls me out - - she knows exactly how much a fair price is - - in pesos. If I'm working in an unusual currency, I convert every potential transaction to dollars. I budget my trips in dollars because my income is in . . . . I'm probably not a rookie. I make all kinds of mistakes. This ain't one of them.

I really appreciate the response everyone. Thanks so much! I am going to be working the budget here in a bit and I will provide an d one. I have to respond to one thing though. :)The person who asked if we could survive on 30 dollars a day in Iowa. I just wanted to point out that my wife and I budget 50 dollars a week for groceries(and comfortable stay within that each month), and the dollar menu and Mcdonalds here is a wonderful thing. haha -That being said, I understand the differences between backpack travel and having a house to keep your groceries. Regarding budgeting in euros- I think I might try and think about my food in euros, but I think the other categories I can avoid having to pay in euros with really good planning ahead. Maybe I am wrong, but it seems so far that I can purchase lodging and transportation in dollars. Thanks again!

Hold on, Mr Smarty Pants Seasoned Traveler!! Enlighten us rookies on how in the blue blazes you think you can pay for lodging and transportation in American dollars? I can think of a couple of odd-ball ways to pull it off, but it's going to cost more, especially in the relatively low-end lodging numbers you're playing with.

\Hold on, Mr Smarty Pants Seasoned Traveler!! Enlighten us rookies on how in the blue blazes you think you can pay for lodging and transportation in American dollars?
I can think of a couple of odd-ball ways to pull it off, but it's going to cost more, especially in the relatively low-end lodging numbers you're playing with.\ Ed, wasn't trying to be "above myself" with that comment. I only meant that the prices for lodging on sites like trip advisor, Priceline, etc... are listed in dollars and so there isn't necessarily a need to budget in euros for that sections, as I can pay in dollars before I leave (maybe something I didn't consider?). For transportation, we are planning on buying a eurail pass, and primarily using that for transportation.-which is another example of a online purchase in dollars.

Yes, to keep costs and hassles down, you should book your lodging in advance. I think, however, that you should not pre-pay, and that you should only book places that can be cancelled. With 9 countries in 42 days, you might get halfway through and decide to chuck Austria and stay put in Italy for a few more days.

Matthew: You've received some very good advice from some well experienced travelers. My impressions: 1. 42 days of hard travel is physically demanding, and also fiscally demanding. Your itinerary will not be easy to . 2. It's simply impossible to see everything everywhere on one trip. 3. My trips are reserved for cooler, less congested times of the year like April-May and Sept.-Oct. Everything's cheaper including flights outside of summer. 4. We eat heavy at breakfast (included), and picnic mid afternoon. We purchase only one meal per day in a restaurant. 5. Take trains from city to city. Rent cars to see sites outside the cities, if the regions are particularly interesting. 6. European budget air carriers are to be used if you're traveling into another region 500 miles or farther apart. 7. Split your big trip into mini-trips and fly to the other end: Rome-Florence-Venice Innsbruck-Munich-Salzburg-Vienna-Prague Fly to Helsinki-ferry to Estonia-ferry to Stockholm--train to Oslo and Bergen--train down to Copenhagen Amsterdam-Belgium-Paris-Eurostar to London Take the paths of least resistance, and towns relatively close. 8. I never budget for anything. As frugal travelers, nobody spends as little money as my wife and I. And we really get our money's worth.
9. Make reservations for your first or second stops. Carry a laptop or notebook and make future reservations a day or two ahead. You don't need to be stuck to a schedule that's apt to change day by day.

To piggyback on the advice to take along a laptop: no need, most hotels/b&bs can give you access to the internet, or you can go to a Western Union and use the computer there to log in to find lodging for future days. I tend to book hotel rooms ahead of time (so I know my cost is fixed), but some of the booking services (booking.com is one I use often) will send you email alerts on reduced prices if you sign up for it. Before you buy a Eurailpass (which requires additional reservation costs) check the individual country rail sites for prices (budget for the highest price shown if you don't plan to buy your ticket right away, reduced fares go away fast). If you do buy individual tickets ahead of time, you will be locked in to a particular train/date/time and will have to buy a new ticket if your plans change; if you don't have a valid ticket, the fines can be budget-busters. My personal budget hovers at around 110 euro per day (food including at least one restaurant meal, lodging, transportation, admission, miscellaneous purchases). When staying with friends, I also always take my hosts out for a nice dinner, or buy them a gift. As suggested, look at a map, check rail sites for travel times and costs, and you may decide to visit fewer places. By the way, between 6am and 10am yesterday my airline ticket price went up $30.

Hi Matthew, I use a spreadsheet for budgeting, just so I know how much I will spend and when, and how much I need to our bank accounts for ATM withdrawals. I split the spreadsheet into transportation, lodging, food, other (tours, admissions, etc.). Because I'm kind of a spreadsheet geek, I use both Euros and dollars as I want to know in USD what the trip will cost. And if I'm quoted in Euros, I enter the Euro amount, then use a formula converting to USD. Start building your trip budget as you do the research with transportation, lodging, and admissions, and see where that takes you.
We've found that many hotels give some type of a discount for paying cash, and we book directly with hotels, not through booking websites. Likewise, do not book non refundable hotels, and know what the cancellation policies are.

WOW what a rude reply Mr Curmudgeon, I do not think Matthew was being a "smarty pants" and I think you should apoligize, while I ignore your rude jibes and sense of entitlement to put other peoples posts down, , most newbies find it a bit off putting.. Matthew I know what you mean about dollars as listed prices on sites, but its a good idea to get ideas and prices on site like you mentioned , but still google and go on hotels on websites and see if you can do better, on their own websites they list in euros.

Matthew, please don't let someone's rude remarks because that person knows it all keep you from posting. Am sure others will agree 99percent of people on this site are kind, generous and above all nice!

The good news is that your air and rail costs should be good as they are pretty much hard numbers that are easy to research. Unfortunately your food lodging numbers are pretty far off base. I would very seriously suggest that you go to the library and go through some of Rick's books. They all have a spot in them that covers costs and they are a reasonable guide. If you can stay in nothing but hostels, the $70 per night might cover it but that is a big if. Food is expensive in Europe and $30 per day just won't cut it. ... There is no dollar menu at Mc Donald's in Europe. In 2011 we averaged $244 per day for food, lodging and minimal sightseeing expenses and we stay and eat in places that are "neat but not gaudy". As for figuring costs in dollars, you should look at the posted prices in local currency and do the conversion to dollars for planning purposes but realize that you are going to be paying in local currency. You want to keep an eye on exchange rates since they change and at times can do so very rapidly in either direction. Frankly, even for 42 days, you have too much planned and your budget definitely rules out Switzerland.

What you haven't explained is why you are doing all of this as one 42-day trip. If you worry about how much you will spend on the airfare and not repeating that again, think about how much more you would get out of a trip where you aren't spending every waking minute worrying about how much your meal cost, or whether your budget allowed for entry into a museum with a masterpiece you travelled all this way to see. Why not do a 3 week trip this year and then in 2 years, another 3 week trip? I'm planning a trip this spring (costs less than summer) and I will be funding it through my own savings and airline miles. I have been frugal all the time the last few years so I can enjoy my vacation - and not have to worry about WHEN things cost more than I expect (which they always do). I will be staying at a friend's place to save on eating out. I will also tell you that if you want to be well located (to save on both time and transportation expenses) you will pay a premium on lodging.
Good luck, whatever you decide!

Jennnifer to be clear, you budget 50 dollars a day for accomadation, but per person right, not per couple?

hi matthew - i have been reading this thread and while i think it would be a bit difficult to do this trip, i dont think its impossible. unlike most americans, i get 40 days worth of time off every year. FORTY. mix that with weekends and holidays, i am able to do a LOT of traveling. so i have become quite the queen of budgeting low without feeling as if i am missing anything. its a tiny bit different for me because i can spend more if i want to, i just weigh things like "do i want this steak dinner or would i rather use that money towards a weekend getaway later this year". the additional trip always wins. i have actually been working on writings for a blog that outline ways to save money. but im nowhere ready to start posting. you have gotten a bunch of useful tips so far. i especially agree with the railpass advice - check individual ticket costs first. the food budget, it is low as people have mentioned. but its not all that impossible. for example: if you book places with free breakfast, then you can pre-pack things like a case of cliff bars (or whatever tickles your fancy) and then just pay for dinner nightly. if you dont eat in any restaurants, you may be able to make up denmarks dinner cost by only having to spend $2/person elsewhere. i also pre-plan my hotel budget at $50/day. so if for one city i can not find anything under $75, i have to make that $25 up somewhere else. on my last trip this caused me to spend one night in a hostel and one night in a guesthouse. both were private locked rooms with shared bathrooms. i think the advice on planning in euros and not dollars is bad advice. thats just my opinion. your budget is in dollars. spreadsheets are your best friend. make sure you have a list of every single thing you want to see and make sure you have enough money for it. -----------continued below

the absolute best piece of advice i can give you is to not do this blindly. make sure you do extensive research and are aware of every penny you will need. doing a frugal trip is one thing. running out of money and being stuck without anything in your pockets is another. one thing that is HORRIBLE advice but that i will mention anyway - if you get foreign currency before you go (i know, HORRIBLE advice, the exchange rates will be awful) you can also budget that way. have one envelope per day. then you will always have an envelope of cash to open the next day and you will never be broke.

Matthew... I also try to travel as often as I can so that means cutting corners whenever I can. Have the other couple decided if they are going to join you? If so, you might consider a rental car for part of the time. Divided by 2 it can help the budget in some areas, as well as leave you lots of flexibility. I almost always have a car, so that means lots of picnics along the roadside. Some great bread, cheese and hard salami and fruit can really stretch the food budget. $30 worth of food at a grocery store is a lot of food. I might cut out one or two locations, but if those are the places you want to see and will go home regretting it... then go for a whirlwind trip of a lifetime!

Hi, I suggest budgeting in Euro, if your budget is in dollars but your expenses are in Euro, It also depends on the daily exchange rate while you are over there. Maybe by June the Euro will drop to what it was last summer which will be more favourable to you than if you were to go right now. If you pay with a credit card for, say, a hotel room a double costing 70 Euro x 3 nights = 255 Euro x the exchange rate, your statement will show the final price in dollar and the equation (the total sum in Euro x 1,32 (suppose). Obviously, an exchange at 1,24 is going to indicate a cheaper dollar amount than one at 1,32 on your statement. There are decent places you can get a double (DZ) at 70 Euro. A private double room in a hostel in Vienna en suite is 70 Euro. As suggested I would drop Switzerland, easy for me to say since I am not interested in the place. Financing a trip with Switzerland is not going to reduce expenses. On the Eurail Pass get it only if you plan doing some zig zag long distance traveling in Germany, France, or Switzerland (if you include it). I normally get a 10 day one. You can cut expenses a number of ways on food and lodging, it depends on your tolerance level, what you're willing to accept, put up with in reducing comfort or luxury.

Why should good ole Matthew budget in euro when four of the nine countries he's visiting don't use them? The poor guy's got to have a common denominator somewhere. Why can't it be in his own currency? And, Matt, old buddy, I was funning you back there. Trying to get you off the idea of paying in dollars somehow which would have ripped your pocketbook open - - others helped fix that, it seems. Had I thought you were a jackass I would have called you.......well, a jackass. I've a couple of thoughts/questions: 1. Will that rail pass get you from Ireland to England, then from Denmark to Ireland? I think not. You maybe ought to price that one out. There's not a prayer in the world that it will come out of that two grand airfare figure. 2. Your seventy bucks a night might work. Your choices will be ratty urban hostels or okay budget hotels further out - - which are good, but will add more to the daily transportation fees. 3. Fifteen bucks per person per day for grub is grim. Really grim. Twenty-five is doable, on average, if you're careful. Maybe not if you've got Switzerland and Denmark tossed in there. 4. Price out things like cable cars - - they might surprise you. The one at First, for example, is sixty or seventy bucks per head.

With time and extensive research you can find out what it will cost. Don't guess at costs, actually find accommodations, transportation, entry fees etc. then add extra for incidentals you may have overlooked. I plan our budget ahead of time and keep a tally of what we spend each day as we go, knowing I need to stay within the budget. We are very tight in our daily life so we can go to Europe, but then when I go, and want to fully enjoy it with no worries of cost. We stay in inexpensive B&B's, eat a large breakfast (included when ever possible) have a snack for lunch, then enjoy the local cusine in pub or small restaurant, which is usually a highlight for us! My advice, trim the days so that you have the money to fully enjoy the experience, know clearly what it will cost before you go. Your current budget seems very tight, and tight on vacation can be a drag. You don't have to spend a lot to have fun, but give yourself some wiggle room.

pat - i travel solo so its per person. i do pay a bit less "per person" than couples as a lot of places charge less for a single person. but for places that dont....

So we have trimmed down the trip a bit. I am trying to figure out if a car rental would be a better option. We are thinking 30 days now (June 4th-July 5th). I would either: 1. Get Eurail pass (10 days within 2 months)= $1048+ Local Transport Probably around 1600 2. Car rental?-I have no idea. I am only 24, but in the past I have gotten around the car rental surcharge for being underage by being a hertz gold member (they waive that fee in the states at least). If I got a car rental I would go from Paris-Alps-Italy-Vienna.
-Any idea what that would cost with mileage and insurance and all that mess?

Car rental rates vary greatly. You will have to check with a variety of companies, or one of those consolidators for the size car you want. It can be expensive if you pick up in one country and drop in another. If I am doing lots of countries I try to do a circle trip and return to same place. Gas is expensive, but depending on what car you get mileage can be good, diesel is cheaper. If you just intend to visit cities, a car is probably useless, however if you enjoy a road trip of exploring smaller towns/villages and want to be on your own scheule, then a car is invaluable. Depends on the kind of trip you want to take, but if you are only trying to save money and get from point to point I would not bother with all the hassel of a car, then the driving will just become a burden.

Renting a car, do not rent in one country and drop in another, the cost to do so will knock your socks off.

While I've driven in both Paris and Vienna, it really doesn't make much sense to have a car in a big city. You're paying for rental days and parking when you can't even use the car at all. There are lots of issues to consider when driving in addition to that huge drop fee: familiarity with laws and regulations (i.e. parking, ZTL zones in Italy, toll sticker in Austria, speed cameras, red light cameras, etc.), distracted driving, some cars cannot be taken into Italy, the list goes on and on. I now prefer to rent only when I'll be in more rural areas. Otherwise, it's always rail hands down. I never buy a rail pass, however. Too expensive and restrictive. I always buy point to point tickets on the fly, unless it's for a high-speed (i.e. more expensive with reservations required) ticket, such as Eurostar, Thalys, or ICE...then I buy online before my trip and take advantage of better deals.

Matthew, I'm basically with the others. For starters, saying "Germany" doesn't tell me much. Is that Berlin (€€€ potentially, hotel/sights/restaurants), or is that some tiny Bavarian village (€, hotel/restaurants, no sights to spend € on)? And 'where' makes a HUGE difference on your transportation costs! Once you know where you're going, you'll KNOW what your local transportation costs (etc.) will be - real numbers you can work with. Also, don't forget that you won't be spending money at home while you're away! Except for utilities, housing, etc., you can allocate the rest to your European budget. Definitely don't forget to add in the cost to park you car for several weeks :-( Better yet, find someone to take you, if possible. An airport shuttle may be a better option. Also, do you need a pet sitter? There's some more $$$. I second the idea to start thinking in Euro. Everything will be priced in Euro, so you should just get used to it. It's really frustrating to find a great price for something, then realize it's in $$$, not €€€! Start looking at websites like Booking.com and Venere.com for lodging - I've found they have good European listings, and the cancellation policy (esp. Booking.com) is usually very favorable. Just a suggestion... Get your brother to decide ASAP so that you can get on with your trip planning; it's not too early to be nailing some things down for a June trip. Of course Ed was just joshing! Don't worry, he'll call you an a-hole if that's what he means ;-) Although when he said "I'm probably not a rookie. I make all kinds of mistakes. This ain't one of them.", I'll posit that Speedo he wore while racing through CDG Airport was a mistake...;-)

European Vacation: June 4th- July 5th June 4th- June 5th Travel from CHI-Dublin (Delta) June 5th- Travel from Dublin- Paris (Aer Lingus) June 5th-June 8th- Explore Paris June 8th- Travel within France (1) June 9th- June 11th- Explore France (1) June 12th-Travel to Alps (1) June 13th-June 16th- Explore Alps (1)
June 17th- Travel to Cinque terra (1) June 18th- June 20th- Cinque terra June 21st- Travel to Rome (1) June 22nd- June 25th- Explore Rome June 26th- Travel to Florence (1) June 27th- Travel to Venice (1) June 28th- June 29th- Venice June 30th- Travel to Vienna (1) June 1st- July 3rd Explore Vienna July 3rd- Travel to Dublin (Aer Lingus) July 4th-July 5th Explore Dublin July 5th- Fly back to Chicago (delta) (1)=1 day of Eurail pass Budget: Driving: $115 (Iowa City- Chicago, Parking at Friends) Airfare: $2174 (Including Aer-lingus) Room: 30 Nights x $100 average= $3000 (maybe less with Hostels) Eurail: $1048 (10 days in 2 months, 4 countries) Food: 30 Days X $70 average = $2100 ($35/person) Local Transport: 24 days in cities X 20 dollars average= $480 (too low?) Entertainment/Admission/Other: 24 days not traveling X $30=$720 Total: $9637.00 OK, This is what I am currently working on. What are your thoughts on my updated trip itinerary/budget?

Hi, If you get the Pass with 4 countires, which ones? France dropped out of that. The Global Pass (incl. France) for 10 days comes to 67 Euro per day, which works if you plan on zig zag and long distance traveling, say from Copenhagen-Prague or to Vienna. Not worth adding CZ or Italy as a country, the Global Pass includes all those you list minus the British Isles. I do the zig zag traveling, wouldn't suggest the Pass unless a good deal of the rides will be in Ger. taking the ICE, Switzerland, Austria, and France. TGV reservations inside France don't cost that much. In Berlin you can find pretty cheap accomodations (food too) relative to other cities. For double (DZ) it can range ca 55-70 Euro in a Pension depending on the amenities you want...a lot cheaper in Berlin as regards to accomodations than in Switzerland, Paris, and London.

Yup, Fred is right. No France on a Eurail Se-lect Pass in 2013. Can you not do better than an average of $104.80 for each day of travel?

Matthew, With advance purchase, Paris to Nice or Avignon is 25 Euro each. Works out to $66/2 tickets. Your budget works better now, and if you decide to buy point-to-point tickets (advance purchase), your rail expenses will probably be less, which is always good! You will get lots of opinions here, but I would say the number of days you give certain destinations are off (too many one place, not enough elsewhere). But that really is another post---this is about budget.
Have fun and enjoy the adventure!

Just a thought here, Matthew. Is exploring Dublin a priority? Because I just found a flight on Finnair from Chicago to Vienna with return from Paris for $1000 roundtrip. Your route would be in reverse, with Vienna coming first. This frees up some time to explore the cities I think you shortchanged.