backpacking through Europe

jkbrownstein

Fellow travelers, planning honeymoon and would love advice. Any experience with UK (mostly London), Belgium (mostly Brussels and Bruges but open), Netherlands (Amsterdam), Denmark (prob Copenhagen), Sweden (prob Stockholm), or Poland (Warsaw). We're open to adding stops along the way smile emoticon

Jells2dot0

I have been to London, Bruges, and Amsterdam but not backpacking. Lots to see and do in each place. What types of experiences are you looking for? 

LondonLisa

I'm not trying to be forward, but how old are you guys? Backpacking is usually under 22 students on a gap year, youth hostels, sambuca shots, etc. Not really honeymoon-y.

If you are just travelling, that is a lot of places to go. I would suggest at least 3 weeks to go to all of those places. How much time do you have and how are you planning on getting between these places? Train? Flights? hiring a car?

MrsAitch

I agree with LondonLisa. I don't think backpacking would necessarily be enjoyable for a honeymoon, but that's not really my call to make

We stayed in Amsterdam for a week for our honeymooon and it was wonderful! It's really romantic and pretty (seriously, I've been to Paris, and it has nothing on Amsterdam) and we loved it there. If you really like history and museums and things like that it's a great place to go. We also really enjoyed the flowers and the Keukenhof since we went in the spring. Even my husband loved spending a day there! It's really easy to get around as well. We actually just walked most places since pretty much everywhere we went was within a couple of miles of our hotel. To plan our trip I borrowed a Rick Steves guidebook from the library--he's the best!

When I was younger I visited London and other parts of the UK (Bath is amazing and gorgeous, I really liked Brighton, and Caernarfon was one of my favorites) and I would also recommend going there. Some maybe slightly less frequently mentioned places I loved in London were the cabinet war rooms, the Wallace collection, and Primrose Hill. In Bath we went on a walking tour, which was really nice.

[Deleted User]

How long time wise do you have for your trip? If you are backpacking, that is a lot to hit if depending on how much time you have. Now if you plan to travel by train & just using backpacks as your luggage, you can do it. I also highly recommend Rick Steve's books. He travels a lot through Europe via train using a backpack for luggage. Lots of great advice on places to stay & eat.

CMGragain

I could not imagine backpacking on my honeymoon, but I have a good friend who did it, and they loved it.  They were a lot hardier than I am, and they were younger, too!  Good luck!
The Scandinavian countries are more expensive because of their tax structure.

freebread03

I haven't "backpacked" in the traditional sense through Europe (i.e. I haven't brought a tent, etc.) but I HAVE hopped around a bunch via train, plane, bus, and rental car, and had a great time with H (though not on a honeymoon). Unfortunately I haven't been to any of the locations that you've mentioned, but I've done train and plan between multiple European locations with a backpack, staying in AirBnB and hostels. We ALWAYS book our own private room/bathroom, and ALWAYS check reviews and only book at places with lots of positive reviews. Some of these places have been via Hostelbookers but were more like nice rooms in a larger house. For example, in Brasov, Romania, we stayed in a room that had a large soaking tub in a private bathroom, and a shared living room and kitchen (there were 4 rooms total). It was completely fine and we had plenty of privacy. We enjoyed our hosts, who lived in the main house and gave great recommendations on activities to do. We had also flown into Istanbul (where we spend a few days), flown to Izmir and bused to Kusadasi where we took a ferry to Samos, Greece. Flew to Bucharest, where we spent a few days in a "hostel" with our own bedroom, and then took a train to Brasov. I've also done similar trips where we've flown to Sofia (Bulgaria), gotten a ride to Pravets (for a wedding), flown to Vienna, caught a train to Budapest, trained back to Vienna, rented a car, drove to Bled, Slovenia, then drove through Austria including a few days in Kitsbuhel, and back to Vienna to catch a ride home. Both trips we "backpacked" but we did book places to stay everywhere, only staying in a hotel in Pravets (because it was a wedding), and two nights in Vienna (we had points). I say go for it, but find nice places to stay on the way via AirBnB, hostelbookers, etc. My tip? If a big city, look for places in walking distance to the Four Seasons, and you know it will be a great location. And make sure to book a private room and bathroom (always ask about bunk beds--we've had many private rooms but sometimes they ONLY have bunkbeds).