I'm not leaving until mid-May, so I'll probably make another post about this closer to that date, but for now, anyone have any secrets to share?
Interesting journey! You are going to have a helluva trip. Route Personally, my preference would be to go south from Budapest to Zagreb, Sarajevo, Macedonia, and into Greece from there, rather than heading east to Bucharest and Sofia. Especially if this is your first time traveling in the Balkans. It gets sketchy east of Budapest, pretty quickly. But Bosnia and Croatia have big tourist seasons and are more used to accommodating (and protecting) travelers. As you head east, it becomes more of a manly-man "every man for himself" kind of environment, where the police are more likely to laugh at your mugging, rather than help. It takes a certain type of traveler to thrive in Romania and Bulgaria, and if this is your first time, it might be better to go to the more well-traveled routes along the Croatian coast, for example. Cars vs Trains When I moved to Budapest eons ago, I too had been raised in the car-owning world of America, and couldn't imagine how trains could adequately replace cars. Then, when I moved back to America seven years later, I couldn't believe how backwards and fucked-up the American car culture is. It is SO MUCH EASIER to get around Europe on a train, than to get anywhere in America in a car. "Shit. I missed the train to Novi Sad. Well... let's see... there's a train leaving in 30 minutes for Sekesfehervar, and from there I can go directly to Zagreb, and it'll only be an hour longer. Ok! Cool! Let's take that one!" Greece Be forewarned, Greece can be tough. Not much of it looks like the Greece we see in pictures. Athens is a big city with a lot of smog and scorching heat, at times. Almost all the Greek islands are deserts. Delos will blow your goddamn mind. You take a boat out there, and walk around an actual Greek city that people just abandoned about 1500 years ago. Streets, buildings, statuary... it is the closest you will ever feel to what it was like being a Greek in the heyday of the culture. Santorini is ... everything. Utterly enchanting. Unreal. Like an epic movie set. And yet, if you get down to the south end of the island (Kamari and Akrotiri) you will see ancient Greece right there on the surface. There is an old amphitheater in Akrotiri at the very top of the hill, and it will blow you away. Lots of people go to Mykonos. If drinking and getting puked on by badly behaved foreigners is your idea of a good time, definitely go to Mykonos. Back Northward When going back north into Europe, you should look at both Slovenia and Trieste, in Italy. Maybe a boat up the Croatian coast from Greece. Slovenia is gorgeous, and is basically a cheaper version of Austria with nicer people. (Not that Austrians aren't nice... but they have that Germanic/Teutonic coldness about them, while the Slovenes are Mediterranean types.) Whenever anyone goes to Vienna, I always tell them to go to the Vienna Clock Museum. It really is special... the building, the collection... even if you think you don't care about clocks, it is a lovely place. And right in town, too, so it is easy to visit. Big Picture Stuff Pack one bag. Carry it around with you everywhere for a month before you go, to get some practice handling it deftly. And no matter how much stuff you leave with, you will always come home with one bag. Start off that way, and save yourself the hassle. We think we need way more STUFF than we actually need. And you will shed about 50% of the shit you brought in the first week. The second week the rest will get stolen. (Yes, it will.) So you will replace the essential items with (invariably better) items you find along the way. "This shirt? Yeah. I got it in Sarajevo when my stuff was stolen on the train in Serbia." Bring a couple of simple items of clothing. Buy stuff that is culture and weather-appropriate once you get there. This will help you not stand out like a goddamn tourist (and decrease your chances of getting robbed), and will also force you to interact with the locals when you look for, and buy, the things you discover you need on the road. Write. Even if you aren't a writer now, make a point of writing every single day. Take notes. Town names. Sights. Train rides. Experiences. SO MUCH will happen to you, and your mind will go through some amazing changes and transformations. Having daily notes will be TOTALLY FASCINATING when you get back. Back in America Find people to connect with who have traveled recently, BEFORE you leave. When you get back, you are going to be super disoriented. It is HARD to talk to Americans about the rest of the world and anything that isn't on TV. You will have a MUCH easier time acclimating back to life in America if you can go hang out and have dinner a few times with traveler friends. It took me FIVE YEARS of totally floundering around before I found my feet again in America. And I was only gone for 7 years. Your life is about to change, and you are about to become a citizen of the world. Welcome! It'll be nice to have you here.
Thanks for the incredible response! It is my first time but I still want to get a feel for the Balkans and it feels as though Croatia is westernizing rapidly. Do you think Budapest to Zagreb to Sarajevo to Belgrade to Skopje would be a good route? Last night I spent four hours procrastinating and read up on the history of the Yugoslav Wars, something not at all taught in US public high schools. There is a lot of really interesting stuff so I think it might be cool to go see some of the places that played central roles in the wars. Plus I got to learn about the Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia naming dispute. What a fascinating political battle going on. I'll definitely take Slovenia into consideration. It all depends on time. I'm typing this on my phone but I have a layout of approximate times in cities and travel times. Adding in city might be difficult. Though as I mentioned it is my first time so I might find I have more than enough time and I might be overestimating my time in cities. Do you have any good resources for how long to spend in a city? I found plenty of estimates for my popular cities but from Wroclaw to Thessaloniki, the only city I can find any information about trip length is Budapest. For the most part I have 2-3 days each. Drinking and getting puked on is not at all my goal. My goal for this trip is to get a taste of other cultures. When my parents brought me abroad as a kid, we'd always get lost the first day and eat somewhere in some alley. Get some real good local food. One of my fears is that all the people around me will be doing a trip like I am for cheap alcohol. Any advice on avoiding crowds and young partiers? I'm more worried about them coming back drunk and waking me up than avoiding them in the city though.
We come from the same breed, my friend! I genuinely believe that the best way to travel is to get off the train, wander until something smells good, then go in and figure out how to communicate with the proprietor and get fed. :-) So, the Budapest - Zagreb - Sarajevo route is WONDERFUL, and totally worth it. Really beautiful. All three of those cities will blow your mind, and you will be able to get around easily as a tourist. And when you are walking in downtown Sarajevo and step on a Sarajevo Rose, you will feel things in your spine you have never felt before. It is a visceral experience. Stop. Turn slowly around and look at the hills that surround you. Think deeply about what created that mark, and that people LIVED HERE in that environment for fourteen hundred days. It changes you. Especially because you are surrounded by wonderful (and gorgeous!) warm people, and the feeling of energy and excitement of the people who live there. They don't hold a grudge, they look to the future. It's amazing. So. Now you are leaving Sarajevo... The beauty way to go is south to Dubrovnik, take a boat to Corfu, and enter Greece from there. It is some of the most stunning geography in the world. The easy way to go is from Sarajevo to Belgrade (which is a GREAT and vibrant city with an amazing youthful culture), but the train trip from Belgrade to Skopje is like a Greyhound bus trip from South Dakota to the Texas Panhandle... boring, long, and boring. And kinda shitty. Serbia has really been depressed for a long time, so the services (like trains) still run, but they ain't "nice" by any measure. So yeah.... those are my thoughts!! When my parents brought me abroad as a kid, we'd always get lost the first day and eat somewhere in some alley. Get some real good local food.
Well thank you! I don't know for sure... but it seemed to me like everyone I met who had their shit stolen eventually looked back on the experience as a blessing. First, for making them more aware of their surroundings, which made them more engaged with everything they were experiencing. And second, because after the initial shock and offense wears off... you realize it is just Stuff. And finally, because they then got a story about their stuff being stolen, and ANOTHER story about where they got these cool pants, and the lady they bought them from gave them her email address, and he gets a new pair sent to him every six months from her, and she's invited them to stay at her house if they are ever back in WidgyFidgystan, etc... Sometimes we need to get shocked out of our bubble to really engage with the world around us.
I was going to suggest some more cities, but they probably are not included in your via rail pass. I've never been, but everyone I know says good things about Budapest. Maybe include it in the last leg of your trip if you have the extra time. Don't stress about it too much, even the planning. Once you have a rough idea where you want to go, you'll be ok. With internet everywhere, you can book your stuff 2 days in advance and be fine. You'll meet people along the way that are going your route - but in the opposite direction. Ask them for must-visits. Under-pack. As long as you have your passport, phone and wallet you can buy anything you need on the road in case you forget it. And it's a great excuse to get a couple extra t-shirts or whatever. Bonus - if someone likes it and compliments you on it, you get to say " Ohh I bought this in Bucharest". I honestly just do a rough research and flag fun places from google/trip advisor/atlas obscura on my maps. Then, every night before bed I do a 30 min research and plan on what I'll do tomorrow. Invite some people along if you got a fun activity planned. The only thing I'd make sure to look up in advance before leaving are -music festivals/city celebrations (it really sucks coming into a city the day after their annual fun whatever) and some hikes that you might need to make a little detour for. Have a good trip!
Whoops, it's a stop between Bratislava and Bucharest. Too many "B" cities to keep track of. I'll definitely look into festivals, I didn't even think about that. Thanks!
Stay in hostels. I've stayed at the Copenhagen Downtown hostel, and it was really fun. Lots of hang-out space in Bohemian style, lots of young people traveling, many alone, looking for conversation and friends. Arrive early for the free dinner every evening (but don't expect anything fancy!) Weekends can be loud, like staying in a dorm.
The one thing I really want to know about is visiting Auschwitz. It seems in high season you have to have a guided tour. Do you have any experience with these? How difficult are they to book? I don't know exactly when I will be in Krakow so I don't want to book yet. Other than that, I'm just trying to get a feel for culture from the places I visit. If you have any advice I would greatly appreciate anything you have to offer. My plan is to do a little research for each City and find a thing or two I want to do but also spend a day walking around. My parents always had me go into churches too, so whenever I see one I tend to go in. If you know of any impressive churches I should be sure to visit on one of my tour days, I'd love to hear some. Thanks Devac!