Travel Tips
Here you will find some of our suggestions on how to effectively travel in Europe.
Getting Around:
Europe has great infrastructure developed for getting around the continent. This includes trains, busses, and airlines aimed at providing cheap options for travel. Always check out trains! The trains in Europe are fast, electric, and cheap. They also have the benefit of allowing you to see the landscape. Most countries in Europe offer connections to others. Busses are also a good option for getting around, but are not as fast as trains. You can book some cheap tickets through Flixbus. Air travel is relatively cheap (especially when you fly with Ryanair or Easy Jet) but these are less carbon neutral, so we recommend the first two options. You may also want to rent a car. This is great for getting to places whioch may have limited service by rail, but is more expensive because paying for gas can be difficult. Make sure that you look into all travel options before renting a car!
Things to do:
In most cities and towns, there are often tons of things to do, but most you have to pay for. Below are some suggestions for activities which are free or low cost. Free Tours: this may be a misnomer, but most cities have tours for which you do not need to pay upfront, but at the end of the tour. These are fantastic ways of seeing the history of the city and learning about the region in which you are travelling. Churches: Whether you are religious or not, most churches, cathedrals, and so on, are free to visit and often contain some exhibitions on the history of the building and the city. This is a great way of cooling down on a hot day and of experiencing history. Free museums: Many museums are free to enter, or require a small donation. These are usually smaller museums, but provide a great opportunity to see much of the history which is not incorporated into traditional museums. Boat Tours: While these are not free, they are usually inexpensive and allow you to see the city you are visiting from a different perspective. They also allow you to pick out places you would like to visit.
Staying in Touch:
It is a good idea to keep in touch with a trusted person back in Canada to keep them up to date with where you are and how your trip is going. In Europe, you can purchase a SIM card for relatively cheap, which has access to a large limit of data, and can easily roam from country to country. You can also use Ugibi, which is an app which allows you to purchare electronic SIM cards for relatively cheap, and provides you with a limited stream of data.
Accommodations:
There are some great options for finding cheap places to stay in Europe. One thing we always suggest is looking into hostels. Hotels, AirBnB, and traditional BnBs are also great options Hostels provide cheap accomodations for travellers, and give you the opportunity to meet people from all over the world! You can book private rooms, women-only rooms, and dorms. ou can find great deals for hostels on hostelworld.com.
Food and Drink:
The best way of immersing yourself in a different culture is by enjoying traditional food and drinks. Here are our suggestions: Always find a smaller restaurant which is slightly busy, this means that they are smaller (locally owned) place, but that the quality of their food is good. You may also find that many restaurants in many of the larger cities will have a copy of their menu outside, so that you can review it before deciding on a place. Most places in Euroe will serve soft drinks (pop), but it is uncommon for Europeans to drink pop with their meals. Instead, they typically enjoy beer, wine, or water. Remember that water ius not free in Europe.
Other things to keep in mind:
Washrooms in most public places (train stations, metro stations, etc) are not free to use, and you will likely have to pay between 0.50 and 1 euros to use the toilet. Always carry small coins to be able to pay for this! Try to learn a few words in the language of the country which you are visiting. Some places do not accept Visa or MasterCard debit cards, be aware of this. Likewise, cards like Discover, American Express, and so on are not typically accepted in Europe.