Europe People

Hello all! I am planning a backpacking adventure for a month and a half, starting in Glasgow circling to Rome, visiting about 15 cities. My question is about the trains/buses. They seem crazy expensive. Would I be better off renting a car? Any knowledge would be greatly appreciated.

The price of gasoline in Europe might make you fall over .

Agreed about the price of gas. If you do your homework you can find excellent deals on rail travel in the UK. We've backpacked around England a few times and got great deals on the trains.

I'd price out both. Like others have said, petro is quite pricey there. Also, some places may only have standard cars available. Can you drive standard, on the left side of the road?

There's pros and cons of each. I'd make a list and go from there.

i.e. car rental allows more freedom, but you have to be responsible for picking it up, dropping it off and other maintenance. (also if something goes wrong with it)

I'd research it by talking to a travel agent, Google etc.

Good luck.

Car rentals are often more expensive when borders are crossed. Also, Italy at least has very expensive toll roads. When I went, we spent maybe €25+ a day on tolls.

Check out Eurrail passes maybe. I find those to be a bit overpriced, but who knows. I also hear that sometimes it's cheaper to fly than to take the train.

"Backpacking" generally isn't done with a car across continental Europe. Granted, I only have family in Spain and Italy and haven't so much done the grand tour, but I do know it's not the glitz and glamour many people associate with. Backpacking is largely a upper-middle class luxury for those of us in the States. Having enough money or a substantial enough safety net not just to be comfortable getting around, but being able to stay on your feet once you're all done.

It may be better to consider individual countries you'd like to stay in for an extended amount of time. You get to know the culture a lot more than just passing through for a week or two.

Here in Italy gas is 4 times what it costs in America and renting cars is pretty expensive.