Eastern Europe for 4 weeks-ish

Bubby

Hey, so this is a bit awkward since I just recently made a thread about going to Iceland. Turns out that was delayed till April, and now I'm going solo to Eastern Europe in two weeks. First stop is Poland to stay with a friend in Warsaw for a week, planning on taking a train to Krakow to see Auschwitz and a salt mine one of those days. Aside from that, I'm open to any ideas on what to do in Poland. After that, Prague for 4 days (should I plan on more or less days there to soak up the sights there?), and then I can go pretty much anywhere. I haven't booked my return ticket yet, so I could do Germany and then Austria or whatever else. I'm shooting for a total of 3-4 weeks, and my budget (not including airfare) is $3k. Staying with friends in Poland and Prague will keep things pretty cheap up until I leave Prague.

Anyway, sorry for two travel help threads in such close proximity. Any tips are much appreciated. Where to go, what to avoid, how to keep things cheap, etc. I guess the only things I should mention are that I don't want any shared room hostels (I'm a photographer and I'll be carrying $4k worth of gear between my camera, two lenses, and a laptop). Single room is fine, and I'm planning on looking into couchsurfing this weekend.

PiaLotta

If you like to visit Germany, I live in Cologne (you know, with this big black gothic church thing ) if you need a place to stay you can contact me. Or if you just need someone to show you the city. I have not that much space, but I'm willing to share or to ask my friends who have a bigger apartment.

JohanFlick

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Malbork_Castle is a great place to visit in Poland. Also Krakow deserves more than a single afternoon visit.

Warsaw can be boring for a tourist, unless your friends are local and can guide you to some fun places. I think Czech Republic has cheaper alcohol and food than Poland, so you might consider staying in Prague longer than in Warsaw.

Bubby

JohanFlick wrote: »

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Malbork_Castle is a great place to visit in Poland. Also Krakow deserves more than a single afternoon visit.

Warsaw can be boring for a tourist, unless your friends are local and can guide you to some fun places. I think Czech Republic has cheaper alcohol and food than Poland, so you might consider staying in Prague longer than in Warsaw.

Wow, definitely taking a train and visiting that castle. I'm thinking of just spending the first two days with my friend in Warsaw to recover from jetlag and such, then hitting Krakow and Malbork after that. Thinking 4 days in Prague should be enough, then Berlin, Munich, Vienna, Budapest, and Romania (Transylvania, Bucharest) in that order. Might have to cut out Vienna and Budapest if money gets tight, but Germany and Romania I really want to visit.

RMS Oceanic

I'd definitely set aside at least a few days for Krakow. It's a beautiful city. Auschwitz could be a day trip in itself, or maybe combined with Wieliczka.

I agree that Warsaw isn't as interesting, but I'd have to recommend the museum dedicated to the 1944 Uprising.

Bliss 101

Prague is a fantastic city, definitely reserve at least 4 days for it. The first time I went there, I was planning for just a few days, ended up staying almost two weeks, because I loved the city so much. The prices are very affordable, the night life is great if you're into that, and I'd imagine the scenery and architecture would be great for a photographer.

Vienna is expensive as hell, so I'd give it the lowest priority if money is an issue.

I'd say Berlin requires at least a few days, if not a week, or you'll miss out on a lot of interesting stuff. There's just so much to see and do.

In general, I'd advise against cramming too many destinations into your trip. Try to have time to just kind of wander around and let the cities surprise you. Also, plan your route smartly so that you spend most of your time at destinations and not on trains/planes.

Bubby

Yeah, thats probably smart. Maybe a week for poland, a week for prague, a week for Berlin, then possibly flying into Bucharest to see my friend there if I can afford it. Thanks for the advice.

Skeith

Bliss 101 wrote: »

In general, I'd advise against cramming too many destinations into your trip. Try to have time to just kind of wander around and let the cities surprise you.

That, and you don't want to overload yourself. Sometimes you just need to take a rest day.