Possibly going to England next year... suggestions. *poll included*

[cpals]

A fellow coworker, who I'm good friends with, goes to Europe a lot and is going next year around June or so for a week. I thought it would be cool to go with him since I've never been out of the country and would like to get out of the area for a while. It will be like an early graduation present to myself (will be graduating that December). If I go, we'll be renting a camper or something like that to drive around in since he said it would be cheaper and more efficient to get around to places and stuff. Sounds fine with me since I can sleep anywhere and don't really care if it's in a camper or a hotel. He estimated that it would be around $2000 for the air fare and basic fees to get there, but not for souvenears (sp). He's planning on going to England, Portugal, and some other place if I recall correctly.

Do you think it would be worth it? What would be a good plan to do around there to get the most for my money? Or should I just save the money and put it towards car bills?

 

[pyonir]

I didn't like England. I would suggest Ireland or Scotland.

 

[blackdogdeek]

go if you can.

he's going to england and portugal and some other place all over the course of one week?

that is too short a time to do europe. it's even too short for just one of the countries. i would suggest a eurorail pass and hostels. it's typically cheaper and you can go anywhere.

 

[spartan]

$2000 for airfare to England and Portugal! Jeez... I took a trip to England in April and it only cost me $560 (and that's on the high side) to get from Boston to London and back. Once you're in Europe flying to other countries within Europe is pretty cheap.

Anyway, I say if you don't plan on doing something like this after graduation then go ahead. Once you start working you don't get a lot of vacation time. But 1 week England + Portugal sounds a bit too short.

 

[cpals]

Originally posted by: spartan
$2000 for airfare to England and Portugal! Jeez... I took a trip to England in April and it only cost me $560 (and that's on the high side) to get from Boston to London and back. Once you're in Europe flying to other countries within Europe is pretty cheap.

Anyway, I say if you don't plan on doing something like this after graduation then go ahead. Once you start working you don't get a lot of vacation time. But 1 week England + Portugal sounds a bit too short.

The money would include renting the transportation once we get there, air fare, and I guess probably the food. Once I think I can actually afford to go then I will find out the particulars. I think he said 1 week, but I'll double check.

Yeah, this is something that I probably won't do again and it would be nice to actually see a different country.

 

[DainBramaged]

Definatly go if it works out. I went to London and loved it. It was quite expensive however.

 

[DrVos]

You should definetly make your way out to Europe while you are still young. That said, $2000 seems awfully expensive for a one week stay. If you were to go on your own you could possibly stay for twice as long on that budget. Figure:

$500 - 700 for round trip air from the states. When I went to Europe last year I got round trip tickets from SF to Heathrow for $600

$30-50 a pop to fly from London to just about any major hub in western europe using carriers like easyjet or ryanair.

$25-50 a night to stay in a youth hostel or a small inn.

If you limited your spending to about $75 a day (which is pretty easy IMO) you could easily spend two weeks in europe and have your souveniers!

Edit:
One more thing, if you are looking to save money, avoid the major northern cities like London and Paris. They tend to be more expensive. I don't know if it is still the case, but I remember hearing that Spain/Portugal gave you more mileage for your dollar.