Ok, I know this is a really general question but i was wndering if anyone could give me an idea about how much it costs to backpack around Europe for a month. Like approx. how much does it cost per week assuming that I'll be going to the major tourist areas, staying in hostels, and touring. What is the cheapest way to do it, incl. transhportatoin etc. I'mtrying to figure out if I can afford to go on a organized Contiki tour first and then travel myself or if it's too expensive to do both, but I have no idea hwo to figure out the costs.

faith, coming from my experience (which is only 1 1/2 days in Athens at this stage :) ) I'm comfortable getting by on 45 Euro. This includes 21E for the hostel, the rest on food and other stuff, entrance fees to the sights, etc...

will let you know if this changes as i move around