Solo to Italy-Summer '09
 

Hi everyone! I have decided to take a trip to Italy for 3 weeks this June/July even though it now looks like I will be going solo...mostly because im the only one who saved enough money! A few questions I was hoping to find out about...
1. Im hoping to do mostly Central and northern Europe, although I do want to venture down to Naples and Pompeii...any suggestions about modes of travel? Like, should I do the Eurail or look more into rental car/other train lines/etc?
2. It doesnt seem ideal to have to book hostels ahead of time, but probably is necessary in mid-summer...how long ahead do you think I should book?
3. I have about $3000 (US) to go on...my airfare is from Hawaii so it will probably be like $1400...does $1600 seem too implausible to do italy on? Im not very high maintenance, but i cant figure out if thats too low...

Im excited to finally post and start getting my plans settled! Thanks for any help you all can offer!

Congratulations on the trip! It sounds a lot like the one I took last summer, my two friends were broke so I went solo.

I'm not sure about alternative forms of transportation because I only used a eurail pass and a couple easyjet flights. Personally I opted for the eurail because I had no idea where I wanted to go so the flexibility worked well for me but if you have a more fixed itinerary it might be cheaper to go with something else. One thing though is that overnight trains are fantastic, you don't have to pay for a hostel and they are usually very comfy. When you go to Pompeii I would suggest booking your ticket a couple days in advance. I tried to go in early August and after 3 days of trying I still never managed to get there which is probubly the only regret of my trip.

I would say that booking a hostel in advance is a good idea but even in high season I found you didn't need much notice as a solo traveler. I never had a problem and was only booking 1-3 days in advance. I would simply book for my next destination once I decided and once I got there I would book the next one. If you go to Rome I would suggest you stay at the camping village roma i think it was called, it was on hostelworld.com and was one of the cheapest in Rome. It was super nice with 3 bed bungalows plus an on site bar/nightclub and 2 pools which were nice in the +40C weather. Plus it is a 5 minute walk from a supermarket which was nice, the one draw back is it a bit of a trek since it was a 45 min subway ride and then a 10 minute bus ride.

For your budget $1600 in 3 weeks would give you about $75 a day. I did Rome on about $50 a day so it is doable but with not many frills. As long as you plan on cooking quite a few meals and limiting some of the sites then you should be good. Personally I really enjoyed making my own walking tour, most hostels will supply you with a map so just catch public transit to the closest place and walk to the rest, you end up seeing a lot of the city, finding some cool little places and you can absorb the vibe of a place.

I hope this helps a little and have a great trip!

P.S. It might of been a total fluke but if you go to the Colosseum I would try going at about 12:30, I think everyone was hiding from the heat so I got in after only about 20 minutes in line. When I came by at 9am there was a line all the way around.

Thanks so much! That was definitely helpful and its nice to hear someone else did a similar trek...i feel a little crazy going in the middle of summer but i just cant pass up the chance! I didnt think about the sleeper cars on the trains...thats a good idea. plus i think by the time i buy a lot of separate modes of transport it will come out pretty close to the eurail anyway...plus it is probably best if i avoid driving anyway haha thanks again for the input!!

No problem. Have a great trip!:cheers: