Well, I'm travelling Europe solo in August and since I originally came up with the idea a few months ago, I've had a long time to plan things in my head, and I'm at the point where I need to decide whether or not it will all work in practice, so yeah, a reality check may be called for
First of all, I'm definitely going regardless of anything, the only things in question are minor details such as budget, length of trip, accomodation etc. (Ok, so major details :P )
My plan is to start in Estonia, I've found an Estonian air line that will get me there for around £30, then from there my possible route is as follows -
Latvia, Lithuania, Poland, Czech Republic, Germany, France, Switzerland, Italy.
And then at some point I want to head over to Bulgaria because my parents have a house there, that will probably happen at the end of the trip.
Now, in my head, I'm wanting this trip to last six months or more.
Is that too long for someone that has never travelled solo before? I mean, I've visited Berlin, Bonne, Paris, and Amsterdam with experience of staying in hostels etc, so it's not like it will be completely alien to me.
Although, I was with my ex g/f then.
I don't want to find myself in over my head.
Although doing a short trip isn't really an option for me because of work. I'm stuck in a dead-end job at the moment, and I have to leave it before the last of my brain cells deteriorate. So what better time to travel than inbetween jobs?
That's what makes this trip a one-off thing, it will probably be my only chance to do it. So that's why I feel the need to make it a long one.
That's my first concern, the second is money.
I'm budgeting to spend about £1000 a month, bearing in mind that I plan to do everything as cheaply as possible, ie, I'm not going to be visiting restaurants daily, I'm not interested in paying out to go to tourist hotspots, and I plan on camping as well as hostelling.
Some people have suggested that the idea of spending 1k a month is unrealistic, I've attempted to do the maths, and if anything I should be able to do it cheaper. Unless there are factors that I haven't considered?
As for getting about, I want to do it as cheaply as I can, obviously there's only so far I can go on foot before I die of old age.
Trains don't seem like a cheap option to me, although everyone I talk to about it disagrees.
Thirdly, is my character.
Travelling solo seems like something that 'outgoing' people do. I've never been great at talking to strangers, I tend to be fairly quiet until I get comfortable around someone, although after that I'm fine.
Is that going to be a problem?
I'm hoping that the experience will bring me out of my shell a bit, that's part of the reason that I want to go in the first place.
Any thoughts, suggestions, or just general comments would be welcome...this is the first time asking for feedback on my plans, so I'm hoping to be able to refine them and come up with something that will work for me.
Thanks!!
(Btw, I'm not sure if this is in the right forum, but it seemed more relevant to solo travel than anything else.)