Unless you want to stay in one place for the whole trip, you’re going to need to get around this beautiful continent. Luckily there’s a choice, and it need not be so expensive. Below you will find all the info you need to planes, trains, buses etc, or you can click on our Iternary planner to get a rough estimate of distances, costs and times between your hostel beds.

Train
You’re not in Kansas anymore kids…The European rail network is comprehensive, reliable and reasonable priced, and there are a multitude of fares, passes and discounts to take advantage of. It is the most popular form of transport for backpackers, and most of them at some point in the trip use one the of the passes on offer. Normal single or return tickets will add up, especially in Western Europe, but sometimes, in the Eastern European countries, or if you find special offers, you can pick up the odd deal to save a day of travelling on your rail pass.

For non-European citizens you have the option of two passes. The Eurail pass offers travel in 17 countries in a variety of different ways, from 10 – 15 days travel in a two month period, or 15 days to 3 months of consecutive travel. The Eurail Select pass is where you choose 2, 3 or 4 countries for 5 – 15 days of travel in a two month period. There are also single country passes for those who want to travel extensively in one country. More information, including up-to-date price information can be found on www.eurail.com.

For European citizens (or anyone who has been resident in Europe for over 6 months) there is the Interail Pass. For the purposes of this pass, Europe is divided up into 8 zones and you can buy a ticket for 1 zone for 16 days, 2 zones for 22 days, or all 8 zones for a month. The interrail pass also offers discounts on the Eurostar, as well as free passage on some ferries. Full details of the prices and other details can be found on www.interrail.com or www.raileurope.co.uk.

Bus
Buses are slower than the train, but sometimes they have their plus points…often they are cheaper, and in some more remote (but beautiful areas) there are no train services, and the bus is the only way to go. You have a choice when riding the bus through Europe. First of all you can buy normal old simple tickets, from A to B. Or you can take advantage of the newer breed of private, hop on hop off companies that run on a circuit and often tie in taking you to your accommodation as well as between the cities and towns en route.

The most comprehensive network of city to city buses are run by the Eurolines network (www.eurolines.com), although there are a number of other companies that also run out of the city bus stations. Look on the country pages for more information on intercity bus companies. The hop-on-hop-off network that covers a good portion of Europe is Busabout (www.busabout.com) You have a ticket, the bus runs each leg of the circuit either daily or every two days, and you can take as long as you need to make the circuit. Check out the website for more details and also special routes and a map of the whole network.

Plane
Getting around Europe…by plane? But sometimes, when you just need to hit the beach, or a festival on the other side of the continent, it is necessary to cut out the travel time and take to the skies. Following the lead of the UK and Ireland, a number of budget airlines have been launched, sometimes offering prices cheaper than any of the overland options can offer. As a response, the older, large airlines have slashed their fares, but the ‘no-frills’ carriers are where the bargains are to be found. For an overview of what’s on offer from the multitude of European budget airlines, check out www.openjet.com.

Car
Sometimes the only way to get to out of the way places may be by car. Yes, the transport system in Europe is comprehensive, and no, the car is not as vital as it might be in Australia and the States, but sometimes you just need the freedom and flexibility that only a car can give you. Car hire or leasing can be expensive, but in a group of 3 or 4 it can work out as comparable to a train pass, as long as you avoid those expensive road tolls, parking fees in big cities, and petrol in the UK! Some good websites offering rental or short-term leasing deals include Idea Merge (www.ideamerge.com), Auto Europe, (www.autoeurope.com) and Europe by Car (www.europebycar.com). Remember, check out before you leave what you need by way of licences, and insurance (your national motoring associations can help you with this), and when you pick up the rental car, go over it long and hard and adjust the rental agreement to include absolutely any damage you find no matter how small. Trust us, there’s nothing rental companies like more than finding the tiniest speck, and charging you through the nose…

Hitching
Jack Kerouac has a lot to answer for… Hitchhiking is often perceived as dangerous, and we wouldn’t necessarily recommend it…but if you are going to do then we’ll give you some advice. (1) Just because someone stops, doesn’t mean you have to accept the lift. Find out where they are going first and you can always claim to be heading somewhere else. If it doesn’t feel right, do not get in the car. (2) Look neat and presentable. Girls alone travel fast, two girls the same, a couple not far behind…moral; take a girl! (3) Keep your bags with you in the car so you can always get out if the need arises. Alternatives to hitching include ride-share agencies, which are particularly strong in Italy, Spain and Germany. Check out www.digihitch.com for all kinds of hitchhiking and ‘free-travel’ tips, and an excellent forum on hitchhiking in Europe.