Western europe was the first trip I took abroad. I was so new to travel I didn’t think of it as Western Europe because I was completely unfamiliar with the East. It was just Europe! I’ve put together a sample Western Europe Itinerary that could be done over the course of 1-2 months, or of course longer if you want to travel slower.

This is the route I took my first time abroad. It’s not perfect; I missed some cool places but I did hit the popular “highlights”. I’ve written about each place already but thought it would be helpful to see it all in one post.

In order to travel this route, it was all by train, metro, and local bus once. I actually never had to take a cab. Okay, there was also some hitchhiking. I bought a Eurail pass & did have to make reservations in the popular cities. I visited during summer. Each city has a link to a blog post written about it with tips.

Before you start planning your Western Europe itinerary, make sure you…

1. Find a cheap flight on using my tips.
2. Get travel insurance with World Nomads. Here’s a comparison of plans and price calculator.
3. You can usually stay just 90 days as a tourist.

Backpacking Western Europe Sample Itinerary

Sample Western Europe Itinerary

1. London, UK. A staple in any itinerary to Europe, London has so much to see that you’ll NEED at least 3 days but could of course spend more time here. Your feet will hurt after all the sightseeing but from Big Ben to the London Eye and Westminster Abbey, it’s pretty dreamy. I see people walking to and from work past such amazing architecture and think maybe I could do a 9-5 if it was in London. Here are some Luxury tips for London and here’s a guide for a revisit to London.

2. Paris, France. Of course you should spend a couple of days in Paris. Beware it’s a little hard on the budget. Before the movie “Taken” came out, we were in a train station in Paris trying to think of where to spend the night when a cute young Parisian guy noticed we were lost and offered us his home. It was awesome and we saw Paris with him over the next few days. Sometimes travel is about taking risks, and this one paid off!

3. Zurich, Switzerland. Certainly not my favorite place on this list, but a hub nonetheless. We were forced to go here when trying to leave Paris for Rome and realizing the train was full for two days. This is a problem sometimes in the popular summer months. We showed up the day of the Summer Parade and it was WILD! Again, we couchsurfed but stayed only 1 night because it wasn’t part of our itinerary.

4. Finale Ligure, Italy. We wanted to go somewhere that was on the coast, but not as expensive. I saw online this castle you can stay in Italy for 20 bucks so I emailed them right away to make a booking. It was a cute town and a great introduction to Italy. We stayed 3 days.

5. Rome, Italy. WOW! This is a city that takes some time to see (Colosseum, Vatican city) . We made a mistake of not staying long enough. It is a bit overwhelming so I suggest taking a free walking tour through your hostel. Another suggestion is stay somewhere a bit pricier if it means you’re closer to the center of town. You’ll save on transport- not only money but more importantly TIME.

6. Florence, Italy. Florence was just stunning. I’ve never forget walking the market with gelato and watching the sunsets. You’ll need to save extra with the intention of buying leather in Florence and other goodies like pashmina scarves (which are clearly fake since they are 5 usd). I stayed 3 days here.

7. Venice, Italy.  I know I should go back to Venice because I was a little worn out and didn’t really enjoy my time there. I feel like all I saw were tourists and it was packed to the brim. People go for a reason tough: the little lanes of water and boats instead of cars. Expect high tourist priced food here that won’t be as good as other places. Stay 1 or 2 days. Here are some Venice travel tips.

8. Vienna, Austria. This was also during my “burnt out” phase and also we showed up on a Saturday night, Sunday everything was closed, and Monday we left. I’ve been back since, actually this month, and got to see a lot more. A post on that is coming soon!

9. Salzburg, Austria. The COOLEST place in Europe, maybe!? I loved Salzburg. Talk about a fairytale land. It’s incredible. We went to a beer garden first, got drunk, realized we had nowhere to stay, and crashed with new friends we made at the cutest little Austrian farm-house. Unreal little town! Stay a couple of days at least. The museums and fortress are really cool. A little peak into the magic of Salzburg’s fortress.

10. Interlaken, Switzerland. If you’re traveling solo, this is a town you’re sure to meet some people. There are two popular hostels and lots of youngsters hanging out for extended amounts of time. Hang-glide, paraglide, sky dive, ice climb, rock climb, kayak, or canyon; this is the epitome of adventure in Europe. Situated between two glacier lakes, with the Swiss Alps in the background, it’s the most beautiful place I’ve seen. Stay 4 days or more so you can do more activities and budget for them. Read more; Guide to Interlaken and Canyoning Interlaken.

11. Berlin, Germany. Berlin is the “cool” city of Europe. It’s trendy, fashionable, has great clubs and bars, and has some very open-minded people. Overall, I never hear travelers say a bad thing about Berlin. I think it was a bit cliquey and many cool places are hush-hush, so Couchsurfing and meeting locals is imperative here. I also LOVED the free walking tour of Berlin and learned a lot.

12. Amsterdam, Netherlands. Amsterdam is full of history, but it’s also full of “coffee shops” and you’ll need to make a bit of an itinerary so that you can be sure to see what’s there. I was 19 and did not see all that I should have. Walking the streets and seeing the lifestyle and everyone riding around on bicycles is adorable so even if you did nothing, you’d see a cool scene.

13. Delft, Den Haag, Maastricht. I’m putting all this together because they’re all very small towns in Holland. I changed my flight and stayed solo when my travel buddy went home and Couchsurfed to these towns. They were very cute and fun. I recommend seeing one country a little more in-depth and I chose Holland (because it seemed safe). Couchsurfing Holland was ideal because I had a host and I really got to see the towns the way locals do. Delft was my favorite.

A few extras…

You’ll have noticed I missed biggies like Ireland and Spain. They usually require flights which I couldn’t afford, so I waited and hit these up on my next trip to Europe, before I traveled onward to Eastern Europe. I don’t want to write about Ireland and Spain in my “Eastern Europe” post as it’ll confuse people, so will mention them here, now.

• If you have the budget, add Dublin to the top of this list, and head to Spain after France, before Italy.

Dublin, Ireland. One of the many places that I wish I’d had more time in- but not in Dublin. Two days were enough in Dublin, but I wanted a week to see the countryside (a week which I didn’t have). I did take a train out and see a bit, but it’s truly gorgeous so don’t spend too much time in Dublin downing Guinness. 7 Travel Tips for Dublin.

Madrid, Spain. Madrid was culturally impressive but for me, a little boring. Many people argue about which is better: Madrid or Barcelona? But I think they are so different you can’t really compare. Madrid seemed more old-fashioned to me. Tips on backpacking Madrid.

my couchsurfing hosts in Madrid who showed us everything!

Barcelona, Spain. The party place! I had a BLAST in Barcelona, even though I got pickpocketed and had to call my couchsurfing host from jail. Eating delicious food, downing sangria, checking out amazing art like Park Guell, and enjoying the incredible nightlife. Nowhere has such life in it like Barcelona.

Valencia, Spain. Valencia was much more chilled out, kind of like a typical beach town- but old school. I really enjoyed my time here although didn’t stay in “Old Town” as we should have. The beach was stunning and we had a blast at the bars. I did find the buses hard to navigate mainly because of language barriers. Tips for Visiting Valencia.

Read next | sample itinerary for Eastern Europe

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The post Sample Backpacking Western Europe Itinerary first appeared on Hippie In Heels.

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Interlaken is the adventure capital of Switzerland, and a touristy, but great city you cannot miss. Canyoning the glaciers of the Swiss Alps is one of the biggest rushes you can get in Interlaken. Canyoning is a fun but scary mix of cliff jumping, repelling, and slipping down natural made water slides.

There are multiple canyons you can choose, some more difficult than others; when canyoning Interlaken, I chose Saxeteen. Canyoning can be dangerous, so always do research to make sure you have experienced guides, and keep in mind that flash flooding can occur. Canyon Saxeteen is the same canyon that 10 international tourists lost their lives in due to a flash flood. They do make you sign a lot of liability paperwork.

The canyons have slippery rock due to erosion from years of the water pummeling down, which makes a perfect slide for me and you! You wear protective clothing, butt guard, and helmets, and if the drop is too fall you will repell, rather than jump or slide. The water is more powerful than it looks and literally takes your breath away each time you go under. It’s also very very cold! Thank god for wet suits. Most jumps were 30-50 feet high, but as you know, from above it always looks higher!

It’s very important that you follow the directions of your guides perfectly because the water is shallow in some areas. If they say jump in sideways and you jump straight you might just break your little legs. They will go first and give you a mark that you need to hit. It’ll the the one spot there aren’t rocks to land on. If you are ever afraid of a jump, a guide will take you an alternative route. Amanda and I never had to do that, woo-hoo! But the last “big” jump, half of our group diverted from.

These photos are the best ones you’ll ever see on my site… because I didn’t take them, a professional did. These are the photos I purchased to be able to share from the tour company. Any hostel you stay at in Interlaken will hook you up with the company they partner with, so I’m not going to go into which company I used and review them.

The scariest jump of them all!

being reminded that I had very clearly been told to hold my arms in

If you want to read more on adventure check out white water rafting grade 5’s in the Nile River & Bungee jumping over the Nile, a couple of fun activities I did while in Uganda.

The post Canyoning Interlaken: Gallery first appeared on Hippie In Heels.

The post Canyoning Interlaken: Gallery appeared first on Hippie In Heels.

When I first went to Interlaken, it was by accident. I thought it was “off the trail” so to speak & I thought I was one of the cool kids seeing it first. Someone told us about it on a train and we detoured to see what the fuss was about. Turns out, everyone and their mother had been there. Even now, it seems like every week I see a new Facebook friend hang-gliding or canyoning in the freezing glacier water of Interlaken.

But, is Interlaken too touristy?

I always re-enforce the beauty of Interlaken and assure travelers that even if it’s becoming quite the tourist stop, it is SO worth it. The lake water is beyond tempting to jump in with its clear blue tiny ripples of waves.

The tiny town is like something out of a movie; even the bars still have curfews for noise. Plus, the mountain views of the “virgin, monk, and ogre” peaks will blow your mind. They say the monk protects the virgin from the ogre. The virgin is the mountain peak that is snow white, while the ogre has a black peak.

Outdoor Adventure

Canyoning in the glaciers of the Swiss Alps is still one of the most thrilling things I have ever done (it’s up there with whitewater rafting grade 5’s in the Nile and bungee jumping). Canyoning Saxeteen is a fun but scary mix of cliff jumping, repelling, and slipping down natural made water slides. Luckily, there was a wetsuit to keep me from freezing- it was still cold. The guides chose names for us all to wear on our helmets. I was dubbed “barbie”.

There have been cases of flash flooding causing many lives to be lost at once which is horribly tragic, so make sure you think about the risk involved. The danger makes it all that more appealing to some, like me. The cliff jumping is difficult to work up courage because of how shallow that water is. On multiple occasions more than half the group would choose not to jump. I plan to take on Europe by train again and will for sure do canyoning in Interlaken again. I’d like to try a new canyon.

The other kick-ass outdoor activity I did was hang-gliding. A “ticket to fly” was put in my shoe, with my signature, basically saying if I die, it was my fault. Super. After a couple beers and helping put together my glider I was running off the top of a mountain tandem with my guide, Bernie at www.hangglidinginterlaken.com.

Insanely exhilarating to get the running start of the moutain. To be honest though, in the air it wasn’t that scary. The views were amazing and make it well worth it on their own.After much floating around having Bernie snap photos,  he dove head first to give me the feeling of free fall. After landing with drool over my face and yelling obscenities, I had a stupid grin on my face all day.

Other options including hiking, sky diving, riding quads, boating, kayaking, and ice climbing. I HAVE to go back just for the ice climbing. There was an avalanche the day I was meant to go and I still haven’t recovered entirely from that disappointment.

There aren’t as many hostels to choose from in Interlaken, as you’ll see when you search. Almost everyone I’ve met on the road stayed at the same one: Balmers. It’s popular, cute, you’ll meet loads of people, and they set up tours for you. Because we loved the town, we wanted to stay longer but our hostel was booked. Luckily in the quaint little town, a bar was nice enough to let us sleep in the attic. The kindness of strangers always comes in handy. Click here for rates and availability. 

if you’re not into any of the activities I’ve mentioned, spend the day hanging out at the local pool 

Interlaken is THE place to do the outdoor activities you’re seeking but be prepared to spend a decent chunk of money. In my experience, it’s no more than you would spend in the states (about 200 an activity once you buy the CD of photos they take). No matter how many people go to Interlaken, it won’t take away that special place in my heart. It might be touristy, but so is seeing the Eiffel Tower in Paris and that doesn’t stop anyone! At the time I went to Interlaken, I had never seen anything more beautiful.  That’s exactly how I will remember it.

Did you love Interlaken? Is there anywhere you went that exceeded your expectations?

The post Is Interlaken Too Touristy? first appeared on Hippie In Heels.

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