Hello all!
Ever since I got back from Belize, I couldn’t help but begin to plan my next adventure: 1.5 weeks in Europe, visiting Switzerland & Germany. I have never traveled to Europe, let alone by myself, so I am terrified… but so excited to go! Once I started planning, I had to narrow down to just 2 countries because it was getting a little overwhelming (Italy, I am coming for you next year!). I’ve literally spent hours planning this trip already, and I still have a lot to do… I’ve only booked my hostel for Munich, so I’ll be booking everything else in the next few weeks! Below is my schedule so far:
Day 1: Fly to Geneva, Switzerland
Day 2: Arrive in Geneva early AM
check in at hostel
Rent bike and tour the city
visit the broken chair
Yoga class! (Any recommendations?)
Day 3: Day trip to Chamonix French Alps
Day 4: Travel to Lausanne/Montreux
check in at hostel
hike/explore
check out chocolate/cheese factory & eat my body weight in delicious swiss chocolate
Day 5: Travel to Grindelwald
check in at hostel
Yoga Class in morning/afternoon
bungee jump or paraglide! **anyone ever do this? I am terrified!
Day 6: Travel to Munich via train
check in at hostel, get situated
buy dirndl for Oktoberfest!
Day 7, 8, 9, 10: Oktoberfest!
hit the Schottenhamel tent for first beer pour of the festival
hang out with fellow Americans at the Hofbräu tent
Day 8, 9,10: Explore Munich
visit Olympiaturm (flying fox!)
Canyoning
visit Theresienwiese – Maiden of Bavaria
Tour Andechs Monastery and Brewery
Visit Hofbräuhaus
Day 11: Fly back to the US
I started out wanting to end my trip in Italy, but it got to be too much in too little time. So for now, extra time in Switzerland and Germany! Transportation is probably the main thing that is stressing me out – do I need to book ahead of time? How much time do I need to take into account when traveling via train/air in Europe? How do I know what trains to take in between cities/countries? Do I need to purchase ahead of time? I am so excited to plan and travel this trip all by myself, even if it seems a little daunting. Has anyone traveled to Geneva/Oktoberfest? Any tips for a newbie solo backpacking in Europe? I would love to hear about your experience !
You will LOVE Oktoberfest! (I wrote about it here: http://ticketandtravelblog.com/2015/01/05/prost-from-oktoberfest/ )
I actually got my Dirndl at the train station because all of the shops were closed on Sunday when I got to Munich. If you have time, there is a Nazi WWII tour through Sandeman that I WISH I knew about before I went! It sounded so interesting and we just didn’t have any days left when we learned about it. Have the best time!!!
omg I loved your post!! I am printing out all the information on the different tents! and i don’t know how I did it, but i just booked 4 nights in a hostel that’s a 10 minute walk away… its $100/night, but totally worth it! I didn’t want to have to deal with sleeping in a tent or figuring out transportation on the way back after drinking all day 🙂 thanks for the tip on the dirndl.. i tried looking online, and they were all over $100! plus, I’m only taking a backpack with me, so i figured i could buy a second hand one there. I will have to add the WW2 tour to my to do list! I think I am most concerned about the train rides – why did it take you so long to get to oktoberfest?
That’s a great deal! We were coming from Switzerland on a night train which was 10 hours with two stops. I wrote about surviving night trains (http://ticketandtravelblog.com/2014/12/13/night-train-survival/) if you do have to take some! They suck- but the experiences in your destinations more than make up for them : )
Check out a AAA store before you go. We got all our maps for Italy there (best maps we found anywhere) and they were able to book our train tickets pretty cheaply.
Oh man, this trip sounds awesome! You are brave for doing this trip alone, but I believe it’ll be a great experience and will be great to meet/mingle with other strangers and locals. I can’t wait to hear all about it! I’ll be taking notes from YOUR trip because these countries are on my travel list for when we turn 40 and can actually start traveling again! P.S. are you teaching yoga anywhere?! As much as I don’t WANT to, I NEED some yoga….it’s my never ending statement. haha
Thanks!! I agree… The best experience is always meeting other travelers 🙂 and why are you waiting until you are 40 to start traveling?? I’ll be documenting everything for my trip, no worries!! And I’m offering private lessons for the time being (look under the about tab where it says “work with me”) – I just haven’t written a post about it yet! And there is something in the works for teaching, I’ll announce it as soon as it’s confirmed!! Get excited, it’s going to be a great heated workout yoga class 😉