Europe Part II: Itinerary and Budget Breakdown
Please click this link for the itinerary and budget of my Europe Part I adventure.
No Pre-Europe Shopping costs this time. I used the same luggage that I brought home from my EU I trip. Didn’t purchase new clothes for spring season. I figured I’ll just shop in wherever I will need to shop.
Food – meals, various snack items
During – cash-based transactions during the trip. I brought euros, I did not bring any dollars. Euros were bought from Czarina Foreign Exchange. Call their main office to reserve euros: indicate the quantity, date of pick-up, branch of pick-up and contact details. The forex rate used will be the rate at the day you pick up the euros from the Czarina branch.
Planning was much easier for this trip. I knew which countries I wanted I go. I knew which cities I’d like to explore. I didn’t overthink some details. The table below is the itinerary I presented in my visa application. I just added additional columns for the contact details of the hostels.
DAY
|
CITY/COUNTRY
|
ACTIVITY
|
ACCOMMODATION
|
Day 1
|
Philippines
|
Depart Manila, NAIA Terminal 1
|
N/A
|
Day 2
|
Czech Republic
|
AM - Arrival in Prague. Explore Old Town Square, Charles Square and Wenceslas Square
|
Miss Sophie's Prague, Melounouva 3
|
Day 3
|
Czech Republic
|
Prague Castle. Watched music concert.
Prague Food Festival outside Prague Castle |
Miss Sophie's Prague, Melounouva 3
|
Day 4
|
Czech Republic
|
Petrin Hill and Jewish Quarters.
Old Town Again. Souvenir Shopping. Fred and Ginger Dancing House. |
Miss Sophie's Prague, Melounouva 3
|
Day 5
|
Prague, Czech Republic
Athens, Greece |
AM - Flight to Athens, Greece.
PM - Dinner in Athens |
Athens Backpackers and Studios, across Acropolis
|
Day 6
|
Athens, Greece
|
AM - Joined Athens Backpackers Group Tour.
PM - Roman Forum, Parthenon, Sunset at Acropolis |
Athens Backpackers and Studios, across Acropolis
|
Day 7
|
Athens, Greece
|
Walk to Syntagma Square. Watch Changing of the guards. Explore Agora
|
Athens Backpackers and Studios, across Acropolis
|
Day 8
|
Athens, Greece,
Santorini, Greece |
AM - Fly from Athens to Santorini.
PM - Trek from Oia to Fira (reverse path than the usual) |
Caveland Hostel, Karterados
|
Day 9
|
Santorini, Greece
|
Explored Fira Town.Perissa Beach
|
Caveland Hostel, Karterados
|
Day 10
|
Santorini, Greece
|
Sunday Church Mass. Explore Oia. Bar Night.
|
Caveland Hostel, Karterados
|
Day 11
|
Santorini Greece,
Athens, Greece |
AM -Oia, souvenir shopping.
PM - flight to Athens |
Athens Backpackers and Studios, across Acropolis
|
Day 12
|
Athens, Greece
Bacelona, Spain |
AM - Athens souvenir shopping. Athens National Museum
PM - flight to Barcelona |
Primavera Hostel, Mallorca, Eixample
|
Day 13
|
Bacelona, Spain
|
Picasso Museum. Sagrada Familia, Plaza Catalunya
|
Primavera Hostel, Mallorca, Eixample
|
Day 14
|
Bacelona, Spain
|
Parc Güell, Montjuic. La Rambla Walking Street. Casa Batllo.
Souvenir shopping Barcelona. |
Primavera Hostel, Mallorca, Eixample
|
Day 15
|
Barcelona, Spain
Madrid, Spain |
Train from Barcelona to Madrid
PM: Puerta del sol, Plaza Mayor, Gran Via |
U Hostels, Calle Sagasta
|
Day 16
|
Toledo, Spain
Madrid, Spain |
Day trip in Toledo.
Afternoon: Reina Sofia |
U Hostels, Calle Sagasta
|
Day 17
|
Madrid, Spain
|
Avenida Islas de Filipinas. Jose Rizal Monument. Museo del Prado.
|
U Hostels, Calle Sagasta
|
Day 18
|
Toledo, Spain
Madrid, Spai |
Palacio Real Madrid (Royal Palace of Madrid)
Souvenir shopping in Madrid |
U Hostels, Calle Sagasta
|
Day 19
|
Madrid, Spain
Granda, Spain |
Train from Madrid to Granada
Granada Cathedral. Walk around Granada. |
Granada Inn Backpackers
|
Day 20
|
Granda, Spain
|
Alhambra.
Plaza Nueva, Plaza de los Tristes. Alhambra at night. |
Granada Inn Backpackers
|
Day 21
|
Granda, Spain
Seville, Spain |
Train from Granada to Seville
Walk Around Seville |
Hostel Trotamundos
|
Day 22
|
Seville, Spain
|
Walking tour of Seville
Seville Cathedral Flamenco Show at night |
Hostel Trotamundos
|
Day 23
|
Seville, Spain
Lisbon, Portugal |
Alcaraz. Plaza Espanya.
Souvenir Shopping. Rest. Night bus to Lisbon |
Hostel Trotamundos
|
Day 24
|
Lisbon, Portugal
|
AM - Arrival in Lisbon.
Morning Walking Tour in Lisbon. Barrio Alto |
Good Morning Hostel Lisbon
|
Day 25
|
Lisbon, Portugal
|
Daytrip to Sintra
|
Good Morning Hostel Lisbon
|
Day 26
|
Lisbon, Portugal
|
Barrio Alto
Torre de Belem |
Good Morning Hostel Lisbon
|
Day 27
|
Lisbon, Portugal
|
Check out, Fly out of Lisbon Airport
|
N/A
|
Day 28
|
Philippines
|
Arrive in Manila, NAIA Terminal 1
|
EU II Budget Breakdown:
This entire trip cost me around USD 4,675/ EUR 3,655. Please refer to the pie chart below for the breakdown.
Forex rates:
USD to PHP: Php 43.00
EUR to PHP: Php 55.00
The story of each slice:
No Pre-Europe Shopping costs this time. I used the same luggage that I brought home from my EU I trip. Didn’t purchase new clothes for spring season. I figured I’ll just shop in wherever I will need to shop.
Visa Related Fees – Visa fee, VFS Processing Fee, SMS Alert, Photo, Travel Insurance, Bank certificate fee
Shopping – for myself and for pasalubong
Travel Tax - Terminal Fee for international flights, Travel Tax, Terminal fee
Airfare - I flew via KLM this time. Used the multiple-destination booking. I flew in to Prague, and flew out of Lisbon. Airfare is more expensive this time at $1,386.22 / Php 58,555.93. This includes the Php 1,620 travel tax and excludes Php 550 terminal fee.
Accommodation - Booking fees, downpayment and payment of balance for hostels,
Tours – tickets, reservation fees, tips
Food – meals, various snack items
Others – toilet fees, laundry, towel rental fees
Transportation – intra-Europe airfare, trains, city trams/buses, city transporation passes. I already booked the intra-Europe flights before the visa application. I bought the Spain train tickets and Sevile-Lisbon bus ticket after I got my Schengen Visa.
Provider
|
Route
|
EUR
|
PHP
|
Aegean Air
|
Flight from Prague to Athens
|
63.98
|
3,499.47
|
Aegean Air
|
Rountrip flights from ATH-JTR
|
130.64
|
7,180.30
|
Vueling
|
Flight from ATH-BCN
|
95.99
|
5,254.29
|
Alsa Bus Company
|
Seville to Lisbon Bus ticket
|
40.00
|
2,195.17
|
Renfe
|
Train from Madrid to Granada
|
20.50
|
1,126.38
|
Renfe
|
Tran from Granada to Seville
|
29.00
|
1,593.68
|
Renfe
|
Madrid to Barcelona
|
49.10
|
2,697.40
|
Timing of spending:
Before – payments via cash and credit card settled before my departure date. This includes Flights, minimal reservation fees, Visa-related expenses and Alhambra tickets.
During – cash-based transactions during the trip. I brought euros, I did not bring any dollars. Euros were bought from Czarina Foreign Exchange. Call their main office to reserve euros: indicate the quantity, date of pick-up, branch of pick-up and contact details. The forex rate used will be the rate at the day you pick up the euros from the Czarina branch.
After – credit card bill. Not a lot this time. I paid in cash when I went shopping.
Hope you'll find this helpful in your planning!
That is one awesome trip! :) Would it be more cheaper to fly when transferring one place to another rather than by train (budget and geographically wise?)
ReplyDeleteHey Mariane! It was AWESOME!
ReplyDeletePlane vs. train. It would depend on your itinerary. My chosen cities for this trip are not near each other so it is optimal to fly. Also, budget airlines offer cheaper airfare than trains! Trains are more convenient because you don't have to be at the station 2 hours before departure, and there are no baggage check-in, security checks and those inconveniences.
Here I am again, referring to your trip report for my own planning. :) How did you find Spain? Would it be a good idea to stay there for a month compared to just a week and then moving on to another European country?
ReplyDeleteSpain was superb! I stayed in Spain for 13 days. Some of my roommates have been traipsing around Spain for a month or more. Spain has lot of other cities aside from Madrid and Barcelona. I did Granada and Seville and enjoyed both immensely (cheaper too!).
ReplyDeletehi, is there a particular website where you did your bookings, hotels and flights?
ReplyDeletethanks!
Hello! I did not use a one website in booking all of them. I went to the website of each airline, each hostel, and each train/bus company to book the tickets. For the hostels, I read and sifted through the review of Tripadvisor and Hostelbookers, made my choice, and booked the hostel's own website. I think I used Booking.com in one of the hostels because it was offering a cheaper rate there.
ReplyDelete