Planning a Trip to Europe

 

    If you are in the same position as I was, you have never been to Europe before, let alone planned a trip there without a travel agent. It can be quite overwhelming trying to plan a trip at that scale if you have never done it before. This post is the steps I took when planning our trip to Paris and Germany. Hopefully it will help you as well!

Step 1: Research

Europe is so different from the United States when it comes to currency, transportation, language, and many other things. I did a lot of reading about the particular countries and cities we were hoping to visit to gain some knowledge about all of these different topics. The bullet point list below gives you an idea of different topics and questions you might want to consider researching ahead of time, along with some answers/recommendations that applied to our trip to Germany and Paris.

• What language is spoken there? How will I communicate with locals?

We visited Germany and Paris while we were in Europe. The languages spoken were German and French. I am not fluent in either language, but my husband and mom had some understanding of German. We learned some common phrases before we arrived like, "Hello," "Goodbye," "Thank you," "Do you speak English?". My husband used the app, Duolingo, to learn German beforehand. It definitely helped having someone with an understanding of some of the language. Otherwise, we used Google Translate on our phones to help us read menus, signs, and communicate with locals that didn't speak English. Surprisingly, almost everyone we spoke to knew some English.

• What time of the year should we visit? What will the weather be like during that time?

We were pretty open with our schedule of when we could go to Germany. Because of that, I went to Google Flights and looked at the pricing of flights for 3 people during certain times of the year. From my searching, it seemed that February to early April was a somewhat cheaper time for flights. It became more expensive in the summer, fall, and winter. I also noticed that the middle of the week seemed to have cheaper flights than the weekend. We flew out of Chicago on Wednesday, April 2nd and left Berlin to return home on Wednesday, April 16th. After we had an idea of what time we might want to visit, I just did a Google search of, "Germany weather in early April." It gave me an idea of what to expect or plan for.

• How are we going to get around? Will we rent a car?

We knew early on that we didn't want to rent a car and try to drive it around a country that had different traffic signs and rules than what we were used to. We didn't want to deal with that stress. Instead, we relied on buses and trains to take us everywhere. Paris and Germany have an extensive train network that can take you many places. It might not always get you there on time, but it can get you to where you need to go. Since we were relying heavily on trains and buses, we planned our trip around areas that were easily accessible with these options.

• What type of currency do they use? Can I use my credit card there? Will I need cash?

Paris and Germany both use Euros. We decided before the trip that we wanted to get a travel credit card to use. I read that Discover is not accepted as much in Europe, so we wanted a card that would be widely accepted. I also thought that it would be best if we had some cash on hand in case of emergencies, so we decided to obtain some Euros before we left the United States. Our local bank was able to order some for us. If you decide to go this route, you may want to ask your bank about the exchange rate, exchange fee, and if there is a delivery charge. Otherwise, there are ATM's that you can get local currency at when you arrive (I wouldn't suggest at an airport though. They will probably charge you more.) For our 2 weeks in Europe, we used our travel credit card and most of the 500 Euros in cash that we brought with us. Here are some things you may need to use cash/coins for: bathrooms at train stations (1-3 Euros), buses to popular tourist destinations, tips at restaurants (we usually just rounded up our bill since large tips isn't customary there), museums/tourist attractions/souvenirs (not all museums and shops accept credit card), luggage lockers at train stations (take coins only).

• Will my phone work? Will I need to change my phone plan?

The phone plan that you use in the United States will probably not work in another country. We knew we were going to need our phones for translating and directions, so we added the International Monthly Plan to our accounts. We have Verizon and that plan worked very well for us. We had unlimited data and texting, and 250 minutes of calling. Depending on the length of your stay, they had other shorter plans available as well.

• Will my phone charger work? Can I use my curling iron?

In Paris and Europe, they use a different voltage than the United States. They also have a different shaped plug. You will need an adapter to use any of your cords or plugs. Most of your cell phone and laptop chargers will work just fine with an adapter. However, your curling iron, hair straightener, or blow dryer probably will not. I bought a curling iron off of Amazon that was dual voltage to work in both the United States and Germany. 

• How much should I pack? Should I just bring a carry-on suitcase?

Since we were traveling around by train, we didn't want to carry a bunch of suitcases with us. Plus, the sidewalks and roads in Paris and Germany are not always the smoothest. We only brought a personal item (backpack) and a carry-on suitcase with us. Our suitcases all rolled which made a big difference, but I'm surprised the wheels survived the whole trip! You may also want to check the luggage guidelines for whatever airline you choose, to make sure your bags are the right size. On the way to Paris, our bags were fine on United. On our way home with Icelandair, they were too big, so we had to check them.

• How do you decide what to see and do?

This was the first question I had when I started planning. I knew of some major attractions and tourist destinations in Germany and Paris, but not enough to plan 2 weeks worth. I mostly spent my time looking at a map of Germany and Paris to see the major cities. Then, I searched on Google "must see attractions in _____". Between this process and watching Instagram Reels and YouTube videos of certain cities, I was able to get an idea of popular tourist destinations and must see places.

Step 2: Organization

Our trip to Europe was the longest trip I have ever planned. We were going to be there for 2 weeks, so that meant finding multiple lodging options, making sure we had tickets for the attractions we wanted to visit, and so many other things. One of the first things I did was start a Google Doc. I would put my research findings here, as well as information to compare hotels, trains, and other costs. Copying and pasting notes and URL's from websites was so much easier than writing it all by hand. By the end of the trip, I had 13 pages of notes. It was all formatted and easy to read with bullet points and color coding, so I could just print it off and take it with me to refer to. The categories in my notes were Germany Transportation, Paris Transportation, Airport Transportation, Flight Information, Currency, Phone Data, and Lodging. Along with this document, I also used a folder to keep papers, printed off tickets, and other important papers in. My final organization tip is finding an app or a strategy to plan out each of your days. I used the app, Wanderlog. I was able to plan out the order of events each day, and it helped to visualize how we were going to get to each destination. Wanderlog also kept track of our hotels we were going to stay at, and it can help you keep a budget to know how much you are spending.

Step 3: Resources

I mentioned previously that I used Google to do searches on specific questions or to look at flight pricing, but I would also recommend finding other resources to read and find information. The one source that gave me the most helpful information and gave me an insight on what I should be researching was Facebook. I joined multiple Facebook groups that were geared toward visiting Germany and Paris. I would read other people's questions and answers, and I learned so much about what to expect or consider for our trip. I was also able to post my questions, and the people that answered were very helpful. Aside from Facebook, I watched videos on YouTube about traveling to Germany or Paris, and I checked out travel books from our local library. When we had a more concrete itinerary and knew what cities we wanted to visit, I would try to find the city's tourism website. That gave me more specific information about that city and the attractions they had. Between Facebook, Google, YouTube, and library books, I felt very well informed on what to expect on our trip. 

I know I only listed 3 steps, but it is best to just keep trip planning simple. Do what works best for you! My hope is that these 3 steps will give you a good start to your trip planning, and it will give you ideas to consider. Best of luck!