Europe Backpacking Guide: Travel Europe on a Budget

Backpacking through Europe is one of the most rewarding travel experiences, offering the chance to hop between dramatically different cultures, languages and landscapes within a single trip. This guide covers budget stays, rail passes and route planning to help you travel further for less.

Choosing Your Route

Popular backpacker routes connect Amsterdam, Prague, Vienna and Budapest — cities close enough to hop between by train or budget flight, each offering a lively hostel scene and enough free walking tours and museums to fill days without spending much.

Budget Accommodation

Hostels typically cost ₹800-2,000 per night and often include free breakfast, city walking tours and communal kitchens, making them both budget-friendly and a good way to meet other travellers on similar routes.

Getting Around Cheaply

A Eurail pass is worth it if you're covering several countries and value flexibility, while budget airlines like Ryanair and EasyJet can be cheaper for single long-haul hops if you book early and pack light to avoid baggage fees.

Money-Saving Tips

Cooking your own meals using hostel kitchens, using city tourist cards that bundle transport and attraction entry, and travelling in shoulder season (spring or autumn) are the easiest ways to stretch a backpacking budget further.