Hi,
I'm headed for Eastern Europe next summer! Is is possible to get around to 24 countries in 2-3 weeks, or is that too crazy? What are the absolute must-sees? And how is public transportation? Which is better buses or trains?
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@Phil We just went overland from Kiev to Chisinau via Trans-dniestr and had zero problems. The caveat is that I'm American and didn't require a visa, only a passport. But we were almost disappointed by the lack of drama, having long anticipated going through there as a bit of a travel adventure.
To the OP: That's ambitious even by our standards, having gone to 13 countries in a month this past April/May. I recommend all the Baltic states, and Riga is particularly underrated. We also particularly enjoyed Kiev (which was calm in April, although the Maidan was shocking to visit), Prague/Pilsen (of course), Bucharest, Budapest, and Sofia. I agree with Phil about Mostar and Dubrovnik. Try to get down to Kotor, Montenegro if you do the Fmr. Yugoslavia. Slovenia is also HIGHLY underrated.
In the end, a lot depends on what you're looking for. If you want to see old Soviet-era weirdness, Belarus is a must. It's rough to navigate the visa process, but in our opinion worth it.
Also not to be missed is Albania. What a haven for bizarre stuff...it was a lot of fun to visit. That's still the only place I've ever seen an ATM machine with the screen taken out and an actual guy in the box handing out money.
FWIW, I recommend flying. Man, are Aeroflot, S7 and Rossiya ever cheap...as is Ukraine International. All were perfectly sane airlines. Also, AirBaltic will be your freaking' best friend if you're packing light (i.e. no checked luggage). You can work it so you get up to a 24-hour layover in Riga for no extra charge. Belavia was also fun to try out, but make sure to fly them only if you're going to Minsk, not transiting through Belarus.
Almost all of Europe is easy these days.... The few exceptions are Belarus and other countries with close ties to Russia... Most of these are still ok if you have *all* your paperwork in order and are game for a bit of stubborn arguing :)
The few breakaway republics are the ones to be wary of - areas of Georgia, Azerbaijan and Moldova are the only places I know that fall into this bracket.
Any country in the EU or even trying to join the EU is very straightforward.
I decided to try to convey the info below for the benefit of others:
going into Kaliningrad reportedly can be a challenging slog at the land borders. we heard they ask for money even if you're visa is in order, as well as things from your luggage.
we flew in from Riga since the immigration guys at the airport were said to be less likely to demand compensation for allowing you to enter and customs is quicker. we had no problem. Russian Visa required in advance, needing invitation and pre-booked hotel. Expensive.
going out, we took the bus to Nida on the Curonian Spit. beautiful. no problems at border, but strict control with luggage passed thru xray machine both on the Russian side and on the Lithuanian side. Bus driver and other passengers were helpful. All others on the bus were "locals."
going into Belarus by bus (visa required in advance, needing invitation and pre-booked hotel), we were told our health insurance policy (good anywhere in the world) was not good enough for them. had to buy separate policy for the few days there. luckily it was only a few bucks.
going out of Belarus, we almost were not let out since we didn't fill out an entry card and keep the stub for presentation on way out. Trouble is, they forgot to tell us about or give us the card on the way in. Stubborn persistence (and an agitated crowd waiting behind us) carried the day (even without baksheesh).
also, if you're in a regular car or taxi, some of the lines waiting to cross various borders from the EU to ex-Soviet countries (and vice versa) can take up to 5 hours or more. If you're on a bus, it goes to the front of the line and gets expedited. We were in a car and this happened to us trying to leave Belarus (from Hrodna) to go to Poland. Luckily, we drove to another, less popular border crossing - this with Lithuania - and crossed.
We saw this problem leaving Kaliningrad as well.
hope this is helpful. js
if you like, i'm at 310.572.1040.
be happy to discuss. easier that way !
Tell me more about border crossings. Are there issues with crossing certain borders in Eastern Europe? You mentioned Kaliningrad. Why is that an issue?
Buses are great in the northern areas since distances are not too great, the scenery is beautiful, and the buses comfortable and easy to use. Stations are in town - know what station the bus departs from. Helpful to get a ticket in advance (the day before typically) and be on time. Central to further south, trains are convenient, especially for the large jumps. Sometimes a plane is in order (into Kaliningrad for example, to avoid the border) or Moldova to Romania, where the train takes too long.
Most of these countries deserve a few days. Depends what you want to see. We did 12 countries in 6 weeks and found that to be trying at times. But we saw what we wanted and had a great time, good food, value travels.
why bother ?
Gunnar Dahlberg said:
CNN article: "5 Continents In 1 Day"
Hi Caroline, I live in The Netherlands and yes it's crazy to go to 24 countries in 2 - 3 weeks! I visited Eastern Europe quite a few times on city weekend trips.
My highlights were:
- Prague (Czech Republic);
- Krakow (Poland) with a daytrip to Auschwitz Birkenau;
- Budapest (Hungary);
- Kiev (Ukraine);
- St-Peterburg (Russia);
- Istanbul (Turkey).
Travelling by train is the best option, but if you have enough money flights in Europe are also not that expensive.
Have fun!
Best regards,
Wouter
Hi Phil,
Thanks so much for your insights! So helpful! I looked up diebahn.de for train schedules. I didn't see any destinations in Eastern Europe. Perhaps I missed something. I haven't really found a good website for train and bus schedules. I wasn't sure how integrated the countries are with each other. I was planning on flying to some of the places to cover long distances quickly, but doing a lot of overnight trains to save travel time. The hard part is figuring out the transportation schedule. My Lonely Planet covers in-country travel, but not so good when crossing borders between countries.
THanks again Phil!
Caroline
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