Paris to Berlin: Art & the Alps — Self-Launched

Fly or take the Eurostar into Paris. From CDG take RER B to Gare du Nord (~€11.80) or the Roissybus (~€17). Check into a dorm hostel around the Marais, Canal Saint-Martin or Montmartre (£25–35/night). Day one is a soft landing: grab a supermarket dinner and a €6 pint in the hostel bar, walk the Seine at dusk, and watch the Eiffel Tower sparkle on the hour from Trocadéro — free and better than any group welcome meeting.

🚌RER B from airport ~£10; metro/walking

🛏Hostel dorm, central Paris (e.g. St Christopher's Canal, Generator or The People Belleville), £28

• →Seine evening walk
• →Eiffel Tower sparkle from Trocadéro

Do the classic Paris day self-launched: pre-book a timed Louvre ticket online (~€22, first slot of the day to beat the queues), then metro to Montmartre to see Sacré-Cœur and the artists' square, finishing with a supermarket picnic on the Champ de Mars under the Eiffel Tower. Walk the Champs-Élysées to the Arc de Triomphe (roof ticket €16 optional). Skip the €175 Moulin Rouge dinner — instead catch a €10–15 live jazz set in a Marais cellar bar.

🚌Metro day ticket ~£8

🛏Hostel dorm, Paris, £28

• →Louvre timed ticket ~£19
• →Montmartre + Sacré-Cœur walk (free)
• →Champ de Mars picnic

Long travel day but one of the best train rides in Europe. Take the TGV Lyria Paris Gare de Lyon → Basel (~3h, book 2–3 months ahead for €29–49) then a direct ICE/regional to Interlaken Ost (~2h, ~€30–45 with a Sparpreis ticket). Roughly 6–7 hours door to door. Check into a hostel in Interlaken (Backpackers Villa or Balmers are the budget classics). Evening walk to the Höheweg and Lake Thun shore — the peaks glow at sunset.

🚌TGV Lyria Paris–Basel + ICE Basel–Interlaken ~£65 combined (booked in advance)

🛏Hostel dorm, Interlaken, £30

• →Lake Thun shoreline walk
• →Höheweg viewpoint

Book a canyoning or whitewater rafting half-day directly with a local outfitter (Outdoor Interlaken or Alpin Raft, ~CHF110–130 / £100–115) — far cheaper booked online ahead than as an add-on. Alternatively hike the Harder Kulm trail from town (free; funicular up CHF 20 / £18 if you'd rather ride). Free orientation walk is just your own two feet: Interlaken is two streets and a river. Evening: hostel BBQ and a lakeside beer — Switzerland is expensive, so self-cater tonight.

🚌Walking / local bus ~£4

🛏Hostel dorm, Interlaken, £30

• →Canyoning half-day ~£105 (book via GetYourGuide or direct)
• →Harder Kulm hike (free)

The Jungfraujoch railway is CHF 200+ return — skip it and instead take the train to Lauterbrunnen (~CHF 8.40 / £7.50 each way) and hike the Staubbach Falls and Trümmelbach glacier-waterfalls trail (entry CHF 14 / £12.50). Alternatively ride to Grindelwald First for the cliff walk (free) and paragliding if the budget stretches (£150). Stock up at Coop/Migros for a mountain picnic.

🚌Regional trains ~£18 return

🛏Hostel dorm, Interlaken, £30

• →Lauterbrunnen valley hike
• →Trümmelbach Falls entry ~£13

Big travel day: Interlaken Ost → Spiez → Milan Centrale (via Domodossola, ~3h30) then a Frecciarossa or Italo high-speed to Rome Termini (~3h). Book the Italian leg 2–4 months ahead on Trenitalia or Italo for €19–39 (~£17–34); combined rail ~£70–85. Arrive evening, check into a hostel near Termini, and do the free night walk yourself: Trevi Fountain, Pantheon exterior, Piazza Navona, all lit up and free.

🚌Interlaken–Milan–Rome rail ~£78 (advance fares)

🛏Hostel dorm, Rome (e.g. The RomeHello, Alessandro Downtown), £26

• →Night walk: Trevi Fountain, Pantheon, Piazza Navona

Pre-book Colosseum + Roman Forum combined ticket online (~€18–24, official coopculture site) for the earliest slot. After lunch, pre-book the Vatican Museums + Sistine Chapel (~€20 online booking fee included) for a late-afternoon slot — cheaper and less crush than mornings. Finish with €3 pizza al taglio and a gelato in Trastevere. Skip the €25 Borghese Gallery unless art is your priority.

🚌Metro/bus day ticket ~£6

🛏Hostel dorm, Rome, £26

• →Colosseum + Forum ~£20
• →Vatican Museums & Sistine Chapel ~£18

Replace the included Migrantour with the real thing: book a Migrantour Rome walking tour directly through the Migrantour Rome website (~€25–30 / £22–26), led by a newcomer to Italy showing you a side of the city most visitors miss. Then take a regional train Rome Termini → Florence SMN (~1h35, €19–29 booked ahead, £17–25). Evening: walk the Duomo, Piazza della Signoria and Ponte Vecchio at golden hour — all free.

🚌Regional train Rome–Florence ~£21

🛏Hostel dorm, Florence (e.g. Ostello Bello, Plus Florence), £28

• →Migrantour Rome walk ~£24 (book direct)
• →Duomo & Ponte Vecchio evening walk

Pre-book the Uffizi (~€25 + €4 booking fee) or the Accademia for David (~€16) — pick one, both is too much. In the afternoon, do a self-led Oltrarno food crawl instead of a paid food tour: Lampredotto at a street stall (€5), schiacciata from All'Antico Vinaio (€7), and a glass of Chianti in a Santo Spirito bar (€6). Optional half-day Siena by regional bus (€17) if you want the medieval walled city.

🚌Walking / local bus ~£3

🛏Hostel dorm, Florence, £28

• →Uffizi Gallery ~£25
• →Oltrarno self-led food crawl ~£18

Regional train Florence → Venice Santa Lucia (~2h, €19–29 booked ahead) — no need for the expensive Frecciarossa. If visiting April–July, check the Venice Access Fee site and register your overnight stay exemption in advance. Drop bags at a hostel on the mainland at Mestre (£22–28, much cheaper than the island) or splurge on a Cannaregio dorm. Then walk: Rialto, San Marco, the back canals of Dorsoduro. A shared gondola ride is €80/group — do a €9.50 vaporetto pass instead and ride the Grand Canal like a local.

🚌Train Florence–Venice ~£21; vaporetto pass ~£8

🛏Hostel dorm, Venice Mestre or Cannaregio, £25

• →San Marco & Rialto walk
• →Grand Canal vaporetto ride

Take the direct FlixBus or Nomago bus Venice Mestre → Ljubljana (~3h30, €18–25, £16–22) — no train link exists. Check into a hostel in the old town (Hostel Celica is the famous one, ~£25) or the more relaxed Vila Veselova. Walk the Ljubljanica riverside cafés, climb to Ljubljana Castle on foot (free) rather than the funicular (€6), and eat burek and a Slovenian craft beer for under €10. Metelkova's street-art district is free and lively at night.

🚌FlixBus Venice–Ljubljana ~£19

🛏Hostel dorm, Ljubljana, £25

• →Ljubljana Castle hill walk (free)
• →Metelkova district
• →Ljubljanica riverside

Morning: take the local bus to Lake Bled (€7.80 each way, ~1h15) for a walk around the lake, the free clifftop viewpoint at Ojstrica, and a slice of kremšnita (€4). Afternoon FlixBus Ljubljana → Vienna (~5h, €22–30 booked ahead) and check into a hostel around Naschmarkt or Westbahnhof (e.g. Wombats, Ruthensteiner, £28). Evening stroll the Ringstrasse at dusk and grab a €4 würstel from a street stand.

🚌Bled bus ~£14 + FlixBus Ljubljana–Vienna ~£24

🛏Hostel dorm, Vienna, £28

• →Lake Bled & Ojstrica viewpoint
• →Ringstrasse evening walk

Schönbrunn Palace grounds are free; the state rooms cost €15 — worth it if you like period interiors. Then spend the afternoon the Viennese way: a melange and apfelstrudel in a traditional coffee house (€10), St Stephen's Cathedral (free entry), and the Belvedere gardens or Klimt's The Kiss if art is your thing (€19). Book a €3–5 standing ticket for the Vienna State Opera online or at the box office on the day — the single best value night in Europe.

🚌U-Bahn day pass ~£6

🛏Hostel dorm, Vienna, £28

• →Schönbrunn state rooms ~£13
• →Coffee house stop ~£9
• →Stehplatz opera standing ticket ~£4

Hop the Vienna → Budapest train (RegioJet or ÖBB Railjet, ~2h30, €14–25 booked ahead, £12–22). Check into a hostel in District VII near the ruin bars (e.g. Retox, Carpe Noctem, £20). Free orientation walk: Andrássy út, Heroes' Square, the Chain Bridge and the Fisherman's Bastion views over the Danube — all free. Replace the included ruin-bar big night out with a self-led crawl: Szimpla Kert, Ellátó Kert and a €2.50 fröccs.

🚌Train Vienna–Budapest ~£18

🛏Hostel dorm, Budapest, £20

• →Chain Bridge & Fisherman's Bastion walk
• →Self-led ruin bar crawl

Book the Széchenyi or Rudas thermal bath directly (Rudas is ~HUF 6,500 / £14 and includes a Danube rooftop view). In the afternoon, swap the paid walking tour for a free-tip walking tour (Free Budapest Walking Tours — pay €10–15 tip if you enjoyed it) or visit the Great Market Hall for langos (HUF 1,500 / £3.30) and paprika. Evening at the House of Terror or a live folk-music cellar (€8) — or just a €9 dinner of goulash and bread dumplings in a neighbourhood restaurant.

🚌Tram/metro day pass ~£5

🛏Hostel dorm, Budapest, £20

• →Rudas thermal baths ~£14
• →Free walking tour tip ~£11
• →Great Market Hall lunch ~£5

Take the direct Budapest → Kraków night train (seat from ~€35, couchette ~€55) or a daytime FlixBus (~8h, €25). If on the night train, sleep and arrive fresh. Check into a hostel in Kazimierz, the old Jewish Quarter (e.g. Greg & Tom, Mosquito, £18) — it's the best-value and most atmospheric budget area. First afternoon: Kazimierz at your own pace, the old synagogues, and a bar mleczny milk-bar lunch of pierogi for £4.

🚌Night train seat Budapest–Kraków ~£32

🛏Hostel dorm, Kraków, £18

• →Kazimierz old Jewish Quarter walk
• →Milk-bar pierogi lunch ~£4

Book the Auschwitz-Birkenau Memorial and Museum entry direct on the official site (free entry, small booking fee) plus the shuttle bus from Kraków (~£12 return) — or take a small-group tour via GetYourGuide for ~£30 including transport and a guide. It's a heavy morning, so plan a quiet afternoon. In the late afternoon, if energy allows, book Wieliczka Salt Mine direct (~PLN 120 / £24). Evening: back to Kazimierz for zapiekanka on Plac Nowy (£3) and a drink in a courtyard bar.

🚌Shuttle to Auschwitz ~£12; tram ~£3

🛏Hostel dorm, Kraków, £18

• →Auschwitz-Birkenau visit ~£30 tour incl. transport
• →Wieliczka Salt Mine ~£24 (optional)

Take the FlixBus or RegioJet Kraków → Prague (~6–7h, €15–25 booked ahead) — or the overnight sleeper if you prefer. Arrive and check into a hostel in Holešovice or Vinohrady (e.g. Sophie's Hostel, Czech Inn, £22). Evening: walk Charles Bridge for the quiet sunset side, then dinner at a Czech pub — svíčková or goulash with dumplings and a 0.5L Pilsner for £10 total.

🚌Bus Kraków–Prague ~£18

🛏Hostel dorm, Prague, £22

• →Charles Bridge evening walk

Free morning: Prague Castle (walk up through the castle grounds free; circuit ticket CZK 250 / £8.50 for the main interiors), then Old Town Square for the astronomical clock on the hour. Lunch at a cheap Czech buffet or at Lokál for a £5 plate. In the evening, replace the included Bohemian beer hall with a genuine one: U Fleků (5 centuries old, CZK 90 a beer) or the Letná Beer Garden for sunset over the city — both far cheaper and more authentic than any group tour stop.

🚌Tram/metro day pass ~£4

🛏Hostel dorm, Prague, £22

• →Prague Castle circuit ~£8
• →Old Town & astronomical clock (free)
• →Beer at U Fleků or Letná Beer Garden ~£6

The EuroCity Prague → Berlin train is excellent value (~4h15, €20–40 booked ahead, £18–35) — or FlixBus for £12 if you're watching pennies. Check into a hostel in Kreuzberg, Friedrichshain or Mitte (e.g. Circus Hostel, EastSeven, £25). Afternoon: free Berlin — Brandenburg Gate, the Reichstag dome (free but pre-register online), and the Memorial to the Murdered Jews of Europe. Evening: street food at Markthalle Neun on a Thursday, or a £10 döner and €3 beer in a Späti.

🚌EC train Prague–Berlin ~£26; U-Bahn day pass ~£7

🛏Hostel dorm, Berlin, £25

• →Brandenburg Gate & Reichstag dome (free, pre-register)
• →Holocaust Memorial
• →Street food

Walk the East Side Gallery along the remaining Berlin Wall (free), then a self-led history loop through Checkpoint Charlie, the Topography of Terror (free) and the Berlin Wall Memorial on Bernauer Strasse. Lunch at a currywurst stand (£4). If time allows, book a Pergamon Museum or Jewish Museum ticket (~£10–16) online. Head to BER airport on the S9/Airport Express (~£4) or catch your onward train from Hauptbahnhof. Trip ends — 9 countries, one Interrail pass, less than half the tour price.

🚌Airport Express / S-Bahn to BER ~£4

🛏None (departure day)

• →East Side Gallery
• →Topography of Terror (free)
• →Checkpoint Charlie