Student Tours in Europe

Being a student in Europe is a wonderful experience for most North Americans or other foreigners who try it. The fun of discovering new and different ways of doing things, practicing foreign languages, and seeing the cultural and architectural riches of the Old World is something few who do it ever regret.

However, Europe by and large is not a cheap destination today, and travelling around it can take a big dent out of student budgets. So it is good to know that there are some tours specifically geared to those from other countries who are studying in Europe. A company called Bus2Alps (www.bus2alps.com) offers a number of day, weekend and week-long trips for students.

Many departures are from Florence, Rome or Prague, but it is possible to join the trips from just about anywhere. And prices are reasonable--for example, a day trip from Florence to the famed Cinque Terre along Italy's coast costs just 40 euros. A week-long trip from Florence visiting the Czech Republic, Germany, the Netherlands, France and Belgium costs just 659 euros. That includes accommodation in top-ranked hostels, walking tours in each city visited and some other tours and  activities.

This tour company is recommended in an article by Jill Comoletti at www.businessinsider.com/cheap-ways-to-travel-through-europe=2014-7. It definitely sounds worth a try if you are fortunate enough to be studying in Europe, and since lodging is at hostels there is no single supplement for lone travellers.

When I studied in Italy long ago, prices in Europe were generally lower than in North America and it was inexpensive to travel around on one's own. I also took a student tour to Russia at Christmas break, and at Easter visited Greece and Turkey with some friends. Weekend trips took me to Munich for Oktoberfest, to Rome for sightseeing, and to Monaco for the Grand Prix. At the end of the year I spent six weeks driving through some parts of Europe I had not yet visited, and I have great memories from all those voyages.