Freeform planning a Europe trip and looking for advice/connections/new friends!

[juniormustache]

Hey all!

Like the title says, I'm planning a Europe trip in the new year (Likely feb 2023) and would love any advice about cool places to go, things to see (,people to meet?)! I'm interested in queer scene stuff, activities and lifestyles that don't center consumption (and wage labour/toil for the benefit of the bourgeoisie) , and learning about subcultures in other places. I speak english and french, but I have a few months before leaving and would be happy to spend some time learning the basics of another language too if anyone has a suggestion of which one would be helpful.

Happy to answer whatever questions you have too! Solidarity forever!

 

[DandelionSheep]

If you get to Czechia I can show u some pretty places if I'm free. If I'm not I know a really cool punk bar in Karlovy Vary.


The language ls depends where u want to go but I think a bit of Spanish never hurts.

 

[Matt Derrick]

I'm looking to go to Europe around the same time, but I'm still doing research and figuring out where I want to go. I have a decent amount of money saved up tho. Where do you want to go?

 

[juniormustache]

I'm looking to go to Europe around the same time, but I'm still doing research and figuring out where I want to go. I have a decent amount of money saved up tho. Where do you want to go?

Still trying to figure that out as well! haha. At least partially I'd like to make a a trip to learn a bit about my ancestry, so i'll likely visit Ireland, Scotland and Sweden, but I'd love to look around beyond that!

 

[juniormustache]

If you get to Czechia I can show u some pretty places if I'm free. If I'm not I know a really cool punk bar in Karlovy Vary.


The language ls depends where u want to go but I think a bit of Spanish never hurts.

I will hit you up for sure! Thank you! Adding Czechia to my list.

 

[AestheticTramper]

Hey all!

Like the title says, I'm planning a Europe trip in the new year (Likely feb 2023) and would love any advice about cool places to go, things to see (,people to meet?)! I'm interested in queer scene stuff, activities and lifestyles that don't center consumption (and wage labour/toil for the benefit of the bourgeoisie) , and learning about subcultures in other places. I speak english and french, but I have a few months before leaving and would be happy to spend some time learning the basics of another language too if anyone has a suggestion of which one would be helpful.

Happy to answer whatever questions you have too! Solidarity forever!

If you find yourself in or around Germany feel free to drop a message. I'm living here for the next 6 months, and hitch pretty prolifically around these parts. (Also thinking of hitching across Canada/US summer 2023.)

 

[juniormustache]

If you find yourself in or around Germany feel free to drop a message. I'm living here for the next 6 months, and hitch pretty prolifically around these parts. (Also thinking of hitching across Canada/US summer 2023.)

Sweet! Will definitely do how have you found Germany so far? It's definitely on my list of places to go.

Hit me up if you're in western 'canada' if you want! If i'm not over there yet maybe I'll still be over here haha.

 

[Tony Pro]

You sure you want to choose February to visit Scotland and Sweden? Brrr!

 

[ali]

I'm sure it's already on your list, but Berlin is a great place to meet other travelers, and there is a strong queer alternative scene, plus punk/squatter stuff if that's more your thing. The language won't be as much of a problem as other parts of the country. Especially in the art and entertainment scenes there is enough diversity that people tend to land on English as a common language. Of course it doesn't hurt to learn a bit of German, or indeed any local language of the place you are visiting. Leipzig and Hamburg also have some stuff going on a bit away from the Berlin "mainstream".

Amsterdam and Barcelona are the two other cities people will often throw out there as good destinations if you are interested in scene stuff. I have never visited Barcelona and didn't live in Amsterdam when i was in Holland so i can't really say much more about them other than to relay other people's positive opinions. In the UK Brighton has an old-fashioned but still entertaining gay scene and i've heard Bristol is kind of a neat spot for counter-culture outside of London.

If you are going in February and want to avoid the colder weather up north, i guess Barcelona might be a good starting point. But if you're coming from Canada, European version of cold weather is nothing. Everything outside Scandinavia and the mountains is pretty mild and Vancouver-like.

 

[japanarchist]

If you go to Ireland I recommend Dublin, If you go to Germany I recommend Leipzig & Freiburg (and rural eastern Germany is beautiful). From my experiences nearly everyone I met in Germany spoke English so you should be fine there, France was the place where very few people I met spoke English but since you speak French this shouldn't be an issue for you. I'd say one of the bests things you can do now is try to connect with people in the countries you will visit and make friends with them now so you can hangout with them when you arrive (and if you can try to couchsurf).

My experiences there were so much better when I had people to hang with and show me around. Use whatever other sites and apps you can (couchsurfing, tinder, okc, reddit, etc) to help you with this but do it now because its harder to navigate & plan while you're there.

Look for cheap hostels (HostelWorld app is good) and book them in advance because its cheaper. Read the reviews on the hostels so you don't end up in one with bedbugs. If you're flying into or out of the UK don't bring a knife because they're illegal there. Most of my expenses there went to hostel costs and food, set a budget of how much you will spend and book hostels in advance. Also use "Ryanair" for cheap flights and "Flixbus" for cheap bus trips. Good luck.

 

[provikirchhof]

Belgium is really cool. Italy. Croatia.

 

[Colinleath]

Ecotopia Biketour – cycling across Europe for ecological and social sustainability for 32 years

The first two weeks of the three month ride are not open to straight guys in order to reduce their historical tendency to dominate group culture.

I made it to the last three days of last year's ride. It's a good group and a good way to run a group ride over several months.

And find the nearest rainbow gatherings too maybe.

Where is the next Rainbow Gathering?

Rainbow Gatherings are not festivals. They’re intentional gatherings of all kinds of people who come together for a month somewhere in nature to cook together, sing around the fires, make workshops, share experiences and generally come together as ‘a family’. Some people see the Rainbow...

festivalsandretreats.com

 

[maxiyou]

If you by any chance happen to consider Poland on your way through the Europe, leave a message!
From August-November me and my love are gonna live in very small village (100 inhabitants + surrounded by massive pine forest). Our surroundings are what I would call, one of the best examples of beautiful Polish village life.
There is a lot of nature that is a playground itself - here we are building bushcraft village on a small hill that is surrounded by river. We love meditating here, doing many sports and embracing our creativity.
If you would like to meet, we can take you on day-long bike trip around many interesting for nature-lovers places.
We can play music (we have drums, guitars, fleet), tell you tales about the history of the place. We can go on airsoft game together, visit beautiful lake nearby, make campfires.
We will have a bed/place to pitch a tent for a day or more if you would like to stay
Although we move a lot, so it's not a promise for us to be present at the time.

We are both vegetarians and we love to cook.
We love to live actively and have a lot touch with the nature.
If you find this pleasant to read, feel free to be in touch

 

[juniormustache]

I'm looking to go to Europe around the same time, but I'm still doing research and figuring out where I want to go. I have a decent amount of money saved up tho. Where do you want to go?

heya! did you end up hitting up europe already? i finaly bought my tickets and will be there in late august!

 

[juniormustache]

If you get to Czechia I can show u some pretty places if I'm free. If I'm not I know a really cool punk bar in Karlovy Vary.


The language ls depends where u want to go but I think a bit of Spanish never hurts.

I'll shoot you a message soon! i'll bet i'll be coming through czechia decemberish?

 

[DandelionSheep]

I'll shoot you a message soon! i'll bet i'll be coming through czechia decemberish?

alright, if you can message me on discord, I'm on the server same nickname as here.

 

[AnalogSinner]

I’m a bit late to the post, but I traveled Europe/UK extensively last year and have a recommendation.

I found Switzerland to be, by far, the easiest place to hitchhike. We never waited more than 5 minutes to get a ride. Cities and towns tend to look and feel more integrated with nature. Even big cities like Zurich. The country can almost feel utopian like, maybe even a little too squeaky clean. But through hitchhiking, watching and talking to people, I found it to be one of the more bohemian countries I had been to. Really open, honest, free thinking people. A family we met through hitchhiking got us a gig setting up tents for a music festival in the Alps in exchange for free festival tickets and food for the week. Another young couple we met let us stay in their cabin for two weeks. That all being said, Switzerland is literally the most expensive country in the world. It’s understandable why a lot of travelers on a budget avoid the country. There is no way I could have afforded to stay in the country for so long if it hadn't been for hitchhiking and the kindness of strangers. But with hitchhiking and wild camping (there’s tons of good spots) you can definitely make it work. Also, one of the national languages is French! So that could be cool for you.

I don’t want to make this post too long, but if you want any more recommendations or have any questions, feel free to shoot me a message!

 

[borek921]

I found Switzerland to be, by far, the easiest place to hitchhike. We never waited more than 5 minutes to get a ride.

That's great to know. I will definitely swing by Swithzerland, since I'm not that far away (NL)!