Journey Across Baltic to Balkans in 34 Days under SGD1,800

18th June 2019 No comments Article

Departing from Singapore, I flew into Berlin, Germany capital to begin this adventure. This post focus on the highlight of this journey across 9 countries.

Germany
Latvia
Lithuania
Moldova
Romania
Bulgaria
Macedonia
Albania
Greece

Total Flying Distance Covered: 22,030km

Total Distance Covered on Foot: 285.5km

Total Distance Covered on Bus/Train/Car: 3,000km

Total Amount Spend: SGD$1722.55 (Singapore Dollars)

Number of Flights Took: 04

(Berlin- Riga, Athens- Santorini- Athens on Ryan Air & Vilnius- Kiev- Chisinau on Ukraine International)

Inclusive of 4 Intra Europe flights, exclude international flight (SGD702) from Singapore- Berlin & Athens- Singapore).

A breakdown of the cost as follow:

For more information on money saving tips, read on this link.

Flights:

Taking the international flight out from Singapore into Europe, I had chosen to fly with Scoot, a budget carrier of Singapore Airline Group simply it departed from my home country. If you are in Asia, there are a few other carrier options to fly into Europe on budget carrier namely AirAsiaX , Norwegian Air (third largest low-cost carrier in Europe behind easyJet and Ryanair) into London. From London, there are many connecting budget flights into other parts of Europe. I initially locked down on Norwegian Air (Singapore- London- Singapore) at a price of SGD$405 only! However, I was indecisive and when I decide to book on the next day, the price rise to SGD$900. Lesson learnt: If you are fix on your travel period, go ahead and book it! For tips on when to secure the best airline deal, read more here.

Eventually, I got another deal when I book on Scoot, from Singapore into Berlin and for the returning sector, from Athens to Singapore. These are the 2 points in Europe that the carrier is currently operating, certainly it spells greater news that they are looking to fly into other parts of Europe soon. It cost me SGD$702 for the return flights. I took upon this flight knowing that I will be making a one-way trip and need not return to London unlike if I were to fly on Norwegian Air. Thus, using this route might be a better option as there is no backtracking involved.

Accommodation:

Hostels is my primary option when it comes to accommodation. Staying in hostel allows one to cook, interact with fellow travelers, get more information on places to visit and how it can be done in a more cost effective way. Reading reviews on the different booking accommodation mobile application has become a norm for me on the road. I booked my hostel rather on a last minute for instance 1-2 days before I arrive. This is partly due to the winter period that I was travelling from November- December which is the low season. If you are travelling in Europe during summer period, do book it way in advance! Find out how one can save even more when it comes to booking accommodation on this post.

Transport:

Moving between countries over land, I choose to either travel by bus or train. The only time I uses the flight was between Germany to Latvia and Lithuania to Moldova as I required visa (holders of Singapore passport) if I were to take the overland route crossing Russia, Ukraine & Belarus. Other than that, I was blessed to be holding a Singapore passport that does not require visa into these countries that I visited. Find out What World Number One Passport Means to You

In fact, while crossing the land border from Moldova into Romania, I was questioned by the custom officer as they think that Singaporeans require visa. Always maintain calm when questioned by these officers, be courteous with a smile on your face when the going gets tough and yet at the same time, do not joke with them. I prepared such situations by capturing a screenshot of the Visa Requirements of Singapore Passport holders on my phone that clearly states no requirement of visa. Show to the custom officers and just prepared to get question. 90% of the time, they would let you enter after posting some random questions. Do have a hotel booked for the first night at least so they can have your address should they need to contact you.

In Europe, crossing borders at time would mean custom officers boarding the bus/train to collect your passports and return you after they had stamped it. Sometimes, it makes more sense to travel overnight if it is long distance such as when I travel from Tirana to Athens, a 13-hour bus ride. It helps you to save one-night accommodation cost while you get to your destination arriving early morning, giving you plenty of time to roam around. Get plenty of rest on such journey and if you arrived too early like I did at 4am in Athens, head to the nearest café and rest. Find the left baggage counter and leave your big bags there while go out to explore the city before checking in at your hotel/hostel.

At time, it looks like trains seems to be a better option. However, it maybe more confusing if there is transit required, as I got to experience the signs are displayed in their languages. Below is a picture when I travelled across Bulgaria railway lines, displaying in their languages.

If you are travelling on such route, always take note of the train number and the time of departure as well arrival time into that station. 30 minutes before arriving into the destination, check on your goggle map to see if you are nearing the station. Prepared to get off if so as trains at time stop for a short period only before moving on. If you do not have mobile data, what I did was back in my hotel or at café area, use the WIFI access to set as google maps allow one to use it offline.

SIM Cards & Travel Insurance

Travel insurance is a must and often the first thing I would purchase after booking my flight. Do you know that most travel insurance plan do cover your trip 2-4 weeks before your departure in case of any unforeseen circumstances that deprived you of departing for your intended trip. For more information on which insurance plans to purchase, check out more on this post.

I purchase SIM card that allows me to use a UK mobile number and have access to more than 20 countries in European Union region. This meant that on this trip, by purchasing a 30 days validity SIM card with 9GB of data, it allows me to have mobile data on the go in Germany, Latvia, Lithuania, Romania, Bulgaria, Greece. That lefts me with no data coverage in Albania, Moldova & Macedonia. I bought a mobile data plan of 2GB in Moldova for a cost of SGD$2, how reasonable the price it can be. As for Albania and Macedonia, there were free public WIFI access thus there is no issue if one do not have mobile data.

Food

Food is one of the major costs when it comes to travel. To cut down on this portion, I prefer to stay in hostels which allows me to cook. It makes the trip more interesting as well when one gets to the local supermarket and source out the freshest produce. If you cook yourself, one can save as much as 50% compare to eating out. Having said that, I usually cook during dinner time and have my lunch at restaurant during the day. I may skip my breakfast at time and have an early lunch. There is no hard and fast rule, but I would skip my lunch as well at time if I had a heavy breakfast at the hotel which provides.

People watch at the café is something you should not miss especially if you travel during winter season. Have a cup of hot chocolate/ coffee while enjoying waffles is truly a relaxation.

Short Summary of Each Country on This Trip:

It is difficult to pinpoint which is my favourite country as to me, all countries are worth to visit if one has not stepped before. The countries below are ranked according to my journey that I had took from Baltic to Balkans. However, based on my personal opinion, across these 9 countries, the best in terms of scenery and lifestyle that suits me was Macedonia.

Germany

My first stops begins in Berlin largely due to Scoot flying into the capital of Germany. I spend 72 hours before moving on to the next city in Europe. For more information on things to do in Berlin within 3 days, you can check out the post here.

Latvia

When it comes to Latvia, perhaps some people might not know where this amazing country is located. In a nutshell, Latvia is located between Estonia and Lithuania. For more information on visiting Latvia, you can visit the link here.

Lithuania

Do you know? Uzupis & Lithuania 🇱🇹 is like Rome & Vatican City… Uzupis is an independence city state for those who felt simply not enough to gain independence from Russia 🇷🇺,it is somewhere for those who truly wanted to be free. So walk in and get an official stamp on your passport. It has its own anthem, constitution and president. For more tips on exploring Lithuania, visit the link here.

Moldova

Do you know? Moldova is one of the least visited and poorest country in Europe. If you do venture to Moldova, you won’t be jostling for space with other tourists: only 121,000 foreigners are reported to have entered the country.
The biggest wine cellars in the whole world is situated in Cricova, Moldova.

Do you know? There is a country that never existed in this world. Welcome to Transnistria ! An unrecognised state which split off from Moldova after the dissolution of the USSR. One of the weirdest places you will get to see, transferring you back in time. For more travel tips to Moldova, visit the link here.

Romania

Do you know? On 01 Dec, other than being the start of most people favourite month of the year, Romania celebrate her 100th independence as well! Travel to the unnoticed towns, there lies Brasov, Bran, Rasnov, Sibiu in Romania. For more information on visiting Romania, log on to post found here.

Bulgaria

Bulgaria such a beautiful country, often not being notice by others. If you are in the Balkans/ Eastern Europe, do not skip this country! On more travel tips to Bulgaria, log on to link here.

Macedonia

Do you know? Mother Teresa was born in Macedonia, Skopje in year 1910.
Macedonia (former Yugoslavia) is super interesting. It combines the flavour of Bosnia, Turkey, yet added with a flair of European feel of Czech Republic & Germany with the mix of Islamic & Christianity filled with Hungarian building style and London buses plying the street. When one mentioned visit Macedonia, some reaction would be: “where? Nothing to see…” Guess is just Ohrid Lake.

Albania

Do you know? Albania 🇦🇱 has only 600 cars existed in the country prior to 1991 after 50 years of isolation from the outside world.

Greece

Do you know? Greece receives about 16.5 million tourists each year, more than the country’s entire population. Hence it has more international airports than most countries because so many foreign tourists want to visit…

Most shops, ferries, hotels may not operate/open due to low season from mid-December onwards? But this is the best time to go Santorini during winter as prices are cut by half with lesser crowds to jostle. A flight in winter to Santorini is around SGD$50 (return trip from Athens).