After my first time to Europe and visiting only the popular cities in the West, I was dreaming of Eastern Europe the whole next year in University waiting for summer to come around. It took ages to plan my sample Eastern Europe itinerary – and I’m going to detail it all here for you now that it’s said and done.

I’ve written about all these cities before so there will be links throughout with proper guides. As I mentioned in my sample western Europe itinerary, I didn’t have the funds at the time to go to Ireland and Spain as they would have required flying with my time constraints. Therefore, I made sure to hit those up first before heading East.

I mentioned Ireland and Spain in my Western Europe itinerary and as I said you could do Ireland first, then the Western Itinerary I wrote about, ending in Spain, then flying to Greece so start this “Eastern Europe” itinerary. So, I will start with Greece now!

Sample Eastern Europe Itinerary for Backpackers

1. Athens, Greece. Flying into Athens was exciting, but nerve-wrecking as my backpack didn’t make it and I didn’t have anything but almonds and my journal in my carry-on. First thing to know about Athens, is in July and hot months no one is there. They are on vacation because it’s so hot! The city was a little dirty and desolate to be honest, but interesting and of course seeing the ancient ruins at Acropolis was very cool. Tips for travel to Athens.

2. Mykonos, Greece. Mykonos is a party island. From Athens, you need to take a ferry to the closest port and you’ll want to find a travel agent in town to book your ferry tickets. They’re a little pricey if you’re comparing to Thailand islands. Mykonos was gorgeous, expensive, had delicious food, and there are quiet areas if you know where to look; we found a cute apartment in a secluded area. Read more: The Best of Mykonos Greece

3. Santorini, Greece. In terms or partying and gorgeousness, Santorini takes the cake. There’s no question as to why this is the most tourist island. It’s stunning. You have the famous sunsets and that white on blue rounded architecture everywhere you look. Food was a little pricey but scrumptious and the shops were full of the cutest stuff. I couchsurfed here mainly to save money and also because we hadn’t experienced Greece like a local. We stayed with a model/scuba instructor and had a blast club hopping the whole time and exploring the island on bikes. Read on for tips: What I love about Santorini Greece: Scuba and the Gods

4. Corfu, Greece. Corfu is the “green” island. The water is so clear, but with lush green forests in the background. Actually, it looks a lot like Thailand. We stayed at popular party hostel the Pink Palace, which is retrospect was a mistake as they trap you a bit from seeing the local parts of the island.

5. Tirana, Albania. So Albania was a bit of an accident. We pretty much were stuck in Santorini and told we had to go to Italy in order to get to our next city (Dubrovnik). The only other option was taking a ferry to the southern bit of Albania and going via taxi north, as local buses are hit and miss. We did take local buses / hitchhike through Albania through Montenegro to Croatia. We started via local bus to Tirana and met a cool chick, Bena, who shared all the secret local hotspots of Albania with us, from beaches and bars to UNESCO sites.

6. Dubrovnik, Croatia. After a couple of days of unplanned travel, we made it to Dubrovnik and I was overwhelmed with how much I loved this city. If there was one place I wanted to go back to and take Ben, it would be this town. I know it’s become more touristy partially with help from Game of Thrones filming on the castle. It’s a medieval wonderful town. Fabulous food and so gorgeous overlooking the sea that I didn’t mind the small crowds. We stayed at a Sobe in the Old Town which I 100% recommend. They will find you at the bus station.

7. Sarajevo, Bosnia. Sarajevo was a bit of a culture shock after being in beach party towns, not to say we didn’t party in Sarajevo (I was only 20 after all). A place not so long ago destroyed by war, you can still see the destruction today and learning about the history of that war is very important. This was the first place I’d been that had a call to prayer, but was interesting in that there were also Christian churches and Synagogues in the same intersection. Also, the food was incredible as well as the coffee! Definitely buy a coffee set here.

8. Belgrade, Serbia. Not only interesting, but affordable. It’s a cool town to see but I was there only a short time. There was a beer festival in Belgrade happening so you can only imagine what I was up to. We found a hotel online and it was 3 bucks a night with breakfast. How is that possible!?

9. Budapest, Hungary. The first thing I learned about Budapest is that one side of the river is Buda and one side is called pest. I recommend doing a walking tour of the city to learn, and I also couchsurfed here. Mostly, we learned about what happened there during world war 2, which has always interested me. Make sure to visit the famous Szechyeni baths, which is a highlight of a trip to Budapest.

10. Krakow, Poland. Although I liked the walking tour and learned a lot, I found the city a bit boring. Perhaps the weather had something to do with it. I did enjoy the town fair and markets. I’m sure it was a fluke that I didn’t have a blast, but I would go back. Read more tips for visiting Krakow.

11. Prague, Czech Republic. Prague is incredible! Spend as much time here as you can. Affordable, great food, amazing history and architecture, and a fun nightlife. I couchsurfed here and loved seeing the city from a locals view. Read for some tips on Prague.

12. Cesky Krumlov, Czech Republic. This place is about 4 hours from Prague by a cheap bus that offers hot chocolate and a movie! The town is the “last bohemian town” with a castle uniquely hand-painted to look like it’s more fancy architecture than it really is. There is a moat with beers, lots of little homey bars, and your hostel will possibly offer you a joint fix on arrival.

So, there you have it, my sample Eastern Europe itinerary based on my own trip. All in all I started the trip flying into Irelend, then flying to Spain, then onward via flight to Greece. The rest is as you read, then after Cesky, we took a bus back to Prague to fly to Ireland to catch the roundtrip flight home.

I had more fun on my trip to Eastern Europe than Western Europe, and although some people think it’s not as easy to travel, I found that wasn’t true except lack of buses in Northern Albania and Montenegro. It was very affordable and I learned a lot.

I hope you found this Eastern European backpacking itinerary helpful! Remember to find a cheap flight using my tips and get some travel insurance that covers adventure sports. If you’re planning a trip, check out my tips on how to plan a trip from scratch.

Pin this sample Eastern Europe itinerary for later:

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When people ask me what city I went to in Europe that was MOST unique, or my favorite, I usually bring up war-torn Sarajevo, Bosnia. I have mentioned it in other posts as somewhere with so much not-so-ancient history and an overflow of culture. I one day plan to go back. I couldn’t soak in as much culture as I wish I had, because I was already soaked up and filled with beer on that backpacking trip. Regardless, Sarajevo is not subtle; it slaps you right in the face the moment you arrive. Sarajevo: my very first culture shock.

After the many shockingly awesome places I’ve been now, I don’t think Sarajevo would have slapped me so hard. But I had been backpacking Western Europe, and hadn’t seen such different ways of living, nor had I even seen a city so clearly devastated by war. Sometimes called the “Jerusalem of the Balkans” up until recently it was the only European city that had a Jewish synagogue, Catholic Church, a mosque, and an orthodox church in the same neighborhood. It was awesome to see! There’s no comparison of learning in a classroom compared to seeing it firsthand. Firsthand you remember the facts because they scare you. They stick with you forever.

I know you all love a good history lesson, so here goes a mini one from someone definitely not at all qualified to teach you:

After Yugoslavia was broken up, these monsters had a great idea to make a nation called “great Serbia”; they were Bosnian Serbs, Croatian Serbs, and Serbia. Then they decided on top of this, they would ethnically cleanse out the Muslims. This is called genocide. To do so, they put a siege on Sarajevo, the capital, and didn’t give them any way to import food or water. It was is the longest siege that’s happened in modern warfare. It lasted 4 years. They killed Muslims, shelled towns, and sadly, the war is known as having a mass amount of rapes (50,000). 200,000 people died. 2.2 million people were displaced. NATO eventually intervened and a peace agreement was signed (the Dayton agreement, signed in Dayton, Ohio).

Now, the town is bustling with people and tourism has never been better

 Was it as big as the genocides you learned a lot about in school: the Holocaust, or the massacres in Cambodia and Rwanda? No, but it devastated and destroyed a proud and beautiful country. Being such an atrocity it must have happened ages ago, right? It was in 1991 (the siege started in 1992).  Maybe all you’ve ever heard of it is reading in Star Magazine about Angelina Jolie Directing a movie about the rapes during the war, called “In the Land of Blood and Honey”.

According to the Bosnians I spoke to, America is at fault because Bill Clinton knew and “did nothing because we have no oil”, but in actuality although there was an embargo from the UN on arms, the US secretly used black routes to get arms to the Bosnian Muslims throughout the war. It is scary to think that it was clear in the media at the time that ethnic cleansing was occurring, yet it took so long for it to be stopped. These things literally happening right now. The Bosnians I met were mostly nice, but I did have a tour guide act extremely rude to me because of my American Nationality.

cemeteries blanketed so much of the land.

In 1991, the Bosnian Serb leader had said,

“In just a couple of days, Sarajevo will be gone and there will be five hundred thousand dead, in one month Muslims will be annihilated in Bosnia and Herzegovina”.

Hopefully this isn’t too much of a history lesson, but it was such a shock to learn. During the massacres, each side had help from other countries. The Serbs had help from Neo-Nazis from Western Europe, and Europen Christians; the Greeks even raised a flag after one massacre. The Muslims had help from Iran and Lebanese Hezbollah (wow!). The Serbs had “concentration camps” they kept and tortured their Bosnian Prisoners in.  12,000 kids died. The photos were shocking.

in memoriam of the children lost. 

Bottom line: it was horrible.

I was not only shocked by what I saw (the destruction) but in awe of all the hardened people I met who had lived through it. It’s hard to believe something like that can happen in Europe after the Holocaust! Interestingly, some buildings were still destroyed; the Bosnians want to rebuild exact to the original and they are doing it slowly as the money rolls in.

What To DO In Sarajevo 

Walking through the city now isn’t all sad and gloomy. At Pidgeon Square, kids play in the fountain and old men play life-size chess (this is a can’t miss). The restaurants are spectacular and the shops sell unique handicrafts. The market is full of honey, tin and copper, Bosnian/Turkish coffee dishes, and cute bohemian dresses and shawls. I bought a tin coffee set and coffee grinder for 40 Euro. Décor is stunning; with lanterns and beautiful “Arabian nights” look to the skinny alleyways.  There are calls to prayer throughout the day, a sound that is so beautiful.

Pidgeon square & cute old men playing chess… it was serious business.

Markets full of local honey, and alleyway stalls selling tin & copper

It’s a place that refills you with hope and makes you appreciate everything around you. Although it has a rough history, it’s booming and full of people. Now they have the tallest skyscraper in the Balkans! Tourism in increasing and hostels are readily available. They even have their own beer: “Sarajevo”. Other than enjoying the cute town and Vrelo Bosne Park, you can walk across Latin Bridge, where Franz Ferdinand was killed, give back by paying 12 Euro to see the “tunnel tour” of passages used to get food and weapons in during the siege; the Kolar Family kept this a perfect secret, hike through the hill and rivers, or go in the winter and ski!

Largest skyscraper in the Balkans & the tunnel that saved lives during the war

The BEST BEST BEST part about Sarajevo:

• CEVAPI (cevapcici)! Oh. My. Gosh. It’s my favorite food now. It sounds gross; but it’s a pita filled with sausage fingers, some cheese that looks like feta, and raw onions.

• Bosnian Coffee. It’s so strong, I can’t drink it alone. It comes with a little chewy candy to drop in, and lots sugar cubes.

• The hostel we shifted to after the “hostel” we stayed at the first night. All wooden like a tree house, cool common room, 12 people to a room, free breakfast and wifi. This is where we met Jay and Brian, who we traveled with for a little while after to a music festival in Serbia, and to Budapest. They were cool bros.

• The shots come in these awesome potion bottles, and the bars are really fun! We even danced to techno at a club.

 The WORST WORST WORST part about Sarajevo:

• This hostel we stayed at our first night: 21 people, 1 bathroom, 1 gross communal kitchen, and many stray cats in my bed.

• The shots in the awesome potion bottles taste like tequila and poison mixed with gasoline and a dash of 151. Don’t order “quince”.

• Don’t order pizza, it’s like ketchup on a pita.
• The money is worth about half a pound, so when you order a beer for 2.80 mark, don’t expect change– they say it’s worthless. Except it can buy fruit, etc. That was a bit annoying.
• Make sure to pay in Marks, not Euro because they will always round up, like most countries do.

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