Do you need a visa?
Pick the passport you will travel on and see whether a Schengen short stay visa applies, read straight from EU law.
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EUROPE TRIP PLANNING
Europe Trip Planning From Outside Europe
Routes, budgets and country guides built for travellers planning from the other side of the world, where the distance, the timing and the paperwork all work differently.
Same Trip, Very Different Price Tag
Each bar is one country's Eurostat price level for restaurants and hotels, where the EU average is 100. Pick a country to open the full comparison. The gap between your cheapest and dearest option is the biggest budget lever you have.
Planning Europe from Outside Europe Is a Different Challenge
European travel guides assume you already understand Schengen zones, don't need a visa, and can easily hop between countries. For travelers planning from outside Europe, that's rarely the reality.
You're navigating visa applications that can be refused for reasons nobody warned you about. You're building itineraries across three or four countries with no clear logic for how to sequence them. You're spending hours in Reddit threads getting contradictory advice from people who have never held your passport.
Durian Travel publishes the tools and guides that answer those questions, and you use them yourself. A visa check that reads straight from EU law, a cost comparison built on Eurostat price levels, and country guides that say where every figure came from and when it was last checked.
Check the numbers yourself
Cost per country
See what the same trip costs in each of 28 European countries, built on Eurostat price levels.
Compare countries →Budget calculator
Add up your own figures and see the total, the cost per person and the cost per day.
Work out your budget →The full cost per country report
Each country you are comparing, priced against your own budget, for €5.99. It opens on screen as soon as payment goes through.
See what you get →Every Kind of Traveler, One Shared Starting Point
First trip or fifth, solo or with three generations in tow, two weeks of trains or a long remote-work stay. The travelers who read Durian Travel have very little in common except where they are starting from. Planning Europe from outside it means embassy rules that differ by consulate, multi-country routes that get complicated fast, and accommodation that ranges from excellent to deeply regrettable.
Everything here is written for that starting point, which is why the guides open with your passport rather than a packing list, and why the planners deal in prices you can trace to a source. The starting point changes from reader to reader, and the questions turn out to be almost always the same.
Every number here has a source and a date
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Visa rules
Regulation (EU) 2018/1806, Consolidated text 32018R1806 EN, 30 December 2025. Durian last checked it on 12 September 2026.
Check your passport → -
Prices
Eurostat dataset prc_ppp_ind, reference year 2024. Eurostat last updated it on 10 July 2025 and Durian retrieved it on 27 August 2026.
Compare countries → -
Guides
29 country guides, the most recent change made on 17 September 2026. Each guide shows the day its own text last changed.
See every source →
Durian Travel submits no applications for anybody, reviews no documents and takes no calls. Everything here is published for you to read and use yourself.
Planning Spotlight
Best Starting Points Right Now
Checklist Schengen Document Checklist The cleanest universal starting point for passports, insurance, bookings, and financial proof. Itinerary 10-Day Europe Itinerary for First-Time Travelers A cleaner first-Europe route built around two strong bases instead of exhausting one-night stops. Route Logic Multi-Country Europe Itinerary How to sequence cities, borders, and transfer days without turning the trip into luggage churn. Budget Europe Trip Budget Guide A realistic breakdown of flights, hotels, rail, food, and buffer money before you book.
Latest Insights
View All Posts → From the Journal
10-Day Europe Itinerary for First-Time Travelers
A realistic 10-day Europe itinerary for first-time travelers, with two strong bases, humane pacing, and route logic that works before you book.
Is Sweden Worth It? Honest Cost Reality for Non-European Travelers
A practical Sweden cost breakdown for non-European first-time visitors: flights, hotels, food, transport, and how it compares to other first-Europe options. Is Sweden worth the budget?
Sweden Itinerary: 10 Days for First-Time Visitors
A practical 10-day Sweden itinerary with route logic for Stockholm, Gothenburg, and Lapland — including Schengen application notes for non-European travelers. Updated 2026.
Common Questions
How much does a Europe trip cost per day?
For Western Europe, a realistic per-person range is roughly €70–130 on a budget, €140–240 mid-range, and €260+ travelling comfortably. That covers accommodation, food, local transport and activities, but not long-haul flights. Eastern and Southern Europe run noticeably lower. Build your own figure with the free budget planner, or compare countries side by side with the cost-per-country planner.
How do I plan a multi-country Europe trip itinerary?
Balance the pace against the transport. A workable European itinerary avoids one-night stays and groups neighbouring destinations so you are not crossing the continent twice. Check the rail connections before you fix the order of the cities, because the map and the timetable rarely agree. The multi-country itinerary guide walks through the method.
Do I need fully paid flight tickets before applying for a Schengen visa?
No. European consulates do not require fully paid, non-refundable tickets before a Schengen visa is issued. A verifiable flight reservation or itinerary is normally what is asked for. Paying in full before a decision puts that money at risk if the application is refused. The exact wording varies by consulate, so check what yours publishes.
When should I start planning a Europe trip from outside Europe?
Earlier than most people expect. If you need a visa, applications can be lodged up to six months before travel, and appointment availability often adds weeks of lead time, so the paperwork sets the clock, not the flight prices. Work backwards from your dates: route first, then bookings, then documentation. The planning timeline guide walks through the sequence.
Can a travel agency or immigration lawyer guarantee a Schengen visa approval?
No. Nobody can. The decision rests solely with the consular officers handling your application, and no agency, adviser or lawyer has any influence over it. Treat anyone who suggests otherwise with suspicion, whatever they charge.
Educational information only. Not legal advice. Always check the official embassy or consulate source. Read the full disclaimer →
Built on Expertise
- Run by one specialist: A European traveler focused on travelers from outside Europe and real-world route logic.
- Straight about outcomes: Consulates decide approvals, not us. We never look at your documents and we never predict a result.
- Written by a person: Every guide is written and checked by hand, never auto-generated.
Durian Travel publishes free guides and planning tools for travelers planning a trip to Europe from outside it. It is run by one European traveler, and it covers country guides, multi-country routes, realistic budgets, and the documentation a Schengen application asks for. Durian Travel does not submit applications on anyone's behalf, and consular officers alone decide the outcome.