I'm a 21 year old single man and I'll have a month of leave available in April. While I love my family I'm not staying in Youngstown, Ohio for 30 days. So I was thinking going to Europe for a week but where should I go? I'm currently thinking about Ireland or Prague.   Anyone have any ideas of what to do or should I go some place else entirely?

Ireland/scotland/england sounds like fun. So does eastern europe.

My destination of choice would be the PI. And it is, in april or may, depending on how work plays out.

Prague, it is next on my list.

I just got back from Oslo in Sept.  I have a friend that lives there and we stayed with her.  Norway is VERY expensive.  It is a very pretty country in the summer, cold in the winter.  But worth seeing at least once.

1 scoop ice cream from street vendor  $6.20 USD
.5 liter coke in Oslo  $4.20 USD
pack of cigarettes  $20.00 USD
large pizza $40.00 USD
one way ride to airport from Oslo $42.00 USD

still it was worth it to go to Oslo, but I don't know how quickly I can afford to go back.

I also like Vienna, and all of Austria for that matter

Germany is nice and many cities have an old world charm thing going on.....

Amsterdam is like an adult Disney world with a Red Light District.   You have to go at least once.  But do research before you go, it is the kinda place to go to for 2-4 days max then you should go somewhere else.

Copenhagen, been there, seen it, won't soon go back.  Nothing wrong with it at all, just not high on my list of places to revisit.  Also expensive here too....

i've got a lot of friends that went to prague and/or budapest while they were still single. all of them said they had a blast. the women were hot and the booze was cheap.

You could go to Germany; fairly US/Mil friendly...at least as a base of operations for going to other places (CR, Austria, etc.).

You could go to the .mil resort in Garmisch, but the main point of going on R&R is to get away from the military for a while.

It might be too late know, but I recommend a rail pass...greatly simplifies travel by train, which is the easy way to go.

I know a great B&B-type hotel in Heidelberg; close to the PX at Campbell for "supplies", plenty to do/see there...IM if interested.

I want to go to Switzerland and Austria However it won't be anytime soon because there are some other places in the world that I am more interested in first .

Full disclosure: I'm a paranoid motherfucker.

I wouldn't go anywhere for at least 6 months after stuff cools down.

Either that or go now while you still can (not Egypt of course, too late now).

No 5h!t, one of my team mates was getting ready to visit Egypt in mid-FEB...guess all of us Infidels can take the Pyramids off their bucket list.

I'm a little biased, but Ireland would be high on my list. Good people, beautiful countryside, and a country full of friends you haven't met yet.

Europe is pricey, and there's no way around it.

What kind of trip are you looking for?





Women and partying?



Relaxation?



Military history?



Culture?



Food?



Beach?



Mountains?

Good question....we're all suggesting OUR dream vacation.

I just went to Europe last summer and I'm betting my trip goals weren't the same as a 21 year olds.  I know if I had gone when I was 21 I wouldn't have done what I did.

Guncenter in Moravia is great, but seeing you are in A-stan you wouldnt appreciate this kind of stuff.
I live in Prague so wont comment, instead of Ireland i would go to northern England or Scotland - Cumbria was amazing and i prefer whisky to whiskey;) .
Polish Krakow is good option too.

I think we have a winner!

If you are young, single and are looking to enjoy the company of young ladies, I would suggest Ukraine.

Eastern Europe is not really Eastern Europe anymore... Its not cheap (Prague is just as expensive as Germany), and there have been 20 years of Americans/Europeans already burning bridges for you.

When I was stationed in Germany, a few people went to Kiev on four day weekends... Said it was "the new Prague" because the beer was still cheap, and the women still friendly.


April is not the best time to visit anywhere in Europe.. Still snow in many places, and allot of rain.

You might also check out "Fruhlingsfest" aka Springfest. Basically, Oktoberfest in the Spring. It runs mid April-May. Munich has the largest one, though other large cities like Stuttgart (where I was) and Nurnberg will have large ones as well, and not be as touristy.

The Alps will still have snow, and avalanches. I spent R&R in May 2009 in Berchestgaden and most of the hiking trails were blocked because of snow.




Prague was cheap, 10+ years ago, but has now turned into a tourist trap, though still not as bad as Paris or London. Beer, eating out, and hotels are as bad as Germany. They have also legalized pot, so every bar is filled with smoke... Not the best option.

Yeah, this.  I would head straight to Switzerland to go hiking/climbing in the Alps but that's not everybody's cup of tea.  I was in England in 2010 and several other places in Europe in 2009.  Caution to the OP, the exchange rate sucks right now.  

I've never been to the British Isles but I did spend a couple of years on the continent (Germany) while I was in the Army.  I traveled Germany extensively and loved it.  Most of the people were friendly, the food was great and the beer was awesome.  I'd love to go back to Germany for a week just to eat sausage and drink beer.  Austria is beautiful and a lot like Germany.  I'm partial to the southern/Bavarian/Black forest region.  Munich, Nurnberg and Frankfurt are cool cities to visit.  If I were going to Germany I'd stick to smaller towns and cities.  Coburg and Bayreuth come to mind.  I don't know what the rest of Europe is like but Germany was easy to travel around.  Trains, buses and subways could usually get you to within walking distance of where you wanted to go.  Taxi's weren't too expensive either.  

When traveling in Germany we usually stayed in gasthauses.  These are usually located in smaller towns.  A gasthaus is usually a small pub/restaurant with a few rooms located above.  Breakfast is  included.  

Switzerland was awesome.  A couple of friends and I literally traveled around the country.  We started in the German speaking north, traveled south along the French speaking west side, Across the Italian speaking south then back up the eastern border to Austria.  The French speaking eastern side of Switzerland was kind of like France except the people were very nice.  I didn't think the beer was as good as Germany but I wasn't there long enough to sample everything.  

Since you're young and single I'd recommend traveling light.  I had 2 friends that would travel for 30 days at a time only carrying what would fit in a ruck.  They'd get train passes and travel from town to town, city to city.  Staying a few days here and there.  Some times they'd have to sleep in a park or the train station but for the most part they either stayed in gasthauses or were invited by locals to spend a day or two with them.  

Whatever you decide.  Good luck and enjoy your trip.

I hit London, Paris (don't lose your wallet. It sucks. ), Rome, and Berlin by train travel one year. Was all awesome.



Absolutely loved the old history in Rome.

ITALY...Hike Cinque Terra.