Honeymoon in Europe? On a budget?

I think so!

i've been to europe before too and was there for 2.5 ish weeks or so and total with flights i spent $1500 or so for myself. i didn't stay in hostels, i stayed in Airbnbs. so maybe you can look into airbnbs for a more inexpensive lodging option.

europe is that kind of destination where the sight seeing is enough aha. i don't say that about many places. because europe has absolutely stunning architecture and the sight seeing there is different vs if you went to asia.

but i will say that trip i did i went to 5 countries only. so if you're looking to hit up more countries and want to do actual activities other than sight see and nature stuff and whatever is free, then i would plan very accordingly.

View Quoted Comment I think we’d only be hitting those 3, just based on time. I think we’d probably end up on Airbnb, just so much cheaper than hotels!

Here are my thoughts but be careful. Have you researched these restrictions with COVID 19???

1. Is this a completely fool hearty plan? I’m accustomed to city hopping, but is this too much for a honeymoon? No but does he also like to travel that way? I am like you but my FH is not...hence why a resort for our honeymoon so he can sit, eat and drink lol. I do not think it is too much but it depends on if he's up for it. Sounds like a fun plan.
2. What’s a realistic budget? I spent less than $5k in my month there. We won’t be dining 5 stars, but also want something a step up from hostels. Can it be done for $7k? Including 2 round trip flights from the US?3. Any other tips or recommendations? I would check the airlines first and hotels. You can fine cheap meals but remember the Euro is slightly stronger than the US dollar and I remember having an overnight layover in Zurich and everything was so expensive (it was the airport but I have hear it is pricey there so I would check avg cost of excursions, food,e tc...) Backpacking vs decent vacationing is very different. I usually do not do 5 stars when I have been to Spain but I know for us we would not want hostel lifestyle rather at least decent hotels. 7K for two could work but basically you would need to budget for hotels and airplanes first to make that decision. Worst case why not just to Germany because I dunno about you but when I travel I do not wanna budget hard ya know? I am even saving up about $100/day for our resort even though food and room are included and we would not need to leave but I am factoring souvenirs, excursions and the you never knows and I do not like to spend 5 star style but I do not like to be on a strict budget...did that in college and do not wanna do that in my 30's lol. I will say check Groupon or group excursions...sucks you are on someone else's time frame but you could see a lot maybe for a good price if you wanna country hop. Sorry for the plethora of information.

If you do a lot of research ahead of time and plan everything out in detail, then yes this could absolutely work. You probably won't be taking direct flights and will want to stay in Airbnbs, but it sounds like you know this already. Granted, this will depend on how the travel situation unfolds with the pandemic, but in an ideal non-pandemic world, I am confident that this could be done on your budget

1. I think 2 weeks will be plenty, but I would possibly look to skipping the Scottish highlands. I have been to France and Germany (not Scotland, yet!) and I think you could easily do another country/city if you wanted, but perhaps not the Highlands. Going to Scotland is another flight to add, and from what I have been told, you really need 4-7 days to do the Highlands. Why not look to visiting Belgium or Switzerland so you cover a smaller patch of land? Relaxing on the French Riviera might be a nice alternative to the highlands?
2. If you want to save money, I would not necessarily go past hostels - but I would suggest looking to some higher end ones and booking a private room. I extensively used Generator hostels and their facilities are fantastic! They had such nice hostels that I probably won't be able to justify a private room in a hotel in a city where Generator is located. Their Paris location is also 1 min walk from one of the metro lines that links to main attractions. My other tip would be to have a cheap breakfast - skip a sit down meal and grab a bite from a local bakery while going about your day - cheaper than a sit down meal and also allows you to sample the local cuisine in the carb sector

I don't know where you are located in the US so flight costs will be dependent on that. The most important thing is organizing. For example: NYC - Paris then Paris - Glasgow then Glasgow - Frankfurt then home would currently cost about 600€ (711&dollar per person. If you budget large for hotels or 150€ (177&dollar per night: 2100€ (2487&dollar
Total: 3300€ (3900&dollar for the trip portion.
This leaves you with 3100$ for food and fun About 221$ a day which is plenty if you aren't planning on going crazy. Generally we spend no more than 100€ per night in a hotel (Airbnb might be cheaper not always). I budget 150€ per day for fun and food. We eat well and go to high end cocktail bars to give you perspective. If you want to see certain sights, book online it's almost always either cheaper or saves time. We also walk everywhere so no taxi or metro. We like to walk. Honestly there are days we spend as little as 50€ when traveling. I live in Paris and even here there are great deals if you know where to find them. Last summer our budget was just under 6000$ and we spent 3 weeks traveling to Toronto, Niagara falls, NYC and Rome. We came in under budget staying in nice hotels and eating out every night during high season. I love travel planning so if you need any help I'd be happy to offer.

I think you can definitely do it for under $7k for 2 weeks. Flights depending where you're coming from are reasonable. I've seen 2 week tours that are only 1-2K per person for 2 weeks including stays and some meals. If you'll be hopping to different areas on your own you'll definitely want to plan it to the T with accommodations and transportation.