Well, that is one broad question ! Since you didn’t say what are your interests or what you want to experience over there, i’m gonna tell you what places I enjoyed the most.

Montenegro, Kotor – Tiny place, but fantastic architecture and cafes in the old town. Try to climb all the way to the fortress for some amazing views on the fjord.

Montenegro, Budva – A bit touristy, but you can have a lot of fun on the beach. There are some nice clubs on the waterfront from what i recall.

Bulgaria, Veliko Tarnovo – Fantastic little city, lots of nature to hike around. It’s got a unique feel to this place, quaint, perfect to relax.

These are my favorites, i haven’t been to the other countries you mention.

But by the way, since your going to be so close, you should check out Bosnia (sarajevo & mostar) and Macedonia (ohrid), that both have absolute must-see places.

I needed a starting point I guess haha. I basically have to purchase plane ticket on Friday, so I want to get a good idea of what countries to focus on for when I purchase my train passes.
I forgot to add Macedonia is included in the baltic train package, so I will definately spend some time there. I plan to be in europe for 50-60 days (on my own) so I am interested in getting the most experience into my trip. I am into adventure(hiking), nightlife, and relaxing.. so basically I want a good variety.
Your suggestions sound great! I will look into them further. By the way, what is an ideal daily budget in the balkans?

Yeah, definitely give us some info on your interests so we can further help you.

I agree with drnaud81 regarding Kotor. I was just there for one day and night (drove from Dubrovnik) but wished I would have stayed longer. WE climbed to the top of the fortress in a total rush because we had to get the rental car back (which we were late in doing anyway) and it was hardcore but worth it. The day we chose was seriously like 100 or more degrees so we went though massive amounts of water. I had to take breaks because it is pretty exhausting in the heat, it is rocky and steep at many points (wear PROPER shoes— because I wasn’t and it was rough). Fantastic views for sure. I would definitely go back.

Budva: ha! We originally had a week booked there at the Hippo Hostel and I kick myself in the ass for not making it. But I wound up meeting some truly amazing people in Dubrovnik and I wound up spending extra time with them, by time we all moved on, I had other places to be by certain dates. So, I missed it but have seen gorgeous pictures and heard it can be loads of fun. I am definitely making it next time I am in the Balkans (hopefully this summer).

Have not been to Bulgaria yet.

AS for Serbia: I had spent a few days in Belgrade and a few days in GUca at the festival. I definitely recommend checking out the fest in AUgust.

Happy planning!

First off, I can’t imagine you’ll make a Balkan train pass pay for itself, so if you haven’t bought it do some more research first.

Romania has good train service, so it’s pretty easy to get around. I did not particularly enjoy Bucharest. It has a little “edge” and everything was a little shabby in 2004. There are lots of huge parks and formal gardens that must have be gorgeous in their prime. Perhaps things have been spruced up some in the last few years.

We enjoyed Brasov in Transylvania. Bran castle is a little hokey, but interesting and the scenery’s great. We also enjoyed Succeva and the “painted monasteries” and surrounding area.

good point from oldlady about the train pass. I remember most of my travel in the balkan was by bus.

As for budget, it depends on you, but the Balkans are usually cheap. In my previous trips to this area, i made it for about 75$ CND daily (counting transportation, accomodation, everything) and i wasn’t really counting. So if you’re on a budget i guess you could make it cheaper than that.

Kotor and Budva are gorgeous.
When we were there (2006) it did not feel touristy to the point of crowdedness.
Just a nice energy, beautiful architecture, dramatic cliffs, and gorgeous crystal blue water.

I’d definitely include at least some parts of Bosnia and/or Croatia.

Croatia was wonderful, but I liked Slovenia even better. I’d certainly try to find some time for Slovenia if I was “in the area.”

Thanks everyone for the awesome feedback!
I have not purchased my rail pass yet so that is something for me to look into. I would like the freedom of not being restricted to the specific countries included in the pass.

A pass doesn’t control where you can go. You can always buy a point to point ticket if you go to a country that isn’t covered by your pass.

Whether or not to buy a pass is an issue of convenience and cost. There are situations where having a pass is more convenient and there are situations where a pass saves money. Often a combination of a pass, point to point tickets and maybe a flight or bus ride or two works out best. For the Balkans, no pass may be the best deal.

I have to second the Slovenija recommendation. Even with just a couple days, you can check out the capital city Ljubljana and take a bus out to the beautiful Lake Bled area, about an hour or so away. Definitely one of those places where after you leave, you wish you’d stayed longer.

As for Romania, I haven’t been yet but am planning to next time. Both Brasov and Sighisoara have caught my eye, but Bucharest for some reason just looks like a depressing kind of place to be. I guess because it used to be the “Paris of the East” or whatever before the dictators “modernized” everything (to 70s standards… ouch).

Alright,
here is what I have come up with (2 month trip).

Budapest 1 day (will be returning at the end of trip)
Prague + day trips 5 days
Krakow 4 days
Romania for 1 week (mostly concentrated in the Translyvanian area)
Varna 2 days
Velika Tarnavo 3 days
Lake Ohrid 2 days
Albania 3 days (don’t know which town yet)
Kotor 3 days
Budva 2 days
Dubrovnik 2 days
Mostar 2 days
Sarajevo 3 days
Zagreb 2 days
Ljubljana + day trips 5 days
Budapest for the remainder until flight

I came up with this selection and order based on your input and the lonely planet guide. I may also try and sneak off to Istanbul from Varna, or Corfu from Albania considering I will have nearly 9 days remaining. However I definately want to save 4 for Budapest at the end of my trip.

Yay or Nay?

Definitely yay! I just read this list and I already envy you, I would go at once!

I agree with Papyr.
Am very envious—enjoy!

My only suggestion would be to do an overnight (leaving most of your stuff behind in Ljubljana) to go to Lake Bled, etc. You can do it as a day trip from Ljubljana, but you’ll want to hike to some waterfalls, take the ski lift for the view, etc. and two days in the area makes it much easier. We rented a car in Ljubljana. It was a real pain to have the car in the city, but it was great for the getting around Slovenia.