Got questions? Whether you want to know about traveling to Europe or just backpacking and hostels in general, just fill out the form below and Bakpak Dave will get back to you.

Hi Sofie,

Thank you for writing, I do apologize about the delay in responding during the holidays. First off, sounds like you and your friend have an exciting trip planned. I think that $9000 for both of you should be plenty, depending on where you stay and what you want to do. All the cities you mentioned have hostels that will run you about $20-30 per dorm bed per night. Plus all the cities you are going to have tons of free things to do and cheap eats. And Vegas now has unbelievable deals on hotels so you can skip a hostel there and of course drinks are free if you are gambling.

How will you be getting to the cities - with the plane ticket you purchased? or do you need to buy transport? Do you want to take any tours of the grand canyon, bryce canyon and zion while you are in Vegas? How about wine country tours or yosemite when you are in San Francsico? There's a very good backpacker tour company that covers those areas.

Let me know and I can provide more info.

happy new year, Bakpak Dave

Hi Dan, there are good, reasonably priced hostels in most east coast cities. New York has many to choose from (see our New York hostels page at http://www.bakpakguide.com/usa/hostels/new-york-hostels/index.shtml), then Philadelphia, Boston, Washington DC have a couple each (Baltimore has 1). You might also want to check out the Cape Cod/Nantucket Islands area of Massachussetts as there are cheap hostels there too. Dorm beds range from $20-$30 a night, with New York and Boston being the most expensive but you will probably find deals this time of year.

How long do you plan to travel and how far north/south will you go on the East coast. Assuming you will be arriving in New York or Boston?

As for Greyhound, they have nice new buses with free wifi. For the east coast, I would also check out Megabus.com as you can get fares as low as $1!!! (like Ryanair in Europe).

Let me know a few more details and I can get more fine tuned info to you. cheers, Bakpak Dave

Hi Gemma,

Thanks for your asking Bakpak Dave (me) a question. If you are planning on seeing the major California spots like San Francisco, LA, San Diego and the coast (between SF and LA) and then checking out Mexico, 6 weeks should be a plenty of time.

LA and area - 1 week Pacific Coast Highway 1 week or less San Fransico and region 1 week San Diego and other places - under a week which leaves you 2 weeks in Mexico.

Mexico can be traveled by public bus or car if you have one although the Cali rental companies will not let you take a car to Mexico. I would stay away from Tijuana and the border areas and head down towards Cabo fairly inexpensively. You can also fly to Cabo from LA and make your way back up. but I am not an expert on Mexico.

In terms of money, it really depends on how you plan to travel around California. I could recommend renting a campervan ($65-$75/day base rental) or car ($299/wk, $899/month total cost), which Bakpak can book for you. You can also buy a Greyhound bus pass. Hostels average about $25/pp pn for a dorm or $50-75 for private rooms.

Are you traveling this summer or 2011?