Travel tips: Should you book accommodation in Europe or can you wing it?

MY SON AND HIS FRIEND, BOTH 20, ARE HEADING TO EUROPE IN JUNE/JULY UNI HOLIDAYS, VISITING AMSTERDAM, BERLIN, VIENNA, DUBROVNIK AND MYKONOS. THEY ARE NOT PLANNING TOO MUCH IN TERMS OF ACCOMMODATION. I SUGGEST THIS MAY NOT BE WISE IN EUROPE IN SUMMER. ANY SUGGESTIONS? K. SCHOOLING, EAST BRIGHTON

They would be well advised to book accommodation for the first few days after they arrive in Europe but what they need at this age more than anything else is flexibility. Assuming this is their first time solo in Europe, they won't have a clue how much time they want to spend in each of the stops on their itinerary. If they are operating to a pre-booked schedule they might regret they didn't stay longer in Dubrovnik, or stay too long in Vienna. They also need to be able to change their plans. The cities on their itinerary are all great but there's every chance that someone will tell them about another great little island in Greece, or Plitvice Lakes in Croatia, and they'll suddenly decide to head that way. They're probably planning to stay in hostels and these don't tend to book up as far ahead as hotels. There are several websites such as hostels.com and hostelworld.com/ that make it easy to track down empty beds and book. Booking ahead is for when you know what you want, theirs is the age of discovery, and that requires adaptability.

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