Backpacking Milan on a Budget - Solo Style!

Blog | William Kadi (Chevening Scholar 2022/2023, University of Aberdeen, UK).

..."If there’s one thing so Islandish about my travel, it’s the foolish smiles we give to strangers and being content even in the midst of uncalm situations"...

Exciting. Scary. Intriguing. There was a high concentration of mixed emotions as I left the cozy comforts of hard granite views in a freezing Aberdeen spring morning. I could not remember well the exact time, but I did sprung out of bed, hit the showers, and left in a wisp.

 MILAN – that was the only thought on my mind as I boarded the pre-booked taxi to Union Square bus station. The coach took at least three heart racing hours to Edinburgh International Airport, speeding past the rugged landscape in seconds and stealthing through the beautiful gothic-feels-architecture of Scotland's capital city. I have no idea what the air over in Italy would smell like in a late April-early May, except for the recollection of YouTube videos with searches of “how to get to Milan city centre in a bus” and many other random search hits.

This trip was definitely Milan on a budget – solo style! No fancy hotel bookings, basic fair, a couple of this and that, and my passport. My biggest hope was with my passport, the Schengen Agreement, and some silent prayers murmured to the ever-present spirits of both God and my ancestors. A final amen was right before I approached the arrival immigration desk at the Orio al Serio International Airport, Bergamo. “Solomon Islands” with a smile and the click of the holy stamp of European Union border control on a clean page of my passport, that is enough to summarize the young Italian’s approval and welcome speech.

My stay was a brief 4 days of non-stop exploration, buzz, and sleeping in a backpacker's 6 bed dormitory style room with 5 other free spirits from the world over passing through Lambrate, Milan Metropolitan - some only for a night. (Mind you, backpacker hostels are 3-4 stars hotel standard and not the type of dormitories you sleep in during boarding schools in the Islands).

The highlight indeed was the heat, which was somewhat the closest I’ve felt to home in months. Besides the sunshine, the sweet scent of jasmine and perfume along the high streets of Metro-Milan, Da Vinci’s Museum, gelato, and the magnificent sight of the Duomo were the top recollections I would always retell if ever asked about that travel experience.

Travelling can be daunting yet so much refreshing and fun, except when you start calculating the costs. Just a pro tip – know that there are different classes of people and travellers. If you’re a backpacker, here’s a budget component of my trip. In total I spent around 250 euros round trip (excluding my 70 euro return flight which I had booked months earlier).

For a break down summary see below the heading of expenses (without figures because that would be insanely inaccurate):

• Transportation.
• Food.
• Accommodation.

Everything else depends on confidence, intuition, interpersonal skills, sign language tips, phone battery life and its charger, the luck of Johnny Lingo and one word – ciao!

If there’s one thing so Islandish about my travel, it’s the foolish smiles we give to strangers and being content even in the midst of uncalm situations.

On a more helpful note, research on YouTube and plan ahead about your trip if it’s a first time. There’s endless travel tips and experiences shared by travellers in their videos or just by scanning through the YouTube comment section.

Research a bit about the culture, language, the locality of your destination, public transport routes and times, the weather forecasts, and costs.

Once you have done adequate research, you will know when you’re ready to travel.