Solo Traveling Europe Union At 17

Question

I am from Bulgaria and was wondering if anyone has more information about travelling around Europe at 17 solo. The countries I would be visiting are Germany, Switzerland and Italy. Do I need a letter of permission from my parents or any other legal documents, other than a passport?

Answer 1

Generally you can travel alone as a 17 year old but this will benefit from proper preparation.

Do I need a letter of permission from my parents

It's certainly a good thing to have (whether you might need or not is hard to predict).

Many hostels and hotels require an adult to check-in. So you should be booking all accommodations up front or make sure that you can check in by yourself. Having a pre-booked itinerary also simplifies conversations at passport controls.

Other helpful tips

1. You should have a working telephone (in all countries) and regular check in points with your parents.
2. You need to figure out how much money you will need and how to get it (international ATM card is a good choice). Be aware that particularly Switzerland is quite expensive. Be also aware that abk will charge as much fees as they, so you would want a card with low fees for using them outside the country, ATM usage fees and currency conversion.
3. Identify the public transportation systems you are likely to use. Make accounts and download the apps for easy booking and navigation. For example in Germany you use Bahn Navigator.
4. Make sure you have proper health insurance (either coverage from home or travel insurance) and know how to use it.

I stole the that last point from the nice answer of o.m. just so we can end up with a single list. Other answers: feel free to edit this answer and add to the list.

Answer 2

As far as Germany is concerned, it is strongly advised to carry a letter signed by all your legal guardians (not just one) with

• the identity and contact information for the parents,
• a copy of the data page of your parent's passport or id card,
• your planned itinerary.

The linked page assumes that one parent travels with a child, but the same principle applies without any parent.

You should also consider documents for medical coverage. Do you have an EHIC?