So here’s the deal, this summer, I got my visa for Spain REALLY late. (10 days AFTER my travel date, perks of being a Pakistani!) Hence, I had not booked my tickets within Europe. When I eventually got the visa, sat down to book them, I realised the prices had gone LITERALLY sky HIGH! What could've cost me 200 Euros was actually for 500 euros now. The only way out was to get a bus and thus, came Flixbus, my cheapest option for travelling across Europe.
My route:
Barcelona - Ljubljana
Ljubljana - Luxembourg
Luxembourg - Poland
1.It is SO SO CHEAP! Which also makes you wonder what are you actually in for? But we all have been through the time when we are going out of budget and REALLLY need to cut down on costs. Well FlixBus is the right option for that?!
2.If you have the time/days to spare in Europe I’d say DO IT! I took an overnight bus from Barcelona to Slovenia. It was literally less than half the price as compare to all the trains etc If you’ve got to be somewhere on time then don’t take the risk!
3.I’ve always been fascinated by crossing the borders on road! Call me weird but this isn’t something usual for a Pakistani, like me. So I was having the time of my life crossing the Spanish/Italian/French/Polish and Slovenian border without any hassle. Just make sure you have all the necessary documents and ID's.
4.If you read the reviews online you’ll probably end up backing out! But prepare yourself for the delays or any kind of mishap. Unforeseen problems do show up and at times might not necessarily be the company’s fault (like the central bus station at Marseille closed down an hour before our departure due to an emergency!)
5.The drivers do NOT speak English! So there’s a language barrier. You must download the FlixBus app for a better understanding of the route or you’ll really feel lost. Other passengers are usually very helpful too.
6.The few seats in the front are reserved seats and are indicated by green stickers. If you haven't paid extra for them, make sure you don't sit on them! I saw a lot of fights and arguments over them.....
7.While I read reviews that they do sell some sort of snacks on the bus BUT while I was on a bus for 16hrs there was nothing of that sort (I don't know if you've got to ask the driver for it or what) and we couldn’t really get off the bus since stops were for 5 mins only! So be prepared for the journey!
8.They do have bathrooms on the bus. You can close your nose and use it. Apart from the smell, they were reasonable.
9.NEVER get seats infront or behind the washroom. You’ll have to hold your breath everything that door opens/closes. And trust me, it’s a lot of times!
10.The routes at times are absolutely beautiful! Yes I did read it up that they usually don’t take the scenic views but I got to check out Nice, Monaco, Venice, Marseille while on the road! (Don’t expect for a stopover, this was just when I was in the bus and going through the towns) But the most beautiful one was the stopover at Austria!
11.WiFi works for a few minutes but then gives up. A few hours later try again and it will start working! Don’t know what’s the deal with that but yes limited usage so don’t rely on that. I downloaded multiple seasons for my trip at the hotels :P
12.They have charging slots so YAY! But make sure they're working before you get too comfortable in your seats (speaking from experience LOL!)
13.Buses were clean, seats were reasonably comfortable.
14. In the end I’d say just be PREPARED! Have extra food and water for yourself, download on movies, have your chargers and neck pillow, have extra tissues (read a review they ran out of tissues once and didn’t restock so thought I’ll prepare myself) Lol! Oh and gets a little cold in the bus so have some warm clothes too.
15. I read reviews about luggages being misplaced or perhaps stolen? Thankfully, that didn't happen with us or anyone around us! But just in case, make sure you carefully label your bags and also mention the final destination on it.