@shegie_285: Thanks for that info sis, I'll keep that in mind. Good to know na okay naman pala kahit less than 2 hours lang ang connecting flight, kaya naman. Oo nga eh, medyo magulo nga sa Turkey ngayon.
@beachpatrol: I spent $5,000 in 2011 (3 weeks, Amsterdam-Cologne-Venice-Florence-Rome-Paris) and $4,675 in 2013 (4 weeks, Prague-Athens-Santorini-Barcelona-Madrid-Granada-Seville-Lisbon) - including airfare and some shopping. Details of the planning, countries & cities, and expenses are in my blog. Yung 2013 trip ko, hindi ganun ka-okay yung itinerary kasi hindi tabi-tabi yung cities in the first part of the trip (wag tularan!).
Php 150K is very doable naman if you are willing to backpack (stay in dorms) and eat pizza and sandwiches lang - and minimal eating in restaurant. IMO, since madami kayo (and if first time nyo lahat), you'll want to hit everything in one go...which is just not possible. So you guys can start researching and determine which sights are non-negotiable. Use
cities, not countries, in choosing your route. E.g. Italy is huge and you can easily spend 3 weeks there alone. May mga "duplicates" din eh, like Athens is similar to Rome - parehong ruins, albeit different ruins.
Iba-iba din cost of living in each city: A bed in a hostel in Venice is EUR 40 (basic) while a bed in a hostel in Prague is only EUR 22 (very nice studio-type dorm).
IMHO, it would be good to discuss the budget openly with the group. Kasi, you may have different styles of travelling. Baka some are used to comfort and some are not. Baka may willing to cook but some would like to eat out.
Also, ascertain that you will all be committed to
take leaves for this trip (hahaha, may hugot daw ako!). Pwede kasing some are vying for promotion at work at di pwede mag-absent, some plan to get married or get pregnant. Ayown. But it is good na ang saving horizon nyo starts now - almost 2 years din ako nag-ipon for my first trip.
Enjoy planning!
