Day-by-day itinerary
Twelve days, Aug 27 – Sep 7. Tap a day to expand. High-risk transfer days are flagged.
Route & city maps
Pick Whole route for the overview, or a city to see the exact stations, stay areas and attractions you'll use — with the real coastal/mountain road corridors between cities. Toggle categories in the legend. Mapbox tiles (light/dark follows the theme; falls back to OpenStreetMap if the token is removed).
Transfer matrix — all 16 legs
Colour = risk. green safe/flexible · amber watch · red high-risk. Tap a leg for detail.
City transport & ride-share
Which app to install where — apps change by country (no Uber/Bolt in Albania or Montenegro).
Where to sleep
Solo-backpacker picks per city: best area, station proximity, 3 hostels + 3 hotels + a splurge.
Where to eat
Cheap eats, one traditional dish to try, tap-water & tipping norms, and the tourist trap to skip.
What to see
The 2–4 hour hit-list per stop, what to pre-book, 2026 prices/hours, and how to beat the heat.
Visa · borders · safety
Canadian passport. The headline: no ETIAS needed yet, but EES biometrics are live.
Money & connectivity
8 of 10 countries use the euro (Bulgaria switched Jan 2026). Only Lek & Denar are separate.
One-backpack packing list
Late-summer heat + carry-on-friendly. Tick items off — your progress is saved on this device.
Cost dashboard
Three tiers in CAD. Switch tier to re-total; the line-items update live.
Risk & buffer dashboard
Every plan-threatening risk with its buffer, backup, and decision deadline.
Backup itineraries
Five ways the plan flexes without collapsing — and whether each still hits 10 countries.
Booking checklist
What to lock in now vs. what waits — sequenced by how fast it sells out.
Sources
Official operator, airport, tourism-board and Government-of-Canada pages behind the key claims.
Final human summary
The whole trip in one screen — read this if you read nothing else.
Meet people — solo & social
Free walking tours, the genuinely social hostels, pub crawls and group activities — the easiest ways to meet other travellers in every stop.