Traveling to and in Europe

Well, shrimp, (awesome name, haha, I had to use it), first thing's first, if you can, apply for an International Studnet ID card,

http://www.istc.org/sisp/index.htm

Havn't had the chance to use one yet, but there are some crazy discounts to be had, particularly with airfare (I found tickets at half-off from chicago to frankfurt, germany!)  Get it while you're a student though, not sure what happens when you graduate, maybe if you buy the tickets ahead of time, i dunno... 

Wish I could say the europass is your thing, but you've picked some pretty far away places, europasses are usually good for a collection of neighboring countries, but not like a train pass is going to help you get to iceland anyway, lol. 

I havn't had the opportunity to go to Iceland or Sweden, but I've been to Switzerland several times while was living in Germany, and it can be fairly expensive no matter what you do to keep expenses down.  If you're going for the skiing or boarding, you can find cheaper, yet comparable resorts and mountain towns in Austria.  To give you an idea of the cost difference, when I went with my family as a kid on trips to either, we'd usually stay a week in Austria, as opposed to maybe three or four days in Switzerland for about the same money.  Since I was a little young at the time, I can't give you too much details about exact pricing, but if you're going to Switzerland for the stuff only Swizerland has to offer, knock yourself out and have a good time!  A little something I could recommend is the town Zermatt, a town that's a bit touristy but for good reason, an amazing view of the Matterhorn, you can actually get up to where the glaciers and such are near it, and the whole town uses nothing but electric cars to prevent smog, it's pretty novel really!

If you're lookin for German attractions, I can give you quite a list, lemme know what you'd like!

Dan

Thanks alot wanderlust, I am applying for the student ID card tomorrow... I really have no reasoning for choosing those countries other then suggestions from friends and pictures Ive seen, so I am definitely open to explore other options. My only concern is that I only speak English. At this point im considering taking out another student loan just to cover my traveling expenses. Obviously this might not be the best decision, but I really want to go, and I don't see many other options as far as destinations and stay time.

keep the suggestions coming guys

Thanks again