Travel
- Traveling Through Europe
Most people associate traveling through Europe with heavy expenses and often talk themselves out of going for this very reason. However, it does not have to be as costly as you have been led to believe, as you can use coupons for target.com to save money...
- Lodging Options In South Africa
South Africa is a destination that appeals to a variety of travellers, from backpackers on a budget to honeymooners seeking luxury and everything in between. From the extravagant hotels that add glitz and glamour to Cape Town's famous Victoria and...
- 7 Interrail Tips To Fall In Love With Train Travel In Europe
Many people associate Interrail with backpackers, twenty-somethings, low budgets, and obscure hostels. But it doesn't have to be this way. Europe's modern rail network makes train travel easy, comfortable, efficient and environmentally-friendly....
- Top 5 Hotels To Stay In London On A Budget
There is so much to do in London it is unreal. Whether you are going shopping, seeing family, seeing friends, going out for dinner, going to the theatre, there is so much to do. Being in London doing all of these things and more is such a fantastic experience....
- 7 Tips For Traveling Europe On A Shoestring Budget
"The truth is that we live out our lives putting off all that can be put off; perhaps we all know deep down that we are immortal and that sooner or later all men will do and know all things." Jorge Luis Borges Traveling is a lot easier today than it was...
Travel
Backpacking Europe. Cheap Accommodation Guide
 |
| Louvre Museum, Paris |
Europe might have kind of a bad fame for being expensive. Most backpackers prefer to travel through Asia and South America as they are considerably cheaper. But one thing is for sure: there's only one Paris, one Barcelona, and one London in this world and whether you like it or not, they are located in Europe and that's not going to change any time soon.
After traveling 132 towns/cities in 17 countries out of 50 countries in Europe, I can assure you that if you do a bit of planning in advance and you manage your finances well, concentrate on the place you are visiting and not on your old habits, Europe can be quite affordable. I did 1 week up to 2 months backpacking trips through Europe. There was always the same conclusion. For my style of traveling, it always cost 500euro/week/person, all travel expenses included. I have one advantage over many of you - I live in Europe. I don't have to pay 1,000euro just to get here. But I still have to get from point A to point B and I still have to pay for the train or the flight to do so. There are always tricks to be learned to save you money. Europe on a shoestring budget is not just the title of a book.
One way of saving money is to never travel alone. Two people sharing a hotel room almost cuts the expenses in half. If you don't mind the dorms from the youth hostels where you share one big room with other 6 or 12 fellow backpackers you've never seen before and probably you will never see again, then you have my blessing and my assurance that this is the cheapest accommodation you will ever find in Europe, unless maybe if you stay at a friends house. These dorms can be mix or unisex, depending from one hostel to another. Dorms might be suitable for single people, groups of friends and people that don't have issues about sleeping in the same room with strangers. Unfortunately for my bank account, I do have issues regarding the dorms and never spend the night in one. And that's still 500euro a week!
By the time I got to backpack Europe I was already married and traveling with my husband and staying in a hotel or a private room in a hostel seemed the best choice. It is true that we always spent a bit more on our accommodation than other backpackers, but if you do the math, the safety and privacy you get in return for the small extra we paid, was always worth it. You can expect to pay between 10 and 20euro per night for a bed in a dorm in most European countries. That's between 20 and 40euro per night for 2 people. We usually spend between 42 and 55euro per night for a private room. London and Copenhagen are the only two exceptions that were way over our planned budget. Everywhere else, we happily managed to stay within our budget.
We never booked accommodation in advance, except once or twice when we booked through Etap Hotel and for our last trip to Milan, Lake Como and Turin, which by the way cost us only 350euro/6 days/person, due in part to a fantastic deal we got with RyanAir. We always move boldly from one city to another and though most of the time we travel during the high season, we never had problems finding accommodation.
Most cities have a tourist information office either inside or outside the train station and they are more then happy to book right there and then a room for you. Sometimes you have to pay up to 5euro extra for the service and sometimes they just point you out on a free tourist map where to go for cheap accommodation as they don't work with small, family run Bed&Breakfasts. As long as you keep it more or less on the beaten path, cheap accommodation options are not hard to find in Europe. Once you get off the beaten road, tourist information offices might be difficult to find, but you will never run out of budget options to spend your night.
More articles on the subject of backpacking Europe to come. Cheap food and cheap transportation to be coverd too.
- Traveling Through Europe
Most people associate traveling through Europe with heavy expenses and often talk themselves out of going for this very reason. However, it does not have to be as costly as you have been led to believe, as you can use coupons for target.com to save money...
- Lodging Options In South Africa
South Africa is a destination that appeals to a variety of travellers, from backpackers on a budget to honeymooners seeking luxury and everything in between. From the extravagant hotels that add glitz and glamour to Cape Town's famous Victoria and...
- 7 Interrail Tips To Fall In Love With Train Travel In Europe
Many people associate Interrail with backpackers, twenty-somethings, low budgets, and obscure hostels. But it doesn't have to be this way. Europe's modern rail network makes train travel easy, comfortable, efficient and environmentally-friendly....
- Top 5 Hotels To Stay In London On A Budget
There is so much to do in London it is unreal. Whether you are going shopping, seeing family, seeing friends, going out for dinner, going to the theatre, there is so much to do. Being in London doing all of these things and more is such a fantastic experience....
- 7 Tips For Traveling Europe On A Shoestring Budget
"The truth is that we live out our lives putting off all that can be put off; perhaps we all know deep down that we are immortal and that sooner or later all men will do and know all things." Jorge Luis Borges Traveling is a lot easier today than it was...