Many of us start our exploration of Europe as backpackers or at least staying in budget hotels, but eventually we prefer at least a 3-star hotel with a few creature comforts. That is why we have created this list of all of Europe's top tourist cities ranked from cheapest to most expensive for those on an average budget and sharing a 3-star hotel room for two people.
The newly-updated index for 2019 below shows a price for each city and that can be used as a typical budget for normal daily expenses, but of course it doesn't include shopping and souvenirs. You'll notice that the cities at the bottom of the list will cost more than four times as much per day as those on the top of the list, so choosing which cities to visit can make a huge difference in your overall budget.
Inflation and currency exchange rates were fairly stable through 2018 so most of the list will look familiar compared to last year's edition. That said, a few countries did see currency devaluations so they are now quite a bit cheaper than in years past. Hotels seem to be more expensive in quite a few very popular cities, so it might make even more sense to explore places that other travelers are still ignoring.
1 Are you a hostel person rather than a hotel person?
Are you a hostel person rather than a hotel person?
If you prefer hostel dorm beds to private hotel rooms then check the Europe Backpackers Index, which is aimed at budget travelers. The rankings are also quite different in some cases, as cheap dorms are available in some cities where hotel rooms aren't quite so cheap.
We take a fixed set of typical expenses that every traveler will encounter, and apply them to each of the 56 major European tourist cities.
It may be relatively cheap, but Bucharest still isn't inviting a flood of cultural tourism. The slow-moving build-out of the tourist infrastructure is among the issues that keeps most travelers stopping elsewhere in Romania, but it's still a favorite stop for many who are touring the region, and at least prices are very low once you arrive. There are some nice tourist districts here, so it's a nice place to stop on your way in or out of the country.
The low prices have helped Belgrade start showing up on the lists of party cities for weekend breaks with Europeans who live a cheap flight away. This is a large city with a lot of history, and relatively few problems compared to some of its neighbors. Quality is quite high, even in the lower price ranges, so Belgrade is a pleasant bargain for most visitors.
Kiev is a long way from all of the popular Western European cities that travelers normally frequent, and this helps give it a frontier quality that will excite some and frustrate others. Since the Ukranian currency started going down in 2014 due to the conflict with Russia, this place is a huge bargain. The inflation rate has been high as well, so this one is a bit of a moving target, although it should be cheap for some time to come. Until things stabilize, it's hard to be sure of a budget very far in advance.
One of the more troubled parts of former Yugoslavia, Sarajevo is fighting an image problem with older travelers. It's a shame because this is one of the most interesting cities in Europe, with a lively and welcoming Muslim old town at its heart. Sarajevo is also quite out of the way for most people, so it's great that things are very cheap for those who make the effort.
Most travelers to Croatia head to the coast, so Zagreb isn't really a tourist hot spot. For this reason, the hotel scene tends to be more business oriented. It's worth a couple days if you are touring the area, and the old city center is teaming with nice outdoor restaurants with good prices. The amazing Plitvice Falls Park is not far away, and highly recommended.
A city that would be far more popular if it were easier to reach as part of a tour around Europe, Sofia at least is a bargain for those who make the trip. The city center is quite trendy and nice, with plenty of outdoor cafes and interesting restaurants and clubs, so it's hardly what you'd expect for one of the cheapest cities in Europe. Sofia lacks any must-see sights, but it's more pleasant than you might expect.
Istanbul had been getting fairly expensive as of a few years ago, but some moves by the goverment have not assured travelers that it's a great time to visit, so outside tourism has dropped way off and prices for hotels have come down. As of 2019 the US State Department even recommends that its citizens avoid the country for now, even though things have been calm in general. For the best deals check our list of editor's choice Istanbul hotels that are all great value with excellent locations.
In spite of being a tiny town that is too far (3 hours) from Prague or Vienna for a day trip, Cesky Krumlov is the Czech Republic's second most popular destination for tourists. Once you see it, you'll know why. Forgotten for many decades, this friendly little place on a serpentine stretch of river is now booming. Among its best features is that it's incredibly cheap by European standards, but it would still be worth a stop even if it weren't. Hotel prices have been going up as it becomes more popular, so don't put a visit off too long.
An abundance of decent tourist hotels makes Budapest a fantastic bargain compared to other classic cities. As long as you don't insist on staying right by the river and eating only at touristy restaurants with English menus, this city can be quite a bargain. Budapest is once again the cheapest major tourist city on the list, so it's one to add to your list if you are anywhere nearby.
By our judgement, Krakow is easily among the best bargains in Europe, with a lovely and tranquil old town center combined with prices that seem weirdly low. There are certainly quite a few expensive (and touristy) restaurants and bars in obvious places, but just around the corner there will be plenty of less obvious places with great food and drinks at half the price. If you want to feel "rich" in a lovely tourist city, head to Krakow while prices still seem this low.
Technically part of Europe because it's run by Spain, Tenerife is in the Canary Islands off the northwest coast of Africa, and it's the most popular of them for English-speakers. The mild climate is good pretty much all year round so it's a popular escape at any time. English speakers will find the most comfortable hotels in the southwest corner of the island, near Los Cristianos. Fortunately it's relatively cheap as well. During peak seasons, hotel prices will be higher, but still a bargain for Europe.
While Dubrovnik is the focus of most Croatia itineraries, the city of Split is just as impressive in most ways, and it's also far cheaper and easier to reach. Better still, Split is a living city where locals fill up most restaurants and bars, making it feel far more authentic and less touristy. Hotels here can be bargains by European standards and the islands nearby are also well priced by comparison. In July and August you can expect to pay a lot more for accommodation.
A real surprise considering how close it is to Scandinavia, Riga is still very cheap for Europe. This former Soviet area is not the sort of place you end up in accidentally on your way from one city to another, so the remoteness might help contribute to the fact that it's not terribly well discovered by many Westerners yet. Riga is definitely on the map of the European party crowd, but it's still very charming.
As with the other Baltic states (Estonia and Latvia), Lithuania is still quite cheap compared to its neighbors a bit to the west. Vilnius is out of the way unless you are going from Poland through to Estonia, but it's also served by an increasing number of European budget airlines who bring people in for a cheap weekend break. There's a lovely old city center here, and appealing prices once you arrive. And unlike Riga and Tallinn, this is not a cruise port city so the center is free of most of the cheesy things that passengers gravitate toward.
Warsaw is another city that rewards its visitors with reasonable prices, but is still not particularly popular, at least compared to the cheaper and more charming city of Krakow. The beautifully restored Old City is a major highlight that competes favorably with Krakow, though the rest of Warsaw feels more dedicated to business travelers.
Russia had a currency melt down and dramatic inflation a few years ago, but things have stabilized since then. The top attractions in Saint Petersburg drive the cost up a bit, though are still well worth it. Getting a tourist visa isn't easy for most, so you can't just buy a ticket and pop on over. Most people consider it far nicer than Moscow, and fortunately hotels here are a bit cheaper as well.
Considering that it's practically within bicycling distance of Vienna, Bratislava continues to keep a low profile among the traveling set. This is another that is becoming popular with the weekend-break crowd, partly due to its reasonable prices, but also due to the fact that it's quite international for a former Eastern city.
Santorini is Greece's most popular tourist island so it's listed here to represent all of them, which tend to be mostly similar in price. Things like food and drinks are reasonably priced on the islands, especially if you don't require a sea view at the same time, but renting scooters or water sports equipment can add up quickly. During July and August the hotel prices jump up quite a bit as well, so visit in the shoulder months if you can.
Moscow famously used to top some of the "most expensive cities in the world" lists, yet especially after the 2014-15 currency plunge, that's not even close to being true. The city is crammed with hotels that earn low marks from most visitors, indicating that standards still need to improve greatly for the mid-range tourist to be happy, even if the 5-star visitor is doing fine here. Still, unless you need an international 5-star hotel, Moscow isn't quite as expensive for travelers as older headlines might have you believe.
Athens is another city that can be a relative bargain for the 3-star traveler, with some good and cheap hotels right in the main tourist zones. During summer the city does fill up, so it may not feel so affordable during high season. The recent troubles are keeping some people away, so it might be easier to find bargains this year, particularly with hotels.
This famous party island off of Spain is a pretty good bargain for the budget travel crowd outside of July and August, as long as they aren't too interested in going into any of the huge nightclubs that charge a fortune at the door and crazy-high prices for drinks once inside. If you are coming to participate in the club scene, you'll be spending much more than what is listed below. Also, hotels will be much more expensive in July and August, so during peak season the island would be much farther down this list.
The small capital city of Valletta only has a small fraction of Malta's hotels and sights, so this entry is really for the whole island. Valletta is historic and interesting, but honestly most people come to Malta for the climate, so most hotels are in Sliema or farther up the coast. Malta's location south of Sicily gives it an enjoyable climate while the continent is still chilly, so it is fairly popular for most of the year. Most people speak English so it continues to be big with many Brits who've been coming for decades.
Prague's main tourist areas have been insanely crowded (especially during summers) for well over a decade now, but the herds keep coming. This is still a great-value city considering what it has to offer, but prices are likely to keep creeping up so there's no time like the present. Check out our editor's choice Prague hotels for great locations and very good prices at high-rated properties.
Slovenia borders Italy and Austria, yet it's still largely unknown to European visitors from outside of the region. Ljubljana itself is a charming and mellow town that deserves far more tourism than it receives, yet the real draws to the country are its natural sights, including Lake Bled and its Karst formations on the coast. Hotels aren't as cheap as they were a few years ago, however, so it's more in the mid range now.
Dubrovnik's historic walled city is stunning, and anyone wanting to stay in or near it will pay high prices for hotels. Apartments (called sobas) are actually more plentiful and better value. Unfortunately, even if you get a bargain bed, you'll discover that every restaurant and bar in Dubrovnik is totally dedicated to tourists, so it feels like a theme park. The crowds are especially thick from June through August, so prices shoot up then and availability is limited.
An interesting city with influences of nearby Scandinavia and its recent Soviet past, Tallinn isn't too easy to reach and it doesn't seem to be talked about much, but at least it's quite affordable so it should appeal to adventurous types who like to see some remaining east/west contrasts. Finnish people coming on the 90-minute ferry from Helsinki still make up a large number of visitors, with cruise passengers being most of the rest.
Naples is certainly the cheapest of Italy's main tourist cities, so it's a shame that most people ignore it completely. Its reputation of being a bit rough around the edges shouldn't keep you away, though there are still areas where you might not want to linger at night. Hotel bargains are also relatively easy to find, and who can resist visiting the birthplace of pizza? Day trips to Naples are very popular though, especially for those who base themselves in the wonderful nearby town of Sorrento.
Everyone seems to be talking about Berlin these days, for good reason. This is the kind of city that almost everyone loves once they visit a first time. There are some excellent museums and attractions that are even more affordable with a Berlin Pass. Fortunately, its hotel scene is expanding rapidly as well, so high quality 3-star rooms are getting easier to find at affordable prices. Check our recommended hotels in Berlin list for some great choices that offer very low rates when they aren't full up.
Lisbon is known for high standards among both hostels and hotels, and its reasonable prices help make it one of the better continuing travel bargains on the continent. The climate also helps make it one of the better spring or autumn destinations, so it's a nice city-break for many Europeans. The only trick is that it's in a remote corner of Europe, so people don't just wind up in Lisbon by accident.
Except for the height of the peak season, there are usually plenty of good hotel options in Madrid, which helps keep prices fairly reasonable. Check our Editor's choice Madrid hotels list for great bargains that are well located and well reviewed. The season here is long as well, which helps spread visitors out beyond July and August (when it's really too hot to visit anyway). Prices of most things in Madrid and Barcelona are similar, except that Madrid hotels tend to offer far better value.
As a major summer destination, Nice comes off as fairly reasonable on our data since we took hotel readings for May. During July and August this would probably be several places farther down this list, and the nearby towns of Antibes and Cannes are far more expensive still. Nevertheless, Nice is the most budget-friendly city on the Côte d'Azur, so it's the ideal base to explore nearby Monaco as well.
Although it's relatively compact, Bruges continues to be very popular among travelers exploring the Benelux region. The well preserved medieval town center is a UNESCO World Heritage sight of its own, and it's all very tourist friendly and easy to explore in only a day or two. Hotels are good value here, especially compared to the expense-account hotels that dominate Brussels.
Munich is famous for its pleasant city center as well as better weather than any other German tourist city, and those things help keep hotel prices a bit on the high side for this country. It's very different from Berlin and the others, and the Bavarian roots are clearly on display. During Oktoberfest (mid September through early October), prices double or triple from this, so plan for that and book early if you want to join in.
Depending on the week you decide to come, Florence is usually a bit cheaper than Milan, but again, the hotels can be full and expensive or empty and reasonable at almost any time. This is another city where if you choose the timing of your visit wisely you can stick to a fairly low budget. At least Florence hotels are cheaper than those in Rome, so it's a popular base for those exploring Tuscany or visiting nearby Pisa as a day trip.
Even with its relatively expensive (and very worthwhile) main attractions, Rome can be surprisingly affordable if you pick the right week to visit. During summer finding a good and cheap hotel can be very difficult, so it's not an eternal bargain, but during spring and autumn there are sometimes great deals to be found. Choose from our recommended Rome hotels for some great bargains with very good locations and high quality.
With good hotel real-estate being harder to come by, Barcelona remains more expensive than Madrid in that department, but quite similar for most other things. During summer the rates jump much higher yet, so those trying to maximize their travel funds should consider a shoulder-season visit. See our recommended Barcelona hotels list for cheap and well located options that are highly rated as well. The Barcelona Pass is something to consider for first-time visitors.
Another city that can be reasonable or very expensive depending on whether business people or bureaucrats are in town or not, Brussels is usually known for being pricey, but that isn't always the case. It's still debatable whether visiting is worthwhile at all, but it's at least good to know that it isn't always a budget buster at the same time.
This out of the way German city isn't really a top destination in that way that Berlin or Munich are, but it's pleasant and interesting, particularly for Beatles fans. Hotels here will double their prices during trade fairs and other events, so timing is everything if you want to keep costs down.
Luxembourg City is another that is only a bit more expensive for the 3-star traveler than for the backpacker, probably due to better hotel competition and few hostel options. In other words, hotel quality is quite high and rates are reasonable compared to many others on this list. This city seems to be completely overshadowed by the neighboring countries, which is a shame.
Its remote corner of Europe has kept Helsinki from being part of the main tourist trail, and its high prices keep even many adventurous travelers away. In other words, the hotels here are mostly for business travelers, so budget travelers get the shaft. Alcohol is also very expensive here, though restaurant food isn't as outrageous as other Nordic cities.
Featuring one of Europe's loveliest old towns, Salzburg is set dramatically below a huge fortress, and it's a must-stop destination for anyone touring the area. The Mozart's birthplace tourism is a huge draw here, but non-Europeans seem more entertained by the many Sound of Music bus tours, which are an excellent way to see the area even if you don't know all of the songs from the movie. If you want skiing, go to Innsbruck, but if you want Austrian charm, come to Salzburg.
Vienna is surprisingly expensive, but it's worth a visit if you can manage it. This is a classic and important city with excellent cultural offerings, so hotels in or near the city center can fill up at high prices, although they can also be bargains if not much is going on that week. Any first-time visitor who wants to see the main sights should read our review of the Vienna Pass, as it may be ideal.
Though its abundance of hostels does make Edinburgh a good stop for budget travelers, the choices in nicer 3-star hotels are more limited. The main attractions are also a bit pricey too, and of course during the August festival season you can expect to pay far more for a bed or room if you can find one at all. You can keep it affordable if you follow our cheapskate guide to the Edinburgh Fringe. Still, Edinburgh is a gorgeous city and almost everyone who visits falls in love with the place, at least during summer.
As the Norwegian currency came way down along with the oil prices that the country relies on, Oslo is still much cheaper than it was a few years ago. Actually, visitors will still find food and drinks to be shockingly expensive compared to most of the rest of Europe, but hotels here are surprisingly good value and the main attractions are fairly cheap.
Dublin used to be a bargain until the city began to boom and business travelers competed with tourists for limited hotel rooms. Now it's on the expensive side, although hotel prices can be reasonable in low season. The rest of Ireland is at least a bit cheaper, and it tends to get far better reviews from first-time visitors as well. By the way, if you are going to the Guinness Storehouse and a distillery tour, then the Dublin Pass is a great deal.
Much like Hamburg mentioned below, Milan can be a real Jekyll or Hyde with hotel prices at nearly any time of year. During our test period we found all hotels had high prices, but a couple weeks before or after those rooms could be half the price when there are no trade fairs or other events in town. Choose the week you stay wisely and Milan is very affordable. During trade-fair weeks the same room will double or triple in price from the week before or on many weekends.
Oslo is certainly a nice place, but if you are a tourist and can only make one stop in Norway, it should be in Bergen. This is a really wonderful town focused on a historic harbor, and unfortunately it's also extremely expensive by most standards. The gateway to visits to the fjords, Bergen promises endless things to do and it's very unique by European standards. Drinkers should think about a stop at the Duty Free on the way in, and food is very pricey as well.
Generally speaking, Paris is at least a little cheaper than many cities on this list, but the hotel scene can be tricky. For a convenient location and very good reviews, it will cost you, though many people are quite happy staying in a mediocre hotel or a bit out of the way. The fact that you can stay in almost any district and quickly get to the main attractions on the Metro seems to open up more options for visitors. During summer things can get quite crowded, however, even as half the locals have fled for the beaches. Those wishing to see the famous sights should consider bundling them together by buying a Paris Pass. See our recommended Paris hotels for our editors' picks for great value, location, and well-reviewed properties.
London has traditionally been one of the world's most expensive cities for tourists, but since the British Pound fell dramatically in 2016, it's not quite as bad. Those wanting to stay in premium hotel neighborhoods will still find it pricey. But once you know your way around a bit, and to avoid the really touristy places, London isn't really a budget buster. The famous museums are actually free, though the other famous attractions are among Europe's most expensive, so you can save a bit of money on them with a London Pass. For our editors' picks for excellent value accommodation see our recommended London hotels page. A first-time visitor should have a look at our list of the best things to do in London with current prices.
Even during May, which is still part of the off-season in Stockholm, hotels are very expensive. And during the high season of July and August things get ridiculous. This is truly a beautiful city filled with beautiful people, but it's still hard to justify a visit when it's so much more expensive than the cities above it on this list, most of which have plenty going for them as well. At least the long-promised ABBA Museum is finally open.
The compact nature of Amsterdam's city center seems to help make it more expensive for the 3-star traveler and the backpacker as well. Its never-ending popularity means that all the accommodation within the main canal rings tends to be expensive, and many who stay outside that zone are not satisfied with where they end up. At least it's easy to find good prices at restaurants, even in the heart of the tourist areas. Choose among our recommended Amsterdam hotels for great locations and great value.
Unlike most other European countries, Switzerland's big cities aren't particularly tourist friendly or even too interesting. Most tourists are far better off ignoring them and instead heading to Interlaken or Lucerne as a base to explore the Alps and the other outdoor activities that go all year round here. These tourist towns are quite expensive, although thankfully not as expensive as Zurich (below). If you are mainly after Alpine views and experiences, stay in Gimmelwald or Mürren, which are both unforgettable, and just up the mountain from Interlaken in the Lauterbrunnen Valley. Lucerne is the other Swiss city to consider visiting, and prices there are similar to Interlaken.
For many years Zürich dominated the bottom of this list as the most expensive tourist city in Europe, but in 2019 a few northern European cities are actually a bit more expensive. Fortunately, Switzerland has plenty of other and better tourist destinations, and even though they also tend to be pricey, at least there are some cheaper options available for those willing to look around or stay a bit out of town. If you want to visit an interesting city in Switzerland, Bern is probably a better choice. In other words, don't just plan a visit to Zürich because it's a big city that you've heard of.
Iceland has been the hottest destination in the travel world for a few years now and that popularity keeps pushing hotel prices higher. Some good news is that almost 100% of Iceland's charms are in its scenery and outdoor activities, so there isn't much reason to linger in the capital anyway. Hotel rooms with shared bathrooms are very common here and that is a money-saving idea to consider if you are trying to keep costs down.
No surprises to see Copenhagen so far down this list, as it can be a budget-killer regardless of your preferred travel style. As lovely as it is, and as pleasant as the endless summer days can be, just about everything is weirdly expensive all over Scandinavia, and few bargains can be found even in the larger cities.
Those who don't mind staying on one of the nearby islands at night can save money while visiting Venice, though they also sacrifice much of the charm that can only be found before or after the huge tour groups set in for the day. This price reflects a good 3-star hotel in the heart of the main island, and when you get there you'll see why prices are so high. Check our list of recommended Venice hotels for great value and locations.
The hotel prices listed above are for stays in mid May, which is shoulder season in most of Europe. During July and August, most cities will be more expensive as well as more crowded.
For the food and drink prices we took the top-end of our estimates for "budget breakfasts" and so forth. This should allow for plenty of flexibility in choosing dining options in each city, but it does not account for Michelin-star restaurants, as this is a 3-star index rather than a luxury index. The prices for high-end restaurants vary far too much to be meaningful here, so we chose a reasonable and lower standard, that should allow for meals and drinks in hotel restaurants and bars, rather than at the cheapest places in town.
The purpose of this index is to get a general sense of typical traveler costs in each city in Europe. As you can see, the cheapest city is over four times cheaper than the most expensive, so this information can help travelers choose destinations on based partly on how far their budget will go in each city.
The hotels chosen for this comparison are all of reasonably high 3-star standards and with good central locations. In many cities you can save a fair amount of money by staying in a 2-star hotel or staying farther from the city center.
Shopping, whether for souvenirs or clothing, is not included in these totals. Generally, souvenir prices will be proportional to the overall index price, but name-brand clothing tends to vary far less from one city to another.
You could use the main index price as a good indicator of a daily budget, per person, for each city, though obviously there are many ways to save or spend more wherever you go.
Again a good job. Thanks. Cheers from Ankara.
The list has some obvious flaws… For example food, you say that the list includes "three meals per day using the top end of the range of our "budget meals" for each city.
Okay, so supposedly for 4 Latvian Lat (5.7 EUR) you can get three meals? Yeah right. I haven't been to Copenhagen, but I doubt you can find 3 decent meals for 175 kronor.
Yeah Right, thanks for pointing this out. The Riga number was a typo, which I have fixed. I accidentally had repeated the taxi number, and the meals number is 8 rather than 4. It still sounds cheap, I'm sure. In many of the cities the total is really only for lunch and dinner since all the listed hotels include breakfast. This is the case in Copenhagen.
All of the meals estimates are for "budget" meals, including a typical breakfast (or the included hotel breakfast) and something like a sandwich or equivalent for lunch. The dinner estimate is meant to be for a relatively inexpensive sit-down meal. As you know, you can spend as much as you like on food in any city on earth, so this index is meant to show the lower end of the scale. The low end in Copenhagen is still a lot higher than the low end in Riga, and that's the whole point in the index.
Thank you for your work with this web page. I used it to travel to Poland (Warsaw, Krakow),Hungary (Budapest),and Czech Republic (Prague) in March 2013 for three weeks.
Krakow, as stated was a good value away from the main square especially in local restaurants such as the "milk bars". 3 star hotels were readily available on the major travel websites for around 50-60 USD per night. I splurged and stayed 2 nights at the "Castle Inn" (90 USD) in Warsaw due to its location. The taxis in Warsaw were smoky, and none of the drivers spoke English, so I was happy to spend extra to be in the Old Town and New Town tourist areas for a couple nights and walk everywhere.
Hungary was quite reasonable as long as meals are eaten a few blocks off the main tourists areas. 2-blocks off Andrussy Ave in Budapest, I saved a great deal on by going to local cafeteris which served hearty, delicious meals. In the Buda castle district, I overspent greatly a couple nights eating at tourist restaurants within the gates. The restaurants charge extra for side dishes, and things can really add up. Dinners can be expensive 12-25 USD, if you are not careful. The service is good— just make sure you check that service fees are included——- I tipped a couple times not knowing a 7-10% fee was included in the check.
Down the backside of Buda, outside the gates, near the metro station, are cheaper options. 3 star hotels were available in the 60 USD range on many travel websites, and many include breakfast, which is important because there aren't many places in Budapest that open for breakfast service other than coffee and pastry. Plus, you save money by eating a good breakfast before you start each day.There seems to be a charge to visit every church or building complex of interest in Budapest. I paid 10 USD to vist the Terror House Museum in Budapest! I was not prepared for these charges. At St Andrew's Church in Budapest, there was a "donation" required to enter the church. It was nominal, around 1 USD, but I did not have change for a little larger Hungarian bill and the door monitor would not give me a change from the other receipts, so I had to pay more. I used public transportation all week in Budapest and only used a taxi to get to the airport. Otherwise, the trams and subway are about 1.30 USD each trip. The Hungarian subway police agressively monitor the lines. Always buy a ticket.
Few attractions in Central Europe are free, even "attractions inside attractions", such as the interior of Wawel Castle in Krakow! The church is partitioned off into different attractions and each requires a ticket. This was a surprise. I have not been to Eurpoe in a while, though.
Prague was overrun. Even though it was freezing in March with snow, the crowds descended on the castle each morning at 0945. I was surprised how many people were visiting Prague in Winter! The Charles Bridge was blocked by crowds by 10 am each morning. I found myself getting up each day at 0700 and walking around to beat the crowds for photos.
I cannot imagine visiting Prague during the Summer months! Too many people trying to see the same things. Museaum costs in Prague were relatively high, in my opinion, I felt, at 5-7 USD. I realize now that these costs are to maintain world class exibits. you need to really pick and choose what is important if you are on a budget. The Castle complex exterior is free and great to wander around day or night. I mostly ate at bars which had set menus to save money. Also, there are places immediately below the castle district that sell quick food like sausages or pannini for cheaper prices. Sit down restaurants in the tourist zone were expensive at 10-25 USD for a full meal without alcohol.There are "set menus" to be found in the tourist areas for 5-7 USD.
One thing that irritated me was that there are few internet cafes to check e-mail in the capital cities I visited. Not everyone has a smart phone, so I am curious why there are fewer internet cafes. It is different than Asia and Latin America where these businesses are everywhere. I had to borrow a computer a couple times from fellow travelers.
Overall, great trip! Thanks again for your work on this site. your information was accurate. The dollar got stronger during my trip, which reduced my overall costs.
Jeffrey, thank you for the nice words and for the detailed trip report. I agree (and try to advise people often) that if you walk a couple blocks away from the main tourist streets you can often get similar food in a more authentic (rather than touristy) place for half the price. For me the places near the river in Budapest seemed overpriced, but in Pest a few blocks inland I was finding interesting places at great prices.
And I know what you mean about Prague. Venice is actually the same way that even in February they both feel so crowded it's like a festival is going on. But that's just how they always are, at least along the popular walkways.
For the Baltic area (Riga & Tallinn) I would add Vilnius in Lithuania. A beautiful city with many things to do and see it is very affordable. Easy to reach via major airlines (as well as Wizzair, Ryanair and, allegedly, a new "national" airline will start operating in the summer of 2013). You can get a decent hotel for 40-50 euros, a pint of beer is under 2 euros. In the old town all major architectural sites are a walking distance from each other but there is also a small mini bus that covers the old town for those with sore feet. Happy travels!
Is the Hotel actually per person, All hotels that I am familliar with charge for the room not the amount of people as long as its not over a certain amount.
ALso is everyting else per person, so a couple can double the entire amount?
The hotel rates listed for each city are half of a double room per night. I wanted to keep the index at per person per day for simplicity, but of course most hotels quote rates for double rooms. Many of these same hotels also have cheaper single rooms, but almost never half the price, so the best deal is half a twin or double.
When I visited Istanbul last year, it was not as cheap as expected. Especially not the hotels. The problem is that many hotels set their prices in euros. A lower Lira will only fatten their pockets, not ours.
So no matter how low the Lira goes, that 3-star hotel is still 50 euros.
This list is awesome. Thanks for compiling it!
My girlfriend and I are going to Europe for the first time and it helps a lot to know some prices for planning.
When you quote prices of hotels or hostels, if I have five people do we each have to pay the price (is it per bed)or can we get a room and all sleep there?
I went to the 3 star hotel you suggested in Santorini, typed winter dates and got an insane amount for the rooms compared to the price you published there.
You have to recheck the whole list and try again.
Just back from Ireland, 10 days, and Edinburgh, 3 days.
I went in knowing that using the dollar I was gonna get sc***ed in the exchange. I am a value traveler, meaning I look for the total value in my expenditures, i.e., Pay a little more for something if it gets you something else, i.e. slightly higher lodging when it gets you wireless or breakfast or more.
Using this guide was quite helpful and reduced my shock at the dining prices especially! In Ireland, its a deal if you can find a meal in a cafe or restaurant with beverage for 7-10 Euro's, and that was what I did mostly. My old standby, eating at Chinese restaurants, did not work in Ireland or Edinburgh, and, in fact, the three Chinese meals were among my most expensive at 25-30 Euro's each!(Mandarin House, Parnell Street, Dublin, and "The Golden Dragon", Castle Street in Edinburgh) Why? I don't know, but rice is now a "side dish" everywhere and priced at 5 euros! Cheapest main dish was 10 Euro. Hey, it works in other countries!
The best value meals were always 2-3 blocks off the main tourist path in Killarney ("Mac's of Main Street" and "The Country Kitchen") and Dublin ("LA Pizza", a 5 Euro breakfast).
Beer in a pub was 3-5 Euro in Ireland, and 3.75-5 GBP in Edinburgh ("Deacon Brodie's Tavern", The Golden Mile, Edinburgh, "Tennant's Lager" 3.75 GBP), depending on where the pub was, i.e. prime tourist area vs. county locale or urban tavern.
The surprise? Edinburgh's free Museums and galleries were great! The shock? The entrance fee to Edinburgh Castle at about 26 USD! There's a vote for virtual museums! Again, I don't have a lot of bucks, so these items cut into my daily budget. I was "castled out" by the time I got to Killkenny and did not pay to go inside another, one including Ross Castle in Killarney. That money went to renting a mountain bike which brought me much more access and enjoyment riding around the beautiful park!
I traveled by bus (Bus Eireann) from the north to the south of Northern Ireland and Ireland and the bonus was free wi-fi on all the legs of the bus trips. It costs about 20-25 USD to travel from major town to major town in Ireland, i.e. Dublin to Kilkenny, Killkenny and Cork to Killarney. My big expense in Northern Ireland was the "Paddy Campbell's Famous Black Cab Tour", which was outstanding! I paid 50 USD and learned a lot.
I stayed in B&B's that were usually rated 3-stars and paid an average of 72 USD per night—- there were much higher hotels. I spent 80 USD to stay at the "Royal Scots Club" in Edinburgh and that was a great deal for that place. I booked five months in advance to ensure a room and a decent price, as prices had gone up significantly when I arrived. The KEY is getting a breakfast each day included in your rate. The quality of the B&B's in Ireland were good, but I was introduced to the "Hen Party" phenomena which was annoying after the first two lat-night appearances.
Travel: 20 USD per day (Used one taxi the entire 2 weeks because cabs are a luxury at 7-10 Euro per trip.)Bus was ok, but only station to station travel was possible. I walked a lot.
Misc: 10-20 USD, a museum, a couple extra pints, ect.
My conclusion: For an American on the dollar, the 3 star experience in Ireland and Scotland can be done, but you don't have a lot of leeway at 120-130 USD per day. I spent much time on the review sites like "Trip Advisor" and others looking for value and booked in advance. I explored areas outside the tourist zone and save 30% or more on dining. The dollar is weak, so you have to be flexible!
Another great trip report, and I'm again happy to see that you've found this information to be useful. Interestingly, I've had the same exact experience at Edinburgh Castle. It feels like I've toured over 100 castles, including some huge and really impressive ones, so both the last two times I was in Edinburgh I couldn't bring myself to pay that much for the Edinburgh Castle. And the fact that the excellent museums are free (courtesy of British tax payers) makes the high admission price seem even worse.
Love the work you've done here. Great info and listings! Just wondering if a 3-star index for the Americas, Oceania or Africa was in the works for 2015?
Hello, wonderful list. But where is Tirana, Albania? Believe it would be near the top of the list.
Thanks. I've expanded this list over the years from 40 cities to 56 now, and I've considered adding Tirana as well as Podgorica and even Skopje. The reason I haven't so far is that those are all small and obscure cities that very few people from outside of the region will visit, regardless of price. Already I worry a bit that most of the Top 10 on the list are cities that many have never heard of and wouldn't consider visiting. The whole point of this list is to help people sort out which are the cheaper parts of Europe for those planning visits, and I think it might already be longer than is most helpful to most people.
So it's not a matter of not being aware of them or not wanting to do the work, but rather that (unfortunately) I don't think most people are interested in those cities. Partly it's that they are very difficult to reach unless you specifically fly in, and not many tourists are doing that.
Thank you for doing this, it's really helpful for planning our trip this summer. Couple of years ago I visited Stockholm, Helsinki, Paris, Rome, Venice and Florence. I'm not surprised that all the cities are in the top 13 expensive ones. I'm from India and the euro rate was pretty high then too. I believe we managed in Paris at about $100-$120 per person per day at these standards, but the other cities seem accurate.
This time we are going to Paris (had to go again!), Bratislava, Budapest, Vienna, Salzburg, Cesky Krumlov and Prague. Two of these were recent additions so that worked well. I do hope the costs will be less this time, with the Euro down as well.
Thanks again, and I'll let you know how my actual costs compare to your calculations.
It's also a good list to plan my future tours.
I'm always happy to hear that people find this information useful. Paris is a tricky one to quantify because it can be fairly cheap if you don't mind staying at a hotel in a somewhat remote neighborhood, and the Metro makes it convenient anyway. In most of the other cities on your previous trip, it's a huge hassle to see the sights if you book a cheap hotel way on the outskirts, and in some places there are no cheap hotels at all.
thank you for the detailed information. This will really help a lot in fulfilling ,y euro tour dream. Thank you.
My husband and I have finally decided that we will have to include Greece in our itinerary since this is adjacent to Turkey.
We intend to fly in to Athens and spend 3 nights there then explore some other Greek islands before we proceed to Turkey. Could you please suggest which Greek islands should we head to? Somewhere where we can also take a ferry towards Turkey? As per your recommendation, we will surely go to Cappadocia in Turkey and do Istanbul on our last few days before we head for home. We have 20 days for this planned vacation in September. We hope you can assist us.
We are quite apprehensive in taking the ferries from Athens to the Greek islands although we know it is doable as other tourists have done these in a breeze.
If you have other suggestions for us aside from Greece to add to our Turkey vacation, we will surely appreciate it.
Greece certainly has a few problems these days, and it might get worse, but I haven't heard of a single report of its (critical) tourism industry being slowed down by them. They do tourism well, and most of the people you'll encounter will speak English.
There are so many Greek islands that choosing one or two can be a challenge. However, if you are going to connect a Greek island with a Turkish port, there are only a few good choices. I think your best bet would be to take a ferry from the Athens port of Piraeus to Santorini, which is the single most popular Greek island, so also the easiest for a newcomer. The fast boat there takes about 4.5 hours. From Santorini (actually, its port of Thira), you can then take a ferry to either Rhodes (Rodos in Greek) or Kos. The tricky thing is that those ferries seem to go overnight, so the times might not be convenient.
Rhodes has daily ferry service to the touristy Turkish port of Marmaris, and Kos has daily service to the lively Turkish city of Bodrum. Once in either of those cities you'll have many choices of comfortable bus services that go to everywhere else in Turkey.
On a trip of 20 days I wouldn't recommend adding in another country. If you spend 8 or 9 days in Greece and the rest in Turkey, you'll already feel like you are rushing around a bit just to fit all of the best places in, but it should still be relaxing enough since you'll be on islands part of the time, and Cappadocia is a very mellow place as well.
Re adding another country, I actually meant skipping Greece and substituting this with another country near Turkey which would be worth the visit. Any suggestions?
Thank you very much Roger for your kind assistance.
More power to you as you continue to share your wisdom to all the travelers needing your help.
Your website is really helpful. Thanks for the work!
Anything you can recommend would be great help.
I'm always happy to hear that this information helps. As for whether to do an open-jaw flight or fly in and out of the same city in Europe, it's tough to answer. Interestingly, in most of the world you can now get one-way tickets to most destinations for about half the price of a round-trip. But in Europe, round-trips still tend to be far less expensive than two one-ways. So you really have to plug your cities and dates into kayak.com or something similar, and see what the price difference is.
Another option that I sometimes recommend is to book a round-trip into one major city, and then book a cheap flight on a low-cost carrier from your last destination back into the airport you'll fly home from. That is usually cheaper than flying into one city and out of another because you can often get those low-cost flights within Europe for under US$100. If you do check that, just be sure that you are using the correct airports. For example, you can get a cheap flight from, say, Rome to London, but it will probably land at one of the lesser airports, while your flight home is likely out of Heathrow. The same is true in many European cities, so you just have to pay attention.
As for itinerary questions, I'll be happy to try to help. Normally I answer them on this thread about Europe itinerary questions and answers, so if you have a follow-up question, it's probably better to put it there.
You'll want to fly into Prague, or perhaps better yet, fly into Berlin for 2 or 3 days and then take the train to Prague. Air Berlin has some cheap flights and they are a good airline.
After Prague take a train to Budapest. That train takes about 7 hours and you actually have to change in Vienna on the way, so if you prefer you can stop for 2 or 3 nights in Vienna and then go to Budapest, or go from Prague to Budapest and then 2.5-hour ride back to Vienna next.
After Budapest and Vienna you might stop for 2 nights in Salzburg, which is wonderful, or head all the way to Interlaken to see the best views and experiences in the Alps. You can read about the specifics of how to do that part of the trip in my recent article about where to go in Switzerland. You might even consider a day or two in Lucerne as well, which is explained in the same article.
After Switzerland take an amazingly scenic train ride to Venice for 1 or 2 nights.
It sounds like this is going to be your first visit to Italy, and if that's the case I don't think you'd want to miss Florence for 2 or 3 nights. Rome, Florence, and Venice are the "Big 3" in Italy, and they are each packed with worthwhile sights. After Florence you could go to Cinque Terre for 2 nights or so (it's nice there, but there honestly isn't much to see or do compared to the other main stops in Italy), or go straight from Florence to Rome.
You'll want to spend at least 3 nights in Rome, but you could save that for the end because you might be flying out of Rome either home or to Prague or Berlin for a flight home. Rome is, of course, fascinating, but it's also expensive and exhausting so most people don't like to linger there. However, if you want to see Naples/Pompeii/Amalfi Coast/Capri, then you could shoot down to Naples and then take the local train to Sorrento, which is a wonderful place to base yourself for 3 or 4 days to see all of those great nearby sights.
All of the above would be a great four weeks, and you might even have a few more days to add in a city like Cesky Krumlov (cheap and wonderful, between Prague and Vienna). This would be a very efficient itinerary, but take it only as one possible suggestion, and mold it to fit your own interests. I'll be happy to help you plan if you want to change some stops.
As for hotels, I actually have a link to some recommended hotels from most of the city pages on this site (like the ones linked above for Sorrento and Cesky Krumlov, although it's mainly the major cities). On those pages I discuss which are the better neighborhoods for good-value hotels and that sort of thing.
In September the room rates will have come down a bit from summer, and you should be able to get well-located double rooms in central parts of most of those cities for around €100 per night, including breakfast. Anything modern or glamorous will be at least double that, so you'll be staying in quaint places whether you like it or not. Of the cities on your list, Venice and Rome are expensive for hotels, while Budapest will be cheaper than the others.
Generally I recommend staying in smaller guesthouses and family-run hotels near the city centers, rather than American chains with larger rooms on the edge of town. You won't have a car, so a central location will mean a short walk to most of the sights. If you try to save money by booking a cheap place that is a long walk or tram ride from the center, you won't see nearly as much each day. There are plenty of places to cut corners on budget, but I don't recommend booking remote hotels as a good option.
Excellent information! Thanks for taking the time.
Thanks. First off, yes, an 18-year-old can travel around Europe alone, but you'll definitely be among the youngest people doing it. I'd traveled quite a bit with my family by the time I was 18, but still there was no way I was mature enough to travel all over Europe by myself at that age, so it's not ideal for everyone.
That aside, you should find the main Backpacker Index for Europe quite handy when trying to calculate how much money you'd need. The article above is for 3-star travelers who are traveling as a pair. It's cheaper to travel alone and stay in hostel dorms, and those totals also include meals, attractions, transportation, and entertainment. For the countries on your list I'd say an average of about US$80 per day would be enough to enjoy your trip without having to cut too many corners. That would mean very few sit-down restaurant meals, and a lot of preparing your own meals in the hostel kitchens or living on sandwiches and pizza slices and such. That total does NOT include transportation between cities, and that's a whole other question. Buses are the cheapest way of getting around, but it sounds like you want to move quickly so trains are probably best, and maybe a Eurail Pass.
Would appreciate any advise you can give us.
My general recommendation is to plan on 3 nights in all but the smallest European cities, mainly because that allows for two solid sightseeing days in each place. Your transit days will mostly be dealing with trains and hotel check outs and check ins, so staying only two nights only allows one solid sightseeing day.
That said, I'd recommend 5 cities in 15 days. You can do Switzerland in 3 or 4 total days, as long as you focus on Interlaken (for the Alps) and Lucerne (for the other best tourist experiences). On your list, Bruges is quite far from the others, and it's not really a blockbuster like the others on your list, so I'd save it for another trip.
So my recommendation would be to fly into Zurich and hop right on a train for Interlaken to spend 2 or 3 nights there. Read my article on where to go in Switzerland for all the details, including on Lucerne.
Thank you very much for your kind assistance. Will definitely follow your suggested itinerary. Will map-out our schedules and will certainly get back to you.
Hello again Roger! We can also do Budapest last, right?
Can we do Salzburg from Switzerland then Berlin, Prague and Budapest before we fly back to our country. If we do Berlin last, we have to fly or take the train to Munich and fly back to Manila Philippines from there. Is this a practical route? Or you have a better option?
Hoping to hear from you. Thank you very much.
I am glad to see Rome and Barcelona on the list. We booked apartments in both cities, Rome for a week and 3 nights is Barcelona. Our stay was part of a 2 month European Road Trip. It was cheap staying in these cities because of cheap transportation and not renting or parking a car. Watch for Service Fees at restaurants, ask about them if not shown on the menu. This is a great list, we have stayed in many European Hostels and they were nicer than many discount motels in the United States.
Great ideas thank you. I'm planning a 3 week holiday in Europe with my 2 daughters and 11 year old granddaughter around October next year.
I'm considering the following itinerary and would appreciate your comments or suggestions please.
How much should I be budgeting for accommodation and train travel please? Is this a suitable time of the year for travel in Europe please?
First off, October is an excellent month to visit Europe because the weather is still reasonably warm and the crowds are smaller, as are hotel prices.
As for your itinerary, it looks quite good, although parts of it look very rushed. If you haven't been here to London (where I'm currently based), I'd allow 3 nights or perhaps 4. It's a huge city packed with interesting sights. And I'll say the same thing about Paris, in that I wouldn't recommend fewer than 3 nights if it's your first visit. Aside from those, I think your schedule looks really good. Instead of going to Cinque Terre for one night and leaving the next day, I'd just do it as a day trip from Florence. In a way, Cinque Terre is greatly overhyped. Really, they are just 5 small coastal towns, that are now overrun by tourists. You see those photos of the town of Vernazza and it looks magical, but that is only one town and only for one or two angles. Now, I do think they are worth seeing, but you can do that more easily by just taking the train from Florence and returning that same evening.
The other note about scheduling is that a transit day (going from one city to another) allows for little or no sightseeing. By the time you check out of one hotel and check into your next hotel in the next city, most of the day will be gone (it's less of a problem between those cities in Italy though). So if you travel every other day, it means spending one day sightseeing and the next day traveling. That is why I recommend 3 nights in almost every city, although Venice is so small and expensive and crowded that 24 hours there is enough for most people. Munich has a compact enough center that 2 nights should be okay, but for London and Paris I'd recommend at least 3 nights.
Thank you Roger. I'll need to rethink our itinerary. Is it usually possible for 3 adults and 1 child to stay in one room or would we need to book 2 rooms?
First of all, thanks for all great articles! I've been following your website since several years and all articles are great!
About this list, my feedback would be to include more places not yet so discovered by many tourists. To name a few: Kiruna / Bergen for Northern Lights, Gotland/Visby which is a wonderful island in Sweden, some great cities in Poland (Wroclaw or Gdansk), Rothenburg in Germany (haven't found it in this list but perhaps it's in others).
I know the downside would be a "huge" list, but not so many lists of this type trigger tourists to come to "alternative" touristic places and yet beautiful.
Thank you for the nice comments. When I started this list in 2011 it had 37 cities and now it's up to 56, including Bergen. But as you say, the problem is that if I keep adding cities it will become unwieldy. Already I worry a bit that most of the 10 cheapest cities are ones that many people haven't heard much about and would not consider visiting.
Thank you for getting back with me Roger.
The information you shared was very helpful I took a lot of great notes and will be refining my itinerary because of it. I will most probably be adding a fourth day to France and Rome.
When I have more time I will go on the websites and look into the links that you shared with me. I also decided that when in France I want to visit the city of or Rouen. I'm also considering visiting Mont Saint Michel, and Normandy, while I am in the area, do you have any suggestions for any of these 3 places to experience, The order or sequence?
By The way yesterday I had a great conversation with a representative for Costco travel they have some pretty amazing deals and prices for members only. I was really surprised to find out that the girl I spoke with only get hourly and no bonuses or incentives. I am certain she was being upfront with me and telling me this as well. Thank you again for your specialized knowledge.
I'm happy to have helped. And I've heard great things about Costco Travel as well, including their prices. I'm a longtime Costco fan in general.
I haven't decided yet if I will be using Costco travel or not. The hotels in the different cities that you referenced very triggering for me and I will be looking into them. I am also going to take you up on your suggestion of spending only one night in Milan. I am very seriously considering investing three weeks in Italy/France, not including air travel. Thank you again for your suggestions and recommendations my friend.
Hello – My husband, son (age 6) and I are going to Europe in July. We have flights to Ireland and plan to spend a few days in Donegal. We would like to go to other parts of Europe but we only have 13 days total. We do not mind staying in airbnb, BNB or hotels. We do not mind walking and do not need to be in the center of the tourist areas. We prefer going to unique places in Europe but have to think about our son and keeping him entertained. Do you have suggestions? We thought about Northern part of Spain but concerned about the crowds, Czech, Malta and the list goes on. What do you recommend?
This is an interesting question. The places on your list are quite different from one another, so it's hard to determine what your main priorities are. It sounds like you've got 10 days after leaving Ireland, and you want to avoid big crowds and very touristy areas. If that's the case you probably want to avoid any beach city since those are pretty much all jammed in July and August. As such you'd want to avoid Barcelona, Prague, and probably Malta as well. Even the busiest areas of Malta won't be as crowded as Prague or Barcelona, but it will still be quite crowded and I don't find Malta very interesting either. It's mostly a place where northern Europeans and Brits go to enjoy the pleasant weather and not much else.
Thank you for your feedback. We are going to take your advice and go to Croatia and Slovenia. As mentioned in my previous post, it will be for myself, my husband and our 6 ½ year old son. We plan to fly into Dubrovnik, Croatia and drive up the coast, stopping at various cities along the way before we get to Slovenia (unless you have other ideas). We have a total of 10 days before we have to fly out of Ljubljana. A few questions come up: 1. Is that enough time? 2. Should we book our hotels or Airbnb beforehand or can we wing it as we go from city to city? We're on a budget so nothing fancy for us. 3. I assume we should reserve a car now. Would you agree? Or is this doable with public transportation? 4. Lastly, do you see any issues with our plans?
If there is anything else you can recommend or advice you can give to make this trip a bit more spectacular we would really appreciate it.
Your plan sounds really nice. I think 10 days is pretty much perfect for what you have in mind. Normally I would say that you could book hotels and such as you went, but in July along the coast of Croatia you'll find tens of thousand of Germans and other northern Europeans who are spending the month there. As such, it would probably be wise to book your accommodation in advance, at least for any coastal stops you have in mind, and probably for Plitvice as well. One interesting thing about Croatia is that there aren't very many hotels, but there are a LOT of what they call "Sobe" which are guesthouses of small private apartments. You'll find plenty of those listed on airbnb.
We were quoted $500 for a car from Dubrovnik to Slovenia. Our plan was to drive and stop off at certain cities. Is it cheaper to take public transportation? I saw where you wrote parking is expensive. We are planning to stay at airbnbs.
We are researching all of the places we want to visit in Croatia and Slovenia.
Parking in the larger cities is usually expensive, especially if you need to park near a hotel in the center of town. But it sounds like you'll be spending most of your time in smaller towns. If you are booking airbnbs that AREN'T in city centers, chances are they will have free parking.
I think I understand, but it would help to know the time of year you are going. The thing is, there are hundreds of small coastal towns that are swamped with visitors all July and August, and then very pleasant in September and October, and then pretty dead starting in November. Most of the Greek islands are this way, and many of the smaller ones are virtually shut down from November through April. I'm happy to help you more once I know the time frame we are dealing with.
For now I'd say that both Spain and Portugal have many small coastal towns that might work for you, depending on the month of your visit. Some areas of both country's coasts are very touristed, but other areas that are less so. As long as you are going after August, you should find what you described in the Costa del Sol area of Spain as well as Portugal's Algarve region. Those are both comprised of smaller towns rather than new beach cities with high-rise buildings. And they are both fairly cheap as well, especially after August.
We are almost done planning our trip and booking rooms. When we get to Slovenia, we are planning to spend two nights in Ljubljana and trying to figure out where to spend the other two nights. We want to visit the following locations (Piran, Skocjan Caves, wine country in Vipava and Vrhpolje, (unless you have other recommendations for wine), Predjama Castle, Postojna Cave, and Soča River if we have time). If we visit these places, is it better to stay in Piran or Trieste, Italy? Do you have other ideas or suggestions.
my partner and I are returning to Ireland from Australia for a month in August. we will be traveling to Budapest for a weekend to party for a friends bday and are thinking of making a trip of it i.e. flying out a week earlier ton see more of Europe.
Could you recommend some maybe 2 or 3 places that would be good for maybe 2 days each before heading on to Budapest.?? We also have 3 days after the bday weekend before we fly back to Aus from Budapest. should we stay in Budapest for those days to actually explore or would that be too much time there??
One slightly challenging thing about stringing together other places from Budapest is that the trains in that part of Europe still run fairly slow, so it takes 6 or more hours to get to reach Prague and closer to 9 hours to reach Krakow, which would be two great choices if it was faster to reach them. Prague still might be a good choice, but my top recommendation would be Vienna, which is only about 2.5 hours away by train.
From Vienna you can reach Salzburg in a bit over two hours, or you could reach Prague or Cesky Krumlov in about 4 hours. Vienna and Salzburg would make a nice combination because they are both very different from Budapest and different from each other, since Vienna is a capital and Salzburg is a historic town at the base of the Alps.