BellaOnline Forums Travel and Culture Budget Travel Figuring out which countries are cheaper in Europe

So I am planning to go backpacking in Europe for a month this August. (Fingers crossed)

I have the wonderful offer of staying for free with a friend of a friend in London for a few nites as the launch point to visit my boyfriend's old school in Yorkshire.

We'd love to do Southern Europe but are concerned that we'll face too much heat and all of Northern Europe on vacation.

Any ideas of how to begin pricing up countries relative to one another, i.e. we can do England-Scotland- Ireland, Spain-Portugal-Italy or Germany-Switzerland-France but how do we begin to figure out what costs more on the whole??

Well, the cheapest places in Europe tend to be the ones who haven't converted yet to the euro (that would be most of Eastern Europe). But it looks like you're staying in Western Europe, so I can tell you that I think England and France are generally pretty expensive. Switzerland is very expensive too, from what I hear. I haven't been there yet, so I can't really tell you anything about that beyond what I've heard from others. I was just in Italy a month ago and I thought it was fairly reasonable. Just do research before you go to find out where not to eat and sleep...generally, the closer you eat and sleep to the really touristy parts of town, the more expensive it's going to be. That's a good rule of thumb anywhere you travel in Europe, really. I live in Germany and I don't find it to be too terribly expensive here, although we're getting paid in USD while we're spending in euros, so with the conversion rate, it seems more expensive than it should be. But in comparison to most of the other places I've visited in Europe, Germany is pretty inexpensive.

You're lucky you have free lodging in London though. London is one of the most expensive cities in the world. Outside of London, it will be considerably less expensive.

If you want to get more info, you can always leave me a private message. I would be glad to share with you what I know. I also have some ideas for inexpensive hotel chains, if you're not picky about where you stay and want clean, basic lodgings.

Here's the thing- three really expensive European places come to mind: London, Switzerland, and Norway.

But, they are all really worth it! I lived in Germany for two years, so of course I am biased. But, I think Germany is incredible, especially Munich. There is something about the Alps... My life is changed and I want to move back. I've been to London, too and that was fine for a night or two though I prefer Scotland and the English countryside. Norway and Sweden are both really expensive. Norway was by far our most expensive vacation.

Unfortunately, you are traveling at the height of peak travel season which means that certain things will be more expensive everywhere. The plane ticket will be expensive unless you managed to find a deal and so will lodging and rental car... Meals and things like that will be the same and so will public transportation costs within a city. Travel between cities and countries may also be more expensive.

But, my advice would be to make a list of places you want to see and just go see them! Places like Prague are great and really affordable any time of the year.

You're going to have such a good time... <img src="/images/graemlins/smile.gif" alt="" />

i live in italy well a small tourist island off the maineland (sardinia) it is quite expensive here from march until the begining of aug, but it is a very bueatiful place.

Hi - I live in Yorkshire, so if you want me to price anything up here (accommodation etc.) then please just let me know - and if you can't find information that you need about England in general I don't mind phoning around and finding stuff out for you <img src="/images/graemlins/smile.gif" alt="" />. It might be a good idea to join the youth hostel thing - that gets you cheap accomodation all over the place <img src="/images/graemlins/smile.gif" alt="" />

best wishes - Jane

This may be a little out of the way..but what about the Czech Republic..I spent some time in Prague a few summers back and it was amazing!

I second this. Prague hasn't yet converted to the euro, so it's still relatively inexpensive, as it most of Eastern Europe.

Thanks for the advice, all. Sadly doesn't look like we will be making it to Europe at all this summer. Huge <img src="/images/graemlins/frown.gif" alt="" />: just too many things to do in the states- a wedding on the other coast, baptism to fly to, reunions, trade show to attend, etc.

Maybe a week in the fall sometime. I will have to keep the tips in mind.

Oh please! It isn't the desert. If you're hardy enough to carry a backpack, you should be able to bear the heat, provided you're relatively young and fit.



Why not a monthly rail ticket? I'm frequently in Europe, and yes, it can be horrifically expensive, but if you do your homework, you can travel for very little money.