Money, money, money…

Saving for that big European adventure is a big deal. You’ve probably worked extra shifts, sacrificed nights out with friends and resisted buying well, anything, in order to make your dreams of cobblestone streets, ancient ruins and artistic masterpieces a reality. But while you want to experience the best Europe has to offer, it can still be expensive. So how do you make your money go that little bit further? Try these five tips for saving money to make the most of your European adventure.

Tip 1. Destination choice

Choosing destinations such as Lisbon allow your money to go further

Where you travel to in Europe will dictate how long you can travel. If you want to soak up some sun in the French Riviera, chase the northern lights in Finland or catch a glimpse of Prince Harry in London, these destinations can cost you a little more on average than others. However, to get more bang for your buck, most parts of Spain, Portugal, Croatia and Eastern Europe will get you travelling longer for cheaper. These countries have comparable party towns, ancient ruins and other attractions to satisfy even the most refined of tastes.

Tip 2. Accommodation

Today, travellers aren’t left fighting over that eighteen bed, shared bathroom crack den of a hostel in Madrid (yep, we stayed there). Whether you are travelling with friends or solo, for cheaper, convenient and more authentic accommodation options try using the sharing economy with AirBnB or CouchSurfing. We’ve used AirBnB extensively across Spain, the Netherlands, France and Belgium and saved hundreds of dollars in the process. Unlike often sterile, hospital-like hotel rooms which lack character, the apartments are typically funky and with personality to them. Plus you get to ask questions of a friendly local, who can point you to the best coffee shops, nightclubs or hidden gems within their neighbourhoods. If you haven’t signed up to AirBnB already, use this link to get a credit towards your first booking!

Tip 3. Planes, trains and automobiles

Travelling through Europe can be cheap… if you know the tricks

Sometimes it can seem that if you don’t accrue points on a special credit card, know someone in the industry, or are just blessed by the travel gods, then you’re out of luck when it comes to finding and booking cheap flights. But there are many ways to save money on flights.

For starters, work out exactly how many flights you need to reach your destinations within Europe, as often a Eurail pass or other rail ticket can be much cheaper and easier between European capitals. Secondly, if you need to book airfares, book them early and book them online. Airfares tend to go through seasonal adjustments during peak times (i.e. European summers) which can cost you dearly and airlines aren’t shy about jacking up prices close to departure. Thirdly, if possible you should be flexible with both the dates of your travel and the specific airports you fly into to find the very best fares. We typically use Skyscanner for researching all of our air travel. You can even put in “Everywhere” as a destination to find the cheapest destinations for your dates (if you are open to suggestions on where to fly).

Finally, for road travel throughout Europe, check out Rentalcars.com or BlaBlaCar, a ride share network where you can hitch a ride with a local, typically for half of the cost of a similar train fare. These options are best for isolated or hard to get to destinations involving a million transfers as they can be more direct and comfortable than equivalent travel methods.

Tip 4. Food and drink

When travelling through countries like France, you can experience a major dilemma. You haven’t travelled around the world to go without French wines, but you can’t afford to drink them in restaurants who will charge you upwards of 5 euros per glass! Don’t be deterred though, find yourself the local supermarket and stock up on all your favourites, where many great wines can be found for 5 euros or LESS. Better yet, many European capitals allow you to consume alcohol in public, as long as you don’t push the limit and act offensively towards others.

Tip 5. Tours & Attractions

Free walking tours are the best (and cheapest) way to see a city

Our first day in any new city, we always head straight for the free walking tours which can generally be found in all of the big capitals around Europe. The tours last for anywhere from 1.5 to 3 hours and give a broad overview by trained guides who know the city, including historical information and funny stories you wouldn’t find elsewhere. While it is technically free, the guides do work on tips (which are optional, but 5 – 10 euro per person is average), are a great source of advice and the tours let you know what you like about the city to go back and take a more in-depth view later. The guides also provide information on other, paid tours around the city if you’re interested. To find these tours, search the name of your city you’re visiting and ‘free walking tours’. Also, while you are doing a google search, look up the museums in your destination. Many offer free admission certain days in the month (like on the first Sunday or something similar) or after peak hours (for example, the Prado museum in Madrid has free admission from 6pm to 8pm)

Get travelling!

Now that you’re armed with these 5 tips, you should be able to fly, eat, sleep and travel more cheaply than you ever thought possible. If you still need tips for saving for travel, check out our guide to planning travel.

What are YOUR tips?    Leave us your best money-saving travel ideas below!

The following two tabs change content below.

• Bio
• Latest Posts

Guy

Adrenaline junky, travel addict and avid coffee drinker. Guy's dream is to manage a team of monkeys who will eventually replace him.

Latest posts by Guy (see all)

• 24 hours in Salamanca Spain - December 29, 2018
• La Tomatina festival: Everything you need to know to survive this Spanish fiesta - January 27, 2018
• Hakone Kowakien Yunessun – Big kid fun outside Tokyo - December 9, 2017