Croatia is still fairly cheap and a wonderful vacation destination (located on the Mediteranian sea). Stick to the east block and you should be fine.

The Czech Republic has lots of things to offer and Prague is a beautiful city.

In recent years Poland has also undergone many changes.

Hungary used to be a good vacation destination (I don't know if thats still true).

Basically stay east of Germany and Italy and you should be able to live relatively cheaply. By relatively I mean that you will still have to pay more then on your trips to Thailand and other place you hang out right now, but it is quite a bit cheaper then other countries.

Then again, you can find youth hostels or other somewhat cheaper accomodation in Europe. They have quite a good backpacker culture.

You could always sleep in a tent. There are plenty of campgrounds everywhere and in Western Europe there is no issue with safety. I would not recommend this in Winter though. I did this a couple of times as a student. You can live very cheap if you have to (cooking your own food).

Groceries are way cheaper in Germany then in most other countries (about 1/3 to 1/2 of US prices). Don't be surprised if you have to pack it yourself and if you aren't smiled at all the time

Andre

Travel Photos

I just read somewhere that people are going to Albania because it is still cheap.  I thought they were practically in a state of anarchy and nothing worked.  But then I haven't even thought about Albania in years.  I could do Albania, Bulgaria, then Turkey maybe?

 As you may have noticed, I always have multiple plans for travel.  Eventually I execute some version of one of them.

A friend of mine went to Turkey. Even though he is used to high prices, he was outraged by how much he had to spend there ($10 for a cup of tea for example).

Even though he probably doesn't hang out in the cheapest places, I think Turkey might proof much more expensive then you might think.

I have absolutely no idea about Albania, but Bulgaria sounds like a good choice.

In western Europe Portugal and Greece are probably among the cheaper countries, but compared to Eastern Europe they are still quite expensive.

Many large cities have coupons or discount booklets for museums and other attractions. You should be able to pick them up at visitor centers.

For transportation: Public transportation in most European Countries is excellent. Many cities offer day passes, that let you use all transportation (busses, trams, local trains, ferries) for an entire day. I used to live in Dresden (Germany) and there it was usually faster to get somewhere if you used the tram since they would run in very short intervals. With the car I was always stuck in traffic. Don't get caught without a ticket, they will charge you a fine. Try to get the day pass in advance. If you stay a week, buy the weekly ticket (cheaper then 7 day passes) or the weekend ticket ... You may qualify for retiree discounts (always ask for discounts, they might have them and not advertise them).

Also prices in Europe include tax and you usually pay less tip then in the US.

During lunch, many local shops have special (e.g. the local bakery and the local butcher offer meals for very little money). Try to fill up then and eat light in the evening.

If you are a AAA member, you should be able to get road maps for free with some of the official Auto Clubs in Europe. I only know this about Germany (ADAC), but I think its true for other countries as well.

Pick up a newspaper and see if someone rents a room (always cheaper then hotel and might include breakfast).

If you go to Europe during the main holiday season in summer, you might be able to rent a dorm room from a student who is away for a few weeks. Most universities have blackboards all over the place where students post these things. This may proof to be the cheapest living available (dorms are usually subsidized and you wouldn't get in any other way).

Andre

Travel Photos

It sounds like your friend only patronized the big expensive hotel coffee shops in Turkey. 

The last time I went to Europe (1999?), I spent a few days at each end in Germany, and went to Prague and Budapest.  I flew into Frankfurt, bought a ticket to Prague, then got off in Wurzberg to get over the jet lag.  No rooms available at all at any price due to a convention.  So I got on the next train and went to Nuremburg.  I got a really good deal on a room, with a huge German breakfast included.  I copied the German guests and pocketed a couple of rolls and pieces of fruit for lunch.  Later I met two American women who were staying at the hostel, and they were paying more for their dorm beds than I was for my room.

 However, I have been known to live on cake in Germany, as kaffe and kuchen (sp?) is usually one of the best deals around.  Nothing like a big slice of cake for a balanced lunch.

I don't know exactly what he did. I can tell you for sure that I wouldn't have spent that much. Nevertheless, I don't consider Turkey one of the cheap countries.

Your other suggestions sound perfectly allright (although I prefer a Bratwurst over Cake and its cheap too).

Andre

Travel Photos

My room was so tiny, I had to climb into the bed over the end.  It was an odd pie-shape, with the bed wedged in the small end, and a sink and chair shoved into the other.  Shower on the floor below, toilet a couple of doors down, and the immense breakfast, all for $17 US.  That was pre-Euro, when they were doing tracking and the Euro was worth $.98.  So now that same room would be $23, assuming no inflation.  Unfortunately I have spent so much time in really cheap places that $23 sounds like a fortune to me.  It's always hard when I go back to the States.

How do you find these increadible deals. I wouldn never imagine being able to find a room for $23 anywhere in the States or Europe.

Was it clean?

TT

Of course it was clean.  It was German.

 This was in 1999, I think, so before the Euro.

I did what I always do in Germany.  I went to the information place in the railroad station.  They charge you a very small booking fee.  They called a place that was a little more expensive.  When I got there and the owner saw I was an older woman, he decided I was sufficiently respectable to stay in the hotel his wife runs, so he sent me over there.  I asked for the cheapest room, and got this tiny thing.  It was the first week in May, so the season hadn't started yet.

Some places just don't have options without two queen sized beds, private bathroom, hair dryer, coffeemake, and wifi, so you are pretty much stuck with paying more.  Some places have options that most people don't find acceptable.

I stayed in a hostel in Key West, in 1997, on a long weekend when there were signs out offering rooms for only $70 plus tax.  I paid $17.  I didn't have my own room, but everything else in Key West was pretty much the same.   I also stayed in hostels in Hawaii, with varying degrees of success.  One had bed bugs, so I had to change dorms twice.

To me, one of the most fun things about an upcoming trip is researching all the possibilities.  With the net, the answers are out there for the looking and it's such fun.  And with all the information, you get to a place much better prepared to enjoy it too!

 tripadvisor is a great site as is the one just on hostels ...both have reviews by actual travelers.

Turkey and Greece are all not cheap. The prices of seafood on menu of a common restaurant make you have illusion that you were in a desert country.

What about Portugal? 

I have been in Portugal a while ago (1999 I think). I visited the Algarve (southern Portugal).

It's quite touristy over there and there was a lot of high class development.

Back when I visited the country it was quite affordable though, and many areas weren't as developed yet (cheap family style hotels).

I guess if you stay off the beaten path you should be o.k. but I don't know for sure.

Andre

http://www.aguntherphotography.com

With the dollar tanking, not much is affordable these days.  Even hostel beds are expensive.  Hostels in London run from $20 per night to $40 for a dorm bed. 

Hi,

I’m getting you very well, and also I understood that what’s your planning. Your planning is good, I will also suggest for turkey. It's very good and cheapest place to visit.

Good Luck!!

gumbet.org.uk

If you're willing to slum it, Sweden can be quite cheap - the Hotel Formule 1 gets you a room quite cheaply as long as you are travelling with someone else (the room is the same price whether there's one of you, or three of you in there), and you can eat quite cheaply - Falafel goes as low as 15SEK (which was about £1 when I visited, so $2 now) - that's really filling, and quite tasty in my opinion, although the Swedish think of it as 'student food'.

I recommed Poland, infrastructure is as good as in any western country (except for roads maybe), single hotel room from 15 dollars, 0.5l beer in pub $1.5, train ticket to cover half of the country $15, dinner in resturant $4-6

Sweden is not cheap by my standards.  Hostel beds in dormitory rooms are expensive, running from 20 Euros to 37 Euros.  I'd love to visit, but I think Eastern Europe will be more in my price range.

Recently I was in Madrid, and to my surprise I could get a private room in a hostel right in the city center for about 25 Euro per night. Many restaurants offer a "menu del dia" for lunch at a price of about 12 Euro. Dinner would be much more expensive, so better go to the supermarket in the evening. The metro is 1 Euro per ride, which is okay.

Not everything is cheap though. When I bough a beer at a street festival they charged me 8 Euro...

Hi!

I live in Iran and my husband lives in Boston. We have married less than one year. I can not go to Boston till some years and my husband can not come to Iran because of some political issues. We want to travel to a cheap place to see each other and stay there about one month. Where do you suggest us to go?

Thank you

Benco, 25 euro per night is expensive, about $36 per night.  Right now I'm paying $4.50 US for a private room, shared bath in Penang.  The last time I was in Europe, the most I paid was less than $18 for a private room with shared bath, in Nuremburg and Wurzburg, Germany.

 mehrsa -  You could go to one of the eastern European countries, which tend to be cheaper.  Or maybe Egypt.  You'll have to weigh the lower cost of accomodation and food against what you will have to pay for airfare, I think.  A lot of the cheaper countries can cost more to reach.

Many thanks Cindy. I found Bulgaria as the cheapest country between eastern European countries. Do you have any comment about it, please?

I really don't know much about Bulgaria except there is a big boom there with people from the UK buying investment property.  They have good wrestlers, you see them in the Olympics.  Recently admitted to the EU.  Beaches.

One of my plans (I always have several in the works) is to travel through the southern countries in Eastern Europe, starting, I think, with Croatia.  I'll need more money, though.

Everything, everywhere is becoming expensive. If you want to go somewhere that is expensive, wait a year earn some more extra cash then go. If you want to long the prices are still going to go up, so you have to go sooner then lator.

Good point.  There are a lot of places I planned on visiting 'later' that I can no longer afford.  Putting a one year time limit on your plans seems like a good idea.

Some countries in Europe can still be fairly cheap. I even found some things in Germany amazingly cheap. For instance you will pay about 1/3 for groceries then in the US and still less then in most other countries. Going out is much more expensive in comparision and only slightly cheaper then in the US or not cheaper at all. For a budget savy traveller that would mean buying groceries and not dining out.

A private room can be rented for as little as 20-30 Euros in Germany too (in a pension).

Germany still counts as one of the more expensive countries, but it still offers plenty of opportunity to save money.

Andre

http://www.aguntherphotography.com

Okay, well in most large tourist atraction areas, things are expensive. But there are some that are cheap... I dont know lol

Most eastern European countries are rather affordable I guess.

Probably there is no European country as cheap as the cheapest destinations in Asia or South America. But one should not only look at prices for food and hostels, since especially for shorter trips the cost of getting there can be the most important cost factor. With so many low-cost airlines in Europe, a trip to a country in eastern Europe could therefore be a good solution for a tight budget.

Talking from my experience cheapest countries are Bulgaria, Romania, Bosnia and Serbia.
You can with little money have great time and see a lot in any of countries mentioned above.

Hehe...someone said that Croatia is the cheapest, well i don't know about that. Yes, it's a beautiful country with amazing cost and beaches but it's not that cheap, at least isn't to us, Croatians.

I know that Bosnia and Herzegovina is very cheap country and Serbia too.

When was this posted? We live in the UK and have just spent a month in S.E. Asia. We want to go to Europe for another month and want to know where the cheapest places to go are? We were considering Turkey but it looks like that's outrageous!

Turkey is very expensive for tourists. A cup of tea can cost you $10. I would go somewhere else as a frugal traveler.

I've just been to Germany 3 months ago for my E learning seminar and the prices are reasonable. I also love the weather and the people. On the other hand, my sister-in-law from Portugal stayed with us for a month and he said Portugal is not a cheap country.

There are many nations such as Latvia, Bulgaria, Moldova, Ukraine, Albania etc that will easily fulfill your desire for a cheap vacation. These will offer you inexpensive foods and accommodation and the sights will definitely be worth it.

If you want relatively inexpensive luxury then you should try places on the Mediterranean east of Italy.

I honestly thought that there was no place that was cheap in Europe.  This is a great post!

Albania is the cheapest

I started dreaming of Europe since I watched this movie (forgot the title) about an engaged woman who followed another man, which she thought was her destiny, to Europe. I really fell in love the the scenic & romantic places they showed in the movie. I am Hopeful that someday I can go there and so i want to know other more cheaper places in Europe with the same scenery with that expensive ones. Who knows? I might have the chance to go there.

And guys have any of you here ever watched the movie Euro Trip? Its really a funny movie and what part I like most is when they came to a place where things are really really cheap to a point that a nickel can already own you a hotel. Hmmnn..Wondering if that place really exist or existed :)

God bless!

seriously..what are the best places in Albania? 

i've travelled many countries in Europe. one of the nicest and also cheapest areas are in Croatia; little more expensive at the (west)coast in towns like Split, but still fair prices and an extremely beautiful landscape!

Last two years I went to the Czech Republic. There are very big differences in the prices there. Prague is much more expensive than the rest of the country. We stayed in a village just outside Prague and the price range for dinner was about 10$/6 euro including drinks. In Prague you will pay the normal "big city" prices.

My parents went to Croatia and it looked like a beautiful country, the people were very nice and it is even cheaper than the Czech Republic, they told me.

I'd love to suggest Ireland - but if England is too pricey then...

Prague is beautiful and doesn't cost too much. 

Ireland seems to be a good choice. I wouldn't consider any place in Europe as cheap though. Whenever I need to travel to Europe, checking my budget seems to be the first thing I do without thinking.

I think Turkey is very cheap comparing all other european countries a cup of coffee can cost you 10 euros?? are you kidding me it's just for 1.5 euros! a dinner will not cost you more than 5 euros the only expensive thing in turkey can be alcoholic drinks but I think it's not so different comparing germany or any other european country. you can stay in the 5 star hotels for 40 euros per night including everything! you can find 4 star hotels for 20 - 25 euros per night including everything the hostels are only 8 euros per night also have almost every services and a central location you can have a meal in the best places paying just 7 or 8 euros the simplest answer is fom mc donalds big mac menu is only 3.5 euros in Turkey I wish it coluld more expensive for tourists but its not as it is in germany I've been in germany for 6 months and I am aware of the traps of the german railway firm DB they make you pay again and again in their trains because of illogical reasons... I also travelled to prag batislava and wienna as eastern europe cities they were not so cheap also comparing Istanbul

Where does a cup of coffee cost E10?? Thats maddness! 

I thinkg Prague is relatively cheap too. It is not in Euro zone and you win a lot if you come to shop here.Hotels are usually not that cheap,as we wish, but hostels offer much more savings on accommodation. So if you are not travelling alone and you are young and enthisiastik here you go. But if you want to spent some nad enjoy your stay there is.

There are very many places to visit in Prague! So many museums and historical places !

I loved that city, when I was there last year !

Viva Prague

The cheapest countries are the ones located in eastern Europe. But not all..for example poland is pretty expensive compared to others. In general you can still say that Eastern European real estate is by far more profitable than real estate everywhere else than property in Germany for example - this in general is also an indicator of how the prices for regular goods/hotels etc are.

Choose Bulgary or Romania, or visit the River Danube and this way you can pass both countries. Start from Bulgary and follow the cities on the side of the river till it flows into the Black Sea in Romania. The prices are very very LOW and the point where the Danube meets the sea is a truly natural heaven.

Keep in mind that Bulgary is cheeaper than Romania. I saw you guys were talking about the price of a cup of coffee. You can buy one at a nice bar or restaurant for 50 cents in Romania and 30-40 cents in Bulgary.

If you ever thought of going somewhere beautiful in Europe, one suggestion of mine would be Corfu. It is a Greek island, and if anyone looks up some photos on the Internet he or she will definitely wish to go there.

I think germany is the best. I also get some cheap items when I'm visiting Holland. But the stuff and the food is germany is quite cheap and worth the price. And they also have some good second hand store

Turkey is not cheap at all. The cheapeast hostel we could find was one for 30 euros and it was disgusting. Turkish people are notoriosly famous for being dirty and I would not recommend.  Then we went to one of the famous fish restaurants and  dinner for 2 people which included fish, 2 glasses or wine and  a portion of salad cost us 60 Euros. Insane.

We also went to some of the Eastern European countries including Bulgaria, Serbia and Croatia and above mentioned Croatia was the chepast but not cheap.

Belgrade was so expensive, that I think Toronto is cheaper. Anyway...to sum it up, the chepeast country I would recommend would be probably be Czech Republic, but still not cheap. It is charming country and lost of things to see and do. The other really cheap place was Dresden in Germany, really affordable.

I hope this helps.

Emma

In spite that Cyprus is not a cheap tourist country, fine weather and the sea makes Cyprus definatly one of the top Tourist countries. On the beach, prices for the one bedroom appartaments cost 30-40 euro daily. If you do not want to buy foods on tourist area (because it is very expensive!) ; use bus to drive to a city and you can find food for a much cheaper price!!To find out the prices look onto cyprusbill com.
Yours,
V. Benzar