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| Photo by graur razvan ionut / FreeDigitalPhotos.net |
So you've decided to want to go travel Europe....Now what? Well first you have to decide what is your budget, as this will pretty much determine things like;
- where you go
- what you do
- how you travel
- how long is your trip
In order to determine these things; you really need to decide on your budget for travelling Europe.
I would say the minimum budget you should allow yourself for travelling (excluding transport costs) would be €35 a day in high season, and €25 in low season; to include your accommodation and food. I would highly recommend having some kind of travel insurance and also a credit card with a healthy balance on it, should you find yourself in a sticky situation. Obviously you will need more than this if you want to go into museums or take a guided tour etc.
However, even if your budget seems pretty small, you may still be able to travel Europe, at least for a little while. Here are my top tips for making your money go further;
Work and travel Europe! You can pick up some work as you travel around Europe, but make sure you check you have the correct visa first. A more convenient type of job might be one were they offer you free room and board in exchange for a few hours labour a day. This can save you so much money, and can also be a great way to meet new people and have an interesting story to tell (hey, how many of your friends lived in an old mill in Tuscany for two weeks, and spent their days olive picking and their evenings drinking home made 'novello' wine and eating delicious traditional Tuscan dishes?).
Stay in hostels! Hostels are usually the cheapest accommodations available as you usually have to share a dorm room with people you don't know. Hostels are usually quite basic, especially the cheap ones, but you are almot guranteed to meet like minded travellers, so it's a great choice for those travelling alone or on a tight budget in Europe.
Couch Surf! This is a relatively new phenomenon to hit Europe, but it can work. I wouldn't rely on it as my only means of accommodation though, and I certainly wouldn't stay alone in a stranger's home. Then again, you can read other people's reviews on the host, so it might be something worth checking out.
Check all modes of transport! These days, cheap flights make travelling Europe quick, easy and often cheap. Don't automatically assume that your best mode of transport is a train or a bus for example. Check buses, trains, ferries, flights, care hire, everything! There is even a website in France dedicated to car pooling if you fancy that. Again this is not something I would recommend to a loan traveller through Europe.
Eat where the locals do! If you're heading out every night to the restaurants in the middle of tourist central, you are going to get ripped off. Supermarkets are usually the cheapest option, but you should also check out local markets for fresh produce and ask the locals for any recommendations for good, cheap places to eat.
Do your homework! Really the best way of saving money is to thoroughly research where you want to go and what you want to do. For example; if you wanted to visit Venice you might search for some Venice hostels. Great. But did you know there is a town, just a cheap ten minute train ride from Venice that can slash the cost of visiting the city by half? You do now!
I would recommend getting a guidebook of some sort anyway, as at least that way you will have a map of the main cities (useful when finding your accommodation when you just got off the train!), a list of recommended accommodations and restaurants and the best ways of travelling around your chosen country/city. You can get guidebooks that cover the whole of Europe, just one country and even just for one city, so there are lots of options to choose from. If you are travelling through all of Europe I would suggest just getting one guidebook, as you don't want to be carrying 20kgs of books with you! Of course these days there are plenty of e-books you can buy, and e-book readers are quite handy if you're travelling, especially if you are thinking of going on loooooong journeys by bus or train.
Remember if you have any queries you can contact me, your Go Travel Europe host or leave a comment below. Thanks!
