Cheap European Vacation
A Dozen Ways to Save without Sacrifice
Europe on $5 a day was great while it lasted. But in those days we sacrificed lots--sleeping in train cars and in train stations and staying at fleabag hotels featuring one bathroom every 12 rooms or so. But when you think about it, those memories are priceless. So the Euro is up this year and that vacation you planned is likely to cost you more. The trick is to have a great time without sacrificing anything important. Here are a dozen tips that just might save you money.Tickets: Save Transportation Cost with Open Jaws
Want to see a lot of Europe? Plan you trip in one direction, say from London to Rome. Then buy an Open Jaw Ticket, say landing in London and returning from Rome.Plan to Visit the Cheaper Countries
Cheapest countries in Western Europe: Portugal and Greece, although the Euro and European monetary policies are tending toward equalizing the price differential in these poorer countries.Transportation: Where to find Cheap(er) Gasoline
Last year it was Spain, where gasoline was frequently found at less than 80 Euro cents per liter.If you want to travel Europe on a low budget then the two key issues are time and flexibility. There are now many cheap European airlines who offer budget airfares for travel between European countries. Almost without exception they offer an excellent service, and their prices are remarkably low. But you do need to be flexible – both in your choice of destination and in your travel schedule timings.
European budget airlines often fly between the less popular airports and may only operate one flight a day. This means that if you miss a flight or if your flight is cancelled then you could face a long wait in a rather out of the way town or provincial airport.
The Irish airline, Ryanair, can be used as an example. Their flight billed as Glasgow to Paris departs from a town called Prestwick – about forty miles from Glasgow and arrives at Beauvais, a French town about sixty miles from Paris. Coach services are provided and the service is good but you will need to add at least an hour to your journey at either end. Getting stranded late at night in Beauvais or Prestwick is not likely to be fun. You can find a list of cheap European airlines and some of their routes on the websites listed below.
If you would rather travel to Europe on a planned European Vacation Package then you will have other issues to contend with. Planned European vacation packages can sometimes be rather sterile and predictable. Some of them may almost have the effect of insulating you against anything European! The notion of being herded along on like cattle among a mass of bemused fellow travellers is not likely to appeal to many of us.
