How to Travel Through Europe on the Cheap

So you have "Champagne taste and a beer pocketbook." Don't we all? People I know who have salaries that run the gamut from a pauper' s salary to jaw-dropping mega-bucks all say the same thing. They don't have enough money. If you find that your tastes are exceeding your means and you want to visit Europe without going broke, it can be easily done. With a little research, persistence and flexibility, you can travel throughout Europe on the cheap.

Difficulty: Moderately Easy

Instructions

Things You'll Need:

• Internet connection
• Budget-friendly guide books like Lonely Planet or Time Out
• International mobile phone (prepaid or ask your carrier if you can temporarily switch your current cell phone number over to an international one)

How to Travel Through Europe on The Cheap

1. Go to farecompare.com to research the best dates and times to travel. If you are planning ahead and have flexibility, you will see dramatic price fluctuations across the months.

2. Be willing to make at least one connection and your price will drop even further. If you plan it so you have at least 8 hours during a layover in another city, you can view it as getting 2 for the price of 1. You are booking only 1 trip but getting to visit 2 cities for the same price. Take time to leave the airport in your stopover city and get out to see a new city center.

3. Leave from a nearby airport and save infinite amounts of money. For example, a winter trip from New York to Paris leaving out of the main hub of JFK was double the price it was for a passenger traveling the same route but departing out of nearby Newark, New Jersey.

4. Stay in someone's apartment not a hotel! The website www.craigslist.com has a European section that will help you throughout your trip. Many people rent their European apartments by the week and by the month. The savings this generates is enormous, especially when you consider that a hotel is a large part of your travel costs. It has a positive ripple effect on your budget. Imagine the amount of money you save by having a refrigerator at your disposal instead of relying on restaurants for each meal.

5. Work while you travel. Post up flyers with your cell phone number or post an ad online advertising your services. You can take care of someone's pets while they are on vacation, pose for a photographer, run errands, provide tutoring (if you plan on staying a while) or clean rentals--especially in high-traffic vacation towns.

6. Save hundreds of dollars on admission tickets by taking advantage of free art and music events. The Louvre in Paris, for example, is free on the first Sunday of every month. Free music concerts are often held at the American Church in Paris and in Luxembourg Garden.

Tips & Warnings

• Once you are in Europe, you can fly between European countries cheaply. Check out www.ryanair.com and www.vueling.com.
• Buy a phone card and use it in conjunction with your international cell. It will extend the life of your minutes and many times may even be cheaper than dialing directly from your mobile.
• If you find you have a small budget for lodging but a larger budget for dining, mix and match with a great guide book like Time Out. They publish for every major European city and list low- to high-budget choices for dining, lodging and entertainment.
• Try to do your best to screen people that respond to your ads for work on Craigslist. Make a list of important questions to ask and perhaps even arrange for half of payment up front so you don't get ripped off waiting for payments.
• Beware of hidden fees charged by discount airlines. Ryanair, for example, will get you around Europe cheaply but only if you travel lightly. Traveling with excess baggage will cost you dearly with hefty fees.

[grouch]

on 1/10/2008 Wow. Traveling to Europe on pennies. I am not sure if I would be so bold as to go this far from home to try it out but in theory it sounds great. I would probably want to give it a go in the US first.