Sooooo you’re planning a trip to Europe. You’ve settled on a destination, gotten an idea of what a flight there will cost you – and you think you can swing the price. (Not there yet? No problem, check out Pond crossing 101 to get started.) The next step before buying that flight is to get the rest of your trip budget in place to see if the whole trip is a feasible idea. How? Let’s break it down.  

The budget

For me, a well-rounded budget will consider the following: 

• flights 
• accommodations 
• food 
• other transportation (like car rental, train/ bus tickets)  
• activities 
• spending money 

This list may look a bit intimidating, but don’t worry! It just takes a little bit of research and you’ll be able to get some ballpark figures for all of these. Once you have an estimated total trip cost in place, you can go ahead and buy that flight and be on your way to Europe! The best part? You will know what amount you need to save to make it happen.  

Accommodations 

Besides your flight, how much you spend on a place to stay is the second most expensive part of your total trip cost. For planning, the goal here is to find an average cost per night to stay in your destination city/country. Time to get searching! 

How much you pay for a place to stay will depend on what level of comfort you are seeking. Only like to stay in 4 star+ hotels? Use a site like Booking.com to get an idea of what rooms are going for in the area. Are you a budget-minded traveler OK with staying in a hostel? Try searching on HostelWorld. Like the convenience of a vacation rental? Do some searching on Airbnb or Homeaway. Remember, you don’t have to pick one just yet. You are just getting an idea of the cost. But DO save properties that you find in favorites’ lists so you can find them again when you ARE ready to book.  

Tips for saving money on accommodations:  

• Consider switching it up – You don’t have to stick to just one type of accommodation. Want a swankier experience than your budget will allow? Why not stay at a cheaper place like a hostel for most of your stay and then splurge for one night in a fancy hotel?  
• Location – Hotels in city centers tend to be pricier than on the outskirts of town. However, if the cost of traveling into the city center everyday outweighs the savings (and eats up a significant amount of your vacation time), then you might want to spring for the more expensive place to stay in the city limits.  
• Travel off season – Just like flights to Europe are cheaper during the off or shoulder seasons, you can find some great deals on places to stay during the off seasons as well.  

Food 

How much is it going to cost you to eat in Europe? This one is a little trickier to figure out, but is also completely flexible. The easiest way to ensure you have enough money to eat in Europe is to work a daily food “allowance” into your budget. I promise, this isn’t as lame and restrictive as it sounds.  

Food is very important to me, and I like to eat at all sorts of places when I’m in Europe. Street food, mom & pop restaurants, cafes, markets, fine restaurants – I mean my gawd, the food is amazing!  As a “quasi foodie” I will occasionally splurge on at least one nice dinner during my trip. With a daily budget in place, you know where you can splurge. For example, say you find an amazing (but expensive) restaurant you want to try? No problem! Just make sure you eat at some cheaper places the next day. Or better yet go to a market and pack yourself a lunch.  

Since I like wiggle room, when I go to Europe I usually allow $50 per day per person in my trip budget. This is a very generous budget. Most days we don’t spend nearly that much, some days we might go over. I almost always come home under budget. But by over-budgeting, I don’t have to worry that I won’t have enough money to eat what I would like.  

Tips for saving money on food: 

• Large cities – Big cities come with big price tags. They are generally more expensive than smaller ones. For example: you’ll pay a ton more for food and drinks in London than you would in Dover or Oxford.  
• Touristy areas – Food prices will almost ALWAYS be more expensive in the very touristy areas. Europeans gotta make that money on the tourists yo! Unfortunately, quality also suffers in the tourist areas. If the restaurant is advertising a “tourist menu” you may want to steer clear. Try a few blocks away from the touristy area and you’ll find more authentic food at much better prices.  
• Make your own food – Packing a lunch or having breakfast-making supplies on hand can save a ton of money on eating out. I like to buy a big box of muesli at a grocery store the first day I arrive. We carry it around with us for a quick and filling breakfast. Easily made with just some hot water! Making your own dinner is also a fun way to try out the local markets and save some cash too.  

Transportation 

It’s important to think about all of the other transportation we tend to forget about on vacation. These costs can add up and drain your wallet pretty quickly. Things like a taxi to the hotel from the airport. Tube tickets to get around London. Renting a car to drive through Tuscany. Going to be hopping from city to city by train? You’ll need to factor in the cost of those train tickets too.  

Now, I know you might be thinking: where’s the trip spontaneity if I have to plan my every move? Short answer, you don’t. Just get an IDEA of what these things may cost, and then just make sure to pad your budget so you aren’t surprised. Budgeting on the high end of everything ensures you are prepared for unexpected costs or mishaps (they happen, like missing a train and having to re-buy tickets.) It is always better to come home with extra money, than to come up short while overseas.  

Some resources for figuring out transportation: 

• Google Maps – Walking and public transport functions are great here. You know you can save some money if the walking distances are short enough.  
• Rome2Rio – Here’s my favorite app again… It is awesome because it will give you cost estimates for each type of transportation, AND links to timetables if you want to double check the actual costs.
• Rail Europe – For all things rail travel in Europe. Great for planning and prices!

Tips for saving on transportation: 

• In cities – Taking a taxi will almost always be the most expensive way to get around. Save some money by taking the bus, subway, or a ride-share like Uber. Many European cities will also have a bike-share program. Or you could work on your daily step-goal and walk.  
• Car rental – If you plan on renting a car to visit places that are underserved by public transit, wait until you are departing a major city to do so. Many cities in Europe do not allow cars in their city-center and parking is limited and very expensive. Not to mention, driving in a busy foreign city can be freaking hectic. Consider taking a train/bus to the city’s airport and picking up a car then, on your way OUT of town.  

Activities  

Write a list of all the activities or attractions that you might want to do/ see during your vacation. Now go look up how much those cost. Again, don’t worry! You’re not micro-managing your vacation here, and you’re not locked into doing any of those things. You’re just doing yourself a favor and preparing for how much to budget to see the things you want to. Maybe you find out that one of the activities on your must-do list is way more than you can spend? Now you know you need to save more, or cross it off the list. It will save you the disappointment of having to walk away in person.  

The goal here is to write a list of all the activities you may want to do, with an estimated cost, then add it up. That’s your high-end activity budget, if you did everything on your list. Chances are you won’t, but coming home with extra money never made anyone upset. Am I right?  

Tips on planning/ budgeting activities: 

• Pre-booking = good – For many activities, there are discounts for pre-booking tickets. Also, you may find out in the planning process that some activities on your must-see list REQUIRE pre-booking way in advance. A great example of this is viewing of DaVinci’s Last Supper in Milan. If you don’t snag some tickets months in advance, chances are you aren’t getting in.  
• Pre-booking = bad – There are other instances where pre-booking can control your vacation. Sure, you may save a few euros by pre-booking things like museum tickets, ferry tickets, etc. But what if your plans change on the fly, or you just feel like doing something else on that day? You don’t want to have to re-buy tickets for a different day, or eat the ticket cost if you end up not making it to an activity.  

Spending money 

This one is completely your own choice. Obviously, you can choose to spend as much or as little as you want on your vacation. However, it’s a good idea to set yourself a budget ahead of time for a couple reasons. One, it will round out your budget and give you a solid number as a vacation saving goal. And secondly, it will give you a limit while you are there so you don’t go nuts and buy everything! We’ve all told ourselves at some point, “ahhhh it’s ok, I’m on vacation!” But really, don’t go nuts. Check yo self before you wreck yo self (or your bank account that is.) 

The great thing about having an overall budget set for each category is that you have some wiggle room when it comes to spending money. For example: if you’ve got a daily food budget set, you can check in with yourself: did I (or will I) spend that much on food today? Nah… OK then, I can buy this thing I want. No worries!   

Troubleshooting 

Ok, so you’ve got yourself a rough budget for all the categories on your list. Seem like too much? Of course it does, you’re trying go to freaking Europe! But don’t freak out. Just think of ways you can cut back.  

Could you stay at cheaper hotels? Maybe not move around so much and cut down on train or bus costs? Skip that expensive day tour and get a guide book and do it yourself? Plan to eat out only once a day? Or go at a different time of year? Play around with your options, where there’s a will, there’s a way!

Once you get that overall budget number to a place you can afford (or know you can save to attain) go ahead and pull the trigger. Buy yourself those plane tickets (you know that ones you saved from your searches in Pond crossing 101) and you’re on your way to EUROPE!! Ahhhhhh happy dance!!!!