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Cheapest countries/ways to travel

I am planning a 2 trip for next summer and would like some feedback on the cheapest way to go about this.. Here is what I am thinking.. Flying with Icelandair to Reykjavik and doing a 4-5 day stopover (this could change depending if I want/need more time in Europe). From Iceland I will fly into Munich, Germany. Once In Germany these are the cities I am thinking of hitting: Salzburg Austria, Budapest Hungary, Bratslava Slovakia, Vienna Austria, Wachau Valley (thinking we could bike and camp along the river as a cheaper option?), Prague Czech Republic, then back to Munich to fly home.

I have just started to plan this so I am open to all suggestions. If anyone has ever flown with Icelandair or backpacked Europe, I would love your advise! We are a small group of college kids planning this trip so we are looking for our cheapest options. Are these countries I have listed a little cheaper than doing the countries on the other side of Germany? (france, belgium, netherlands)

Any bit of information would help. I'm new at this.

Thanks!

Posted by
7175 posts

I would try for open jaw - into Munich, out of Budapest. ... Munich >> Salzburg >> Prague >> Vienna >> Budapest
General consensus seems to be that Bratislava is not as attractive as the other places you mention.
Whilst Vienna is comparable cost wise, Budapest and Prague are considerably cheaper than Amsterdam, Paris and Brussels. Icelandair may offer a really great fare deal but your stopover would see costs mount. If Reykjavik is a real pull for you all then go ahead by all means.

Posted by
19631 posts

Czech Republic, Slovakia, and Hungary will be substantial bargains. $1 beers, (outside of Prague, where it could be twice that), train tickets about 10 cents/mile. Germany and Austria will be a lot more expensive, although still quite a bargain. Try to get a room in NYC for less than $200/night, but Berlin has nice hotels for less than $100/night and beds in a hostel dorm room for $20/night.
France, Belgium and Netherlands (excepting Amsterdam) are really not that bad. As long as the $/euro holds around 1.1, prices are pretty reasonable.

Posted by
16893 posts

Lodging is the largest expense of the trip, but a wide range of lodging prices are available in any city. Smaller or less touristy towns can be cheaper on average, but the one place that you stay is what really matters. A guidebook like Rick's will give you a good overview of the options, although he doesn't list every hostel, for instance (just those he likes).

Hostels/dorms can be a huge savings for a single traveler, since single hotel rooms can cost almost as much as bigger rooms, and less savings for a group. On the other hand, hostels might have bunk rooms that are a better fit for the size of your group, if you would need more than one hotel room. Booking rooms well in advance may help you to secure a cheaper or better-value option, and to be secure in your plan, but it's not necessarily the only solution.

Dining and drinking can also be expensive if you don't watch the budget, however supermarkets have lots of options. Plan to be frugal in Vienna, but maybe splurge in Bratislava, where your budget will go further.

See several related budget articles and strategies at http://www.ricksteves.com/travel-tips/sleeping-eating. These are mostly excerpted from the beginner's handbook, Europe Through the Back Door.

Posted by
4495 posts

Iceland is not cheap. I am not sure how well open jaws will work with icelandair as options to Budapest may not exist. Condor Airlines will offer Budapest service and serves many of the same U.S. airports icelandair does. Both icelandair and condor only sell one way tickets so it might work out as a kind of open jaw to book to Munich on icelandair and return from Budapest on condor.

Posted by
19631 posts

I think the key is spend just enough time in Iceland as it takes to get from one plane to the other. Budget concerns trump the wonderful climate.

Posted by
7049 posts

Iceland is definitely not cheap - quite the opposite. If you want truly inexpensive, try Bulgaria, Romania, Bosnia, or Ukraine and stick to trains and buses.

Posted by
6428 posts

Maybe you could clarify your reference to a "2 trip." Is that 2 weeks or 2 months? If 2 weeks, you're trying to cram way too much into the time, all you'll be doing is riding trains. If it's 2 months, you have plenty of time for all those cities but of course the whole trip will cost much more. Keep in mind that moving around costs money as well as time.

I'm a big fan of Budapest, and Prague to a lesser extent, not so much Salzburg. We enjoyed a day in Bratislava but on the theory that moving is money you might want to skip it since you probably won't want to stay very long.

I agree with others about open-jaw flying, again saving time and money. Icelandair generally costs less than others, and doesn't penalize you fare-wise for an Iceland stopover, but the stopover will cost you on the ground. May be more cost-effective to just change planes at Keflavik, very easy.

I recommend "Europe Through the Back Door," especially if you can find a copy at your library. Great advice about travel generally and in Europe especially, but not something you necessarily want to invest in buying or take with you.

Posted by
4637 posts

Here is the order from the most expensive to the cheapest: Reykjavik, Vienna, Salzburg, Munich, Wachau, Prague, Budapest, Bratislava. France, Belgium, Netherlands on average will be between Reykjavik and Vienna.

Posted by
1878 posts

As others have pointed out, Iceland is said to be very expensive. Other than that, smaller cities and towns are much more economical than the big cities. Paris is very expensive, France is a relative bargain if you get out in the country. Prague is cheap for a lot of things, not including lodging where capacity has not been built up to meet demand. Outside of Prague, the Czech Republic is really a bargain. Germany outside of Munich can be very reasonable - for example Nuremburg we found to be an excellent value. If you have really low standards you can probably find someplace reasonable to stay in Munich, too. We had trouble with this a year and a half ago as we have mid-range standard and paid $140 a night for a double near the train station, a.k.a. the red light district as our German friends joked. Hungary is a steal even in Budapest, and Portugal is also a great bargain even in Lisbon.

Posted by
971 posts

First of all are you going via Reykjavik because it is cheap or because you actually want to see some of Iceland? If it's only because of the cost, then you might end up spending more money on additional flights, trains etc. than if you were just flying directly to where you want to go.
Secondly why have you chosen these destinations? Out of genuine interests or merely by looking at a map? Especially the Austrian part does not strike me as destinations for young people, my own impression visiting Vienna on a backpacking trips was, that it was a very pretty city, but mainly suited for seniors who enjoy classical music, the opera and eating cakes (i know broad stereotypes). I think the same could be said for Salsburg and thw Wachau Valley, though I have never been there. For a group of young people I would choose Berlin over Munich, then head to Prague, Budapest and then head down to ex Jugoslavia. Bosnia is very cheap, with beautifull scenery, a dramatic history, friendly people and a very different feel than Western Europe. Croatia is also cheap, though not as cheap as Bosnia, and it's Adriatic coast is stunning (google places like Split and Dubrovnik or just watch a few episodes of Game of Thrones).

Regarding costs your major expenses will be transport, both getting to Europe and getting around. Trains can be quite expensive in Germany, but there are savings to be made by heading east. check out www.seat61.com for everything there is to know about trains.
Lodging will be another big expense. Hostels dorms are the chepest way to go in the cities, check out sites like Hostelworld.com. The major cities will have a hostel scene, with several hostels competing and keeping prices low, there is no need to book to far in advance. Smaller cities and rural towns will have fewer or no hostels, so you might end up in hotels, which are usually more expensive. If you only intend to visit cities then forget about camping, since campsites are in the outskirts of most cities. also consider if carrying all that camping gear around is worth it to save a few bucks on one or two nights.

The last mayor expense is food and drink. Self catering in supermarkets will be the cheapest way to go. Most hostels have kitchens where you can cook yourself and for lunch you can buy bread and cheese etc. Drinking can quickly dry up your budget, fancy clubs and bars tend to be the most expensive. Buying beers from the supermaket will be the cheapest, but some hostels have their own bars, so they might not allow you to drink your own beers. Hostel bars are usually not too expensive and a great place to meet other travellers. Also the beer tend to get cheaper the further east you go.

Posted by
7175 posts

Cost of Living Index in Europe

Rank / City / Price Index
6 Paris (France) 222
9 Reykjavik (Iceland) 210
13 Amsterdam (Netherlands) 199
21 Munich (Germany) 175
23 Brussels (Belgium) 175
33 Vienna (Austria) 161
35 Berlin (Germany) 157
60 Bratislava (Slovakia) 111
67 Prague (Czech Republic) 100
69 Budapest (Hungary) 95

http://www.expatistan.com/cost-of-living/index/europe

Posted by
11294 posts

A great website for inexpensive lodging, as well as other money-saving tips, is EuroCheapo: http://www.eurocheapo.com/. Be aware that the places it lists are not secrets, so if you're interested, book early.

The Lonely Planet Thorn Tree forum will have more posters geared to your specific situation, so you should look there as well: https://www.lonelyplanet.com/thorntree/categories/country-forums

While it's certainly true that some places are cheaper than others, it's also true that there are ways to economize anywhere, without lowering the quality of your trip. For instance, as several people have already mentioned, supermarkets are a great way to cut down on food expenses. Many places have lunch specials, so you can go to restaurants for lunch and eat dinner from the market; this is often much cheaper than the reverse.

With a group, hostels are not always the cheapest per person, compared to an inexpensive hotel - double check each situation before deciding.

While it will decrease spontaneity, pre-booked trains on some routes will save you a lot of money. On others, however, there's no price difference.

And definitely try to book open jaw flights (into one city and out of another, such as Chicago to Munich and Budapest to Chicago). You save time and money not backtracking, even if the flights cost a bit more (and they may not). To find these, use the "multi city" option on Kayak http://www.kayak.com/flights or Matrix ITA http://matrix.itasoftware.com. Don't look at two separate one-way flights, as that's usually much more expensive.

Posted by
4495 posts

Don't look at two separate one-way flights, as that's usually much more expensive.

Not really, many airlines price flights only as one ways, Southwest is a well known example. For cheaper airlines to Europe, Icelandair, Condor, and Norwegian all price flights as one ways, there's no price advantage to booking a round trip on these airlines.

Posted by
242 posts

I've traveled Norwegian Airlnes and they have some very inexpensive rates but it depends on the day of the week. Also, consider that they charge for luggage.

Posted by
6589 posts

So the way I read your plan, you're thinking about eastern Europe. AND about "the other side of Germany." AND you're "open to all suggestions."

Well, transportation to distant places can eat up a budget, as anyone will tell you. So I think you'd be smart to look at visiting both Germany AND countries that share a border with Germany (like the CZ Republic and Austria in your plan.) There are in fact inexpensive day passes that a small group can use to get around cheaply...

  • Bavaria Ticket (a "Länder Ticket" which is good for one state - Bavaria in this case. It covers all of Bavaria - AND Salzburg and other routes in Austria too.
  • Other Länder Tickets
  • Bayern-Böhmen Ticket (covers ALL of Bavaria in Germany and many towns in CZ Republic, including Plzen and Karlovy Vary, Cesky Krumlov. SEE MAP for CZ coverage
  • The Saar-Lor-Lux Ticket covers Saarland in Germany (Trier, Saarbrücken,) Lorraine in France (Nancy, Metz and more) and ALL Luxembourg.

Also, in Germany, once you use the cheap tickets above to get where you're going, there are places you can travel around absolutely free. Local tourist offices in Berchtesgaden (German Alps near Salzburg) Garmisch-Partenkirchen (German Alps further west) and in the Black Forest (near the French border) issue transit cards to all guests staying in their towns (Click on those town names for the free transit information.) The Black Forest scenic railway is included - it's a beautiful ride that connects attractive old world towns like Gengenbach and Villingen. You can use the KONUS card to reach Freiburg (university town) and Basel (Switzerland) as well.

I think altogether that's 6 different countries right there.

Posted by
14481 posts

Hi,

As a college backpacker my first time over visiting two of the countries you listed, I stayed 99% in hostels, only twice in a Pension. As pointed out above the dorm rooms with 6 to ten mates are among the cheapest, depends on the hostel and its dorm set up and the city. In Berlin-Charlottenburg you can stay at a Pension in a single (EZ) for 40 to 55 Euro with breakfast.

Posted by
1446 posts

Check out the website for the Wombats hostels - I can't recommend them highly enough! There are good hostels in Reykjavik as well.

How long do you have?

Posted by
768 posts

The comments by Agnes bear close attention. Words like "inexpensive, budget and cheap" usually define an itinerary and mode of transportation; prepare a realistic budget as an early phase of your planning.

As others have said, Iceland doesn't fit with any of these words, and, unless you’re a super-outdoors-person, 2 days and 2 nights in Iceland are ample, more than ample for a "budget" traveler. To get a taste of the place, I suspect you'll arrive early am Reykjavik time, see if you can get into Reykjavik in time for a "golden circle" tour, walk Reykjavik upon your return and head back to the airport to fly out late that night or very early the next morning—if necessary getting some shuteye in the airport.

Check RS site for train passes to get the best value for moving between the places you'll visit. Do the arithmetic on RS site to determine what your best value is for a "pass" and when you would be better off paying "point-to-point". Using "night trains" may not be the best value for you, especially if you're going the hostel route. Familiarize yourself with public transportation in each place you'll visit. If the "2" means weeks, and especially if it means months, you might consider purchasing a bike (not an expensive one—perhaps even a second hand one) shortly after you arrive for use throughout your visit for places you may want to see that are beyond public transportation (and beyond the train station). I don't know specific policies, but I've seen many folks bring their bikes on board. If you plan ahead you might even be able to sell the bikes at the end of your trip.

.

Posted by
14481 posts

Hi,

I second the recommendation for Wombats Hostel. Their Munich hostel I've stayed at, lots of Americans were there too. I liked its location near the train station, next door was an internet cafe, if it's still there...very convenient. In Vienna Wombats has 4 locations.

Keep in mind that Wombats has certain advantages as regards to hostels or small hotels, one of which is the laundry facilities on the premises. That saves you the tedious job of looking for a public laundry.

Posted by
334 posts

While I love Iceland, it doesn't seem to fit with the rest of your trip. In general, cheaper countries will be in Central and Eastern Europe while Western Europe is more expensive. Since you are early in the planning stages, take a look at the information Lonely Planet has online. For each country, they have example scenarios for the budget, mid-range, and high end traveler. You can use this to get a rough idea of prices for each country and start making decisions about what to include and exclude on your trip.

Because Iceland seems to be an extra to the rest of your trip, I would first compare prices with other routes. To get an idea of flight costs, I like to use Google Flights (http://www.google.com/flights). It's good for getting an initial comparison between routes. Your flight and your lodging are going to make up the majority of your cost. Finding the right flights can save a lot of money.