Which countries are cheaper to visit? - Which are more expensive to visit?

A main issue of these rankings is that they do not consider regional differences within a country and also not the seasonal price variations which in some countries can be huge.

Cheap is often not only the price but also the value a traveler will get. I guess everybody of us has read hundreds or more bad or revenge ratings in which it became clear that the traveler who thought he / she is clever learned a lot about him- or herself.

You mentioned already the intransparent method how these rankings are created. Buying power?

I would dare the statement that minimum half of the price for a journey is driven by travel planning and behavior and not by the location.

FInally I am not a fan of such statistics for practical usage because it does not help planning to get the individual best value for money spent.

Not looking for perfection here. Looking for a place to start. I for one dont have all the answers, so i dont reject information out of hand. If something interest me, like this subject I do try and test it. On this one i checked it against a few other sources and in general terms it matched up.

Sure, it doesnt compare a farm village in Poland to the best neighborhood in Bratislava, if you want to be innane about it, but thats missing he point. .For a sence of the broad concept and a starting point of where is less expensive and where is more expensive to visit, then, its probably better than a lot of what gets said on the forum and possibly provides a little balance for those who might be interested because they really dont know where to start. Here are two of my "favorite" forum posts.

Austria is expensive when compared to Hungary.

Which provides no context as Hungary is the poorest country in the EU (I think). Sort of overlooks that Austria might be more expnsive than 2/3 of Europe. Creates a false impression.

don't think this was mentioned about Slovakia yet but they are on the
Euro, making them roughly twice as expensive as their neighbors

Austria being a neighbor would make Slovakia more expensive than the US. LOL Judging against Hungary it would also make Slovakia at least as expensive as the US. Just not a factual statement. Anything you read on this forum is a starting place for research and quite often not the truth.

"I have $XXX and I know I want to see Switzerland for 10 days, but
then I have 10 more days. After figuring out my tour of Switzerland I
have $X left. So what to do with the next 10 days?"

Well knowing little I could run some sample trips to Netherlands, Finland, Sweeden, Norway and Denmark (places on my bucket list) and see if the budget works. They probalby wont. Or, i could be smart and start with Bosnia (on my bucket list till i went back a few times, still a favorite), then work my way up the list until I found a few trips that used my budget efficiently while being something of interest to me. Then choose what looks like the most interesting. Some of us have really large bucket lists and like to explore. Others just know they want to go back to Italy again. Airfare can make an otherwise cheap place cost more than one that is generally more expensive, so can the time of the year, and so can the particular interests in the location. Slovakia for instance. If that means Bratislava, then its not particularly cheap as the survey indicates. If it means a larger trip in Slovakia, maybe so. Protugal and Estonia are on the bucket list. Portugal looks promising with the money that is left, but doesnt mean Estonia wont work if the airfare is good.

These things are tools is all.

A little more digging did come up with the basis in general terms:

The overall value for Cost is made up of 5 different sub-categories, which in turn represent their data points. The respective average values over the course of the year were always determined for a destination. The data points of each sub-category are always weighted equally. This means that if there are 4 data points, they are all weighted at 25%.

Then they list all catagories an prices researched. Too long a list for here.

And they rate the cost of trips to individual cities

Sarajevo 710, Podgorica 805, Sofia 945, Tirana 992, Budapest 1018, Bucharest 1024, Warsaw 1021, Bratislava 1189, Prague 1254, Lisbon 1330, Athens 1394, Madrid 1353, Rome 1594, Vienna 2075, Brussels 2121, Paris 2580, London 2690, Stockholm 2730, Amsterdam 2909, Copenhagen 2957, Oslo 2988, Bern 3017

And there are other sites that give you actual dollar figures for tourism by city and by country. That was to deep down the rabbit hole for me to get into right now. And the numbers i looked at seemed a bit low so I dont think the accurately reflect the latest inflation cycle. But add 10% to then and its a starting point for that first dicussion.

I hate hearing words like cheap or expensive. They're subjective and useless, just give me numbers and and I'll determine whatever is cheap or expensive.

There are people smarter than me who may tell me different, and keeping this focused on travel, it seems that the economics of a location relative to the traveler is determined both by the local economy as well as the traveler's willingness to absorb the costs of that travel, how thrifty they may be, and the their own personal economics.

Which country is the cheap or expensive just seems to be a pi$$ing contest and everyone gets sprinkled.

Always amazes me what sets people off, LOL. I read everything again and didn't find one instance where a place was labeled as cheap or expensive.

The average price of a bed, meal, or attraction in a country doesn’t automatically make it either inexpensive or costly. Getting there, getting around, and finding sights or activities of interest might cost more in some places than others. There’s potentially a cost of convenience or inconvenience, and safety, theft, and other considerations can make an ostensibly cheap place not worth the purported savings. What’s expensive for one person might also be a pittance for others. What’s cheap for some might be unobtainably expensive for some others.

So is somebody coming up with a list for which country is supposedly the best value? That would also be highly subjective.

And when did Armenia start “not really” being in Europe, especially if Azerbaijan is “arguably in Europe”? Did maps get changed?

Cyn raises the question of geography. We are in Turkiye rt now. I know instanbul is considered to be in Europe, and the eastern portion of the country is in Asia . The dollar and euro are both strong against the lira and prices are reasonable. There are many tourists here from Spain and Germany

Cyn, there is also a list by cities with 3000 cities. I'm not defending it, and the one site wasn't the point. There are a number of resources on the web, all imperfect and so is my knowledge. I just thought it was interesting.

Wikipedia

Armenia ... officially the Republic of Armenia, is a landlocked country in the Armenian Highlands of West Asia.

Azerbaijan is located in the South Caucasus region of Eurasia, straddling West Asia and Eastern Europe. Turkey is similar as is Russia and Kazakhstan. But that survey only referenced Azerbaijan.

Doric8, Turkey ranked 9, Istanbul 489.... so your experience tracks with the survey. And only part of Istanbul is in Europe.

Some people seem to have a vested interest in this article being an accurate. I’m not sure what that might be. I think it’s actually useful information. I’ll be honest a while back when deciding between two countries I’d previously visited I actually went to Spain because Spain is dramatically cheaper than the other place I was checking. ( And I can support that by my actual credit card bills )

I really thought this would be light hearted and sort of interesting. I should have posted the average tips by country LOL

I have been all over Europe and found:

Northern European countries are generally more expensive than Southern European countries;
Western European countries are generally more expensive than Eastern European countries;
Large cities are generally more expensive than smaller cities or towns, even in the same country/

Personally, I would rate Switzerland and Norway as Europe's most expensive countries.

One can always consult the Big Mac Index. :-)

https://www.economist.com/big-mac-index

Marie beat me to it. I was just about to look up the BMI and do a side-by-side comparison, but thankfully laziness took over.

Information is good. It's not like cost is the only criterion to consider in making travel choices. It's something to be aware of and plan for.

Absolutely Stan.

I went to the Big Mac Index first. But for some reason they didnt list Slovakia and Slovakia is where this all began.

Maybe of interest for you: a research result by trustworthy IfD about price index (Germany = 100) for accommodation and restaurant costs, April 2024. The listed countries are top destinations of German tourists.
https://www.tagesschau.de/wirtschaft/teure-guenstige-urlaubslaender-100.html

Our summer tour of Europe just completed, I can provide the following information on daily food costs in each country we visited. I've ordered from least to most expensive, for two dinners plus one lunch daily, in restaurants. We typically enjoy 3 alcohol drinks total at dinner.

Poland (Gdansk and Krakow) $40
Czechia (Prague and Cesky Krumlov) $45
Italy (many cities, from Lecce to Bologna) $55
England (many cities, excluding London) $70
Scotland (Edinburgh and Inverness) $80
Belgium and Netherlands $90
Denmark and Sweden, plus London $100-110
Switzerland $120+

We ate at good, midpriced restaurants in each place.

Interesting topic.
The problem for me is that some of the countries listed as the cheapest I have no interest to see for my criteria. Serbia comes to mind. We have many friends who live in Belgrade specifically but there isn’t much to see in my opinion. My husband has been a few times to visit them and even he says there isn’t much to see.
I know, people will disagree with me, but as I stated, my criteria for visiting a place is not met by Serbia.
There are many posters on this forum whose opinions I value and if they say a place is inexpensive or not I believe them.

PS, I agree with Jphbucks list above having been to all those countries except for Switzerland.

I read everything again and didn't find one instance where a place was labeled as cheap or expensive.

Possibly they were referring to your title on the post Mr E.

There is no precise answer to this issue as it depends where you travel in a specific country and whether you may be able to find bargain offers.

Therefore all these rankings are general guidelines only. The German Federal Bureau of Statistics had published a list of European countries being more expensive than Germany, i.e. the percentage values refer to Germany having 0%.

1: Switzerland +61%
2: Iceland +53%
3: Denmark +44%
4: Norway +41%
5: Finland +25%
6: Ireland +21%
7: Sweden +17%
8: Austria +15%
9: Belgium +14%
10: France +9%

As this whole topic started with the remark that Austria is an expensive country to travel to, so I guess it could be worse.

These are the cheapest countries:

Albania
Turkey
Bulgaria
Romania
Montenegro
Hungary
Malta
Portugal
Greece
Czechia

Everything that has been contributed from other sources continues to track the survey I dug up .... more or less. Its all very interesting.

Here is another site with travel costs. But I dont like it because their math doesnt work (two people traveling together does not cost twice one person traveling alone) for the one city I checked and the cost of transportation is just plain wrong. Hotel prices and food are probably on the average though (Guess which city i checked). https://www.budgetyourtrip.com/hungary/budapest Still a source and interesting .....

Nancy I fixed the title. No no labeling or perception of labeling ...... But the poor reading comprehension will continue.

I got that you had done some interesting research and were willing to share. It’s a topic that has been circulating in my brain but never got to the “ how to research” part so thanks. I also got that it wasn’t meant as gospel, just a place to start.

Mr E,

Thanks for this post and your research. For me the question becomes, "how do I travel as economicly as I can?"

While I take into consideration the relative cost of visiting a country, obviously, being a traveler there, etc, that also depends on how desperate I want to see a particular city in that the country, whether the time, energy, and expenses make the place worth it...again, all very subjective.

Numerous towns/cities in France I checked out last summer and this summer that only charge 65 Euro less for a 2 star hotel in decent locations, all very satisfactory, assuming the hostel option is off the table, which nowadays is practically a given. Likewise in Germany....all depends.

Bottom line: Most likely if I want to see a place in France and Germany desperately enough, I'll be there and will cut back expenses elsewhere as compensation. That's easy enough to do.

You did good Fred. A two star like a private room at the Wombat will set you back 65 to 70 euro a night here. Get further out of the center, but on a metro line, and maybe 50 to 65 euro.

The original post provided interesting information that doubtless has led to lively discussion.

I largely judge how expensive a city or country is by the cost of my hotel. As far as food, I am much more flexible than I am with selecting a hotel--generally three-star, good location, en suite bathroom, a room that is not tiny, really good online reviews. For that reason, I say that cities like Amsterdam, London, and Paris are expensive.

RJ, that probably is a good marker. If you like a 5 star hotel, you have a greater likelyhood of liking better dining establishments as well. At least once or twice a week. The original post wasnt intended to be judemental, just curious and interesting, and probably somewhat flawed data for each to reconcile on their own terms.

An even more interesing topic has to do with cost of living and wages in various locations. I have the data for a few places but I am afraid it would start a firestorm. I will leave it with I am so impressed with Budapest (and there are others) that manage to do so much with so little with such dignity. It defies the data in the original post,.

Really great points and research.

From my persopective it comes down to where you sleep, what you eat and what you do as much as where you go.

If you go to London, stay in a hostel, eat food you cook in the hostel kitchen and walk to the free museums, then it's a cheap city to visit (plus lots of cardio!). And, LHR is often a relatively inexpensive flight from the US.

Conversely, first class tickets, 5-start hotel, Michelin star resaurants, symphony or opera, private tours and taxis in any city, well then, congratulations on all those stock options in your golden parachute.

The interesting thing to me, is that the US ranks 184th, after many EU countries, and just ahead of Iceland (191) and Switzerland (193), so that raises many questions. Continue discussion.

Stan, I think the USA is probably more expensive on a day-to-day basis than any of the European countries I've visited except Norway and Switzerland, which I regard as quite expensive. I guess Finland, Sweden and Denmark are also spendier than most parts of the US. I've never been to Iceland, and I scarcely regard Monaco as a "country," however much Monagasques might try to disagree.

@ Mr E....Pre-pandemic I had stayed in Wombats in Vienna several times, both dorm rooms where 5 other roomies shared the room and the private room option. No problem there with dorm room with these 20 somethings. and there were times when I opted for a private room at that hostel too costing me then 60-65 Euro. You pay for two even you are solo.

Other than the privacy, I saw no incentive to spend 60 Euro for an en suite private room in that hostel when for the same price I could get a 2 star Pension in Vienna. The Pension would provide towels in the room , Wombats did not

Fred, I had remembered you had used Wombat. I was just looking for an example of a 2 star close the tourism. Are not many in this city.