Economy and Travel

Will, I think as long as people can find the resources to go, there will be travelers. With gas at $4 a gallon here, and our weak dollar, it doesn't seem to stop many of us from going, eh?

Will, I try plan for the future not worry about it. In answer to your question, yes I think it will be realistic to travel to Europe...but maybe not as extravagantly as we have in the past...no problem...it's much more fun to travel with the locals instead of apart from them...too much money only serves to seperate and insulate you from the experience.

Well I have been to Europe 8 times since 2001, and am planning a trip in late 2009. Will probably make it unless we are in a total devastating depression.
I love going there and it's want I want to do, and what I want to spend my money on, so I do it. It's worth it! For my next trip I'm planning to rent a big house in Provence or Tuscany and invite several of my employed friends to share it. It will be fun to hang with a group, and the lodging costs for everyone will be pretty reasonable, and we can cook some of our meals. In the meantime I'm saving as much as I can. I'm not giving up my travel dreams, until they pry them from my cold, dead hands.

As long as you don't "waste" money by staying in **** hotels, renting a car, and taking major tours, traveling in Europe can still be a bargain.

On my last trip to Germany, 14 days last October, I spent $1300, less than $100/day, for lodging, food, and local transportation. I don't think I could travel in the U.S. for that.

Realistic, of course, for those of us who prefer travel to a fancy new car every 5 years, or redoing the kitchen cabinets , or buying the flat screen mega tv.
It all about choices and priorities.

When I was 22 my friend and I decided to go to europe for a few months and travel around, I cannot tell you how many friends said we were " so lucky" .. bull pucks. We were not " lucky" ,, we did not have cars, we took the bus, we did not buy new clothes every pay day, we did not go out with the other girls for drinks fridays after work, we even moved home for last six months before trip( with both families easily argreeing to this money saving method, as both of us had lived out of the home since we were 17 and 18) .

Travellers can almost always make travel " realistic" for them. Get a second job and wear clothes from the thrift shops, and maybe downsize the home, many retirees insist on living in homes with 4+ bedrooms and lots of up keep, instead of downsizing..

I could go on and on, but my point is, travel is not just a luxury for some of us, it is nessesary, and we will do it even if it means we fly economy, we stay in budget hotels, and we eat sandwiches on park benches to stretch our travel budget.

Btw. My MIL was left by her horrid husband after 44 years of marriage, and she was left almost penniless as it was discovered he had a gambling addiction and and blown all their savings.

It took a few years, but she is travelling again. How, you ask, on a pension and only a small safety nest egg??

At age 67 she took up an old love .... quilting, and started doing such lovely work that she now enters quilting shows( and wins) , her work is great, and she sells alot. She takes orders for custom quilts, and let me tell you, people pay her hundreds of dollars for them, nearly a thousand dollars for some of them,, amazing but true. One rich man ordered a custom themed quilt for each bedroom of his " cottage" ,, 6 in all, and all for more then 900 each.. and he pays for materials too!! She loves the work and it pays for her to take a nice budget trip every other year or so.. ( plus leaves enough that she got her new kitchen cabinets, LOL )

Never give up.

I agree completely with Pat. It depends on where your priorities lie. Many of my friends don't understand how I can afford to travel so much but I run a car for 10 years, don't go out for coffee, and rarely eat out, don't run up credit card balances I can't pay off in a month etc. etc. Travel is # 1 on my list.

That said, I am concerned about the future at the moment as we are in a very unstable period. The price of fuel could make air fares escalate extremely sharply making fares even more expensive. This is not a simple issue as it is all tied in with global politics, etc. I am an optimist at heart but do not like what is going on at the moment.

People have been living FAR beyond their resources in recent years...a lot of this credit crunch is proof of that...interest only mortgages, buying houses you can't really afford. How many people do you know that run very high credit card balances they never pay off? All because people think they HAVE TO have things. It is time for some realism 101 and perhaps things will get better. I hope so.

In the meantime, I keep saving and planning where I will go next with the hope that I can afford the fare!

BG has got a very good point. Discovering an area by renting a house and sharing it with friends or family is definitely cheaper than traveling around and having to pay for a hotel/hostel room every night. In Europe things are much closer together than they are in the States. A house in Provence allowes you to do daytrips to almost everywhere in South-Eastern France. A house in SW-Bavaria allows you to daytrip to Salzburg, Hallstadt, Berchtesgaden, Garmisch, Munich etc. A house in the greater Frankfurt area is good for day trips from Cologne/Rhine/Mosel rivers all the way to Rothenburg/Nuremberg. A few weeks ago we rented a house in Kenmare, Kerry, Ireland. The house for 6 (3 bedrooms, 3 bathrooms) was €550 per week incl. water and electricity. Our minivan was €200 a week incl. all insurances. We ate pub food or did our own cooking. We were able to do pretty much all of Cork and Kerry county during that week from Dingle peninsular to Mizen head to Cork city...

In addition to the above, I have a frequent-flyer credit card that I use for almost all purchases and I always use the associated airline. The FF miles add up quickly. I've been on three "free" European trips and several domestic flights using my FF miles. I pay my full bill each month. Some of my clothing comes from thrift stores; I rarely eat out in restaurants at home or while traveling; my haircuts cost $15; I use the library instead of buying books (other than good travel books); I give modest rather than extravagent gifts to friends and family members. I do lots of homework before traveling so I know what to expect in the way of transportation, food, and entertainment costs. I shop the internet for hotels and budget intra-Europe airlines, making reservations and buying tickets in advance when possible. My car is 18 years old with over 200,000 miles on it; I keep it maintained so it may last another 100,000.

for my husband and i, travel is our major extravagance. we use our miles card for everything and take at least one almost-free trip a year. we save airline miles for summer travel and pay if we are going fall or winter. we would never give up traveling unless we just become too old and frail to walk around!

Since the economy always seems to move in 7 year cycles, yes, US citizens will probably always travel to Europe. Just expect less people to travel during economic downturns. Me personally, now that my extended family lives on both sides of the Atlantic (and one side of the Pacific), I will always travel to Europe!

I agree with Pat. Its all about priorities. If you love to travel, you will find a way to get to Europe (or where ever the destination is).

My co-workers are shocked that I'm heading back in June, when I was just in London last October (6 months ago). They think I'm Ms. Money bags. I tell them that I plan ahead, and determine what I can afford.

How do we afford travel? First of all, we have drastically cut back on ANY kind of purchases and have paid our (modest) debt down significantly. Second, we try to "prepay" as much as we can (like buying airline tickets early and paying off well before trip time). Third, we find reasonable hotels -- 2** or possibly 3*** work fine for us. Fourth, eating cheaply once we get there -- breakfast at a local cafe, very light lunch, ONE "splurge" meal at dinner). Also, we have (grudgingly) decided to travel every 14-18 months instead of every year until this financial crunch eases up. It can be done with sacrifice and long-range planning. Most importantly, we put a specific amount of money into our "trip account" each payday. Over the course of the months, it can add up nicely. We refuse to stop travelling until we are physically unable to do so. For us, it will always be realistic to travel to Europe, no matter what.

Jacquie

Priorities in your budget will tell you what you want to do and what you are able to do. Our trip to Italy this year will be the most expensive family trip for us so far, but it's worth it for us. Our kids will soon be teenagers and not that interested in travelling with their "old folks" anymore. And so we looked for ways to make this affordable, do all the things we really want to do but in a way that allows to economize. It is still possible!

Just a few more days before we leave and most of our budget is set. We are currently at 45 Euro/person/day committed and that covers already:

• all accommodations (1/3 with breakfast incl., the rest self-catering appartments)

• car rental + diesel for 2 weeks

• airport transportation

• a guided tour of the Vatican

• reservations and tickets for Uffizi, Accademia, Pompeii

I'm ready to prepare about half of all meals in the kitchen/kitchenettes provided in our accommodation. Using a traditional pizza oven in the yard of the farmhouse appartment and fresh pasta from the local grocery store is something I'm really looking forward to as part of my travel experience. You need this kind of attitude to see it as fun and not as a chore! On top, this does save you a good amount of money.

Plane tickets are expensive but you can work around that a little as well. We'll get one ticket for "free" as we combined this trip with a business trip of my husband. The planning becomes more stressful as it's not easy to plan around specific schedules (also had to take the business travel schedule of my brother into account who'll join us) but it is possible in the end. Also decided not to take the most direct flight but add one more stopover and that saved us plenty. Could have saved even more if I had been willing to fly through Heathrow but my thriftiness has its limits especially when flying as a single parent with kids ...