The Vienna State Opera at night. Photo: Thomas Fabian
We’re always keen to dispel the myth that you must be rolling in it (money, that is) to enjoy world-class entertainment on your trip to Europe. While many cultural excursions in the US might be out of reach, the other side of the pond has many affordable artistic opportunities. Take the Vienna State Opera. This » Read more
Tourist discount cards can provide great value and a major convenience. But, they can also create a major headache when trying to evaluate their value. Today, we turn to Barcelona… The Barcelona Card The city-run Barcelona Turisme office issues the Barcelona Card as a two-day pass (€25), three-day pass (€30), four-day pass (€34), and five-day » Read more
If you’ve ever visited the fabulous Uffizi museum in Florence, you probably know that your first hour (or two) there can often be spent waiting in a long, slow ticket line. And, that’s if you’re lucky. After all, the museum puts a daily cap on total entrants, so if you arrive on really busy days or after » Read more
At EuroCheapo, we’re all about hotels with a little extra flavor. And when in Rome, why settle for a normal night’s sleep? These three hotels in Rome have traipsed through history, from ancient history to 19th-century, but all of them today offer modern amenities so you can sleep comfortably. 1) Casa Banzo Campo de’ Fiori » Read more
Hitting the town in Madrid doesn’t have to rip into your bank balance faster than a speeding bull. As in all good cities, nighttime budget-friendly options abound! Here’s our cheapo guide to living it up for a night in Spain’s vibrant capital. Get in the mood Start out near central Plaza de Chueca, an area where there’s no shortage of trendy clubs » Read more
Les Misèrables fans can visit Maison de Victor Hugo for free. Photo: Vania Wolf
Visiting Paris can be, how shall we say, très cher? But, several of its finest tourist sights don’t cost a euro-cent. Here’s a list of our top five favorite free attractions. 1) Père Lachaise Cemetery Frédéric Chopin, Guillaume Apollinaire, Honoré de Balzac, Édith Piaf… This cemetery is a “who’s who” of famous names, and not all » Read more
You’ve found a great budget hotel in Paris and you’ve searched around on CheapoSearch for the best rates from different booking agencies for your dates. And then it hits you: How can there be different rates for the same dates in the same hotel? And why are these small hotels offering booking with online agencies, anyhow? » Read more
See the sights during a free bike ride. Photo: Alper Çu?un
Denmark, home to Hans Christian Andersen and all those friendly, tall—and it must be said—great Danes, was recently proclaimed the happiest place on earth. In a number of population studies, pollsters asked residents to rate their level of happiness and other factors, and it seems the Danes have a real twist for felicity. All this » Read more
Running in Paris. Photograph by Tudre
Visiting Paris as a tourist usually means long days of hiking across town, climbing steps, and carrying a backpack. With so much physical activity, you can just forget about the need to hit the gym, right? Well, for us it also means days that begin with a butter croissant (268 calories) and end with a creme caramel (759 » Read more
If you’re the kind of Cheapo who prefers a rollicking “hostel environment” to a quiet mom-and-pop hotel, you should consider a Busabout bus tour of Europe, if you’re traveling during the summer months. What is it? Busabout operates a “hop on hop off” bus line that shuttles young and indie travelers along “loops” of major European cities. » Read more
A theme hotel in Amsterdam. Photo: EuroCheapo.com
Maybe it’s Van Gogh’s trippy sunflowers or that wacky, tacky Red Light District. But there’s something about Amsterdam’s love of the unusual that pops up in its hotel offerings. We’ve weeded out the ho-hum hotel experiences to bring you a few of our favorite joints (so many puns, so little space!): Hotel de Filosoof What: Three-star hotel near » Read more
Most Cheapos we know have at some point faced a budget travel rite of passage: sleeping in an airport. This is commonly due to a canceled flight or a super-early flight, although the occasional “super-Cheapo” chooses a night at the airport over a hotel on the last night to save some cash before returning home (completely respectable!). While airport overnights » Read more
Alas, with Roman hotel rates higher than ever and the dollar at depressing lows against the euro, it can be difficult to find any budgetary relief for tourists in Italy’s capital city. Or is it? This morning we were doing a little research on the value of “all-in-one” tourist passes in Rome, when we » Read more
Yes, you can find affordable coffee in London! Photo: Jeremy Keith
While walking to the office this morning, coffee splashing out of our coffee cup sip-top, we started wondering: If we were in London right now, where would we grab a morning cup of joe and how much would it cost? When last we pounded the pavement researching hotels in London for our guide, we remembered » Read more
Photograph courtesy of Newtonxl at Flickr
We’re big fans of the French TGV rail system. These sleek trains zip throughout the country, transporting passengers comfortably at speeds up to 200 mph. The trains are such a success that short flights between most cities in France don’t make sense — the TGV is faster, and much less of a hassle. Related: Sometimes First Class TGV is cheaper » Read more
Which European airport guarantees the worst experience? Which has the longest security lines, the craziest gate transfers, or the most disorganized baggage claim? We chuckled our way through Elisabeth Rosenthal’s piece in last Friday’s International Herald Tribune in which she gives results of her own unscientific poll. The results: 1) London Heathrow “Hands down the worst” cited by “100 percent » Read more
Photograph courtesy of Two-Zero's Diary
Throughout France today, 2008 was ushered in with a countrywide smoking ban in restaurants, cafes, and discos that smokers have been anticipating for months. In early 2007, a similar law banned smoking in public spaces and work places, but this is the biggie — no more smoking at the table, over an espresso, or on the dance floor. » Read more
Jeff Bezos, CEO of Amazon.com, was in town yesterday and it wasn’t just to swing by EuroCheapo’s HQ for a cup of joe (where’s the love Jeff? Next time.) Rather, he officially launched an e-book reader called “Kindle” that lets users download bestselling books for $9.99 and is apparently easier to use and better designed » Read more
It’s a sunny Friday here in NYC, but in France and Germany, commuter moods are clouded with continued rail strikes. Here’s the latest: France The rail strike entered its third day on Friday. The BBC reports a slight increase in the number of trains and metros running across the country, and a significant decrease in » Read more
It seems like half the world is “striking out” the last few days. Broadway stagehands and TV comedy writers have walked out, and now French and German rail employees are taking to the picket lines. Here’s the latest on the European rail strikes: France Rail Strike Day Two of strikes, affecting national trains, regional trains, » Read more
We’re psyched that the new and improved St. Pancras train station opened this week in London. The depot, rebuilt and improved with a $1.7 billion budget, boasts more than just slick rails. Indeed, St. Pancras Station boasts the longest champagne bar in Europe, its own underground shopping mall and—most importantly—the fastest Eurostar journey to date » Read more
(See bottom of post for summer 2011 update) We were pleased to see that Eric Rayman at the New York Times recently arrived in Paris and immediately hopped on a Vélib’ bike rental. In yesterday’s travel section, Rayman describes the joys of pedaling down the Boulevard St-Germain (and the terrors of biking through Place de » Read more
A few weeks ago, we stumbled upon hidden europe, an amazing publication devoted to the lost corners and secret terrains of Europe. We blogged about the magazine, ordered six back issues, delighted in the unexpected arrival of the current issue in the mail, and then blogged about it some more. This sort of fan activity » Read more
It’s been a fine day, though our massive Ukrainian lunch was loaded with MSG, and we’ve spent the afternoon nursing headaches and queasiness with water, coffee, and aspirin. We’re exhausted. Sue us. We did just come across some exciting, if press release-driven information, though. Plucky UK low-cost carrier Jet2 celebrated their 10 millionth passenger today. » Read more
They might not be giving away free flights à la Ryanair, but Slovak low-cost carrier SkyEurope is at least trying to keep up in the cheap fares department. Through July 29, SkyEurope is offering €39 all-inclusive one-way fares. No word on which routes are included in the sale. We performed our industry-feared fare check and » Read more
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