Get Packing! 5 European Cities You Can Explore For €30 A Day Or Less

With heaps of flash airline sales and summer deals kicking off this month, now is the perfect time to book that last-minute break you’ve been talking about.

But even with some cheap flights in your pocket, the cost of accommodation, sight-seeing, food and drinks can all add up, especially if you don’t do your research first.

So before you go booking a flight to Copenhagen before realising that the average price of a glass of wine is around €9 (oops), it might be best to wise up on Europe’s more budget-friendly locations.

Enter the European Backpacking Index, an annual study carried out by Price Of Travel to gauge the daily cost of visiting 56 of Europe’s popular cities. The amount is estimated based on the following per day:

-a hostel bed somewhere cheap but well-reviewed
– two rides on public transport
– a visit to one paid attraction
– three budget meals
– three local beers or glasses of wine

Krakow, Poland – €21.97 per day

Sample the local beers and check out the busy streets of Kazimierz (the Jewish district), lined with galleries, bars and cafés. Lonely Planet calls this “the prettiest of Poland’s cities.”

Vilnius, Lithuania – €28.67 per day

Lithuania’s capital has one of the largest medieval quarters in Europe so is a great place to swot up on some history. Plus, the whole of the Old Town is gorgeous.

Sofia, Bulgaria – €22.33 per day

Cobblestoned boulevards, parkland and gorgeous mountain scenery make Sofia an incredibly picturesque city.

Riga, Latvia – €29.22 per day

Latvia’s capital is divided into an Old and New Town, and the city’s historic Art Nouveau centre is now a UNESCO World Heritage Site.

Budapest, Hungary – €26.84 per day

This bucket-list city is is one to check out now, before prices rise further. Relax in one of the city’s spas or baths, before checking out some of the “ruin bars,” tucked away in abandoned buildings in the Jewish District VII neighbourhood.

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