Europe On A Budget

[kanski]

^^Took the train from Paris to London primarily bec. I wanted my family to experience being able to cross the channel via the tunnel. But in hindsight, I could have had saved some money if I took Ryan Air instead as I did our other inter-country travels.

[luckystrike]

as a fellow mtc member heres my suggestions on people who are planning to go to europe on budget.

 

1. Plan on the countries you want to visit

2. book all the airlines in advance on train travel you dont need to.

3 pack light you will do a lot of walking

3. go to hostels or very cheap hotels you dont need those other amenities kung sanay ka na you can even sleep on some train stations (but ithis is for hardcore travellers only)

4. better to go there on spring or fall its much cheaper

5. always have extra cash., some countries credit cards are not widely use, and you may need it on some extra fun :evil:

[mr. john]

from my recent travel just last sept.,i like Prague and Vienna among the other places i visited. i also went to amsterdam (gateway to europe), paris, and bruges.

 

trains are cheaper but i find traveling by trains as hassle. planes are much ok especially if you have many bags.

 

dont forget to try the red light districts of paris and amsterdam. just be careful esp sa pigalle(paris). sa amsterdam no picture taking. try their services..

[titing_galit]

Palyn Hotel (Across Gare du Norde) in Paris has a Filipina sa front desk. Ewan ko lang if she's still there. Was supposed to fly to Rome this year but had sked problems. Hopefully next year maka balik. :thumbsupsmiley:

[jampark72]

i'll be in italy by the end of May, any advise where to go. Venice area. thanks for the help.

[coleman]

If you love shopping florence italy outlet mall is the best... Gucci, dng, prada, ferregamo, burberry and lot more... And sobra mura... Paris france outlet mall as well... Mhal lang ang pamasahe papunta sa outlet malls, we rented a van for 6hrs 200euro... Pero sulit sa mura...

[jampark72]

Thanks for the advice.

[kanski]

^^

 

florence is like a 2-3 hr drive from venice so plan your trip well esp if you intend to go on a day trip. you can check out the train sched for this, too.

 

just to confuse you further, you might want to check out pisa which is about an hour and a half drive west from florence. fascinating site that leaning tower.

[jampark72]

just found out that i will be somewhere in the alps, northern part of venice (50 miles). huhuhu

[fightclub]

went to paris france and spain ..2 weeks ago

our budget for the hotel was 150 euro per day... mind you it was only a 2 star hotel

our means of transportation was the METRO and the RER

spent 11 euros for 1 carnett.equivalent to 10 tickets

so if i were you..you'd buy the ticket in the airport...which guarantees UNLIMITED transpo...around 30-50 euros

 

for the attractions in paris...estimated about 8-15 euros

for the food...MCDO = bigmac 6euro (average 5-9 euro)

water is really cheap(for me)... 1 litter of evian costs only .80 cents (euro) and their 2 liters 1.20 euro

 

get a map in the airport..it'l help alot

 

 

http://i44.tinypic.com/dnle6q.gif

[mellowcat]

can anybody recommend a reputable travel agency who specializes in budget travel to europe? i inquired with rajah tours but it seems their into mid and high end europe travel packages.

[Duckie4120]

can anybody recommend a reputable travel agency who specializes in budget travel to europe? i inquired with rajah tours but it seems their into mid and high end europe travel packages.

Depends on your budget Mellowcat. The average European tour from our suppliers is roughly $3,000 for a 10-16 day tour. The destinations you choose also make a difference. I run a travel agency so I know a thing or two about these things. My best advice would be to get a basic guidebook like Frommers or Lonely Planet and just go backpacking if you'd really like to save. You can get a Eurail pass and you can go enjoy Europe at your own pace. Going with a tour rushing from city to city isn't really all that from what some of my clients have told me. You will probably have to pick about 3 or 4 cities that you really really like though.

[astroboy2000]

hungary maganda din in terms of architecture.. must visit budapest.. spa daming natural spa..

[tomward]

wow. I have done extensive travel here. I hope I could help.

 

I discourage extensive use of eurail pass. Its cheaper to fly on budjet airlines. (german wings is the cheapest I think) The difficulty with eurail pass is that there are only 2-3 cabins per car alloted to eurail users. More often than not you'd find yourself standing when traveling by rail. If in case you need to use rail opt for the "regionale" trains. there are 3 classes of trains: Euro, Regional and Intercity. If there is an available cross country "regional" train use it. To save on hotels travel at night and use the train as your bed.

 

Read ahead. There a lot of hostels there in Europe for Filipinos that are not advertised... they don't have signs and can only be booked in the Phils (to avoid paying taxes). They look like apartments pero hostel pala sila. Rates are Philippine rates for the stay and the staff are Filipino. It just makes everything easier. If you don't know how to find these places ask your priests... sila ang may mga connections sa ganitong places.

 

If you want that european experience with a Philippine sized budget I suggest Czech Republic. Be careful though, capital ng pick pocketing itong lugar na ito. Dont put all your eggs in one basket. Everything here is priced like it is sa Pinas and the beer is super sarap.

[jengjeng]

quite informative posts...

 

....

 

how about the visa restrictions? ...

 

how do we go about these? ..

 

any tips?...

 

just wondering.. for i too plan to go to .. in the coming years

[tomward]

Visa restrictions. We'll most of europe is already covered by the schengen Visa or EU visa except UK and some eastern european countries. The general rule of thumb is you have to apply to the embassy where you'll be staying the longest. Even if the schengen visa issued by austria is valid in italy but if you'll stay longer in italy you will have to apply in their embassy. The only exception here is if you have official business in your point of entry and use that point of entry as the country that will issue you your schengen visa.

[dj_flip03]

Visa restrictions. We'll most of europe is already covered by the schengen Visa or EU visa except UK and some eastern european countries. The general rule of thumb is you have to apply to the embassy where you'll be staying the longest. Even if the schengen visa issued by austria is valid in italy but if you'll stay longer in italy you will have to apply in their embassy. The only exception here is if you have official business in your point of entry and use that point of entry as the country that will issue you your schengen visa.

 

I have a friend, whose family, lives in Nice, France. Ibig sabihin nito eh mas ok kung sa French embassy ako mag aapply ng schengen visa kasi sa kanila ako titira. Pag nagka schengen visa ba ako pwede ako um-exit sa ibang country pauwi ng Pilipinas (like Amsterdam)?

 

And lastly... mga magkano kaya gagastusin ko to get a schengen visa?

 

Thanks!

[puki-man]

I can add a couple of things to the list of suggestions already given.

 

Try apartment rentals. You can find really good bargains in very good locations. The thing I like about staying in apartments is that you get to stay in a real neighborhood where you can mix in with the locals. Getting exposed to the local culture is one of the great benefits of traveling. You can visit www.homelidays.com to find apartment rentals.

 

Regarding the debate between taking the train versus flying, use your common sense. It depends on many factors, including where you are in Europe. Train service in Austria is not the same as it is in Spain. The frequency of schedule, cost, etc are not the same. Also, take into account the trip it takes you to get to the airport, go through security, etc. For example, if you are taking a day trip from Madrid to Toledo, you can take a Metro to the train station and then go to Toledo. I believe there are more than dozen trips a day between these cities and the round trip will cost somewhere around 10 Euros per person which includes the fare for the Metro. Convenient and cheap.

 

Finally, if you are traveling in Spain and will be using the trains, book through RENFE (www.renfe.es). If you book early, and the you get the Web Special, the savings is sometimes close to 60%. RENFE post the 62 days ahead (don't know why) so if you book exactly 62 days from the start of your trip, you will most likely get the Web special price.

 

Our next trip is to Cinque Terre in Italy this coming March. It will be with my wife and youngest son.

 

Have fun traveling.

Edited January 7, 2010 by puki-man

[Paulmc]

any updates on budget tours? tia!

[kanski]

^

 

try trafalgar tours. they offer a host of tours to different european cities at reasonable rates.

 

however, if you truly want to customize your travel according to your needs (including your budget) why not arrange your holiday yourself.

[knoll1234]

sa europe, mahal talaga kahit saan ka magpunta, pero you can travel on a budget.Lucky one of niece was living in germany at one time. so when I got the chance to visit her, sinamantala ko na, binisita ko ang luxembourg, belgium, switzerland and france besides germany using my niece car...autobahn is superbly efficient. gaso mahal pero plan your trips ahead of time, stayed at B and B those quiant mom's and pop's places good value for money. it was a plus to meet some nice pinoys who welcomed me for a rundown of places to see. I say just enjoy it. I even parked my niece's car at kaiserlautern in germany and took the eurorail for a change.

[adikted]

got the chance towatch power review kanina sa channel 11

ganda pala sa switzerland

[tomward]

switzerland is a beautiful place. very expensive though. their mrt one way ticket is almost 400 Php per ride. Imagine riding a taxi. public transpo is really great but if you want to see it better to rent a car.

 

Lake Lausanne is a great place to go to and also Bern. If you want snow. St. Moritz and Interlaaken. In Interlaaken there is a glacier which has snow all year round.

[tomward]

I am in europe now and had a chance to stay at these "backpacker hotels" It definitely blew away all my preconceptions and misconceptions about it. for as low as 12 euros a day you could have a reasonable stay at these places. Try looking at www.plushotels.com. i stayed in rome and it was worth every penny. The place was quite far but they have a shuttle that ferries people. the place is clean and the nightlife is amazing food is cheap also. If you want to have a chance to hook up with someone this is probably the best place to go. Since the atmosphere here is relaxed vis a vis a hotel, people would actually talk to you. I'd like to plan a tour next time around these backpacker hotels.

[huge_in]

i had the chance to go to germany and france last year and i must say that everything is relatively expensive. I suggest that you go for hostel to save on your accomodation (brochures are usually available at the airport). Walking would be a good option in roaming around since the weather is quite conducive. train/ tram would be next practical option. For food, i have tried quick burger (their own version of Mcdo).