Affordable Europe! Tips to make the most of your travel dollar$$
Think you can’t put together an affordable European 4 Star trip? I used to think so too! Here’s some options you might not have considered..
The biggest stumbling block in planning a trip to Europe is $$. You begin your search and find that a trip to Rome in August is $1171 roundtrip (today’s best fare from NYC to Rome with 1 stop and no ridiculous layover). That’s without the hotel room and transportation. You resign yourself to another Florida trip (not that there’s anything wrong with that! ( 🙂 and put Europe back on your bucket list.
It doesn’t have to be that way… we found a package deal to Tuscany much like the Ireland package (prior post title Adare-Ireland). For $899 per person, it included roundtrip airfare, an apartment in a castle for 7 days/6 nights and a rental car. Amazing!
You should begin seeing deals advertised late summer/early fall. The catch is that the incredible deals are available during winter months. Many places in Europe have weather similar to the Carolinas’ with a daytime low of about 50 F in their coldest months of December and January. Try to plan for the beginning or end of the promotional period, usually late October or early March, with temperatures in the mid 60’s. Not great weather for the beach, but perfect for sightseeing!
Overlooking St. Jean Cap Ferrat, France
To get the most for your money, stay in Europe for a second week. You’re already there!! You’ll need to work out with the airline/traveler package provider the extra week lag time before your return. Some will not allow it, but many will work with you.
A UK based airline, EasyJet, provides air travel around Europe for nominal fares. Let’s say you always wanted to go to the South of France… a flight on EasyJet from Rome to Nice, priced today, for travel in October is $80 per person roundtrip.
Where to stay? Take a look at www.homeaway.com. I just found a 1 bedroom apartment with a view of the sea in Nice for $508 a week. (Remember to check the reviews!) With an apartment you can save money on food by planning some of your meals at home. (You’d be buying groceries if you were home, right?!) It’s actually kind of cool shopping and cooking in another country. Makes you feel like a local! This is an actual display at the store. Looks fake, right?
What about transportation? Further googling tells me that travel in the South of France via public transportation is 1.50 euro a trip (approximately $1.69) and it is the preferred means of travel as parking is not easy. You can get from Nice to Eze, Monte Carlo, Villafranche su Mer, etc… Purchase a 10-trip pass to save more. Maybe you’ll spend $20 per person over the course of the week.
In total, the price per person would be $1253 for two weeks of travel that included a day in Rome before driving north to stay in your suite in the Tuscan Castle before moving on to your own apartment in Nice overlooking the French Riviera. That’s affordable Europe! Who’s better than you?! Nobody.
P.S. Let’s say that the package provider will not allow you to switch flights. Check out one way flights from Nice to NYC. I just found one for $434. Subtract $30 as you only need a one way fare on EasyJet from Rome now. $1253 + 404 = $1,657. Yes, you’ve wasted the return airfare (throw away ticketing) from Rome to NYC but looking at the whole package, it’s still worth it and saves you from backtracking to Rome!!
Do you have some tried and true savings ideas of your own? Please share by commenting below… Thank you!!
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