Carlene

Jason, We are independant travelers and have been for about 15 years. I have also served as a travel agent. On the average, our moderate vacations go for about $100/day/person. That has been true no matter when we travel or whether we rent a car or take a train. We stay in 3 star or less places, usually do light breakfasts and lunches with evening meals in the Frommer inexpensive catagory. We have been to Spain, Italy, Israel, England, Germany, Mexico, and Canada.

kalena

I think Bob's assessment is pretty right on...Who can actually eat for $25./ a day? That sounds like a moderate dinner (wine included), a favorable exchange rate notwithstanding. Then there's museum admissions, commuting costs, gas, car rentals, books, cd's, etc. When I traveled on a shoestring as a student it was different...I wasn't as interested in cuisine . Since those more austere days, I have become a competitive fare shopper. That's the best way to have our trips price out economically and still be able to do what we want when we get there.

clairobscur

I share with another poster the opinion that asking about the "average" price of a travel makes few sense (though I suppose the various and very different answers halp figuring it out). But I wanted to add that, yes, it's perfectly possible, and even pretty easy to eat on 25 $/day. Now, you won't eat in the great restaurants, but you certainly won't starve, either.

L

For Paris, two airfares (Delta thru JFK), taxi to/from Chas. De Gaulle, and a three-star hotel double room for four nights on Ile. St Louis, incl. breakfast ... about $1600. Planning to use the Cheap Eats book for meals, drinks, wine, late nights ... probably $275 or so per day. With shopping, etc., imagine the trip will run us $3,300-$3,500. Seems about right. Now, on trips where we just let it go, well, that's another, pricier story, and for another time. Ciao

Barb

Gee, thats a tough one! Similar to asking whats the price of a new car... <BR> <BR>For an average 10 day vacation we have budgeted $200. per day. Now, this won't fly if you are spending 5 days in London and 5 days in Paris. We like to spend half of the time in a large city <BR>and then the balance in the smaller towns which are going to give you a good flavor of the country. Good to mix it up. Add Airfare specials $500 RT. and you come up to $3000. total. <BR> <BR>Also, if we eat "Large" one day, we tend to go easy the next day - salads, <BR>loaf of bread, cheese, and wine shared in a park or on a lake or mountain makes for lovely memories without breaking the bank. This method also balances out the calorie intake..! <BR>We have traveled on a Shoestring and also on a memorable "Dime don't Mean a Thing" trip, and many somewhere in the middle. They were all wonderful! <BR>Travel with an open mind, go with the flow, smile and mind your manners, and more than likely, you will have a great trip!

Unsure

As a Canadian of very average income the days of a decently priced European vacation are over due to our pathetic, dying dollar. I am trying to justify spending $2800 for an eight day solo jaunt over to London, for the first time, next week which, to me, is a LOT of money. This includes what is considered a decent priced airfare on Air Canada for $950 (includes taxes and insurance) from Alberta, a very basic but ensuite hotel room (a requirement by me) in central London for $120-$160 a night (the tariff varies during the week), and what I have estimated to be a minimum of $80 a day spending money for food, transport, museums, a couple of plays, walking tours, pubs (all in Canadian dollars of course) plus unknowns. This is London though, not exactly a budget place to visit. I need to decide today for the airline ticket but just may stay in Canada for the third year in a row. Montreal and Quebec city are as close to Europe as you can get here, and a helluva lot cheaper but, it still isn't Europe is it?

Suzanne

I am planning a trip to Europe but I have been abroad to other countries and am using these strategies <BR> <BR>Kalena: it is possible to eat for $25/day...ask the locals where to get a good inexpensive meal. Also eat the local cuisine and it will be much cheaper than International Cuisine. <BR> <BR>I stay in the most inexpensive hotel I can find that will give me the most amenities. I have stayed in hotels for $50 a night that included breakfast, full cable, AC, etc. I don't care about the decor of the room since I will only use it as a place to sleep, store luggage and shower. But it has to be clean and in a safe area. <BR> <BR>Don't rent cars unless I absolutely have to. Walking and public transportation is a great way to really meet ordinary people and some of my best travel memories have been made that way. <BR> <BR>Including airfare, Eurail pass, hotel and meals, I am estimating about $2500 per person.

pasquale

Last year we carefully budgeted before we left, got discount airline tickets roundtrip from Texas to Frankfurt for $400 each, reserved hotel rooms for under $100, then went and enjoyed. Our first meal was lunch in Frankfurt and the portions were so large that my husband and I could not begin to eat more than half, so after that we split every entree. If, raarely, it was a smallish entree, we asked for more bread and butter, or ordered dessert. We did so much shopping that we had to ship a huge box of it home. We did everything we wanted to do and more and spent less than $5,000 for 17 full days. The best bargain of all was the guesthouse in Pflach, Austria, about 15 miles south of Neuschwanstein Castle. The room was huge, clean, and the second day we returned to our room to a huge bowl of fresh fruit, plates, silverware, and wine glasses. The guesthouse name was something like Golden Goose (but in Austrian).

Linda

Wow! So many answers! How do you choose? Best advice is probably from the true experts -- Frommers or Fodors or Rick Steves -- those books really tell you all you need to know to estimate costs -- and that is a more accurate estimate since you are selecting the type of accomodation, dining, form of transport, etc. No, i don't work for them, but i have relied on them for countless trips. I always get Rick's book and one more - either frommer or fodor usually -- too old to do the Backdoor Europe stuff anymore.<BR>hope that helps.<BR>linda

pj

I am a frugal traveler but not cheap, This will be my 5 trip to Europe in 2years. Here are some websites Francevacations.com from New York airfare breakfast 2-3 star hotel package 500.00 for everything. Skieurope.com I have used twice to Italy last March to Austria in Jan. price for Austria leave 1/12/02 back 1/20/02 lodging airfare breakfast total price 569.oo look for super ski weeks and you do not have to ski!! Or you can snowboard like me!