I often feel, when I am reading this forum, that I am in the significant minority when it comes to travelling cheap. I frequently see posts where people are asking about the quality of 4* hotels, or itineraries where they spend over 100 euros a night, or do not stay anywhere without a minibar and CNN. Is the Internet dominated by the upper class or is it just a lot of once-to-Europe people?<BR><BR>We just got back from three weeks in Spain and Portugal and spent a total of $6000CDN including souvenirs. We always had a clean, modern, quiet room in a good location with a private bath and good quality mattresses. Our hotel prices ranged from 35-91 Euros and we had plenty of spectacular views.<BR><BR>So why do people spend so much on somewhere that they just sleep? I can go to Europe twice as often by staying in a 1 or 2* hotel. Am I the only one?

I often wonder if I'm in the significant minority when it comes to not worrying how others spend their money. . .

Hi Carol,<BR><BR>Your budget is about what mine is, perhaps a bit more! Personally, I'd rather spend money on entertainment or dining or purchases when I travel. Of course, I want a clean room in a safe area, but really that's my only requirement.<BR><BR>From my impression, many of the people here are a bit older (40+) and probably have more disposable incomes. That is not meant as an insult at all. But there are many websites that would make you and me look like rich people!<BR><BR>Jennifer

Jennifer, I am 40+ with a pretty good disposable income... my husband and I are both professionals in management positions in mid-size organizations!<BR><BR>So now I feel even more cheap!

And I'm suddenly feeling a bit old.

Carol,<BR><BR>I'm over 40 and used to have a lot of disposable income as I was a vice president at a major corporation or two. Now I'm starting my own business and $$$ are scarce.<BR><BR>However, even when they were not, my wife and I always traveled moderately. <BR><BR>On our recent trip to Provence we stayed in 2* hotels at $55 to $60 per night. We decided lomg ago that a clean room with a clean bathroom was all we needed. Heck, all we needed it for was to sleep, change clothes and then head out. We really did not need a 4* hotel with the ballroom, which we never used etc.<BR><BR>As for meals, we genrally ate light lunches and splurged at dinner. And quite frankly, the splurge was for the wine as we ate pre fixe most of the time. One night on each trip we ate at a very expensive restaurant just to see how the other half lived,<BR><BR>When we did stay in very nice hotels we stayed at Marriott's because I had over 500,000 points. I used to travel on Delta about 80,000 miles per year and stayed at Narriott's about 40 nights per year.<BR><BR>No more, I'm on my own per diem and my budget does not call for Marriott's. However we do still have 250,000 Delta miles and about 300,000 Marriott points...we are planning a trip to Tuscay to use the Delta miles.<BR><BR>I'm with you, why waste the $$$<BR><BR>US

Some newer travelers may not have the knowledge to find those quality 2-3* hotels for less than $100. Others simply may like a nice place to kick back in the evening. We found lodging in Venice, Florence and Rome pretty expensive on a recent trip, and probably spent more than we could have. <BR>Then again, our hotels were in great locations, were very clean and the staff was helpful. <BR><BR>On the other hand, our meal expenses were probably less than many on this forum. I've seen several posts where people talk about dropping $300 per meal for a couple. That boggles my mind. We found no correlation between money spent and the quality of food/atmosphere in our meals while in Italy. (Truth be told, we found the food in Italy to be quite mediocre in general, and we went to many out-of-the-way places using glowing recommendations from this forum.)

Carol,<BR><BR>If you're not cheating anyone (and it certainly doesn't sound like you are), there is no reason to feel cheap!<BR><BR>Certainly, I'd rather stay at the Waldorf-Astoria (!), but if the choice is taking more trips and spending less money on accommodation and other facets of traveling vs. going first-class but traveling far less, well, you know which I'd choose!<BR><BR>The bottom line is that different people spend their money on different things. I know those who live in very lavish houses who have no money left to travel. I am the kind of person who makes homemade curtains and decorations (although they don't look as bad as they sound!) yet travels as very much as possible! As long as the essentials get paid, there is no right or wrong on how we spend our money!<BR><BR>Personally, I like the occasional splurge restaurant meal and make up for it by buying bread and cheese at a grocery store for other meals! Yet, others wouldn't dream of spending much money on dining out. <BR><BR>It's your money, and you should spend it as YOU desire!<BR><BR>Jennifer

There is no right or wrong. Some people need a nice hotel and some don't care. It really doesn't matter. I personally need to be in an environment as nice or nicer than my own home. I would love to be able to save money and stay at a cheaper place, but I can't. If you can, more power to you as you will travel much more than I will.

For many of us, it's finding the time to travel, period. I'm very jealous of those who appear to have a lot of time to travel in any fashion, whether on a tight budget or in luxury!

When we go to Europe, I try to strike a balance between location, ambience and price. We just returned from a 2-week trip and spent around $1700 for 14 hotel nights. Several of the hotels were around $80 per night and several were closer to $150. But, we were always near the action which cuts down on transportation costs and lost time -- a valuable asset on a vacation. Three of the hotels had river or lake views which were awesome and we also spent one fantastic night at a castle hotel in Germany. <BR><BR>I don't look at hotels as just a "place to sleep". I view them as part of my whole travel experience. IMHO, saving a few dollars on hotels won't make that much difference overall on a 2-week trip that costs thousands of $$$.

Hi Carol. You (and I and some others) may very well be in the minority on this particular forum in terms of how much we choose to spend on accomodations. I've rarely, if ever, spent over $100 night for a hotel and often choose a room with a shared bath (which, much to my amusement, is something that seems to horrify some people) and, in my observations during my year or so on this forum, that does *seem* to be a minority position. <BR><BR>I've little doubt that a $200, or $300, per night hotel room would be much nicer than one for $100 per night. But, to me, the benefits I'd gain wouldn't outweigh the extra cost since I generally only use a hotel room for sleeping...and other pleasurable nocturnal activities. <BR><BR>I don't think that the Internet, per se, is -- as you put it -- dominated by the upper class. Instead, I'd bet that Fodors forums -- compared to other travel forums out there -- has a somewhat older, more upscale demographic.<BR><BR>

Carol, get yourself over to Thorn Tree on the www.lonelyplanet.com site. you'll feel much more at home. also check out www.ricksteves.com. Fodors is more mid- to upscale travel. Not the internet as a whole though!

$6,000. for three weeks, and you call that tightwad? Rich bitch! I have to camp and eat out of cans. God, get a life.

Capo,<BR><BR>In Uncle Sam's household if there are going to be any "nocturnal activites" then we better not be sharing a bathroom. <BR><BR>My wife insists on our own bathroom. Uncle Sam loves the nocturnal and daytime activities, which increase on vacation in Europe...so we get the bathroom ensuite.<BR><BR>Uncle Sam was born at night, but it wann't last night;~))<BR><BR>US

Carol, first of all, I was happy to see a post quoting Canadian dollars! There's a big difference between the Canadian and US dollar. Often people will talk about what a great deal something was at $100, and what they are talking about is $100 USD - so more like $156 or so for us. <BR><BR>Obviously we all make choices - for us, it's a choice between spending more and taking fewer trips or spending less and travelling more often. We choose the latter. I do find that people are often really obsessed with 4* hotels - lately on the Canada forum, it seems a lot of people are really concerned with the 'best' hotels in Montreal. <BR><BR>I don't know that it's necessarily related to age. We're 50+ and while I think I would love to splurge occasionally, my splurges are probably fairly modest in comparison to some! Luckily my husband feels the same as I do - he's a wonderful travel companion.

Hi Carol,<BR><BR>When I noticed your email address, I just had to respond!<BR><BR>You're not alone. I've thought the exact same thing as your original post, especially since most people here talk in US dollars.<BR>($6000CDN is about $3800US for those of you who may not realize how low our currency is.)<BR><BR>I'm very glad to hear you found decent hotels for 35-90 Euros. That's a price range I can relate to!<BR><BR>

3800 for 3 weeks equals about 1300 per week for TWO people including airfare. quite reasonable indeed - poorsal just proved he isn't just poor, he cannot do math (maybe this is why he is poor?)

Carol: I don't share your view that this forum is populated by people seeking 4* hotels and such. In fact, it seems to me that the majority of posts I respond to are helping people find relatively inexpensive accommodations/restaurants, etc. That said, my own approach to travel in Europe (admittedly somewhat different from many posters' because I have a house to stay in there for most of my vacations there) is to seek out B&Bs and 2*-3* places that generally cost us about $120 a night for FOUR people (more, obviously in major cities). We eat in local establishments and rarely patronize fancy establishments. I've found I can eat exceptionally wonderful food in Europe without even thinking of going to a Michelin-starred restaurant. One of the best restaurants in the Dordogne, by way of example, is right down the road from my house - Les Fontenilles. A completely unpretentious place where you can have a SLAB of the best foie gras in the region, an entr&eacute;e of raviolis aux langoustines, a salade au ch&egrave;vre chaud, and a delicious dessert and a bottle of the best local wine for 30 euros.<BR>I do think the number of posters seeking high-end accommodations and meals is a smaller percentage than those like me who are used to living and traveling on a tighter budget. Maybe the high-end posters' posts are just more obvious; whatever, please don't feel that this is a snobby crew here. It's not. Maybe a bit above the backpacker group, but not a real high-flying traveler group, either.

O.K. Now it's time for me to add my 2 cents. We,too,are Canadian and suffer with our lowly loony. I have lots of Sheraton (Starwood) points and for years we stayed at their 5* hotels (at discounted prices) But, even the discounted prices were anywhere from $240-320 Canadian. So, a trip to Europe was always a biggie. This month we stayed in a 3* in Aix. At first my husband's nose was out of joint. But, after a few days, he said"you know, I really like this hotel!". This was the cheapest trip to Europe we ever had (although I must say that a few points here and there helped!)Since we are"tightwads", we didn't eat in any of the restaurants raved about on these boards. I can't see spending over $100 Canadian for dinner. Even so, dinners cost Can$60-80, which I personally think is a lot to spend each day.(and we are not big eaters). These are just my thoughts, for what they are worth.