The Few Things that are Free!

No matter how well you budget, traveling is expensive. There's good news though! Throughout my travels I have found that there are a few (emphasis on the few) bona fide free things that I want to pass along. 

[Credit]

To begin with, long gone are your days of avoiding McDonalds and Starbucks when you're travelling across the pond. While you may not want to stop there for a burger or a cup of coffee, these two American powerhouses have three of the most coveted commodities in Europe: Free water, free wi-fi, and most importantly, free bathrooms. Although it's perfectly acceptable in Europe to drink water from the tap, you will rarely find free water that doesn't come out of the bathroom sink. Helpful hint: When ordering water in a restaurant, make sure that when you request water, you ask for it out of the tap. Otherwise it'll probably cost just as much as a coke or a beer.

[Credit]

Free wi-fi is very important if you want to contact home. If you stay at a hostel, and even in some hotels, you'll have to pay for your internet usage by the minute which can add up quickly. Lastly, as a tour guide in Italy once told me "In Italy, we have an 11th commandment - Thou shalt go when thou can, not when thou needs to." This was probably one of the best pieces of advice given to me and I would suggest following this commandment, because otherwise you can find yourself in a bind with no other choice than to cough up the euro to use the restroom.

Another very useful free commodity is a map. While you can buy very useful maps and guide books from places such as Barnes & Noble and Amazon, if the city you're visiting is small enough their tourist center will most likely have a free map. If it's a large enough city, such as London, you can pick up a subway map which will probably have subway stops named after the city's large attractions, such as Piccadilly Circus and St. Paul's. In addition to paper maps, cities often have large signs directing you to those attractions. 

London Tube Map [Credit]

Have you discovered any other free things in Europe? Make sure to let me know! You can either e-mail me at europeforstudents@ymail.com or just comment below.

Happy travels!


Julie

Reader Question: How Much Money Do I Need?

Ferris Wheel in London
[Photo courtesy of Amy Richards]

While writing my blog, I found the most common question asked by readers was "How much money do I need to travel through Europe?" Like everything on your trip, this will depend on your personal preferences on how you want to spend your money and what's important to you. For example, some people will think it's worth it to spend the extra money to get an authentic taste of the local cuisine, while others would rather travel around with a peanut butter sandwich so they can spend money on tours and local attractions. Because of these individual variations, I broke down a budget and offered variations, ranging from scraping by to splurging.

Your basic budget, not counting travel is 45 - 60€/day. Add your travel on top of that (averaged in) and you'll probably end up spending a total of 80€/day, multiplied by 30 days is 2400€ total. Here's how I got that number:

• Hostels cost anywhere from 15 - 20€/day. Earlier in the year I wrote a blog about hostels and how you can save money when booking your hostel, so make sure to check that out if you need some extra tips.
• Food will cost you anywhere from 10 - 20€/day. Your 10€/day budget will consist of sandwiches and pastries, and while it's doable, it probably won't fill you up. 20€ is a better budget if you want to stay full and try some of the street food in the area. 
• Your mode of transportation will be the biggest factor determining your budget. Some places you visit, you will be able to walk everywhere, others you will have to take a bus (about 3€ round trip depending on the the place you're visiting. Traveling from country to country depends on whether or not you fly or take the Eurail, as the prices will differ greatly depending on how many countries you plan to visit. For tips on the best mode of transportation to use, you can look at my blogs about rail systems within a country, the Eurail, and plane travel in Europe. 
• Lastly, you have to take into account that it will cost money to do some touristy things. For example in Scotland Edinburgh Castle is 14£ and a bike tour in Amsterdam is 20€. Experiences like these are often worth the money, so make sure you include this in your budget. Also keep in mind that you might encounter more than one tourist opportunity in one day, or you may want to buy a souvenir from your travels.

Edinburgh Castle
[Courtesy of Amy Richards]

There are items outside your budget that are important to consider too, like bank fees (see my blog about money in Europe) or what to do if you find you've been pick-pocketed.

Have any questions of your own that I could answer? Feel free to e-mail me at europeforstudents@ymail.com or post a comment below. Click the "Follow" button on the top left hand corner of the blog to keep updated on trips for traveling through Europe.

Happy Travels!


Julie

More About Money While Traveling in Europe!

As mentioned before, even though it may be more expensive, you can use your American credit and debit cards in Europe, depending on the brand. Smaller names like Discover are often not accepted, but most places take both Visa and Mastercard. One thing that causes a bit of confusion for most Americans is that even when you have a debit card, you will have to run it as a credit card for any vendor to accept it. In addition, when you run your debit card, a 3% transaction fee will be added on to your total by your credit card company.

[Credit]

Because you can’t be sure what places will accept certain cards and which will not, I would suggest bringing two brands of cards, one or both of which you can withdraw cash from in case of an emergency, and local currency. Although you may only use it when you’re buying something off the street, it is important that wherever you go you have cash on you. Transitioning to and from foreign currencies can often be difficult. My best suggestion is to note both the shapes and the weights of the currency as this will make counting change and digging through your purse easier. For example, if you’re in England, you can take note that a pound is the heaviest coin you will encounter, while a two pence piece will be the biggest you find.

Travelling with cash does have its downsides. Whereas if your credit card or debit card gets stolen, you can simply call the bank up, cancel the card, and remove the fraudulent charges, when your cash gets stolen there is no way of getting it back. To protect yourself from getting your money stolen I suggest a money belt. I was sceptical of money belts at first, but they have proven to be extremely useful and extremely safe. I would suggest keeping 30 euro/pounds in your wallet or purse and the rest of your money in your money belt. That way if you get mugged, you’ve only lost a minimal amount of cash. Women, when you get into places like Italy and Eastern Europe, hold on to your purse – do not have it simply hanging off your shoulder. A more conspicuous way of hiding your purse would be placing on your shoulder as you would normally do BEFORE you put your coat on.

If you’re really interested in keeping larger items safe, I would recommend purchasing a Pacsafe backpack.

An example of one of the Pacsafe Backpacs
[Credit]

They have a one year warranty, slashproof straps, wire mesh on the bottom of the backpacks and zippers with clasps. To find more information on these backpacks, visit pacsafe.com.

Remember if you have any questions, feel free to email me at europeforstudents@ymail.com. Also make sure to click the follow button at the top of my blog to stay updated with new tips and tricks on how to travel through Europe of a budget. Check back next week for a blog about transportation through Europe!

Happy Travels!


Julie

Money While Traveling In Europe

[Photo courtesy
Amy Richards]

Although this will no doubt be the trip of a lifetime for you, it is important to think about how you will get money while you’re over in Europe. Keep in mind when you read this that the policies and fees are different for every bank; however, the same general principles apply. Please note that these are all the policies and procedures for American banks. If you open an international bank account before you leave overseas with a bank like HSBC, you will have the easiest time getting money, with limited conversion and transfer fees, and the added bonus of still having a useful bank account when you return home.

The most expensive way to get money will be through an ATM. Not only will you be charged an ATM fee (sometimes a base dollar amount, other times a percentage of what you withdraw), but in most cases you will also be charged a conversion fee to convert your money from U.S. Dollars to the local currency. If you’re simply looking for the convenience of withdrawing money, this is probably the way to go.

The next way for you to get money is to have it wired from the United States. This will require a European bank account. Luckily these are fairly easy to set up, and are often free. There will most likely be a flat fee for this. One important thing to note, if the wire transfer is done by the bank it will cost more than if you do it by yourself (with the bank I used it was only a difference of five dollars, but it’s important to try and save where you can).

The last way to get money while you’re in Europe is the cheapest, but also takes the longest due to the fact that European banks can take up to thirty days to transfer money. You will need both a European checking account and an American checking account, and then simply write a check to yourself from your American bank account to your European one. In my experience, the process took three weeks.

[Credit]

It is always best to bring some money with you when you travel overseas until you are certain of your money situation over there. If you’re planning on using an ATM to get cash or even plan on wiring money over, you won’t need to travel with as much cash on you (probably 100 euro/pound), however, if you plan on writing a check to yourself, I would suggest travelling with 700 euro/pounds. You can spread this money out in your suitcase and by using a money belt.

Look for next week’s blog for more about money! Remember if you have any questions, feel free to email me at europeforstudents@ymail.com

Happy Travels!


Julie