3 Ways to Save Money in Europe
1. Plan of Action
As nerdy and tedious as it sounds, you really do have to do your research if you really want to get the best deals out of cities in Europe.
There are so many discounts available to tourists, students, over 60s; whoever you are, if you search hard enough you will find a category to fit into! For example if you go anywhere in Spain and come across the city’s most popular department store, El Corte Ingles, you can get a 10% discount all year round for just being foreign. All you have to do is go to the customer service desk and show some form of id and you’ll receive a coupon valid for that day, but you could go and get a new one every day.
When visiting museums and many other famous landmarks make sure you check their websites for opening hours because you are bound to find that many are free to entry on Sundays or after a certain time. This is really worthwhile as it’s a bit of kick in the teeth to find out you could have got have got in somewhere free if only you’d known to go at a different time. Especially when that entry free could have come in handy for a few of the souvenirs you’ve had your eye on! Similarly, you should always check for discount cards online which offer you tourist packages to many attractions at a discounted rate throughout the city.
2. Go mental for rental
Instead of staying in hotels, look into renting an apartment. Whether it’s just two of you or the whole family this is often a much cheaper option and gives you a lot more freedom to go out and enjoy the city your in. For larger groups especially, this is much more economical and you can save a lot on meals by buying local food from supermarkets. Think of the fun you can have experimenting with the local food and not being restricted by hotel meal times and the same buffet dinner every night. Go with Oh offers self-catering apartments in cities all over Europe to accommodate a range of preferences. So you’re likely to find something to suit your needs at a very reasonable price, and you may even come back with some new local recipes!
3. Use local transport
Don’t be tempted by the abundance of taxis waiting for your instruction to take you wherever you want to go. However short the distance, it will be more expensive than any form of public transport, especially since they will have a minimum charge. All major European cities now have wonderfully advanced public transport systems, which (if you can work out how to use the ticket machine) will provide you with a much cheaper journey as well as an insight into the lives of the locals. If you are on a budget, don’t be lazy and get taken in by the lure of the taxi rank, public transport is the way forward!
This is a guest post