European Holiday

[Wayne Bevis]

Hello All ....wondering and hoping you marvellous folk on this site might be able to offer some information in relation to a trip my wife and myself have planned. In particular I was hoping to source some info on the $$ factor and the logicality of it all. We will be flying from Perth (Western Australia) to London - few days in London...then to Paris for a few days ...Switzerland for a few and finish off renting a vehicle and driving around Italy for 10 to 12 days. We do not intend staying in upmarket hotels but ideally want to get away from the main centres and explore the countryside. Taking into account the above has anyone done a similar type trip and if so would you be able to flick me an approximate cost factor (apart from airfares) which would include accommodation/meals/hire car/entertainment etc.
Apologies in advance if the request is a bit vague but I'm sure someone must have done a similar type trip. Many thanks in advance.

 

[joe]

My personal experience concerning accommodations in Italy : my wife and I have never spent more than 95 Euros a night (for us both with breakfast included) for any type of accommodation (hotel, agroturismo, B&B, city apt.), with the average being more around 70-75, and have been more than satisfied. This means clean and functional accommodations, great hospitality, very good breakfasts, tastefully designed lodgings, and a comfortable bed. We don't need more than that, especially when the accommodations serve us as a base to return to after a day of exploring the area around it. Personally, hotels are a last resort, as any other type of accommodation is usually a much nicer experience.
You can of course pay more and get more. The prices above were for late September-early November.

 

[Wayne Bevis]

My personal experience concerning accommodations in Italy : my wife and I have never spent more than 95 Euros a night (for us both with breakfast included) for any type of accommodation (hotel, agroturismo, B&B, city apt.), with the average being more around 70-75, and have been more than satisfied. This means clean and functional accommodations, great hospitality, very good breakfasts, tastefully designed lodgings, and a comfortable bed. We don't need more than that, especially when the accommodations serve us as a base to return to after a day of exploring the area around it. Personally, hotels are a last resort, as any other type of accommodation is usually a much nicer experience.
You can of course pay more and get more. The prices above were for late September-early November.

Thanks Joe - appreciate the info mate. Our intention is to use agroturismo, B and B's etc but I'm hoping someone on these forums can throw a more comprehensive figure at me incorporating hire cars/rooms/meals etc etc. Thanks again ...

 

[JustTravel]

Wayne, I don't think there's any shortcut to figuring how much your holiday will cost. Prices vary depending on many factors and you personally. I usually decide where we want to go and for how long, then start researching using the internet for prices, rather a long process.

 

[joe]

Meals : my impression is that prices are not that different from place to place in Western countries. If you plan on eating out, just consider what you'd spend back home on a similar experience, and that's pretty much it. If anything, in Italy prices might be a bit lower, because almost all the food is locally grown, and there is a huge variety of local products. Same goes if you prepare meals yourself. And the taste of the food is arguably the best in this corner of the galaxy.

JT's comment above is quite true - you might get a ballpark figure from someone, but a trip like this has to be researched personally in order to get the most suitable answer for your trip and your type of travel.

 

[Ian Sutton]

Agree Joe's ballpark figures for accommodation - they can vary as well by location, as well as what you get. Still some wonderful value out there.

n.b. I've used our decimal for currency, but you'll see the Italian write €3,000.65 as €3.000,65

Meals? Again this can vary, but let's say:
- Breakfast included, but on the occasions it's not, go Italian and have a coffee and a pastry for ~€2.50-4 each
- Light meal of the day (be that a panino and a soft drink, or a plate of pasta/risotto, or a light meal plus wine in an enoteca) let's say €7-€20 a head
- Main meal of the day (from pizza and beer in a simple pizzeria found all over, to an agriturismo banquet often at a giveaway price, a simple or fancy trattoria or fancier / scenic restaurant) let's say €15-€60 a head

Add in a gelato or two - let's say two @ €2.50 each, so €5 a head

Plus anything else from fruit to an additional coffee stop or an aperitivo (~ 6-8pm) drink and free nibbles. Let's say an average €10 a day

Savings can be made if you get an apartment, or just plow the savings back into grazing the wonderful food shops and keep a moveable picnic feast going for the light meal of the day / breakfast.

Fuel worth factoring in it looks like it's around €1.70/L for unleaded

Often free parking available, especially away from the big cities, so it won't be everyday. Maybe a little for buses/trains/boats when you want a day trip without the hassle of the car. Let's say €5-10 a day for all that.

Toll roads, plenty of small fee (motorway) toll roads - maybe €5 a day for the car

If you like wine, then Italian wines are a bit pricey in Australia, but coming sown a little as interest grows, but it's a nice treat to splurge on that you can enjoy back at home and remember the holiday when you drink it.If such things appeal, maybe a couple of bottles apiece crammed into luggage, wrapped in a plastic bag and then clothes (dirty or otherwise!). Anything from €40-€100 a head if that appeals. p.s. if beer appeals more, the Italian brewing scene is pricey but wonderful - well worth hunting out the niche brews as against the ubiquitous lager styles which can refresh the body more that the mind.

Clothes / shoes. Some great stuff, and easy to bring back. Depending on whether this interests, maybe €50-€200 budget per person for the trip

Entrance fees for museums etc. can vary let's say €5-10 a day average

I'm sure some of these will end up poor estimates, but hopefully give you some sort of ballpark and I've not missed too much obvious stuff

 

[Wayne Bevis]

Agree Joe's ballpark figures for accommodation - they can vary as well by location, as well as what you get. Still some wonderful value out there.

n.b. I've used our decimal for currency, but you'll see the Italian write €3,000.65 as €3.000,65

Meals? Again this can vary, but let's say:
- Breakfast included, but on the occasions it's not, go Italian and have a coffee and a pastry for ~€2.50-4 each
- Light meal of the day (be that a panino and a soft drink, or a plate of pasta/risotto, or a light meal plus wine in an enoteca) let's say €7-€20 a head
- Main meal of the day (from pizza and beer in a simple pizzeria found all over, to an agriturismo banquet often at a giveaway price, a simple or fancy trattoria or fancier / scenic restaurant) let's say €15-€60 a head

Add in a gelato or two - let's say two @ €2.50 each, so €5 a head

Plus anything else from fruit to an additional coffee stop or an aperitivo (~ 6-8pm) drink and free nibbles. Let's say an average €10 a day

Savings can be made if you get an apartment, or just plow the savings back into grazing the wonderful food shops and keep a moveable picnic feast going for the light meal of the day / breakfast.

Fuel worth factoring in it looks like it's around €1.70/L for unleaded

Often free parking available, especially away from the big cities, so it won't be everyday. Maybe a little for buses/trains/boats when you want a day trip without the hassle of the car. Let's say €5-10 a day for all that.

Toll roads, plenty of small fee (motorway) toll roads - maybe €5 a day for the car

If you like wine, then Italian wines are a bit pricey in Australia, but coming sown a little as interest grows, but it's a nice treat to splurge on that you can enjoy back at home and remember the holiday when you drink it.If such things appeal, maybe a couple of bottles apiece crammed into luggage, wrapped in a plastic bag and then clothes (dirty or otherwise!). Anything from €40-€100 a head if that appeals. p.s. if beer appeals more, the Italian brewing scene is pricey but wonderful - well worth hunting out the niche brews as against the ubiquitous lager styles which can refresh the body more that the mind.

Clothes / shoes. Some great stuff, and easy to bring back. Depending on whether this interests, maybe €50-€200 budget per person for the trip

Entrance fees for museums etc. can vary let's say €5-10 a day average

I'm sure some of these will end up poor estimates, but hopefully give you some sort of ballpark and I've not missed too much obvious stuff

Hey Ian - thanks for the info mate - very much appreciated. We will certainly do the research - part of the fun I reckon - but I'm sure someone out there has done a comparable trip. But all this info is really useful. Thanks again

 

[joe]

- but I'm sure someone out there has done a comparable trip.

If you don't get enough answers here, you can just as well Google something like "how much does it cost to go to Europe" and get a wide range of estimates - which will show you just how difficult it is to give a proper answer to a query like this. There are probably even websites and apps that can churn out estimates when you feed them the relevant info.
Remember, too, that this a forum of "slow" travel type - so hitting four countries in two weeks is not exactly what most forum members are experienced with.