Kraków, Poland: the best-value city in Europe
Kraków gives you a UNESCO-listed medieval centre, a proper meal for under $8 (€7; ≈ £6.32) and a dorm bed for about $9–16 (€8–€14; ≈ £7.11–13). As of October 2026 it is hard to beat for the money. The old town is remarkably intact, and it is less crowded than Prague, though in July you will not feel the difference. The Rynek Główny is among the largest medieval squares in Europe, ringed by merchant houses, the Cloth Hall (Sukiennice) and St Mary's Basilica. A trumpeter plays from the basilica tower every hour and stops mid-phrase, in memory of a medieval watchman said to have been shot in the throat by an arrow. It is a legend, but the city plays it with a straight face. Stand in the square at noon and see.
Eat where the locals have always eaten: the milk bars (bar mleczny), canteens from the communist era that survive on subsidised prices. A full meal costs roughly $4.50–8 (€4–€7; ≈ £3.56–6.32). Order żurek (sour rye soup with egg and sausage), bigos (hunter's stew) or pierogi, and pay at the counter. Expect a queue, a laminated menu and no atmosphere. That is the point. For atmosphere, walk fifteen minutes to Kazimierz, the old Jewish quarter, where the better restaurants and the best bars sit side by side. Lodging is just as kind: a private room in a well-reviewed guesthouse runs about $34–50 (€30–€45; ≈ £25–40).
The honest trade-off is the day trips. Wieliczka Salt Mine, a UNESCO-listed underground world with chapels carved from salt, is a short bus ride away. Auschwitz-Birkenau is also a day trip, and it is not an attraction in the usual sense. Entry has been free but needs a timed pass, and guided tours are paid. Book well ahead through the Memorial's official site, and leave the evening empty. The cliché here is that cheap means second-rate. Kraków shows the opposite, but the low prices do depend on you eating at the milk bar and not in the square.
5-Day Kraków Itinerary
- Day 1: Arrive, walk the Rynek Główny in the evening, eat at a milk bar, then drink your way through Kazimierz.
- Day 2: Wawel Castle and Cathedral in the morning (book tickets online), a tip-based free walking tour in the afternoon, dinner in the Jewish Quarter.
- Day 3: Auschwitz-Birkenau, a full day. Book well ahead, as a timed pass is needed even though entry has been free, and check the Memorial's site for tour rules. It is heavy going, so plan a quiet evening.
- Day 4: Wieliczka Salt Mine (a tour of about two hours, roughly $22–34 (€20–€30; ≈ £17–25) as of October 2026, 30 minutes from Kraków by bus). Spend the afternoon back in the city, browsing the markets.
- Day 5: Nowa Huta, the planned socialist-era district built beside the steelworks. It is free to walk and unlike anywhere else in the city. Finish with a last plate of pierogi, then leave.
Daily Budget (Kraków)
- Hostel dorm: $9–16 (€8–€14; ≈ £7.11–13) a night. Private guesthouse room: $34–56 (€30–€50; ≈ £25–45).
- Milk bar lunch: $4.50–8 (€4–€7; ≈ £3.56–6.32). Restaurant dinner: $11–20 (€10–€18; ≈ £8.69–16) with a beer.
- Beer (0.5 L): $2.25–3.35 (€2–€3; ≈ £1.78–2.65) in a local bar. Cocktail bar: $6–9 (€5–€8; ≈ £4.74–7.11).
- Public transport: about $0.85–1.10 (€0.75–€1; ≈ £0.67–0.87) a journey, or a day pass of roughly $4.50 (€4; ≈ £3.56). Most of the old town is walkable, so you will rarely need it.
- Hostel budget: $39–56 (€35–€50; ≈ £30–45) a day. Mid-range: $78–110 (€70–€100; ≈ £60–85) a day. These are estimates as of October 2026, so check current prices before you book.
Getting There & Around
- Fly into Kraków John Paul II International Airport (KRK). It is about 15 minutes from the centre by bus (around $1.10, €1; ≈ £0.87) or taxi ($11–17, €10–€15; ≈ £8.69–13).
- Budget airlines (Ryanair, Wizz Air, LOT) link Kraków to most European hubs. Fares of $17–67 (€15–€60; ≈ £13–55) each way are common, but they swing with the season.
- Train from Warsaw: about two and a half hours on the Express Intercity, roughly $22–39 (€20–€35; ≈ £17–30) if you book ahead.
- Overnight trains from Vienna and Prague have run on and off over the years. Check ÖBB and the Polish operator PKP Intercity for what is running now, and book early if there is a sleeper.
Lisbon & Porto, Portugal: Atlantic value, within limits
Lisbon and Porto are the cheapest way into Western Europe, but only if you sleep modestly and eat at lunch. Expect $62–84 (€55–€75; ≈ £50–65) a day on a hostel budget as of October 2026. Both cities are steep, walkable and built above river mouths, and a train links them in under three hours for roughly $13–28 (€12–€25; ≈ £10–20). Two weeks would fill easily. A few days in each is more realistic, and you will not feel short-changed.
Start in Lisbon's Alfama, the old Moorish quarter that came through the 1755 earthquake better than most of the city. It climbs from the Tagus waterfront through lanes so narrow that the old trams brush the walls, and the Castelo de São Jorge sits on top with the view. Then take the tram west to Belém, about 20 minutes, for the Mosteiro dos Jerónimos, a landmark of Manueline architecture. Across the road, Pastéis de Belém has been baking the same custard tart since 1837. Expect a queue and pay about $1.35 (€1.20; ≈ £1.07) for each tart. Eat one warm, with cinnamon, standing up.
The prices that make Portugal a budget favourite are small ones: a coffee at the bar for $0.90–1.35 (€0.80–€1.20; ≈ £0.71–1.07), a glass of house wine for $2.25–4.50 (€2–€4; ≈ £1.78–3.56), a three-course lunch for $10–15 (€9–€13; ≈ £7.90–12). The cliché is that Lisbon is a bargain. It was, and it still is compared with Paris or London, but rents and hostel prices have climbed, and the old centre now charges tourist prices at tourist addresses. Eat away from the main squares and you will find the old numbers again. Porto, three hours north, adds port wine, azulejo (blue tile) facades and the Mercado do Bolhão, which reopened after a long renovation in 2022. The Douro Valley quintas are about an hour's drive or a short train ride inland.
7-Day Lisbon + Porto Itinerary
- Days 1–2: Lisbon. Walk Alfama in the morning, ride tram 28, see Belém for the tarts and the monastery, and hear fado in the evening in Mouraria.
- Day 3: Sintra, a day trip by train of about 40 minutes (a few euros each way). Pena Palace, the Moorish Castle and Quinta da Regaleira are all worth the climb.
- Day 4: Back in Lisbon. Visit the Museu Nacional do Azulejo, the tile museum, then the LX Factory market on Sunday (Sundays only) and the Tagus waterfront.
- Day 5: Train to Porto (about $13–28, €12–€25; ≈ £10–20, 2 hours 45 minutes). Check in, walk the Douro riverfront and taste port in Vila Nova de Gaia.
- Day 6: Porto. Livraria Lello (the famous bookshop, entry around $6 (€5; ≈ £4.74), credited against a purchase), the Bolhão market, the tiles at São Bento station and sunset at Foz beach.
- Day 7: Douro Valley by train (about $13, €12; ≈ £10 return), one of Europe's great rail journeys. Taste wine at a quinta, then return to Porto for your departure.
Daily Budget (Lisbon/Porto)
- Hostel dorm in Alfama or Bairro Alto: $20–31 (€18–€28; ≈ £16–25).
- Coffee: $0.90–1.35 (€0.80–€1.20; ≈ £0.71–1.07), standing at the bar as locals do.
- Pastel de nata: about $1.35 (€1.20; ≈ £1.07) at the original Pastéis de Belém, $1.70–2.25 (€1.50–€2; ≈ £1.34–1.78) elsewhere.
- Menu do dia (three-course lunch with wine): $10–15 (€9–€13; ≈ £7.90–12) at local tascas.
- Glass of house wine: $2.25–4.50 (€2–€4; ≈ £1.78–3.56) at a local restaurant. Craft beer: $2.80–4.50 (€2.50–€4; ≈ £2.21–3.56).
- Hostel budget: $62–84 (€55–€75; ≈ £50–65) a day. Mid-range: $125–170 (€110–€150; ≈ £100–135) a day. All figures are estimates as of October 2026.
Practical Tips
- Consider a 24-hour or 48-hour Lisboa Card for transport and museum entry. It pays off only if you plan to visit several paid sights, so do the sums first.
- Tram 28 and the Elevador da Bica attract pickpockets. Keep your phone and wallet in a zipped pocket, and ride early in the day.
- July and August in Lisbon are hot and busy, with temperatures that can pass 35°C / 95°F. April, May, September and October are more comfortable.
- Porto is rainier than Lisbon. Pack a light waterproof whatever the month.
- Tap water is safe to drink in both cities.
Budapest, Hungary: grand architecture, small bills
Budapest looks like Vienna and costs far less, with dorm beds from about $13 (€12; ≈ £10) and a sit-down dinner with wine for $13–22 (€12–€20; ≈ £10–17). It was the other capital of the Austro-Hungarian Empire, which explains the grand boulevards, the Parliament and the architectural ambition. The Danube splits the city in two: Buda is hilly and old, Pest is flat and busy. Walk the Chain Bridge at night, with the castle lit above you and the Parliament downstream, and you will see why people compare it with its richer neighbours.
Go to the baths, but choose with care. Széchenyi is the famous one, a neo-baroque palace of hot pools and steam rooms. Go at 10 am, book online and expect crowds regardless. Rudas, built around an Ottoman bath from the sixteenth century, has a domed hall and a rooftop pool above the river. Lukács is quieter and used more by locals. Entry at all three runs about $17–29 (€15–€26; ≈ £13–25) depending on the day. The city sits over many thermal springs, which is why there are so many baths in the first place. The ruin bars of the Jewish Quarter are the other draw. Szimpla Kert is the original: a maze of courtyards in a half-derelict building, furnished with mismatched chairs and odd art. Go in the afternoon, when it is calmer, and again at night when it is not.
The cliché here is that Budapest is a party city with cheap beer. It is that, and Friday nights in the Jewish Quarter can be loud, but the better value is in the food and the wine. Hungary makes serious wine: Tokaj, one of Europe's oldest recognised wine regions, and the reds of Eger and Villány. A tasting at a wine bar or restaurant costs roughly $17–28 (€15–€25; ≈ £13–20). Take your time over it. The trade-off is a scam-prone nightlife strip: check the menu prices before you order, and avoid taxis hailed in the street.
5-Day Budapest Itinerary
- Day 1: Arrive, go to the Széchenyi baths (book online, go at 10 am before the crowds), then spend the evening at Szimpla Kert.
- Day 2: The Buda side. Buda Castle and the National Gallery, Fisherman's Bastion (free to walk around), Matthias Church, and sunset over Pest.
- Day 3: The Great Market Hall (Nagycsarnok) in the morning for langos (fried dough with sour cream), paprika and Hungarian crafts. In the afternoon, the Jewish Quarter and the Dohány Street Synagogue, the largest in Europe.
- Day 4: The Hungarian Parliament tour (about $22, €20; ≈ £17 as of October 2026, book ahead, as the interior is the point). Afterwards, Andrássy Avenue and the House of Terror museum.
- Day 5: Rudas baths, with the rooftop pool. Then a farewell dinner with Hungarian wine, and depart.
Daily Budget (Budapest)
- Hostel dorm: $13–22 (€12–€20; ≈ £10–17) a night in the Jewish Quarter or inner Pest.
- Langos (street food staple): $2.25–4.50 (€2–€4; ≈ £1.78–3.56).
- Sit-down dinner at a traditional Hungarian étterem (restaurant): $13–22 (€12–€20; ≈ £10–17) with wine.
- Thermal bath entry: $20–29 (€18–€26; ≈ £16–25) depending on the bath and the time of day.
- Craft beer at a ruin bar: $3.35–6 (€3–€5; ≈ £2.65–4.74). Local wine by the glass: $3.35–6 (€3–€5; ≈ £2.65–4.74).
- Hostel budget: $50–78 (€45–€70; ≈ £40–60) a day. Mid-range: $100–145 (€90–€130; ≈ £80–115) a day. These are estimates as of October 2026, and the forint moves, so check before you go.
Getting There & Around
- Budapest Ferenc Liszt International Airport (BUD) is served by most major European carriers and budget airlines.
- Airport to the centre: take the 100E bus, then the M3 metro from Kőbánya-Kispest, for roughly $1.70 (€1.50; ≈ £1.34) in total. A shuttle costs about $9–11 (€8–€10; ≈ £7.11–8.69) and a taxi $28–34 (€25–€30; ≈ £20–25). Use the Bolt or Fotaxi apps rather than a taxi from the street.
- City transport: a 10-ride pass for trams, metro and buses costs about $11 (€10; ≈ £8.69) and covers the lot. Check current fares with BKK, the city transport operator.
- Walk or rent a bike for the river and the inner districts. The Pest side is flat, so you can cover a lot of it on foot.