Golden Tickets, Magic Passes and Hidden Entrances

City Passes and Entry Tickets

Entry tickets to various places of interest, can add up to a substantial amount. Most major tourist cities have a pass giving you free or discounted access to many of the sights. However, they are generally expensive. So you need to decide on the sights and museums you want visit, check their individual ticket prices and compare it to the price of the pass. Passes are generally cost effective when you are visiting more sights in less time. A pass may or may not be worth its price depending on your sightseeing plan. However, many passes provide other advantages such as free use of local transport, a separate and much shorter line to get in, discounts, etc.

A few examples -

Roma Pass - The highlights of the pass are :-

• Free entry to the first two museums you visit. Concessionary entry thereafter.
• Free use of city's public transport network.
• Valid for three days.
• Cost 36 Euros.

Is it worth buying? You need to decide what places you will visit among the discounts offered. In our case, here is the calculation.

• Colosseum - 12 Euros.
• Castel D'Angelo - 10 Euros
• Assuming a bare minimum of three journeys every day, you will make 9 trips on the public transport network over three days - 13.5 Euros
• Total - 35.5 Euros

All other discounts and travel were just added savings. In addition, Roma pass holders have a separate line in most sights, saving you a lot of time. Thus the Roma Pass, for us, was a great deal. 

Firenze Card - This card, on the other hand, costs 72 Euros for three days. It provides one free entry in all participating museums, free transport and free Wifi. However, it is worth it only if you intend visiting a lot of museums. It wasn't worth it for us.

Cinque Terre Card - Usage of Trekking Trails + Trains for 1 day was 12 Euros. It was worth it for us.

Venezia Unica - You can create your own customised card from the various options. Whether it is value for money depend upon your plans. But remember that the tickets for the water taxi (Vaporetto) are expensive - 7.50 Euros per trip. Since we were spending only one day in Venice, we bought a pass which allowed us unlimited Vaporetto use over 24 hrs for just 20 Euros.

Vienna Card or Vienna Pass - In Vienna, you have a choice between the Card and the Pass. The Card costs just 18.90 Euros giving you free use of public transport for 2 days, but only discounts in the museums and sights. The Vienna Pass on the other hand costs a hefty 69 Euros, again allowing free use of public transport for 2 days, but free entrance to most major museums and sights. Roughly speaking, the Pass is a better option if you intend to visit as many sights as you can, in 2 or 3 days. A leisurely tour of the city may be better served by the Vienna Card. However, you need to do your own calculations, based on the places you plan to visit, to get the best deal. For us, the Pass was worth the cost.

Swiss Pass - In Switzerland, your travel options include buses, trams, trains, boats, funiculars, cable cars, gondolas, cogwheel trains, etc. And they can be prohibitively expensive. So, in order to confuse you further, they also have a slew of passes to select from. You have the Eurail Pass which gives you discounts on some transport options. You have the Swiss Travel Pass which allows you free use of most forms of transport across Switzerland and free entry to various museums and sights. You have the regional passes, the most popular among these being the Bernese Oberland Pass, which permits free use of all forms of transport within a region, except some private operators. And then you have the Swiss Half-Card which only gives you discounts, but is valid for a much longer period. So, all in all, it is a confusing landscape. In my opinion, for a short trip, the Swiss Travel pass is the best value for money among all the options. Damn expensive though.

Paris Pass - The Paris Pass is actually a Paris Visite Card and Museum Pass combined, with some extras thrown in. So, you need to decide whether you will use enough extras to make the expense worth it. In our case, we didn't think so and went ahead with the transport pass and Museum pass separately. The Paris Visite Card permitted us free use of all forms of public transport within Zones 1-3. This included all places we wanted to go except Versailles, Disneyland and the Airport which are in Zone 5. The pass for Zone 1-5 is much more expensive, and it is more economical to buy the single journey tickets for these places, rather than a pass. The Paris Museum Pass is excellent value for money, permitting you free access to most museums in Paris, including Versailles. You only have to decide the duration of the pass to buy depending on your plans.


Online Entry Tickets

And finally, you have the option of buying tickets of many attractions online. For a nominal extra charge, you can save hours of time as you don't have to stand in line for the tickets. We found this especially useful in Florence and Venice, where we did not buy passes. Here are a few places we bought tickets online.

Vatican - The official website of the Vatican for buying everything from museum tickets to tours to meeting the Pope. We took an official tour of the Vatican Museums, St Peters and Sistine Chapel. It is extremely cheap compared to private tour operators and is very well conducted. However, bookings start 60 days in advance and the best times get booked early.

Florence - We bought our tickets for the Uffizi and Accademia here. It is the official website for all Museums in Florence. You pay 4 Euros extra as a service charge. But it is worth it, just to avoid the serpentine lines outside these museums.

Venice - The Visitmuve site is the official website of the Venetian Museums. You can buy tickets online, including combination tickets, such as one for all museums in St Marks Square. I also bought Skip-the-Line tickets for the St Marks Basilica from the Venetoinside website. It was like taking an appointment, and certainly saved me a lot of time.

A Warning - While buying tickets online, be sure to check the official website. There are many commercial websites, which sell the same tickets at a much higher price. Be careful.



Shortcuts and Hidden Entrances

It is very useful to do a search for the best time and place of entry for various popular sights. It can save you a lot of time and more importantly, give you the satisfaction of having outwitted the hordes of tourists :-). Again, the best way of finding these gems is by googling for phrases like "best time to enter....", "how to avoid lines outside......", etc. Here are a few tips we picked up during our trip.

• Rome - The ticket for the Colosseum includes entry to the Roman Forum and the Palatine Hill and is valid for a single entry to each place over two days. So instead of standing in a long line outside the Colosseum, buy your combination ticket at the entrance to the Palatine Hill, which is never crowded. You can thereafter see the Colossuem and Roman forum at your leisure, skipping the long ticket lines completely. Of course, this tip is not required if you have a Roma Pass, as you have a separate line in all these places. Other sources - Rick Steves, Italylogue, goItaly

• Versailles - Buy your tickets online if you are not taking a Paris Museum Pass. Try to arrive at the Palace by 9 AM when it opens. However, do not enter the Palace. take the bus and proceed to the Triannon Complex, which is a few kilometres away, and work your way back through the Triannon, Marie Antoinnettes Estate and the Gardens, to arrive at the Palace in the afternoon, as late as possible. Most visitors walk the other way round, starting with the palace and ending at the Triannon. This strategy should help you avoid the crowd. Other sources -  Conde Naste Traveler

• Louvre - The Louvre, with the Mona Lisa, is one of the biggest draws of Paris. The lines outside the Glass Pyramid, which is the main entrance to the museum, are serpentine. So what should you do? Take any of the other lesser known entrances, at the Passage Richelieu or the Porte des Lions. These entrances also lead you to the ticket counters under the Glass Pyramid. The Porte Des Lions is especially useful if you have a Museum Pass as you can reach under the pyramid and enter the museum in minutes. A second tip - try to visit the Louvre on a wednesday or a friday, when it is open till 9:45 PM. You can reach the museum by 3, after lunch and a siesta, and still have a solid 6 hours to wander around the museum. By 5, the tourist bus crowd would have left, leaving you to wonder why your friends couldn't take a selfie with the Mona Lisa. Other sources - The Telegraph, cntraveler, Tom's Guide.

• Eiffel Tower receives over 32,000 visitors every day during summer. So there is no way you can avoid a line. You can only make it shorter. Option 1, buy tickets online, from the official website. You are given a time slot when you have to be present to board the elevator. However, the slots are limited and sell out like hot cakes. And, of course, you also pay a premium. Option 2, is to head for south west pillar, which is for those who want to go up by stairs. The lines are much shorter, and move faster, here. Don't worry, you do not have to climb to the top; you can go up to the second level, taking 674 steps, and take the elevator to the top from there. Apart from the thrill of walking up the tower, you would have completed your tour of the first and second levels, while those waiting for the elevator would still be standing in line below. You save a little money, as an added bonus. The climb is quite enjoyable. We, in spite of climbing at a leisurely pace, with selfie pitstops, did it in about 15 min. Other sources - The Telegraph, a blog, another blog. 

Finally, Europe is filled with tourists. There will be a queue at every place of interest. So, if you want to avoid the crowds, you have to either go to unconventional places, or at unconventional times. However, if you visit when the weather and time is perfect, be prepared to bump into a lot of people who think likewise.

One advice I can offer is to leave early everyday. The lovely squares of European cities have a totally different look when empty. Be there at the entrance of the cathedrals and museums by 9 AM, and you will have a much shorter wait. Delay by an hour, and a serpentine queue will await you. Most tourist buses, with the hordes, arrive around 10 AM. If you enter before they arrive, it will be a much more memorable visit.

Here is what you see if you arrive early......

And an hour later..........

Conclusion

Entry tickets to various museums and sights will be one of your major expenses. Any miscalculation in these expenses can really cause you a lot of heartburn and put your budget in trouble. It is worth your while to spend some effort to consider various options, decide whether to buy certain passes or to go online and buy tickets, as this can save you a lot of money and more importantly, time. It can be a frustrating experience to plan a day full of museums visits and fun activities, and then spend half the day, waiting in queue, outside the first museum.

With this post, we come to the end of the series on planning of the trip. Hope to begin the next series on our actual travels and experiences soon.


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Other posts in this series......

Eurotrip 2015 - Our Grand Tour

Eurotrip 2015 Episode 1- Genesis
 
Plan a European Holiday in 5 Easy Steps

How to Fly to Europe on a Budget

Hassle-free Bookings to Stay Within Budget

Planes, Trains and Automobiles - How to Travel Across Europe on the Cheap

Low Cost Airlines in Europe : A Budget Travelers Guide

Places to Visit - A Guide to Creating your Own Local Itinerary

How to Move Around Town Like a Local

Visa - The Key to the Beckoning Gates

Read More

Visa - The Key to the Beckoning Gates

Obtaining a Tourist Visa for Europe is a reasonably simple process. Since they want more tourists to come to their countries, the procedures are not designed to discourage and hinder you.

Schengen Visa

When travelling to Western Europe, you will, in all likelihood, need the Schengen Visa, which covers 26 countries. In addition, some non-member countries like Croatia permit entry, as long as you have a valid Schengen visa. However, the United Kingdom is not a part of the Schengen treaty and you will need a UK visa for entry.

We did not plan to travel to the UK and hence needed a Schengen visa only. If you need any info on the UK Visa, please visit the website here.

Which Country?.   The decision about which country to apply for the visa will depend on the following conditions :-

"A Schengen visa has to be obtained from the Embassy/Consulate of the country where the main purpose of travel lies. Therefore, please check your travel plans before making your application. In case of travel to multiple Schengen countries, please make your application to the Consulate where you will be staying for the maximum number of days, and from the Point of First Entry into the Schengen Countries, if the duration of stay is the same in more than one Schengen Country."

In short - Country with maximum stay or Point of first entry. In our case, that was Italy.

When Can I Apply?   You should apply for a Visa at least 15 working days prior to the date of departure and not more than 90 days before departure. You can apply at a shorter notice, but will have to give an application stating that you will not hold the embassy responsible if you do not get the visa in time.

VFS-Global.   Most western countries, including the US, UK and Schengen countries have outsourced the paperwork to a private partner, VFS-Global. One you have decided which country you want the visa for, go here and choose the country from the drop down list on the bottom left corner. This should take you to the page for that specific country.

Here onwards, the process would generally be similar, but with minor differences depending on the country. I will be covering my experience with Italy.

Visa Process for Italy

Once you have chosen the consulate based on your location, you will be redirected here, with a clear step by step process.

First Step - Check if you need a Visa. If you are from india, Yes.

Second Step - Choose your Visa Type. If your trip is less than 90 days, and purpose is tourism, Schengen Type 'C'.

Third Step - Prepare your application. Download the application form from here. Fill up one copy for each applicant, including children.Ensure you have all the relevant documents according to the requirements given here. The main requirements are :-

• Passport - Ensure that your passport has 3 months of validity beyond the visa dates, and it has at least two blank pages.

• Photos - As per specifications given here. They are very strict about this. In case your photos don't match their requirements, you have to take an overpriced photo inside the application center.

• Travel insurance - Here is a list of approved travel insurance schemes.

• Your itinerary with travel dates. Below is the itinerary I submitted.

• Return air tickets.

• Cover letter giving purpose of trip or employers leave authorization.

• Proof of adequate financial means including salary slips, bank statements, or income tax challans/Form 16.

• Proof of accomodation which may either be hotel bookings or invitation letter from sponsor in Italy. Tip - If you are not sure about your stay, you can book on bookings.com, selecting hotels giving the 'Free Cancellation - Pay Later' option. You can use he printouts of these confirmations for your visa, and subsequently cancel or change you bookings. There is no process of checking where you actually stay. I am assuming that this step is only to ensure that you know how to book a place and take care of yourself. Here is a sample booking printout I enclosed.

• For minors, the application has to be signed by both parents. Else, an affidavit has to be provided.

Fourth Step - Schedule an appointment here. A slot is generally available within a day or two. You cannot choose the date, so keep the next few days free when scheduling the appointment.You can reschedule the appointment, but only twice, after which you have to pay the visa charges again.

Fifth Step - Visit the Visa Application Center (VAC). Carry your passport and all the above-mentioned documents to the VAC. The center for some of the countries, including Italy, has recently moved to the Shivaji Stadium Metro Station near Connaught Place from its earlier location at Nehru Place. The VAC visit is for collection of biometric data, checking and submission of application with supporting documents and payment of fees. The visa fee is Rs.4330 for adults, Rs.2530 for minors between 6 and 12 yrs and a VFS service charge of Rs.1010. If everything is in order, your passport and papers would be submitted and an acknowledgement receipt will be issued. 

Sixth Step - Post submission process. This is the step when you wait and track your application as the embassy decides if you are welcome to their country. During your VAC visit, you will be asked if you want to receive application status updates by SMS, for a charge of course. In my experience, neither did I receive any updates, nor is it required. You can always track the status here.

Seventh Step - Collection of Passports. Once the passport with visa is ready, you can either collect it yourself from the VAC counter by showing the acknowledgment receipt or by courier if you opted for this service during submission of application.

With that ends the process of getting your visa. 
Congratulation! You now hold the keys to enter the gates, which have been beckoning you with the promise of wonderful times ahead.






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Other posts in this series......

Eurotrip 2015 - Our Grand Tour

Eurotrip 2015 Episode 1- Genesis

Plan a European Holiday in 5 Easy Steps

How to Fly to Europe on a Budget

Hassle-free Bookings to Stay Within Budget

Planes, Trains and Automobiles - How to Travel Across Europe on the Cheap

Low Cost Airlines in Europe : A Budget Travelers Guide

Places to Visit - A Guide to Creating your Own Local Itinerary

How to Move Around Town Like a Local

Golden Tickets, Magic Passes and Hidden Entrances

Read More

How to Move Around Town Like a Local

Local Transportation

The next step is the local transportation. Most European cities have an excellent public transport network. They also follow an integrated tariff system where the same tickets can be used in all forms of public transportation, from metro to buses and from trams to boats, paying by time from start of your journey, and not distance travelled. So a ticket once validated, permits you to use the transport system for 45-100 minutes, depending on the city. Whether you travel 1 km or 30 km, it will cost you the same. 

Tickets.    For traveling, you can buy a single ticket or a 'carnet' of 10 tickets, which is generally cheaper. Whenever you get on a bus, find the validating machine and insert the ticket in it. Depending on the system, it will imprint the time physically or electronically. Your time on the transport network starts now. Remember, carrying a ticket, but not validating it, is as good as travelling without a ticket. Checks are not too frequent, but if caught, the fine is hefty. And checking is generally more on the popular tourist routes. 

Here are the tickets from Rome and Florence. If you look closely, you can see the date and time imprinted on them.

The validating machines are placed at the entrance of metros and at the entry doors of the buses. They have an electronic sensor for cards and a slot for inserting paper tickets.

Passes.   These cities also have passes which permit you unlimited travel for a given number of days. You need to validate the pass the first time you use it. You can then use any transport as required. Passes are generally good value for money. You just have to find the pass which meets your specific travel requirements.

Finding the Best Route. Various resources are available to help find the best route and combination of transport means to take you from one place to another. The easiest and time-tested method is of course to ask another human. This human can be your landlord, the hotel receptionist or anyone on the street who is a local citizen. For identifying a local, just look for someone who is not carrying a camera, which is a dead giveaway, or aimlessly shuffling around, gawking at every building or statue. Once he/she has directed you to a bus stop, the final confirmation that the bus you have to take will stop there can be done by looking at the information board. All cities in Europe have excellent information boards at each bus stop. It will give you the bus number, the route it will take and the arrival times. In some cities, they also have an electronic board displaying the next bus number and how many minutes it will arrive in. Here are a few examples, from Rome and Venice.

However, if you detest speaking to the uncivilized locals, who may not even know english, or if asking for directions is just beneath you or you simply consider technology to be the answer to all problems, you may find the following resources useful :-

• Websites

• Google Maps - Most transport companies share data with them. So a search for directions on google maps will include public transport options, including buses, trains, trams and their combinations. The results are shown with the exact timings of the bus, helping you decide when you should leave your hotel, or how much time you have to wander around before moving to the bus stand. However, this information is not available offline. This is one major reason why having a smartphone with an active data connection is very useful.

• Here Maps - Formerly Nokia Maps. The information it provides is very similar to Google Maps. Though, it has the advantage that you can download maps by country / city for offline use, you still need a data connection for public transportation options. 

• Hopstop - This site is another option for online local transit directions.

• Many city transport authorities also have their own website/ apps. Check them out for the cities you are visiting, using google search. Since the english versions of these websites are generally not easy to understand, you may need the help of Google Translate. Some of these websites are - ATAC (Rome), ATAF (Florence), ACTV (Venice), Wiener Linien (Vienna) and RATP (Paris).

• Apps

• CityMapper (Android and iOS) - Presently available for 28 cities around the world - and growing. It has maps, public transportation schedules, timings, etc - and all available offline. So you can download the data for the city you are visiting and you are good to go. Data connection is required if you want info on real-time delays, etc. They also have a web version.

• Transit (Android and iOS) - Similar to Citymapper. It has a much larger worldwide coverage.

• Moovit (Android and iOS) - Covers over 600 cities. Unlike Citymapper and Transit, this app uses crowdsourced data, like Waze, to give you information on public transportation.

Conclusion

Planning your local movements, and also having the tools to plan it on the move, can save you a great deal of time, money and headache. One missed bus, leading to an hour waiting in the most uninteresting corner of town, is the surest way to ruin the rest of the day. You need not plan every move across town. But be sure to check the time and frequency of buses when going to the outskirts or a nearby town. You can also check the most comfortable means of traveling when the journey time is likely to be long.

However, speed and comfort need not be the only factors while deciding how you get around town. In Paris, for instance, the metro is an extremely efficient and fast means of transport. However, if you spend all your travel time underground, you will be missing out on a large part of this beautiful city. So be sure to use the bus, or even a bicycle when possible, to watch the city as it goes by.

In the end, walking is the best way to get around most European cities. You may use the public transport to reach the city centre, but thereafter plan to walk from one place to another. 

You need to slow down to truly enjoy the experience.

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Other posts in this series......

Eurotrip 2015 - Our Grand Tour

Eurotrip 2015 Episode 1- Genesis
 
Plan a European Holiday in 5 Easy Steps

How to Fly to Europe on a Budget

Hassle-free Bookings to Stay Within Budget

Planes, Trains and Automobiles - How to Travel Across Europe on the Cheap

Low Cost Airlines in Europe : A Budget Travelers Guide

Places to Visit - A Guide to Creating your Own Local Itinerary

Visa - The Key to the Beckoning Gates
Golden Tickets, Magic Passes and Hidden Entrances

Read More

Places to Visit - A Guide to Creating your Own Local Itinerary

We now come to the raison d'etre for this entire exercise - seeking wonderful and exhilarating experiences. Some may want to jump off a cliff to experience that rush, while other may experience that rush, standing in silence, in front of a painting. 

The Local Itinerary

Your local itinerary decides what you see, and what you decide to skip, hopefully to see when you return another day. The level of control you wish to exercise and the flexibility you want in your daily movements will determine the kind of itinerary you create. This may range from a detailed minute by minute plan for each day to a rough list of places you would like to visit every day. I started with the former 'control freak' version and ended up following the latter 'free spirit' version during the holiday.

Step By Step Guide to Itinerary Preparation

So here are the steps to prepare your local sightseeing plan.

Step 1 - What are the sights you want to visit? You may already have a rough idea of what you would like to see based on your initial research on how many days to spend in each city. You now make the full list of must see and like to see places.

Step 2 - Check which days they are open and their timings. This is extremely important. You dont want to travel a 1000 miles to a city with a plan of seeing one all important museum - and realising it is closed on that day. You can also note its entry fees, for deciding whether to buy a pass or not.

Step 3 - Decide how much time you would like to spend at each place. this is an individual choice. You may be satisfied with just walking into the Louvre, see the Mona Lisa and walk out. Or you may want to spend two full days exploring this awesome museum. Please include the waiting time for entering the place in your calculations. You may have to stand in line for hours in the more popular attractions in Europe. So, check the recommended days or times of entry to avoid waiting too long. For example, you can save over an hour of standing in line by going to the Louvre on a thursday evening, when it is open till 8 PM.

Step 4 - How are they located with respect to each other? In some cities, all the major sights are within walking distance of each other, while in some, most are hours apart. Examine their location on a map and decide which are close enough to be done together.

Step 5 - Prepare the Daily Plan. :-)

Online Resources

There is no single website which helps you in all these steps. Depending upon the level of detail you prefer, a combination of the following resources should help you in making your itinerary.

Attraction Finders.  The following websites will help you decide what to see or do, giving further details of the attraction, including its timing and website. You can also read the users reviews for useful information.

• Tripadvisor - Select the City and choose "Things to Do". It gives you a list, including places to see and activities to do, ranked by visitors, with community reviews. You can further view them by category, such as landmarks, museums, outdoor activities, tours, food and drinks, etc. This list is an exhaustive one, generally covering even the minor and innocuous places. For example, Rome shows 985 things to do. So choose the activity you are interested in, for example Sights and Landmarks, and look at the top 10. That should give you more than enough things to do. Recommended.

 

• Lonely Planet - The web version of the old faithful. I wasn't quite happy with this offering of the venerable Lonely Planet, the print version of which I have used for numerous trips, the book always providing accurate and great advice. This site has too many plugs for private tours between the results you are searching for. They have probably given up on this site and started concentrating on their new offering, TouristEye.

• TouristEye - This is a new website and mobile application by Lonely Planet. An excellent website to help you decide. It has a neat tiled layout, making it easy to get an overview of the major attractions. Their list includes the best 'experiences', 'attractions' and 'eating places' the destination has to offer. The site also has a nice Map layout which shows all the attractions on google map. Highly recommended.

 

• TimeOut - If the city you are visiting has a TimeOut edition. This is a great site to check out events and activities happening in the city during your stay.





• VirtualTourist - It is a free website providing travel guides to locations around the world, written by ordinary users and tourists. Very comprehensive.





• And of course Google - Search for 'Top 10 things to see or do' for the city. It will give you an overdose of results, ranging from commercial websites to user blogs. In addition, a search for most major destinations, google will display a list of top attractions in that city on top of the search results. Lists provided by The Telegraph, Huffington Post and Guardian are generally excellent. 

Online Planners.   The following websites more than just help you decide what to see - they actually make an itinerary for you.

• VisitaCity - Select your destination and how many days you are spending there, and then choose your travel guide from the choices, ranging from easy going, kid-friendly, must see, etc. You can see the planned itinerary on a map, including distance between them, travel time and how much time to spend in each place. You can further modify the plan to your liking, and then you can download a PDF copy of your itinerary, including the route map. Highly recommended.
  
  

• Planapple - A similar website for creating your itinerary. Not as polished as VisitaCity, but gives you more control over the plan.

Ready Made Itineraries.   And finally there are the ready made, ready to use itineraries. Excellent, tried and tested routes with minimal effort. Just search on Google with phrases like "Itinerary for Rome in 3 days" or "suggested itinerary for.....". The search results include offerings by travel websites and bloggers. Some offerings, like those by Frommers, Reids, etc include travel directions, such as which bus or tram to take to go from one place to another.

The Final Outcome

The final outcome of all this research should be a document, maybe paper or electronic, which helps you in planning your day. Everyday when you get up and go out, you should have an idea about what you wish to do, so that you do not waste time wandering around, deciding what to do. Please remember, wandering around without purpose is not a bad idea by itself. It is the wandering, when you can't decide where to go, which leads to waste of time and increasing frustration, spoiling the holiday. In my opinion, a document with dates, giving the intended places of visit, separately for the forenoon and afternoon of each day, is the minimum you should aim for.

Here are a few example.

 

I saved my entire plan as a calendar on Google Calendar. It is convenient and permits you to access it from any place or device. I would highly recommend this.

Additional Tip

Where to Eat. You can also use Google to find out the best places to eat in each city. Use search phrases like "cheap places to eat in ....", "best budget places to eat in ....", "top budget eateries in...", "eat like  a local in .....", etc. Websites like The Telegraph, Huffington Post, Guardian, SeriousEats, etc have some excellent articles. When you get the results, just look up their location. Based on their location, and your plan for each day, you can decide where to eat your meals everyday. This can save you time and money, while giving you a taste of the culinary variety of the places you visit. 

For those days when you just want plain, cheap calories, lookup the location of the nearest McDonalds, KFC, etc. They are generally located near most famous landmarks, prominently displaying their logos, inviting hungry tourists into their lairs.

Insider Secrets. Another extremely useful google search to do before you finalise your plan is "insider secrets of .....", "save money when in ....", "visiting ..... on a budget", etc. This can give you links to great articles. Apart from those already mentioned, these websites are also useful  - eurocheapo, budgettravel, cntraveler, budgettraveller. They can give you fantastic tips on how to avoid long queues, get cheap entry tickets, etc.

Conclusion

In conclusion, the Internet is a cornucopia of information. You can get lost, doing hours and hours of 'research', among the thousands of websites. Please remember, you are not planning a military campaign, you are trying to ensure that your fun trip remains fun. The aim of all this research is to ensure that you do not encounter any hiccups which ruin your holiday. 

The level and type of planning required for a young student is very different from that for a family with a young kid. Planning for meals, toilet breaks, rest breaks, kids entertainment, etc are extremely important aspects for a family, while all the student really needs to know is where to find budget accommodation, good food and good company. So decide on your comfort level, balancing details and flexibility, and go ahead.

In the next post, we look at getting around within a city and the worth and utility of passes.

**********************************************************************************
Other posts in this series......

Eurotrip 2015 - Our Grand Tour

Eurotrip 2015 Episode 1- Genesis
 
Plan a European Holiday in 5 Easy Steps

How to Fly to Europe on a Budget

Hassle-free Bookings to Stay Within Budget

Planes, Trains and Automobiles - How to Travel Across Europe on the Cheap

Low Cost Airlines in Europe : A Budget Travelers Guide

Places to Visit - A Guide to Creating your Own Local Itinerary

Visa - The Key to the Beckoning Gates
Golden Tickets, Magic Passes and Hidden Entrances

Read More

Low Cost Airlines in Europe : A Budget Travelers Guide

Low-cost airlines are an excellent and viable option for budget travel within Europe. The greatest advantage of flying is of course the saving in travel time. So if you want to see Vienna and Barcelona, rather than spending a full day on a train, taking a flight across Europe would make better sense. 

Low Cost Airlines

The most popular cheap airlines in Europe are Ryan Air and EasyJet. They are Europe's largest budget carriers and have an extensive network covering both Western and Eastern Europe.

Apart from these major airlines, there are many smaller airlines which cater for few specific routes. Most of these airlines operate very limited flights from a few local hubs. A list of such airlines is placed at the end of this post.

Search Engines

You can also use the meta-search engines to search for airlines operating between the cities you want. The most popular sites are Skyscanner, Kayak, Dohop, WhichAirline, Momondo and FlyCheapo. You can also read my post on How to Fly to Europe for further information and tips on searching for the best flight deals.

What is the Catch?

However, there are a few disadvantages and problems with air travel that you must consider before you decide on your mode of transportation. :-

• Low Fares - But Hidden Charges. The fares may be low, but you will then be charged extra for everything from priority check-in to food to baggage. Cater for these extra charges. For example, you can get a Rome to Paris ticket on Ryan Air for as low as 19 Euros. However, you are only permitted 10 Kg of cabin baggage. If you want to carry check-in baggage, it will cost you 25 Euros for 15 Kg of checked-in baggage.

• No Check-in Baggage. As explained above, the low-cost airlines generally have a very low baggage allowance. You need to buy your extra baggage limit while buying the tickets. If you don't, you will have to pay more than double at the check-in counter. What this means is that you should know how much baggage you will be carrying when buying the tickets itself. Any unanticipated local shopping can prove expensive in more ways than one.

• Airports Located in Outskirts. Airports are generally located in the outskirts of the city, while train and bus stations would generally be close to the city centre. You will thus have to cater for the extra expense of transport to the city centre/ hotel location.

• Obscure Airports. Most cheap airlines use obscure and small airports which are not only outside the city, but probably in a different town. For example, the Frankfurt airport used by Ryan Air is in Hahn, 75 miles away. You may have very limited, and expensive, transportation options to get into the city. That is why many airlines sell airport transfers as an add-on to your ticket. Below, you can see the location of the airport used by Ryan Air in Paris, compared to CDG, the main airport.

• Check-in Time. You will have to check-in at least 60 minutes before the flight. Any delay may lead to you not being allowed to board. On the other hand, you can reach a station to board a train at the last moment. The remote locations of most of these airports adds to the uncertainty as it may be difficult to estimate travel time, forcing you to keep more time in hand.

• Unreliable Schedule. Finally, some of the smaller airlines may cancel or reschedule flights at very short notice.

Conclusion

In conclusion, flying by a low cost airline can be a great option as long as you plan properly. It can save you a lot of time and money, especially when you are traveling light - really light - and the distances are long.

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List of Low Cost Airlines Operating in Europe

Airline	Hub(s)
Aer Lingus	Dublin, Shannon, Cork, Belfast
airBaltic	Riga (Latvia)
airberlin	Multiple German cities
Air One	Milan, Venice, Pisa
Blue Air	Bucharest, Bacău (Romania)
Brussels Airlines	Brussels
CityJet	London City Airport
Condor	Multiple German cities
Darwin Airline	Geneva, Lugano
easyJet	London, Milan, Berlin, Paris, Liverpool, Geneva, Basel, Nice, Toulouse, Edinburgh, Madrid, and more
Estonian Air	Tallinn
Flybe	Manchester, Newquay, Exeter, Southampton, London (southern England); Jersey, Guernsey (Channel Islands)
Germanwings	Multiple German cities
Helvetic Airways	Zürich, Bern
Icelandair	Reykjavik
Jet2	Multiple British cities
Jetairfly	Brussels, Liège, Ostend (Belgium)
Meridiana	Olbia, Cagliari (Sardinia); Rome and other Italian cities
Monarch Airlines	Multiple British cities
Niki	Vienna, Salzburg
Norwegian	Oslo, Bergen, Copenhagen, Stockholm, Alicante, and London
Pegasus Airlines	Istanbul, Antalya (Turkey)
Ryanair	London, Dublin, and several other cities
SmartWings	Prague, Ostrava (Czech Republic)
Thomsonfly	Connects various British cities to Mediterranean resorts
Transavia	Amsterdam, Rotterdam, Eindhoven
TUIfly	Multiple German cities
Vueling	Multiple Spanish cities, Amsterdam, Florence, Rome
Widerøe	Oslo
Wizz Air	Budapest and many other Eastern European cities
XL Airways	Paris

Source : www.ricksteves.com

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Other posts in this series......

Eurotrip 2015 - Our Grand Tour

Eurotrip 2015 Episode 1- Genesis
 
Plan a European Holiday in 5 Easy Steps

How to Fly to Europe on a Budget

Hassle-free Bookings to Stay Within Budget

Planes, Trains and Automobiles - How to Travel Across Europe on the Cheap

Places to Visit - A Guide to Creating your Own Local Itinerary
How to Move Around Town Like a Local

Visa - The Key to the Beckoning Gates

Golden Tickets, Magic Passes and Hidden Entrances

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