The Cheapest and Most Expensive European Cities Based on Travelers' Spending Habits

Sept. 13, 2018

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3 min read

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With insanely cheap flights from low-cost carriers and effective ways to use points and miles, travel costs over to Europe can be rather inexpensive. So, while getting to Europe is the easy part, knowing which countries fit into your budget or how cities in similar regions compare in terms of your spending criteria will make planning your trip much more efficient.

Thankfully, Wanderu, a travel search platform that lets people find and book deals on inter-city bus and train travel, used data based on travelers' average spending habits when visiting a new place to determine the least and most expensive European capitals. The company looked at where people spend the most while traveling; these included hotels, taxis, public transit, food, coffee, museum admissions and beer.

The results revealed more Eastern European capitals as being more budget-friendly, with more expensive cities in Western and Northern Europe.

Least to Most Expensive Western Capitals

Brussels, Belgium
Luxembourg City, Luxembourg
Paris, France
London, United Kingdom
Amsterdam, Netherlands
Dublin, Ireland
Monaco, Monaco

Amsterdam landed an expensive ranking for high accommodation costs, but public transit, taxis, and food are relatively affordable for that area.

Least to Most Expensive Northern Capitals

Vilnius, Lithuania
Riga, Latvia
Tallinn, Estonia
Oslo, Norway
Stockholm, Sweden
Helsinki, Finland
Copenhagen, Denmark
Reykjavik, Iceland

Least to Most Expensive Central Capitals

Bratislava, Slovakia
Zagreb, Croatia
Warsaw, Poland
Ljubljana, Slovenia
Berlin, Germany
Budapest, Hungary
Prague, Czech Republic
Vaduz, Liechtenstein
Bern, Switzerland
Vienna, Austria

Least to Most Expensive Eastern Capitals

Skopje, Macedonia
Pristina, Kosovo
Podgorica, Montenegro
Yerevan, Armenia
Chisinau, Moldova
Tirana, Albania
Minsk, Belarus
Sofia, Bulgaria
Belgrade, Serbia & Bucharest, Romania
Sarajevo, Bosnia and Herzegovina
Ankara, Turkey
Tbilisi, Georgia
Moscow, Russia
Baku, Azerbaijan
Kiev, Ukraine

Least to Most Expensive Southern Capitals

Nicosia, Cyprus
Andorra la Vella, Andorra
San Marino, San Marino
Madrid, Spain
Rome, Italy
Athens, Greece
Lisbon, Portugal
Valletta, Malta

Hotels are a major spending category for an average traveler — although, there are ways around these costs and ways to maximize your stays through loyalty programs. Wanderu calculated the average price for a one-night stay for one person at the top 10 Best Value hotels on Trip Advisor for each city and analyzed a travel expenditures study by the Bureau of Labor Statistics and found that hotels make up for 42% of a traveler's budget. Food (rightfully) takes up the second most of a budget at 33%. Following comes museum admissions, beer — if you can find it, and coffee.