So you’re planning a Europe vacation. You’ve paid for your flight and tour, and you are wondering how much additional money you will need for optional excursions and expenses. This is obviously a difficult question, since the amount will vary from person to person based on several factors including your shopping habits, types of food you enjoying eating and more. A lot also depends on which tour company you travel with. Cosmos Tours, Trafalgar cost saver and other value tours, typically include less meals and sightseeing, so you have the option of buying the optional excursions or venturing out on your own. Hotel at times are not in the city center, so you may have to spend more on transportation costs. First class tour operators such as Globus Tour, Trafalgar Tours, Insight Tours and Collette Vacations itineraries include many features which will save you money on tour – if you study your tour itinerary or discuss in detail with your travel agent, you will see how many highlight visits and other sightseeing are included, as well as meals and entertainment. Last but not least, if you travel with a deluxe tour such as Tauck Tours or Insight Gold deluxe tours, you will find that even more up front expenses are included so you will have considerably less out of pocket expenses.
Listed below is a guideto extra expenses for which you should budget per person.
Meals: Lunches are usually not included and peoples’ requirements vary. We suggest US$14 (€10) per day. Where evening meals are not included, the cost will depend on the type and locations of restaurants used. As a guide, in Europe allow US$43-60 (€29-41) per day. While in Britain and Ireland we suggest US$26-34 (€18-23) per day. You should budget for drinks with meals and refreshment stops during the day. Nonalcoholic drinks cost approximately US$3-4 (€2-3) each.
Optional Excursions: Experience has shown us that most passengers participate in these excursions and you should therefore budget per person as follows, assuming that the majority are purchased:
Essentials Tours: US$50-60 (€34-41) per day
First Class Tours: US$40-50 (€27-34) per day
Optional excursions are usually priced in Euros. Payment can be made in cash or by Visa, Mastercard and American Express. Please note that credit/debit card payments can only be processed in Euros however cash can be taken in most major currencies and your Tour Director will be able to give you specific details of relevant exchange rates on commencement of your tour.
Personal Expenditure: Souvenirs, stamps, postcards, telephone calls, taxi fares, laundry. Allow yourself US$6-8 (€4-6) per day whilst in Europe, and US$9-11 (€6-8) per day in Britain and Ireland, plus extra for any major gifts. You are advised, whatever your personal requirements may be, to bring more money rather than less. Once overseas, it can be complicated and time consuming to transfer additional funds from home, especially when you are on the move. You cannot always draw extra money on credit cards and they are still not accepted everywhere. Personal cheques are not accepted unless you hold a bank account in the host country.
