It’s got Vil power
Lithuania’s capital is your best bet for a bargain break in Europe, reports Vicky Lissaman
East beats west when it comes to bagging a bargain city break this year. Seven Eastern European cities landed a place in the top 10 best value destinations, according to the Post Office Travel Money City Costs Barometer, with Lithuanian capital Vilnius regaining its title as the cheapest of all to visit.
Runner-up Lisbon is one of two Western European cities to reach the top five in the table, as Lille leaps to third place.
Closer to home, Cardiff is again the cheapest of our four UK capital cities.
Vilnius, which boasts a vast medieval old town, overtook last year’s winner, Lisbon, to top the list for the fourth time, out of 37 cities surveyed for the 17th annual cost comparison.
It comes as Post Office, the UK’S leading foreign currency provider, reports that sterling is stronger than a year ago against every European currency except the Polish zloty, helping to shrink city-break costs in many countries.
Despite registering a 4.8 per cent price increase since last year, Vilnius was still the cheapest city with the cost of 12 typical items, including drinks, meal for two with wine, two nights’ three-star weekend accommodation, sightseeing and city transport totalling around £237.
This was more than 10 per cent lower than in runner-up Lisbon and less than half the price of 18 other cities including Amsterdam, the most expensive at £669.
A 26 per cent rise in the average cost of three-star accommodation in Lisbon – £152 for two nights, compared with £121 in June 2023 –
accounts for a higher barometer cost of £264.
However, when it comes to expenses, it remains good value making the Portuguese capital the cheapest city in Western Europe. It serves the cheapest drinks – wine £1.95, coffee £1.06, beer £1.86 – and the best-value three-course dinner for two with wine (£36.60). A 30 per cent fall in accommodation costs from £186 to £131 also helped Lille in France jump seven places into third.
Less than one-and-a-half hours from London via Eurostar, and host of the basketball and handball events at this summer’s Olympics, Lille saw an overall price fall of 16.5 per cent to £278.
Another European capital and past winner, Athens, took fifth at £289.
British tourists can snap up city-break bargains choosing from six other Eastern European cities including Krakow ( fourth, £279), Riga (sixth, £297) and Warsaw (10th, £319).
Boosted by sterling’s strength against the Hungarian forint, Budapest (£311) has moved up one place to seventh on the back of a six per cent fall in barometer costs, while price reductions in Bratislava (£316, -5.7 per cent) and Prague (£318, -12.5 per cent) have helped push them into eighth and ninth places.
They displace Zagreb (11th, £325, prices down 1.7 per cent) and Porto (13th,
£361 – prices up 10.5 per cent), although Portugal’s second largest city continues to offer value when you get there, with the second cheapest coffee at £1.33 and the third cheapest beer at £2.65.
As more than two-in-five Britons planning a trip abroad say they will opt for a city break, they really are spoilt for choice with prices down in 60 per cent of the 37 cities surveyed.
Prices have also dropped in traditional favourites including Venice (33rd at £582, prices down
15.4 per cent), Paris (24th at £515, down 15.1 per cent), and Madrid (19th at £463, down 13.1 per cent).
Laura Plunkett, head of travel money at Post Office, which accounts for one-in-four UK foreign exchange transactions, said: “The cost of meals and drinks needs to be added to the spending budget as city breaks rarely include these. They can make a big difference to holiday costs and the low prices we found in Lisbon and Athens make these strong contenders for a bargain break.
“Generally, it’s a win-win situation for British holidaymakers this year because prices are down in many of the European cities we surveyed.
“However, prices vary significantly across Europe, so it will make sense to do some holiday homework before booking.”
For those planning city breaks on home turf, Cardiff (£409, 16th) again offers the best value of UK capitals, coming in at 35 per cent cheaper than Belfast (£629, 36th), the most expensive UK city this year.
In 35th place with a barometer of £602, Edinburgh is almost as pricey.
Both cities saw year-onyear price rises of 12 per cent.
Conversely, prices have fallen by 6.5 per cent in London to £524, thanks to lower accommodation charges, pushing it into 25th.
For the first time Belfast was more expensive than Dublin, which is now cheapest for cultural sightseeing. Entry to its leading museum and gallery is free, while its top heritage attraction, Kilmainham Gaol, is just £7.07.
By comparison, entry to Vienna’s cultural attractions costs eight times as much at £57.38.
The cost of meals and drinks can make a big difference to your outlay