The Daily Telegraph - Saturday - Travel
The European favourites that cost just £200 for two nights
From low-cost coffees to modestly priced meals, Hazel Plush examines how Europe’s most affordable minibreaks measure up
As Britain’s inflation rate refuses to fall, holiday bargains are this season’s fantasy. A glass of wine for £3, three-course dinners for £20, a decent hotel for less than £50 per night? Fever dreams at home, but not, perhaps, in Europe.
According to new research, the price of travel is tumbling in Greece, Portugal and the Baltics – with a twonight break now as little as £206.57.
The Post Office’s most recent City Costs Barometer 2023 surveyed 35 cities to identify where your pounds sterling will go furthest this winter: and Vilnius, Lithuania’s capital, took the top spot.
Amid its charming Unesco-listed centre and grand neoclassical cathedral, a cup of coffee costs on average just £1.71, a beer £2.65, and a three-course dinner (with wine) £52.06 – while a return train ticket from the airport to the city is priced £1.16. Compare that with London’s Heathrow Express, for which a return fare is £37.
The report, which also accounts for the cost of public transport passes, museum tickets and two nights in a three-star hotel, claims that the fundamentals of a weekend minibreak in Lithuania’s capital could total as little as £206.57. In second place is Krakow, Poland (£232.57), Latvia’s capital Riga is third (£241.93), Athens is fourth (£242.21) – making it the cheapest city in Western Europe – and Lisbon is fifth (£252.21).
It’s reassuring to know that elsewhere in Europe we can still scoop a bargain
Europe’s cheapest cities
On the whole, Europe is getting cheaper: according to the Post Office, prices have fallen in all but three of the 35 destinations since spring, with only Lisbon, Dublin and London bucking the trend. Unsurprisingly, cities in
Eastern Europe dominate the top 10, occupying seven of the rankings, with Riga moving up to third place – from fifth place in the previous report, which was published in May – as its average minibreak price has dropped from £284.99 to £241.93, a saving of more than £40.
In the previous Post Office report, Lisbon was crowned Europe’s bestvalue city – with Vilnius in second place. However, Lisbon’s hotel rates have risen by 24 per cent in recent months – with the price of two nights in three-star digs increasing from £121 to £150 – forcing it down in the rankings.
That said, Portugal’s capital is still a great city for anyone who fancies a drink: beer and wine are cheapest here (£2.22 and £3.02 per glass respectively), and a three-course supper for two with wine costs £38.43 – some £13.63 cheaper than Vilnius.
And there’s more good news. Thanks to the relevant strength of the pound against the euro, up 1.2 per cent since May, Britons also now have greater buying-power in most cities. Elsewhere, sterling is a healthy 5.95 per cent up against the Czech koruna since May, placing Prague 13th in the Post Office rankings – the essentials for a weekend break costing £325.88.
The pound is also faring well against the Hungarian forint, up 2.91 per cent on the currency since May. The nation’s capital, Budapest, currently occupies 11th place in the rankings – though it has slipped from its previous eighth place, ousted by the now better-value Tallinn, Warsaw and Lille.
Meanwhile, sterling’s drop against the Polish zloty (-1.99 per cent) has been softened by the falling prices in-country: in May’s report, the cost of a Krakow holiday was listed as £250.91, whereas now it’s £232.57 – nearly £20 cheaper.
A pinch of salt is pertinent, though, as these figures are skewed by the Post Office’s somewhat inconsistent itemisation. While it lists a single drink, ticket or pass in its breakdown, it prices both accommodation and dining for two people – and its minibreak prices are calculated by simply tallying up this list. As such, the tariffs are neither applicable per person nor per couple.
However, as a barometer, the report does give some useful insights into affordability trends – and as Andrea Godfrey, head of Baltics travel specialist Regent attests, Vilnius is certainly refreshingly cheap.
“You can find many budget-friendly options there, especially when compared to Western European cities,” she says; “a simple meal at a local