Cheap city breaks in Europe: eight cities compared on what a day costs, from transport passes to tourist tax

💡 The Short Version: Our judgement, because what is cheap depends on whether you spend on rooms, food or sights. For the lowest prices, Budapest: Hungary’s Eurostat index for restaurants and hotels is 71.8 (EU average 100), a 24-hour travelcard is HUF 2,750, and the ruin bar Instant-Fogas is free to enter. For a walkable centre, Prague: the index is 74.1, 24 hours of transport is CZK 140 and the tourist tax is CZK 50 a night. For free sights, Kraków: the National Museum and the Rynek Underground are free on Tuesdays, and a milk bar lunch is PLN 31 for pierogi. For a river city, Porto: the index is 75.5, and the Dom Luís I bridge, São Bento station and the river viewpoints cost nothing. For no tourist tax, Valencia: a 24-hour pass is €4.50, and four city museums are free every day. Also: Seville for a tapa at €3.20 with no tourist tax, Lisbon for €1.90 rides, the Athens day pass at €4.10 and Riga for a €5 day ticket and a €1 tourist tax a night. The thing that ruins a cheap trip is the extra: the airport ticket, the tourist tax and one paid sight such as the Acropolis at €30. Or book: Széchenyi Spa ticketsad in Budapest are from 14,326 HUF and the Taylor’s port cellar tour and tastingad in Porto is from €25 (GetYourGuide).

⚠️ Add the tourist tax and the airport ticket before you call a break cheap. Riga charges €1 a night and €2 from 1 January 2027, Vilnius €2, Porto €3, Lisbon €4, Prague CZK 50 and Budapest 4% of the room rate, each added by the hotel; Athens adds a climate resilience fee of €2 to €15 a room a night from April to October. The day pass does not cover the airport in Athens (metro €9, express bus €5.50), Budapest (the 100E bus, HUF 2,500) or Kraków (the airport train, PLN 20). Valencia, Seville and Kraków charge no tourist tax in 2026.

Prices are each operator’s own, in local currency. The Eurostat index is the 2024 figure for restaurants and hotels in the whole country. The comparisons are our judgement.

The cities side by side

The cities are in the order of the entries below. Each is a link to the city’s own guide.

Central European cities

This grouping is our judgement. All three keep their own currency, so the prices below are in forint, koruna and złoty.

Budapest

Eurostat 71.8 · 24-hour travelcard HUF 2,750 · 100E airport bus HUF 2,500 · tourist tax 4%

Budapest has the lowest index of the eight, 71.8 against an EU average of 100. A single ticket is HUF 500, a 90-minute ticket HUF 850 and the 24-hour travelcard HUF 2,750, and a contactless card buys a single at the metro gate (Budapest public transport). The 100E airport bus is outside the travelcard, on its own HUF 2,500 ticket (airport to the city).

The evening is the cheap part. Instant-Fogas on Akácfa utca is open daily from 18:00 to 06:00 with free entry, and Füge Udvar on Klauzál utca is free to enter from 16:00 to 05:00. By day, goulash is HUF 3,090 at Gettó Gulyás (where to eat in Budapest).

The bill goes up at the baths. Széchenyi is from HUF 13,200 on a weekday, Lukács HUF 7,000 and Dandár HUF 3,500, and the Gellért Baths are closed until a planned reopening in 2028 (Budapest thermal baths). Visitors from outside the EEA pay HUF 14,000 for the Parliament tour, double the EEA price (Parliament tickets). Stay at the Gerlóczy Boutique Hotelad in District V, 19 rooms in a building of 1891 (Hotels.comad). Where to stay in Budapest compares the districts.

Prague

Eurostat 74.1 · 24-hour pass CZK 140 · tourist tax CZK 50 · Castle main circuit CZK 450

In the PID Lítačka app a 30-minute ticket is CZK 36, a 90-minute ticket CZK 46 and 24 hours CZK 140, each CZK 4 to CZK 10 more on paper (Prague public transport). Trolleybus 59 and metro A take the 90-minute ticket from the airport to the Old Town in about 35 minutes, while the Airport Express bus is CZK 200 (airport to the city).

The cheap meal is the canteen, not the square. Lidová jídelna Těšnov serves a half-litre of Pilsner Urquell for CZK 30 from Monday to Friday, and Lokál, the beer hall named by the most independent sources, has seven branches (where to eat in Prague). Lonely Planet advises against the restaurants on Old Town Square.

The Castle grounds are free to walk; the Main circuit, with St Vitus Cathedral, the Old Royal Palace and Golden Lane, is CZK 450 and valid for two days (Prague Castle tickets). Organised pub crawls have been banned at night since October 2024. Where to stay in Prague compares the areas.

Kraków

Eurostat 91.7 · 24-hour pass PLN 20 · airport train PLN 20 · no tourist tax in 2026

Poland’s index has risen from 77.5 in 2022 to 91.7 in 2024, the highest of the eight, and Kraków is no longer the bargain it was. What keeps it cheap is the free days: Tuesday for the National Museum’s permanent exhibitions, the Rynek Underground and the Krzysztofory Palace, and Monday for Schindler’s Factory, the Old Synagogue and the Town Hall Tower. Free tickets cannot be booked; you collect them at the desk on the day, in limited numbers (free museum days in Kraków).

Pierogi ruskie. Photo: Maksym Kozlenko, Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 4.0.

Lunch is a milk bar, a cheap self-service canteen. At Bar Mleczny Pod Temidą on Grodzka, open daily from 09:00 to 20:00, pierogi ruskie are PLN 31 and żurek, sour rye soup with sausage, PLN 18.90 (where to eat in Kraków). A single trip is PLN 6, a 90-minute ticket PLN 9 and 24 hours in zone I PLN 20. The airport train takes 17 minutes for PLN 20 and is outside the city tickets (Kraków public transport). Kraków charges no tourist tax in 2026; a law signed in October 2026 lets cities charge up to PLN 5 a night from 1 January 2027. Where to stay in Kraków compares the Old Town and Kazimierz.

The Baltic

This grouping is our judgement. Riga’s and Vilnius’s indices are country figures like the others.

Riga

Eurostat 90.9 · 24-hour ticket €5 · bus 22 from the airport €1.50 · tourist tax €1 a night, €2 from 1 January 2027

Latvia’s index is 90.9, below Poland’s 91.7 and above Greece’s 86.4. Riga’s trams, trolleybuses and buses share one ticket that must be registered each time you board, with a penalty of €15 to €30: 90 minutes is €1.50, 24 hours €5, three days €8 and five days €10. Bus 22 from the airport takes around 40 minutes to Grēcinieku iela beside the Old Town and costs €1.50 in advance, or €1.81 from the driver by card (Riga airport to the city, public transport in Riga).

The sights are priced low and have free days. The Museum of the Occupation of Latvia is €8 and free on 25 March, 4 May, 14 June, 4 July and 18 November; the ground floor of the KGB Corner House is free every day, 10:30 to 17:30, though the cell tours are €15; Riga Cathedral is €5 and St Peter’s Church tower €9. The Freedom Monument is free. At Folkklubs Ala Pagrabs mains run from €9.50 to €17.80 and potato pancakes are €7.00 with lingonberry jam (free things to do in Riga, where to eat in Riga). The tourist tax is €1 a person a night in 2026 (€0.89 plus VAT) and €2 from 1 January 2027, for up to 10 nights (money in Riga). Where to stay in Riga compares the areas.

Vilnius

Eurostat 86.1 · 24-hour ticket €7.50 · airport train €0.90 · tourist tax €2 a night

Lithuania’s index is 86.1, below Latvia’s 90.9 and Greece’s 86.4. A 60-minute public transport ticket is €1.25, 24 hours €7.50 and three days €13.50, and a contactless bank card pays at the validator (public transport in Vilnius). The airport train to Vilnius Railway Station takes up to 7 minutes for €0.90 on its own ticket (Vilnius Airport to the city).

The sights are priced low and have free days. The Museum of Occupations and Freedom Fights is €6 and free on 12 dates a year; Gediminas Tower is €8, the Cathedral Bell Tower €4 to €6 and MO €11. The Palace of the Grand Dukes is free on the last Sunday of each month. At Lokys the cold beetroot soup is €9 and the potato zeppelins €17 (free things to do in Vilnius, where to eat in Vilnius). The tourist tax is €2 a person a night (money in Vilnius). Where to stay in Vilnius compares the areas.

Portugal’s two cities

This grouping is our judgement. Both sit at 75.5 on the Eurostat index, so the difference between them is the day pass and the tourist tax.

Porto

Eurostat 75.5 · Andante Tour 24 hours €7.75 · airport metro €2.30 · tourist tax €3

Most of what makes Porto is free: both decks of the Dom Luís I bridge, the hall of São Bento station, the tiled façades of Santo Ildefonso and the river viewpoints. The Museu do Porto sites are free on Sundays and €4 a site otherwise. The paid sights are the ones to count: Livraria Lello is a €15.95 voucher, Torre dos Clérigos €10 and the Palácio da Bolsa €14 (free things to do in Porto).

Andante is priced by zone: €1.40 for Z2, €2.30 for Z4 and the airport, with a €0.60 card, and the Tour ticket is €7.75 for 24 hours but does not cover the historic trams (Porto public transport). Metro line E from the airport to Trindade is the Z4 ticket (airport to the city). Across the river in Vila Nova de Gaia, a port lodge visit with a tasting is €16 at Fonseca and €25 at Taylor’s, and Graham’s and Cockburn’s need a booking (port wine cellars).

Porto charges €3 a night in tourist tax, for up to 7 nights. Stay at the Moov Hotel Porto Centroad, a two-star on Praça da Batalha, about 310 m from São Bento (Hotels.comad). Where to stay in Porto compares the districts.

Lisbon

Eurostat 75.5 · Carris/Metro 24 hours €7.25 · single €1.90 · tourist tax €4

A Carris/Metro single is €1.90 for 60 minutes, and from the fourth ride in a day the €7.25 24-hour ticket is cheaper. Tapping a bank card at the Metro gate is €1.92 a ride (Lisbon public transport). The Red Line runs from the airport at the same €1.90 and reaches the centre by changing at Alameda (airport to the city).

Eat at the bakeries the sources name most. Manteigaria and Pastéis de Belém are each named by 16 sources for the pastel de nata, the custard tart, and many tascas serve only lunch, which is the cheap meal (where to eat in Lisbon).

The cost is the tourist tax, €4 a night for up to 7 nights, and the sights in Belém: the Jerónimos cloister is €18 and Belém Tower €15, both closed on Mondays (Lisbon). Only the Graça funicular runs, so the hills are on foot. Where to stay in Lisbon compares the areas.

Spain and Greece

This grouping is our judgement. Valencia and Seville add no tourist tax; Athens charges a fee by star class and the Acropolis costs more than any sight in the other seven cities.

Valencia

Eurostat 83.9 · SUMA T1 24 hours €4.50 · airport metro €4.80 · no tourist tax

Valencia has no tourist tax, and the Turia Gardens, the beaches, the Plaza de la Virgen and the Basilica are free. The Museo de Bellas Artes, MuVIM, the Prehistory Museum and the Museu de la Mar are free every day and closed on Mondays, and on Sundays the Lonja and the Torres de Serranos and Quart are free from 10:00 to 14:00 (free things to do in Valencia).

The SUMA T1 ticket is €4.50 for 24 hours in zones A and B, across the metro, tram, EMT buses and Cercanías; a bus single is €2.00 and a metro single €1.50. The metro from the airport is €4.80 (Valencia public transport). The paid sights add up: the cathedral is €12 and the Oceanogràfic €37 to €43.05 depending on the date. For rice, see the best paella in Valencia. Where to stay in Valencia compares the Old Town with Ruzafa and the beach.

Seville

Eurostat 83.9 · tourist card €5 a day · single €1.40 · tapa €3.20 · no tourist tax

Andalusia has no tourist tax, and the regional government refused councils the power to charge one in August and September 2026. A single on a Tussam bus or the Metrocentro tram is €1.40, paid on board by card, and the one-day tourist card is €5 for buses and the tram, but not for the airport line, which has its own €6 ticket (Seville public transport).

Free sights come with a rule. The Plaza de España, the Parque de María Luisa and the lanes of Santa Cruz are always free. The Real Alcázar sells a free ticket on Monday afternoons in its shop, booked online and quick to sell out; otherwise the general ticket is €15.50 for a 30-minute slot (free things to do in Seville, Real Alcázar tickets). A tapa of croquetas or solomillo al whisky is €3.20 at Casa Ricardo, which is shut on Mondays. Stay at the Hotel Patio de la Alamedaad on Alameda de Hércules, about 1.6 km from the Cathedral (Hotels.comad). Where to stay in Seville compares the quarters.

Athens

Eurostat 86.4 · OASA 24 hours €4.10 · airport metro €9 · climate fee €2 to €15

An OASA ticket is €1.20 for 90 minutes and €4.10 for 24 hours across the metro, buses, trolleybuses and tram, and a contactless card caps at €4.10 a day. None of the tickets covers the airport: the metro is €9, the express bus €5.50 and the three-day tourist ticket €20 with one ride each way (Athens public transport).

The Acropolis is €30 at one price all year, with a timed slot, and it closes at 17:00 from 1 November. It is free on the first and third Sunday from 1 November to 31 March, and the free views are Philopappos Hill, the Pnyx, the Areopagus and the lanes of Plaka and Anafiotika (Acropolis tickets, free things to do in Athens).

For lunch, the Kostas souvlaki shops are named by 16 of the 75 publishers counted, and the one on Agias Irinis Square is shut at weekends (best souvlaki in Athens). Hotels add the climate resilience fee, from €2 for a 1- or 2-star to €15 for a 5-star from April to October, and €0.50 to €4 from November to March. Where to stay in Athens compares Plaka, Koukaki and Syntagma.

Where to stay on a budget

Three hotels from our city stay guides, one in each of three cities. Each links to Hotels.com for your dates.

Each city’s stay guide compares the areas: Budapest, Prague, Kraków, Riga, Vilnius, Porto, Lisbon, Valencia, Seville and Athens.

Other cities and other trips

The other northern cities we cover, and Bruges, are dearer than every city above. Eurostat’s 2024 index for restaurants and hotels is 98.3 for Estonia (Tallinn), 124.2 for Belgium (Bruges), 126.8 for Finland (Helsinki), 140.0 for Norway (Oslo) and 167.3 for Iceland (Reykjavik), against 91.7 for Poland, the highest of the countries above. For warm winter weather, see winter sun city breaks. For eating, see food city breaks. For travelling alone, see solo city breaks. For romantic weekends for two, see romantic city breaks for couples. For family travel, see best city breaks with kids. For groups, see best cities for a stag do and best cities for a hen do. For New Year, see best New Year’s Eve city breaks, and for Christmas the Christmas market cities. For two cities head to head, see Prague vs Budapest, Rome vs Florence and Barcelona vs Madrid. For step-free transport and sights, see accessible city breaks. For a plan for two or three days, see long weekend city breaks. For Easter 2027, see Easter city breaks. For museums and history, see museum city breaks. For the weather and festivals month by month, see where to go each month; all guides are gathered on Compare cities. For the dearer northern capitals side by side, see Scandinavian city breaks. For Tallinn against Riga, see Tallinn vs Riga.