Finding Travel Deals in Pricey Europe

N E W   Y O R K, March 16, 2004 -- Texas college student Cheryl Halbert experiencedsticker shock on a visit to Rome in early March.

"We've spent so much on where we are staying and what we eatthat I'll be working all summer to pay it back," said Halbert, 19,from San Antonio, who was traveling with Andrea Schweikhard, afellow student at Abilene Christian University.

Even a half-liter bottle of mineral water cost more than twicethe 75 cents the young women would normally pay back home — twoeuros, or about $1.60.

Like Halbert and her friend, many Americans heading to Europe asprime travel season gets under way will be disheartened by howlittle a dollar buys. The euro hit a five-year-high against thedollar in February, trading at $1.29, although it was down slightlyto $1.24 in early March. But as recently as mid-2002, the euro wasworth just 88 cents. That means in two years, European vacationshave gotten over 40 percent more expensive for Americans.

But experts say there are plenty of ways to make the best of alousy exchange rate — from getting all-inclusive package deals, tochoosing destinations in Eastern rather than Western Europe, tousing discount airlines and train passes for local travel.

Pent-Up Plans to See Europe

Linda Teter, director for American Express Travel, notes thatdespite the weak dollar, "we have seen very, very strong demandfor European travel, particularly for peak travel periods in springand summer. There's a lot of pent-up demand" from travelers whopostponed trips in the last three years due to concerns aboutterrorism and a weak domestic economy. In January alone, AmericanExpress' European cruise and tour sales were up by double digitsover the same period in 2003. Amy Ziff, editor-at-large for the online company Travelocity,has also seen strong demand, with European trips comprising a 30percent larger share of all Travelocity bookings this seasoncompared to a year ago. And while Paris, London and Rome remainTravelocity's top three European destinations, bookings to EasternEurope — where hotels, food and amenities are cheaper — are on therise. The May 1 addition of 10 new countries to the European Union— the Czech Republic, Estonia, Hungary, Latvia, Lithuania, Poland,Slovakia, and Slovenia, as well as Cyprus and Malta — may furtherraise their profiles among bargain-hunting vacationers.

Nancy Dunnan, editor of TravelSmart newsletter, agrees thatbudget travelers should consider venturing outside the most popular — and most expensive — European cities. "Prague and Krakow aresuch beautiful medieval cities," she said. "I can't imagineanyone being disappointed."

No More Designer Deals

Smart consumers will also stay away from luxury items that werecheap when the dollar was strong but are bargains no more. On avisit to Paris in January, New Yorker Susan Gray purchased a ChanelNo. 5 purse-size refill for $88 — exactly what U.S. retailerscharge for the same item over the Internet. And Alison Brod, whoowns a Manhattan public relations company, has decided to forgo hertwice-annual shopping trips to Europe. She remembers visiting aEuropean Gucci store several years ago that "was like a giant fleamarket — everything was 45 percent off!" But these days, she buysher European designer items on eBay.

Dunnan, Teter and Ziff all recommend package deals as the bestway to get the most for your weak dollar. Because packageorganizers book a large volume of trips, they get better rates thanyou can. "A package can be as simple as a series of hotel nights; somewill include transfers from the airport to the hotel; some willinclude continental breakfast," said Teter. An additional benefit,she notes: "You're buying that package in U.S. dollars" at alocked-in rate.

Web Packages a Good Bet

While Dunnan and Teter say the best packages are found throughtravel agents, Ziff says consumers can increasingly build their ownpackages through the Internet.

Cruises are also a good option. "You fly to a point in Europe,spend a week or two on board a ship. Your meals are included,transfers are included. You are covering the majority of yourexpenses before you leave home," said Teter.

But Dunnan advises looking at the terms for sightseeing at portsof call before booking passage. In some cases, excursions can addhundreds of dollars to your cruise cost; in other cases, you cansimply borrow a bicycle from the ship and tour the local villageson your own.

Among the ports of call on a 14-day Holland America cruisesailing July 27 from Copenhagen are Oslo, Dover, LeHavre, Lisbon,Barcelona, Monte Carlo and Dubrovnik, with daylong stopovers ineach. Scenery on the cruise route includes the Rock of Gibraltar,the Stromboli Volcano and Mt. Etna. Fares for inside staterooms,not including airfare from New York, begin at well under $2,500 perperson, double occupancy.

But you will pay extra for sightseeing when the ship docks. InBarcelona, for example, a $37 excursion from the Holland Americacruise focuses on tours of Antoni Gaudi's works, while a $33 tourfor cruise guests includes Barcelona's Gothic Quarter and thePicasso Museum. If you're visiting more than one city or country, compare yourtransportation options. If you're traveling with others, sharing arental car might cost less than train tickets for everyone. But beprepared for fast, aggressive drivers, and of course, signs inanother language. And remember that standard-shift cars are thenorm in Europe.

Finding Deals

For train travel, Eurail still offers the classic Youthpass forthose under 26 ($414, 15 days, good in 17 countries). Other dealsinclude the Saverpass, for two or more people traveling together($498 per person, 15 days, 17 countries) and a Selectpass good forany combination of three, four or five adjoining countries. Kidsage 4 to 11 can get half-price passes. But you must buy your passbefore you go overseas.

New European discount airlines like Ryanair, Spanair, Air Berlinand EasyJet offer flights as low as $30 to $40 between majorcities. But Wendy Perrin, editor at Conde Nast Traveler, cautionsin the magazine's March issue that "low-fare carriers work only ifyou have a couple of hours to spare. You need to factor in the tripto and from the airport, possibly long check-in queues, and strickcheck-in deadlines." In other words, Europe's high-speed trains — which often connect cities at 150 mph — are sometimes faster.

Save money on museums and cultural sites by checking out daysand times where admission is free or reduced, and by looking intopasses that provide admission to multiple sites. BritRail's GreatBritish Heritage Pass is good at over 600 historic homes, castles,gardens and ruins, including Windsor Castle and Kensington Palacein London, the Roman Baths in Bath, Edinburgh Castle in Scotlandand Bodnant Gardens in Wales. A pass good for four consecutive daysis $35. A Paris Museum Pass — $22.50 for one day, $42 for three days —provides admission to 70 museums and monuments. Many sites,including the Louvre and Versailles, charge around $9.25 at currentexchange rates, so the pass pays for itself after a few stops.

Use common sense about daily necessities, just as you would ifyou were home. Don't eat in restaurants three times a day if you'reon a budget. Grab a muffin or croissant from a bakery and a pieceof fruit from a market for breakfast. For lunch, buy a hunk ofcheese and bread. Get a tart or truffle to go from a chocolaterieinstead of ordering dessert in a restaurant. Take subways and busesinstead of cabs, and buy passes that allow you unlimited use ofpublic transportation.

Avoid currency exchange services, like the kiosks found inairports and train stations. Experts say even teller's windows atbanks don't give the best deals anymore. "You get the best ratewith ATMs," Dunnan said.

Finally, if you can take your trip in the offseason, you'll savea bundle. Paris in January and London in November — that's when youcan find bargains. Round-trip fares this past winter to Europe havebeen as low as $190, but Ziff says "you'll be getting a great dealif you get plane fare for under $400" come the warm weather.

Ziff adds that there will be few last-minute bargains to populardestinations in peak season. "If you're traveling to Europe thissummer, buy early; buy now," she said. "Don't wait too long,thinking you're going to get a better deal."

If You Go…

AMERICAN EXPRESS: (800) 346-3607 orwww.americanexpress.com/travel BRITRAIL OR BRITISH HERITAGE PASS: (877) 677-1066 or visitwww.britrail.net. CONDE NAST TRAVELER: www.concierge.com/cntraveler/ DISCOUNT EUROPEAN AIRLINES: www.ryanair.com, www.easyjet.com,www.airberlin.com, www.spanair.com. EuropeByAir(www.europebyair.com) sells $99 one-way passes within Europe to 150European cities, but you must buy tickets before leaving home. EURAIL: (800) 4EURAIL or www.eurail.com HOLLAND AMERICA: (877) SAIL-HAL or www.hollandamerica.com PARIS MUSEUM PASS: www.museumpass.com TRAVELOCITY: www.travelocity.com TRAVELSMART NEWSLETTER: (800) FARE-OFF orwww.TravelSmartNewsletter.com.