You Can Explore Europe Without Going Broke—Here Are The Best Budget-Friendly Cities To Visit

Everyone knows that travelling is costly—for the most part, you can only go as far as you can afford, or as far as you're willing to empty your pockets. 

It's the reason why so many people steer clear of Europe when booking their summer trips—it's just too far, too expensive. It's not worth the effort when nearby countries can already satiate your wanderlust. 

But if you're willing to overlook these quick assumptions people make about Europe, basing off of major European cities like Paris or Vienna, which are, admittedly, expensive, allow me to let you in on a secret: Europe isn't just limited to those two famous cities. There are so many less overrated cities that are, in my opinion, even better and—the best part—affordable. 👀

Here are the best cities to explore in Europe if you're on a budget:

Topping my list of all-time favorite places to visit is a golden trio better than Harry, Ron, and Hermione, or Percy, Annabeth, and Grover—it's the Baltic countries of Estonia, Latvia, and Lithuania.  

Starting with Tallinn, Estonia, an underrated gemstone of a city. I didn't know what to expect when I first got there, but it definitely took me by surprise. The old town is so pretty—cobblestone roads making your suitcase wheels go bump in the night, medieval-style towers straight out of a fairytale, red roofs and the most stunning churches dotting the skyline.

It's quintessential Europe, and yet, it feels different from other cities' old towns in the best way.

Part of what makes travelling around Europe so fun is that most, if not all, of the major cities are connected by train networks, and the Baltics are no exception—which means if you decide to go to one, you should hit all three cities I recommended. (Pro tip: The website The Man in Seat61 is an extremely helpful guide to travelling Europe by train.) 

Riga is quite similar to Tallinn in that European "let's soak up all the culture" way, with its cobblestones and distinctive churches, but what sets Riga apart is the strong presence of structures built with red bricks, set against a mixed landscape of more simplistic columned buildings and colorful houses wedged into the small spaces assigned to them. 

It feels like a slow city—the kind where you could walk around or just sit on a bench, soak up the sun, and eat the strawberries you bought at a local market.

But amidst warm, cozy architecture, the best part about Riga is Lido, a local chain restaurant. It says something that my favorite part about a city is a restaurant, but it's just that good. It's a self service-style, pick-and-choose restaurant where you line up, spot the dishes that are most interesting to you, load it on your tray, then pay accordingly.

The food is delicious—not all dishes are the same across branches but no matter what dish you choose, I'm sure it's a winner. And the food is so incredibly affordable, too. (The best combo!) It was so good that we went Lido-hunting twice and got takeout once.       

Vilnius has a different vibe compared to Tallinn and Riga in that everything looks more white and "clean" compared to the latter's older aesthetic. And while it's fun to explore the downtown and all, Vilnius is probably my least favorite among the Baltic countries, but it was pretty in its own way.

My favorite part about Vilnius is the food. Who would've thought Lithuanian cuisine would be so top tier?

We went to a local restaurant popular among both locals and tourists to sample some of the food our tour guide had gushed about, and it did not disappoint. 

Fried bread is their national snack, and before you judge, thinking, "What? All this buildup just for fried bread?", let me paint you a picture: pieces of savory fried rye bread cut into sticks, the perfect shape for dipping into a bowl of garlic-y, salty, and cheesy sauce.

Lithuanian fried bread is a dream, a haven, lulling me into a food coma before I picked myself back up and went back out into the sunny Lithuanian day. I might not go back for the city, but I have, on more than one occasion, dreamt about going back just for the fried bread.

The first and usually only city people can name in Austria is Vienna, and that makes sense—it's the capital, after all. And while Vienna really is beautiful and all, it's also very touristy and can get pretty overwhelming.

And so I propose a less crowded alternative: Hallstatt.

The train ride over was fascinating because of the view: You really do notice the gradual change from city landscapes and small towns to sprawling fields and snow-capped mountains stretching towards the sky. The view is so amazing, you'd be more than tempted to stare out the window the whole time instead of doomscrolling on TikTok.

But all of that pales in comparison to when we arrived in Hallstatt.

Hallstatt is a charming small town surrounded by stunning mountains and clear blue waters. When I say small, I mean small, so there's not much to do but walk around, which also means it's pretty friendly for first-time travellers—gone are the stress of catching museums before they close for the day or locating the next gothic church to look at for a minute before going to the next. 

In Hallstatt, you just explore, take in the breathtaking views, wander the small streets aimlessly, and go slack-jawed every time you see the pretty view from a slightly different angle.

Malta is another relatively unpopular European destination. The first time I heard about it was when BTS went all those years ago to film the new Bon Voyage season, but when I got the chance to see the country for myself, I fell in love with it, too.

First and foremost, Maltese architecture is adorable: blue, overhanging balconies, an entire city painted in sandy beiges. (Again, not an architecture student—sorry.)

I took so many pictures of random streets because each looked prettier than the next. Malta just has such a different aesthetic from the rest of Europe, and Valletta is a small capital, so it was super easy to go around. 

Since the country's so small, it's extremely convenient to explore other cities in Malta by bus. Three Cities, which is exactly what it sounds like (an area made up of three small cities), offers walks by harbours, buildings bursting with culture set along sparkling blue waters.

Meanwhile, Mdina, which BTS also visited, felt like entering a whole other world, as though I was transported back in time, to a little place encased in the yellow hues of sandstone. Even tinier than Hallstatt, you could just walk around without an agenda and go down random picturesque side streets.

The food there is also quite affordable. A traditional snack called pastizzi, a savory and flaky pastry, became my go-to girl dinner. 

Up there with the cities I always say are so criminally underrated is Sofia in Bulgaria. It's not touristy in the slightest but definitely has the potential to be.

Each sight was more beautiful than the next. Everywhere you looked, there would be another impressive-looking orthodox church, with its telltale domed roof, or a red-bricked structure built with materials much older than you and everyone you know combined.

The city at night is also a different kind of stunning, to the point that I went back out, just after dark, when my sight-seeing day had already ended, just to—quite literally—sit and wait for all those columned buildings bearing so much history to light up in a golden glow against a navy blue sky. And it was so worth it.

Athens wasn't what I expected at all. I had pictured another Paris or Vienna or Berlin or Madrid—just another capital city of a major country. Clean, modern, contemporary, and—as is usually paired with those traits—expensive. 

Instead, Athens is a bit more "dingy," with graffiti on stone walls older than your great-great-great-great grandparents, stray cats milling about, and history and character everywhere you look. 

As such, it's much more affordable than I would initially think. Not just food but also souvenirs. They're the cheapest I've ever seen them, and they're not like in other European countries where you'd have to look in every nook and cranny for some obscure store tucked into a side street. The more-than-fair prices just stare at you openly from all the shops lining the main streets; you bet I went home with my pockets laden with evil-eye bracelets and Grecian-style pouches. 

You're probably thinking, "Ljub-what?" 

Slovenia is definitely one of the more overlooked European countries, and I wouldn't blame you for picturing some backwards town in the middle of nowhere, but actually, Ljubljana (read as "Lubliana") quickly became one of my favorite places. 

Since it's, again, a small city (but not as small as Valletta and Hallstatt), it's really easy to go around the sights. It's also extremely walkable. Despite being a capital, life felt slower—locals and tourists strolling through its cobbled streets, people darting into the thrift stores in the center, and boats chugging along the river cutting through the city. 

If you have time, you should also visit Bled, which is just a short train ride away. Imagine a crystal-clear lake, a quaint church in the center. Walking around the lake, watching ducks and ducklings swimming or walking along the docks. Taking a dip in the cold, natural water. Jaw-dropping views keeping you frozen in place, standing and staring. 

And if you have more time, you should check out the Postojna Cave, which is a bus ride away. It's the second-longest cave system, and I guarantee seeing it will fill you with awe, leaving you wondering how something so intricate and beautiful could be hidden beneath (or in?) the earth. I was literally among the last to exit the cave, which just goes to show how long it took me to go around with my jaw on the floor. (P.S. The entrance ticket is a bit on the pricier end, but they do offer student discounts!)

Getting a short-stay Schengen visa (less than 90 days), which costs P6,300 as of this writing, will grant you access to all these and more, as long as they're part of the European Union. You can apply via VFS Global.