8 PLACES OUTSIDE OF THE US YOU CAN ACTUALLY AFFORD TO TRAVEL TO IN 2017

I have said this many times....Travel doesn't have to be expensive.  If it was, I would never leave my house.  I live in Arkansas where the minimum wage is $8.50, so many of us have to work extra jobs to earn travel money.  Some work three jobs!

The good news is that there are some places where you can consistently find cheap flights and lodging.  Places like Spain, Italy, France, Ireland,  many Caribbean islands, and almost all of Mexico.

One of your biggest expenses is airfare so be sure to check out my post on Finding Cheap Airfare HERE.

My travel companions and I have put a list of some of our favorite budget places to travel.

#1 ROME   I don't remember ever seeing Rome and a list for budget travel.  I'm not sure why.  Maybe because flying directly into Rome can be expensive.  If you fly to a cheaper destination like Barcelona, you can fly on to Rome for around $25.  Once you are in Rome, there are tons of things to see for free.  We paid to get into the Colosseum but you can walk to the Trevi Fountain, Pantheon, Piazza Navona, St Peter's Basilica at the Vatican, and many more places for free. 

The public bus cost €1.50 for 100 minutes or €24 for a week so you can travel around Rome cheap.  There are tons of places to eat in Rome but if you are looking for someplace inexpensive, pop into one of the pizza shops where you can get a huge slice of pizza and soda for around €5.

#2 BARCELONA I never realized how popular Barcelona was as a travel destination until I traveled there the first time.  Barcelona is fairly easy to get around and there is always something to do.  Buses to and from the airport are very affordable (I think we paid ­€7) and if you stay in a hotel (or use Airbnb like we did) near the Placa CAntalunya, it's just a short walk to everywhere.  If you really want to eat cheap, find a tapas bar where you can pick up a tapas for €1 each. 

PANTHEON & TREVI FOUNTAIN ~ Walking Tour

This post covers the Trevi Fountain and Pantheon.  The first part covering visiting the Piazza Navona & Chiesa Di Santa Maria Maddalena can be found HERE.

TREVI FOUNTAIN

The Trevi Fountain is probably the most famous fountain in Rome so of course, if you are in Rome, you are going to want to visit the site.  It's a very short walk from the Pantheon and as you wind your way down narrow streets you will turn the corner and it's suddenly in front of you.  

Unlike the Piazza Navona and the Pantheon, there is no courtyard in front of the fountain. It's not a large area so it seems more crowded than most places. I have added a areal view above so you can see how tight the space is.

Think you can't afford to fly to another country for the day?

Have a long layover in Rome?  Think you can't afford to fly to another country for just one day?  You would be amazed at what you can see and do in just 24 hours.

VISITING PIAZZA NAVONA & CHIESA DI SANTA MARIA MADDALENA ~ ROME

The Piazza Navona, Pantheon, and Trevi Founter are close together and it's easy to walk from site to site.  

I added a map from Google below to give you an idea of the distance between sites.  The Spanish Steps are a little farther away but if you have time, you could walk to it while you are in the area.  We didn't have time to see it since we had to catch a plane




Since we were so short on time, we took a taxi, instead of the bus, to the Piazza Navona.  I have seen this piazza is so many movies so it was on my to-see list while we were in Rome.  It is also a great starting point  for visiting  the Pantheon and Trevi Fountain since they are just a short walk from there.

VISITING THE PIAZZA NAVONA, PANTHEON, & TREVI FOUNTAIN (VIDEO)

VIDEO OF OUR VISIT TO THE COLOSSEUM, ROMAN FORUM, AND PALATINE HILL

Here is a video of our visit to the Colosseum, Palatine Hill, and Roman Forum.  

VISITING THE COLOSSEUM, ROMAN FORUM, AND PALATINE HILL

A visit to the Colosseum is at the top of the list for any first time visitor to Rome. Located next to the Colosseum is the Roman Forum and the Palatine Hill and your admission ticket covers all three places.  You can go between all three places at your own pace.

The Colosseum - What To Expect When You Visit

The area around the Colosseum is quite huge and will probably be filled with people, even if you go during the middle of the week during a school day.  You will see the usual mix of visitors posing for pictures and many vendors offering group tours.  I understand that some days you will see locals dressed in Roman costumes though we didn't see any the day we were there.  Keep in mind that most of the people charge a fee to pose for these photos.

You also need to be prepared for long waits even if you have prepurchased your tickets.  We were approached by someone selling private group tours at the cost of €30 with the promise of skipping the two-hour wait in line.  We decided to join a small group of English speaking visitors and though we didn't completely skip the line, we did get in after only a short wait.  The guide we had in the colosseum was OK but nothing to brag about but we switched guides before moving on to the forum we got this wonderful Canadian lady that gave us a great tour of Palatine Hill and the Forum.  For me, it was well worth the price difference.

VATICAN CITY ~ ROME

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We were in Rome for only a short period of time so we made our first stop the Vatican. It is a must see on any visit to Rome.  You can get to it by public transport plus there are other tourist buses that stop there too.

HOTEL SILIO ~ ROME, ITALY

There are so many hotels in Rome that the task of finding the perfect one can be overwhelming.  I was searching for a place to stay near the Roma Termini and most were outside my budget.  I came across the Hotel Sileo  and at €50 , the cost was perfect.

We found the place easily, thanks to my street view on google maps.  Entering the building we saw this very old, very small, elevator.  We decided to walk up all four flights of stairs but after gasping for air and making several stops along the way, we decided that we would risk it with the thousand-year-old elevator rather than make the trek up the stairs again.
The elevator was so small, that it would only hold two people and two small bags which worked out fine for us since half of our luggage never arrived.

EXPLORING ~ ROME, ITALY

The best way I know to describe visiting Rome is to compare it to being dropped in the middle of New York City where no one speaks English. It's a large, bustling, noisy city rich in culture and history.

I read many, many, many travel blogs and books on Europe and they all said that a lot of people understand some English.  I didn't find this to be true while traveling through Europe.  Especially in France.  

Even the couple that ran the hotel didn't speak English though the husband did speak a little broken English.  With my broken Spanish, we made it pretty good.

If you are flying to Rome, you will be arriving at Fiumicino Airport.  If you read reviews about the airport, you will find that most passengers consider it one of the worst airports in the world if you are flying in from the US.  I have to admit that it was difficult to find where to locate our luggage and even more difficult to locate the buses that would take us to the Roma Termini.  

I'm not sure it was more difficult than other airports though and there are a lot of signs to help direct you.

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The termini is the main transportation hub.  This is where you will find tour buses and the train station.  Do yourself a favor and print out maps of the termini .  I didn't do this and I won't make that mistake again.