7 Stunning Cultural Cities In Europe With Cheap Prices & No Crowds This Spring
If you’ve been dreaming of an idyllic European getaway, but the crowds and high prices have been putting you off, we’ve got great news for you: not everywhere is as jam-packed as Amsterdam, or ‘hors-de-prix’, like Paris, much less blatantly anti-tourist as Barcelona.
There are countless hidden gems that have retained their centuries-old charm and offer as unique a cultural experience as all those hugely popular tourism hotspots—except they fly under the radar for most.
This spring, you can visit these 7 incredible cities across the pond that will not break the bank and don’t feel like a kitschy theme park for googly-eyed tourists:
Bergamo, Italy
A small city a short one-hour drive from bustling Milan, Bergamo is how we imagine Italy would have been decades ago prior to the influx of tourists:
It revolves around a timeless, walled Old Town, perched on a hill overlooking endless vineyards, where cobbled streets are bordered by pastel-colored buildings and family-owned trattorias, and soaring medieval towers remain the tallest buildings around.
When exploring Bergamo, don’t forget to step inside a beautiful Basilica of Santa Maria Maggiore to admire the intricately-frescoed interior, walk the Venetian city walls, and swing by La Marianna, a laid-back café famous for having invented stracciatella gelato.
As it pertains to prices, on average, you’ll be paying roughly $17 for pasta and a cheeky aperol in a local restaurant, and double rooms in the center of town will set you back by $63–83 per night.
Sighișoara, Romania
Romania is a pretty offbeat destination already, so we wouldn’t blame you for heading first to Bucharest, the sprawling concrete jungle serving as capital––and one that now hosts nonstop flights from JFK.
That being said, we would argue Romania’s true charm lies in its historical province of Transylvania, littered with picture-perfect towns that have remained virtually unchanged since being constructed in the Middle Ages: one of those is Sighișoara.
Cropped straight out of one of those oddly-eerie storybooks for children, it is a maze of narrow alleys flanked by crooked, timbered houses, and dominated by a Gothic clock tower conjured straight from a Bram Stoke novel.
Speaking of, tradition has it that Vlad Dracul, the actual Count Dracula was born in Sighișoara, and if you’re not afraid of vampires––or in this case, the ghost of a bloodthirsty ruler, you can even visit his birthplace at Tin Street No. 1.
Budget-wise, tourists spend $37 a day on meals, and $55-a-night in hotels––by the way, you’re in town and looking for some traditional, inexpensive grub, Gasthaus Alte Post serves delicious polenta and Transylvanian soup.
Zagreb, Croatia
You might know Croatia exclusively for its turquoise Adriatic Sea and fortified harbor cities, so don’t be surprised if we tell you the country’s capital Zagreb is neither coastal, nor does it share Split or Dubrovnik’s Mediterranean charm.
Tucked away in its cozy Central European nook, and instead of pebbly beaches and ocher towns, it’s wide boulevards lined with Austrian-Hungarian-era edifices, a monumental, twin-spired Gothic cathedral, and glazed-tiled churches you get.
It is also a one-of-a-kind city break for Croatia-bound tourists:
Between the quirky exhibits, with the Museum of Broken Relationships and the Hangover Museum to name a couple, and the grungy nightlife (we hope you like to rave), Zagreb is a different flavor of Croatia fans of Game of Thrones are sleeping on.
Strolling up Tkalčićeva, a cobble-laden pathway just off a stately Ban Jelačić Square, you’ll find a plethora of inexpensive eateries, ranging from native Croatian, to Italian, to Greek, to Turkish, and unless it’s a 3-course presentation in an upscale setting, you’ll be billed roughly $10.47 per meal.
As for accommodation, this privately-managed B&B apartment in downtown Zagreb will run you up an acceptable $87 per night.
Český Krumlov, Czechia
A miniature version of Prague, some may argue is even prettier, Český Krumlov is a fairytale town in the historic province of Bohemia cut through with a scenic Vltava River and boasting a vast collection of Gothic, Renaissance, and 19th-century Baroque buildings.
The hilltop fortress, dating back to 1253, offers breathtaking views of the winding pedestrianized lanes and red tile roofs below, and if you’re passionate about architecture, don’t miss out on the multi-arched Cloak Bridge, spanning a castle moat, and the richly-decorated Church of St. Vitus.
Not only is Český Krumlov easy to reach from Prague, with numerous trains and buses departing from the capital and completing the southbound journey in around 2 hours every day, it is much cheaper in comparison:
Based on Budget Your Trip estimates, tourists will spend $37 on meals daily, and $73 on hotels, versus $44 eating out in central Prague, and a much-pricier $133 for overnights.
Wrocław, Poland
Tucked away in Western Poland, hundreds of miles away from the far-more popular Warsaw-Kraków duo, Wrocław is a vibrant city, the country’s third-largest at that, combining modern high-rise districts and traditional Renaissance facades.
In the midst of the hustle and bustle of a 669,000-people-strong conurbation, there is a postcard-ready Old Town, characterized by its wide squares and rows upon rows of skinny buildings, each individual in their elaborate casings, and muted hues of orange, red, green, and blue.
The Old Town Hall is a Gothic masterpiece right in the center of the heritage zone, featuring an astronomical clock that rivals Prague’s in beauty, and climbing the 13th-century Cathedral of St. Mary Magdalene, you’re free to walk a stone bridge connecting both towers.
Make sure you pay the ‘toll’ to the tiny witch sculpture perched on the parapet, overlooking the spire-dotted cityscape! A cent of złoty or two will suffice.
Stunning as Wrocław may be, it is largely foreigner-free: it’s not on your usual ‘Introduction to Poland’ itinerary, unlike the jam-packed Kraków and Auschwitz, and as a result, consumer prices are significantly lower.
Effectively, you can spend as little as $19 on meals daily, while hotel rates average $32.
Monemvasia, Greece
185 miles from a touristy Athens, Monemvasia is a sleepy coastal town sitting on a ‘tied’ island––meaning an island linked to the mainland by means of a natural causeway––not yet overrun with tour groups and Instagrammers despite its ravaging beauty:
For starters, it overlooks an azure Aegean Sea, and it is still completely surrounded by sea walls, like in the Middle Ages.
Walking the largely-pedestrianized center, where the streets are paved with stones, houses are built from stone, and there seems to be a charming square revolving around a perennial olive tree per square mile––in other words, it’s an open-air museum.
Other than exploring the countless Byzantine churches and taking in the sights from up Monemvasia’s ancient castle, an impressive stronghold bestriding a rock face, you shouldn’t leave without paying the family-owned Athivoli a visit:
A cozy restaurant housed in a historic tavern, they are renowned for their lamb thighs, freshly-caught fish, and homemade tzatziki, within a price range of $15–32.
Staying on the mainland, you can book an entire apartment with garden views and a short 15-minute drive to the island for $38 per adult.
Yes, Monemvasia is located on a small island off the east coast of the Peloponnese in Greece. However, it’s important to clarify:
Plovdiv, Bulgaria
Europe’s oldest continuously-inhabited city, Plovdiv has a rich past comprising periods of Ancient Greek, Roman, Ottoman, and now Bulgarian rule––phew, that’s quite the list!––and its old center is reflective of this enviable melting pot of cultures.
At the heart of it all, the Stari Grad district is a blend of Greco-Roman ruins and Bulgarian Revivalist architecture, with the typical protruding, covered balconies, and colorful townscape.
The most-visited attraction is the 2,000-year-old Ancient Theater, at the top of one of seven hills the city straddles, though the partially-exposed Roman Stadium, beneath the main thoroughfare, and the Turkish-inspired Djumaya Mosque are equally fascinating.
For something truly mind blowing, you shouldn’t bypass the local H&M on Knyaz Aleksandar I––albeit an uninspiring department store at first glance, its lower level has an unearthed row of seats of the Roman Stadium you can see for free!
As far as budget goes, you’ll be spending $36 on meals daily, and $86 on hotels, for a weekly total of $655, including transportation and other expenses.
This makes Plovdiv one of the most affordable city breaks in Europe in spring.
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