Although Mensa cafeterias are commonly found on campus at German universities and packed with healthy, athletically-inclined students, the dining halls are open to the public, and you’ll often find yourself dining alongside area businessmen and women. For the adventurous tourist, the cafeterias offer a unique and budget-friendly opportunity to get a taste of the real Deutschland.

Cafeteria food is, mildly put, not everyone’s culinary preference. But we enjoy it and embrace it for all of its qualities – healthy portions, light seasonings, regimented serving procedures, and unwavering value.

How the Mensa works

Most Mensa cafeterias require that you purchase a “MensaCard” onto which you can load – and reload – cash. These cards are for sale in the checkout lines for €1.55. Once you have procured a card, take it to the loading machine, where you insert money and load it up. At some cafeterias, you may also pay with cash, but you shouldn’t count on this.

Please note: Do not continue with your Mensa adventure until after you have fully loaded your card. The cashier can’t load up your card for you. Bad and embarrassing things could happen.

Your card activated, head into the cafeteria. Look for a big sign listing the day’s options (sometimes with illustrations), and note that most cafeterias offer daily options that are vegetarian, vegan, and “bio-essen” (organic). If you don’t speak or read German, it’s a pretty safe bet that you can ask any student around you for translation help. (“Schwein,” by the way, is “pork.” You’ll be seeing that.)

We usually head for the longest line, as it gives us a chance to survey the choices being dished up, and to overhear the ordering and practice our vocabulary. (English will probably not work on the women working behind the serving counter – but a smile and pointed finger usually does the trick.) Once your main entrée and side have been handed to you, slide down to the salad cabinet, and then head to the beverage dispenser. So many wholesome beverages are yours – milk, apple juice, orange juice, vitamin punch (Note: We’re still not quite sure what’s in the vitamin punch, but it does pack one)!

Now that your tray is filled with nourishing vittles, head to a checkout lane and be prepared to hand over your new Mensa card. If you’re a student, show your student ID before the clerk rings you up, as your prices will be markedly lower.

Our favorite Mensa cafeterias in central Berlin

In Mitte:
Mensa Nord
Reinhardtstrasse 30
Editors pick for dining in Mitte, north of Unter den Linden.
Monday – Friday, 9 AM to 3 PM

Near Alexanderplatz:
Mensa Spandauer Strasse
Spandauer Str. 1
Monday – Friday, 8:30 AM – 3 PM

Near Gendarmenmarkt:
Mensa Charlottenstrasse
Charlottenstrasse 55
Pop into this one when heading south of Unter den Linden or shopping on Friedrichstrasse.
Monday – Friday, 8:30 AM – 3 PM

Near Nollendorfplatz:
Mensa Kurfurstenstrasse
Kurfürstenstraße 141
Monday through Friday 8:30 AM – 2:30 PM

Read more

Still hungry? Read more posts on cheap eats in Berlin.

The post Berlin: Mensa cafeterias dish up cheap meals appeared first on EuroCheapo's Budget Travel Blog.

And for some curious reason, tourists visiting one of the world’s great culinary destinations seem content packing into the same old mediocre chain restaurants they find back home. Applebee’s and Olive Garden in Times Square have become a punchline to locals.

But thankfully, things are changing. Some interesting and affordable tastes are slowly pushing their way into the Theater District, the region focused around Times Square and bounded east to west by Sixth and Eighth avenues (roughly) and north to south by 57th to 40th streets.

More tips for visiting NYC on the cheap:
• How to save on hotels in New York City
• The ultimate cheapo guide for visiting New York
• Cheap hotels in Times Square and the Theater District

How to eat in Times Square on a budget

So if you’ve already scored affordable tickets to a Broadway show, where can you eat for cheap? It all depends on what you’re looking for. Here are a few suggestions for cheap eats in Times Square.

Mmmmm… burgers, fries, and more burgers at Shake Shack. Photo: Shinya Suzuki on Flickr

Burgers: Shake Shack

Renowned restaurateur, Danny Meyer, transformed a hot dog cart into the first Shake Shack a few blocks downtown at Madison Square Park and never looked back. Though it evolved into a chain with more than 250 locations around the world (and counting), this is one of the pioneering locations. And it’s as good as ever.

For the record, I’m particularly fond of Shake Shack. It’s not unusual to find me huddled over a ShackBurger, fries and house-made lemonade for breakfast at that original location, which opens earlier than the Theater District Shack. Though their crispy chicken sandwiches and hot dogs receive acclaim, Shake Shack is all about burgers and their signature beef blend. The crinkle-cut fries may sound pedestrian, but they’re prepared perfectly. The lemonade is fresh and tart.

Shake Shack has a fair number of seats, but the lines get really long, winding through a short maze indoors before spilling onto Eighth Avenue. Things move fairly quickly, but that only means you’ll playing musical chairs to grab a table unless you arrive soon after opening or during a rare lull during the day.

And here’s a quick tip: Shake Shack concretes — frozen custard mixed with cookies or candy — are great, too. And if all you want are frozen custard, beverages, beer or wine, you can jump into the shorter “C–Line” for quicker service.

Shake Shack
691 Eighth Ave. (at 44th St.)
shakeshack.com

Spice up your cheap dinner with hand-ripped noodles from Xi’an Famous. Photo: Jason Lam on Flickr

Chinese: Xi’an Famous Foods

You can find a great burger in most cities, but not fresh, handmade noodles. And that’s what draws New Yorkers to Xi’an Famous Foods. From its initial, hole-in-the-wall location in the basement of a Queens shopping mall, Xi’an’s fiery noodles leaped across the river to Manhattan’s Chinatown and then engulfed the entire island.

Head to one of the two nearby locations for “hand-ripped” noodles served in dishes and soups with combinations of vegetables and meats. There’s also a selection of dumplings and what Xi’an calls “burgers” — shredded meat on a bun.

What you want is the Spicy Cumin Lamb Noodles — or, if you’ve got to eat and walk, the Spicy Cumin Lamb Burger. (Xi’an warns that noodles are made to be eaten quickly, right out of the kitchen.) But if lamb isn’t on your agenda, the Liang Pi Cold Skin Noodles, Stewed Pork Burger, and Spicy and Tingly Beef Noodles round out their top five sellers.

Now for some tips: Since the family-owned and operated restaurants are surrounded by towering office buildings, they all get slammed during the lunch and dinner rushes. Your wait will be shorter if you can visit between 2 and 6 pm or on weekends. Also, spicy means spicy. Xi’an Famous Foods draws its name and family recipes from a city in northwestern China known for dishes kindled with cumin, chili, and peppercorns, and this is the real deal. But everything is made to order; so, if you want a milder version, just ask.

Xi’an Famous Foods
37 West 43rd St. (between 5th and 6th Ave.)
37 West 54th St. (between 5th and 6th Ave.)
xianfoods.com

Gray’s Papaya on 8th Avenue is always ready to serve you a hot dog. Photo: David

Hot Dogs: Gray’s Papaya

New Yorkers are busy. And, so it appears, always running late. Which makes hot dogs the perfect, cheapo food: a portable meal you can eat on the run, and one you can find everywhere.

Let’s start by debunking one myth: Food carts are not the dicey proposition many visitors believe. In fact, they’re a staple for many locals and some even serve gourmet specialties. So, you’re rarely more than a block away from a credible New York dog.

But there are a few legendary versions, and one of them is Gray’s Papaya. What sets it apart? It’s always open. It’s very good. And it’s cheap. In fact, Gray’s Papaya is famous for its “Recession Special,” two hot dogs and a medium drink for about six bucks. In Midtown Manhattan, you can’t do better than that.

It’s called Gray’s Papaya because papaya is one of their featured, non-alcoholic tropical beverages, but maybe not the best. I prefer piña colada, though they also serve coconut and banana — along with pineapple juice, soda, coffee, tea and hot chocolate.

Gray’s Papaya
612 8th Ave. (between 39th and 40th St.)
grayspapaya.nyc

Middle Eastern: The Halal Guys

One example of the upscale food cart trend is The Halal Guys, which began as a single cart in the Theater District and rode demand from Muslim taxi drivers to become an international restaurant phenomenon. Their original offering is also their most popular — a combo platter of chicken and beef gyro over rice. They serve both types of meat and a pretty good falafel in platters and as sandwiches on pita, with a choice of toppings.

Then there are the sauces. Unless you enjoy playing with fire, ease into the hot sauce, which registers 115,000 on the Scoville spicy-heat scale. (Most jalapeños come in well under 10,000.) And their tangy white sauce is so popular it has its own following.

With plenty of hardcore fans in a busy section of the city, the carts along 53rd Street are not hard to find: Just look for a long line of New Yorkers from every ethnicity, background, and culture. But don’t be scared off by the crowd. Hop right in and meet some new friends. Things move pretty quickly.

The Halal Guys
West 53rd St. and 6th Ave.
West 53rd St. and 7th Ave.
thehalalguys.com

Latin American: Empanada Mama

Granted, this cheapo favorite is officially in Hell’s Kitchen, a block beyond the Theater District’s official boundaries, but this small gem is close to some Broadway venues and worth the short walk.

Touting “big flavors in small packages,” Empanada Mama features, well, empanadas — stuffed pastries, most fried, some baked, that are staples in many Latin American regions. There are about 40 empanadas on the main menu, under $4 each, with both traditional and not-so-traditional tastes.

In the mood for something traditional? Try Brasil, with ground beef, olives, sautéed onion, and potato, or Desayuno Colombiano, with Colombian pork sausage, cheddar cheese, eggs and Spanish onion. Prefer fusion? Consider El Ruben, with shredded beef, sauerkraut, Russian dressing and Swiss cheese, or Pepperoni Pizza, with pepperoni, tomato sauce, and cheese. The variety is impressive and spills over to a small dessert menu with empanadas stuffed with fruit, cheese, and chocolate.

Like many New York restaurants, Empanada Mama has a compact — no, make that tiny — dining room, so be ready to wait if you arrive at prime time.

Empanada Mama
765 Ninth Ave. (between 51st and 52nd St.)
empmamanyc.com

Grab a slice before a show at NY Pizza Suprema. Photo: Jeff on Flickr

Pizza: Here’s Where It Gets Tricky

Pizza is the iconic NYC cheap eat. And there’s no shortage of storefronts peddling crust topped with tomato sauce and cheese. You can probably find one of those on every block. Maybe two. Or three.

What you won’t find in the Theater District is the kind of great slice joints scattered in neighborhoods around the city. Why? I dunno. Send me your theories. But I suspect it has to do with rents and that whole “tourists-content-at-Olive Garden” thing.

If you want pizza immediately before or after a show, your best bet is John’s of Times Square, a notable restaurant preparing traditional New York pies (no slices) in an 800-degree, coal-fired oven — along with a full menu of pasta, sandwiches, and dessert. But it may be known better for its setting in an abandoned church, complete with a stunning stained glass ceiling, which, to be honest, is pretty cool.

But I prefer to venture nine blocks outside the Theater District to NY Pizza Suprema, praised by many and rated by the “Slice Harvester” website as New York City’s best slice. Their regular cheese pizza is memorable. So are the Margherita and white slices. My advice? Go with whatever looks good — it will be — but be ready to order when it’s your turn and keep things moving.

John’s of Times Square
260 West 44th St. (between 7th and 8th Ave.)
johnspizzerianyc.com

NY Pizza Suprema
413 8th Ave. (between 31st and 30th St.)
nypizzasuprema.com

If you can’t decide: City Kitchen

If your group’s already arguing about where to eat — or perhaps you’re arguing with yourself! — your best bet is City Kitchen, located at the Row NYC Hotel. When you enter what’s billed as “A Times Square Food Market” you’ll find a busy room ringed by upscale food stalls.

I have a couple of favorites. Whitmans, one outpost of a popular burger-and-fries joint founded in New York’s East Village, serves a pared-down menu starring their Upstate Burger, a signature beef short rib blend, and an oddly satisfying version topped with peanut butter and applewood smoked bacon. Luke’s Lobster, another East Village import, serves their signature lobster rolls and a more cheapo-friendly shrimp roll to aficionados at almost 40 locations worldwide. But there’s more: Azuki sushi, Ilili Box Mediterranean cuisine, Gabriela’s Taqueria and Kuro-Obi ramen.

Whatever you choose, don’t miss Dough, an outpost for one of the city’s great doughnut shops. Their rotating menu includes unexpected flavors like hibiscus and passion fruit. A couple of my favorites — Nutella and dulce de leche — are also often available.

City Kitchen
700 8th Ave. (at 44th St.)
citykitchen.rownyc.com

Your tips for Times Square

Where do you like to eat for cheap when you’re in Times Square? Let us know in the comments!

The post NYC: The best cheap eats near Times Square appeared first on EuroCheapo's Budget Travel Blog.

So what’s a hungry Cheapo to do?  Do as the locals do. Grab a quick and affordable snack!

More cheap travel tips in Europe:
• 10 Ways to save time and money before your trip
• 12 Tips for traveling solo in Europe
• 50 Things to do in Europe for €5 or less

10 Cheap snacks in Europe

Here are 10 favorites from our travels across Europe that typically cost €5 or less.

1. Greece: Sesame seed bread rings

Called koulouri, this street snack comes plain or stuffed with cheese. In Greece locals say it was “born” in Thessaloniki, but it’s probably a variation of the Turkish simit, a similar bread ring still prized as a breakfast staple and on sale throughout the former Ottoman Empire (think Eastern Europe and Turkey).

It’s even available stateside where it’s known as the Turkish bagel, although since this is not boiled bread, the texture isn’t bagel like at all. Just beware of the end of the day koulouri, as they tend to go stale quickly.

Related: 5 Tips for visiting Athens on a budget

2. Spain: Churros

When freshly fried and sugared, this fried dough snack is the best late-night, post-bar treat around.  Churros and a thicker version called porras are easy to find throughout Spain and Portugal and thought to have been brought to Europe from China by the Portuguese. Typically accompanied by a thick, nearly pudding consistency hot chocolate as a dipping sauce, they’re sure to send your hangover packing.

Pro tip: buy churros that are freshly fried while you wait.

Spanish food: 7 top contenders for the best eats in Spain

3. France: Crepes

Whether you like them straight up and sprinkled with powdered sugar or full of veggies and cheese (savory crepes that are called galettes), authentic French crepes are an inexpensive and authentic local snack. While the story goes that crepes originated in Brittany, they’re widely available throughout France, as well as larger cities throughout Europe.

Skip anywhere that proffers pre-made crepes. This is not a food that should be microwaved. Half the fun (and most of the flavor) comes from watching a pro make them from scratch in front of your eyes.

4. Hungary: Fried bread

Called langos in Hungary, this deep-fried yeast-raised dough is usually served topped with sour cream and grated cheese or just doused with garlic butter. You can also find it in Croatia, Austria, Czech Republic, Slovakia, Slovenia, Romania, Poland, and even the UK, where it’s appropriately named “Hungarian Fried Bread.”

Related: Our favorite budget hotels in Budapest

5.  Germany: Curry sausage

What do you get when you combine fried pork sausage with curried ketchup? Currywurst! Invented in 1949 in Berlin, it’s become Germany’s favorite meal on the go. But if you don’t love curry, you can always order up a traditional German bratwurst (a pork sausage with a history that dates back to 1313).

Berlin Cheap Eats: Döner, currywurst, and outdoor dining

The center of an Italian rice ball is where you’ll find the good stuff. Photo: Wim

6. Italy: Fried rice balls

With a variety of shapes and fillings, the most commonly available version is arancini.  This 10th-century concoction is ball-shaped in most places (although it’s cone-shaped in parts of Sicily) and filled with ragu meat sauce, peas and mozzarella. In Rome, hungry Cheapos can look for a similar cheese-stuffed snack called suppli.

Exploring Milan: Where the locals eat for cheap

7. Portugal: Marinated pork steak sandwich

Known as a bifana, in the north it’s served with the spiced juices from the slow cooked meat on a white bread roll. In the south it’s served with mustard on a toasted roll. Prefer not to eat pork? Try a prego which is a similar sandwich made with beef instead.

8. Slovenia: Carniolan Sausage

This small sausage, called kranjska klobasa in Slovenian, is traditionally served cooked in wine and baked in dough or all by it’s lonesome sliced on a plate. Because it’s a protected European product, it’s always made of 80% pork and 20% bacon prepared with only salt, water, garlic and black pepper. If you like Polish kielbasa sausage, you’ll love it.

Read more: How to visit Slovenia on the cheap

A flaky banitsa, a Bulgarian specialty. Photo: squeedler

9. Bulgaria: Cheese and filo roll

Called banitsa, this traditional spiral-shaped pastry of layered whisked eggs and sirene (a feta-style cheese) in a filo pastry is served for special occasions in Bulgaria. For New Year’s Eve, lucky charms like coins or best wishes on paper wrapped in foil are put inside it. Sweet varieties made with milk and pumpkin filling as well as more creative spins are on offer in bigger bakeries around Bulgaria.

Related: A budget guide to Plovdiv, Bulgaria

Headed to Finlan? Don’t miss out on a karjalanpiirakka! Photo: Northsky71

10. Finland: Rice pasties

Known as karjalanpiirakka, these treats are called Karelian pasties or pies in English. The most traditional versions have a rye crust with rice. They are then topped off with butter and stuffed with hard-boiled eggs as a filling although mashed potatoes or rice and carrot mixes are also common.

This dish has a protected status in Europe, and while it’s popular in neighboring Estonia and Russia, it can not be called by its Finnish name in regions that haven’t been certified. Instead, it can be found labeled as riisipiirakka (rice) and perunapiirakka (potato) pasties.

Related: The best budget hotels in Helsinki

Bonus: What’s a cheapo snack you can find almost anywhere in Europe? Keep an eye out for Middle Eastern wraps and stuffed pitas! Kebabs, shawarma and falafel are ubiquitous in Europe. Every locale has adapted what they offer to local preferences, and these sandwiches are one of the best options for cheap and filling fare on the go. That said, Berlin’s kebabs are notorious in a good way as some of the best around outside of Turkey.

Do you have a favorite cheap snack in Europe? Let us know in the comments below.

The post 10 Cheap and tasty snacks in Europe that we crave appeared first on EuroCheapo's Budget Travel Blog.

Restaurants throughout Sweden offer a dagens lunch, the lunch of the day. The idea of a dagens lunch is simple: it’s an inexpensive lunch option for workers throughout the country. If you find yourself in Sweden around lunchtime, skip the fast-food, find yourself a restaurant and ask for a “dagens lunch.” You’ll have a great meal at a great price.

What it is

Traditionally, a dagens lunch includes a salad, the choice of a main dish from a few different options, a drink and coffee. Every restaurant is a bit different, but the main dishes available tend to be set for the week. A reasonable dagens lunch usually costs around 75 to 90 SEK (or about $10 to $12).

Depending on where you are, the main dish can be a bit fancier and a bit more expensive (in Östermalm, for example). In fact, some of the fancier restaurants don’t always offer dagens lunches, and instead stick to their normal menus. In Sweden, that is usually an indicator that a place isn’t Cheapo-friendly.

Where to eat it

For an inexpensive lunch, head away from the city center. Södermalm, Vasastaden and even little places like Nacka offer a wide array of dagens lunch menus to choose from.

One of my favorites is Cliff Barnes, which has two different locations, one in Vasastaden and one in Nacka. Along with an amazing dagens lunch, the Cliff Barnes in Vasastaden offers a great bar scene at night. It’s a can’t-miss if you’re looking to meet people.

For a wide variety of choices, head over to Medborgarplatsen, a large square in Södermalm. There you’ll find traditional Swedish restaurants, a crêperie, Thai food and just about everything in between. Wander around and check out the menus: You’re bound to find something worth sitting down for. I like Snaps, a great place with plenty of good food to choose from and outdoor seating. By chance, Snaps also turns into a great bar in the evenings.

Pea soup and pancakes on Thursday

As I said, each dagens lunch menu is a little bit different. You might find pork chops on a Tuesday, chicken on Wednesday and so on. However, one thing that doesn’t differ all that much is the Thursday menu.

In Sweden, Thursday is pea soup and pancake day. Few restaurants offering a dagens lunch will fail to offer this meal. Admittedly a strange combination, peace soup and pancakes is nonetheless a traditional—and surprisingly delicious—one. (It’s also incredibly filling.)

Explanations for the tradition are wide-ranging. Some argue that it started with the military, where pea soup and pancakes are served every Thursday. Others say that it was a way for restaurants to stretch their meat supplies through the end of the week. Still others believe that it harks back to Sweden’s religious days, when meat was meant to be abstained from on Fridays. Whatever the reason, the tradition continues, and pea soup and pancakes can be found throughout Sweden—Stockholm included—on Thursdays.

You can read more info on places to go, sights to see and other Stockholm tips here.

The post Stockholm Cheap Eats: Dagens lunch appeared first on EuroCheapo's Budget Travel Blog.

One (rather tasty) way that Cheapos can discover these elements of Parisian life is through the numerous restaurants in Paris devoted to non-French cuisines. Sometimes such places are even less expensive than traditional French fare.

Tea and couscous at the Mosquée de Paris

The Paris Mosque (pictured above) was constructed after World War I as a tribute to the North African soldiers who fought alongside the French. Today, the religious site is largely financed—and frequented—by Algerians.

Visitors can feast on North African cuisine at the mosque’s restaurant, which serves up heaping portions of couscous, grilled specialties, and tagines (a stew-like dish with meat and vegetables). In the summer months, the interior courtyard is the perfect backdrop for spending a couple of hours over a delicious meal. (Just watch out for the restaurant’s other visitors, the fearless sparrows who swoop down to peck at unprotected plates—even if you aren’t finished eating!)

For a lighter gustatory experience, head over to the salon du thé, where refreshing glasses of mint tea cost just €2. There’s also an assortment of sticky pastries like baklava, although regulars know to opt for the intriguing mint tea and honey ice cream combo. It’s a bit pricey, but definitely worth the €6!

The mosque is located at 39, Rue Geoffroy Saint-Hilaire in the 5th Arrondissement. The restaurant is open every day for lunch and dinner; opening hours for the tearoom are 9:00 AM to 11:30 PM daily.

Low-cost fare à la Vietnamese

The neighborhood of Belleville in the 19th and 20th arrondissements is home to a large Asian population. While the area may be best-known for its Chinese community, it is also home to many Vietnamese immigrants, and is thus a great place to find delicious, and Cheapo-friendly, Vietnamese food.

It’s easy to walk right past Chez Yu, located at 40, Rue de Belleville; the tiny hole-in-the-wall establishment is so small that it doesn’t even have a bathroom for customers. However, the cheap fare is also darn tasty.

Start out the meal with refreshing spring rolls, which for the Vietnamese means vermicelli noodles, shrimp and greens wrapped in rice paper. Traditional main courses like Bo Bun, a noodle dish with beef and vegetables, range from €7 to €9.

Your dining tips: Have you been to either of these establishments? Do you have a favorite spot in Paris for tasty and affordable non-traditional French cuisine? Tell us about it!

Want more suggestions for cheap eats? Here’s a post on 6 cheap restaurants in the Abbesses neighborhood.

The post Paris Dining: Tasty (and cheap) meals from other cultures appeared first on EuroCheapo's Budget Travel Blog.

How to keep costs manageable in such a pricey Nordic capital? We’ve got a few suggestions.

1. Find a cheap bed. The well-scrubbed Eurohostel, located on Katajanokka, is a cheap spot to lay your head. Rooms are small but spic-and-span, with Ikea-like blond wood bed frames and gray and green room accents. Doubles begin at €53 in the summer, which is pretty darn cheap for the pricey Finnish capital.

Central Helsinki by day…

2. Grab a cheap lunch. Grub is expensive in central Helsinki. One good value can be found at the Hietalahti Flea Market café, where the lunch buffet is just €7 per person. Just don’t go assuming that you’ll be able to find such good deals in the flea market hall itself, which is packed to the rafters with spectacular Finnish modernist pieces (as well as some inarguably uninteresting fluff). A trip to the nearby Design Museum (Korkeavuorenkatu 23) will confirm your suspicions that many of the Flea Market’s cast-offs are in fact Grade A modernist beauties.

3. Visit a free museum. The splendid Kiasma (Museum of Contemporary Art) is worth the €7 admission fee for the exploration of its curved passageways and awesome scale alone. But on the first Wednesday of every month, admission is free. Several other museums occasionally offer free admission as well.  Helsinki City Art Museum is free on Fridays, for example.

Helsinki’s main cathedral, the Tuomiokirkko

4. Free furniture? Well, not really. All those expensive shops full of incredibly dear and well made Finnish furniture can be visited and viewed by any Cheapo with an appetite for good, high-end design. Check out Vepsäläinen and the adjacent Solid Furniture on Annankatu 25, and Amfora Shop on Bulevardi 11 for some particularly inspiring selections.

5. Take a cheap day trip. It’s all relative, of course, but a boat trip to the beautiful island of Suomenlinna—where one of the largest historic maritime monuments in the world holds court—is just €3.80 roundtrip for adults and €1.90 roundtrip for children aged 7 to 16.  Once there, guided walking tours of the island are available most every day in the summer, less frequently in the down season. They are free for Helsinki Card carriers.

The post Wandering Cheapo Helsinki: Five Cheapo Tips appeared first on EuroCheapo's Budget Travel Blog.

London can be a tricky city for dining. Long criticized for the quality of its fare (“It’s no Paris!”), the city has undergone a gastro-awakening over the past decade that has benefited the bellies, if not the wallets, of its diners.

So what’s a Cheapo to eat? Here are our dining tips, all tested and tried:

1. Go for conveyer belt sushi!

We were initially turned off and chips!

Sure, we try to stay away from battered and fried, but you have to go there at least once during your stay. Our favorite fish and chips joint is the Rock & Sole Plaice (47 Endell St, WC2 ) in Covent Garden. For under £15, you can order a whole fish and taste a variety of dipping sauces, and have your chips too! If you can’t tube it to this spot, you can usually find decent (and cheaper) fish and chips in any neighborhood. Just steer clear of major tourist haunts (Read: Leicester Square) and larger chains like Slug and Lettuce that claim they have fresh oceanic fare. When in doubt, ask the locals!

3. Kebob it!

We’ve been there: It’s midnight, the pub just closed, and your tum-tum is grumbling. If you’re in Bayswater, head for a kebob stand on busy Queensway where, for a few pounds, you can get your lamb on. Doll it up with the fixins, which usually include peppers, tomatoes, hummus, tahini, and cucumber sauce.

We recommend The Taza Kebab House, where the lamb is always succulent and the pita sandwiches are filling.

4. Join the chain gang.

You may normally steer clear of chain restaurants, but local chains can introduce you to local tastes (mmmm…. mayonnaise!) and help your budget. Big name chain restaurants like Wagamama (Japanese) and Pret-A-Manger (eat-in or take-out sandwiches and coffee) are London mainstays, located throughout the city. Smaller chains like Hummus Bros offer a unique dining experience without exotic prices. Many of these chains offer lunch specials daily.

5. Get roasted.

Sunday is the best day to partake in a yummy, often three-course, gastro-pub meal. The menus are usually prix fixe, but you can always order stuff separately. And, if you haven’t been to a Sunday “roast,” it’s a great way to see London culture at its finest—and hungriest—as piles of bangers and mash, roasted chickens and beef, and plenty o’ pints are consumed. We love The Chapel Pub in Marylebone (48 Chapel Street, London, NW1 5DP ), where we’re always warmly greeted with a comfy seat and a fantastic meal.

The post London: 5 cheap eats in London appeared first on EuroCheapo's Budget Travel Blog.