However, not everything is out of a Cheapo’s budget in this city. Munich is also home to wonderful traditions and scenery that won’t cost you even one euro to experience.

Here are seven of our top free things to do when visiting Munich at any time of the year.

Related: 10 tips for saving in Munich and our favorite budget hotels

Munich free things to do

1. The Glockenspiel clock

Every day at 11 AM and 12 PM there are hundreds of tourists waiting at Munich’s Town Hall. The crowd’s size misleads others to think something huge is going to happen, but it’s really just a joyful chime of traditional music and figurines circling around the clock tower. Maybe you shouldn’t plan your European vacation around it, but it’s cute to see once while drinking a coffee to go.

2. Church of Our Lady

Nearby the town hall and Marienplatz is Church of Our Lady (Frauenkirche) boasting the tallest towers in the city. One of the towers is open to climb, and on a clear day, you can see as far as the Alps. The inside holds artwork from the 1300s, as this is one of the oldest churches in the city, built in the 1400s.

3. The English Gardens

The large central park has everything you need for a typical Bavarian summer outing: a babbling brook, trees, soccer games, al fresco picnics, nudists… and a beer garden next to a large Chinese-style tower. Alright the last two sound weird, but in the English Gardens (Englische Garten) it’s totally normal. Wandering around the park leads to rose gardens, more cafes and large, gothic buildings. It’s a must-see.

Related: 3 beer gardens popular with locals in Munich

4. Isar River

There’s a part of the river running through the English Gardens where locals surf on a naturally made wave. It’s great to watch from the bridge above. Following the river is a beautiful walking path, especially when the leaves are changing. Some of the waterfowl along the Isar are rarities in Europe — like Asia’s mandarin ducks.

5. Viktualienmarkt

Just next to the town hall is a market area with all things foodie. From boutique cottage stores selling homemade jams and organic honey to a slew of butcher’s competing for the world’s best pork slice of leberkase, it’s free to walk around but the smells are tempting. There are quite a few fresh juice stands and traditional Bavarian food kitchens, all, of course, surrounding a beer garden to sit and eat at. This is a great lunch spot.

Related: 5 classic Bavarian bakery items in Munich for around €1

6. Hirschgarten

This is my favorite attraction, and it’s perfect for families. Hirschgarten has everything Bavarian: nature, wilderness, hearty food and beer. The word means “deer park”, and dozens of deer hang around, grazing and snoozing. Kids (and adults) love to feed them grass through the fencing, while the park itself is large with play areas and nature paths.

To top it off, Hirschgarten is the largest outdoor beer garden in the world, with ample seating, and tasty food and drink at very fair prices. The S-bahn even recently built a “Hirschgarten” metro station to better guide park visitors.

7. Nymphenburg Palace

Within walking distance from the Hirschgarten is this jaw-dropping Baroque-style palace built in the 1600s. Rulers of Bavaria like Maximillian II and his son King Ludwig II resided with their families in this gigantic building that looks more like a grand hotel. Entrance inside is €11.50 during peak season, but it’s free to walk around the stunning gardens, ponds and greenery sculpted around the premises.

The post Exploring Munich: 7 free things to do appeared first on EuroCheapo's Budget Travel Blog.

But beyond the bright lights of Broadway and behind the beautiful buildings lurk some of the city’s greatest treasures, just waiting for someone to stumble upon and enjoy them.

Here are seven hidden NYC spots you can enjoy without spending a cent.

1. Kenkeleba House

214 E 2nd Street
East Village

The unassuming Alphabet City building dates back to 1908 and is unmarked, save for the words “Henington Hall,” etched into the stone facade. Enter the plain doubles doors, and you’ll find a fascinating gallery and beautiful sculpture garden. True to its name, which refers to a West African plant that is said to possess spiritual powers, Kenkeleba features mostly African-American art. The owners, Joe Overstreet and his wife Corinne Jennings, have amassed more than 30,000 works over the years, and their exhibitions often explore the history, as well as emerging artists and experimental works.

2. The Daily News Building

220 E 42nd Street
Midtown East

Even in a city full of stunning architecture, the facade of 220 E 42nd stands out, and it is of no small consequence that its magnificent Art Deco carving has a larger-than-life feel: The title “THE NEWS” emblazoned above the bustling urban scene, refer to newspaper giant the Daily News, formerly headquartered here. But the facade is only the beginning of this building’s glory. Enter through the revolving doors to be amazed but the lobby to beat all lobbies. A massive, glowing globe floats in the center, slowly revolving underneath a gleaming black glass dome, with a compass of inlaid tiles shooting from its base, its bronze lines indicating the distance from New York to various international locations. (Movie fan bonus: In the 1978 Superman this was the headquarters of the Daily Planet).

3. Jefferson Market Library

425 Avenue of the Americas
West Village

From its “island” perch this red-brick, Victorian Gothic structure holds court as a beacon of the West Village, its arches, turrets and elaborate adornments lending a sort of fairy-tale quality to the neighborhood. Just as fantastical is the building’s interior, with its spiral staircase and brick-arched basement on the shelves of which fairy tales themselves now reside. The sun-drenched adult reading room is a pleasant place to pass a peaceful hour (or catch up on email using free Wi-Fi), and one mustn’t miss the idyllic garden.

A former courthouse and women’s prison, both library and garden hold much historical appeal as well: It was here that the murderer of famed architect Stanford White faced trial, as did Mae West when her Broadway play “Sex” was brought up on obscenity charges.

4. The Earth Room

141 Wooster Street
Soho

No matter what you feel about modern art, 280,000 pounds of earth 22 inches thick in a small room is truly a unique sight to behold—especially when that room resides in New York real estate space. Installed by artist Walter De Maria in 1977, this is the only one of the artist’s three Earth Room exhibits still in existence. Curators maintain it by regularly watering and raking the dirt , which results in a peaceful, forest smell (and sometimes the occasional mushroom). A few blocks up, you’ll find another unique De Maria installation: Broken Kilometer, an empty expanse of space marked by five rows of brass rods that play with your sense of perspective. 

5. The Whispering Gallery

Grand Central Terminal
Midtown East

One of the city’s most important landmarks, Grand Central Station houses a number of secrets but one its most fun attractions is hidden in plain sight. After gaping at the stately main terminal, make your way to the lower-level ramp. The archways in front of the Oyster Bar house an acoustic anomaly that allows you to speak into one corner, and a buddy in the corner opposite to hear you loud and clear.

6. The Random House Lobby

1745 Broadway
Midtown West

Yet another office building you aren’t ordinarily likely to enter, the headquarters of publishing giant Random House holds a major treat for book lovers. The ground-floor entryway is lined floor to ceiling with illuminated shelves housing the the publishing house’s acclaimed history—first editions of Random House books from Ulysses on up to Gone Girl.

7. Part of the Berlin Wall

520 Madison Avenue
Midtown East

No, you have not read that wrong. Five sections (roughly 20 feet long) of the Berlin Wall stand in an otherwise ordinary plaza between some Midtown office buildings. The Western side, which faces the plaza, is covered with a vibrant mural painted by German artists Thierry Noir and Kiddy in 1985.

The post New York: 7 hidden spots that won’t cost you a dime to visit appeared first on EuroCheapo's Budget Travel Blog.

The following two museums, however, are completely free and should make your must-visit list:

Latvian War Museum
Located inside Gunpowder Tower at Smilsu iela, 20

For a quick-hit history of Latvia’s military past, and to catch an illuminating exhibit on the Soviet occupation, check out Latvia’s War Museum. The museum describes its mission as “to save collective, historical memory of the nation about political and military history of Latvia, the influence of the military conflicts… on the destiny of the nation, and the reflection of these conflicts’ consequences…”

Current offerings include a detailed exposition on the Latvian army’s role in Russia’s Civil War (1918-1921).

The museum is open year-round and is closed on Mondays and Tuesdays.

The Museum of the Occupation of Latvia
Strelnieku laukums, 1, Old Town

Latvia was occupied by German and Soviet forces three times from 1940 to 1991. These included the first Soviet occupation (1940-1941), the Nazi occupation (1941-1944/45), and the long, devastating second Soviet occupation (1944/45-1991).

The Museum of the Occupation of Latvia provides exhibits and a permanent collection focused on these three occupations, their victims (including business and farm owners, Jews, political opponents, and artists), and the crimes committed by the foreign powers.

The museum is centrally located in Old Town, next to Town Hall Square (Ratslaukums). The museum is open daily May through September, 11 AM to 6 PM; October through April 11 AM to 5 PM, closed Mondays during this off-season. (The Museum of the Occupation of Latvia was also the answer to our previous “Name this Museum” post.)

Tell us: Have you ever been to either of these museums? Do you have a favorite free or budget sight in Riga?

The post Riga Free Museums to explore on your trip appeared first on EuroCheapo's Budget Travel Blog.

We present you with five of the largest and most interesting “Autres” Dames de Paris, representing the diverse quartiers of the city.

The Basilique Notre Dames des Victoires

Basilique Notre Dame des Victoires

One of two basilicas bearing the name “Our Lady” in Paris, you’ll find the Basilique Notre Dames des Victoires on the Place des Petit Pères in the 2nd Arrondissement. Construction began in 1629, financed by Louis XIII, who also gave the church its name. During the Revolution the Augustinian friars who lived there were expelled and Notre Dame des Victoires was converted into a stock market.

It reopened as a place of worship in 1809, but few congregants returned to the church. The local priest was about to call it quits in 1836 when he received a divine message telling him to reconsecrate the church to the “Immaculate Heart of the Very Saintly Virgin.” Soon, pilgrims were flocking to the site. The inside walls of the building are covered in plaques bearing the prayers of the faithful from around this time. Notre Dame des Victoires became a basilica in 1927.

Visiting: The building is open to the public 7:30 AM to 7:45 PM Monday through Saturday and 8:30 AM to 7:45 PM on Sunday.

Notre Dame des Champs

Notre Dame des Champs

The first divine being to be worshiped at this site was Mercury, the Roman god of commerce. When the first Christians arrived in the Paris region, they rededicated the existing shrine to Mary under the name “Notre Dame des Vignes.” King Robert the Pious (996-1031) decided to rebuild the church, and around the same time the name was changed to “Notre Dame des Champs” because the vines (“vignes”) had been torn down.

The church enjoyed fame under the reign of Louis XIV, but unfortunately the building was destroyed during the Revolution. The first stone of the current church was laid in 1867, in 1876 the building was dedicated, and the archbishop of Paris oversaw the consecration in 1912.

Notre Dame des Champs borders the 6th and 14th Arrondissements at 92 bis Boulevard du Montparnasse. The spacious nave lets in quite a bit of light, even on rainy days. To take a full tour of the church, follow the stations of the cross beginning at the front on the left side, continuing around the back and up the other side.

Visiting: Opening hours are between 9 AM and 12:30 PM and 2 PM and 5:30 PM, except for Sunday when the church closes at 5 PM.

Notre Dame de Lorette

I must admit to being a bit partial to Notre Dame de Lorette because it’s in my neighborhood in the 9th Arrondissement, at 8 bis Rue de Châteaudun. If you stand far enough down the Rue Laffitte, directly across from the front entrance, there’s an amazing view of Notre Dame de Lorette with Sacré Coeur looming in the background (see photo, above).

With its elaborate Corinthian columns and imposing Latin transcription over the door, it’s not hard to see that the church was modeled after Roman basilicas. The neoclassic architect Hippolyte Lebas designed the building, which was constructed between 1823 and 1836. (You’ll find a street bearing the architect’s name not far here, just a ways up the Rue des Martyrs.)

Visiting: Notre Dame de Lorette is open Monday from 11 AM to 7:30 PM; Tuesday to Friday from 7:30 AM to 7:30 PM; Saturday from 9 AM to 12 PM and 2:30 PM to 7:30 PM; and Sunday 9 AM to 12:30 PM and 2:30 PM to 7 PM.

Notre Dame de Clignancourt

Notre Dame de Clignancourt

The first stone of Notre Dame de Clignancourt was laid by the great civic planner Baron Haussmann in 1859, and it opened its doors in 1863. Eugenie, the wife of Napoleon III, endowed the church with furniture and objects of worship, much of which was plundered during the Paris Commune in 1870.

The interior of Notre Dame de Clignancourt is a bit dark, but it does have lovely modern stained-glass windows. The pretty chapel behind the altar is definitely worth a look. Located at 2 Place Jules Joffrin in the 18th Arrondissement, the church is directly opposite from the neighborhood’s mairie (town hall building), which is also an architectural gem.

Visiting: Notre Dame de Clignancourt is open from 9 AM to 12:30 PM and 2 PM to 7:30 PM, except on Sundays when it closes at 5:30 PM.

Notre Dame de la Croix

Notre Dame de la Croix

Notre Dame de la Croix is by far the largest church on our list. The steeple is visible from blocks away over the roofs of the surrounding buildings. To fully appreciate the enormity of the structure, start at the far end of Rue Etienne Dolet and walk up to the main entrance at 3 Place de Ménilmontant (in the 20th Arrondissement).

Originally, a small chapel opening in 1847 served the Catholic community in this neighborhood. However, the chapel became too small, and construction began on the current church in 1863. The work was interrupted by the Commune, but was finally finished in 1880.

Notre Dame de la Croix gets its name from a statue owned by the monks of Sainte Croix de la Bretonnerie that was hidden in the Ménilmontant neighborhood during the Revolution. The statue was stolen in 1975 and then recovered, but was later stolen again and never returned.

Visiting: The church is open Monday through Saturday from 7 AM to 7:30 PM; on Thursday until 10 PM; and Sunday 7:30 AM to 7 PM.

Discover more Notre Dames

To visit even more of the churches named for the Virgin Mary, you can try looking them up on the websites for each arrondissement, which all follow the same formula (example: the website of the 5th is www.mairie5.paris.fr). Once there, search for “lieux de culte” in the “rechercher” box. Not all the websites list places of worship, but it’s a good starting place.

Do you know of any other intriguing Notre Dame that we might have missed? Tell us about it in the comments section!

The post Paris Free Sights: The other Notre Dames de Paris appeared first on EuroCheapo's Budget Travel Blog.