Here are five reasons for Cheapos to be excited about visiting Amsterdam in 2013:

1. The 400th anniversary of the canal belt

During Amsterdam’s 17-century Golden Age, building grand canal rings around the city proved better for business and easier for commerce, given that boats were the country’s main form of transportation. (Bicycles came later.) The need for practical trade routes led to the creation of the Canal Belt, one of Amsterdam’s most recognizable features, and scenic spots for romantic views and photo ops followed.

Winning a UNESCO World Heritage title in 2010, these brick buildings, bridges and breathtaking waterways are still standing after 400 years. To celebrate along these dazzling canals, expect a cheery jumble of live music, outdoor multimedia projects and art festivities throughout the year.

The Rijksmuseum is set to reopen in the spring of 2013. Photo: Ben Kempner

2. The revealing of the new Rijksmuseum and Van Gogh Museum

The Rijksmusem is one of the largest buildings in the city center, and for a decade the art museum’s external scaffolding has been a constant eyesore. But come spring 2013 its newly renovated 1.5 kilometers of space will hold over 8,000 pieces, revealing 800 years of Dutch history and culture – including Rembrandt’s “Night Watch.”

Nearby at the Museumplein, the neighboring Van Gogh Museum will also reopen entirely in April 2013. Just in time for Mr. Gogh’s 160th birthday. (Until then, visit the Hermitage Amsterdam to see a wide collection of Van Goghs.)

3. 125 years of a music masterpiece.

Amsterdam’s famous concert hall, the Concertgebow, celebrates 125 years of performances by filling the city’s streets with music. Plans are in the works to project live concerts throughout Amsterdam onto giant screens for free public viewing pleasure.

Throughout 2013, the grand and glamorous concert hall will live stream a selection of the 700+ performances scheduled for 2013. In addition, the Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra and its 120 musicians take off for a world tour around the world, and a home performance is expected in August.

Happy 175, Artis Zoo! Photo: Nigel Swales

4. Oldest zoo in the country turns 175.

Set in the heart of the leafy Plantage neighborhood, Amsterdam’s old Jewish quarter, the Artis Zoo turns 175 in 2013. Artis houses an impressive collection of more than 6,000 animals, plus some gorgeous tulip-filled gardens, and a relaxing café atmosphere just next to the flamingo sanctuary. Expect some family-friendly events at this cultural oasis throughout the year.

5. 150 years of equality.

This year marks the 150th anniversary of abolishing slavery in the Netherlands and its former colonies in the Dutch Antilles and Surinam. To celebrate, the Foundation for the Commemoration of Slavery is planning to hold events July 1.

Throw in Queen’s Day April 31 and Liberation Day on May 5, and the dozens of arts and music fests stringing the weeks together prove that summer in Amsterdam is going to be hopping with celebration in 2013.

Coming to Amsterdam in 2013?

If you’re planning to visit Amsterdam in 2013, be sure to stop by our guide to budget hotels in Amsterdam to find a good, central and cheap sleep for your stay. All of our editor’s picks have been inspected and approved. Read more in our Amsterdam guide.

The post Amsterdam in 2013: Rijksmuseum and Van Gogh reopen, canals turn 400, and more. appeared first on EuroCheapo's Budget Travel Blog.

But what we really love are lists. Big honking end-of-the-year recapapaloozas that rehash what we learned in the past 12 months and what we’re hoping for in the year ahead.

So we thought we’d reach out to our travel industry friends to ask them what they learned about travel in 2012, and to see if they had any tips for traveling in the coming year. Here’s what they told us:

Choosing a destination

“You really can have fun anywhere. I went to some awesome places this year—Dubai and Oman come to mind—but one of my best memories from the road in 2012 was having a steak dinner in Bentonville, Arkansas. It’s definitely not the most glamorous destination, but the trip reminded me that travel’s about the experience not the passport stamp.”

Paul Brady is an editor at Huffington Post Travel, and he really, really loves Uruguay. Keep up with him on Tumblr.

“I didn’t need to hire a security detail to safely visit Afghanistan”

Matthew Klint has traveled over 200,000 miles and visited over 90 countries the last five years. He writes for UPGRD.com and has been featured in the New York Times, USA Today and on NPR.

Terri Fogarty is ready to go to Wales. Above, Beddgelert, North Wales. Photo: A Roger Davies

“In my mind the must visit destination is always Paris… but if you are looking for something different, then go to Wales.  It is beautiful, easy to get to and the people are very friendly.”

Terri Fogarty is the Co-founder of EuropeUpClose, written by Europe travelers for Europe Lovers. You can reach her on twitter @europeupclose

“Tourist infrastructure is expanding very quickly right now in Haiti. There are new hotels and exciting initiatives in the works, with a very dynamic young tourism minister directing traffic. Bradt has just published a Haiti guide by Paul Clammer, which should get more people excited about the country.”

Alex Robertson Textor is a London-based travel writer and editor with a developing interest in destination branding. He endorses local culture, independent travel, modern design, and good food with unbridled enthusiasm. Follow him on Twitter @textorian

“I don’t think countries currently in turmoil in North Africa or the Middle East are going to be truly ready for floods of tourists by the end of 2013, but I’d like for travelers to be poised to visit as soon as they are ready. There’s nothing like an influx of tourism money to help rebuild a place, not to mention the ‘humanizing the unfamiliar’ factor, which is always a huge bonus.”

Jessica Spiegel is a freelance travel writer, social media consultant, and TBEX Community Manager with a soft spot for Sazeracs, footy, anything Italy-related, and cities with bad reputations. Read more at JessicaTravels.com.

“Avoid Vegas.”

Paul Bennett is the Founder of Context Travel, a network of scholars and specialists who lead walking seminars for small groups in Europe, Asia and N. America.

Taking a reading break at Shakespeare & Co. in Paris. Photo: Dhammaza

Slowing down

“Try and build some spare downtime days into a trip. Plan it so that you’re doing something big every day and you’ll end up resenting it. The ‘mooch around, do some laundry, sit in a park and read a book day’ is a key part of making the ‘all-action, world class experiences’ day special.”

David Whitley is a UK-based travel journalist who has written for the National Geographic Traveller, the Guardian, Telegraph, Independent and the Sunday Times. Follow him on Twitter @mrdavidwhitley.

“Stop worrying, just travel. Whether I’ve been traveling as a blogger or for my day job, I have the bad habit of being ‘on’ constantly. Interviewing people, taking cards and information, looking for a deeper story. When I went on my honeymoon in September, my husband made it clear that there would be none of that happening in New Zealand. It was a valuable lesson in just being in that place at that time without worrying about a story.”

Annemarie Dooling is the Senior Community Editor at The Huffington Post and blogs her tales of travel and personal growth at frillseekerdiary.com. 

“There were a few [things I learned this year]: that the profession of ‘travel writer’ probably won’t exist by the time I’m a grandpa age; that I really prefer traveling alone; that I’m glad I don’t give a [expletive] about—or really have much of an opinion about—’brands’ like hotels and such but that the destination and people in that destination make the story; and that I’m afraid of elephants.”

David Farley is the author of “An Irreverent Curiosity: In Search of the Church’s Strangest Relic in Italy’s Oddest Town” and Contributing Editor at AFAR magazine. Read his personal blog at www.dfarley.com.

“A sense of urgency when booking is not always needed. I mean, round-trip fares to Hawaii from the East Coast have been below $500 since the end of summer (which is, frankly, insane). While you do sometimes have to ‘ACT NOW!’ on a deal, you can often find airfare sales lingering for a stretch.”

Mike Barish is the Executive Editor of ShermansTravel.com and a fine teller of jokes. Follow him on Twitter @mikebarish.

“Once you reach 30, the weekend trip to Europe is much harder than you think it is. Also, second visits can be much more rewarding than first visits.”

Grant Martin is the editor in chief of Gadling.com. Specializing in consumer travel, the airline industry and logistics, his travels have taken him far and wide around the world and he now contributes to Gadling from Chicago. Follow him on Twitter @grantkmartin.

Better let the cat out of the bag. Photo: Kishimoto

Packing

“I am evermore enamored with Ziploc bags when I realized how great they are for consolidating (and shrinking my packing). I’ve started leaving them in my suitcases so they’re readily available for socks, bathing suits and even workout gear.”

Suzanne Russo is EuroCheapo’s Listings Editor and frequently blogs for our guide to NYC. She’s also a freelance writer, director of the San Francisco-sponsored, New York literary pub crawl, Lit Crawl, and constant wanderer.

“Always carry an antibiotic. I was just sick in Panama and couldn’t get one without going to a doctor.”

Johnny Jet travels over 150,000 miles and visits 20 countries each year. He and his website have been featured in the USA Today, The New York Times and other publications and he recently hosted “Hot Spots 2012” on the Travel Channel.

“Pack light and take only cabin luggage. Not only do you save a small fortune from not paying the airlines’ checked bag fees, but you also reduce your check-in time (most often just check-in online) and you also remove the stress and the time wasting of having to wait for your luggage after the flight.”

Martino Matijevic is the Founder and CEO of WhichBudget.com, a flight search engine based in Nice, France, and can be followed on Twitter @whichbudget.

Travel agents, like this woman in Botswana, still come in handy. Photo: Andrew Ashton

Preparing for a trip

“There’s still place in this world for decent travel agents. Trying to independently sort flights, transfers and hotels can take up a lot of time, and travel agents have access to clever systems that can often do all this stuff for less than you would pay for separate online bookings.”

Laura Porter is the About.com London Guide and can be followed on Twitter @AboutLondon.

“Learn how to count in the local language! It makes it much easier to purchase things like food and drink, and the locals are often friendlier and more willing to help if you can show a willingness to speak their language, no matter how rusty you are!”

Ian Cumming is the Co-Founder of Travel Massive, the biggest travel industry meetup in the world. Learn more about him at AussieIan.net.

“Ask for details about ‘free Wi-Fi.’ My wife and I stayed in an apartment where the Wi-Fi signal barely reached us from a router across the street.”

Durant Imboden is the founder of EuropeForVisitors.com, a resource for unbiased information about European travel and cruising.

“[Take] a class. I like to incorporate travel with classes in general, which gives an energetic sense of purpose in a place, and an immediate social outlet if traveling alone. Me? I want to take harmonica or dulcimer lessons in Appalachia, like the Campbell Folk School in North Carolina.”

Robert Reid is the US Travel Editor at Lonely Planet and can be followed on Twitter @reidontravel.

Ask for a hand. Photo: Niiicedave

Flying

“Forcing the TSA to give you a hand pat-down is not only your legal right, but it’s also a fun way to get back at them for all the indignities they cause you. Under certain circumstances, it’s also a decent surrogate for a sex life.”

Jason Cochran has worked at Budget Travel, AOL, and the New York Post and was awarded Guidebook of the Year by the Lowell Thomas Awards. Read more at www.jasoncochran.com.

“Always make sure you have a few films downloaded to your iPad for when the inflight entertainment conks out, there is nothing available that your kids understand or there isn’t anything good on.”

Sam Daams founded the independent travel community Travellerspoint, along with his brother Peter. Follow Sam on Twitter @samdaams.

“Flying business or first class is better than flying coach, but all business/first class isn’t created equal. Save your pennies, miles, or upgrade credit for when it really counts—and that’s not a couple hour flight up and down the coast.”

Mary Jo Manzanares is the Conference Director of TBEX. Follow her on Twitter @MJManzanares.

On the rails

“I didn’t know about this because I often wait to finalize my travel plans until right before departure, but Czech Railways offers significant discounts — about 25% off — if you buy tickets at least three days in advance. For a quick $50, I think I can get organized.”

Evan Rail is a frequent contributor to the travel section of The New Times and the author of two Kindle Singles, “Why Beer Matters” and “In Praise of Hangovers.” He lives in Prague.

Paris is more fun with the kids. Photo: Pilgrimgirl

Family on the road

“Travel more with family. I often times travel for work and that means solo. I’d like to get my wife, son and newborn (due in May) on a few trips. With two kids that might mean day trips to the Jersey Shore or Long Island.”

Andrew Hickey is the former Brooklyn Nomad, current social media manager at G Adventures and all around nice guy. Follow him on Twitter @andrewmhickey.

“My wife and I just had identical twin daughters a few weeks ago.  I am a father with three kids under the age of three. With that in mind, my travel resolution for 2013 is to spend at least six months out of the country.”

Sean Keener is the founder and CEO of Bootsnall.com, the one-stop indie travel guide.

Sleep deprivation

“The best travel lesson I learned in 2012 is that against my better judgement, I actually do need sleep!”

Lee Abbamonte is the youngest American to visit every country in the world. He is a travel writer who appears regularly on TV, web and the radio and can be followed on Twitter @leeabbamonte.

“However hard I try to stop it, I will always be one of life’s very grumpy victims of jetlag. Stop fighting it and just let it be.”

Kevin May is the Co-Founder and Editor in Chief of Tnooz, a global provider of news and analysis for the travel industry.

Looking down over Croatia. Photo: AliSmiles

Just go

“I’m going to return to my expat mode, and enjoy staying still for the first part of the year. Living in a foreign country offers a wonderful balance between discovering new customs and cultures, while still maintaining a sense of stability.”

David Lee is the Founder and Editor in Chief of GoBackpacking.com, an online guide to independent travel.

“Since it’s been a year and a half since I last left the United States, my travel resolution for the new year is to use my passport.”

Brendan Linard is an intern at djddz.com and for some reason an avid fan of the Golden State Warriors.

“Take my work to another city. I’d like to move to another city – whether it’s somewhere complementary to New York like (San Francisco), or a completely differently lifestyle (like Spain), and essentially keep doing the work I do. I just need a break from New York!”

Alisha Miranda is a Digital Content & PR Consultant based out of New York City. You can read her travel tips on Tumblr and follow her on Twitter @makeshiftalisha.

“Instagram is fun, but if I’m uploading photos of my cats, I’m not traveling. I need to be more familiar with ‘Valencia’ the city than the filter.”

Tom Meyers is the editor of djddz.com.

What did you learn?

Share your travel lessons from 2012 and resolutions for the new year in our comments section.

The post What We Learned About Traveling in 2012: Tips from writers around the Web appeared first on EuroCheapo's Budget Travel Blog.

If your answer is “well, I’m not sure just yet” and you’re wondering if a spontaneous getaway could still be in the cards, we’re right there with you. We’ve been madly searching through our 10 most popular cities on EuroCheapo to see if any still have reasonable rates and the results are fascinating.

But first, our methodology and a necessary disclaimer:

To trying to establish where the deals are, we used EuroCheapo’s hotel search engine to compare “normal” hotel rates for this time of year (i.e., winter), with hotel rates for one night in a double room on New Year’s Eve.

Specifically, we wanted to know whether room availability plummeted in each city on New Year’s Eve and by what amount, how much availability remained in our two main cheapo price categories (under $100 and $100 – $200), and whether the hotels that do have availability for New Year’s Eve are centrally located.

That said, in general we consider “cheap” rates to hover around $75 – $100 / night. But New Year’s Eve gets special treatment and expands our definition a bit and we’re considering centrally located hotels for less than $200 to warrant a look.

So where are the deals? Read on…

Amsterdam

Iconic New Year’s celebration: Getting, um, “festive” at Dam Square‘s beer tents. For a calmer scene to view the fireworks, pick a bridge over one of the city’s many canals.

Typical hotel availability: 324 hotels; 229 for under $100; 201 for $100 – $200
New Year’s Eve availability: 39 hotels (12% of normal availability); 0 for under $100; 8 for $100 – $200

Deal or no deal: No deal. With only 12% of the normal hotel inventory available on New Year’s, the hotel options are sparse and are primarily located far from the action.

Barcelona

Iconic New Year’s celebration: Stuffing grapes into your mouth on Las Ramblas as the clock strikes midnight.

Typical hotel availability: 561 hotels; 500 for under $100; 239 for $100 – $200
New Year’s Eve availability: 242 hotels available (43% of normal availability); 15 for under $100; 180 for $100 – $200

Deal or no deal: Deal. No stranger to offering travelers low rates all year long, Barcelona still has plenty of rooms for budget travelers on New Year’s Eve. We recommend the Hosteria Grau in El Raval, where rooms are $170.

Berlin

Iconic New Year’s celebration: Germany’s biggest party, between the Victory Column and Brandenburg Gate, attracts more than a million visitors. Yowza.

Typical hotel availability: 605 hotels; 509 for under $100; 237 for $100 – $200
New Year’s Eve availability: 40 hotels available (7% of normal availability); 0 for under $100; 13 for $100 – $200

Deal or no deal? This is a toss up. Everyone seems to want to be in Berlin for New Year’s Eve – and we don’t blame them! – but this really drives down hotel availability. However, of the limited number of hotels that are available for under $200, several of them are in Kreuzberg and other fun neighborhoods, which sounds like a great place to be. So, okay…DEAL!

Florence

Iconic New Year’s celebration: Line the banks of the Arno to take in the city’s fireworks display.

Typical hotel availability: 461 hotels; 327 under $100; 296 for $100 – $200
New Year’s Eve availability: 76 hotels available (16% of normal availability); 0 for under $100; 11 for $100 – $200

Deal or no deal: No deal, since nearly all available hotels are located outside the center of town. But again, one small exception: the Hotel Globus, which is one of our Florentine faves, is available for $234 on New Year’s Eve. Sure, that ain’t super cheapo, but it’s the best deal in the city on New Year’s Eve.

London

Iconic New Year’s celebration: Catch the royally impressive fireworks display at the London Eye on the South Bank.

Typical hotel availability: 714 hotels; 90 for under $100; 596 for $100 – $200
New Year’s Eve availability: 206 hotels available (29% of normal availability); 1 under $100; 28 for $100 – $200

Deal or no deal: No deal. Sure, there are a couple dozen hotels that can be snagged for under $200, but nearly all of them are located on the outskirts of the city. This would make getting around town after midnight a frustrating (and pricey) experience for even the most patient Cheapo.

Madrid

Iconic New Year’s celebration: Once again, stuffing your mouth with grapes (it’s just a thing in Spain).

Typical hotel availability: 451 hotels; 407 for under $100; 169 for $100 – $200
New Year’s Eve availability: 261 hotels available (58% of normal availability); 93 for under $100; 173 for $100 – $200

Deal or no deal? Deal, deal, DEAL! There are tons of fantastic budget gems available in Madrid on New Year’s Eve. Have a look at the Cason del Tormes in the The Puerta del Sol where rooms start at $120.

New York

Iconic New Year’s celebration: Ryan Seacrest. Times Square. Laughably humungous crowds.

Typical hotel availability: 232 hotels; 2 for under $100; 77 for $100 – $200
New Year’s Eve availability: 23 hotels available (10% of normal availability); 24 hotels available; 0 for under $100; 0 for $100 – $200

Deal or no deal: Seriously? Let’s put it this way: An 3-star hotel in the Lower East Side (that shall not be named) that is usually $88 / night is charging $348 / night. And that’s the best deal we can find.

Paris

Iconic New Year’s celebration: Watching fireworks sparkle around the Eiffel Tower.

Typical hotel availability: 1,035 hotels; 153 for under $100; 930 for $100 – $200
New Year’s Eve availability: 233 available (22.5% of normal availability); 0 for under $100; 16 for $100 – $200

Deal or no deal? Deal. Sure, the number of available hotels shrinks dramatically on New Year’s, but there are still more than a dozen to choose from in central Paris for less than $200.

Rome

Iconic New Year’s celebration: Huge crowds, live music, fireworks and parties throughout the city, centered in Piazza del Popolo and near the Colosseum on Via dei Fori Imperiali.

Typical hotel availability: 1,068 hotels; 709 for under $100; 566 for $100 – $200
New Year’s Eve availability: 484 hotels available (45% of normal availability); 9 for under $100; 203 for $100 – $200

Deal or no deal: Deal. Rome’s hotel inventory is much less jarringly affected by New Year’s Eve rate spikes, compared to many of our other popular cities. Want to be a stone’s throw from the Colosseum and be in the center of the action? Have a look at the Hotel Paba, which still has rates for $198 on New Year’s Eve.

Venice

Iconic New Year’s celebration: Music and fireworks in St. Mark’s Square, then join locals to watch the sunrise and take a dip at Lido Beach.

Typical hotel availability: 325 hotels; 259 for under $100; 164 for $100 – $200
New Year’s Eve availability: 42 hotels available (13% of normal availability); 0 for under $100; 2 for $100 – $200

Deal or no deal: No deal. But there’s a hitch: one of the two available hotels for less than $200 is the Locanda SS. Giovanni e Paolo (say that three times fast), which is one of our Editor’s Picks, housed in an 18th century palazzo and has rooms for $183 on New Year’s Eve.

Where will you be for New Year’s Eve, Cheapos?

Let us know your plans! Tell us where you’ll be and what you’re up to!

The post Deal or No Deal: Cities that still have hotel deals for New Year’s Eve appeared first on EuroCheapo's Budget Travel Blog.

New schedules from December 9

But they are not — at least in many cases. We are in the season when the standard three month advance booking horizon is often curtailed. That’s because many rail operators launch new schedules on December 9 and, until such time as those new timetables are finalized and opened for booking, trains beyond the changeover date remain veiled in secrecy. Imagine all those empty seats, entire empty trains, hidden away in the recesses of reservation systems, but not yet available to book.

When can I book?

Worry not! If you cannot book those Christmas and New Year trains, nobody else can either. It is just a question of patience, and before long all will be revealed. In fact this next week or two will see bookings open in some major markets.

France: For example, bookings for most French domestic services (for travel from December 9) will open next week. October 11 is the start date — bookings open in the early hours of the morning (European time).

Germany: Then just a few days later, Germany follows suit. Bookings for German domestic routes (as well as for many DB international daytime services and all City Night Line overnight trains to, from, or through Germany) will kick off on October 16, again in the wee small hours of the morning.

Spain, Italy, Switzerland and more: Expect bookings for other major European rail operators (such as RENFE, Trenitalia, ÖBB, SBB / CFF and PKP Inter City) to open sometime between mid-October and mid-November. Of course you can already book tickets and seats as normal for journeys up to and including December 8. It is merely those itineraries covered by the new schedules from December 9 that are not yet available for booking.

European Rail News last week published an overview of likely start dates for bookings for journeys on and after December 9.

Already available

There are always a handful of operators who beat the main pack away from the starting gate. Tickets are already on sale for the new timetable period for selected train companies (and that includes the full Christmas and the New Year period). Some services already available for booking include:

– All direct Eurostar services (viz. from London to Brussels, Paris and other destinations in France — including of course Eurostar’s popular ski trains)

– Eurostar tickets to “any Belgian station” (ie. routed via Brussels then onward with SNCB domestic services)

– All Thalys services (for example from Paris to Brussels, Amsterdam, Cologne and Essen)

– Domestic NSB services in Norway

– Domestic SJ services in Sweden

– International services on the route from Sweden to Narvik in northern Norway

– Direct ski trains operated under the Schnee Express or Alpen Expres brands from the Netherlands and northern Germany to Austria

– Daytime services operated by private operator HKX on the Cologne to Hamburg route

The post Christmas and New Year Train Trips: When to book your tickets appeared first on EuroCheapo's Budget Travel Blog.

This year, everyone here at EuroCheapo HQ has made a pact to aspire to both personal and office-wide resolutions. The former is listed below and at each individual Cheapo’s discretion, while the latter is also listed below and the result of both heated debate and thumb-wrestling.

Here we go, yo!

Office-wide Resolutions

1.) Only use WiFi at any hotel if it is free

2.) Spend as little as possible on airline baggage fees (and know what the fees are in advance, natch.)

3.) Be smarter about racking up points on credit and debit cards that can be used toward future travel.

4.) Take overnight trains more often.

5.) Remember how to properly use our iPhones abroad. And we reserve the right to just leave the things at home and get over our bad tech selves.

6.) Use public transportation to get in from the airport, no matter how tired we feel or if we overindulged on the free in-flight sauce.

Personal New Year’s Resolutions

Kari’s Resolutions

1.) Sip fruit soup in Budapest.

2.) Buy a welcome mat in Marrakesh.

3.) Find my grandmother’s roots on Mount Blanc.

4.) Step aboard a Viking ship in Bygdoy, Oslo.

5.) Listen to locals debate history along Serbian borders.

Pete’s Resolutions

1.) Take my 1-year-old daughter on an overseas trip and try to keep my flight anxiety to a minimum.

2.) Stay at least one night on a botel.

3.) I resolve to embrace the bidet.

4.) Karaoke at a youth hostel.

5.) Get involved in the paddle boarding conversation.

Suzanne’s Resolutions

1.) Read a book written or set in the destinations I visit.

2.) Attend a reenactment (and get someone to break character).

3.) Set up a travel fund.

4.) Take a class (cooking, dance, fill-in-the-blank…) in a place known for that specialty, even if for only a day.

5.) Give something back: volunteer for a day, bring supplies to a poor country, share conversation with locals…

Meredith’s Resolutions

1.) Keep a journal of my travels.

2.) Take the bus more.

3.) Go into a restaurant, forgo the menu and ask the chef to make me “whatever.”

4.) Find a baby-friendly budget hotel in Paris.

5.) Stop faking my knowledge of foreign languages.

What New Year’s travel resolutions do you have for 2011, Cheapos? Tell us in the comments below!

And to help make your resolutions a reality, consider some of these fab tips for Europe to get started.

The post The Cheapos’ 2011 New Year’s Travel Resolutions appeared first on EuroCheapo's Budget Travel Blog.

Kicking off the new year in the Orkney Islands

On New Year’s day, the Orkney town of Kirkwall hosts one of the most bizarre sporting events of the winter season. The “ba” is a strange version of rugby which attracts several hundred participants. The port town has two kinds of citizens: the “uppies,” born south of Kirkwall’s squat red cathedral, and the “doonies,” who hail from the nether regions north of the cathedral. The “ba” refers both to the game itself and to the leather ball cast into the crowd at the Mercat Cross in the center of town.

The aim of the game is simple: catch the “ba” and take it back to your part of town. What looks to the uninitiated like a mere scrum is, at its best, a game of clever tactics. False breaks deceive the opposition and locals tell us that for much of the game most of the crowd have no inkling where the ba actually is.

Collecting ice on Mount Etna

Now if that seems like an oddball way of spending New Year’s Day then why not follow the thousands of Sicilians who will mark the start of 2011 by driving on snowy roads up the side of Mount Etna. No one expects to get very far in wintry weather, but the summit is not the goal. Snow gathered from the slopes of Etna on New Year’s Day makes the finest granita. At least, that’s the view in Sicily where granita is the local take on sorbet: a delicate icy crush flavored with freshly squeezed fruit juice and honey.

The agenda for the day is simple. Leave early, pause in Zefferana for Mass or an espresso (or both) and then follow the winding road up the mountain, past shrines and old lava flows, to the snow line. Snow is packed into ice boxes and onto the roofs of cars – the latter a melting testament that for a few hours confirms that the driver has made the celebrated Etna run.

Eating cake in Greece

New Year’s Day is Greece is altogether simpler than in Orkney or Sicily. In Greece, the start of a new year is a time to eat cake. Not any cake, but Vasilópita, a specialty baked in honor of St Basil whose feast is celebrated in the Greek Orthodox tradition on January 1. According to Greek custom, families invoke a blessing on their houses by sharing Vasilópita.

This Greek house-blessing ritual anticipates a cultural antic that is a feature of Catholic regions of central Europe later in January. In areas from Alsace to Bohemia, from the Baltic to the Alps, house blessings are associated with the Feast of the Epiphany on January 6.

Blessing houses in central Europe

Greeks have it easy. Blessing your house just means eating cake. In central Europe, the whole affair is more complicated as singers progress from house to house, dressed as the biblical three kings who are said to have followed a star to Bethlehem. Households that oblige with an offering for charitable causes are blessed and an inscription is made in chalk over the lintel. Next week’s mark will read:

20 C+M+B 11

The mark thus includes the year and the initials of the three kings: Caspar, Melchior and Balthasar. The same three letters also recall the Catholic blessing “Christus mansionem benedicat” (viz. “May Christ bless this house”).

To all travelers a good start into the new year!

The post Europe-wide rituals to celebrate the New Year appeared first on EuroCheapo's Budget Travel Blog.

For those of you with plans to ring in the New Year in Rome, the problem is not finding something to do. Rather, the real dilemma lies in narrowing down your celebratory options. Fortunately for Cheapos, Capodanno (New Year’s Eve) is one time when the city’s squares come alive with free events.

My favorite free New Year’s events include:

Free Concert at the Fori Imperiali (Imperial Forum)
New Year’s Eve
10 p.m.

New Year’s just wouldn’t be the same without its traditional Capodanno concert in Rome. Sponsored by the city, the free concert at the Imperial Forum typically has a big Italian name headlining the show.

For this year’s event, famous Roman singer Claudio Baglioni will put on a concert starting at 10 p.m. that will last about three hours. Just before midnight, the concert will be interrupted in order to do the traditional New Year’s countdown, followed by a magnificent fireworks display. The concert will take place along Via dei Fori Imperiali near Piazza Venezia. Large TV screens will be strategically positioned around the area to enable the tens of thousands of attendees to enjoy the concert.

The New Year’s Eve concert is an event definitely not to be missed. Plan to arrive early to find a good spot.

Free Classical Concert at Piazza Del Quirinale
New Year’s Eve
11 p.m.

Just off of Via Nazionale in the Piazza del Quirninale, a classical music concert is held on New Year’s Eve. The classical concert, usually attended by the Italian President (currently Giorgio Napolitano), takes place around 11 p.m. and is followed by fireworks.

Free Concert and Nativity Scenes Exhibit in Piazza del Popolo
New Year’s Eve
10 p.m.

The grandiose Piazza del Popolo will also put on a New Year’s Eve concert of its own with a mix of Italian music, street performers and fireworks. The festivities begin here roughly around 10 p.m.

Need a break from all of that rocking out? Head over to the Santa Maria del Popolo church, where just next to it is a giant exhibit of nativity scenes from nearly 100 Italian regions.

Metro Hours Extended on New Year’s Eve

Worried about how to get home after a long night taking in the capital’s festivities? Happily, the city has decided to extend the Metro’s hours of operation in order to ensure that people can make it home safely without having to resort to driving.

New Year’s Day Parade – St. Peter’s Square
New Year’s Day
From 10 a.m.

If you wake up with energy on January 1, you should consider attending the city of Rome’s fantastic New Year’s Day parade. The event kicks off at 10 a.m. at St. Peter’s Square, with the Pope’s New Year’s Day blessing. It then heads down Via della Concilliazione before winding up near the Castel Sant’Angelo. Tens of thousands of people congregate to witness the parade, with its military, civil and school marching bands and pageantry.

For Kids: Piazza del Popolo
New Year’s Day
10 a.m.-6 p.m.

While the big kids enjoyed the New Year’s Eve festivities, the little kids have lots more to look forward to on New Year’s Day. The city turns Piazza del Popolo into one big playground. The performances and activities include acrobats, clowns, street performers, musicians and face painters.

The post Rome: 5 free ways to celebrate New Year’s Eve appeared first on EuroCheapo's Budget Travel Blog.

The country was granted permission by the European Union to make the switch during the summer of 2008, when the exchange rate was pinned at 30.126 koruny to the euro. The currency, however, didn’t switch until January 1, 2009.

In the months leading up to its circulation, Slovakia hosted Euro-themed events to raise awareness and entertain, and also pay tribute to the exiting currency. (Among these, chocolate euro coins were thrown to children, and a theater troupe staged a play about the demise of the koruna.  Sad clowns.)

What it means

The introduction of the euro in Slovakia could mean that Cheapos heading to Bratislava or other Slovak cities will notice restaurant prices and hotel rates listed in both currencies (euros and Slovak koruny), a trend that will last until January of 2010.

Others may notice that prices have jumped a bit. According to a piece in Slovak Today, consumer prices increased 0.5% in the 10 days following the changeover.

In case you’ve got a koruna or two hanging around the house, banks in Slovakia will still exchange banknotes through the end of 2009 and coins through June 2009 (although they may charge you for it!).

Need help with your own euro conversion? Check out xe.com to see today’s euro exchange rate.

The post Goodbye Koruna: Slovakia joins the euro club appeared first on EuroCheapo's Budget Travel Blog.

And while we have a number of the ol’ standbys on our list (did somebody say “less caffeine, more jogging, and only red wine instead of Weihenstephans?”), we’ve also put together some travel resolutions. Drum roll, please:

Ten resolutions for budget-friendly traveling in 2009

1. I resolve to travel more.

2. I resolve to understand my bank’s ATM and credit card fees before I go. And while I’m at it, I might even call my bank ahead of time to let them know it’s me who’s traveling, rather than my stolen identity.

3. I resolve to purchase my intra-European flights on low-cost carriers as early as possible to get wild and crazy deals.

4. I resolve to stop obsessing over the daily fluctuations of exchange rates.

5 a. I resolve to understand how much I’ll get charged before using my Blackberry abroad.

5 b. I resolve to just leave my Blackberry off while I travel.

6. I resolve to rely on my memory as much as my camera.

7. I resolve to break out of my own travel mode and welcome new destinations. (Extra credit points go to fellow Cheapo-in-Chief Tom Meyers, who blasts off for St. Petersberg, Russia, in 2 weeks…)

8. I resolve to be better about frequent flyer points and awards programs, regardless if I plan to travel a long or short distance.

9. I resolve to never take a taxi to or from an airport, no matter how tired I feel.

10. I resolve to always be in the process of planning my next trip, even if it means just reading up on the destination or looking at photos.

What are your New Year’s travel resolutions? Please add them in the comment field below!

The post 10 Budget Travel Resolutions For 2009 appeared first on EuroCheapo's Budget Travel Blog.

And what a year it has been, Cheapos! We’ve published over 300 blog posts since January, upon which you’ve provided nearly 400 comments, all of which has helped make our blog (hopefully) a useful and friendly budget travel resource for Cheapos worldwide.

But we can’t officially say goodbye to 2008 without doing an obligatory end of year wrap up of a few of our favorite posts. So join us as we tap into our inner Ryan Seacrest and present to you some of our “2008 Blog Greatest Hits!”

1. Most Popular Post:
Perhaps we shouldn’t be hugely surprised, but our most popular post in 2008 was “Top tips for a budget-friendly European vacation.” Written back in early spring, the tips are still just as relevant today – have a look.

2. Most Commented Post:
We always enjoy reading comments from our readers, but the post that generated the greatest amount of chatter was “Where to watch U.S. election results in Europe,” which had 38 comments. When we first wrote the post we included venues at 6 different cities, but with all the comments and feedback we received from you it expanded to recommendations in 17 cities across Europe (and a few outside Europe, too.)

3. Most Frequently Commenting Cheapos:
Two Cheapos, in particular, consistently submitted helpful tips and feedback to our blog posts this year and deserve special mention. They are “poetloverrebelspy” from the Less Than A Shoestring budget travel blog, and Marilyn Terrell from the National Geographic “Intelligent Travel” blog. Thanks to both of you for all of your comments in 2008 and please keep them coming in ’09!

4. Most Constructive Budget Travel Debate Within Blog Comments:
Just the word “Ryanair” elicits all sorts of emotions within budget travelers everywhere. However, we particularly enjoyed seeing the helpful banter back and forth among several Cheapos in the comments section of our post “NYC to London for $13? Ryanair prepares for U.S. takeoff.” Any post that produces side wagers within our comments gets our vote!

5. Best Travel Photo Caption Contest:
We were delighted to read through the various entries to our “Barcelona Dog” caption contest this past May. Some of which, admittedly, even we didn’t entirely understand…

6. Best use of subtle Photoshopping within blog photos:
Our office was in full-blown wacky Halloween mode this past October 31st, which culminated with our “EuroCheapo’s Spookiest Hotel Ghost Photos” post. Ok, spoiler alert: we used a little bit of Photoshop wizardry to enhance a couple of the photos, but have a look and see if you can tell which ones.

And lastly, we’d like to say a very special thank you to Darren over at the Travel Rants blog in the UK, who hosted a consumer blog award contest that resulted in EuroCheapo being named “Best Corporate Blog.” We appreciated even being included within Darren’s nominations and we look forward to even more blogging, helpful reader comments, and Photoshop creativity that’s to come in 2009!

Happy (almost) New Year, Cheapos!

The post EuroCheapo’s 2008 Blog Greatest Hits appeared first on EuroCheapo's Budget Travel Blog.