However, costly mistakes lurk around every (picture-perfect) corner. If you hit a snag that sets you back €20, €40, or even €60, well, it still stings.

Related:

• Top budget hotels in Paris
• Best time to visit Paris
• 50 do’s & don’ts in Paris

10 Paris mistakes to avoid on your trip

Here are a few tips for avoiding everyday costly mistakes when visiting Paris, many of which could be applied to visiting other cities in Europe, as well.

1. Buying a bottle of anything at dinner

When dining out in Paris, go for a carafe of wine (cheaper) and water (always free). There’s no need to plunk down €60 for a bottle of wine for a normal dinner, trust me — a €12 carafe will be perfectly fine for the casual wine drinker. Remember, this is France — the wine is good.

And tap water, I insist, is perfectly fine to drink, so don’t splash out on costly Evian (especially when it only costs a euro at the supermarket).

Related: Why you should never buy water in Paris

2. Paying for the hotel’s lackluster breakfast

Why spend €10-€15 for some coffee and croissants? Even with those cute little jars of marmalade, it’s a still a rip. Head to a café or just pick up some pastries at the local bakery and save a significant amount of money each day. The same bakeries are delivering the baguettes and croissants to your hotel — so save by going straight to the source. You might as well get them fresh from the oven!

Most bakeries have a spot where you can stand, mingle with the locals, and enjoy your breakfast. If they don’t, either keep looking around for one that does, eat it outside on a park bench, or head into a cafe where you can order the same thing at the counter.

Plus, you get to practice your French: “Bonjour, un cafe et un croissant, s’il vous plait.”

3. Waiting until the last minute to book

Whether it’s airfare, your hotel, or a TGV train ticket, it’s best to book early. TGV trains, in particular, are much cheaper when they first go on sale three months before the date of departure. Eurostar tickets to London are also cheapest when they go on sale six months in advance.

When should you book that hotel? It’s an oft-discussed topic (and we address it in detail here), and a lot depends on where you’re going and when you’re visiting. If you’re heading to a less visited destination or traveling during a slower period, you could wait and probably score last-minute deals. However, if you’re traveling to Paris during the peak summer or early fall travel season, your best bet is to book in advance (especially if you hope to book a specific hotel). Many of Paris’ best budget-friendly hotels are small properties that are quite popular — and they fill up fast.

Related: 10 best budget hotels in Paris (book early!)

4. Spending silly amounts for a cup of coffee

If you go to the terrace of a really, really nice café like the Café de la Paix (pictured above, facing the Opera Garnier), prepare for a hefty bill. The view might be great, but it’ll cost you — €6 for a cup of coffee, for example, at the Café de la Paix. Those €6 coffees can add up fast!

Instead, consider going around the corner to a smaller, more out of the way café where they’ll charge you €2-3 to sit outside and people watch (or €1 to sip at the counter).

5. Handing over money to anyone on the street

Don’t hand over cash to anyone unless they’re your waiter, taxi driver, tour guide, or selling you something. Anyone who stops you in the street and asks for money is a panhandler or scam artist. Sure, they might sport an official-looking badge or ask you to sign a petition — but they are not working for a charity. They come in all forms — some seem legit, others clearly do not — but handing over cash is a sure-fire way to throw money down the drain.

Oh, and the guys you’ll see playing three-card monte? Or trying the ring trick? No, no — you know it’s a scam, right? Keep on walking.

6. Tipping too much

And in that same vein, don’t tip 15-20%. Please don’t. Servers are paid a respectable salary in France and do not live off of their tips. You’re cheating yourself out of money by giving someone a bonus. That’s not your responsibility. Though a few euros for good service is certainly always appreciated, you don’t need to break out the calculator.

Related: When (and when not) to tip in Paris

7. Changing money at an exchange counter

Don’t ever expect to get a good deal at currency change counters. Almost all will be profiting handsomely off of the transaction by either offering a lousy exchange rate, a hefty service charge, or both. “No service charge!” the sign screams — okay, check out the exchange rate. “Best exchange rate, guaranteed!” its competitor beckons — check out the service charge.

You are better off just hitting the ATM and paying a few dollars in fees to the banks instead of losing out big to the money changers.

8. Ordering fancy drinks without looking at the price

Going out at night can add up quickly if you don’t follow the happy hours (here are my favorite cheapo happy hours). A pint of beer or, especially, a fancy cocktail can set you back €9, €12, even €15 in some places.

If you want a good drink and are willing to spend for it, do some research first on websites like 52 Martinis to make sure you’re going to a place where they know how to make good cocktails!

9. Packing poorly

If I had a dollar for each tourist I’ve known who’s arrived with the wrong clothes or shoes, I’d be on vacation right now. Pack wisely and be prepared for the weather (and yes, it’s okay to pack an umbrella) so that you needn’t spend extra money — and time — buying clothes at Monoprix when you already have the same things back home.

Related: 10 Packing tips for a two-week European jaunt

10. Using your smartphone data

When you turn on your cell phone from back home in Europe, prepare for charges. We have plenty of tips on how to avoid a huge phone bill. In short, get a data plan if you plan to use it abroad and stick to Wi-Fi when possible, or buy a SIM card in Europe to use in your phone including one of these SIM Card deals in France.

Fortunately, Paris has abundant free Wi-Fi networks available to anyone to use. So, turn off your data and settle down in a park or other public space, and look for the “Paris_WI-FI_” network. Now hop on Skype, Facebook or Instagram for free! (Or you could work. But who wants to work? You’re in Paris!)

Share your tips!

What mistakes have you made in Paris that you wish you could go back in time to do over? Let us know so we can help Cheapos have a better (and more affordable) Paris vacation.

The post Paris: 10 costly mistakes that tourists make appeared first on EuroCheapo's Budget Travel Blog.

We’re not talking about having to hang out with your laptop in the lounge downstairs because the Wi-Fi doesn’t reach your room. And it can’t be blamed on a frozen modem or a confused router.

The hotel, it turns out, doesn’t have an internet connection, Wi-Fi or otherwise.

You experience (pick one): Panic? Confusion? Relief?

It’s incredible how something that was presented just a few years ago as a new amenity is now considered almost a right. (In fact, an Estonian tourism official recently told me that in her country free Wi-Fi is, in fact, considered a “human right.”)

Rewind a decade or so, and hotels were eagerly embracing the new Wi-Fi technology, especially as it represented a new revenue stream. Some charged by the hour, others by the day. But almost everyone charged. In the years since, as the cost of offering Wi-Fi has dropped and online hotel bookings have become more competitive, hotels have found that they could also win over travelers by offering the service for free.

Not every hotel, of course, offers it for free. I’ve written before about the tendency for upscale chain hotels to charge for Wi-Fi, even as smaller budget hotels give it away for free. Many of the most popular hotels in our Paris guide, for example, offer free Wi-Fi, including the Tiquetonne, the Esmeralda (really only works in the lobby), Hotel Jeanne d’Arc and even the super-duper cheapo, the Hotel Rivoli.

But there are still a very few hotels that don’t offer it at all.

A few days ago I was updating our review of the Hotel Henri IV, a super cheapo sleep located on the Place Dauphine at the tip of the Ile de la Cité in Paris. (Given its extraordinary location, doubles going for €60 are indeed considered “super cheapo.”)

When I visited the hotel last month, the friendly receptionist reminded me that the rooms are rather basic, and don’t have TVs. Fine. (This isn’t actually that unusual for small hotels and pensions, as one room’s blaring TV can echo down the hallway, disrupting the mood.)

But then he came to the clincher: “And we don’t have Wi-Fi.”

Ah, right. I scribbled down the note and didn’t think much more about it until I updated the review and made a point of calling this out. But it didn’t have Wi-Fi last year either, and I hadn’t felt necessarily compelled to point it out then. Are we, in fact, now seeing Wi-Fi as a right? Is that fair, or even a good thing?

I took to Twitter, mentioning that, after all these years I’m still impressed by the hotel’s low rates:

Adding new pix to Paris’ Hotel Henri IV review (doubles from €60). Still shocked by the Place Dauphine location – http://t.co/5yTjdvVHYa

— Tom and Pete Meyers (@eurocheapo) October 4, 2013

Minutes later, a follower responded:

@eurocheapo no wifi at a hotel, no thanks

— Isa (@JySbr) October 4, 2013

Right.

I certainly understand why we think it indispensable. We rely upon Wi-Fi to check email, find restaurants, search maps and fire up Skype to call loved ones. Not to mention keep up with work.

So what about the incredibly shrinking list of hotels that not only don’t offer it for free, but actually don’t offer it all?

It sounds almost like, well, a vacation.

What do you think?

Do you think that Wi-Fi should be offered by all hotels? Would you stay at a hotel without a connection? Do you think this entire conversation is foolish and that everyone needs to unwire themselves and get a life? Leave a comment below!

The post No Hotel Wi-Fi? Seriously? appeared first on EuroCheapo's Budget Travel Blog.

Apparently Groucho was alluding to the lack of some “unclassified” amenity in that film scene. But all jokes aside, travelers often give an exaggerated sense of importance to certain amenities in the hotels they patronize—even if those amenities were not promised in the first place.

Amenities depend on context. In some remote properties in exotic or undeveloped areas, a mosquito-free or even a rat-free environment could be regarded as a desirable amenity. However, in major cities these and other conveniences are taken for granted and regarded as givens, even by undemanding travelers.

Budget-savvy travelers, often well acquainted with the written and unwritten rules of international hospitality, seldom make complaints about the non-presence of amenities, knowing that each additional (non-essential) service renders the property less and less affordable. This is not true, however, for a growing group of more naïve travelers that expects hotel services that are not necessarily essential. According to the accumulating experience of hotel proprietors and staff, these latter travelers’ demands often border on unreasonable.

Many small cheap hotels in Paris, for example, have very basic amenities (if any), and this contributes to their simplicity and affordability. Which amenities are indispensable to me? Provided the basic hotel qualities are met (cleanliness, hygiene, honesty, safety, a civilized environment, reasonable infrastructure, a comfortable bed, etc.), I can do perfectly well without the rest.

The major amenities

Here are many of the major amenities you’ll find listed for most hotels. What do I, as an ultra-cheapo, think of them? Let’s investigate!

Non-smoking premises

No longer an amenity. Looking for—and demanding—a smoke-free environment is no longer a personal preference but a vital health imperative—an individual and social obligation. Nowadays, almost all Parisian hotels are smoke-free, though some of them are known to not fully enforce the regulation, as hinted by the pervasive stench some guests have noticed. Still, some properties keep a few rooms for inveterate smokers (such as the Hotel des Boulevards, nonetheless a Cheapo favorite).

Wi-Fi

The great majority of quality budget hotels in Paris offer free Wi-Fi, in contrast to their luxury counterparts, which usually charge a considerable rate for it. To me, Wi-Fi is one of the most significant amenities—if not the most significant—that a hotel can offer. However, with the numerous Wi-Fi hotspots that Paris offers at the moment, if your hotel doesn’t have it, pas grave! (See the related article on where to find free Wi-Fi in Paris.)

Concierge desk

I find the concierge to be a costly and fully dispensable amenity. In more expensive hotels, the concierge is usually in charge of special services for guests, such as arranging tours or tickets. Undoubtedly, a budget-conscious and knowledgeable traveler in the EuroCheapo vein knows well how to deal with his/her touristic duties. Being street-smart and self-reliant saves you euros! Having said that, a few quality cheap hotels (incredibly enough) do offer concierge services in Paris.

Multilingual staff

A simple French phrasebook or, even better, a functional understanding of the local language may help the frugal traveler deal with everyday hospitality-related interactions. Keeping a multilingual staff is usually costly for a hotel and even more so for a budget sleep; this “amenity” tends to be disproportionately reflected in the final bill. However, as I have remarked before, many of our favorite Cheapo-friendly properties have managed to assemble a multilingual (and very friendly) staff without imposing undue charges on the prudent traveler. Kudos for Le Laumière, de l’Espérance, Paris Villette, Champerret Heliopolis, Perdrix Rouge, Marignan and many others.

TV

Unless you’re a hardcore Tour de France fan and travel to Paris for the exclusive purpose of watching the TV transmission of the famed race, going to one of the most alluring cities in the world and wishing to spend time in front of a TV is something of an incongruity. Still, a substantial proportion of guests at Parisian hotels complain bitterly that there are only French language shows (!).  I personally couldn’t care less for  a TV set in my hotel. And, each year, I am able to follow the whole Tour from the faraway comfort of my own home.

Air conditioning/Ceiling fan

I’ve never been to Paris during the hottest peaks of summer, so the lack of air conditioning in my hotels has never bothered me. The common ceiling fan (or portable fan borrowed from the front desk) usually suffices in case of moderate heat. However, I reckon that trying to sleep in the July-August sweltering heat is an ordeal most travelers from temperate countries are not willing to endure.

Some notable extras

Minibar

Some consider it the quintessential tourist trap. This small snack and beverage bar offers its inventory at generally very high prices (when compared to the equivalent items purchased in grocery stores). A certain type of hotel guest is easily tempted with the minibar. Our EuroCheapo-friendly properties generally have no need to offer one.

Complimentary toiletries

Fully dispensable. I always take mine everywhere I go. Fine as token lightweight souvenirs for the children back home, but not as an additional and unnecessary item on your bill.

Iron/ironing board

Most of my acquaintances have told me they prefer to take their laundry loads to a laverie once during their stay, and so do I. If I tried to iron my clothes with a hot iron, my life insurance premiums would rise by several orders of magnitude, so in this entry I save by not using an iron.

Room service

Ninety percent of responders to a recent survey stated that they didn’t care for this feature when booking a hotel. I’m glad to be counted as part of the majority on this item.

Safe/minisafe

A sensible device. I’ve never needed one but many do, and I should consider using it.

Direct-dial phone

I seldom use direct phones in hotels and my impression is that they are becoming less and less indispensable.

Porter/bellhop

No thanks! I can manage…

Hair dryer

A useful device for some. I’ve never  actually needed one, except in one lone occasion in an emergency situation.

Bathrobes/slippers

Very stylish, but no thanks! Another pointless sort of “gift”, which will be eventually reflected in your bill.

Coffee/tea

Maybe… but I will pass and get my coffee from a café!

Your indispensable amenities?

What hotel amenities could you not live without? Leave a comment below.

The post Which hotel amenities do you really need? appeared first on EuroCheapo's Budget Travel Blog.

While Parisians may pity their British neighbors having to pay for a toilet trip (why do you think Brits term it “spending a penny”?), or for bread at meals, Londoners rightly still feel smug about the host of freebies their city has to offer.

Here are my seven favorite things that will never cost you a penny:

1. Culture

This is the big one for anyone who has baulked at the entrance fee to the Louvre or the Prado: national museums in the UK are all free. That means there’s nothing to pay for getting into some of London’s – and the world’s – best museums, including Tate, British Museum, V&A, National Gallery, Science Museum and so on. (Here’s a list of free museums in London.)

There’s plenty of culture available for free outside of the museum world as well. Cinephiles, for example, can book a session at the Mediatheque at the British Film Institute (BFI) on the South Bank, where thousands of films can be watched at no cost to the viewer, or music lovers can take in one of the free classical concerts at St-Martin-in-the-Fields.

2. Wi-Fi

Another good thing about these free cultural institutions? Many (although, annoyingly, not all) offer free Wi-Fi. The South Bank is a particularly good bet because, alongside stunning views over the river, there’s free Wi-Fi available at most of its major attractions including the Southbank Centre, the National Theatre, the BFI and Tate Modern.

Couple that with the huge number of chains offering free Wi-Fi, such as cheap pub chain, Wetherspoons, popular lunchtime sandwich spot, Pret a Manger, or – as in Paris – McDonald’s, and you should always be able to avoid paying for Wi-Fi in the city.

3. Tap water

Paris, London has got your back on water, too. It’s a legal requirement for British pubs and licensed clubs to make tap water available for free. If you ask politely, you’ll normally also get it without a charge in the vast majority of restaurants.

However, the best free drink in London has to be the green tea available at favorite cheapo noodle chain Wagamama (who kindly also offer free Wi-Fi).

Bank of America client? Use Barclays ATM machines for free! Photo: Garryknight

4. ATM withdrawals (for Bank of America clients)

The Global ATM Alliance applies in the UK as well. To make cash withdrawals from ATMs without incurring a charge, Bank of America customers should seek out Barclays Bank cash machines (Their logo is an easy-to-spot blue eagle). You’ll need the four-digit pin for your card to get cash out. (Read our guide to ATM bank fees for Americans abroad.)

5. Tax

Well, kind of. Visitors from outside the European Union can claim back the Value Added Tax (VAT) on goods they have purchased. You’ll need to be leaving the EU in less than three months after making your purchase and – perhaps the biggest catch – you need to have bought it in a store signed up to the VAT Retail Export Scheme to obtain the correct customs forms (look out for the “Tax Free Shopping” signs).

There are various exceptions and complications to work through but, with VAT charged at up to 20% of cost of goods, it’s well worth the hassle if you are making substantial purchases. Check out the UK Revenues and Customs website for full details of how to claim.

6. Exercise

Given the city’s reputation both for inclement weather and an over-fondness for pints, London’s excellent free fitness events may come as a bit of a surprise. We’ve mentioned the weekly free Park Run before, which takes place at parks all over the capital each Saturday morning.

The London Cycling Campaign lists equivalent events for cyclists, or you could – literally – get your skates on to take part in the Friday Night Skate, a marshaled street skate which sets off from Hyde Park Corner each week.

Finally, for something really different, get a workout in exchange for helping with outdoor conservation projects at one of London’s 15 free Green Gyms.

7. Reading material

The Tube groans under the weight of reading matter that’s given out for free in London each day. Weekday travelers get offered Metro in the morning and the Evening Standard in the evening, both great sources of listings and, especially in the latter, reliable reviews.

A recent addition to the selection of freebie reads is Time Out which, since last year, has been given away every Tuesday and is an invaluable way to find out what’s going on and where.

Stylist, pitched at professional women, comes out on Wednesdays, while its male equivalent, Shortlist, is given away every Thursday. Both are more engaging reads than many charging magazines. Finally, the world of sport gets its own dedicated magazine on Fridays.

These publications almost (but not quite) make the astronomical cost of travel in London worthwhile.

Your favorite freebies?

Did we miss anything? Tell us about your favorite London freebie in the comments below!

The post London Free Things: 7 things that won’t cost you a penny appeared first on EuroCheapo's Budget Travel Blog.

Road-trip? You’ll pay loads in tolls in Catalonia. Bread and olives with dinner? That’s another €2 per person.  Free tapa with a drink (like they do in Granada or Oviedo, or in many other areas of the country)? Yeah right! Don’t make me laugh…

While it seems that nothing is free anymore in Barcelona, here are a few things that they haven’t figured out how to charge people for yet.

1. Wi-Fi

Free Wi-Fi is available all over the city thanks to the city government. From Ciutadella Park to the beaches of Barceloneta you can sign on and check your Facebook updates. Of course, you can also find Wi-Fi at one of the city’s many libraries. For more, read our previous post on free Wi-Fi in Barcelona.

Party for free during La Mercè festival. Photo: Hector Milla

2. Parties

This is a good one. Parties in Barcelona are elaborate, days-long, and for the most part free or very inexpensive. When I say “party,” I mean citywide parties or festivals such as La Mercè and Festes de Gràcia. These free parties take over whole barris, or in the case of La Mercè the whole city, and offer concerts, dances, decorations, activities for the kids, fireworks, fire running, and inexpensive communal dinners.

Drinks are also sold at low prices in the streets during these celebratory times. Mostly these bashes happen in the summer and early fall. Almost every barri in Barcelona has its own bash. La Mercè, which is the largest and brings in the big dogs in music, is held every September 23rd with many concerts and events leading up to it the week prior.

3. Maps

Yes maps, and info in general on the city, can be found in abundance in any of the Tourist Information Offices at no cost.  There’s a big one on Pl. Catalunya and another one on the corner of Pssg. de Gracia in Palau Robert. Which brings me to number 4…

4. Museums

Lots of museums in the city are free. Palau Robert is one, though I’ll warn you that many of its exhibitions are in Catalan. Most museums also have a free day. The MNAC for example is free the first Sunday of each month, plus free on International Museum Day, which is May 18th.

(Update: The Caixa Forum, one of my favorite museums, was free until 2013. Sadly, they’re charging now.)

5. Sunshine

As of right now sunshine, as much as you can take, is free. “Big whoop,” I hear you saying, “I can get that anywhere!” No sir, you can’t. I know this for a fact because I come from Portland, Oregon, where the Sun God makes very few appearances.

One of the aspects of Barcelona I enjoy most is all the sunny days, winter and summer alike. Go down to Barceloneta and sit on the beach in the sun in May. Have a coffee in October on a plaza in the sun. Do cartwheels at Ciutadella Park in February in the sun. It’s free, it’s uplifting, and it’s one of the reasons many foreigners from cloudy, chilly places relocate here.

Your favorite freebies?

What do you like doing in Barcelona for free? Tell us about it in the comments section below.

The post Barcelona: 5 things that are always free appeared first on EuroCheapo's Budget Travel Blog.

But never fear, the Cheapos are here, with a list of several spots where you can always find free Wi-Fi in New York City:

Laptops and lattes at a Starbucks in Soho. Photo: Lee Gillen

Starbucks

The unofficial “office” of many a New York-based freelancer, the coffeehouse giant makes up for outrageous drink prices with free Wi-Fi in each of its locations. Lucky for you, there are more Starbucks on the island of Manhattan than you can shake a (peppermint) stick (latte) at. Check their Web site to find the nearest location.

The Union Square East Starbucks (14th Street and Park Ave South) offers plenty of seating and a great view of the hustle and bustle along 14th Street. We also suggest the Starbucks on 63rd Street and Broadway, a place that sees its fair share of laptops given its proximity to the Fordham University and Juilliard School.

New York City parks

New York, the “concrete jungle,” is also home to tons of green space. Beginning this year, AT&T allows you to take your laptop to one of these verdant pastures to do some work or Facebooking, free of charge:

Manhattan:

• Battery Park (Battery Place and State Street)
• Central Park – Mineral Springs
• Central Park – Rumsey Playfield
• Central Park – Tavern on the Green
• Marcus Garvey Park (East 120th Street and Madison Avenue)
• Thomas Jefferson Park (FDR Dr., bet. E. 111 St. and E. 114 St.)
• Tompkins Square Park (Avenue A and East 7th Street)

Brooklyn:

• Brooklyn Bridge Park – Pier 1
• Brooklyn Bridge Park – Pier 6
• Herbert Von King Park
• McCarren Park Field House
• Prospect Park Picnic House

Bronx:

• Devoe Park in the Bronx
• Joyce Kilmer Park

Queens:

• Astoria Park

Staten Island:

• Clove Lakes Park

Once you find the network “attwifi” in these locations, you’re ready to go. No need to sign up for anything or enter any password.

And if these locations aren’t convenient, stick around; within five years, 20 parks across the five boroughs will offer free Wi-Fi. Check nycparkgov.org for updated locations.

New York Public Library at Bryant Park

Fifth Avenue at 42nd Street, nypl.org

The main branch of the New York Public Library, the Stephen A. Schwarzman Building is worth a visit for the architecture alone. Built in the Beaux-Arts style in 1911, the library’s main entrance, flanked by two lion sculptures, is iconic and has been featured in films since the 1930s.

All visitors (even those without library cards) are welcome in the library and those with laptops can set up shop in the magnificent Bill Blass Reading Room, which should certainly inspire some great emails… Simply find the network and get to work in no time.

For hours, times, and other Wi-Fi enabled libraries in New York, consult the library’s Web site.

McDonald’s

McDonald’s is no longer just a place for a post-club snack. Believe it or not, the mega-chain is adding free Internet access to its menu (and yes, you can still get fries with that).

Check the restaurant’s Web site for Wi-Fi enabled locations, but we recommend the McDonald’s near Columbus Circle on 57th Street and Eighth Avenue, as it’s one of the nicest locations in the city. The location on Sixth Avenue between 14th and 15th Street also offers plenty of seating and outlets for laptops.

Also in our guide: Planning a trip to New York City? Check out our reviews of the best cheap hotels in New York, all visited, inspected and photographed by our editors. (Some of them even have free Wi-Fi!) Read more in our New York City guide.

The post Free Wi-Fi in New York: Where to go online for free appeared first on EuroCheapo's Budget Travel Blog.

Just ask and you shall (hopefully) receive:

1. Water at meals

All meals, from the ritziest restaurant to the lowliest donor kebab, should come with a free pitcher of tap water. Even an espresso comes with a glass of room temperature hydration.

If you don’t have a pitcher when your food comes, simply ask for “une carafe d’eau, s’il vous plait,” and don’t hesitate to ask for refills.

2. Bread at meals

Bread is also a staple at the table, so don’t hesitate to ask for it. In typical restaurants, mustard, salt, pepper and bread will be put on the table before you receive your meal. Of course there are many exceptions, but if you’re having a sit-down meal, asking for bread (“le pain, s’il vous plait”) will surprise no one. This is the birthplace of the baguette, after all.

3. Maps

Tourists hitting the streets of Paris with their guidebook maps are often disappointed by the missing streets and tiny Metro maps printed inside the cover of their books. Fortunately cartography is a big business in Paris. Metro maps, in both large and small formats, can be obtained for free at most Metro stations. (Simply ask for “un plan de Metro, s’il vous plait.”)

And the Galeries Lafayettes, one of Paris’ famed department stores, prints free city maps (“plan de Paris”) that can be found in the reception areas of most of Paris’ hotels and hostels, along with other major tourist sights.

4. Samples

This one’s delicate. Free samples are abundant in Paris – if you know when to ask. Many chocolate shops will offer a taste if you linger long enough, but play your cards right. If the shopkeeper can tell you’re going to buy something, he or she will have fewer qualms about offering up a sample to help you decide. And sometimes not.

When you stroll through outdoor markets, merchants are all too eager to have you taste their pineapples and mangos, so just say “Merci!” and taste away. Cheese shops will also be fairly willing to cut you a sliver if you ask to taste the difference between two choices, if you’re clearly going to purchase some fromage.

5. Toilets

While there are many free public bathrooms that look like small space pods located throughout the city, bathrooms are also available with any purchase at a café. If you purchase a café or a Perrier at the café bar (remember, it’s cheaper at the bar than at a table), you can ask for the bathroom without worries.

Note: If the bathroom door looks like it is coin-operated, simply ask for the “jeton” (token) from the server and he or she will hand you a silver coin that will open the door.

6. ATM withdrawals (for Bank of America clients)

Free money? Well, almost. If you want to avoid paying pesky bank fees, you can withdraw without charge from the BNP Paribas bank if you have a Bank of America account. If this applies to you, you will curtail any travelers’ checks or foreign exchange fees that have troubled travelers for so many years. (Read our guide to ATM bank fees for Americans abroad.)

7.  Wi-Fi

I’ve said it once and I’ve said it again: paying for the internet in Paris is a scam. With Paris’ public Wi-Fi program, and the various wireless networks available in cafés and McDonald’s, there is no reason to drop a dime to check your email.

For more information, read my previous post on where to find free Wi-Fi in Paris. Trust me, it still works as long as you have a smart phone or laptop.

Your favorite free things in Paris?

What other freebies have you found in the City of Light? Tell us, Cheapos, in the comments section.

The post Paris: 7 things that are always free in Paris appeared first on EuroCheapo's Budget Travel Blog.

If you’re visiting Paris and need a wireless network, the first place you’ll probably turn is your hotel. These days, even cheap hotels have begun offering free Wi-Fi. However, sometimes hotels charge a ridiculous amount and sometimes they don’t offer a wireless network at all.

Luckily, there’s no need to overpay for the service, as wireless internet service is offered almost everywhere in Paris. Here’s a quick overview of where to find a cheapo-friendly wireless network:

100% Free Wi-Fi

Without dropping a dime, Facebook addicts can access city-provided Wi-Fi networks in over 260 public parks, civic centers, and libraries. Access is provided by the city of Paris for free and unlimited for anyone.

Once you’re ready to start, just click on the “Wi-Fi ORANGE” network, fill out an online form (which simply involves creating a username and password), et voilà, you’re online!

This service is very popular. For example, it isn’t rare to see people hanging out in the lobby of the Centre Pompidou with their laptops. Additionally, in warmer months, users camp out in every park, garden, and even around the mayor’s office in any of the 20 arrondissements.

Check out the city’s website for a comprehensive list of locations where you can access free, city-provided Wi-Fi.

Almost Free Wi-Fi

Cafés in Paris will usually have a “Wi-Fi” sticker on their window if there is free wireless available, but always verify that it is offered before ordering a drink. For €2 you can get a quality signal and (quite often) a lower-quality coffee. Don’t feel pressured to keep buying things while you type your emails, unless it’s lunch time and you are clearly taking up a table. (Remember, waiters don’t work for tips!)

In a pinch, most McDonald’s also offer Wi-Fi alongside their very budget-friendly €1 menu.

Not Actually Free Wi-Fi

Many users will automatically pick up a signal in Paris called “FreeWifi,” but this is actually the name of a service provider that costs money on a pay-as-you go basis. These “hotspots” are widely available with providers like “SFR” or the company “Free.”

If your hotel doesn’t provide free internet, you can always purchase minutes from one of these carriers. For example, SFR offers an hour of service during a 24-hour period for €8. It is a great service for emergency web browsing, but it can  quickly become costly.

General Wi-Fi Tips

Never assume that a hotel or hostel will offer free Wi-Fi. It is always best to ask. Many apartment rentals, short and long term, will come with wireless, but sometimes charge an extra fee for the service.

While free Wi-Fi is commonplace in Paris, electrical outlets are not always available, so make sure that you charge up before heading to the café or park!

If you’re living in Paris and you don’t have an internet provider, the first question is, “Why not?” With companies like Orange and SFR offering packages for €30 a month that include wireless and international calling, staying connected is actually pretty affordable.

Planning on bringing an American iPhone to Europe? Read our article about how to use your iPhone in Europe without going broke. While you’re at it, consider whether or not you need to take you’re iPhone with you at all by reading our post on How NOT to use your iPhone in Europe.

Your Wi-Fi advice?

Have you had an experience getting free (or almost free) wireless internet service in Paris? Tell us about it in the comments section.

The post Where to find free Wi-Fi in Paris appeared first on EuroCheapo's Budget Travel Blog.

However, I felt a slight pull coming from the iPhone in my backpack. It had been several hours since I “checked in.” There were undoubtedly e-mails waiting for me—not to mention a New York Times app that could be updated. While I was at it, I might as well check to see if anyone had commented on a photo of a recent meal that I uploaded to Facebook the night before…

I hadn’t purchased any of AT&T’s expensive international data plans, so I was reliant on Wi-Fi networks to use my device. I scanned the scene and spotted a McDonald’s across the street that advertised, with screaming gusto, “Wi-Fi gratuit!” I headed for it, past several cafés and brasseries (some of which also probably had a connection). McDonald’s was easy and cheap.

As I entered, I felt a pang of guilt, as I knew that I was sacrificing a “brasserie moment” for a coffee in a paper cup with a side of connectivity.

This wasn’t the only wired tug I experienced during my trip. It happened several times a day—often when I passed signs announcing a free Wi-Fi connection. Should I just stop for a minute? Should I hover around outside and try to poach a connection?

Had my iPhone changed my way of travel? Was there any going back? Was I overreacting?

iPhones abroad and at home

Following my trip, I wrote a post about how American travelers can use their iPhones in Europe without going broke. The post has proven to be one of our most popular, as many Americans heading abroad grapple with the same tech and billing issues that I encountered.

However, one issue that I didn’t address was how to limit the use of your phone in the first place. Talk about an uncool topic.

It’s not something I had even given much thought to until this month when I bought and read William Powers’ insightful new book, Hamlet’s Blackberry: A Practical Philosophy for Building a Good Life in the Digital Age.

In the book, Powers argues that our ultra-wired lifestyle often distracts us from achieving a level of depth in our daily lives. For inspiration on how to deal with information overload, Powers looks back to Plato, Shakespeare, Thoreau and other great thinkers who confronted, in their own times, technological shifts in the way humans communicated.

For many of us, we’re wired back home all day long. It’s a cliché, but remains true; we flip between e-mails, browser windows and instant messages during and after work. Many stay on top of Facebook and Twitter, as well.

Increasingly, we’re bringing our “wired” behavior with us while we travel. What’s wrong with this?

I’m afraid that we run the risk of becoming distracted travelers, losing out on the real experiences of our trips if our attention is hijacked by virtual activity. We might as well stay home.

Aware of the soapbox

Enter: the digital contrarian with full-throttled self-righteousness.

I’m sure that some, especially the most connected readers, will shake their heads (at least virtually) with exasperation. Digital devices have enhanced the travel experience in many ways, offering new ways to find out about destinations, make friends and share experiences. They also make travel Web sites (like this one, for example!) easier to produce and more timely.

Smart phones obviously make staying in touch easier and cheaper. Despite my philosophical grumblings, I returned to McDonald’s several times to use their Wi-Fi to call home for free using my iPhone’s Skype application. I found this feature incredibly helpful and liberating.

However, I would still like some help knowing how to more easily go “offline” while traveling.

Why? Because when checking my e-mails mid-day at the fast-food restaurant in Paris, I found nothing urgent in my inbox. Instead, I found something else: A strange sense that some aspect of my travel experience had changed for the worse. I was acting “busy,” but not by walking the streets, visiting Notre Dame, or buying a crepe. Rather, I was busying myself like I do back home, with finger on “refresh.” I wanted something back.

Limiting my iPhone use

How can I limit the use of my iPhone abroad? Is there a way to exercise greater control over my use of technology abroad than I seem to have at home?

Powers has come up with a few techniques, including a weekend-long “Internet sabbatical,” during which he unplugs his modem. I still want the option to connect when traveling. I just want to rid myself of the constant tug toward connecting.

I’ve come up with six suggestions that I’ll try out during my upcoming trip to Europe:

1. Start using (again!) a vacation message.

Set a password! Photo: Yun753

This is so basic it’s laughable. However, in the age of the iPhone, I stopped setting up a vacation message, as I assumed that I would always be connected. Setting up a message, with the email or phone number of an alternate contact in case of emergency, will set reasonable expectations for the sender. This should help you relax and feel comfortable checking e-mails less frequently.

2. Set a password on your iPhone.

We should all have passwords on our smart phones in the first place, as a lost phone can offer a treasure trove of e-mails, documents and other personal data. This security concern is only heightened when traveling.

However, a password can also serve as a hindrance to impulsive use, as it takes several seconds to manually enter it. Without a password, you can just slide and check mail. With a password, the brief commitment to typing it, no matter how fleeting, may help you overcome the pull—or at least remind me of why you set it in the first place.

3. Watches, maps, camera…  Go “old school.”

I don’t wear a watch any more, because I can always tell the time by glancing at my phone. This isn’t a good strategy when traveling “offline,” however, as every glance at the phone will be a potential tug to check in. Time for a watch.

The same can apply to the phone’s other features. Hardly anyone with a smart phone uses a map back home—but when traveling, carry one along. The phone’s camera? You know it’s not that good, anyhow. Bring along another camera if you have one.

4. Do the majority of your social media before you go.

Twitter and Facebook can be extremely helpful travel tools for meeting new people and getting tips on where to go for dinner, drinks and fun. If possible, do this work before you take off, so you’re not burdened with it on the road. Trying out a restaurant suggestion that you found before leaving, after all, is probably more satisfying than monitoring your Twitter responses from a hotel bedroom. (Just sayin’!)

5. Use your Facebook status to get off the digital hook.

If you don’t feel the need to change your Facebook status daily, try setting it to something self-explanatory that can buy you some time. A status like, “…is gallivanting around France and Italy for two weeks. Photos when I return!” could take care of updates for awhile. Also, rather than posting daily schedule updates, try posting a brief itinerary of dates and cities, so that your friends can track your trip in a single post.

6. Go offline. Talk to travelers. Talk to locals.

I’ll end my list with an obvious, but still relevant, suggestion. In an age when sharing stories and acquiring information happens increasingly through screens, we should push ourselves to “like” the experience of engaging in real conversation with the travelers and locals around us.

In Hamlet’s Blackberry, Powers notes that methods to reclaim some of your un-wired life will only succeed if you recognize that there are real benefits to not always being connected. One big benefit he mentions is deep, undistracted thought.

Hmmm. Deep undistracted thought. Isn’t that why I went to cafés in Paris in the first place? I have to first want it back.

Your thoughts? Your tips?

Do you share my concern that it’s becoming increasingly difficult to travel offline? Do you have any other suggestions for ways of making “unwired travel” easier to achieve? Do you think this is a non-issue and the paranoid rhetoric of a neurotic luddite? Share your thoughts in our comments section!

The post Traveling Offline: How to NOT use an iPhone abroad appeared first on EuroCheapo's Budget Travel Blog.

1. Public transportation between airport and city.

An in-airport rail—train or metro—is usually better than a bus link. Happily, there are many airports across Europe with rail stations underneath or adjacent to airports. London City, Amsterdam, Copenhagen, and Rome Fiumicino, among many others, deserve positive evaluation. Bus links are fine in theory, though nobody likes jockeying for tickets and playing finicky ticket vending machine roulette games. (Are you listening, Ciampino?)

2. Good, affordable restaurants.

Big international chain restaurants don’t add much value. An outpost of a good local restaurant is always preferable to a placeless chain restaurant. And while we’re it, prices wildly out of tune with the local cost index are alienating, and surely end up convincing many passengers not to purchase any meals at all. An airport pricing structure keyed to local pricing norms might very well translate into people actually spending more money on meals in airports.

3. Free wireless Internet.

Kastrup. Photo: Terry Wha

Not so hard to set up, increasingly anticipated by many travelers, and thankfully more and more common. If Chisinau International Airport can provide free wifi to its passengers, then every European airport should.

4. Time management tools.

An information feed at Copenhagen’s Kastrup airport lets passengers arriving at the airport know how long security lines are going to take. This is invaluable, even if it runs the risk of overkill in a country as efficient as Denmark.

5. A distinctive sense of the local.

Lisbon and Helsinki both have little shops stocked with smart Portuguese and Finnish products, respectively. A shop selling local products fulfills an essential ambassadorial function. It offers departing passengers the opportunity to purchase last-minute gifts of local relevance. Any airport can install shops hawking traditional duty-free items. A smartly-managed airport will attempt to tie its identity to that of the surrounding city, country, or region.

6. Scale.

Small airports are often the most user-friendly, but scale is more important than size. Kilometers of corridors are institutional and annoying. Space should be filled up with restaurants, shops, and lounge spaces. Amsterdam’s Schiphol may be enormous, but it is well scaled, with an appropriate density of retail establishments and frequent postings notifying passengers of walking time between terminals.

What features did we miss?

Anything this list misses outright? Let me know what you value in an airport in the comments section.

The post Flights: Six essential features of good airports appeared first on EuroCheapo's Budget Travel Blog.