How to Travel Italy On a Budget

Hi guys!

After I posted my two-week Italy trip itinerary, I had many many questions about trip costs. So I thought it was high time to do another blog post with that information :) Below are the 5 categories where we spent most of our dolla billz, going from most expensive to least expensive. These costs will vary depending on how many people you’re traveling with, when, and how. But I think these would be the top expenses for everyone. I have included some tips under each to help you plan better :)

1. Flight To Italy
2. Accomodation
3. Transportation within Italy
4. Italian Food
5. Sightseeing in Italy
6. Bonus Tips & Tourist Attractions

1. Flight to Italy and back

This expense will vary greatly depending on the season in which you travel, how far you live from Italy, and where on the airplane you sit lol. One thing is for sure – buying tickets way in advance always makes a big difference in price. Try to buy tickets as soon as you know you’ll be going for sure.

Estimating Daily Costs: Begin your trip planning by researching the average daily expenses for your destinations in Italy, including cities like Rome, Florence, Venice, Positano and others. Consider creating a daily budget that includes accommodations, meals, transportation, and sightseeing. Websites like Numbeo can provide you with current cost-of-living data.

Bonus Link: If you’re in Canada, you might want to check out YYZ Deals.

2. Accommodation

Accommodation expense depends heavily on the season in which you travel. Summer months = higher prices. You can try to lower costs by travelling off-season, and by staying at Air BnBs. Book these in advance as well as they go fast and get more expensive closer to your dates. Don’t forget to check Expedia or bookings.com for hotels though. Sometimes they have great special offers that match up with your dates.

Airbnb and Vacation Rentals: Airbnb and other vacation rental platforms often offer more space and amenities for less money than hotels, especially if you’re traveling in a group. Staying in a residential area rather than the city centre can also save you money and offer a more authentic local experience.

3. Transportation within Italy

Don’t quote me on this, but intra-country train ticket prices are fairly stable throughout the year. However, similar to airplane tickets, prices depend on so many factors: morning trains, afternoon trains, fast-speed trains, normal-speed trains, evening trains, overnight trains, weekend trains, weekday trains, business class, economy class, and so forth. These variations don’t matter too much for short-distance travel (for example, Rome to Naples, which is 1 hour), but they do make a difference for longer trips, such as Venice to Milan (3 hours).

Overall, the best tip I can give is to buy train tickets in advance. Book your hotel rooms and then book these right after that, since your dates are pretty much confirmed at that point. Just make sure to check your hotel room check-in times. You don’t want to arrive in a city early in the morning and not be able to check in until 3 PM. We weren’t good at buying advance tickets and ended up paying a lot because of that. For example, sometimes economy seats for our preferred train time would be sold out and unavailable, so we had to pay more to sit in first class. It was definitely more comfortable but not our first choice.

You can buy advance tickets online on the Trenitalia website. They send you an email with your ticket information, and you can literally just show the ticket on your phone screen to ticket officers.

Other than the main trains, I would say the local metro and bus tickets are pretty reasonably priced. And kids under 5 years are mostly free everywhere, which is pretty awesome! In Canada, you always have to pay for kids older than 2 years.

4. Italian Food

Street Food and Local Markets: Indulge in Italy’s rich culinary culture by eating at street food cafes and local markets. Cities like Rome, Florence, and Venice are filled with markets that offer fresh, affordable food. Try local specialties such as arancini, panini, and of course, gelato.

If you want to eat at nice places in Italy, you will be paying a lot. Coming from North America, the portions seem super small and too expensive. You’re looking at about 15 Euros for a half-empty plate of food, and when you convert that to Canadian dollars, the meal doesn’t seem worth it :D But you can’t go to Italy and not enjoy good food!

Avoiding Tourist Traps: Be cautious of eateries situated in tourist-heavy areas, as they often charge higher prices. A common tourist trap involves gelaterias that attract large crowds; such places may overcharge for a simple cone of gelato. Instead, seek out establishments where locals dine.

Thankfully, we live in a world where we have apps like Trip Advisor. With a little bit of research on this app, you can find really good places with reasonable prices and amazing food. Many times you will have no clue where to look for budget eats. Just let Trip Advisor locate you on the map and give you all the top-rated budget eats in that area. You can specify vegetarian + kid friendly + even specify your price range. Problem solved! The only issue sometimes is getting wifi access to actually use the app live. But Trip Advisor lets you download city maps which is great, plus you can do the food search for the day before you leave your hotel room.

5. Sightseeing

Sightseeing cost us the least amount of money, and not surprisingly. Italy is an open museum in general. You just walk around on the streets and see beautiful sites that are hundreds or thousands of years old. You do have to pay to go inside places like the Colosseum, the Vatican, and some other big churches and of course places like art galleries, etc. But it’s not bad considering you’re not paying for much else. You will always have enough to see even if you don’t go inside some buildings, so you will really not mind skipping a few.

5. Bonus Tips for Cost-Effective Travel in Italy

• Travel Off-Peak: Consider traveling during the shoulder seasons (spring and fall) to enjoy lower accommodation rates and fewer crowds.
• Use Public Transportation: Italy’s extensive public transportation system is not only affordable but also a great way to travel like a local. Invest in a transport pass if you plan to use public transportation frequently.
• Free Attractions: Many of Italy’s attractions Especially in ROME are free or offer discounted rates on certain days. For example, state museums offer free entry on the first Sunday of each month.
• Walking Tours: Participate in free or pay-what-you-wish walking tours to explore Italy’s historic cities. This is a great way to learn about the area’s history and culture without breaking the bank.
• Stay Connected: Use free Wi-Fi (with a VPN) in public spaces or consider purchasing a local SIM card to avoid expensive roaming charges. This will help you use maps and restaurant reviews on the go without incurring extra costs.

Hope that you find these tips useful <3 Pin the image below so you can come back to this post in the future. Let me know if you have any other questions in the comments below or on my Instagram. Until next time, ciao ciao!

Pin this article so you can come back to it easily in the future :)

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