CoffeeDrinker2007

We are not interested in hostels, but we would like to know if there is a way to save in hotels, transportation ect. We have not decided on exact destinations other than Paris and Munich.

BrendaReese

Melsungen and the surrounding area (in Germany) are beautiful. Mannheim is also surprisingly fresh and clean. Munich and Paris are both renowned for their high prices, so you may find this difficult and potentially dangerous.

Willeke1285

Go to the tourist info offices, (or their internet sites,) and ask for bed and breakfast kind of places. Also, there are hotels that have a minimum of staff, (specially in France) and may be less friendly but cheaper. I think some are called Formule1, but there are more.If you want to cover big distances, train passes is the way to go, but if you want to travel a lot within a smaller area renting a car might work out cheaper.Also if you can then use cheaper hotels out of town.Buy a good guidebook, I think that the Lonely Planet series are good, because it will save you more than it costs.And as any Educated Woman will know, google is your best friend when searching internet.

kat1605nrw

Since you're not interested in hostels I assume the same is true for camping. Other cheap options are indeed simple hotels like Formule 1, Etap, maybe Ibis - some of these save money by cutting back on staff, often you just get a numerical code which then opens the door to your room. These are quite good value for money, especially in France.If you want to get in touch with "real people", why not post on Craigslist and see if someone is willing to take you into their home for a few nights at a reasonable price?

Adan

I want to go too baby....