Europe
Budget Travel: 2 Days in York
Budget Travel: 2 Days in York Itinerary.
York Minster
York is a fantastic weekend destination from the North or South of the United Kingdom. Situated in the heart of the railway line between Edinburgh and London means that even if you have less than 48 hours then you can still enjoy all York has to offer.
We recently visited York for a one night trip from Edinburgh, catching the 7.30am train to arrive at 10am before departing the following day at 6pm.
Day 1
10am – After an early start you might want to grab a steaming cup of coffee in one of the old City wall tower Cafes so that you will be refreshed enough to hit the tourist trail. And what a trail it is. With 2.5 miles of 2,000 year old city walls surrounding York it is the best place to start your exploration. With various breaks where the wall has been removed then there are ample opportunities to rest and explore different areas around the City.
The wall is also interspersed with a number of Bars (gatehouses not literal ‘bars’) that allowed access into the City during medieval times or as defensive positions during times of war. The Bars are perfect stops during your walk and provide snapshots in history that will keep old and young busy during the 2 – 3 hour stroll. It is definitely not hard-work and is worth the effort.
York City Wall
1pm – For lunch just follow the crowds and your nose to the local market stalls. A gathering of smells from around the world will assault your senses with Noodles from Asia, Pancakes from the Netherlands, Meatballs from Morocco, Sausages from Germany and Paella from Spain to name but a few dishes. The small dishes for £4 will satisfy your hunger. Just try to leave room for the delicious home-made pastry and cake stalls dotted throughout the market.
2pm – Your next stop should be the building that you would have seen towering above the City skyline; York Minster. It is one of the most well-known Cathedrals in Europe and provides some fantastic photo opportunities from the City walls. Take note that it only opens at 12pm on Sundays due to services in the morning. Every other day it opens from 9am. £9 for adults gets you a free guided tour (optional) and entry to the Undercroft, Treasury and Croft. An extra £5.50 is required if you want to tackle the 275 steps to the top of the Tower. Excellent for checking out the entire City and surrounding countryside.
5pm – By now your parched throat might be reaching a peak and you are in need of a pint. You are in luck. They say that York has one pub for every day of the year so you are going to find a few good ones. However we went to a couple of different pubs during our stay but unfortunately I wouldn’t rave about them. I am not going to do them injustice by mentioning their names on here and will let you try and find the better ones.
7pm – What I will do is recommend heading to Ask Italian restaurant for a cheap and delicious meal. The restaurant is situated in the old York Assembly Rooms which makes the dining area GIGANTIC. There is nothing flash about it apart from the food. It is also extremely well priced, with the entire meal including drinks for 3 costing £55 all up.
9pm till Late – With over 365 pubs and bars in York its up to you to decide how you want to spend the rest of the night.
View from York City Wall to the Minster
Day 2
If you want a cheap place to stay for your 1 night then you can’t look past the local YHA. It’s situated a 20 minute walk along the river or a 5 minute taxi ride. Just a quick note; We were told by the staff at the YHA not to walk along the river at night, I expect it can get a bit rough and seedy down there. The YHA does a breakfast buffet that will fuel you until lunchtime for £4.95. Plus you get the added bonus of sneaking pastries into your handbag on your way out for mid-morning snacks.
11am – Jorvik Viking Centre should be your first stop this morning. It is the site of one of the most famous and astounding discoveries of modern archaeology that creates a groundbreaking (sorry no pun intended) visitor experience that enables you to experience the every day life of a Viking in York 1,000 years ago. What is amazing is that the site is laid out below your feet under a pane of glass.
If you travel with kids (or big kids like myself) then they will love it as you can race around the floor with a map in hand finding all the objects exactly as they lay when they were found.
There is also a roller coaster back to the future type ride. I say type as it is not quite as exciting as a full on roller coaster, and actually felt a lot like Jurassic Park. I kept waiting for the T-Rex to jump out and eat the goat tied to the stake. The kids will love it though.
1pm – By now you should have burned off that big brekky so navigate your way back to the markets and get stuck in again. Make sure you do get the pancakes this time if you didn’t before. De – li – cious.
2pm – Meander your way through the cobbled lined streets of the Shambles and marvel at the maze of tightly lined alleyways full of crazy angled boutique stores and shops that look like they are about to topple over. I seriously don’t know whether they originally built them like that out of whatever length of wood they could find or if they have slowly subsided over the last couple of hundred years.
York Museum and Gardens
3pm – With your shoes worn out and your knees aching its time to rest them in the relaxing grounds of the Yorkshire Museum and Gardens. If you picked up a few snacks from the market then this is a perfect place to stretch out for the afternoon and enjoy the ancient ruins around you as well as the fine Museum before you jump back on your train.
Final Tips
With this fantastic guide there is no need to hit the Tourism Information Centre but if you do want to then its just around the corner from the York Minster at: 1 Museum Street, York, YO1 7DT.
Super helpful staff and I do actually recommend popping in first thing.
Our costs per person for our 2 days in York are outlined below. You can definitely do it a lot cheaper than we did as well:
- Train ticket = £35 return from Edinburgh
- Hostel = £33 a night for a private room
- Food = £31 per day
- Alcohol = £8 per day
- Attractions = £25 total
Europe
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Europe
Paris on a Budget: Best Cheap Eats in Paris
While Paris used to be regarded as an expensive city, you can now enjoy Paris on a Budget. Use our guide to find the Best Cheap Eats in Paris.
Although Paris has a reputation for being one of the most expensive cities globally, the rumors are now unfounded. In 2012, Paris dropped ten places in the Mercer cost of living survey. And with the Euro looking weak, now is probably a good time to find cheap flights and discover the city of love on a budget.
Eating in Paris can catch a lot of tourists out. Avoid the expensive restaurants serving fancy dishes like salmon wellington and snooty maître d’s on the Champs Elysees and follow our guide for the best cheap eats in Paris. Spend less on food and possibly splurge on friendly hotels in Paris instead!
Girl eating croissant in Paris
Best Cheap Eats in Paris
Head to the Marais
Famous for its selection of ethnic eateries, the trendy Marais area of Paris is perfect for picking up a quick snack.
Check out L’As du Falafel, where you can grab a flatbread bursting with golden fried balls of falafel, smothered in hummus and accompanied with red cabbage. For €4 to take away, you can’t argue with that. Simply head to Chez Hanna down the street for equally tasty food at similarly low prices if it’s too busy.
Enjoy an Oriental baguette.
Vietnamese food is popular in France, and nowhere can you see the fusion of two cultures more clearly than at Saigon Sandwich in the Belleville district of Paris. Their specialty, banh mi, is light and crusty French baguette filled with flavors of South East Asia.
There are only a few options (poulet, boeuf, Maison, and unique), but for €3 ago, you could happily sample them all.
Find French food on the cheap.
Believe it or not, there are some restaurants specializing in French cuisine that won’t see you stumbling into your overdraft. Les Temps des Cerises is one of them.
Described by Yelp as a “Dive Bar,” nothing could be further from the truth. Run by a cooperative, it attracts a distinctly bohemian crowd. The menu is small, but the food is prepared from ingredients that sing with freshness and high quality.
Eat like a local celebrity …
Rumour has it that Pierre Herme, one of Paris’s most celebrated pastry chefs, visits the Belleville restaurant Le Baratin. The prices are surprisingly low for the delicious Argentinian fare.
Time Out Magazine recommends the tuna carpaccio with cherries or the spicy basque lamb. Pop in at lunchtime for the prixe fix menu. At €18 for three courses it’s hard to complain.
… or eat like a local office worker
Bistro Victoires is a favorite amongst Paris’s locals. It doesn’t look like much from the outside, and the wine list leaves a lot to be desired, but when you sit down to enjoy some of the best steak frites in Paris, all else will be forgiven.
Portion sizes are enormous, and the waiters often remind patrons that if they order a starter, they won’t be able to tackle the main course. Despite being a famous location steps away from the Palais Royal, it still manages to be a hidden gem.
What are your tips for finding the best cheap eats in Paris?
Europe
Travel Tip: Train to Pisa from Florence
Whether you spend a half-day or full day in Pisa, we recommend that you Train to Pisa from Florence. It’s the fastest and cheapest way to get there.
Traveling by train is one of the best ways to see the beautiful countryside of Italy. The train from Florence to Pisa takes about an hour, and the journey is stunning. The route takes you past vineyards and medieval villages, through tunnels and over bridges, with breathtaking views of the Tuscan hillsides. You can even see the Leaning Tower of Pisa as the train approaches the station.
Upon arrival in Pisa, you can explore the historic center and visit the famous cathedral, before enjoying a leisurely lunch overlooking the River Arno. With its stunning scenery and convenient location, a train trip from Florence to Pisa is a great way to spend a day in Italy.
How to get to Pisa from Florence
You have a couple of different options for your own half-day trip to Pisa from Florence depending on how you like to travel. But if you are like us and enjoy travelling around Italy by public transport, then you will definitely want to train to Pisa from Florence.
Train to Pisa from Florence
Florence and Pisa are less than 100 km apart and the easiest way is to train to Pisa from Florence. The entire trip one-way takes approximately an hour depending on your route with no transfers.
Trains leave from Florence S.M.Novella for Pisa Centrale a few times every hour. The closest train station to the leaning tower of Pisa is Pisa San Rossore, but it’s not worth the extra time or transfer required. Pisa itself is small and it takes less than 30 minutes to walk to the leaning tower from Pisa Centrale.
Plus you get to explore more of the city such as the River Arno lined with beautiful stately homes.
If you want to book online then a one-way ticket by train to Pisa from Florence will cost from €7.80 (US$10.40) in 2nd class. It is important to make sure that when you are searching online via the Italian train booking site, Trenitalia, you search for “Firenze” rather than Florence.
The train schedules are very easy to understand so we recommend booking your ticket from the self-service machines on the train platform. The return journey is just as easy in reverse. Just watch that you don’t miss the last train around 10pm most days and carry cash with you for the ticket.
Finally, validate your ticket before boarding the train. We forgot a couple of times but used the typical “I’m a stupid tourist” line to get out of any fines.
Bus to Pisa from Florence
Another option is to catch the bus to Pisa from Florence.
There are two main bus companies, Terravision and Autostradale, run regular buses to and from Pisa Airport and Florence Airport into the Florence city centre, they don’t actually go into Pisa itself. The train to Pisa from Florence is so reliable, fast, and cheap, that you may not want to consider this option.
However, there are some advantages to taking the bus. You will see a lot more scenery from the window of the bus, and it’s definitely cheaper; sometimes you can find fares as low as 4 Euros, especially on Fridays.
Driving to Pisa from Florence
If you have hired a car or scooter in Tuscany then you might look at driving to Pisa from Florence. However, even though the distance is less than 100km, the trip will still take approximately 1 hour.
Aside from the fact that the train to Pisa from Florence typically takes less time than driving, you also have to avoid the crazy Italian drivers. Not to mention trying to find a carpark in two of the most popular cities in Italy. Impossible.
Guided Tour to Pisa from Florence
If you have been enjoying the sunset in Florence and all the city has to offer then you might want to take in a guided tour to Pisa from Florence. Not only do you get a great guide to learn all about the history of the area, you also don’t have to worry about getting to Pisa from Florence.
You might want to check out this guided tour around Pisa or get a little bit more adventurous and try out a segway tour in Pisa. Perfect for the family and it will keep the kids entertained between stops.
If you have a whole day, and haven’t managed to fit in a hike around Cinque Terre, then we recommend looking into the Pisa and Cinque Terre day tour. Lasting roughly 12 hours, you will travel from Florence to Cinque Terre, with a 2 hour stop in Pisa to see all the main sights.
We also reckon guides help you get the best photos, as they have seen all the poses.
Tell us below if you have taken any funny photos in Pisa!
We have been wearing out our jandals (Kiwi for flip-flops) on our travel adventures around the world since 2009. We think our blog is thought provoking and a little witty. But we have been proven wrong before. Find out more about us here...
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