Hi
I know this might sound like a how long is a piece of string question, but we are travelling Europe 2up for about 12 mths from late July, and trying to do budgets, and are a bit stuck on the accommodation one. We will try to camp ~50% of the time and plan to spend the winter in Malta. But are wondering about other types of accom may be possible, we are both getting on so do not want to camp all the time. Have browsed posts and found poss 30euro a day is reasonable or maybe not?? Will travel UK France Italy Austria Slovenia during first . hope this makes sense any suggestions/tips welcome.
Thank You
Joe and Henrietta

First thing to consider would be: wild camping is not a viable option in most of Central/Western/Southern Europe, and the cost of an official campsite is not far off from the cost of cheap hostels. Now, in Scandinavia it's different - wild camping is legal and popular, while hotels are wildly expensive and intermediate options are often unavailable - but in France/Germany/Spain/Italy etc., you'll only be camping in national parks.

There are, however, parts of Europe that are both cheap and eminently worth visiting. Southern Poland and southeast of there should be easy to find dry accommodation in your price range, as long as you're not in downtown Prague or Budapest.

Booking.com and airbnb.com are your places to check.

My memory's getting dim, but when I discovered that French pubs have unpretentious rooms upstairs (or across the street, or out in the converted barn) it made a big difference in my approach to riding back roads there. No need to consult booking sites or plan more than an hour ahead. 30 euros rings a bell for room plus food, but I was single and this was ten years ago.

Southern Spain had some luxury campgrounds mixed in with absurdly expensive hotels in the touristy areas. populated largely with British ex-pats, but in Italy it seemed worth figuring out where the hostels were located. Britain, too.

Don't know if that's useful information or not. Trying to make generalizations about travel costs covering multiple European cultures, economies, histories and degrees of infrastructure development is kind've tough. You might want to break it down--look at Britain, then France separately, certainly Slovenia separately from that. And if struggling with your budget, definitely look harder at Eastern Europe, including the ex-Yugoslavia republics and the swathe from Ukraine through Romania, Bulgaria and Turkey.

Regardless, I hope that's helpful.

Mark

Hi I live in France and travel a lot in Europe regularly I would base my costs as the same as uk euroland is not cheap .

Hi,
Thanks for replies, all helps settle mind, we are very flexible and seems best just to go with what suites at any point in time. We are not in a hurry and not planning a marathon but our biggest issue will probably be moving on when we find places we really like , planning to stick to back roads as much as possible. As for Eastern Europe plan to take that in, on the second half, unless we decide to ride back to Australia.
Sincerely
Joe and Henrietta

Overwintering in Malta isn't a bad idea. Temperatures are tolerable at 10-20 C and you may find holiday lets available cheaply in winter. Be warned, most places don't have heating so you may still find it chilly inside. And it's a very small island, with crazy drivers and roads that get very slippery when it rains. If you want to meet local bikers go down to the Gozo ferry terminal at weekends.

As for living costs, a general rule of thumb is it will cost you around 60 USD per day on the road (other travellers have calculated and verified this). You can reduce that by wild camping wherever possible but in many parts of Europe this is illegal. Here's a good guide country by country.

Hi
You are right, a comprehensive reply would run to a book - several volumes

A quick review.
France - look for camping municipal or camping a la ferm, a night can still be had for around €10. Every town has a tourist office - tell them you are looking for budget accommodation for 1 or 2 nights, they often know someone that’s under the radar and a lot cheaper than a hotel. Eat in restaurants only at lunchtime, look for workers vans - evening meals are a lot more money. Avoid the coast if you want to save money.
Spain - the campsites are a lot more expensive but the food and drink is a lot cheaper than France, including restaurants. Unlike France the costal areas can be cheap for food due to competition.
Italy - campsites are similar or a little dearer than Spain but food and drink is more expensive than France. In general you pay for everything, even if you want to sit next to a lake
Eastern Europe - your money will go a lot further. Campsites are becoming more popular but if you’re off the beaten track you will see private houses with a sign in the window “Zimmer” this means room in German - just knock on the door and you will be well looked after
Balkans - only worth camping in Croatia (IMHO) but try to avoid the high season - traffic. For the rest, hotels are good and cheap - often the campsites are Dutch owned and more expensive than a 3* hotel. Definitely call into Motocamp Bulgaria
Germany is similar to UK.
Northern Europe, Scandinavia - expensive as you probably know. As the weather can be iffy there are cabins on campsites which are the best option. Often hotels will do an all inclusive deal where breakfast and evening meal is included which is worth seeking out if you’re somewhere for a couple of days - don’t be worried about taking a doggy bag to breakfast - fill your boots, the Scandinavians do especially the Norwegians
Wild camping is fine in Norway.

Enjoy

I can't give any information about camping, I've never done it.

But, I have spent a lot of time in hotels in Europe.

For "Western Europe" (France, Austria, Slovenia, Northern Italy), I agree with the person above who wrote "use the same prices you would use in the UK".

Once you get south of the Pyrenees, prices go down a bit, but not dramatically. Likewise, out in Romania, Bulgaria, prices are cheaper.

In the Balkans, prices in Slovenia are on par with Austria, and as you go south, prices fall linearly until you reach Albania.

I don't think you could do it on 30 Euros a night unless you don't mind waking up scratching yourself vigorously. 50 Euros a night for accommodation might be more realistic, and if you find places for less, that's a bonus.

Michael

The large super/hyper markets in France usually have restaurants where a good meal can be had relatively cheaply; the food is usually of a good standard unlike the slop served in UK stores.

Hi,
Thanks for all the great replies, lots to put down in our note book. I am an Australian born Maltese and at 65 have never visited, so the Malta bit is more of a finding one's roots kind of thing (or seeing if all Maltese are as crazy as most of the relatives here!) Dropped the Bonnie of to be loaded into container today so getting very real now.
Thanks all
Joe and Henrietta
(p.s any more suggestions still gladly appreciated)

Hi Joe , if you get down to south France I have a small house I rent out in Marseillan near Montpelier ,hope trip plans go well enjoy .h

You may also have to adjust your budget as fuel prices in the eu are going thru the roof at the moment........France is around one euro sixty ish for petrol , that's a litre .

Best place to look for accommodation is booking.com

__________________
cheers

Netherlands, Germany, Austria, Italy, Greece, Montenegro, Bosnia, Croatia, Slovenia in October 2019.
Netherlands and Germany free camped - just have to be selective where. Look for a place not far off the road (prefrerably NOT private property) that is least likely to upset anyone that does see you. Camp clean (leave no trace), packup early, keep it quiet. Some stunningly awesome camps, including a walking/running trail right in the middle of an alpine German village. Italy hard to find any secluded spots that are not a rubbish tip. Hostel bunk rooms €15-20, but often no good secure spots for an overnight bike. Locks and street lighting! Many good free camp spots in Greece overlooking the Ionian sea

Hi from OP,
Thanks for responses, thought should post update. Have settled in Malta /Gozo for a couple of months now after over 10000km travel, we managed to stay on budget by a combination of ways, airbnb, hostels, camping and a couple of extravagant (for us anyway!). We are oldies after all, and not as resilient as we used be, stays from 1night to 1week. Just had to balance more expensive stays with camping till budget got back on track. Never got to wild camp but did find a few really great remote and importantly SMALL campgrounds.As posts suggested Europe, we only got as far east as Slovenia, is not a budget place.
Thanks Again
Joe and Henrietta