Jan 19, 2025

Our price barometer includes a snapshot of typical expenses, such as hotel rates and transport fares This city is the cheapest based on topline costs for visitors (Photo: VALERIY YURASOV/Getty) (Updated 6:01 am) linkbookmark A new year often means an increase in public transport fares. Paris , one of the world’s most visited destinations, has done just that. After a summer during which the city doubled bus fares and upped the price of Metro tickets by 85 per cent throughout the Olympic Games, the French capital has overhauled its system. As of 1 January, one-way journeys on the metro, train and RER cost a flat fare of €2.50 (£2.10), €2 for a single trip on buses and trams or €2.50 if you buy the ticket onboard, regardless of the distance or number of zones crossed. Journeys to the city’s three airports are excluded, costing between €10.30 and €13 for a single fare. While Valérie Pécress, president of Ile-de-France Mobilités, which oversees public transport in the French capital, called the change a “ticketing revolution”, not everyone is convinced. Some Parisians and visitors will be paying more for a ticket. Previously, a single metro ticket cost €2.15 and the much-loved, 10-ticket cardboard carnet, allowed travel at €1.73 per journey. Pécresse has defended the change, explaining that commuters from the outskirts of Paris will make significant savings on journeys that previously cost between €3.20 and €5 one way, and suggested the move will make the fare system fairer and more accessible, especially for visitors. With rising public transport prices in mind, we have reviewed the costs of a break in each of Europe’s seven most-visited cities – tourist numbers were based on research from data analysts Euromonitor . Our budget comparisons include research from cost-of-living database Numbeo , hospitality data intelligence firm Lighthouse and search engine Skyscanner . We have calculated the total of a snap shot of costs for a visit to each city, including the average nightly price at a three-star hotel, a three-course meal for two in a mid-range restaurant and transport, to see which is the cheapest – and the most expensive – place to visit. We have also looked at entry prices for major attractions. Here is the ranking, starting with the most expensive city break. London, UK: £294.80 A classic view of London: the city’s hotel prices account for its high overall costs (Photo: Getty) London is the most popular city break, according to Euromonitor data, which looks at international visitors staying overnight. According to Euromonitor’s findings, nearly 22 million people visited in 2024. Lighthouse data shows a one-night stay in a three-star hotel is the priciest on this list of cities, at £212 on average and, according to Numbeo, a three-course meal for two at a run-of-the-mill restaurant comes in at £80. As for travel, in zone 1, a single peak fare is £2.80 when using pay-as-you-go (with a bank card or an Oyster card), rising to £6.70 if you pay in cash. There’s a daily cap of £8.50 for pay-as-you-go travel with an Oyster or bank card in zones 1 and 2, though this can be as high as £22.30 if you travel as far as zone nine. Buses in London are cashless, with a single fare costing £1.75. On buses, the daily cap at £5.25, and that’s the same if you’re using the city’s relatively small tram network. One thing that is not just affordable in London, but entirely free, is entry to many museums and galleries. Among the free-to-visit venues are the National Gallery, the Science Museum and the Victoria and Albert Museum, although some temporary exhibitions do cost extra. Rome, Italy: £242.30 A back street of Rome, which is marking a jubilee year (Photo: Alexander Spatari/Getty) Rome recorded 11.1 million overnight stays by international visitors in 2024. It is known for its excellent food, and a three-course meal for two at a decent restaurant in Rome is £54.46. Hotels here don’t come cheap, costing an average of €220 (or £185.50) in a three-star spot. Public transport is good value, though. A ticket that allows unlimited transfers between the metro, buses, trams and urban trains costs €1.50 (£1.26), and is valid for 100 minutes from its first use. Alternatively, there are MetroBus tickets, which allow limitless travel for 24, 48, or 72 hours and cost €7 (£5.90), €12.50 (£10.49) and €18 (£15.18) respectively. If you’re staying in the Eternal City for longer, a week’s pass will cost you €24 (£20.24). Be mindful that these tickets don’t include travel to and from Rome’s two airports, Fiumicino and Ciampino, and you’ll have to pay between €12 (£10.12) and €28 (£23.62), depending on which route you take. Many of the city’s top sights offer free entry once a month, including the Colosseum, which costs nothing to visit on the first Sunday of each month, and the Vatican Museums and Sistine Chapel, which open their doors for free on the last Sunday of the month. Some of the cities most popular outdoor sights, including the Spanish Steps and the Trevi Fountain, are free to visit. Barcelona, Spain: £220.80 The Eixample district in Barcelona, Spain’s most popular city break destination (Photo: Getty) A three-star hotel in Barcelona , which welcomed 7.71 million overnight visitors in 2024, is €199 (£167.50) a night, while a three-course meal for two at a mid-range restaurant costs £51. Its public transport system can seem a little complicated, price-wise at least. A single ticket for the metro or bus is €2.65 (£2.30), while an airport ticket costs €5.70 (£4.80). For longer stays, opt for the Hola BCN Card, which includes metro connections to and from the airport. Available for 48, 72, 96 or 120 hours, it costs between €17.50 (£14.80) and €40.80 (£34.50), depending on the length of the validity needed. Across Spain, on 18 May – International Museum Day – all museums and galleries offer free entry, including those which don’t otherwise offer a monthly day of free access. In Barcelona, many of the best spots do offer this, including the Museu Nacional d’Art de Catalunya, Museu Picasso and Museu d’Història de Barcelona. These free entry days tend to be on the first Sunday of each month, but some museums are always free, including contemporary art spot La Virreina Centre de la Imatge. Paris, France: £208.10