The 10 Cheapest European Cities For Backpackers

Eastern and southeastern Europe is where a backpacker's money lasts longest. The ten cheapest European cities for backpackers are Sofia, Bucharest, Belgrade, Kraków, Budapest, Tirana, Sarajevo, Skopje, Riga and Vilnius. In each one a hostel bed, local food, public transport and the main sights cost far less than the same day in Paris, Amsterdam or Zurich, and most sit on bus or train routes that link neatly into a single overland trip.

This is a city guide for people carrying a pack: which neighbourhood to sleep in, how to get from the station or airport cheaply, what is free, and where each city fits on a route. Prices change fast in these places, so we describe how cheap each city feels and leave out numbers that will be out of date by your arrival. For country-level budget ideas around the world, see our guide to the cheapest countries to visit, and for routes on other continents, our best backpacking destinations.

How we chose these cities: We compared the costs that make up a backpacker's day (dorm bed, two cheap meals, a transit ticket, one paid sight and a drink) across European capitals and large cities, then kept only places with a solid hostel scene, free walking tours and good overland connections. Every city below is reachable from at least two others on the list by bus or train. Details checked in October 2026; always confirm transport timetables and entry rules for your passport.

That leaves ten cities in ten countries, six of them outside the euro, and all of them fit on one overland loop.

Cost level, hostel area and best season in each city

Sofia is the cheapest city on this list, rated very low against Western Europe, with Bucharest and the other eight close behind. Each city has a clear hostel area, such as central Sofia near Vitosha Boulevard or the Old Town (Lipscani) in Bucharest, and the best months for most fall between May and October. Cost level is relative to Western Europe. The "next stop" column shows the easiest overland link to another city on this list or a neighbour.

The 10 cheapest European cities for backpackers, in full

Sofia, Bulgaria

Bulgaria's capital regularly comes out as the cheapest in the European Union, and Sofia is easy to like, with the Balkans on its doorstep, mountains at the end of the street and free tours every day. The centre is compact: the gold domes of Alexander Nevsky Cathedral, the Roman ruins of Serdica uncovered under the metro station, the Rotunda of St George tucked into a courtyard, and long Vitosha Boulevard, which points straight at Vitosha mountain on the edge of the city.

That mountain is Sofia's secret weapon for backpackers. A city bus and a short hike put you on trails above 2,000 metres, and in winter there is skiing at Aleko. Further out, the Rila Monastery and the Seven Rila Lakes make classic day trips, usually by organised minibus since public transport is slow. Free walking tours leave from the Palace of Justice daily.

Food is cheap and filling: banitsa pastry for breakfast, shopska salad and grilled meats at lunch. Bulgaria joined the euro at the start of 2026, so prices are now shown in euros. The caveat is Cyrillic signage outside the centre, and some intercity buses leave from the Central Bus Station next to the train station, which maps do not always make obvious.

Hostels cluster in the centre around Vitosha Boulevard, and metro line 4 runs from the airport into town. The walking tour, the Serdica ruins and the cathedral cost nothing, and buses head on to Skopje, Bucharest and Plovdiv. Hikers on a budget will love it: do the Seven Rila Lakes on a weekday from June to September, when the chairlift runs and crowds are thinner.

Bucharest, Romania

Known for big-city nightlife and architecture, Bucharest is a sprawling capital with a split personality: wide communist-era boulevards, faded Belle Époque mansions, and a lively Old Town around Lipscani Street where most hostels and bars cluster. Accommodation and food stay cheap by EU standards, and a night out costs a fraction of Western European prices.

The Palace of the Parliament, one of the largest administrative buildings in the world, is the headline sight; tours need to be booked ahead, a day or two is usually enough, and you will need your passport. Stavropoleos Monastery is a quiet contrast, and Herăstrău (King Michael I) Park offers a lake and long walks. The Old Town, the parks and the churches are all free.

Bucharest is also a launch pad. Trains to Brașov take you into Transylvania, where Bran Castle, Peleș Castle in Sinaia and the old town of Sibiu make a cheap and memorable loop. The caveat is that the city is spread out and some taxis overcharge; use the metro, buses and ride-hailing apps. From the airport, take express bus 783 or the train to Gara de Nord. Come for the nightlife and stay for the Transylvania add-on.

Belgrade, Serbia

Where the Sava meets the Danube, Belgrade has built a party-city reputation around its rivers, its river clubs and its fortress. In summer, floating clubs called splavovi line the banks and run late into the night. Prices for food, drink and beds are low, which makes Belgrade a favourite with backpackers who like a social scene.

Kalemegdan Fortress, a large free park with walls, towers and views over both rivers, is the place to start. Walk down Knez Mihailova, the pedestrian main street, then up to Skadarlija, the old bohemian quarter with cobbled lanes and traditional kafanas. The Church of Saint Sava is one of the largest Orthodox churches in the world and free to enter.

Serbia is not in the EU or Schengen, so time spent here does not count toward a Schengen stay limit, useful for travellers on long trips. The caveat is that the main bus station is in the Savamala area and trains have been scaled back, so check current departures. Serbian food is heavy on grilled meat: try ćevapi and pljeskavica.

The A1 minibus or city bus 72 links the airport with town. Hostels sit in Savamala, Dorćol and the centre; social travellers do well anywhere, but pick Dorćol for quieter nights within walking distance of the river. Onward, buses run to Sarajevo and Novi Sad, and there is a train to Budapest.

Kraków, Poland

History on a budget is the draw in Kraków, which has one of Europe's best-preserved medieval centres and backpacker prices to match. The Main Market Square, with the Cloth Hall in the middle and St Mary's Basilica, where a trumpeter plays the hejnał every hour, is the heart of the Old Town, which is a UNESCO World Heritage Site. Wawel Castle and Cathedral stand on a hill at the south end.

Kazimierz, the former Jewish quarter, is where most backpackers end up in the evenings, with cheap bars, food trucks and zapiekanka, an open-faced baguette sold from the round building on Plac Nowy. Pierogi in milk bars, the subsidised canteens called bar mleczny, are among the cheapest hot meals in the EU.

Two day trips matter. Auschwitz-Birkenau Memorial and Museum needs advance booking of an entry time, and the Wieliczka Salt Mine has chapels carved underground. The caveat is summer crowds in the Old Town and price creep in the most central hostels. Book early for July and August.

Sleep in Kazimierz or near the Old Town, and take the train from the airport to Kraków Główny. The Old Town, the Wawel grounds and Kazimierz are free to wander, and trains continue to Warsaw while buses go to Budapest. History lovers should reserve Auschwitz-Birkenau entry well ahead, because free individual slots go fast.

Budapest, Hungary

With its baths and ruin bars, Budapest costs more than the Balkan cities on this list, but it still beats Vienna or Prague for value, and it gives a lot for the money. The Danube splits it into hilly Buda, with the Castle District and Fisherman's Bastion, and flat Pest, with the Parliament, St Stephen's Basilica and the ruin bars of District VII.

Ruin bars, set up in abandoned buildings and courtyards, started with Szimpla Kert and are the centre of backpacker nightlife. Thermal baths are a Budapest essential: Széchenyi in City Park and the Gellért are the famous ones, while smaller baths such as Rudas give a more local feel. Entry is not cheap, so treat it as your splurge, and go on a weekday morning to avoid the weekend crowds.

Save money with a public transport pass and long walks along the river; the lower terraces of Fisherman's Bastion are free. Tram 2 along the Pest embankment is one of Europe's most scenic ordinary tram rides. The caveat: District VII gets loud at weekends, and currency exchange booths in tourist areas give poor rates. Pay by card or withdraw forint from bank ATMs.

The 100E airport express bus drops you in town, and most hostels are in District VII, the Jewish Quarter. Trains run on to Vienna, Belgrade and Bratislava. It is the pick of the list for nightlife and baths.

Tirana, Albania

Colourful, cheap and full of cafés, Tirana surprises most first-timers and works well as a gateway to the rest of Albania. The painted apartment blocks, Skanderbeg Square, the Bunk'Art museums built inside Cold War bunkers, and the café-packed Blloku district, once reserved for the communist elite, make it one of Europe's most interesting small capitals. It is also one of the cheapest.

The Dajti Express cable car climbs Mount Dajti for views over the city, and the New Bazaar area has cheap restaurants serving byrek and grilled meats. Most backpackers use Tirana as a base: buses run to Berat, Shkodër, Gjirokastër and the southern coast, and on to Skopje. See our Albania page for more of the country.

The caveat is transport. Intercity buses and furgons leave from several terminals around the city depending on direction, and schedules are not always posted online. Ask your hostel which terminal you need.

An airport bus runs to Skanderbeg Square, and hostels are in the centre and Blloku. Skanderbeg Square, Blloku and the Grand Park cost nothing to enjoy.

Sarajevo, Bosnia and Herzegovina

East meets West in Sarajevo, which packs a lot of history into a narrow mountain valley. Baščaršija, the Ottoman bazaar, is full of copper workshops and ćevapi grills, while a few steps west the architecture turns Austro-Hungarian. The Latin Bridge marks where Archduke Franz Ferdinand was assassinated in 1914, and the city's siege in the 1990s is remembered at the War Tunnel near the airport and the Gallery 11/07/95.

Costs are very low. Bosnian coffee, burek and ćevapi with somun bread keep you fed cheaply, and hostels in Baščaršija and the old town are good value. The bazaar, the Latin Bridge and the mosques are free. The Trebević cable car, rebuilt in 2018, rises to the abandoned 1984 Winter Olympics bobsled track on the mountain.

Mostar, with its rebuilt Old Bridge, is the usual next stop, and the Sarajevo to Mostar train is one of the region's most scenic journeys; buses also run to Belgrade. The caveat is winter air pollution, which can be bad in the valley, and the train timetable is limited, so check departures. From the airport, take a bus or taxi to the centre. History and culture are the reasons to come.

Skopje, North Macedonia

Statues, a bazaar and the road to Lake Ohrid define Skopje, the capital of North Macedonia, one of the least expensive capitals in Europe and one of the oddest. The Skopje 2014 project covered the centre with statues, neoclassical facades and fountains, including a huge equestrian warrior widely taken to be Alexander the Great. Cross the Ottoman Stone Bridge and you enter the Old Bazaar, one of the largest in the Balkans, with mosques, caravanserais and cheap grills.

Matka Canyon, a short bus ride from the city, offers kayaking and hiking around a reservoir with medieval monasteries on its banks. Mother Teresa was born in Skopje, and a memorial house stands on the site of the church where she was baptised.

Most backpackers combine Skopje with Lake Ohrid, a UNESCO-listed lake and town three to four hours away by bus; spend at least two nights there, as it is the highlight of the country. The caveat is that the centre's monuments look unfinished in places and summer heat in the valley is strong.

An airport shuttle bus reaches town, and hostels sit around the Old Bazaar and the centre. The bazaar, the Stone Bridge and Kale Fortress are free, which makes this culture on a shoestring. Buses continue to Ohrid, Sofia and Tirana.

Riga, Latvia

The Art Nouveau capital of the Baltics, Riga is the largest city in the Baltic states and cheaper than most of Scandinavia across the sea. Its Old Town is UNESCO listed, and the Art Nouveau district around Alberta iela has some of the finest buildings of that style in Europe, free to admire from the street.

Riga Central Market fills five former zeppelin hangars and is the cheapest place to eat in the city: smoked fish, rye bread, pastries and cafeteria-style meals. Lunch there keeps daily costs low. The Latvian Ethnographic Open-Air Museum on the edge of the city and the beach resort of Jūrmala, a short train ride away, add variety. See our Latvia page for more.

The caveat is the weather. Winters are long, cold and dark, so backpacking season is really May to September. Old Town hostels can get noisy with stag groups at weekends; the edge of the Old Town, near the market, is a good base. Bus 22 runs from the airport to the centre, and buses go on to Vilnius and Tallinn. Architecture fans get the most from Riga.

Vilnius, Lithuania

Bohemian, Baroque and covered in street art, Vilnius has a large and beautiful old town, UNESCO listed, with church towers in every direction. It is relaxed, green and cheaper than most EU capitals. The self-declared Republic of Užupis, an artists' district with its own tongue-in-cheek constitution posted on a wall, is a favourite with backpackers.

Climb Gediminas Hill for the view over red roofs, visit the Gate of Dawn chapel, and wander the street art around the city. Trakai Island Castle, on a lake about 30 minutes away by bus or train, is the classic day trip; go early to see the castle before tour groups arrive. Cepelinai, potato dumplings with meat filling, are the national dish and very filling.

Vilnius sits on the overland route between the Baltics and Poland: buses run to Riga and Warsaw, and there is a rail link toward Kraków via Warsaw. The caveat, as in Riga, is a short summer season. A train or bus connects the airport with the centre, and hostels are in the Old Town and Užupis, both free to explore along with Gediminas Hill. It suits slow, quiet city days.

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An overland backpacking route through cheap European cities

These cities link into two practical overland loops. The Balkan loop starts in Budapest and runs south by train to Belgrade, by bus to Sarajevo and Mostar, then down to the coast or across to Tirana, Skopje and Ohrid, and finishes in Sofia and Bucharest. Allow three to four weeks to do it without rushing.

The northern route links the Baltics with Poland: Riga to Vilnius by bus, on to Warsaw and Kraków, then south to Budapest. Two to three weeks covers it. On the Balkan loop, the first leg is still in flux: the rebuilt Budapest to Belgrade railway carries freight on the Hungarian side, but passenger trains had been delayed repeatedly by signalling problems as of autumn 2026, so check whether through trains are running before you rule out the bus. Flying into one end and out of the other saves backtracking; search flights into Budapest, Kraków or Riga, where low-cost carriers are strong.

How to choose the right cheap city for your trip

If you want nightlife, Belgrade, Budapest and Bucharest deliver the most for the least. For history, Kraków and Sarajevo are the most rewarding, and for mountains and day hikes, Sofia and Skopje give access to real wilderness by local bus. Riga and Vilnius suit travellers who like quieter, walkable cities and northern summer light.

Schengen matters for long trips. Serbia, Albania, North Macedonia and Bosnia and Herzegovina are outside the Schengen Area, so for many passport holders, days spent there do not count toward the 90-in-180-day Schengen limit. Bulgaria and Romania joined Schengen fully in 2025. Rules depend on your nationality, so check before you plan a long route. Since 10 April 2026, the EU's Entry/Exit System registers fingerprints and a photo for non-EU visitors at Schengen borders and counts the days automatically, so overstays are easier to detect. The separate ETIAS travel authorisation for visa-free visitors has no confirmed start date yet.

Where a backpacker's money goes in these cities

Accommodation is still the biggest single cost, even here. A dorm bed in Sofia, Skopje or Sarajevo costs a fraction of one in Amsterdam, but in Budapest and Kraków summer demand pushes rates up, and the best-rated hostels sell out on Friday and Saturday nights. Private rooms in guesthouses are often only slightly more than a dorm in the Balkan cities, which makes them worth checking if you are travelling as a pair.

Food is where the savings really show. Bakeries selling burek and banitsa, grill houses serving ćevapi, Polish milk bars and Baltic market canteens all feed you well for very little. Alcohol is cheap in the Balkans and Poland, less so in the Baltics. Transport within cities is inexpensive everywhere on this list, and intercity buses cost far less than Western European trains. The costs that catch people out are entry tickets to big sights, thermal baths in Budapest, organised day trips (Rila, Auschwitz-Birkenau tours with transport, Trakai), and nights out in the busiest bar districts. Budget for one or two of those per city and the rest of your day stays cheap.

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Tips for backpacking cheaply in eastern Europe

The cheapest way to backpack these cities is to join the free, tip-based walking tour on your first day, where guides share where locals eat, and to eat the fixed daily lunch menu, which costs much less than dinner. In Poland, look for milk bars.

• Join free walking tours. Every city on this list has tip-based walking tours. They are a great first-day orientation, and guides share where locals eat cheaply.
• Eat the lunch menu. Many restaurants offer a fixed daily lunch menu much cheaper than dinner. In Poland, look for milk bars.
• Avoid exchange booths. Use bank ATMs and decline the machine's offer to convert into your home currency. Exchange booths in tourist zones often give poor rates.
• Book buses online where possible. Popular routes like Sarajevo to Mostar or Riga to Vilnius fill up in summer. Online booking saves seats and sometimes money. Riga to Vilnius takes about four hours by coach.
• Check hostel location over price. A cheaper hostel far from the centre costs you in transport and time. Pay a little more to sleep within walking distance.
• Travel in shoulder season. May, June and September are warm, quieter and cheaper than July and August across the region.

Planning a trip to Budapest? Read our Budapest travel guide or search flights.