Madrid and Barcelona fifth and sixth-most expensive cities in Europe to visit
Madrid and Barcelona fifth and sixth-most expensive cities in Europe to visit
BARCELONA and Madrid are among the most expensive cities in Europe to be a tourist, according to a recent study by the motoring association RACC.
Based upon the cost of a 'basic basket of goods', defined as simple foodstuffs, eating out, public transport and entry to typical tourist attractions including safari parks, museums, monuments, galleries and theme parks, Madrid was the fifth-most expensive and Barcelona sixth.
The cost of buses, trains, trams, taxis and the metro is very similar in all cities studied, whilst the others differ greatly.
South-eastern Europe was found to be the cheapest part of the continent to visit, whilst cities in the south-west and the north, the most pricey.
A basket of basic groceries in Oslo, the most expensive city in Europe, costs an average 153 euros – just 10 euros more than in Paris, which was second, and London, in third position.
Paris was found to be more expensive than London purely based upon the cost of eating or drinking in its bars, cafés and restaurants, but the British capital had higher prices for its attractions such as the Tower of London, the London Eye, and some of its museums.
Both cost more to visit than Copenhagen – in the Danish capital, it costs 134 euros to fill a grocery basket, compared to 127 in Madrid and 126 in Barcelona, or 124 in Amsterdam and 123 in Brussels, which came seventh and eighth respectively.
The top eight on the list were considered 'very expensive'.
Berlin and Lisbon, with a typical shopping-basket price of 104 and 101 euros respectively, were slightly below the average which was calculated at 106 euros.
At the other end of the scale, the cheapest city to visit is the capital of Serbia, Belgrade, where buying groceries costs 41 euros for a full basket – a quarter of the price in Oslo – and all other features such as eating out, going to a bar or café, travelling around or entries to its main attractions were more economical than anywhere else in Europe.
Croatia's capital, Zagreb, came in at 56 euros for a basket of goods, just below the capital of Slovenia, Ljubljana at 63 euros.
Although travelling to the capitals of the Czech Republic and Hungary were not greatly more expensive in terms of a basket of groceries – 69 euros for Prague and 73 for Budapest – the cost of visiting their most popular attractions was found to be disproportionately high, pushing them further up the list.
Photograph: The Royal Palace, one of Madrid's top attractions
