YOU don’t need a millionaire’s bank balance to swap drizzly grey skies for glamorous golden beaches and European city stays.
From affordable coastal towns along the Amalfi Coast to underrated foodie hotspots in Spain and Ireland, Europe is bursting with bargain breaks that won’t break the bank.
You could visit pretty Lisbon in Portugal on a £16.99 flight Credit: Getty
You can even visit Italy’s Amalfi Coast on a budget by flying into nearby Naples for £15 Credit: Getty
In fact, if you know where to look, you can bag cheap flights for under £20 each way and secure a hotel room from £39, which can work out even cheaper than a UK staycation.
Jattvibe Travel’s team of globetrotters have revealed some of their favourite wallet-friendly destinations across Europe – with flights starting from a mind-blowing £13 each way.
Lisbon, Portugal
Travel Reporter, Alice Penwill
Just two-and-a half-hours away from the UK, Lisbon is the ideal spot for a city break – you’ll have time to explore it in a weekend.
Travelling around Lisbon is easy thanks to its 58 trams that travel along six different routes – tickets usually cost between €3.10 (£2.70) and €3.30 (£2.87) if you buy them on board.
If you’re after sightseeing, you can buy a Lisboa card from £27, which gives you access to 51 museums and galleries across the city.
Drinks don’t cost a lot either; a fruity ‘vinho verde’ can set you back just a few euros – much less than a glass of wine in the UK.
You can bag a cheap flight with Ryanair from airports like London Stansted and Birmingham for £16.99 each way.
A great option to keep the cost down if you’re heading away with friends or family is to look for Airbnbs and split the cost.
One of the flats in the city centre can be booked out from £24pp per night (between five).
Seville, Spain
Deputy Travel Editor, Kara Godfrey
Seville has hot weather, famous flamenco and tasty local dishes – plus £14.99 flights Credit: Getty
As one of Spain‘s southernmost cities, you can always expect great weather in Seville (outside of summer, of course – unless you like 40C days).
When it comes to wining and dining, you’re spoilt for choice, so I’d recommend trying a Secret Food Tour (from £65) which takes you around the local-loved spots.
I had everything from churros and vermouth to pig cheeks and omelette along the way.
If you want a quick, cheap breakfast, go to Bar Alfalfa for a coffee and tomato toast for a few euros or a drink at El Rinconcillo, the city’s oldest bar.
The city is famed for its flamenco, but rather than forking out for a show, I simply headed to the parks where you can usually catch a live street performance for free.
Instead, save your money to see the city’s two top attractions – the Moorish Royal Alcazar Palace and Cathedral de Sevilla, the world’s largest Gothic church.
Flights with Ryanair start at £14.99 each way from London Luton, and you can also fly for £17.99 from Edinburgh.
Stay in the Only YOU Hotel as well – rooms can start from as little as £120 a night, but it feels much fancier than the price thanks to its private heated swimming pool, as well as on-site florist, bakery and chic bedrooms.
Cork, Ireland
Travel Reporter, Jenna Stevens
Bag a £14.99 to Ireland’s Cork and visit stunning seaside towns like Kinsale and Cobh Credit: Sophie Swietochowski
Many Brits head over to Dublin for its buzzy Temple Bar area, the scenery of Stephen’s Green and the lively busking culture of Grafton Street.
But Cork is an underrated, affordable Irish hotspot that many miss out on.
Hop on a £15.99 flight from London, and you’ll land in Cork in under an hour and a half.
There’s plenty to do that’s completely free, like browsing the stalls of the English Market, which dates back to the 18th century.
There’s also the Ardú Street Art Trail, a free outdoor trail that takes you to some of the city’s most vibrant murals and striking street art.
And on a sunny day, take a stroll through Fitzgerald Park, where there are 18 acres of manicured gardens, fountains and blooming flowerbeds to enjoy.
I also highly recommend hopping on a bus to the nearby town of Kinsale, where amazing seafood restaurants sit in between bright, pastel-coloured houses.
You can bag flights from London Stansted to Cork for £14.99 each way with Ryanair, and from £16.99 if you fly from London Gatwick.
Stay at Premier Inn Cork City Centre for an affordable and reliable room that’s a short walk from the city’s top sights. Rooms start at £84 per night.
Amsterdam, The Netherlands
Assistant Travel Editor, Sophie Swietochowski
Assistant Travel Editor Sophie Swietochowski recommends the Jordaan district for great bars Credit: Sophie Swietochowski
I feel sorry for the hordes of travellers who seemingly never venture further than the central canals of Amsterdam where cafes will charge you a bomb for a badly-made coffee.
I make sure to dart down a side street as soon as I get the opportunity to do so – you won’t be battling for that all-important canal picture if you walk five minutes up the road.
Wander down the charming lanes of the Jordaan district, where you’ll find an abundance of brown bars, the Dutch version of a traditional pub.
Here’s where you’ll pick up a bargain. Local beers and freshly fried bitterballen (stewed balls of meat with a mustard dip) for a few euros.
If you’re with a group of pals, ditch a guided canal boat tour and rent one to steer yourself.
It will cost you a fraction of the price, plus it’s more fun navigating the waterways solo, giving you the opportunity to stop at canal-side bars en route.
You can find flights to Amsterdam with easyJet from £17 on Skyscanner.
For a place to stay, the Zaan Hotel Amsterdam has rooms from £44 per night.
Naples and the Amalfi Coast, Italy
Head of Travel – Digital, Caroline McGuire
The Jattvibe’s Head Of Travel (Digital) under the lemons in Sorrento
The UK frequently has flights under £20 to Naples, which is ideal forthe summer season, as the city in southwest Italy is also the gatewayto one of the country’s stunning Amalfi coasts.
Now… I know what you’re thinking… the Amalfi Coast is one of themost luxurious destinations – how is that cheap?
But if you know how to do it properly, this stretch of coast can beextremely affordable.
The best way to get cheap places to stay is to head for the smallertowns and villages in the region.
So Minori, which is a short drive from Ravello, is a pretty andrelaxed seaside town with a 1st-century Roman villa and a sandy beach,It is famous for its pasta making.
A stay at the Hotel Europa in Minori costs from £60 a night in June andis within walking distance to the port, where you can catch a cheap ferryto the popular (but pricier) towns of Positano and Amalfi for a daytrip.
Or Vico Equense is a quaint cliffside town towards the beginning of theAmalfi Coast, reached by train or ferry in under an hour from Naples.
It is an easy 15-minute train ride to Sorrento from here, for daytrips to the town and affordable ferry rides to Capri or Positano, or a 25-minute train ride to Pompeii.
But it’s well worth spending some time in Vico Equense too.
It has incredible views over the Gulf of Naples and fantasticrestaurants, including the famous Da Gigino that serves pizza by themetre.
You can find flights from London to Naples for £15 each way on Skyscanner.
A stay at the highly rated 4-star Eden Bleu costs from £92 a night fortwo people in June, with simple but comfortable rooms and great views.
Copenhagen, Denmark
Travel Reporter, Alice Penwill
Travel Reporter Alice Penwill has shared her favourite ways to see Copenhagen on a budget Credit: Alice Penwill
It might not be considered one of the cheapest spots to go in Europe, but you can definitely make Copenhagen work on a budget.
At some of its cafes, you could pick up a tasty (and reasonably sized) classic Danish smørrebrød for under £10.
In bakeries, Danish pastries are made fresh; they’re around £4 each but are enormous, so you don’t feel short-changed.
The city is so walkable as well, so there’s no need to hire a car or even take a taxi as everything is so easily reachable on foot.
Even the Opera House, which is across one of the city’s many canals, can be walked to from the colourful Nyhavn in seven minutes.
There are flights available from London to Copenhagen from £15 each way on Skyscanner.
One of the cheapest hotels in the heart of Copenhagen is City Hotel Nebo, which can be booked from £68 per night or £34 each.
Ibiza, Spain
Head of Travel – Digital, Caroline McGuire
A trip to the glamorous island of Ibiza doesn’t have to be expensive when there are £19.99 flights Credit: Getty
If you know where to look, a stay in the famous White Isle canactually be incredibly affordable.
My best tip would be to choose one of the busier spots, as they’llalso have budget hotels, and stick to that area.
For instance, you could fill a long weekend with a stay in Ibiza Old TownTown for around £100pp a night – not bad for Ibiza prices.
The Hotel Vibra Lei Ibiza has rooms in June from £696 for two peopleover three nights.
This way, you can cruise the stunning Old Town and marina in theevening, spend your days down the road on Playa D’en Bossa beach withall the lively beach bars, and dance the night away at Ushuaia, Pachaor Hï.
Plus, the area is so close to the airport that you can catch a busback there at the end of your trip.
You can fly from London Stansted to Ibiza for £19.99 each way with Ryanair.
Majorca, Spain
Assistant Travel Editor, Sophie Swietochowski
Assistant Travel Editor Sophie Swietochowski recently took a trip to the sunny island of Majorca Credit: Sophie Swietochowski
The sun-drenched coastlines of Majorca are simply swimming with top-notch hotels and beach bars eager to catch holidaymakers’ attention.
I booked a short package getaway to this Spanish island last summer, and I don’t think I could have picked a better spot for a fly-and-flop break.
Days were spent flitting between pool and sun lounger, then sleepily wandering to the stretch of restaurants that line the beach to gorge on paella, washed down with rose wine.
The plethora of hotels on offer means there’s hot competition to fill those beds, and there are some scorchingly cheap package deals out there.
I stayed in Les Maravelles, a 17-minute bus ride from the airport and a short bus ride from Palma – journeys only cost a few euros return.
Of course, if you’re a shopaholic who’s trying to get more bang for your buck, Zara is cheaper in Spain so fill your boots (or suitcase!).
You can fly from London to Majorca from just £13 each way with flights on Skyscanner.
The Grupotel Acapulco Playa in Les Maravelles has rooms from £131 per night.
Milan, Italy
Deputy Travel Editor, Kara Godfrey
You can visit Milan in Italy on a £13.99 flight each way with Wizz Air, plus food and stays are affordable, too Credit: Getty
The Italian city of Milan often gets a bad rap when compared to the likes of Rome, Florence and Venice – but you can still find some less-touristy gems if you know where to look.
Of course, you have to visit the Galleria Vittorio Emanuele II, which is free and one of the world’s oldest shopping arcades, and the famous Duomo.
But after this, leave the main city centre for Navigli, a canal-side neighbourhood lined with restaurants and cafes and crisscrossed by arched bridges.
Iter is a great bar with friendly staff and fantastic wine, while the nearby Pizza AM is cheap and cheerful (and comes with a free glass of fizz).
Film buffs should head to Bar Luce, a retro-style cafe designed by filmmaker Wes Anderson.
You can fly from London to Milan for £13.99 each way with Wizz Air.
NYX Hotel Milan is a great affordable hotel that has a lobby bar, DJ and rooftop terrace, with rooms from £93 per night.
Barcelona, Spain
Assistant Travel Editor, Sophie Swietochowski
You can fly to Spanish hotspot Barcelona from £13.99 each way to explore its nightlife and foodie scene Credit: Sophie Swietochowski
I could never tire of Barcelona. It’s a destination I’ll return to time and time again, not just because of its proximity to the UK, but the fact that it is so diverse.
Few places offer world-class shopping and energetic city nightlife within walking distance of a sandy beach and coastal bars selling €3 tortilla skewers.
Wander a little off the beaten track, away from the tourist-y areas, and you’ll not only keep costs low but you’ll be uncovering the more authentic side – this is especially true for Barcelona’s food scene.
Try La Cova Fumada, just a short walk from the beachfront in La Barcelonata.
It’s a very unassuming and fuss-free spot that serves very traditional tapas dishes including grilled sardines and mashed potato balls topped with aioli for a few euros each.
You can fly from London to Barcelona from £13.99 each way with Wizz Air.
There are plenty of affordable stays, such as the ibis Barcelona Santa Coloma from £69 per night.
