Travel Expenses From Macedonia and Greece
Aug
For the last seven months I’ve been riding my little red folding bike through central and eastern Europe… and along the way I’ve been sharing my monthly travel expenses with you.
To view my reports from months 1-6, please see the following:
Last month (July) I traveled from Kosovo to Skopje, Macedonia, where I stayed for two weeks before cycling east to the city of Strumica. I stayed in Strumica, Macedonia for five days and then pedaled my way into Bulgaria, and from there, south into Greece. I did a little stealth camping in northern Greece and then cycled down into Thessaloniki where I spent a few days exploring the city before hoping on an overnight bus to Piraeus. The next day, I made my way through the streets of Athens and checked into a tiny basement apartment just outside the Acropolis – my home for the next month-and-a-half.
Here are my travel expenses from the month of July:
Lodging:
- 14 nights in a Skopje, Macedonia apartment – 350 Euros ($503.65 USD)
- 5 nights in a Strumica, Macedonia hotel – 100 Euros ($143.92 USD)
- 10 nights in an Athens, Greece apartment – 230 Euros ($331.04 USD)
Transportation:
- Bus from Thessaloniki to Athens, Greece – 35 Euros ($50.37)
Souvenirs
- 1 T-shirt, 2 other little trinkets – 23 Euros ($33.09)
Food & Toiletries
- Food, Meals Out & Toiletries – $208.69
TOTAL EXPENSES FOR THE MONTH OF JULY: $1,270.76
If this isn’t the type of traveling you want to do yourself, and you’re looking for information on how much a more traditional bike tour might cost, don’t worry. I’ll be sharing that data with you at some point in the future. I’ve got a few shorter, more traditional tours planned for the coming year and I’ll share my expenses with you on those trips as well.
I just wish I had been running this site when I first started traveling with my bike. My expenses back then were just a couple hundred dollars for an entire month’s worth of travel. Looking back now, I don’t know how I did it!
Wow, not exactly cheap! Just out of curiosity..,
1) How are you making income on this trip?
2) Why did you start your tour in Switzerland (in Jan)…rather than Greece? Isn’t it hot in Greece now? Thought it might be wiser to go the opposite, since you said earlier that you didn’t like riding in the cold 😉 Anyway you go, your trip still looks awesome. Wish I could do that!
Hey Jim,
I’ll answer your first question in a future post, because the answer is really long.
As for your second question, I started in Switzerland because my goal with coming to Europe was to try and learn German. I never planned on coming to Greece when I first started planning this trip… and I never planned on being in Europe for 9 months. The plan from the beginning was to simply amble about Switzerland, Germany and Austria for 4-5 months and then fly home. 16 countries and 9 months later… I’m still here and having a blast!
If I had planned this out, I probably would have done the whole trip in reverse. But riding in the snow and cold was a blast and I think my future trips will likely be in colder climates. I prefer to cold so much more than heat we are now experiencing in Greece. I’d love some snow and cold right now.
im 22 and ive been dyin to travel in greece alone… and as i was searching for atleast a knowledge how much to go there… OH my GOD!… hehehe… just so… i really like your post… kinda help me.. thanks again…
be there soon…. =)
Hi Darren
I am really interested in these articles as I am a budget traveler and always thought Europe would be too expensive for me. Will you be sharing how you found your apartments please, as every website I have looked at is way more expensive. I would love some help with this as I am 70 and will be traveling alone. This will be my trip of a life time! Thank you so much for the inspiration.
Best wishes for all your travels!
Hi Elynne,
Yes, I will do more of these articles in the future… especially if you find them helpful or inspiring in some way.
As for how I’m currently finding cheap apartments all around the world, my main source at the moment is this website: http://bicycletouringpro.com/airbnb
I’m currently renting an apartment in Romania from this website… that has cost me only $400 USD per month. And it’s right in the heart of the city center, steps away from restaurants, the supermarket, tourist attractions, etc. So great!