With good reason, Bulgaria often tops lists of Europe's budget travel destinations. Bulgaria is still mainly unknown to tourists, with the exception of those who come during the summer to take advantage of the country's affordable vacation opportunities near the Black Sea.

Even then, your costs for lodging, transportation, and entertainment will be far lower than they would be in Western Europe. Price reductions during the off-season allow you to travel, ski, and eat for a tenth of what it costs in the West. The Central Balkan National Park tops the list for great hikes and magnificent views. The countryside is one of the best parts of visiting Bulgaria, where castles, villages, and hiking trails are either free or very cheap to visit. While Sofia is frequently the first stop for tourists, smaller cities with more than 200 archaeological sites, like Plovdiv, are even more affordable to explore. Outside of the summer, hotels in Bulgaria are affordable, and many offer free shuttle service in addition to free breakfast.

Romania is one of the least expensive travel destinations in Europe, particularly if you want to hike in the Carpathian Mountains or are mainly interested in seeing the countryside. Even a trip to Brasov, where Dracula's Bran Castle is located, may be extremely reasonably priced if you sign up for a sightseeing day tour or don't mind taking a slow train out of Bucharest.

Romanian trains are safe and fairly affordable, though they are not always in the best condition. The Old Town from the fifteenth century, Revolution Square, and Romania's own Arch of Triumph are some of Bucharest's most stunning landmarks, and they are all either free to enter or very reasonably priced. You might take one of the many free walking tours that leave from the town center, or you can rent a bike in the warmer months to explore smaller cities. Most of the time, grocery shopping here is not worthwhile because eating out is affordable and filling in Romania. Local specialties like sarmale (cabbage rolls), cozonac (sweet bread), or mamaliga (polenta, usually served with sour cream and strong cheese) are cheap, frequently available at street food vendors, and a great way to sample some Romanian food.

Since Montenegro only regained its independence in 2006, it is a very new country that many people find difficult to locate on a map. Expect fairly affordable food prices in Montenegro. You will fall in love with the hearty, meaty local dishes, such as the pie-like burek stuffed with meat.

Weekends in most cities also have farmers' markets, which are great locations to buy a cheap snack or quick meal. The shore of Montenegro is thronged with tourists in July and August, many of them are Russian citizens who can enter the country without a visa. If you're visiting the trendy coastal towns of Budva or Herceg Novi, avoid traveling during the summer; otherwise, travel inland to see the untamed mountains, glacial lakes, and UNESCO-listed walled villages. A beautiful location for swimming and trekking, for instance, is Crno Jezero, a mountain lake surrounded by a deep greenish-blue forest. Ada Bojana, a small island away from the expensive coastal towns, is a popular spot for kiteboarding and a great summer vacation location with very reasonable pricing.

The most appealing places in Portugal are those where visitors may enjoy the outdoors, the sun, and nature for free. For its soft golden sands, cliffs, and lighthouses, the Faro District in the south of the country is a well-liked vacation spot. In comparison, tourists flock to Madeira for its untamed volcanic hiking trails, stunning harbor, and excellent scuba diving.

Traveling to Portugal outside of the peak of the tourist season (June to August) will lead to significant savings on lodging and food. It's the best time to travel to get the best deals because costs decrease even further from November to February while temperatures stay at 17 to 18 degrees Celsius. With the exception of the cost of transportation, some of Portugal's most interesting locations are free to explore. These include the historic town of Evora, a World Heritage Site, and the Templar Castle and Convent of Christ in the city of Tomar, both of which date back to the 12th century.

Slovenia is a small nation bordered by three giants: Hungary, Italy, and Austria. The nation is mountainous and has dense forests. However, the majority of visitors come for the coastline because Slovenia, which is situated along the Adriatic Sea, has many reasonably priced sandy beaches and plenty of sunshine.

The beaches are all public and free, so it's possible to keep prices down even during peak season, even though the summer brings more expensive hotels along the coast. Late April, when temperatures are already summery but the tourists haven't yet come, is a very affordable time to visit Koper beach and the surrounding Mestna beach, Moon Bay, and the well-known seaside resort of Portoroz. Lake Bled is probably the most well-known location away from the shore. The lake, one of the most beautiful landscapes in the nation, is a cheap destination and is only 35 kilometers from Ljubljana, the nation's capital. Other inexpensive vacation spots include the fortified village of Tanjel, the medieval town of Piran, and Triglav National Park, where you can walk to the top of Mount Triglav in two days while spending the night in a mountain hut.

Hungary is one of the most expensive nations in Eastern Europe, although it is still considerably less expensive than visiting popular spots in the Western part of the continent. The Chain Bridge walk across the Danube and a tour of the Castle Hill neighborhood are two of the many free things to do in Budapest, the capital of Hungary. The underground Castle Labyrinth and Buda Castle are only two of the attractions in the Castle region that aren't free to visit, but they're still extremely reasonably priced.

The city of Budapest hosts a "Night of the Museums" every June during which you can explore many Budapest attractions for free. Budapest's oldest indoor market, the neo-Gothic Great Market Hall, is a great place to look for inexpensive gifts and snacks, including a variety of traditional Hungarian foods. The nation's favorite fast food is lángos, a type of deep-fried pizza topped with cheese, tomato sauce, or sour cream. Street food is another excellent option to save money when traveling there. Things get significantly less expensive outside of the capital. Prices are significantly lower year-round in Tihany, a lake resort town, and in the Bükk Mountains, a popular destination for outdoor adventure.

Bratislava, the capital of Slovakia, is undoubtedly the most costly city in the nation, but even here, you can keep your vacation affordable by utilizing the many free things the city has to offer. Bratislava is home to a large number of street sculptures, including life-size Napoleon's soldiers leaning against benches and bronze workmen rising from sewer holes, in addition to many tiny galleries dispersed across the entire city.

The majority of the best sights and activities to do are located in and around the Old Town center region of Bratislava, the country's capital, which is a small city that is easy to explore on foot. If you're traveling outside the city, trains and buses are cheap and comfortable. However, Slovakia has a lot of outdoor activities available, and most of them are free. There are hundreds of kilometers of hiking trails in the High Tatras, which are the tallest mountains in Slovakia and a large national park. The trails are ideal for trekking and exploration from June through October. Many of them turn into fantastic locations for cross-country and downhill skiing, as well as snowshoeing, throughout the winter. In Slovakia, all national parks are cost-free. Numerous castles, memorials, monuments, and UNESCO World Heritage Sites can all be visited for free or for a very low cost in Slovakia.

Avoid traveling to Krakow and Warsaw in the summer if they are your main destinations because they are not always inexpensive. The spring months of March and April are the best times to visit urban Poland because the weather is warming up, the cost of living is still affordable, and the castles and palaces that were closed for the winter are now reopening, often at discounted prices.

You won't waste time standing in line because Poland's most well-known attractions, such as the Auschwitz-Birkenau camps, the Wieliczka Salt Mine, and Schindler's factory, are significantly less crowded in the off-season. The Old Town Hall tower in Krakow, the 13th-century Castle of the Teutonic Order in Malbork, and the historic Bialowieza Forest are some of the places to see in the nation that are cheap or free. The Royal Castle in Warsaw is free to enter on Wednesdays, while the Chopin Museum is free on Sundays. This is a common practice among museums in larger cities. Although trains in Poland aren't usually particularly affordable, buses can take you practically any place for very little money. You can travel to even the smallest towns in Poland on comfortable, free Wi-Fi-equipped long-distance buses like those from Flixbus.

Although the Czech Republic is no longer as cheap as it once was, you can still get great deals if you travel outside of Prague, the country's capital. This is particularly true in the wintertime (except for the second half of December, as the weeks around Christmastime are prime tourist season). The most affordable months are January and February; but, March through May also has some excellent deals on travel and lodging.

It may be helpful to get a map and explore Prague on your own because most of the city's top sights are free but also included in many paid tours. This includes strolling across Charles Bridge, pausing by the Astronomical Clock, and exploring the medieval structures and cobblestone streets of Old Town Square. Other popular tourist locations across the nation, such as the fairy-tale town of Cesky Krumlov, the unusual town of Sedlec and its ossuary chapel, and the endless trails and mountains in Bohemian Switzerland National Park, offer far more affordable prices. If you book far enough in advance, the hotels at these locations will be reasonably priced even during the high season.

One of the least expensive Western European nations to go to is Italy. There is no reason at all to ever take a taxi while in Italy because the country's public transit system is so amazing. As a result, if you try to travel from Milan to Pompeii in one trip, you'll probably end up paying a lot of money for high-speed trains.

Instead, if at all possible, choose one region and stay in it, allowing you to travel using local trains and buses. The local slower trains will take three times as long but cost you a quarter of the price if you absolutely must see the sights of Rome and Venice in one trip. Similar rules apply to the major tourist attractions in the nation. The bigger attractions, like the Colosseum or the Vatican, all have expensive entrance fees, so choose just a few of your favorites and spend the rest of your trip at cheap or free attractions, like strolling through the Villa Borghese Gardens or tossing a coin into the Trevi Fountain. Avoiding a trip to Italy in the summer, when everything is more expensive, lineups for attractions are hours long, and the humid weather makes everything a little more inconvenient, is the best way to save money there.