Today’s budget-saving tips come from the readers of Fodor’s, who offer some very useful ways to stretch your woefully weak dollar, such as:
- Bars always have two different prices: If you have your coffee at the counter it’s cheaper than when a waiter serves it at a table.
- For the art lover on a budget: Most of the art I saw in Rome is free. Where else can you see countless Caravaggios, two Michelangelos, and even more Berninis for the cost of the wear and tear on the soles of your shoes?
- Invest in the bus schedule — at any place they sell tickets. Cost is €4. It gives you all the routes, how long between buses, hours they run, where you hop on/off to transfer etc.
The Unofficial Guide to Central Italy (4th edition due out March 24!) and this blog also offer lots of money-saving tips for Rome, Florence, and elsewhere in Italy. In addition to suggesting the three tips above, we have also advocated alternative accommodations, such as convents/monasteries or agritourism farmstays, and investing in a Roma Pass or other combined tickets.
If you’re visiting this spring - particularly from March 25-31 - there’s another great way to save with Culture Week (Settimana della Cultura 2008). During the week, all state-owned museums will be free to the public and many will have longer visiting hours to handle the demand. To can search through hundreds of programs that will be free during Culture Week with the Culture Ministry’s search tool (in Italian, but mostly intuitive).
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