After blowing our daily budget in Switzerland and Liechtenstein, we continued traveling through Central Europe for two more weeks. Slovenia, Slovakia and Austria were definitely more affordable than Switzerland and Liechtenstein, but we still consistently exceeded our $75/day per person budget.

Overall, Central Europe is probably the most expensive region we’ll explore on this trip (unless we make it to Australia & New Zealand). Even with having negligible costs for the entire first week of September (thanks to staying with family), we barely stayed under our monthly budget in September. (We had $47.32 left at the end of the month! Whew.) Here’s a detailed breakdown of everything we spent in Central Europe from September 13 to 27.

Slovenia: $1,157.47

Transportation: $40.91

This includes round-trip bus fare from Bled to Bohinj, a one-way shuttle from Bled to Ljubljana, and a local bus ride in Ljubljana. Average: $5.84/day.

Lodging: $435.61

We stayed at the adorable Garden House Bled for $75.42/night and Ad Hoc Hostel in Ljubljana for $52.34/night (prices include all fees and taxes). At both hostels, we chose a private room with shared bathroom. Average: $62.23/night.

Eating out: $431.20

Aside from one home-cooked dinner in Bled, we ate out for every meal in Slovenia, which definitely did not keep our costs low. We could have bought groceries in Ljubljana, but our hostel did not have a kitchen. Slovenia also has a nice selection of wines, so we often drank wine (or beer/cider) with our meals, which contributed to our high spending in this category. Average: $61.60/day.

Treats: $81.42

We like treats, so this category includes any coffee, dessert or alcohol that was not purchased as part of a meal (or a grocery run). In Bled, we visited several bakeries to try the local cakes (including potica and Bled Cream Cake). In Ljubljana, one of our favorite activities was sitting at a riverside café with a coffee or cocktail, so we enjoyed plenty of treats while in Slovenia. (And we can’t forget about our near-daily ice cream habit!) Average: $11.63/day.

Groceries/household items: $29.30

We cooked one dinner at our hostel in Bled, as mentioned above, and also bought some snacks and drinks for bus rides. Average: $4.19/day.

Entertainment (tours, etc.): $61.51

Most of our entertainment in and around Bled was hiking, and most of our entertainment in Ljubljana was enjoying treats along the river, but we also did quite a few paid activities. We paid a small fee to hike Mostnica Gorge in Bohinj (3 euros each); rented stand-up paddleboards on Lake Bohinj (10 euros/hour) and a rowboat on Lake Bled (20 euros for one hour); and rode the summer toboggan in Bled (10 euros). In Ljubljana, we joined a free walking tour (20 euro tip) and a wine tasting event. The wine tasting actually cost around $90 USD, but we received a $100 gift card from Airbnb that we applied to the wine tasting, so it was free for us! Average: $8.79/day.

Gifts & souvenirs: $30.48

We usually aren’t big shoppers, but Ljubljana is full of adorable little specialty shops that we enjoyed perusing. So in addition to our typical postcards and stamps, we also purchased some local honey and chocolate. Average: $4.35/day.

Travel insurance: $47.04

We have travel insurance through World Nomads for $6.72/day. Travel insurance costs will vary depending on chosen plan, length of travel, location, etc.

Slovenia total: $165.35/day = $82.68/person* per day

Slovakia (Bratislava): $277.41

Transportation: $0

We took a bus from Ljubljana to Bratislava and then a ferry from Bratislava to Vienna (costs described below), but we didn’t spend any money on transportation within the city, as we could walk everywhere. Average: $0/day.

Lodging: $113.41

We rented an entire apartment that was easy walking distance from the Old Town on Airbnb. Average: $56.71/night.

Eating out: $103.44

As we were in Bratislava for such a short time (only two nights), we ate out for almost every meal. Restaurants are reasonably priced in Bratislava, especially if you go outside the Old Town. We preferred to eat on Obchodná Street, which was close to our apartment and full of options. Average: $51.72/day.

Treats: $15.93

We like treats, so this category includes any coffee, dessert or alcohol that was not purchased as part of a meal (or a grocery run). In Bratislava, we treated ourselves at a few adorable coffeeshops, including Eleven Books & Coffee and Sweet Beans Coffee. Average: $7.97/day.

Groceries/household items: $14.33

Drinks and chips to snack on in our apartment. Average: $7.17/day.

Entertainment (tours, etc.): $16.42

Free walking tour in Bratislava. Average: $8.21/day.

Gifts & souvenirs: $0.44

One postcard for our collection. Average: $0.22/day.

Travel insurance: $13.44

We have travel insurance through World Nomads for $6.72/day. Travel insurance costs will vary depending on chosen plan, length of travel, location, etc.

Slovakia total: $138.71/day = $69.35/person* per day

[We previously spent five days traveling in eastern Slovakia in mid-July, where our actual costs averaged $51.59/person per day.]

Austria (Vienna): $812.93

Transportation: $0

Vienna is not the cheapest city, so though we stayed pretty far from the “Loop” (the main tourist area of Vienna), we still walked everywhere in the city to avoid buying a metro card. Average: $0/day.

Lodging: $214.30

Entire apartments in Vienna were very expensive, so we opted for a private room through Airbnb. It was a bit far from the main action (about a 30-minute walk to the Loop) and we had to share a single bathroom with three other couples. Although the price was fairly low for Vienna, we would not recommend the room. Average: $53.58/night.

Eating out: $238.33

In addition to eating out for all our meals in Austria, we accidentally spent $40 USD on peppers at Naschmarkt for lunch one day. Oops. Splitting a pastry and two coffees for breakfast cost us about $13 USD, and a relatively cheap meal (two sausages and soft drinks from a wurstel stand) cost us about $17 USD. Of course, having a meal at a sit-down restaurant will cost more, but we often ate dinner near our apartment (i.e. outside the Loop), where restaurants are generally more affordable. Average: $59.58/day.

Treats: $54.45

We like treats, so this category includes any coffee, dessert or alcohol that was not purchased as part of a meal (or a grocery run). The café culture is a big part of visiting Vienna, so this was mostly coffee and pastries, as well as two drinks at the opera. Average: $13.61/day.

Groceries/household items: $1.74

Well … we definitely could have saved some money by buying more groceries in Vienna. 😉 I bought a hard cider one day to enjoy at the apartment. Average: $0.44/day.

Entertainment (tours, etc.): $251.16

Our largest cost by far in Austria was a cycling wine tour in the Wachau Valley (just under $220 USD, not including gratuity). On our last evening in Vienna, we bought standing-room-only tickets at the Vienna Opera for 10 euros each. We also planned to take a free walking tour in Vienna, but when we showed up, the tour had been canceled. So we gave ourselves a free self-guided walking tour from the Rick Steves travel guide (borrowed from our library for free through Libby!). Average: $62.79/day.

Gifts & souvenirs: $26.07

Postcards and stamps, plus a bottle of wine and some chocolate from our wine tasting excursion. Average: $6.52/day.

Travel insurance: $26.88

We have travel insurance through World Nomads for $6.72/day. Travel insurance costs will vary depending on chosen plan, length of travel, location, etc.

Austria total: $203.23/day = $101.62/person* per day

The above totals only represent costs that can be assigned entirely to one city in order to clearly delineate the costs of each city. We also spent $63.01 on bus tickets between Ljubljana and Bratislava, and $77.19 to take the ferry from Bratislava to Vienna. (You can definitely take a bus or train for cheaper, but the ferry ride along the Danube was fun!) In the miscellaneous category, we spent 5 euros on a load of laundry (washer and dryer) in Ljubljana, and another euro on public bathrooms while traveling.

Total: $2,395.16 = $184.24/day = $92.12/person* per day

*Did you know we have a new page on the blog completely dedicated to Money & Budgeting? Check it out! We also list our country-specific costs on this page, but those numbers might differ a bit from the numbers shown here. The numbers in our detailed budgeting posts (like this one) are a true reflection of what we personally spent on our trip. The numbers on the Money & Budgeting page are meant to reflect what a typical tourist traveling at our comfort level can expect to spend.

Of course, you can always spend far less (or far more) than the numbers listed here or on our Money & Budgeting page. These figures are provided as a loose guide to help you plan travels within your budget range.

Featured image: Colorful cafes just outside the Jewish quarter in Bratislava, Slovakia