The Annual Post Office Travel Money 2019 City Costs Barometer has revealed the top ten European city breaks that represent the best value for British holidaymakers, with Eastern European cities featuring prominently.
Coming in at the top of the list is Vilnius, the Lithuanian capital, with Belgrade and Warsaw coming in second and third respectively, with costs lower than perennial city break favourites, Krakow and Tallinn.
Rounding out the rest of the top ten are: Istanbul, Bucharest, Porto, Riga, Bratislava, Moscow and Prague.
At ?147.35, the total cost of 12 spending items in Vilnius ? including a range of drinks, an evening meal for two with wine, two nights? three-star weekend accommodation, sightseeing charges and city transport ? was down 11.1% year-on-year. Prices in Belgrade were ?4 higher at ?151.57, a rise of 1.9% since then.
The only other top ten city where prices have risen since last spring is Riga (up 3.4% to ?179), although accommodation in the Latvian capital remains cheapest across Europe at ?67 for a two-night stay for two people sharing a room. Warsaw (?160) has risen to third place from fourth last year on the back of a staggering 11.5% fall in prices. Costs are down by 7% in Moscow (?187) and 5.3% in Prague (?190).
This year?s report found that accommodation prices have fallen in almost three-quarters of the cities surveyed, with costs varying from ?67 to ?270 for a two-night weekend stay for two at the end of March. For the second consecutive year the Post Office found that evening meals are cheapest in Athens, where the cost of three courses with a bottle of house wine is on par with last year at ?36.65. Istanbul is almost as cheap at ?36.66, while a meal in Warsaw costs just over ?38. On the other side of the spectrum, visitors to Stockholm could pay ?130 for their evening meal, while eating out in Oslo costs even more at around ?141 for two people.
