You don\'t have to break into the bank To take a summer trip overseas
Three years ago when Ralph and Barbara Jenkins traveled to Europe they stayed in a Paris hotel suite.
This year when the Overland Park couple visit Paris and Amsterdam, "we\'re not going to have a suite, that\'s for sure," Ralph Jenkins says.
Three years ago in Paris, "you could have a first-class dinner for two with a couple of cocktails and a bottle of wine cheaper than you could on the Country Club Plaza," he says.
This year he\'s expecting to pay about 50 percent more.
Three years ago the American dollar was worth 1.12 euros.
This year it\'s exchanging for .83 euros.
No doubt about it, as the dollar continues to struggle against European currencies, finding an affordable way to see Europe has become increasingly difficult. But what\'s a traveler supposed to do? Stay home? Go anyway but cut back on activities and sightseeing? Not if you\'re Ralph Jenkins, whose daughter Ashley graduates from Blue Valley North High School this spring.
"We\'re taking her to Paris for four days and to Amsterdam for four days," says Jenkins, a manufacturer\'s representative who sells furniture to retailers. "We\'ll probably do the same things (as in years past) but just choke a little bit."
Bookings to Europe have been increasing since last July. Travel Weekly, an industry newspaper, reported in March that 12.4 million Americans are expected to visit the Continent this year, the highest number since a record 12.8 million visitors arrived in 2000.
The question may not be whether to go, but when, where and how to travel affordably to Europe.
Getting around in Europe
Once you arrive in Europe, it\'s pretty easy to go from one city to another and inexpensive to travel inside cities.
"Inter-European airfares are amazingly low, with Ryanair and a few of the others," says George of Lonely Planet.
Europe by Air, for example ( www.europebyair.com), sells $99 (plus tax) one-way tickets that connect 150 cities across Europe on more than 20 airlines.
Rail travel is a particularly good way to see Europe, and with a rail pass it can be inexpensive. Many Eurailpasses ( www.eurail.com, 1-888-438-7245) cost the same as they did last year, including the 17-country Eurailpass ($588 U.S. for unlimited travel over 15 days) and the three- to five-country Eurail Selectpass ($356-$438 for five days of travel).
Sudeikis points out that because Eurailpasses must be purchased in advance in the United States, the price won\'t change as it might with European currencies - another advantage.
If you can travel overnight, you may even be able save the cost of a hotel room.