Budget for a Trip to France

Once you’ve decided it’s time for a vacation, the reality starts to set in. Is France expensive and how much would it cost to travel to France? The cost of vacationing in France greatly depends on your travel style and what you enjoy doing. Having just come back from a 9-day vacation to France, I put together what the budget in France was for me.

If you can afford it, France is a fantastic country to visit. I love that once you get out of Paris, there is so much to explore. The Loire Valley is one of my favourite places I’ve visited, and easily one of the most romantic places to travel to. Your money doesn’t go as far in France as it can in other places in Europe so the solution for me is to spend a shorter time in France.

France truly is a wonderful country to visit and I suppose I could always exercise a bit more restraint at some of the wonderful bakeries and patisseries that are across the country.

While I outline the full itinerary to this trip in another post, the general plan was:

• 2 nights in the Loire Valley
• 3 nights in Normandy
• 3 nights in Paris

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Budget in France

On this trip, I visited the Loire Valley, Normandy, and Paris. I didn’t spend much money on my visit to Paris because it was my second time in the city and I only paid for one attraction, the Louvre. All accommodation was a private room with a private bathroom for two people. I rented a car and used it for 6 of the days and used the Metro system while in Paris.

I purchased in Canadian Dollars and Euros but have provided the costs in US Dollars and Canadian. There definitely some ways you can cut costs for a trip to France, which I have outlined at the bottom of this post. Costs are for a single person but as I was travelling as a couple I could split the car rental and room costs so solo travellers will need to account for this.

Cost of Airfare to France

Airfare was definitely my largest single cost. There’s no getting around it, if you are flying from North America or Asia, your flight will be expensive. I flew into Paris as this is the cheapest place to fly into and there are direct flights. My ticket only included carry-on luggage but I did pay for checked luggage on the way back. In terms of cost, the airfare I got was very reasonable for a roundtrip ticket to Paris but you can find an occasional deal, especially in winter. Expect to pay more for the ticket if you travel during peak seasons like July and August.

Round-trip flight between Toronto and Paris: USD$568 (CAD $780)

Cost of Accommodation in France

Accommodation costs add up in France, especially if you visit places like Paris. There are always cheaper options like hostels but if you are looking to stay in budget hotel rooms, it does add up quickly. Expect to pay somewhere between 90-150 USD per night for a double room in a hotel and perhaps more in Paris. Compared to other places in Europe, like eastern and southern Europe, you do tend to get smaller rooms that cost more money. If you really want to stretch your budget, France is not the best place to do that, in my experience.

Here’s where I stayed and what it costs if you want to follow my itinerary to France:

Hôtel Le Blason: USD $80 (CAD $111) per night. Stayed 2 nights.

After landing in Paris, the first stop was staying in Amboise in the Loire Valley. There are plenty of accommodation options in the Amboise but I was very happy with choosing Hotel le Blason. It’s located in the historic part of the town and is just a short walk to the Chateau Amboise and all of the restaurants and shops. The room was a decent size and it was a comfortable bed. If you travel in summer, make sure to get one of the rooms that has A/C, it’s worth paying a bit extra.

Pontorson Chambre d’Hôte: USD $60 (CAD $80) per night. Stayed 1 night.

I stayed in Pontorson because of it’s proximity to Mont Saint Michel. I saved a lot of money by being a 15-minute drive away from Mont Saint Michel. This is actually a really good area to save money in. As far as I could tell there weren’t really advantages in being closer, unless you want to stay on the Mont. Chambre d’Hote is a bed and breakfast rather than a hotel but you do have your own private bathroom and for me, this was probably the nicest room and bathroom I had while in France. You also save money here by having parking included instead of paying extra.

Hôtel De Brunville: USD $105 (CAD $145) per night. Stayed for 2 nights.

Hotel de Brunville is located in Bayeux, the perfect jumping off point for exploring the D-Day beaches and Normandy. The location was perfect for me, just a short walk to all the top sights of Bayeux. This hotel had a very nice sized room and a super comfy bed. There is an elevator here so you don’t have to deal with taking luggage upstairs. I really enjoyed this hotel and would definitely stay at it again.

Hotel des Carmes: USD $162 (CAD $224) per night. Stayed for 3 nights.

Hotel des Carmes was by far the most expensive place we stayed at. Paris is generally much more expensive for accommodation. I loved the location of Hotel des Carmes, it’s located right next to a metro stop. It’s perfect for walkers though as it is just down the hill from the Pantheon, a 15-minute walk to Notre Dame or 10 minutes to the Luxembourg Gardens. It’s in a very pleasant neighbourhood to explore with lots of food options. The room itself wasn’t my favourite as it was a bit dark and the least comfortable bed of all my hotels on this trip but the location more than made up for it. Especially if you are limited on time it is important to have a great location in Paris.

Total cost of accommodation for 8 nights in France for two: USD $920 (CAD $1265)
My Share of the accommodation: USD $460 (CAD $632)

Cost of Transit in France

The car rental was quite reasonably priced. The freedom that having a car gave in terms of exploring Normandy and the Loire Valley just cannot be matched by using the train. If I had gone with using the train, I would have been able to visit less and would have ended up paying for tours or extra buses to get where I was trying to get. Even though the car was expensive, I think if I did a comparison of costs with train and tours, it would be very close.

I was afraid of toll road costs in France, but ended up finding them to be quite reasonable. The toll roads often get you to your destination faster so it is worth paying the premium. On vacation, time is money and definitely, worth saving some time.

The metro in Paris is the best way to get around and will save a lot of walking. I also used the Metro to get to and from the Airport, which does cost more than a regular ticket around Paris’s core tourist area.

• Car Rental, One Week: USD$196 (CAD $270)
• Fuel: USD$160 (CAD $220)
• Road Tolls: USD$40 (CAD $55)
• Parking: USD$44 (CAD $60)
• Metro in Paris (including trips to airport): USD$ 35 (CAD $48)

Total cost of transportation in France if not splitting car rental: USD $ 475 (CAD $ 653)
My Share of transportation costs: USD $ 255 (CAD $ 350)

Cost of Food in France

This cost is definitely going to vary between people. In general, I ate at one restaurant for dinner every day and usually ordered a non-alcoholic beverage with the meal. For breakfast and lunch, I would buy food from bakeries like quiches, croissants, pain au chocolate, and sandwiches. A couple of meals were eaten at McDonald’s and Burger King as there were no other options available. For dinner, on average I was spending $15-22 (CAD$ 20-30) per person.

From the grocery store, I would purchase water for the day as well as snacks like cookies, candy, and fruit. Some of my grocery store costs are mixed with some food souvenirs like cookies and wine. I purchased wine from the grocery store to enjoy back at the hotel because it was much cheaper than drinking at restaurants.

While the bakery costs do include breakfast and lunch, they also include things like macarons and cakes. This can add up quickly with macarons costing at least 2 dollars each. Check out my guide to Paris desserts if you’re wondering why this category is more spendy than expected. If you have less of a sweet tooth, you will probably spend less on this category.

Restaurants: USD$145 (CAD $200)
Bakeries: USD$ 110 (CAD $150)
Grocery Stores: USD$83 (CAD $113)

Total cost of food in France for 9 days: USD $338 (CAD $462)

The Cost of Activities in France

The cost of sightseeing in France is really dependent on your interests. I ended up spending most of my sightseeing budget on visiting Chateaux in the Loire Valley as they each have an entry fee that is between $18-20. Many places in France are enjoyable without paying entry fees. Many of the towns are sights themselves. While I did pay to see Mont St Michel’s Abbey, it would have been just as enjoyable to visit without going inside the Abbey. If you are trying to save money here, some of the Chateaux are visible from the outside for free. It definitely wouldn’t be the same experience as you will miss out on gardens and the interiors of the Chateaux.

• Chenonceau Chateau: USD $22 (CAD $30)
• Chateau d’Usse: USD $21 (CAD $29)
• Villandry Chateau (gardens only): USD $5 (CAD $7)
• Chateau d’Angers: USD $7 (CAD $9)
• Bayeux Tapestry: USD $8 (CAD $10)
• Juno Beach Centre: USD $11 (CAD $15)
• Mont Saint Michel Abbey: USD $13 (CAD $17)
• Monet Gardens at Giverny: USD $15 (CAD $20)
• Louvre Entry: USD $13 (CAD $17)

Total cost of sightseeing in France: USD $115 (CAD $154)

Cost of Souvenirs in France

This category is highly dependent on what you enjoy buying. It can be as little as zero or you could be buying designer goods. I mostly bought things like cookies, caramels, regional liquor (Calvados), and tea. I generally end up purchasing mostly food souvenirs while abroad because I try to avoid ending up with too many knickknacks. In terms of souvenirs, the grocery store is a great place to find things like local cookies and wines for an affordable price.

Total cost of souvenirs in France: USD $105 (CAD $ 143)

Other Costs in France

Data for Cellphone: USD $22 (CAD $30) Some of the budget went towards paying for a cellphone data plan in Europe. This was very useful for navigating while driving. In many cases, it is cheaper to buy a sim card for your cell phone in Europe and pay for a data plan there rather than paying to add on international data from your home carrier. You can generally buy sim cards at the airport from a convenience store.

Bathroom: USD $0.50 (CAD $0.75) A very small portion of the budget went to pay to use a bathroom, only 50 Euro cents. Most public washrooms in France were free, a nice change from other countries in Europe.

Rick Steves France: USD $18 (CAD $25) I used this guidebook to help plan my itinerary for this trip. I especially love the rating system Rick Steves has for sights as it helps me prioritize what is a must on an itinerary and what is nice to have if I have extra time. It also has some great background information on the history of an area. I rarely travel without a guidebook as I enjoy reading up each night on the location and Rick Steves updates the France book yearly so it’s a great resource travelers to France.

Total spent on miscellaneous costs: USD $40.50 (CAD $55.75)

Total Spent in France

Overall, for two people to spend 9 days in France, the total cost ended up being about USD $3766 (CAD $ 5000) or USD $1880 (CAD $2500) per person. I’ve broken it up into a percentage graph below so you can see where my budget went to help you see where you can cut costs and what to budget for.

Total cost USD $1880 (CAD $2500) per person travelling as a couple

How to Save Money in France

Save by Changing the Itinerary

The biggest way to save money would be to change up the itinerary. If this itinerary was changed to spend the entirety in Paris you would save on transportation. Spending 9 days in Paris would mean higher accommodation costs compared to elsewhere in France but would save a significant amount from car rental and associated costs. Alternatively, cutting Paris from the itinerary would save on the higher accommodation fees there. It’s always painful to cut places or days from an itinerary but this really is the simplest one.

Save on Airfare

One of the best ways to save on any vacation and not compromise on experience, is on airfare. As you can see, airfare was the biggest cost for this trip. Travel in early spring and late fall to Europe and you will often find cheaper airfare. Sometimes you can get amazing deals on airfare that can cost as little as 200-300 roundtrip. I’ve even seen super seat sales for 100 round trip. This is really going to depend on where you are flying from. While there are websites that send out deals for a wide area, my best luck has been with Facebook groups for a specific airport. Try searching for groups using the city you fly out of or the airport code (e.g., YYZ for Toronto, YYC for Calgary) along with flight deal or travel deals and join the group to be notified for great deals from your travel airport.

Save on Accommodation

I’ve always had the best luck finding affordable accommodation on Booking.com. I find it easy to use to find the features I want in the room and in the location I want. Try including apartments in your search as if you can get a good deal, it can offset food costs by allowing you to make the occasional meal or two. You can also save money by staying at hostels either in shared bunk rooms or in private rooms at the hostel. Book far in advance to get the best deals on accommodation.

Only Do Sightseeing You Are Interested In

This should come as no surprise but, don’t pay for experiences you know you won’t enjoy. Don’t pay money for a museum pass in Paris if you know you don’t enjoy going around a bunch of museums. If you don’t like castle after castle, don’t pay to go to a bunch of chateaus. There can sometimes be an expectation to do certain things in certain places when you travel. Don’t fall into this trap. Keep in mind that tourist destinations pay a lot of money marketing to make you feel like you must do something. Of course, you should try new things while traveling but don’t pay money for something you know you won’t enjoy.

How Much to Budget for France

Overall, I was pretty pleased with how much money was spent in France. While this was shorter than the typical two week trip to France, it gives you an idea of what the total cost will be. For a two week trip to France, I would budget 145 $USD per person plus airfare. This daily cost includes all accommodation, in-country travel, food, sightseeing, and souvenirs.

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