Strasbourg walks the line between an old village and a thriving city. The old town has great winding streets, but is rather large and was surprisingly easy for me to get turned around in, even with the big canal encircling it: LOL. But there are also newer style trams cutting through, and quite a bit of shopping, which give it more of a city feel in some parts; a contrast that seems a bit strange to me, when I think about it, but works.

I didn’t have very good weather during my stay in April, but still had a great time exploring. A local told me June is a great time of year to visit for nice weather, but I’ve also heard they have one of the best Christmas Markets in Europe, so you have some options depending on the time of year you can visit. I think it’s a place worth visiting no matter the time of year, just come prepared for varied conditions.

This was a 5-night stay…

• Accommodation –  $446.67* (additional information below)
• Getting around locally – $0  (just a lot of walking)
• Living expenses – $148.94 (groceries and eating out)
• Activities – $0
• Mobile phone/data  – $12.44 (I use Google Fi which provides service in most countries. If you’re interested and based in the U.S., you can use this paid link to sign up, which will give me a referral fee at no extra cost to you.)
• Medical insurance – $11.52 (I’m using SafetyWing; rates are determined by age, and mine is slightly above the base. If you’re interested there is a paid link/banner on the right side of the page)

Total $619.57 / 5-nights = $123.91 per

*Hotel info

• I booked the Aparthotel Adagio Access Strasbourg Petite France through Booking.com. It’s well located, just a few blocks from the old town center and also only a short walk from the train station, but far enough that the neighborhood was nice. The one drawback was the shower… a small square with a curtain, the type that makes taking a shower feel like the walls are closing in on you. I don’t get it at all… there’s plenty of space for a proper shower enclosure with a door; smh.

Transportation to and from varies a lot, so I left it out of the above breakdown along with most incidental/one-time personal costs. But for those interested, in this particular case, I took a train booked with Deutsche Bahn (DB) from Munich Central Station to Strasbourg. It was a direct train and my seat was in 2nd class and the cost was 29,40€ ($33.03). All other standard day to day expenses are included to give an idea of how much basic living costs in the area are. Groceries will sometimes include personal care items (i.e., toothpaste, deodorant, etc.).

** I try to use Rakuten whenever it’s an option; why not take the money. It works with a browser add-on, and there is also a mobile app. Note from the Ratuken site, “Stores pay us a commission for sending our members to their websites, and we share it with you. It’s that simple!” If you haven’t signed up yet, and are interested, please consider using this referral link to help support me, and get a signup bonus. I use it regularly and recommend it, but take a look for yourself to decide if it’s right for you. When you sign up using the link, use it spending $, we each get $! The $ varies, I’ve recently seen at $40 and $30. They state “Offer may be modified or canceled anytime.” Payments are made by PayPal, or you can have a check sent to you.

*** Of course, the currency exchange varied during the stay, so for simplicity, I used a rate of 1 USD = 0,905€ for cash transactions. The accommodations and some daily purchases made on cards were entered at the converted cost charged.

**** Since this is my living situation, I don’t go to top-rated restaurants or paid entry to tourist attractions too much. I do eat out a lot, but nothing too special; to some extent, it’s somewhat more cost-effective this way… at least that’s what I’m telling myself. I try to be cost-conscious, eating as a local would… maybe you could say like a broke college guy that is LOL! I try to note any differences to this above.

I’m striving to provide useful information for people planning trips or a nomadic lifestyle, so if you have any ideas to make these posts more helpful, please let me know. You can comment/DM on social media, in the comments below, or email at (MeanderingMax@gmail.com). I appreciate your support!