Camping Europe with Kids

Truly the BEST and cheapest way to explore Europe with kids is luxury camping like most of the local families and retired folks do. Yes, you can have that ideal European vacation with your kids and still stay on your low budget as well as enjoy perks like free kids clubs, pools, saunas, waterparks, movies and connect deeply with European locals. Camping makes finding friends and relaxing in nature so easy, even in a big city. Kids will love the fun and Mom doesn't have to make meals either if she is not in the mood as almost all have good restaurants and stores at the campsite.

We've spent 6 years of our world trip, camping all over Europe with a small campervan RV and easily stayed on our $23/day per person budget even when the euro was high and dollar low.  We love it so much that we will definitely be back for more as soon as we can.

Of course, it helps to do slow travel, but if you have less time, there are always ways to do it like tent camping and choosing lower cost regions or longer stays in rural areas, shorter in expensive cities.  We even know the secrets on how to do it cheaply and avoid crowds  in high season. You never have to worry about your child having kids to play with ( usually from several countries) after you tour. Here you see Mozart having a ball with a friend in Europe at our campsite.

Our book on camping Europe has been delayed due to my travel health challenges and our recent focus on Mandarin, but we still plan to get it out as soon as we can. What kinds of questions and information do you most want to see in it? After the holidays we are going to put more focus into getting our books complete and out. In the meantime here are some more related posts to enioy:

BEST TIPS ON CAMPING EUROPE


Camping Europe in a Motorhome

Camping Europe - Best Books

Why Camp in Europe with Kids

Camping in Europe = Free Kids Clubs

Camping London

Camping Around the World With Kids

Tent Camping in Europe

What Camping in Europe  looks like

Road Trip Europe

RV in Europe: Camping European Style

Comments

[Amanda S]

I remember you had once posted about not wanting to talk much about money. However, that's really what I'm interested in. Not how to make money or anything, but how much things cost. How you ate cheaply (some standard meals you made and how you found the right places to shop). How you found cheap trailer parks (maybe a list of some of your favourites and how much they cost).
Was the cost of your language and music tutoring included in the cost of $23/day/person?
Some cheap activities that help you see sights. Some places that you'd recommend spending money on and places you think weren't worth it.
What did your days look like when you stayed somewhere for long periods of time? Was it mostly filled with relaxing and swimming, etc OR did you go into town lots and sight see?
How much do you spend on educational supplies? Where to find them and the best prices. How much is it to put your child into school in other countries - we were considering a similar experience of putting our son in school for a few months out of the year.
How much and how often you spent money on traveling (gas, flights, ferries). How you found good deals, etc.
We want to be certain that when we come we have enough money and that we spend it wisely. We want it to last as long as possible. :)

I look forward to the book!

[jeanne @soultravelers3]

Thanks Amanda, that is really helpful. It's a bit tricky to talk about costs because everyone spends differently, but I have written some on the blog about how we save money on food, campsites, apartment rentals, schools cost, typical costs of living, etc.

Some folks have written that it takes at least 100K a year to travel the world, but that certainly has not been our experience, nor could we afford that without depleting our nest egg.

We always work pretty hard at spending as little money as possible. We give ourselves 25K a year to live on and then just make sure we do that ( or less) by watching every penny. We don't budget every penny and keep track that way daily, we are just very thoughtful and hesitant about spending each penny and always looking for ways to spend less and enjoy more. Sooo many things are free to enjoy. Gre

One's biggest expense is housing and flights, so keeping those down makes a huge difference as does slow travel and living a minimalist life. Extended travel means you are not seeing sights every day, but taking plenty of time to rest, relax and enjoy the locals ( which costs less).

If we have an expense we don't expect ( like when I landed in the hospital for a week when I broke and paralyzed my arm) we make up for it by spending much less in other areas that year etc.

Yes, all of our costs are in that including the violin, piano and various lessons Mozart takes along the way as well as all health care costs, educational supplies...everything!

Great questions, thanks!!

[Amanda S]

Wow! That's amazing! I can't believe that you spend so little! I've realized that I need to start practicing that here before we go or else when we go we'll not have learned that lesson and spend too much. So, as we prepare for the trip we also prepare with our spending habits (besides it helps us save quicker)

[Never Ending RV Trip]

WOW! This is so going on our family's bucket list. We have been traveling the US with our 5 daughters for 2 years now and it is time to step it up a little. Great advice! Thank you!

-Troy n Trina Ochowicz Family

[Jeanne @soultravelers3]

Coolio Troy and Trina et al! ;) With all your experience, Europe will be easy!

With 5 kids I imagine you have a big RV and that can be a challenge in Europe, but some do it. Highways won't be a problem, but the ancient tiny road areas will be.

I also know a family with 6 kids that did it with a minivan and tent, so that is an option too.

The great news about Europe is the mass transit is MUCH better than the USA, so once you are parked in a campground, it's easy to get any where you need to go!