Europe for less

Hey Nikki here with money-saving travel tips for Europe and beyond this high-flying summer season [View in browser]( [Bloomberg]( Hi, it’s [Nikki](. Have you renewed your passport lately? Check the expiration date, because summer travel season is right around the corner. Then get your wallet ready … As travel editor, I get hundreds of emails each day about the [most luxurious new places]( to stay all over the world. Look at enough of these and, like me, you may stop flinching at [$1,000 nightly hotel rates](. Leave Como to Clooney cosplayers and Taormina to White Lotus wannabes. For Italy, head to Santavenere in Maratea. Photographer: Alessandro Amodio This week, I got sticker shock from a surprising source: Alastair Thomann, chief executive officer of [Generator]( and [Freehand]( hotels. Both brands are known for big style at budget-conscious prices. Generator, the more affordable of the two, specializes in upscaled hostels with both private and shared rooms in 14 major cities across Europe and North America. Just like everyone else in the industry, Thomann was eager to chat about how there’s no end in sight for the years-long post-pandemic travel boom that continues to [push pricing to unforeseen highs](. Couple that demand with increasingly common [restrictions on Airbnb]( and [curbs on new hotel construction]( in major cities, he says, and you’ve got a climate in which “whatever you can offer will sell.”  A local expert breaks down what’s best in suddenly cool Romania. Photographer: Adrian Catalin Lazar/Getty Images As a result, he’s been cramming triple-height bunk beds into shared hostel rooms that used to have two-level bunk beds. He’s been building out Japan-inspired pods—windowless sleeping chambers barely larger than a twin-sized mattress—in underutilized spaces such as cellars and offices. (It took only some heating, ventilation and air-conditioning work and a few permits to bring it all up to code.) This week in Amsterdam, a city that has worked hard to [limit mass tourism](, Thomann saw pods being reserved for €320 ($350) per night. Even he was stunned. Although cruises can be a mass-tourism scourge, book one well—as onboard the eight-cabin Kairós—and you can even save money. Source: Sailing Classics We at Pursuits saw the writing on the wall, given that everyone wants to be in Europe this summer. Still, we didn’t realize it would get this bad. It was with these eye-watering prices in mind that we decided to devote our annual summer travel section to affordable Europe: places you can still get a luxury experience for less than the cost of that Amsterdam pod. The trick is to ignore your Instagram feed and pick places that remain under social media radar. Then you can not only brag about being ahead of the curve, you’ll spare yourself surge pricing and over-tourism ordeals. If that’s not a win-win-win, we don’t know what is. Connect with Nikki on [Instagram]( Our 2024 special report has 27 trip ideas to make your vacation budget go further without sacrificing luxury. Photographer: Emli Bendixen for Bloomberg Businessweek [Four Magical Places in Italy That Few Tourists Know About]( Leave Como to Clooney cosplayers and Taormina to White Lotus wannabes. [Here’s What You Get for $350—and $2,500—in Five European Hot Spots]( It’s comparison shopping time. [Pastry Chefs in Paris Are Dreaming Up Delightful Twists on Classics]( The seven treats that are upending the city’s baking hierarchy. [A Local Expert Breaks Down What’s Best in Suddenly Cool Romania]( The Central European country has fascinated for centuries. Luxury travelers are finally figuring out why. [High Hotel Rates Got You Down? A Boat May Be Better Value]( Make your money go further and take to the water. [How to Spend Five Delicious Days in Somerset, a Perfect UK Road Trip]( For some vacations, all you need is serendipity as your guide. [Denmark’s Beaches Set Visitor Records as Weather in the Med Heats Up]( This summer, vacationers are betting on a cold coast. [An Overlooked Belgian City Has Quietly Become a Street-Art Haven]( See why the best things in Liège are free. Paris Olympics price gouging is overblown The [summer games]( are 83 days away, and contrary to popular expectation, you can still get a great deal if you’re considering a trip. Misty Belles, a vice president at [Virtuoso](—the largest network of luxury travel agents—explained it all to me this week: People willing to splurge booked their trips ages ago. So did those who were committed to making the trip work on a smaller budget. The middle of the market has languished, however, causing hotel prices to decline by some 33% since October. Generator’s Thomann adds that cancellations have exacerbated the issue. Normally, he says, a global sporting event brings early bookings, 40% of which end up getting cancelled. (This process is so predictable that hotels overbook by that margin as a precaution.) In Paris, though, Thomann and his competitors are seeing cancellation rates that exceed 50%—possibly because, as mid-market hotels lower their prices, people who booked affordable spots are finding better value elsewhere for the same money. Olympic events are happening in destinations as diverse as Marseille and Tahiti. Photographer: Merten Snijders/The Image Bank RF Now add blocks of [unsold rooms being released]( by the Olympic Committee—which sells package deals combining event tickets and accommodations via third-party providers—and suddenly there’s a lot of supply without the demand anticipated. It’s what happened during the FIFA World Cup in Doha. Are you on the fence about watching the Games on TV or getting a seat in the stands? Here’s some inspiration to help you figure it out. [How to Plan a Trip to See the Olympics This Summer—Without Going to Paris]( [Fancy Apartment Rentals for Paris Olympics See Poor Demand and Price Cuts]( [USA Basketball Announces Its Men's Team for the Summer Olympics]( [Why the Paris Olympics Will Be a Modest Showcase of Wood Architecture]( [Can the Summer Games Revitalize a Long-Troubled Neighborhood?]( Meanwhile, there’s always orbiting In a sea of wallet-friendly stories, here’s one vacation with an earth-shattering price tag: a trip to outer space. In celebration of our new newsletter, [Business of Space](, we spoke with a [space-focused travel agent]( on how to shop for extraterrestrial trips. (Rule 1: Be prepared to spend a minimum of $150,000.) So, you had some questions … We call for queries weekly on [our Instagram account]( and [via e-mail](mailto:askpursuits@bloomberg.net?subject=I%20have%20a%20question). Here’s what you were dying to know about this time around. Where should I go in Europe if I’m a student on a budget? Hey @jessxies, we’re kind of on the same wavelength. But the [quietude of English countryside]( and the [mellower corners of Italy]( probably won’t cut it for you. Paris is never a bad idea. The best way to eat there—if we’re being frank—is to [hop from bakery to bakery](; the most prized delicacies will still come in at a couple of euros. Virtuoso’s Belles told me that one city enjoying very little traction this summer is Berlin—which should make for favorable prices in this already affordable capital of cool. I’d also throw in a vote for Vienna. Austria’s capital has a strong culture around swimming in public pools, two of which lie on the grounds of the [Schönbrunner Bad Palace](. Day passes can run as low as €11. Fine (dessert) dining on a shoestring budget in Vienna. Source: Demel Which hotels offer the best health and fitness amenities? With the wellness industry’s value reaching [$5.6 trillion]( last year, you can bet that the number of hotels doubling down on health and fitness is multiplying by the minute, @omarparra. Here in New York, where I’m based, the pinnacle is the [Equinox Hotel](. It has one of the city’s best gyms, hosts sleep symposiums, puts breathwork and stretching classes on its in-room TVs, and packs its minibars with nutrient-rich snacks. But it’s the only one of its kind. The equivalent in Dubai is [Siro](, a new fitness-focused offshoot of One&Only. In London, you might look at the [Emory](, where the $2,500 suites come with access to the city’s most exclusive fitness club: [Surrenne](. Luxury heavyweight Aman’s more affordable, wellness-focused spinoff, Janu, has opened in Tokyo. Photographer: Robert Rieger If you’re seeking a brand that can deliver similar perks in many destinations, try [1 Hotels](, whose rooms always have bottle-refilling stations and yoga mats and whose concierges are as adept at suggesting running routes as trendy restaurants. At a more affordable price point is [Even hotels](, an IHG brand; you can request Peloton bikes to be placed bedside in addition to the standard in-room “fitness zones.” I say all this with the assumption that you’re not quite looking for a wellness resort. If you are, look no further than the [rival resorts Miraval]( or [Canyon Ranch](. Secrets about rich-people wellness we never knew until we sent a spy to Canyon Ranch spa. Illustration: Jaci Kessler Lubliner What are the best cities to visit in Spain this July? Brush up on your Spanish, @omar_firdaus1, because I’ve got just the recommendations for you. Marbella is looking more and more like the next St-Tropez; the poshest place to stay there should be the Andalusian-style [Puente Romano](, which this summer is adding the first Fendi café outside Italy to its list of 26 restaurants. (There’s a [Nobu hotel]( next door for even more good eating.) Mallorca had its moment in the sun last year, but we still swoon over its latest crop of hotels. Source: Grand Hotel Son Net Then there’s Menorca, the Balearic isle that feels like Mallorca’s quieter and more artsy little sister. A new hotel called [Cap Menorca]( will soon raise the bar for luxury there–though you can really make this island work on any budget. A more affordable choice is [Menorca Experimental](, with 43 rooms and 9 villas in a 19th-century finca, or fancy farmhouse. If the thing you’re after is a bigger city experience, make Madrid your priority. Nothing against Barcelona—it’s one of my favorite places—but Madrid is having a real moment and our obsessively-curated [Two-Night Minimum: Madrid City Guide]( will steer you to all the best places. Buen viaje! New for subscribers: Free article gifting. Bloomberg.com subscribers can now gift up to five free articles a month to anyone you want. Just look for the "Gift this article" button on stories. (Not a subscriber? Unlock limited access and [sign up here](.) Follow Us Like getting this newsletter? [Subscribe to Bloomberg.com]( for unlimited access to trusted, data-driven journalism and subscriber-only insights. Want to sponsor this newsletter? [Get in touch here](. You received this message because you are subscribed to Bloomberg's Bloomberg Pursuits newsletter. If a friend forwarded you this message, [sign up here]( to get it in your inbox. 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