How Much Does Study Abroad Actually Cost (The Real Budget)
Everyone asks this. Here is what students actually spend on weekend trips abroad, broken down by category. In this post: flights, hotels, food, activities, nightlife, and the real total over a semester.
Flights: $100 to $250 per Weekend
On many weekends you will be flying somewhere within Europe. Ryanair, EasyJet, Vueling. these are your airlines. A round trip flight from Florence to Barcelona, Barcelona to Ibiza, or Rome to Amsterdam runs about 100 to 250 dollars depending on how far you are going and how early you book. Book 2 to 3 weeks out and you will be on the lower end. Wait until the week of and you are paying double. One thing that catches people off guard is bag fees. Ryanair will charge you around 50 to 70 euros at the gate if your carry on is too big. That is more than the flight itself sometimes. Download the app, check the dimensions, and measure your bag before you leave for the airport. If you can fit everything into a personal item, even better.
Hotels: $100 to $300 per Weekend
This depends on the city and how many people you are splitting with. A hostel in Lisbon might run 30 euros a night. A nice Airbnb in Dubrovnik split four ways might be 60 to 80 euros per person for two nights. If you are doing a bigger trip like Ibiza or Mykonos with a villa, expect 150 to 300 dollars per person for the whole weekend when you split it right. The move is always to go with a group. A villa that costs 1,200 euros sounds expensive until you split it 8 ways. Then it is 150 euros per person for the whole weekend with a pool and a kitchen. Book early for the popular destinations because the good spots go fast, especially in September and October.
Food: $200 to $400 per Weekend
This is the hardest one to pin down because it varies so much. A sit down dinner in Barcelona is different from street food in Morocco is different from a seafood spot in Dubrovnik. If you want the real experience, you are eating out for most meals on a weekend trip. A nice dinner runs 15 to 30 euros. Lunch is 8 to 15 euros. Breakfast you can usually grab cheap or eat at your accommodation. When you factor in a few dinners, lunches, coffees, and snacks over a full weekend, most students land in the 200 to 400 dollar range. You can absolutely do it cheaper if you hit grocery stores and cook at your Airbnb, but honestly the food is one of the best parts of traveling. Do not cheap out on meals just to save 20 euros when you are sitting on a rooftop in Positano.
Activities: $100 to $300 per Weekend
This is the one people try to skip and it is the biggest mistake you can make. The activities are literally the point. You did not fly to Interlaken to sit in a hostel. A skydive is 300 euros. A boat day in Dubrovnik is 60 to 100 euros. A wine tour in Tuscany is 130 euros. An ATV tour, a cooking class, a guided hike, snorkeling, paragliding. these are the things you come home talking about. Not every weekend is a skydive weekend. Some trips are just a beach day and a walking tour, and that is fine. But the students who try to save money by cutting activities entirely end up regretting it. You are already there. You already paid for the flight and the hotel. Do the thing. Budget 100 to 300 dollars per weekend on activities depending on where you are going and what is available. This is where Flextrip members save the most because we have discounts on tours and activities across every destination.
Nightlife: $0 to $100 per Weekend
This one varies a lot and honestly it is not as expensive as people think. Guest lists and drink deals are everywhere if you know the right people, and a lot of nights end up being way cheaper than you would expect. If your group wants a table, splitting it makes it very reasonable. A table in Barcelona or Florence split with friends runs about 50 to 100 dollars each. That gets you bottles, skip the line, and a spot for the night. Way better than paying 15 euros per drink at the bar all night. Flextrip has nightlife deals and connections in pretty much every major city, so between guest lists, promoter hookups, and member discounts, you can go out a lot without it destroying your budget.
The Real Total
Most students travel 9 to 10 weekends over a semester. Some do more, some do less, but that is the sweet spot. Here is the math per weekend on the low and high end. Flights: 100 to 250 dollars. Hotels: 100 to 300 dollars. Food: 200 to 400 dollars. Activities: 100 to 300 dollars. Nightlife: 0 to 100 dollars. That is roughly 500 to 1,350 dollars per weekend trip. Over 9 to 10 weekends, most students end up between about 4,500 and 8,000 dollars on travel, with big spenders who do every activity and hit the priciest destinations pushing higher. If you are on a tighter budget, you can absolutely do a great semester for 3,000 to 4,000 dollars by mixing cheaper destinations with bigger ones and cooking a few meals at your Airbnb. That is real money either way, but this is also the semester of your life. The students who budget smart, book early, split costs with friends, and take advantage of member discounts stretch their money way further than the ones who wing it every Thursday night.