Costs and money
France > Paris > Basics > Costs and money
Like all European capital cities, Paris has the potential to be very expensive, certainly more so than the rest of France, but it compares favourably to the standards set by other North European cities because of the relatively low cost of accommodation and eating out.If you are one of two people sharing a comfortable central hotel room, you can manage a reasonably snug existence, including restaurant lunch and dinner, getting around, museum and café stops, on €100 per person per day (around £70/US$100). At the bottom line, by watching the pennies, staying at a hostel (€20 for B&B), being strong-willed about cups of coffee and drinks, and admiring monuments and museums from the outside (or on free entry days), you could survive on as little as €40 (around £28/US$40) a day, including a cheap restaurant meal – less if you limit eating to street snacks or market food. For two or more people, hotel accommodation can be almost as cheap as hostels, but a sensible average estimate for a comfortable double room would start from €55 (though perfectly adequate but simple doubles can be had from €24). Single-rated and -sized rooms are often available, starting at €17 in a cheap hotel. Breakfast at most hotels is an extra €4.50–7 and usually consists of coffee, croissant, bread and orange juice; it's about the same as you'd pay in a bar (where the coffee and ambience are generally more agreeable). As for other food, you can spend as much or as little as you like. There are large numbers of reasonable, if not very exciting, restaurants with three- or four-course menus for between €12 and €22; the lunchtime menu is nearly always cheaper and you can get a filling midday plat du jour (dish of the day) of hot food for under €10. Picnic fare, obviously, is much less costly, especially when you buy in the markets and cheap supermarket chains; generous take-away baguette sandwiches from cafés and boulangeries range from €2–4.60). Wine and beer are both very cheap in supermarkets. The mark-up on wine in restaurants is high, though the house wine, served by the carafe, in cheaper establishments is still very good value. Drinks in cafés and bars are what really makes a hole in your pocket; remember that it's cheaper to be at the bar than at a table in cafés and most expensive to sit outside on the terrace. A black espresso coffee (un café) is the cheapest drink (around €1 if drunk at the bar). A café crème ranges from €1.40 at the bar to €3.50 on the outside terrace. Wine and draught lager are also reasonably priced: un demi, around a half pint, costs from around €1.60 at the bar to €3.50 on the terrace outside. Mixed drinks or cocktails cost from €6.50. Glasses of tap water are free. Transport within the city is inexpensive. The Carte Orange, for example, with a €13.75 weekly ticket, gives you a week's unlimited travel on buses and métro/RER in central Paris.
Pages in section ‘Costs and money’: Reductions, Paris for free, Money.
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