Tomas Quiroga

Four nights in Krakow on a dorm budget

4 nights · April to June · Medium pace · Budget

One hostel, one square, one hard day out of town, and change left over.

1. Day 1

   Drop the bag, walk the square

   • Moon Hostel · Afternoon · Stay

     A bed, a kitchen and a place to leave the bag. That is all I need from a hostel.

   • Main Square · Evening · Walk

     Do a lap, then a second one. The square changes completely once the tour groups leave.

     • Seen in Krakow Travel. Named by Krakow's official tourist board among the city's headline heritage sites

   • Cloth Hall · Evening · Sight

     Five minutes through the arcade on the way back. It is free and it is beautiful.

     • Seen in Krakow Travel. Named by Krakow's official tourist board among the city's headline heritage sites

2. Day 2

   The hill and the ring of trees

   • Wawel Castle · Morning · Sight

     Walk up through the grounds for nothing. Buy one interior ticket, not the bundle.

     • Seen in Krakow Travel. Named by Krakow's official tourist board among the city's headline heritage sites

   • Planty Park in Krakow · Afternoon · Walk

     The park ring where the walls used to be. It takes about an hour and it is the cheapest orientation in town.

3. Day 3

   Kazimierz and Podgorze

   • Old Synagogue · Morning · Museum

     Small, sober, cheap. Go before the factory, not after.

   • Oskar Schindler's Enamel Factory · Afternoon · Museum

     Book online the night before. Give it two hours and do not plan anything loud afterwards.

4. Day 4

   Down the mine

   • Wieliczka Salt Mine · Morning · Sight

     The regional train is a fraction of a tour price. Take a jumper, it is cold underground.

   • Barbican · Evening · Sight

     A last walk past the barbican on the way back to the bunk.

• Seen in Krakow Travel. Named by Krakow's official tourist board among the city's headline heritage sites

Five days in Mexico City for the price of two elsewhere

5 nights · October to April · Medium pace · Budget

Metro everywhere, museums on the cheap days, markets for every meal I do not cook.

1. Day 1

   Centro, on foot

   • Hostel Regina · Afternoon · Stay

     On a pedestrian street in the centro. Everything below is walkable from here.

   • Constitution Square · Evening · Walk

     Stand in the middle of the zocalo at dusk and do nothing. It costs nothing and it sets the week.

   • Templo Mayor · Evening · Sight

     You can see a lot of it from the street railing before you decide to pay.

2. Day 2

   The big museum day

   • Museo Nacional de Antropología · Morning · Museum

     Three hours minimum. Do the Mexica and Maya halls first and leave the rest for another life.

   • Museo Nacional de Historia Castillo de Chapultepec · Afternoon · Museum

     Walk up the hill rather than paying for the shuttle. The view over Reforma is the reward.

3. Day 3

   Coyoacan and crafts

   • Frida Kahlo Museum · Morning · Museum

     Book the timed ticket days ahead. Turning up is how you waste a morning.

   • Mercado de Artesanías de La Ciudadela · Afternoon · Market

     I buy nothing and look at everything. Prices here set the baseline for the rest of the country.

4. Day 4

   Art, park, tower

   • Museo del Palacio de Bellas Artes · Morning · Museum

     Go for the murals on the upper floors. The building is worth the ticket on its own.

   • Alameda Central · Midday · Walk

     Shade, benches and a free hour. I eat what I carried here.

   • Torre Latinoamericana · Evening · Sight

     The cheapest way to understand how big this city is. Go about an hour before sunset.

5. Day 5

   Eat and drift

   • Mercado Roma · Midday · Market

     More expensive than a street stall and still cheap by European standards. Good for one splurge lunch.

   • Chinatown · Evening · Walk

     Two blocks, a lot of noise, and dinner for very little.

Lisbon on foot from a dorm

4 nights · March to May · Medium pace · Budget

A hostel with a terrace, four days of hills, and one proper sit down meal.

1. Day 1

   Arrive high up

   • Home Lisbon hostel · Afternoon · Stay

     Central, and the kitchen means I cook twice and eat out once.

   • Miradouro de São Pedro de Alcântara · Evening · Walk

     Bring a beer from the shop. This is the cheapest good night out in Lisbon.

2. Day 2

   Castle, then the market

   • São Jorge Castle · Morning · Sight

     Walk up, do not take the tuk tuk. The climb is half the point.

   • Time Out Market Lisboa · Evening · Meal

     This is my one splurge of the trip. Pick one counter and do it properly.

     • Seen in Time Out. Time Out's own page says the market opened in 2014 in the Mercado da Ribeira with 26 restaurants and 8 bars

3. Day 3

   Belem on the cheap tram

   • Tower of Belém · Morning · Sight

     Look at it from outside unless the queue is nothing. The outside is the good part.

   • Jerónimos Monastery · Midday · Museum

     One ticket, one cloister, one hour.

   • Pastéis de Belém · Afternoon · Meal

     Stand at the counter. It is faster and it costs less than sitting.

     • Seen in Time Out. Time Out says these tarts follow a 19th century convent recipe known only to the house's master bakers

4. Day 4

   A garden and a funicular

   • Calouste Gulbenkian Museum · Morning · Museum

     The garden alone would be worth the trip across town.

     • Seen in Visit Lisboa. Featured by the official Lisbon tourist board among the city's museums

   • Elevador da Bica · Afternoon · Sight

     One ride, mostly for the photograph, then walk back down.