Budgets:

Links for scenario 1:
– Hotel
-for food, entertainment, tips, souvenirs and other cost I found a blog called Budget for Backpacking and Traveling Europe. The sight was really helpful in breaking down how much these things cost on average and what you may use the money on.

In order to save for this trip I would need to save up about $3256. In order to accomplish this within the next two years I would need to save $135 a month. This however is currently not realistic for my budget as a college student. I would be able to put away about $70-$85 a month. So it will take me about three and a half years. To pay for the entire trip if I saved for 12 months I would need to put away $542.54, for 2 years $271.72, and for 3 years $180.95.

Links for Scenario 2:
–Hostel, this is a cheaper way of staying in Paris. It cost a fraction of the price and is usually just as nice. A hostel unlike hotel though is in a personal house where you just rent a room from them. This particular one includes laundry, wifi, and breakfast. Free breakfast will also reduce the price of food per person.
-For food spent I looked at another blog, this lady wrote about her 14 day stay in Europe and how much she spent on food and where she ate. Find the article on Solo Traveler. She also writes about what attractions she visited and how she got around.
-For attractions and entertainment I looked to Paris Escape another blog about a couples trip to Paris and how they budgeted their money. They only went to some of the larger attractions and then in the mean time walked around the beautiful city.

I would need to save for about two and a half years. If I were to pay for the entire trip I would need to save $304 every month for a year, $152 for two years, and $101.05 for three years. Individually I would need $1,819 which would be attainable at the saving rate of $80 per month within two years.

Links to Senario 3
-Another option other than staying in someone else’s home or an expensive hotel would be to rent a vacation home. For two people this came to a more expensive way than a hostel but cheaper than a hotel. Another perk is your food even though I budgeted for eating out could be cheaper if you were to use the kitchen and cook home meals a couple of the days.
–A Night in Paris is a blog written mainly about how much it cost to eat in Paris. Her break down per meal was helpful for calculations on both daily and weekly.
–The Paris Pass is a way to see attractions for a cheaper cost because you are buying a bundle rather than individual tickets. I choose specifically the most expensive package, this can also give a family a little leeway if they choose to not go with the five day pass.

In order to afford this trip I would need to personally again save about 80 dollars a month. The cost of this trip individually would be $2223 per person. If I were to pay the entire trip for myself and one other person monthly for a year I would need to save $370.51, for two years I would save $185.26 monthly, and for three years $123.50 monthly.