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on 10 Euro per Day for 2 People Is it possible for two people to eat on 10 euro per day while traveling in France? I asked Sophie this question and she said, "No." which was exactly what I thought when first pondering the question. But then, I started to think about it a little more and I have decided that, in fact, two people can eat in France on 10 euro per day. A lot of delicious French food is very cheap and healthy for you. The problem with traveling to a foriegn country is that you don't necessarily know how that country works and how to get around cheaply. This is why so many of us tend to over spend on food while traveling abroad. Sophie and I generally tend to eat fairly healthy food. In France, it seems that healthy, natural foods are generally less expensive than processed foods. A few years ago, when Sophie and I were visiting Paris from the States we often found that the food we were eating, when eating out in restaurants, was bothering us due to our food allergies. So, we started buying food at the local grocery store. This way we knew exactly what we were putting into our system and had complete control over our food consumption. After buying our food for the day, we would simply go back to our pension and have a picnic on the bed and/or pack food for that day's adventures around Paris. I have very fond memories of this approach to eating in Paris. We tried all different kinds of French cheeses and always had a fresh baguette. Don't forget to pack a butter knife. I believe they are allowed on the airplane. A plastic knife would work as well, as long as you have something to spread the cheese. A liter of orange juice was something like .62 and a cheap bottle of red, white or rose wine shouldn't cost more than a couple dollars. You can buy good cheap wine in France. In Paris, I would go to the corner wine store and the man behind the counter was wonderful at helping me pick a wine. He knew all about wine and wanted to know things like from which region I was interested in purchasing the wine. I'm not a wine conniseur so I had no idea about any of that. Although, I was able to say what kind of wine I liked and the qualities I liked in a wine. Below are some suggestions for inexpensive healthy eating while traveling in France. Orange Juice 1 liter .70 6 pack of approx. 6 oz each 2.00 Apple Juice 1 liter .70 Wine 1 bottle 2.20 Beer 1 bottle .75 1 draft in bar 1.60 Cheese Boursin 1 container .65 Camambert 1 container 1.20 Brie 1 container 1.20 Fresh Baguette 1 .70 Fresh Croissant 1 .70 Apple Sauce Strawberry (no sugar) 4-in-1 1.72 Fresh Fruit Apples 1 bag of approx. 8-10 2.40 Oranges 1 bag of approx. 8-10 2.40 Strawberries 1 large container 1.50 Bananas 1 .25 Green Peppers buy individually - approx. 10 .70 Chips 1 bag .25 Pretzels 1 box .50 Note: All prices in euros. To understand how much each item would cost you in today's dollars go an an exchange rate website which will tell you the exact cost of the item in today's dollars. Okay, so there you go! The above should give you an idea of what fabulous foods you can eat for cheap while traveling around France and approximately how much it will cost you. All prices are approximate and in euros. It is important to remember to bring some food with you while traveling around the city which you are visiting. If you are hungry when you are out doing things and don't have food with you then you will do one of two thing - and neither are desirable - you will either starve or go to a restaurant. Obviously, a restaurant will break your 10 euro per day for two people budget and starving is not going to enhance your traveling experience. It is important to always pamper yourself with things you want so that you aren't in a position of needing or wanting. Sophie loves Strawberry Apple Sauce. It's all natural, without sugar, and comes in a little drinkable container. No spoon or straw is necessary. It's light-weight, small, easy-to-pack, and does not need to be refrigerated. This is an easy snack food to put in your bag or purse for when you are exploring the city. Single drink-sized orange juice or apple juice containers are perfect for the road. They quench your thirst and are good for you. Four boxes is probably a good amount for an average day, if it's not too hot outside. Drinks are essential, yet heavy. So, try to pack what you need but not more than you need. You will need less if you are out and about after dark than you would while trekking around during daylight hours. I don't recommend packing chips for your day trips. Chips break and quickly become chip crumbs. And, do you really want to spend the day trying not to crush the chip bag? Pretzels, in France, come in a lovely little box paper box wrapped in a celephan green wrapper which is perfect for a day trip and not likely to turn into crumbs. Pretzels are super cheap without preservatives and the salt will help you stay well-hydrated. We highly recommend Pretzels. If you are in Paris, a nice place to sit and snack or have a picnic lunch is at the Luxembourg Gardens. It's a lovely place with tons of park benches, a lovely sculpture garden, a pond, fountains, and a beautiful museum. We stayed at the bottom of the Sacre Coure and would walk to the places we wanted to experience throughout Paris. By the time we arrived at the Luxembourg Gardens we were ready for a little break and picnic lunch in the beautiful setting of this lovely tourist attraction! Paris is an ideal walking city. From our pension, the Luxembourg Gardens was the perfect place to stop and have a little picnic in the park. Buy a fresh demi baguette (half loaf of long, freshly made bread) at a local brasserie before enter the park, bring along a container of Boursin, Brie or Camembert - which make lovely spreads for the baguette. Pack a couple pieces of fruit and some juice and voila! a lovely lunch in a gorgeous location without the abnoxious waiter! Other great snack or lunch spots would include sitting by the fountains and the pyramiad at the entrance of the Louvre. It's a fun place to people watch and the mix of old and new architecture is enchanting to the eye. From the entrance of the Louvre you can walk toward the Arch and down into a very long open, grassy mall which is lined by a lovely park and is filled with statues both modern and older, including the likes of Henry Moore and Pablo Picasso. This is a lovely place to spend time and to have a picnic. If you walk all the way down the mall from the Louvre you will eventually come to the Arc de Triomphe. And I do mean eventually. It is quite a walk...quite a beautiful and often breathtaking walk. By the time you reach the Arc de Triomphe you may very well be ready for a break and a nibble of your ever delicious and well-packed healthy food. If you take the main street back from the Arch de Triumph, the experience will be quite different as the street is lined with all kinds of international shops - many of which you will be familiar with, such as Zara and The Gap. If you are in need of an expresso at this point, there is a very impressive McDonalds where you can wear headsets and listen to music while sipping your 1 euro express. American McDonalds were left in the fast food decor dust the moment France entered the game. Sitting in the park next to the Eiffel Tower would be a lovely place to have lunch and people watch... If you are in Nice, there is so much to do and so much to see. Old Town Nice is gorgeous and always hussling with tons of tourists and locals. Across the street is the Promonade des Anglais, which is an 8 mile walk along the beach and boardwalk which was built by an American in the 1930s. The boardwalk is a fun place to people watch, check out the local street performers and relax and have a snack while looking out at the Cote A'Zure. If you walk in the direction of Monaco while walking along the Promonade des Anglaise you will see a tall high and a long set of stairs. When you have an afternoon consider taking a walk up the staircase and exploring the wonderful area above where you will find a free nautical museum filled with impressive work by local artists, ancient ruins, rides for kids and an absolutely fabulous cemetery among other things. Unlike in America where people usually order an entire meal when visiting a cafe, the French tend to go for a coffee or an expresso. Try it! Most museums have a free day either once a month, weekly in the evening, or sometimes bi-weekly. You might want to check ahead of time to see where you can find a good deal for what you want to see and visit. The last time I stayed in Paris, Sophie and I met up with my sister and cousin and we all stayed in a cheap hotel that cost 10 euro, per person, per night. It is not impossible to find cheap places to stay but you might want to research the possibilities before your trip. One time while visiting Paris, Sophie and I were walking around Montmartre and ran across a cheap hotel where the rooms where 16 euro per night. Staying cheaply is possible. You can do it and do it well. Unfortunately, usually no one tells us this and the only way we find out is by experiencing it ourselves. Note: To the person who found my site through the search word "France for two on 10 a day" I'd like to say thank you for the idea for this article. It is possible to have a wonderful time in Europe even with the unfavorable exchange rate and not feel like you have missed out. Money isn't what makes Europe beautiful and most of the gorgeous things in Europe had be had for free or inexpensively! 
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