How Much Does It Cost To Travel The Baltics For 5 Days?

One of my goals as a budget traveler is to offer real, genuine advice on how much certain types of trips cost, and the real expenses on the ground. For my trip to the Baltics this spring, I was gone for 5 days and 4 nights. I had a day of transit in London (United Kingdom), two days in Tallinn (Estonia), a daytrip to Helsinki (Finland), and most of a day in Riga (Latvia).

During my trip, I kept track of all my expenses—every meal, every souvenir, every beer! I always want to give an accurate account of how much certain items cost. I also did all the math for you (you’re welcome!) and put daily totals and category costs into euros (EUR), pounds (GBP), and dollars (USD). So here you go: how much my trip to the Baltics actually cost!

Day 1:

This was my transit day from York to London, and flying to Tallinn.

Train from London St. Pancras to Gatwick Airport: £5.95

Food (meal deal) at the airport: £3.99

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Taxi from Tallinn Airport to hostel (shared with my friend): €6

TOTAL: €17.40 // £15.25 // $21.30

Day 2:

Kiek en de Kok tunnel tour: €9

Food at Ill Draakon: €4.50

City Walls: €3

Beer (in a restaurant): €3.50

2 Beers (from a grocery store): €2.48

TOTAL: €22.48 // £19.65 // $27.45

Day 3:

KGB Prison Cells Museum: €4

Ice cream: €2.50

Dinner at a Georgian restaurant (with tip): €15

Beer: €3.80

TOTAL: €25.30 // £22.15 // $30.90

Day 4:

Ferry to Suomenlinna Fortress (round-trip): €5

Souvenirs: €5.40

Subway sandwich: €4.95

TOTAL: €15.35 // £13.40 // $18.75

Day 5:

Snacks at the bus station: €2.60

Lido (!!!) in Riga: €5.65

Burger at Hesburger: €0.95

Airport bus: €2

TOTAL: €11.20 // £9.80 // $13.70

What about my expensive items—flights and accommodation? How much did they cost?

Flight from London Gatwick to Tallinn: €70 // £61.25 // $85.50

Flight from Riga to Leeds-Bradford: €58 // £50.75 // $70.85

Train tickets from York to London: €20.55 // £18 // $25.10

Accommodation in Tallinn (4 nights in a 6-bed dorm): €45 // £39.40 // $54.95

Ferry (round-trip) from Tallinn to Helsinki: €32 // £28 // $39.05

LuxExpress Bus from Tallinn to Riga: €10 // £8.75 // $12.20

Interested in a breakdown by category? Here’s how much I spent on accommodation, transportation, food/drink, sightseeing, and miscellaneous costs!

Accommodation: €45 // £39.40 // $54.95

Transportation: €210.35 // £184.25 // $257.10

Food/Drink: €50.55 // £44.25 // $61.70

Sightseeing: €16 // £14 // $19.55

Miscellaneous: €5.40 // £4.75 // $6.60

The Baltics is a very affordable destination for those traveling with dollars and pounds, and for those traveling with euros from Western Europe. It is much cheaper than popular destinations like France or Italy. However, it is not necessarily “cheap” by Eastern European standards (anymore). A beer in the Old Town of Tallinn or Riga can cost €5-6. The same as in Dublin, and on par with where I live in York! Meals out can still be expensive. It’s nowhere on the same level as Ukraine or Moldova, and not as cheap as Poland.

I also visited the two “expensive” countries of the Baltics—Estonia and Latvia are much pricier than Lithuania. That definitely made a difference. Being a seasoned budget traveler though, I know how to keep costs on the ground low. My regular budget-travel-style meant I didn’t blow through loads of money. For my daytrip to Helsinki, I spent relatively little besides the actual cost of the ferry (which I booked in advance). Despite it being an expensive destination, I brought some food and snacks with me.

Transportation was definitely the most expensive part of my trip. I spent a lot on flights, even though I didn’t check a bag or pay for priority boarding. I was also lucky to get picked up from Leeds-Bradford Airport—otherwise it would have cost me at least £10-15 to get back to York by public transportation.

Another game changer for my budget? My hostel had a fantastic free breakfast. Unfortunately, I missed it two mornings since I left so early. However, I had an incredibly filling first meal of the day for two out of four days—completely free. I ate loads at breakfast! Also, I had brought leftovers for the first (transit) day of my trip, and I brought a load of snack bars with me as well. I kept my food costs low, and only ate out for a big meal once. In Latvia, I took advantage of cheap but delicious popular chains like Lido and Hesburger!

My hostel was also an excellent value for money—€10 for a night in a 6-bed dorm during the week. There were cheaper places to stay, and more expensive places too. But I really liked this hostel. I’m very happy with my experience at Knight House Hostel—read my review here!