Loading…
27
The perfect travel day I had in Lisbon vs the nightmare in Madrid, same week
Last March I did a week in Spain and Portugal. Three days in Lisbon were flawless. Got a 72 hour transit card for 20 euros, ate at a local mercado for under 5 bucks a meal, and stumbled on a free fado show in Alfama. Nothing broke, no lines, people were nice. Then Madrid happened. Same budget, same planning. My hostel double booked, the metro card machine ate my 10 euros, and a museum I wanted was closed for a private event. I spent 40 euros on things I didn't need just to fix problems. Same week, same style of travel, totally different results. Is it mostly luck when a budget trip goes smooth, or do you think some cities are just easier to do cheap? Anyone have a city that always works out no matter what?
1 comments
Log in to join the discussion
Log In1 Comment
sethb452mo ago
Figure out if the metro machine issue was just bad luck, or if there was something you could spot ahead of time. I've hit those finicky machines in a few cities and sometimes they're just traps for tourists. But the hostel double booking and the private event, those feel like things a quick email or a phone call the day before could have caught. Do you really think it's random, or did you skip a step in Madrid that you happened to nail in Lisbon? I'm asking because I've had both kinds of trips and I always wonder how much control I actually had.
4