Hostels vs camping on a trip to Portugal last fall, camping won by a mile

I spent 10 days in Portugal in October and tried both hostels and camping. The hostels in Lisbon were running me like €35 a night for a bunk bed, but camping at Orbitur near Sintra was only €12 for a tent spot with showers included. Camping lets you control your food costs too because you can cook at the site instead of eating out every meal. Anyone else found camping to be way cheaper than expected in southern Europe?

4 comments

4 Comments

sanchez.ivan2d ago

Did you factor in the hidden costs of camping like transport to get supplies or extra gear you might not already own? A cheap tent or sleeping pad can eat up those savings quick if you're starting from scratch. Camping wins on per-night rate but only if you already have the gear or plan to keep using it.

craig.parker2d ago

Does anyone actually track how much ice you burn through camping versus just paying for a motel?

flores.mark2d ago

Camping lets you control your food costs" - yeah until a wild boar steals your chorizo like happened to me in Spain.

casey3422d ago

I mean, wasn't that a wild boar in Spain, not a boar? They're called jabalí there. Still sucks either way though.