It's the little things... (save ~1.00 euro per day)

Working out accommodation and facebooking or checking emails etc. can take a lot of time if you aren't organized and this will cost you if you are sitting in an internet cafe.

On a recent trip to Greece, we were forced to use internet at a cafe that charged 6 euros per hour. Thats right folks, 6 euros an hour - the same price as internet 15 years ago.

So, its good to get organized - get your facebook, email, news and other links into one convenient spot so you can check them all at once.

iGoogle to the rescue
iGoogle is a tool that allows people on the move to operate as they normally would across multiple platforms and computers. This is going to help you save time in expensive internet cafes again and again.

What I like the most is that Google has always been simple - there is a box in the middle of the screen and it searches. So by adding these extra features, they kill multiple birds with one stone.

The rest of the screen is filled with boxes that you choose, which pull information from your favourite websites. Weather information, email summary, post-it style reminder notes, calendar and organizers are probably the most useful and basic features, but you can add news feeds and many many more gadgets.

The interface is very intuitive and easy to use as it is with all new products. Like on the original facebook, you can drag items around and put them where you want, so the most important ones are at the top and easy to access. Less interesting boxes can be places elsewhere.

The look of the website is awesome with skins, some of which are interactive and change every time you log in.

Google chat is of course incorporated with this window, making it an all purpose workstation. I like it because I do work from many different locations throughout the day and everything is exactly how I left it last time I used it.

It is of course free and you can access your other google tools from the top right "My account button"

The only complaint is that some of the skins mean you can't read the text beneath them AND that it makes some browsers run slow. A minor point to mention, not necessarily a complaint, is that you need to type in the extra "/ig" on the end of the address bar to get to the page - going to www.google.com will not take you there.

There is such a thing as a free lunch (save 5-10 euros per day)

Those travelling on a budget will know the pain of having to buy lunch and snacks - hunger always comes at the most inopportune times when you're on the road. You might be on a bus or waiting for the shops to open after siesta or stuck somewhere in the middle of nowhere.

One way to get around this is to make yourself a free lunch. Its quite simple - most places like hostels and hotels that you stay at in Europe have free breakfast included in their price. Make the most of this service.

Of course, you want to stuff yourself for breakfast to get the energy you need for sightseeing and walking. Following stuffing your belly until your buttons pop (okay, maybe thats too far), you go and get some more.

My favourite recipe is the old salami and cheese sandwich. Grab two or three bread rolls or pieces of bread, some butter, salami and cheese. Keep in mind that the fattier the materials you make your sandwich out of, the better. If you eat some salad with no butter and no fat, you won't get any energy out of it and you'll be hungry soon. If you are worried that this technique is going to make you put on weight then you probably aren't using your time effectively anyway - get out there and enjoy yourself!

Following the making of the sandwiches, find a serviette and wrap up your bundles of joy (keeps the crumbs out of your bag). Then walk out. Don't bother asking the staff if you can do it - first of all you don't want to give them an opportunity to confiscate your lunch (like big bullies in school) and second, you have paid for it. Bread, a slice of cheese and some salami cost next to nothing for the hostel or hotel, but will save you a lot for lunch.

Make some for your friends too!

Calling for cheap (save 5.00 euros per month)

The situation is like this - you are in a new country and you need to make a call. You have no

SIM card, you have no calling cards and the phone

doesn't take coins. So it seems like anything you are going to do is going to end up costing you a lot

of money.

A good alternative is Skype with their

new subscription service. You pay a monthly fee for a selected country, or all of Europe and you can make as many ca

lls as you like.

Calling ahead to hotels,

calling to inquir

e about something, making reservations and so on.

So, what is Skype? Skype is the most established Voice Over Internet Protocol products out there.

Normally, if you are making a lot of calls, you will pay by the amount of calls you make, which often leads to weighing up the options - "Should I call Mum on the landline, or with Skype? Should I Skype her to her mobile or landline?"

The thing is you just want to be able to call your mum or someone more useful like a hotel or airline and you don't want to have to pay so much for it.

I use skype all the time for work and I'm glad I just pay a few euros for my month of calls. Depending on what country you get the subscription for, you can call landlines or mobiles.

How to use it.

After you download Skype and set up your account, go to their website to the store then click on the subscriptions section and follow the prompts.

A trick for saving money on skype is to change your address to a country that doesn't have Value Added Tax (VAT). It doesn't matter where you are registered or where your credit card is from. Just find a country that doesn't pay the extra VAT, such as Australia, and you save a few euros each month.

One euro museum

For those of us who visit Greece who aren't history buffs, the New Acropolis Museum is a great way to make sense of the Acropolis instead of just taking the mandatory photo in front of the Parthenon to show your friends on Facebook.

It has explanations of everything about the buildings on the top of the Acropolis and houses the original statues and reliefs discovered by archaeologists.

The museum, which was opened in June 2009 has hundreds of items including some which have never been exhibited before such as the 22 metre long pediment depicting two lions devouring a bull with Heracles depictions on either end.

The collection is the world's richest Archaic Period collection of works with some pieces dating back as far as the 6th century BC, still with legible writing.

The construction of this striking building, which was designed by Swiss architect Bernard Tschumi and Michalis Fotiadis, was delayed when work began because of a new discovery of a 4th century BC settlement on the land chosen. Instead, the building was built on pylons with a glass floor installed.

The view through the glass is simply inspiring, reminding you of the amazing amount of history and life that has occurred on that one spot.

Emeritus Professor of Archaeology Dimitrios Pandermalis, who oversaw the building of the museum, said the design of the museum is symbolic of the climb up to the actual Acropolis. Large ramps heading upwards begin immediately as you enter the turnstiles.

Because of the overwhelming amount of archaelogical artifacts in Athens, I recommend doing this museum separate to the other sights, lest you get museum fatigue.

If you do get tired however, there is an outdoor eatery with a view of the Parthenon and there is also a video explaining the meaning of the artifacts and the history of the ruins. Videos run in Greek and English.

Until the end of 2009, the museum costs 1 euro entrance. Tickets can be bought in advance at the museum and online.

Opening times: 08:00 - 20:00 except Mondays
Near Metro stop Acropolis, across the road from the Dionysus theatre.

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The mission

There are many different types of travellers, but we all have something in common: we want to get a good bang for our buck. No one wants to get ripped off and there are countless people out there on the road who want to swindle you out of more than you'd like to pay.

Taxi drivers, tour guides, hotels, souvenir shops, restaurants, buses, trains, planes, ferries, cars, bikes, camping, food.... the list goes on for places where you could end up paying more for something than you should.

Euro-saver blog will try to give you some insights into how to find your way around Europe for cheap, without losing the quality experience.

I hope you find something useful here. If you do, great - and if you can offer a tip for other readers that can be investigated, even better!

Happy travels.