Why You Should Skip This Popular Breakfast Option While Traveling In Europe

For the budget-conscious traveler, the words "continental breakfast included" in the description of your hotel room can be music to your ears. You won't have to worry about where you'll eat in the morning, and you'll often feel like you're getting a free meal (even though chances are high that you're not and the hotel has simply charged more for your room to cover the cost of the food). In Europe, where gobs of tourists from all over the world visit, many hotels will include the first meal of the day in the price, while others will offer daily continental breakfast for an extra cost. Either way, travel expert, television host, and author of several European travel books Rick Steves believes you're better off skipping the hotel breakfast. In his opinion, the value is just not there.

Now, if the price of your room automatically comes with breakfast, it's up to you to take advantage, but if the choice is yours to add a small cost for the meal, resist the urge. Your wallet and your tastebuds will be better off by eating breakfast like the locals do, which might be at a nearby bakery or coffee bar. These places are also far more likely to give you a better cultural experience of the country or specific city you're in, versus a hotel full of tourists like yourself instead of locals.

If you're really looking to immerse yourself in the European country you're visiting, rise early and fill your empty stomach at a local café or bakery, where the food will probably be tastier than what your hotel offers as they are catering to locals, and less expensive (because, let's face it, hotels are expensive). But these are most certainly not your only options. Fruit and vegetable stands are great places to buy fresh, seasonal fruit in the morning. Here you can see and smell the produce and choose exactly what you want instead of a hotel choosing fruit options for you. Small, neighborhood grocers, where you can shop like a European, often sell yogurts which make a great breakfast; many times they are drinkable which is ideal when you're on-the-go.

Depending on where you are, the morning food options at cafés may be different from what you're used to in America. Breakfast for Italians is often a savory combo of coffee and focaccia. Things are similar in France where a croissant and café au lait make a satisfying breakfast. Yet, in England, breakfast might come in the form of a full fry which includes eggs, meats, beans, toast, and tomatoes. 

It's always a good idea to do some homework before you travel, and this is especially true if you're going to Europe, where breakfast can vary drastically as you cross borders. It's worth noting that the hotel breakfast buffets in Scandinavia (Sweden, Denmark, Norway, and Finland) are often automatically included in the cost of your room and are absolutely worth the experience and price. Food options will usually include several breads, cheeses, yogurt, cereals, eggs, fish, cold cuts, and beverages. In the Netherlands, Belgium, Germany, Austria, and Switzerland, a generous breakfast will also likely be included with your hotel room.

As you get closer to the Mediterranean Sea, continental hotel breakfasts get noticeably smaller, with choices often being no more than some bread options, coffee or tea, plus jams, butter, and perhaps some Nutella for your rolls. If you've paid for such breakfast (or if it's been included in your room price), and the food doesn't feel adequate enough to get you through a morning of sightseeing, you can always munch a few rolls at the hotel, then grab a wedge of cheese at a nearby cheese shop, plus some juicy cherries or summer peaches at the market. Very European, very filling, and especially tasty.