Most likely your biggest expense for your trip to Europe will be lodging. Whether you want luxury or just a safe place to sleep, you should try to maximize the value you receive. Don’t trust what your neighbor or church friend said about where you should stay; trust your own judgment about what is important to you for this specific trip.
If you have read anyplace else on this website, you may know already that I have chosen to stay in hostels almost all of the time on my first two trips. On the third trip occurring this summer, 2026, I am only staying in hostels if a private room there makes sense. Without going into details here, I made this decision because my aging hip and knee make me less sure-footed when I first change positions, and I don’t want to be falling out of the top bunk if I get up in the middle of the night.
The point of this article is to encourage you to explore all options until you decide on the one that is right for you.
How We Older Women Traveling Solo Could Think About Hotels
Let’s start with hotels, which would probably be your first thought when visiting an American city. I love a great hotel, but for budget reasons, I’ve rarely if ever stayed in one in Europe. This summer I will be doing so.
If hotels are the right choice for you, you get to decide what level of luxury is important to you. Think carefully about what amenities you will actually use. It’s great if they have a hot tub, but if you are only staying for two days that are packed with activities, you might not even use it. Don’t pay for a lot of stuff you won’t use.
Do you really need the hotel breakfast? If you’re not a big breakfast eater at home, the answer to this is no. You can pick up something quick from a bakery or grocery store, both of which are probably nearby. If you like a hearty breakfast, be sure to research what kind your hotel offers, because I have been in fancy hotels where “breakfast” consisted of pastries, breads, coffee, tea, and maybe juice. On the other hand, had a wonderful “full English” breakfast in a modest hotel in London.
In terms of hotels, too, think carefully about the style. Do you want a purpose-built American chain hotel? If you do, I won’t shame you, but I will challenge you to consider also whether you could enrich your travels by going for the “charm” of an older building.
The photo on this page gives you a bit of both–namely a brand you are familiar with, but also a handsome older building, no doubt one with some “character.”
Keep in mind that whatever your lodging choice, you need to think about location. Are you one who likes to come back to the hotel in the middle of the day to rest or put your feet up? If so, make sure your transportation will be convenient for that.
Do you want to stay right in the heart of the tourist area? If so, be prepared for a little more commotion and possibly nighttime noise. Look into the nightlife situation if you want to do that.
What About Short-Term Rentals?
Beyond hotels, many of you think that Airbnb or its equivalents are the solution to everything. If you have good luck with a platform here in the U.S., check their offerings at your destinations.
You might like an apartment if you want to cook for yourself just to save money or meet dietary needs. I also hear people say they choose this because they want to do laundry mid-trip. I remember fondly some experiences of locals helping me figure out the laundromat (which will be called a washateria or about anything else in Europe), I enjoyed Florence and Paris more because of these interactions though.
If you go with an apartment, just be aware that several European destinations, notably Paris but also others, have been cracking down on these short-term rentals because the locals say that they are raising and causing their housing options to disappear.
Read about registration requirements, if any, for your destination cities and then make sure that any apartment you sign up for is legal. If not, the city government could catch them right before your trip, leaving you without a place to stay.
I Love Staying in Hostels–You Might Too
Next, you could think about my preferred accommodation, which is hostels. You might know them as youth hostels, but the vast majority of them now accept people of any age, or at least 18 and over.
Frankly I’ve seen more older people in American hostels than European ones, but none of the other clientele seem to mind that I’m older. Don’t let it bother you.
What do you have to give up to sleep in a hostel? The answer is quite a few things, including privacy, the feeling like your belongings are secure, a perfectly quiet room, space to unpack much of anything, and random degrees of cleanliness and convenience.
However, what you gain from sleeping in a hostel is dollars for sightseeing and lengthening your trip. It has cost me between a fifth and a third of what a hotel would cost. As detailed elsewhere, this feature alone is worth it to me.
Another plus–one that is huge for me–is that you can easily encounter and talk with people, mostly young, from all over the world. The conversations can be wonderful. I’ll be writing more about hostel experiences later.
A Few Other Options Older Women Traveling Alone Might Consider
I’ve had some detailed conversations with people who have used options I haven’t tried. One is the monastery stay, which is especially well known in Italy. Another is the home exchange, which could quite literally let you stay free in a home in Europe, but of course you need to have a home here that someone would want to stay in. A third common option is renting a dormitory room when a university is not in session. I’ll be trying this one this summer, so I will report back.
There are other various programs, such as work-on-a-farm or couchsurfing. These don’t appeal to me whatsoever, but you should follow your own heart and tolerances.
As I write in more detail about your money and your lodging, links to the articles will appear just below.