For the fourth year in a row, DiscoverCars.com has carried out its annual report, ranking the best budget-friendly destinations for a winter getaway. Comparing different European cities, the car rental company has created a top ten list of ideal destinations for holidaymakers hoping to take an affordable trip this winter.
To do this, they analysed factors such as the cost of a round trip from Heathrow, the number of affordably priced restaurants, and the average cost of a week’s stay in a hotel. Each city was then given a score out of 50 and ranked accordingly.
Aleksandrs Buraks, Head of Growth at DiscoverCars.com, said:
“Our annual research into the best budget-friendly destinations for winter travellers has revealed some interesting results. While Krakow has been in the top spot for the past few years, now Prague has moved up into first place – this beautiful city had the lowest cost to fly to as well as being the second cheapest place to rent a car.

“We also compared the cost of entrance of the biggest attraction in each city, and something interested we discovered was that the price of many of these attractions has changed. Since last year it’s now just over 20% cheaper to visit Vienna’s charming Schönbrunn Palace – but the price of entry to the Eiffel Tower in Paris has gone up by 36%.”
The 2024 top five destinations for a budget-friendly winter break were:
- Prague, Czech Republic
This year, Prague is in first place, with a score of 44 out of 50 points. The Czech capital has not claimed the top spot before in DiscoverCars.com annual ranking. At only £94, the cost for a return flight from London Heathrow was the lowest on the list.
Prague was also the second cheapest place to rent a car for a week, with an average cost of £44.06. There are 1024 affordable restaurants to choose from, giving travellers plenty of options.
- Krakow, Poland
The Polish city of Krakow ranks in second place, scoring 37 out of 50 points. Krakow has ranked in first place for the last three years, dropping down a spot in this year’s ranking. This city has the lowest price to rent a car for a week, costing £34.65 on average.
Krakow is also the city with the lowest average cost to stay in a hotel for a week, costing £479.26. The average cost of a return flight from London Heathrow is £133.

- Berlin, Germany
In third place, we have Berlin, with a score of 33 out of 50 points. The German capital ranked in seventh place last year so it has climbed four places in the last twelve months. This was the city with the second highest number of cheap restaurants, with 1354 eateries.
The average cost to fly there and back from London Heathrow is £117 and it would cost £673.20 on average to stay in a hotel for a week.
- Budapest, Hungary
Budapest is in fourth place in 2024, scoring 32 out 50 points. It’s moved up in the rankings by one place since last year. A return flight from London Heathrow costs £120 on average.
Budapest is the fourth cheapest place to stay, with hotel accommodation costing £616.00 per week on average. It’s also the city with the fourth highest number of affordable restaurants, at 680.
- Brussels, Belgium
This year, Brussels has landed in fifth place, with a score of 31 out of 50 points. The Belgian city has fallen in the ranking by two places since last year. This is the third cheapest place to fly to, with a return trip from London Heathrow averaging at £96.
The city has 553 cheap restaurants, and the average cost to rent a car for a week is £100.91.

Rounding off the ranking, the remaining cities in the top ten were:
- Tallinn, Estonia
- Paris, France
- Vienna, Austria
- Amsterdam, Netherlands
- Copenhagen, Denmark
Last year, DiscoverCars.com’s top five cities for a budget-friendly winter trip were:
- Krakow, Poland
- Prague, Czech Republic
- Brussels, Belgium
- Paris, France
- Budapest, Hungary
This year, the city that moved the most places upwards in the ranking was Berlin, moving from seventh place all the way up to third. The city that dropped the most places was Paris – last year’s fourth best destination, this year the French capital has ranked in seventh place.