How Much We Spent Traveling in Dresden and Leipzig
Dresden and Leipzig are both easy side trips from Berlin. We visited each city separately, but I thought it was worth combining them for this post since it’s likely that you might want to visit them together on your Germany itinerary. Our visit to Dresden was for two nights, and Leipzig was for one night. Here’s how much we spent traveling in Dresden and Leipzig.
Total Dresden and Leipzig travel costs
The totals are listed in US dollars and euros, and are for two people.
Dresden
$203.52 / 192€ – accommodation
$30.32 / 28.60€ – transportation
$147.72 / 139.36 – food and alcohol
$3.18 / 3€ – miscellaneous
$384.74 / 362.96€ – total
This does not include the cost of our train tickets between Berlin and Dresden, which was 75€ ($79.50) round trip.
Leipzig
$142.15 / 134.10€ – accommodation
$125.85 / 118.73 – food and alcohol
$6.36 / 6€ – activities
$274.36 / 258.83€ – total
This does not include the cost of our train tickets between Berlin and Leipzig, which was 78.50€ ($83.21) round trip.
Hotel costs in Dresden and Leipzig – 326.10€
We spent two nights in Dresden in an Airbnb. The apartment was in the Neustadt (New City) section of Dresden, which is across the river from the Altstadt (Old City) and most of the more touristy things. It was a nice neighborhood and not too hard to get into the Old City to where the main Christmas market was, but the apartment itself wasn’t the best.
In Leipzig, we decided to get a hotel room. Airbnb is starting to lose its appeal for short trips when we don’t need the kitchen. We’re finding we often like the consistency of a hotel, and the one we ended up with in Leipzig was wonderful. I definitely recommend the Penta Hotel. We’ve now stayed there twice.
For three nights between the two cities, we averaged 108.70€ per night, or 54.35€ per person per night.
Cost of transportation in Leipzig and Dresden – 28.60€
In Dresden we used public transportation to get between our apartment and the center of town. We bought day tickets twice for 12€ each (for the kind that’s for more than one person) and 4.60€ for two single tickets.
Our hotel in Leipzig was close enough to the center that we walked and didn’t use any transportation while we were there.
Cost of food and alcohol in Dresden and Leipzig – 258.09€
The whole point of our trip to Dresden was to go to the Christmas markets, so we spent a lot on food and alcohol. We ate a few meals and snacks in restaurants because it was cold and rainy, and I couldn’t handle being outside constantly for the entire day. Also, we got there early enough on our first day to have lunch and left late enough the last day to have lunch and some snacks, so we had nearly three full days in Dresden.
In Leipzig, we arrived in time for lunch and left after lunch the next day. We ate dinner at Kartoffelhaus No. 1, which was a traditional German restaurant serving tasty food from the region. The food was good, and I’d definitely recommend it. We also had some drinks at our hotel.
For about four days, this averages out to about 64.52€ per day, or 32.26€ per person per day on food and alcohol.
Cost of activities in Leipzig and Dresden – 6€
We didn’t do any activities in Dresden. Honestly, it was a trip about drinking Glühwein and wandering through the traditional German Christmas markets.
During our trip to Leipzig, the only activity we did was go to the top of the Panorama Tower for a view of the city from above. This cost 3€ per person, and it was a really great view from up there.
If you plan on going to museums or other attractions in either city, be sure to increase your budget here.
>>Read about my favorite Christmas markets in Berlin.
Total miscellaneous spending – 3€
This was the cost of a locker in the Dresden train station. Our train was late in the day, so we put our bags in a locker so we could more easily enjoy a few more hours at the Christmas markets.
For about four days, we spent $164.77 / 155.45€ per day, or $82.39 / 77.73€ per person per day traveling in Dresden and Leipzig. You could certainly spend more on activities by visiting museums and other attractions. But you could also spend less on food by eating at cheaper places and reducing or eliminating alcohol, and you could spend less on accommodation by finding a cheaper hotel or staying in a hostel. For us, this was a comfortable middle ground, and we wouldn’t change much on a return trip to either city.
You might also enjoy:
- How Much We Spent Traveling in Hamburg
- How Much We Spent Traveling in Munich
- How Much We Spent Traveling in Nuremberg and Bamberg
- Berlin International Restaurant Project: Thailand
- Or check out more real travel budgets on Ali’s Adventures
