10. Avoid toll roads. Paris to Nice costs $134 round-trip on the freeway, but you can get there for nothing on the scenic bis roads. These relatively quick routes between many major cities in France are marked with green-and-yellow signs. One downside: Traffic can sometimes be heavier.

11. Negotiate extras with your room rate. When making your reservation, ask if the hotel will throw in breakfast or free parking.

Eating & Drinking

12. Don't eat breakfast in your hotel. Many charge very high prices—a continental breakfast is $23 at one top Amsterdam hotel. Instead, drop into a café and have a croissant and coffee for about $6.

13. Order the prix fixe. The menu del dia (Spain), menu or plat du jour (France), and menu fisso (Italy) are nearly always cheaper than anything a la carte.

14. Choose local wines. Often served in jugs in restaurants (ask for a pichet in France), they're a much better value than those from other regions.

15. Drink free water. Request a jug of iced tap water (carafe d'eau in French).

16. Stand at the bar. Coffee or beer in a continental European café is always more expensive at a table.

17. Order draft beer. Specify draft (in French, birra alla spina in Italian) or you may get a more expensive bottled beer—in London, a pint of draft and a half-pint bottle cost the same, about $3.

18. Avoid tourist trap restaurants. A ten-minute walk to a residential area that's away from the major sights and hotels could significantly lower your meal tab. Ask locals for specific recommendations.

Sightseeing & Entertainment

19. Arrange your own tours. From Venice, an organized trip to the islands of Burano, Murano, and Torcello could cost $21. You can visit the same islands and sights on the public water-bus for $12 (actv.it).

20. Save on theater tickets. The Half Price Theatre booth in Leicester Square offers same-day tickets to London shows from 10 a.m. (noon on Sun.) to just before showtime. Two Kiosques Theatre in Paris (15 pl. de la Madeleine and Montparnasse Square) sell half-price tickets starting at 12:30 p.m.