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. But first, coffee (around the corner) 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 .