With its remarkable diversity, compact size, and cheap airfare deals, Europe offers a world of exciting three-day weekends for American students during their study abroad programs.

And semester abroad advisors are encouraging their students to do more and more

their learning outside the classroom. On Thursday afternoons I would sit in my

figure during class looking out over the Tyber River, the same Tyber River

that Michael Angelo would cross to go on to paint the Sistine Chapel.

It's amazing to live among that history.

Hi, I'm Rick Steves, and that was my son Andy.

As a recent college grad, he discovered some of the wonders of Europe while studying abroad.

He shares what he learned about planning a quick and cheap weekend getaway within Europe.

One way to keep expenses down is to sleep at a youth hostel.

We'll learn about the business of running a hostile

and how hustling makes budget travel possible almost anywhere.

Maybe this will be a surprise but the top hostile in the world for the last two or three years has been in Lisbon.

Okay, dust off that old rucksack. It's Travel with Rick Steeves.

When you're a college student, it can be really tough to afford overseas travel, but there are plenty of

options that can make it both affordable and the time of your life.

Coming up today on Travel with Rick Steeves, we get an update on how the hostile system of accommodations

works from an Irish tour guide who also happens to run his own hostile.

And my son Andy explains how internet-based technology is making it easier than ever to plan a budget trip,

even if it's just a weekend getaway on a study abroad program.

These days it's almost routine for American university students to spend a semester abroad

and built into that semester abroad time are three-day

...