http://www.threefreethings.com Our latest suggestions for budget travel activities around the world. You don't have to spend a lot to see a lot! en-us Fri, 29 Jan 2010 22:32:35 -0500 86400 http://www.threefreethings.com/free-thing/united-kingdom/london/54 Fri, 29 Jan 2010 22:32:35 -0500 It's probably too late to join them for Monty Python's Flying Circus or The Office, but the BBC keeps putting out new TV shows and they always need people to fill the seats in the audience and laugh, cheer, or clap along. You can get free tickets to many of their shows just by ... http://www.threefreethings.com/free-thing/france/paris/49 Sun, 08 Nov 2009 22:10:39 -0500 You're a tourist in Paris. You spent 13 euros and wait in line for 45 minutes to ride the elevator to the top of the Eiffel Tower. Finally at the top, you got out your camera, all ready to take a prizewinning shot of the city's most famous landmark lighting up the sky. But guess what? Those ... http://www.threefreethings.com/free-thing/france/paris/48 Sun, 08 Nov 2009 22:07:54 -0500 Free Wednesdays from 5pm - 8pm. The Maison Européene de la Photographie (the European House of Photography), situated in the historic heart of Paris, is a major center for photographic art. It houses an exhibition center, a large library, a video viewing facility with a wide ... http://www.threefreethings.com/free-thing/france/paris/47 Sun, 08 Nov 2009 22:06:26 -0500 Paris has been the scene of many infamous crimes over the years, and there's also a grand tradition of flamboyant, idiosyncratic investigators solving those crimes. The Police Museum captures some of the historical characters and evidence behind the struggle between those who ran afoul of ... http://www.threefreethings.com/free-thing/france/paris/46 Sun, 08 Nov 2009 22:05:41 -0500 It's hard to describe the Stravinsky Fountain exactly. A crazed hodgepodge of wild, brightly-colored, erratically moving mechanical beasts in a shallow pool of water between a centuries-old church and the brazen Pompidou Centre, the fountain is not the sort of thing you expect to find in Paris ... http://www.threefreethings.com/free-thing/france/paris/45 Sun, 08 Nov 2009 22:03:56 -0500 The Louvre? Free? Well, not very often. But on the first Sunday of each month the world's most famous museum throws open its doors to one and all. The good news is that it's a very democratic time in the world's most famous art museum, bringing budget tourists together with boisterous ... http://www.threefreethings.com/free-thing/france/paris/44 Sun, 08 Nov 2009 22:02:40 -0500 Behind the French Senate building you'll find the gorgeous Luxembourg Gardens, a huge public park full of delightful places to walk and sit. If you wander around you'll encounter all sorts of treasures, including dozens of statues and the famous Medici Fountain. On warm days the park fills ... http://www.threefreethings.com/free-thing/australia/melbourne/43 Sun, 08 Nov 2009 21:49:40 -0500 Since 1878, this historic market has been a central part of Melbourne city life. About half of the market continues to be devoted to the sale of fresh fruits, vegetables, meat, seafood, and delicatessen products, while the remainder is now given over to stalls carrying everything from clothes to ... http://www.threefreethings.com/free-thing/australia/melbourne/42 Sun, 01 Nov 2009 23:21:20 -0500 The Victoria Police Museum is home to a darker side of Victorian history. With tales of colorful criminals and daring police work in risky situations, the museum offers a unique view into some notable crimes in Victoria and their aftermaths. See the armor of Kelly Gang members Dan Kelly ... http://www.threefreethings.com/free-thing/australia/melbourne/41 Sun, 01 Nov 2009 23:03:04 -0500 No-risk fare dodging! You can ride all around the downtown area for free, visiting the harbor, the aquarium, the parks alongside the Yarra River, several museums, the Royal Exhibition Building, and more. The City Circle tram service operates in a circular route passing major tourist ... http://www.threefreethings.com/free-thing/australia/sydney/40 Sat, 31 Oct 2009 21:40:46 -0400 Royal Botanic Gardens is an oasis of 30 hectares in the heart of the city. Established in 1816, it is the oldest scientific institution in the country and home to an outstanding collection of plants from Australia and overseas. The gardens occupy one of Sydney's most spectacular locations ... http://www.threefreethings.com/free-thing/australia/sydney/39 Sat, 31 Oct 2009 21:32:30 -0400 Built in 1858, Sydney Observatory is Australia's oldest observatory. A visit to Sydney Observatory can include fascinating lectures, daily or nightly viewing through telescopes, a virtual reality 3-D space theatre show or launching a rocket at a school holiday workshop. At night time ... http://www.threefreethings.com/free-thing/australia/sydney/38 Sat, 31 Oct 2009 21:17:37 -0400 The Art Gallery of New South Wales is the leading museum of art in New South Wales and Sydney, and one of Australia's foremost cultural institutions. It holds significant collections of Australian, European and Asian art, and presents nearly forty exhibitions annually. And it's free (except for ... http://www.threefreethings.com/free-thing/united-kingdom/london/37 Thu, 29 Oct 2009 19:57:42 -0400 Why watch on C-SPAN in the middle of the night when you can see the real thing, live and in person? To witness a British parliamentary debate in all its bombastic, sarcastic glory, all you have to do is show up and join the queue outside Westminster Palace. It may take an hour or two to get in ... http://www.threefreethings.com/free-thing/united-kingdom/london/36 Thu, 29 Oct 2009 18:52:10 -0400 Fascinating for children and adults alike, the Science Museum boasts a broad array of interactive, engaging exhibits spanning the full range of scientific knowledge. The museum has also led some ambitious projects, such as creating a working version of inventor Charles Babbage's Difference ... http://www.threefreethings.com/free-thing/united-kingdom/london/35 Thu, 29 Oct 2009 11:44:17 -0400 Borough Market, the oldest in London, has been around since at least the 1200s, and sometimes it seems like some of the oddball characters running the stalls have been there the entire time. For centuries a straightforward farmer's market where folks from the countryside came into town to sell ... http://www.threefreethings.com/free-thing/united-kingdom/london/34 Wed, 28 Oct 2009 08:24:47 -0400 Indisputably one of the best, and largest, museums in the world. Well-stocked during centuries of colonization, the British Museum holds treasures from all over the planet, such as the Rosetta Stone and the largest collection of ancient Egyptian artifacts outside of Cairo. In fact, many ... http://www.threefreethings.com/free-thing/usa/tx/fort-worth/33 Wed, 28 Oct 2009 07:45:34 -0400 When's the last time you saw a few million dollars in cash? Here's your chance. Billions, in fact, get printed at the United States Bureau of Engraving and Printing's Western Currency Facility, and you can watch them do it. The tour covers all the stages of moneymaking, from preparing the ... http://www.threefreethings.com/free-thing/usa/tx/fort-worth/32 Wed, 28 Oct 2009 07:40:02 -0400 It gets plenty hot in Texas, so it's nice to know there's a great free place to cool off right in the middle of downtown Fort Worth. The Water Gardens sport a number of different fountains to relax by or splash through, randing from the turgid to the serene. http://www.threefreethings.com/free-thing/usa/ny/new-york/31 Tue, 27 Oct 2009 07:54:19 -0400 Every day, thousands of New Yorkers use the ferry to get between their homes in the quiet borough of Staten Island, and their jobs in Manhattan. Until 1997 they were paying 25 cents for the ride, but now they pay nothing at all, and you can too. From the ferry you'll get great views of the lower ... http://www.threefreethings.com/free-thing/usa/ny/new-york/30 Tue, 27 Oct 2009 07:53:20 -0400 One of New York's most famous landmarks, the Brooklyn Bridge is also a great spot for getting panoramic views of the rest of the city. There's a dedicated pedestrian/cycle path above the roadway, so you can dawdle and gawk to your heart's content. http://www.threefreethings.com/free-thing/usa/ny/new-york/29 Mon, 26 Oct 2009 23:46:15 -0400 Most nights, if it's not too cold, and not raining, from about 8pm to 11pm — sometimes earlier, sometimes later — you'll hear harmonies flowing out from under the large trees around the fountain in the middle of Washington Square Park. A mix of regulars, irregulars, and some who are ... http://www.threefreethings.com/free-thing/usa/ny/new-york/28 Mon, 26 Oct 2009 23:34:19 -0400 Most New Yorkers live in crowded buildings, with no more lawn or garden than they can fit in a window-box. Therefore, the great big expanses of green in Central Park are a precious thing, shared in good spirit by everyone who can find a free moment to spend there. On Saturdays and Sundays ... http://www.threefreethings.com/free-thing/usa/ca/san-francisco/27 Mon, 26 Oct 2009 19:18:12 -0400 When it was destroyed by fire in 1966, Sutro Baths had already suffered years of decay from its glamorous beginnings in the late 1800s. At one time this beautifully-situated complex offered swimming in Pacific-fed salt water pools, concerts, ice skating, and even had its own train line. By ... http://www.threefreethings.com/free-thing/usa/ca/san-francisco/26 Mon, 26 Oct 2009 18:51:18 -0400 At the corner of Mason and Washington Streets, where San Francisco's iconic cable car lines intersect, sits the powerhouse building. It's from here that the cables are pulled, hauling the heavy cars up the city's steep hills. And it's also here that you can see for yourself how it all works ... http://www.threefreethings.com/free-thing/usa/ca/san-francisco/25 Sun, 25 Oct 2009 16:02:19 -0400 Few walks in any city offer vistas as stunning as you'll experience crossing the Golden Gate Bridge. On the east side, the round yellow hills of Marin County rise over the endless expanse of the Pacific Ocean. On the west side, Alcatraz Island and the skyscrapers of San Francisco beckon. ... http://www.threefreethings.com/free-thing/turkey/istanbul/24 Sun, 25 Oct 2009 15:45:48 -0400 Turkey is a paradise for snacking. Baklava, fresh nuts, spinach pies and döner kebab are everywhere. Down at the river's edge, though, you'll find a motley collection of grizzled characters selling something not so closely associated with Turkish cuisine: seafood. From wooden pushcarts and ... http://www.threefreethings.com/free-thing/turkey/istanbul/23 Sun, 25 Oct 2009 15:23:41 -0400 Nestled behind the imposing Beyazıt mosque, just a stone's throw from the entrance to the fabled Grand Bazaar, sits a bazaar of a different type. No touristy knick-knacks, no high-pressure carpet salesmen, just stacks and stacks of books of all kinds. You'll find antique religious works ... http://www.threefreethings.com/free-thing/turkey/istanbul/22 Sat, 24 Oct 2009 22:26:18 -0400 A bit to the east of fashionable Taksim, in the shadow of the Bosphorous Bridge, lies one of modern Istanbul's most charming neighborhoods. Ortaköy is abuzz with art galleries and cafés, including several that front on the Bosphorous and offer beautiful views of the park across the water on ... http://www.threefreethings.com/free-thing/usa/dc/washington/21 Sat, 24 Oct 2009 20:56:54 -0400 On Sunday afternoons, when the weather is warm and dry, a rhythm starts to sound from Meridian Hill Park around 5pm. At first it's just a few people with drums, but by its peak there may be 20 drummers and as many dancers, and several times more spectators standing, nodding, and swaying ...