By Ryan Ermey, Kiplinger
If you’re planning a trip abroad, you no doubt already have a few popular (and probably pricey) destinations in mind. But what if you could take your dream vacation at a fraction of the cost? We’ve compiled a list of affordable alternatives to eight international vacation hot spots. Each offers similar tourist attractions as its better-known overseas counterpart, only on a much smaller budget.
In order to compare costs, we turned to Price of Travel, a Web site that tracks travel costs for more than 110 popular destinations around the world. Its 3-Star Traveler indexes calculate how much a visitor will likely spend per day on a midrange hotel room in a tourist area (based on double-occupancy), two taxi rides (assuming the fare is split between two riders), entry to one cultural attraction, three budget meals and three glasses of beer or wine. We also consulted with the travel experts at Hotwire and Tim Leffel, author of The World’s Cheapest Destinations, for help in selecting these alternative destinations.
Krakow, Poland
Krakow, Poland. Photo from Kiplinger.
Cheap alternative to: Amsterdam
Amsterdam is a go-to European destination thanks to its Old World charm, cultural attractions and raucous party scene. But trade in pancakes for pierogies, and you can find Krakow every bit as charming at just 40% of the cost.
The Polish city’s relative anonymity combined with a weak currency, the zloty, will stretch your travel budget. A visitor staying at a midrange hotel in Krakow would spend roughly $66 a day on lodging, meals, entertainment and the like, according to Price of Travel’s Europe 3-Star Traveler Index. A comparable traveler in Amsterdam would spend about $163 a day. Price of Travel calls Krakow “the best bargain in Europe.”
What to do? Start in the historic center, a Unesco World Heritage site that features Wawel Hill, home to a royal cathedral and castle. Fans of Amsterdam’s Anne Frank House can visit Oskar Schindler’s enamel factory, now a branch of the Historical Museum of the City of Krakow. Entry to the factory costs about $6, less than half the price of a ticket to the Anne Frank House.
After you work up a thirst sightseeing, take a seat at one of the countless cafés that line the city’s well-preserved medieval squares. Don’t worry, you won’t drink alone. Krakow is known for having a number of excellent (and rowdy) bar crawls every night of the week. A beer in a café runs about $2.
Cartagena, Colombia
Cartagena, Colombia. Photo from Kiplinger.
Cheap alternative to: Rio de Janeiro
As host to the World Cup in 2014 and the Summer Olympics in 2016, not to mention a notorious annual Carnival celebration, Rio is hard for international travelers to ignore. But buzz can result in rising prices, as it has for this Brazilian city. For a more affordable South American beach destination, consider Cartagena at nearly half the cost.
“It’s not Rio,” says Tim Leffel, author of The World’s Cheapest Destinations, “but in terms of a beach town, Cartagena is a good choice: great beaches, a beautiful colonial city, and there’s even a good Carnival nearby [in Barranquilla].” It’s free to wander Cartagena’s historic old town, with its well-preserved churches, monasteries, plazas and palaces, and to ramble along centuries-old fortified walls built to fend off the pirates of the Caribbean.
Your pesos go a lot further in Colombia than your reals would in Brazil. Price of Travel’s 3-Star Traveler index estimates that you’ll spend $62 a day in Cartagena versus about $115 in Rio. A simple meal of chicken, rice, plantains and salad should fill you up and run you only $2 to $3.
As for safety, take precautions but don’t let fear ruin your vacation. The U.S. State Department’s travel warning for Colombia notes that security has improved significantly in recent years, especially in tourist destinations such as Cartagena.
The Himalayas
The Himalayas. Photo from Kiplinger.
Cheap alternative to: The Alps
If your dream vacation involves snow-capped mountains and lots of fleece, you may be contemplating a trip to Europe to see the Alps. But why not dream bigger? The Himalaya range is home to Earth’s highest peaks — and some of its lowest prices.
Pokhara, Nepal, is the cheapest city on Price of Travel’s Asia 3-Star index, coming in at only $28 a day. Remember, that budget includes the per-person cost of a room in a 3-star hotel, a taxi ride, one cultural attraction, three midrange meals and three beers. You could spend eight nights in Pokhara, Nepal’s trekking capital, for the cost of one in Zurich, Switzerland ($231 on the Europe 3-star index), and still have money left over.
Don’t confuse Nepal with Shangri-La. The extreme affordability reflects income per capita that’s among the lowest in the world. Poverty is a reality in Nepal, sanitation is spotty, and you’ll need to watch what you eat. “Just because you can order salads, crepes with cream sauce, or ice cream desserts doesn’t mean you should,” writes Leffel. But if you’re careful, the food can be tasty and very budget-friendly.
What Nepal lacks in material wealth, it makes up for in natural treasures. Hiking treks start at about $15 a day, and white-water rafting trips (transportation, food and camping gear included) cost about $30 a day. Of course, there’s no charge for the stunning views of the Himalayas.
Budapest, Hungary
Budapest, Hungary. Photo from Kiplinger.
Cheap alternative to: Paris
There’s no replacing Paris. If you’re dead-set on ascending the Eiffel Tower, admiring the artwork of the Louvre, eating escargot along the Seine and strolling the Champs-Elysees, then by all means go to the French capital. But if you’re open to trying a culturally interesting European capital that’s less than a third of Paris’s price tag, book a flight to Budapest.
A 3-star traveler will spend roughly $57 a day in Budapest compared to a whopping $184 in Paris. What makes the Hungarian city so much cheaper? For one, the currency. In Paris a crisp greenback nets you just three-quarters of a strengthening euro; in Budapest you pocket 227 forints. Furthermore, because not nearly as many romantic tales have been set in Budapest, you’re not paying the same outrageous tourist premiums.
A historical highlight of Budapest is the 13th-century Buda Castle overlooking the Danube. The views are free, but entry to some attractions isn’t. Help foot the bill for your whirlwind cultural tour with the Budapest Card, which grants you 72 hours of free public transportation, along with two guided walking tours, and free entry into a historic bathhouse and eight museums across the city for $37. (The Paris hop-on, hop-off tour can cost closer to $45.) Use the $8 you’ll save to sample surprisingly satisfying Hungarian wines. That’s how much Leffel, the travel-book author, says it cost him to have three good glasses at the finest wine bar in Budapest.
Read the full article by Ryan Ermey from Kiplinger.
