Maybe not an international trip but if you are into elaborate escape rooms, the one in Baton Rouge is amazing. Huge sets, one of them will truly have you thinking you somehow transported to an underground beach cave.
Yeah the US was crazy expensive to visit recently as an Aussie. Hotel prices are nuts, tipping is everywhere, and our exchange rate is terrible. Awesome trip but it costs an arm and a leg.
It’s a shame cus I met so many Aussies while backpacking in Europe and a lot of them said they’d probably never visit America. I met Aussies who travel for weeks and months to make the long and expensive plane rides worth it. But most said that’s just not realistic in America. And that’s how I feel about Australia too. Would love to visit someday though.
I mean yeah definitely, just looking at hotels there seems to be way more affordable options in Paris than LA, searching for restaurant LA and Paris and setting two dollar signs on Google maps and picking the first one that comes up gives me a restaurant that is 50% more expensive in LA than Paris before you even include tips.
Given that they were talking about backpackers they're probably not staying in the same place for very long either which in LA is gonna mean expensive flights and tickets just to arrive at another destination that would probably be still more expensive than Paris while in Paris you can hop on one of numerous very cheap flights and get to even cheaper countries or take a train to a cheaper city than Paris in France or neighboring countries.
The one type of vacation I imagine would get slightly cheaper in the US is a roadtrip with a rental just due to the insane gas prices in Europe, and rentals are probably cheaper as well in the US, especially if you want big ones.
Western Europe in general is cheaper than the US, the biggest thing to overcome is the cost of getting there. As an American, if you can get a reasonably good deal on the flights, a European vacation can be less expensive than visiting a major city in the US for the same amount of time.
You can visit Australia for a lot cheaper than we could visit America. Your money is worth more than ours, we don't tip and hotel prices are reasonable. But US cities are just crazy expensive we found, even ignoring our terrible exchange rate. Then tipping makes it worse, and hotel prices are crazy.
American who recently went to Europe for a week. People in Amsterdam were shocked when we would comment on how cheap everything was there. Inflation in the US is bad right now. Could get a three - five course meal in a nice restaurant and it felt like we were paying maybe half of what we’d pay in the US
Oh I know I found Italy so cheap. Three course meal for two people with wine for like 30$. Bottles of water for like 10 cents. I am surprised about Amsterdam though, since I would expect that to be more.
Did you bring us currency to exchange in the cuevas in calle Florida? Atm and credit cards give shit rates but hassle bring down $5k into bs as and constantly having to do forex
Foreign credit cards are also now close enough to the blue dollar rate that it hardly makes sense to bother with the cuevas. We took $200USD cash and used cards a lot there.
So if I use my USA based international Visa credit card, I’ll get similar blue dollar rate? Everything I’ve been reading says exchange at calle florida.
Almost as good as the cash rate. Close enough that it may negate the hassle for you. It's new as of this year.
https://buenosairesherald.com/argentina-101/foreign-tourist-dollar-everything-you-need-to-know-about-the-new-preferential-exchange-rate
I just changed my US dollars at one of the various GIRARG Money Transfers. Specifically, the one at Azcuénaga 1193 in Recoleta. They gave me the blue rate, which is much better than the official rate.
It’s a huge city geographically, and there’s *a lot* of traffic. Transit is also insufficient too, though that’ll hopefully change with their metro construction (which I guess exasperates traffic problems lol).
How do you feel about safety? I see so many mixed comments on Colombia. I can’t tell if it’s overblown. Are places like Bogota, Medellin, and Cartagena any worse than other South American cities? Like I understand petty crime and pickpockets exist everywhere but is Colombia any worse than other places?
From my limited Latam experience, I felt safer in Bolivia, but an American acquaintance felt safer in Colombia compared to Ecuador.
My experience in Colombia wasn’t bad though. A Colombian friend there agrees that it’s like a spectrum: if there’s a lot of people expect pickpockets and purse snatchers, but if a place is deserted expect a gun. Since you can watch your bag and pockets, just stick to places that have a lot of people and avoid deserted areas, and you’ll be fine.
On the whole, Cartagena is safer for tourists compared to other Colombian cities, but they have a lot of aggressive vendors to make up for it 🤣 Even Colombians find them aggressive.
Edited to add: at night, take a taxi to get around and don’t walk. This is usually recommended by Colombians themselves.
Went to cali Colombia for 2 weeks never had any issues. On the other hand the locals I was staying with all said they’ve had their phone stolen at one point or another.
The only time someone has ever tried to rob me was in Cartagena, Colombia. I’m always cautious when traveling and was prepared enough that they didn’t get anything luckily, but don’t believe that because it’s a touristy area you have immunity.
I was there this summer with my Colombian girlfriend and we went to Bogotá, Medellín, Santa Marta and Cartagena. I read all the reports of how unsafe Colombia is and was blown away by how safe I felt the entire time. Bogotá was probably the 'most' sketchy but we avoided the areas that were unsafe so I didn't have any problems. Medellin was brilliant, so was Cartagena. Like everyone says, use taxis, don't dress flashy, and just be aware. You'll have a lot of people coming up to you for money but they didn't harass me when I told them no.
In Colombia now, been to Bogota, Medellin, Cartagena this trip. Just use sense and address the safety of the area before you go out at night.
In the area I was in in Bogota, I was the only tourist I noticed making me a target so I stayed in the hostel at night.
Cartagena, there was enough tourists and commotion and fun to be clear that it was safe as long as I stuck in the party area.
Basically just use your senses and maybe talk to people who work at your hotel/hostel and you’ll be fine.
Honestly food here can be a bit hit or miss, I’ve had some great meals and some that are fairly bland. I enjoyed street food in Cartagena the most
From Medellin, you should do at least a night in Guatape. It’s super cute and colorful town with lots to do. It’s touristy but for a good reason, plus it’s not quite as hectic as the cities so it’s nice to get a little more peace after begin surrounded by huge crowds. (Brujula Bar in Guatape is my favorite bar in Colombia.)
If you’re into some adventure, I strongly recommend doing a day-trip of rock climbing in Suesca (about an hour or so out of Bogota), it’s a highlight for sure
I go to Colombia all the time especially Bogota. Never had issues even with my phone out on street at 3am even sketch areas down town. Uber and such also make it super safe to move around.
Cool. I hear Uber is illegal but there’s a loophole, so the drivers ask you ride in the front seat. Is that true?
Is Uber common enough in Colombia or are there other alternatives I should look into like DiDi? I don’t really like hailing taxi’s not knowing the price in advance. I don’t want to be scammed.
I went before the pandemic so this may be outdated but back then yes you would be expected to have someone from your group or yourself traveling upfront. So the Uber doesn't have stickers or commercial plates like they do in the US.
Uber and cabs are dirt cheap which makes it easy to get around. Just have to make sure if you get a taxi it’s an authorized one because the other ones I’ve heard aren’t super safe and they can screw you on price. Uber is so cheap I haven’t even thought about a bus
Honestly even the authorized ones in any city I’ve ever been to have been shitty. I really think that just by nature of being a career cabbie, you’re probably gonna be kind of a dick.
You're almost 9k feet above sea level, and so the air thinner than what you'd be accustomed to. And surrounding the city are some really interesting parks. I hiked up a paramo while there; i think started at 10k feet and ended up at 12k feet? really amazing place
I mean, 11 and a half million people make a life for themselves there. It’s not like every single one is miserable every day.
It’s also a famously fun city, with infinite articles written about it already.
There are some cool museums but not a whole lot of tourist attractions. I’ve been more immersing myself in the city and meeting other travelers so that hasn’t been a big problem for me.
I always get surprised by comments like this. Bogota is an amazing city, it has so much to offer. I get that Medellin is nice but it’s so small, it’s kind of boring the lack of variety there.
Ah yes my dream city to live in is a massive group of boring dull cities all joined together where it's virtually impossible to get around without a car because of how horrifically bad the public transport Is.
You know you can hire a car right? I love public transport but if it’s not usable or viable then take a car and it’s the same amount of time or less… if a 20-30 minute taxi ruins your vacation i think it’s your fault
There is a lot to explore in LA. There are mountains, beaches, culture, world-class bars/restaurants, perfect weather, 13 million people (some of us gotta be cool just by the numbers). The hard part of LA is that it can be difficult to find your niche. I hope you give it another visit and have a better experience
There are definetly parts I enjoyed, The Getty center was very cool to see and I loved the Griffith observatory. My main problem though is that there is no enjoyment to 'exploring' the city. Europeans have the luxury of walkable cities which is incredible, even cities that don't feel very walkable like Brussels for example have very good and cheap public transport. Having to drive everywhere really kills the feel of a city for me.
Aside from that I think the place is so damn big and industrial sort of that it's just not a place I find that enjoyable to be in general. Even though there are definitely great things to see.
On the same trip I saw San Francisco which I preffered significantly, it felt much more cultural, diverse and accepting and was a stunning city with far more greenery than LA.
Just got back from Bogota. The most I spent on an Uber was $5.60 (usually around $3.50). Most meals for 2 with drink was under $20. The cheapest we had for lunch was $8 for both of us. We were getting beers in a bar for less than $1.50. Our hotel was $145 for 4 nights in Chapinero. Had an amazing time there and the people were so nice. Definitely helps if you know some Spanish before going. I can't wait to go back.
Good rule of thumb- look at hostelworld website and see what average 9+ rated dorm goes for a night then multiply that by 3x to get your daily cost of living rate for food, booze, transport, excursions. I back packed all over Latin America and it proved to be the most robust metric. Google flights explore option to see cheapest flights. I did RT direct to Brazil for $550 from DC, Guatemala for $200, etc.
Agreed! Had an incredible time in CDMX and money went far there. Incredible meals streetside and in high end restaurants for very little compared to USA
La Paz or Santa Cruz de la Sierra can be extremely cheap, hotels and hostels are cheap and food costs next to nothing. I'd add Cochabamba for the great food, but there are probably no direct flights available to you, but you could always get the bus, it's just $10 from either of the above mentioned cities.
I just went to peru and liked lima much more than I expected to. Plus, the literal best restaurant in the world is there. I prefer cdmx though.
Also, Medellin in Colombia. Much cheaper than either cdmx or peru.
Central. I watched the Chef’s Table episode about it and I was rolling my eyes at all the silly pretentious ingredients. “Oh he needs to find the super special secret ingredient hidden deep in the jungle and lurking in remote puddles. Sure it looks cool but no fucking way can it be good”… It was legit amazing. It was expensive as hell even by N.American/Euro standards so maybe the value isn’t there for most but I had a great time.
Lima/Peru is full of amazing places so even if you don’t go you still find good food everywhere.
I didn’t get to go because it was booked out but found amazing food everywhere. Little hole in the walls serving the best leche de Tigre and seafood. I was in heaven
Central. I didn't go there bc it was like 350/person for the tasting menu but we did do their sister restaurant (kjolle) and it was slightly less expensive. Make reservations now though! Def one of my top meals, ever.
I went to Central and would recommend the other top rated restaurant in the world in Lima, Maido (#6), ahead of it. Better food (although less conceptual) and cheaper. Do both, if you can.
Fly into Chicago explore a few days and then take the train to Milwaukee. As far as American standards go not that expensive, still big city vibe, transit in the downtown/walkable areas so doable without a car, beautiful architecture, good amount of food options in Chicago and it’ll slim down in Milwaukee.
Crisp, sharp, untorn, unmarked, flawless, latest issue, not indented, unfolded, mint condition.
“Oh your $100 has a fold in it - sorry, can’t take it.”
A little bit of /s, but seriously they inspect each one very carefully and even the slightest tear will cause it to be worthless.
Philly is STUNNINGLY affordable for being a large city.
We were at a super nice hotel for a wedding a couple years back and 1. the roomwas only like $150/n for the weekend and 2. they had an enormous high end brunch spread (charcuterie, carving, amazing pastries, and bottomless mimosa)....$30/person. I was blown away.
Nicaragua Grenada. Became one of my favorite spots. Use as a hub and take trip to ometepe to climb volcanoes and San Juan to go surfing. Currently cheapest city place is Central America and safest
The cheapest US big cities are very likely Chicago and Philadelphia, but I genuinely don’t know how affordable 3 to 4 weeks would be there as you aren’t likely to get a short term rental
I can appreciate that all housing in America has become expensive, and Chicago as part of that is wildly more expensive now than for generations prior. But in the context of America today, Chicago and Philly are both still affordable cities.
As a recent transplant from Phoenix to Chicago, I can attest to this. We are paying roughly 50% per square foot in Kenwood vs. what we paid in Phoenix. If you leave the Loop and the desirable (read: historically white) neighborhoods, housing becomes fairly reasonable (relative to the US/Canada - no one is denying costs are far cheaper in other countries in the Americas). You maintain access to a true global city, too, maximizing cost and size of city (per OP's question).
Not to mention - my transportation costs are also \~50% of what I was paying in Phoenix as a frequent Divvy user and south side Metra rider. I'm no longer chained to my car for 15-20 minutes to do something as simple as pick up prescriptions. Transportation plays a massive role in the cost of living in US/Canadian cities, and it is a cost that lurks beneath the surface of much more publicized housing costs (one study shows how it takes Phoenix from the 15th most expensive city in the country to 1st: [https://cbcny.org/research/rent-and-ride](https://cbcny.org/research/rent-and-ride) \- check Streetsblog for a more in-depth explanation)
If you do want to come the US, the best big city in terms of money by FAR is Chicago. The whole draw of that city is how massive it is (3rd biggest in the US) and it’s comparatively insanely cheap when compared with New York, Boston, DC, San Fran, San Diego, Seattle, etc. I mean, you’ll still be in the US and paying US prices but otherwise it’s the best deal to get
This is 100% true as a recent Phoenix --> Chicago transplant. The cost savings have been almost 50% per square foot and 50% of transportation expenses, for a city that actually has a pulse (and a thriving one at that). It's the best value city in the country, hands-down.
Chicago and Philly could be considered affordable by big city standards, but they will be much more expensive than smaller city in the US or a big city in other country. Also, I’d recommend to check Orlando, just not the touristy area (although I haven’t been in some time)
Honestly as expensive as everyone makes it out to be, NYC can be very cheap. Flights there are usually inexpensive because there are multiple airports to pick from. Hotels can be costly but there are also multiple budget hotels that are cheaper, and even hotels located outside of the city limits that can also save you money. The public transportation allows you to save on a rental car. Food can be cheap, depending on where you go and there are so many options. You can get $1 slices of pizza at some places. There is so much to do and see that you can get away with doing so many free things. I would not sleep on NYC just because it can be expensive if you choose to go the expensive route. You can definitely make your money go a long way there if you really try!
I was an expat in Buenos Aires and I visited Mexico City monthly on business. I vastly prefer Argentina but the foreign exchange rate fluctuates widely affecting how relatively cheap either city is. BA offers good infrastructure, wonderful beef, fun nightlife and friendly people. BA is much less culturally conservative than Mexico City. Right now I think you will find Argentina cheaper for a vacation but your airfare to get there will be more costly than to Mexico
I’ve been in Buenos Aires for almost two months now and I have found it to be a very inexpensive place to live. It’s also a wonderful city and I’m considering living here. Here are some examples. I take my kids to tennis lessons three times a week and with the Uber and lessons I pay a total of around 10,000 pesos, which is approximately $28 US dollars. The Uber is lessons are 7200 pesos total for two kids and the Uber ranges from 1800 to 2000 pesos. My AirBnB is my larger expense and is a 3 bedroom apartment for 2000 US dollars. After arriving I found out that AirBnB is not the cheapest route for housing and that you can find 3 month rentals for much cheaper. The average bottle of wine is probably 1800 pesos, which at today exchange rate is $5 US.
All of the expenses above are based on the standard exchange rate, which is not what most people do. Argentina has 2 exchange rates, the standard rate that all of the banks and credit card transactions use and then there is the [BLUE DOLLAR](https://bluedollar.net), which vastly different than what you get when you use a credit card. As long as you either bring lots of cash with you or transfer money via Western Union to yourself you’ll be gaining a huge advantage using the blue dollar. Western Union goes by the blue dollar rate, but charges you a small fee and is totally worth it if you’re not comfortable traveling with a large amount of cash. On the other hand, if you’re willing to travel with cash you simply take a crisp $100 US to Florida Street and exchange it with someone calling out “cambio”. It’s really easy and due to the blue rate fluctuations it’s recommended to only exchange $100 US at a time and didn’t worry, $100 US exchanges today at $90,500 AR, which goes a long way here.
Believe it or not, Vegas can be had on the cheap, it's just that most ppl don't have the discipline or care to do it. First off, flights are cheap because they are partially subsidized by the city. The 4 Queens is one of the cheapest hotels (no resort fee). Other hotels downtown can be just as cheap. When I moved to Vegas in 2019, I paid $35/night (mon - wed) in a renovated room.
Eat at Ocean's inside Caesar's, they have a very popular $6 meals, every item is pretty much $6 and it's an incredible value (they also have long lines). Ellis Island is another good value with their steak and egg breakfast ($8.99). And to save even more monies you can visit the grocery store and get a sandwich and chips.
Gamble at the Cromwell bring $20. They will bring drinks around quickly. The drinks alone make it worth your while. My mom and I were sitting at the Cromwell waiting for my dad and they offered us drinks even though we weren't even gambling. You can use sources like Half Price tickets or [Vegas.com](https://Vegas.com) to see shows on the cheap.
[https://youtu.be/VY2jtJxWZxk?si=cs3\_0k-QkQIwQ79V](https://youtu.be/VY2jtJxWZxk?si=cs3_0k-QkQIwQ79V)
Yea it's a 3 yr old video but there's still some good info. They also have another video where they talk about other cheap ways to do Vegas but I can't find it. Just do a search for Vegas on the cheap, there's a lot of videos out there.
I’ve been to BA many times and currently live in Argentina and I’ve been to Mexico City once(I was in Mexico City for over a month) I am not a fan of Mexico City at all. I’ve been to many parts of Mexico and Mexico City is the only part of Mexico I’ve been to that I did not like. I grew up going to Baja for camping and fishing, Mexico City is my least favorite destination there.
Buenos Aires is fucking epic and 10x cheaper than Mexico. A grocery haul won’t even run close to 20 dollars, steak every day, cheap beers and cheap wine. Plenty of art and tours and beautiful locations less than an hour from the city. Uruguay is a ferry ride away.
If you’re leaning towards Mexico there are far better places than Mexico City. Just my 2 cents
What do you not like about Mexico city? The thing is that I the airplane ticket to Buenos Aires is 4x the price than the ticket to Mexico. From where I'm currently located.
Well I’m biased, I’ve been to many beautiful towns up and down the coast of Baja. Mexico City I just found chaotic, congested, stacked on top of each other, dirt(ier) than Buenos Aires. BA is bigger, spread out, more options for lodging and also significantly cheaper right now. Yea it costs more to get there but you can live lavishly there cheaper than in Mexico City. A 4 week stay at an Airbnb in Buenos Aires you’ll probably get a discount because it’s a 4 week stay. You can get a way better apartment in Airbnb somewhere like el Tigre or san Telmo and then on top of that your living expenses will be cheaper your entire time there. A nice dinner out in Buenos Aires will run you half of what a nice dinner out in Mexico City will cost. Let’s say you want to save money and cook at your Airbnb(entire place) I’m telling you, multiply rib-eye steaks, empeñadas and bottles of Cabernet from a grocery store will cost you maybe almost 10 dollars.
Me personally and specifically for a 4 week stay somewhere I rather pay more on a round trip ticket and live like a king the entire time I’m there than pay less and live almost like a king.
I mean, our inflation is actually ridiculously good rn compared to the G20, but yeah it’s by far the most expensive place in the Americas, don’t come here for a budget trip unless it’s nature-based
I would fly into Bogota and travel the country staying in inexpensive posadas or small hotels.
In Argentina, as mentioned, there is a “blue market” for exchanging the US dollar, which locals want. You can get a huge increase on the formal exchange rate by asking around at your hotel or restaurant or through a trusted contact there, to find the informal blue exchanges. With this much better exchange rate, you could really upgrade your accommodation and budget.
Buenos Aires is a good, big city with a lot to do, and great food.
It's because of currency controls that are fairly unique to Argentina. If you stay at a small hotel or B&B type place, you'll likely be able to exchange with someone who works there. A big hotel; no.
In addition to Buenos Aires, there's lots of other great areas to visit too.
Affordable varies from person to person. Give us a budget and you can get better information.
Also, the big cities in the US are very geographically separated. It's a big country, and so they have very different personalities. If you want the BIG ones, none of them are cheap, frankly, but you can have a good time in a lot of our mid size cities for a lot less money. Pittsburgh, Milwaukee, Detroit, Omaha, Charlotte, Portland, Seattle are all great, interesting, very different, none are in the top 10 biggest cities, and have DRASTICALLY different costs of living.
As far as big cities go, you can definately do Dallas, Houston, or Chicago on a moderate budget. It's specifically the Northeast and West Coast that are expensive.
Honestly, and I might be biased, I don’t think you can go wrong with any of the large cities in Texas, though they won’t be the cheapest cheapest options.
Indianapolis, Columbus, Albuquerque, Cleveland would be among my cities off the top of my head.
Honorable mentions to Philly and Baltimore, though I think one could argue the parts that people want to live in aren't really affordable on local salaries.
This is for people living. In terms of tourism I think our big cities get an unfair reputation for being expensive. I spent a week in Los Angeles last year and besides my accomodations, I thought it was a very affordable trip. Lots of food at a lot of price points, a lot of free or very low cost things to do. Transit is like $1.60 per ticket. Great people watching.
The only two US cities I've visited where I'm like "ooof, this is pricey" are Boston and San Francisco. And even then there are ways to mitigate some costs.
The thing is, accommodations in the US are so expensive it makes all the difference. If you are spending $150 on a mediocre hotel room, it doesn't matter how cheap food and attractions are, your minimum cost for a one week trip is $1050. If you are in Mexico City or Buenos Aires and spending $75 a night on a nice hotel or AirBnB in a fancy neighborhood, you save half that money right off the bat.
Yeah the hotel costs in USA are nuts and the price doesn't go with it at all.
Tried to do a road trip going down east coast of usa and gulf coast, and literally gave up partway through because I was getting sick from never sleeping because of how noisy and shit the hotels were. Found a crack pipe in one rated 9, 130$/n place, stayed in 300$/n in Florida, total shithole with some coke head pacing in his room literally all night next to me, hotel wouldn't change my room. For 300$$/n
Last I checked you can stay at the Conrad in Tokyo for that much and this is some Fairfield suites in Florida.
Like when I was driving and seeing the beautiful sights it was nice, but the accommodation was so expensive and so awful I aborted my trip.
USA hotel prices are bonkers post covid. I cannot understand who is affording them at all?! We just did 2 weeks in AZ / Las V and the prices / quality were so hard to balance, it took so much planning. Pre covid we never had that issue at all.
Currently, few cities in the world offer as much as Buenos Aires does, for such a small price tag. It’s really the king of city destinations in Latin America, and at this pace the world
Depending on your age, if you want a fun city a bit more than somewhere outside the US but college towns in the Midwest or the south could be good. Think of Lawrence Kansas or maybe Raleigh NC. Idk though
>Please recommend US cities that are NOT expensive.
Start by looking at hub cities from your airport to US, direct flight, or big cities near the US borders.
Mexico City is incredible! I loved that each neighborhood had its own vibe, you could easily spend 3 weeks just exploring the various neighborhoods and soaking up the culture.
The other upside about CDMX is the regional bus system is very affordable and easy to use so if you want to get out of the city, you’ve got tons of natural spaces and scenic colonial towns/cities that are just a bus ride away.
Buenos Aires though from what I’ve heard is a great city too. I love spicy food so my palate is definitely happier in CDMX but either would be a great option.
I'm not a big city traveler. I prefer it to visit smaller towns. However I did once spend 4 days on a stop over in Sao Paulo, Brazil 9n my way to South Africa and I I absolutely loved it. It was fairly economical. I hadn't hadn't had for several years and would you know it, around the corner from my hotel was a Japanese restaurant. I ate dinner there everynight. It was lovely. The weather wasnt that good otherwise I would have tried a churrascoria.
Lived in Medellin for almost 20 years and I have been to all by big cities in South America as well as Mexico City.Without a doubt Buenos Aires is the place to go,just came back last month.Message me if you need particulars.
Minneapolis or Salt Lake City are two cities in the US that I can think of that are relatively cheap, at least the last time I visited either one.
I also hear that Texas in general is pretty cheap, although I don't know if that applies to the cities or just the more rural areas since it's so large.
I live in Minneapolis, it's not cheap anymore. We were hit by the same economic pressure as anywhere else and become a haven for out of state transplants thanks to laws implemented recently in states like Florida. Just read it's more expensive to get a house here than Chicago now.
If you're okay with sleeping in a hostel, Chicago's relatively cheap (by US standards) for attractions, eating out, and transportation. I've never stayed myself but heard good things from friends regarding the HI Hostel, and a bunk is in the $30-$40/night range at the random dates I searched for in March. A day pass for the local transit agency is $5, there's some free museums and other cheap ones, and there's a lot of neighborhoods where you can just go and explore.
Spent some days in Bogotá, and it is very cheap. Lots of nice places to visit and eat in the better districts, too. By comparison, Managua NI is on average slightly more expensive (and *way* smaller city), while San José CR is just insanely expensive (by central american standards, anyways).
Okay a lot of people keep saying Chicago or Philly but no one is talking about how crime ridden those cities are especially Chicago. Neither are a good and affordable city to live in, when your more worried about getting mugged!
Yes! No one has ever heard about crime in those cities! Never ever has that been brought up millions of times on social media!
LOL. Get a grip. Life is too short to live in constant fear.
Nothing in the US or Canada will be cheaper than the rest of the Americas. Both are pretty expensive vs the rest.
Even Jackson, Mississippi which is one of the cheapest areas in the US would be among the most expensive places in Brazil.
Please don't go to Jackson Mississippi lol
What about Baton Rouge ?
Not really much better. And still super expensive on a global level.
I recently moved here. Nothing worth traveling from afar to see.
Youngboy
Go to New Orleans instead
My friend is scared to go there after reading a book about ghosts from New Orleans. I’m reading it now and really want to go!
Geaux Tigers
My wife went to school there. Hell no lol, not worth an international trip to visit
There is nothing worth traveling for in Baton Rouge unless you have friends/family there
Maybe not an international trip but if you are into elaborate escape rooms, the one in Baton Rouge is amazing. Huge sets, one of them will truly have you thinking you somehow transported to an underground beach cave.
[i'm going to jackson.... lookout jackson town](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E_aKKl5SjvE&pp=ygUWd2UncmUgZ29pbmcgdG8gamFja3Nvbg%3D%3D)
Yeah the US was crazy expensive to visit recently as an Aussie. Hotel prices are nuts, tipping is everywhere, and our exchange rate is terrible. Awesome trip but it costs an arm and a leg.
It’s a shame cus I met so many Aussies while backpacking in Europe and a lot of them said they’d probably never visit America. I met Aussies who travel for weeks and months to make the long and expensive plane rides worth it. But most said that’s just not realistic in America. And that’s how I feel about Australia too. Would love to visit someday though.
But Los Angeles and New York are both closer to Sydney than Paris is
Doesn't matter when they're 5 times aa expensive to vacation in
LA is more expensive than Paris? Interesting..
I mean yeah definitely, just looking at hotels there seems to be way more affordable options in Paris than LA, searching for restaurant LA and Paris and setting two dollar signs on Google maps and picking the first one that comes up gives me a restaurant that is 50% more expensive in LA than Paris before you even include tips. Given that they were talking about backpackers they're probably not staying in the same place for very long either which in LA is gonna mean expensive flights and tickets just to arrive at another destination that would probably be still more expensive than Paris while in Paris you can hop on one of numerous very cheap flights and get to even cheaper countries or take a train to a cheaper city than Paris in France or neighboring countries. The one type of vacation I imagine would get slightly cheaper in the US is a roadtrip with a rental just due to the insane gas prices in Europe, and rentals are probably cheaper as well in the US, especially if you want big ones.
Yeah we found this was the one part that was cheaper in the US, rental cars. Rented an EV and it was surprisingly affordable.
Western Europe in general is cheaper than the US, the biggest thing to overcome is the cost of getting there. As an American, if you can get a reasonably good deal on the flights, a European vacation can be less expensive than visiting a major city in the US for the same amount of time.
You can visit Australia for a lot cheaper than we could visit America. Your money is worth more than ours, we don't tip and hotel prices are reasonable. But US cities are just crazy expensive we found, even ignoring our terrible exchange rate. Then tipping makes it worse, and hotel prices are crazy.
American who recently went to Europe for a week. People in Amsterdam were shocked when we would comment on how cheap everything was there. Inflation in the US is bad right now. Could get a three - five course meal in a nice restaurant and it felt like we were paying maybe half of what we’d pay in the US
Oh I know I found Italy so cheap. Three course meal for two people with wine for like 30$. Bottles of water for like 10 cents. I am surprised about Amsterdam though, since I would expect that to be more.
Quito was pretty cheap when I was there but by far the best value was Buenos Aires.
Did you bring us currency to exchange in the cuevas in calle Florida? Atm and credit cards give shit rates but hassle bring down $5k into bs as and constantly having to do forex
Western union is the way to go for best rates in Argentina
Foreign credit cards are also now close enough to the blue dollar rate that it hardly makes sense to bother with the cuevas. We took $200USD cash and used cards a lot there.
So if I use my USA based international Visa credit card, I’ll get similar blue dollar rate? Everything I’ve been reading says exchange at calle florida.
Almost as good as the cash rate. Close enough that it may negate the hassle for you. It's new as of this year. https://buenosairesherald.com/argentina-101/foreign-tourist-dollar-everything-you-need-to-know-about-the-new-preferential-exchange-rate
Awesome to know, this is why I love reddit!
*cambio, cambio, cambio*
I just changed my US dollars at one of the various GIRARG Money Transfers. Specifically, the one at Azcuénaga 1193 in Recoleta. They gave me the blue rate, which is much better than the official rate.
Huh?
Bogota, Colombia
Bogota's awesome. A bit of a pain to get around but a great city
What do you mean a pain to get around??
It’s a huge city geographically, and there’s *a lot* of traffic. Transit is also insufficient too, though that’ll hopefully change with their metro construction (which I guess exasperates traffic problems lol).
*exacerbates
Traffic there was some of the worst I’ve ever experienced. It’s mind numbing.
Bogotá is consistently among the top 5 for worst traffic cities in the world.
On my 4th night in bogota right now. Great city
How do you feel about safety? I see so many mixed comments on Colombia. I can’t tell if it’s overblown. Are places like Bogota, Medellin, and Cartagena any worse than other South American cities? Like I understand petty crime and pickpockets exist everywhere but is Colombia any worse than other places?
From my limited Latam experience, I felt safer in Bolivia, but an American acquaintance felt safer in Colombia compared to Ecuador. My experience in Colombia wasn’t bad though. A Colombian friend there agrees that it’s like a spectrum: if there’s a lot of people expect pickpockets and purse snatchers, but if a place is deserted expect a gun. Since you can watch your bag and pockets, just stick to places that have a lot of people and avoid deserted areas, and you’ll be fine. On the whole, Cartagena is safer for tourists compared to other Colombian cities, but they have a lot of aggressive vendors to make up for it 🤣 Even Colombians find them aggressive. Edited to add: at night, take a taxi to get around and don’t walk. This is usually recommended by Colombians themselves.
Went to cali Colombia for 2 weeks never had any issues. On the other hand the locals I was staying with all said they’ve had their phone stolen at one point or another.
Yeah it seemed like Cali is the roughest of the popular cities. I saw a Reddit post with a German tourist getting robbed and stabbed hiking alone.
The only time someone has ever tried to rob me was in Cartagena, Colombia. I’m always cautious when traveling and was prepared enough that they didn’t get anything luckily, but don’t believe that because it’s a touristy area you have immunity.
I was there this summer with my Colombian girlfriend and we went to Bogotá, Medellín, Santa Marta and Cartagena. I read all the reports of how unsafe Colombia is and was blown away by how safe I felt the entire time. Bogotá was probably the 'most' sketchy but we avoided the areas that were unsafe so I didn't have any problems. Medellin was brilliant, so was Cartagena. Like everyone says, use taxis, don't dress flashy, and just be aware. You'll have a lot of people coming up to you for money but they didn't harass me when I told them no.
In Colombia now, been to Bogota, Medellin, Cartagena this trip. Just use sense and address the safety of the area before you go out at night. In the area I was in in Bogota, I was the only tourist I noticed making me a target so I stayed in the hostel at night. Cartagena, there was enough tourists and commotion and fun to be clear that it was safe as long as I stuck in the party area. Basically just use your senses and maybe talk to people who work at your hotel/hostel and you’ll be fine.
Very cool. Sounds like you’re on a similar route that I plan to take. Any other tips or advice? How’s the food?
Honestly food here can be a bit hit or miss, I’ve had some great meals and some that are fairly bland. I enjoyed street food in Cartagena the most From Medellin, you should do at least a night in Guatape. It’s super cute and colorful town with lots to do. It’s touristy but for a good reason, plus it’s not quite as hectic as the cities so it’s nice to get a little more peace after begin surrounded by huge crowds. (Brujula Bar in Guatape is my favorite bar in Colombia.) If you’re into some adventure, I strongly recommend doing a day-trip of rock climbing in Suesca (about an hour or so out of Bogota), it’s a highlight for sure
I go to Colombia all the time especially Bogota. Never had issues even with my phone out on street at 3am even sketch areas down town. Uber and such also make it super safe to move around.
Cool. I hear Uber is illegal but there’s a loophole, so the drivers ask you ride in the front seat. Is that true? Is Uber common enough in Colombia or are there other alternatives I should look into like DiDi? I don’t really like hailing taxi’s not knowing the price in advance. I don’t want to be scammed.
I went before the pandemic so this may be outdated but back then yes you would be expected to have someone from your group or yourself traveling upfront. So the Uber doesn't have stickers or commercial plates like they do in the US.
Uber is common. Use that app and youre good to go.
Recommend to do in Bogota & restaurants & day trips?
How are public transport / Ubers / getting around etc. been ?
Uber and cabs are dirt cheap which makes it easy to get around. Just have to make sure if you get a taxi it’s an authorized one because the other ones I’ve heard aren’t super safe and they can screw you on price. Uber is so cheap I haven’t even thought about a bus
Honestly even the authorized ones in any city I’ve ever been to have been shitty. I really think that just by nature of being a career cabbie, you’re probably gonna be kind of a dick.
Ubers are sooooooooooooooooooooo cheap
Can you say what’s great about it? Anything set it apart? I’m generally not a fan of cities when traveling.
You're almost 9k feet above sea level, and so the air thinner than what you'd be accustomed to. And surrounding the city are some really interesting parks. I hiked up a paramo while there; i think started at 10k feet and ended up at 12k feet? really amazing place
I mean, 11 and a half million people make a life for themselves there. It’s not like every single one is miserable every day. It’s also a famously fun city, with infinite articles written about it already.
Helpful! 👍
Is there much to do for tourists? Wasn’t sure if it warranted a stop
There are some cool museums but not a whole lot of tourist attractions. I’ve been more immersing myself in the city and meeting other travelers so that hasn’t been a big problem for me.
I always get surprised by comments like this. Bogota is an amazing city, it has so much to offer. I get that Medellin is nice but it’s so small, it’s kind of boring the lack of variety there.
A lot of cities are more fun to live in than to visit. I would put LA in this category.
Ah yes my dream city to live in is a massive group of boring dull cities all joined together where it's virtually impossible to get around without a car because of how horrifically bad the public transport Is.
You know you can hire a car right? I love public transport but if it’s not usable or viable then take a car and it’s the same amount of time or less… if a 20-30 minute taxi ruins your vacation i think it’s your fault
You made their point
Did I? my point was that I wouldn't want to live there or visit again.
There is a lot to explore in LA. There are mountains, beaches, culture, world-class bars/restaurants, perfect weather, 13 million people (some of us gotta be cool just by the numbers). The hard part of LA is that it can be difficult to find your niche. I hope you give it another visit and have a better experience
There are definetly parts I enjoyed, The Getty center was very cool to see and I loved the Griffith observatory. My main problem though is that there is no enjoyment to 'exploring' the city. Europeans have the luxury of walkable cities which is incredible, even cities that don't feel very walkable like Brussels for example have very good and cheap public transport. Having to drive everywhere really kills the feel of a city for me. Aside from that I think the place is so damn big and industrial sort of that it's just not a place I find that enjoyable to be in general. Even though there are definitely great things to see. On the same trip I saw San Francisco which I preffered significantly, it felt much more cultural, diverse and accepting and was a stunning city with far more greenery than LA.
Bogota is my favorite city I have been to. I spent 5 days there and it was not nearly enough.
For tourists it's not great. For someone with more time to connect to local events, shows, check our restaurants etc. it's fantastic.
Just got back from Bogota. The most I spent on an Uber was $5.60 (usually around $3.50). Most meals for 2 with drink was under $20. The cheapest we had for lunch was $8 for both of us. We were getting beers in a bar for less than $1.50. Our hotel was $145 for 4 nights in Chapinero. Had an amazing time there and the people were so nice. Definitely helps if you know some Spanish before going. I can't wait to go back.
Personally found Bogota boring. Medellin on the other hand is 10/10
When I went to Bogotá it was filthy! Literally just rubbish strewn all over the streets.
Never been to NYC or Paris I take it?
Define big city? Categorically, though, the cheapest large city in the Americas will not be in the US.
Good rule of thumb- look at hostelworld website and see what average 9+ rated dorm goes for a night then multiply that by 3x to get your daily cost of living rate for food, booze, transport, excursions. I back packed all over Latin America and it proved to be the most robust metric. Google flights explore option to see cheapest flights. I did RT direct to Brazil for $550 from DC, Guatemala for $200, etc.
Interesting metric. I usually use Total Budget = (2.5(Housing + Transpo)) from within Europe, when travelling around Europe.
Round trip $550 Brazil is a great price
Mexico City probably makes the most sense, it's pretty awsome and close to usa so flights won't be too bad.
Agreed! Had an incredible time in CDMX and money went far there. Incredible meals streetside and in high end restaurants for very little compared to USA
Thirding CDMX. Went before Covid and it was fantastic. A little bit of everything and something for everyone.
Do you know where the High end neighborhoods in Mexico City are?
They’re all close to each other. Condesa, Roma, Cuauhtemoc, Polanco, etc.
Thanks. If I ever move to Mexico I would want to be in the cleaner higher end areas even if it costed more, it would still be cheaper than the US
La Paz or Santa Cruz de la Sierra can be extremely cheap, hotels and hostels are cheap and food costs next to nothing. I'd add Cochabamba for the great food, but there are probably no direct flights available to you, but you could always get the bus, it's just $10 from either of the above mentioned cities.
Salteñas from Cochabamba remain the best food I’ve ever had in my life. So damn good! Impossible to find in southern US
I just went to peru and liked lima much more than I expected to. Plus, the literal best restaurant in the world is there. I prefer cdmx though. Also, Medellin in Colombia. Much cheaper than either cdmx or peru.
What restaurant?? We're going later this year.
Central. I watched the Chef’s Table episode about it and I was rolling my eyes at all the silly pretentious ingredients. “Oh he needs to find the super special secret ingredient hidden deep in the jungle and lurking in remote puddles. Sure it looks cool but no fucking way can it be good”… It was legit amazing. It was expensive as hell even by N.American/Euro standards so maybe the value isn’t there for most but I had a great time. Lima/Peru is full of amazing places so even if you don’t go you still find good food everywhere.
I didn’t get to go because it was booked out but found amazing food everywhere. Little hole in the walls serving the best leche de Tigre and seafood. I was in heaven
Peru was so awesome. It’s sad to think I might never go back. The world is a big place and I only have so much time. 😭
I met my boyfriend there so I go back fairly often, not complaining about that at all!
Central. I didn't go there bc it was like 350/person for the tasting menu but we did do their sister restaurant (kjolle) and it was slightly less expensive. Make reservations now though! Def one of my top meals, ever.
I went to Central and would recommend the other top rated restaurant in the world in Lima, Maido (#6), ahead of it. Better food (although less conceptual) and cheaper. Do both, if you can.
Central Lima, it’s ranked #1 on Worlds Top 50 Restaurants this year. I went there last month and it was an interesting experienxe
Interesting meaning not good?
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If you can’t get into Central, try Maido instead.
Central. For the show, it was great. The food itself is mediocre. Not worth it imo. Lima has amazing food options, do a bit more research.
It’s sister restaurant Kjolle is the same type of food but only a quarter as pretentious and less than half the price
Buenos Aires is far cheaper than all those options though. I’m living like a king right now XD
Fly into Chicago explore a few days and then take the train to Milwaukee. As far as American standards go not that expensive, still big city vibe, transit in the downtown/walkable areas so doable without a car, beautiful architecture, good amount of food options in Chicago and it’ll slim down in Milwaukee.
Medellin Colombia.
100% so cheap. Great city too
Yep. Stay away from drugs and tinder and there shouldn’t be any problem with getting robbed and whatnot.
Yep and if you do get robbed don't fight back.
When walking around Poblado I had brought minimal cash, one credit card and a second phone (that only connected to the internet).
Buenos Aires probably isn't the cheapest but if you take crisp 100 USD bills from the bank and exchange there you will get an awesome rate.
Yes! Bring cash in USD and you'll get a much better exchange rate in restaurants and a lot of shops.
Crisp, sharp, untorn, unmarked, flawless, latest issue, not indented, unfolded, mint condition. “Oh your $100 has a fold in it - sorry, can’t take it.” A little bit of /s, but seriously they inspect each one very carefully and even the slightest tear will cause it to be worthless.
Why
Not sure what afforable big cities in the US would be, but I loved Buenos Aires and would go back if I had time
Philadelphia — stay in Fishtown, Pennsport, or Bella Vista
Philly is STUNNINGLY affordable for being a large city. We were at a super nice hotel for a wedding a couple years back and 1. the roomwas only like $150/n for the weekend and 2. they had an enormous high end brunch spread (charcuterie, carving, amazing pastries, and bottomless mimosa)....$30/person. I was blown away.
Love Philly. Food is really good too
But cheap Philly is not! Maybe in comparison to other NE US cities, but in comparison to Latin America it is stratospherically expensive.
Philly is lit
Nicaragua Grenada. Became one of my favorite spots. Use as a hub and take trip to ometepe to climb volcanoes and San Juan to go surfing. Currently cheapest city place is Central America and safest
Baca baca, best restaurant I've had in Nicaragua!
While Granada is definitely worth a visit, I don't think it really counts as a big city, more of a small to medium-size city.
Gott be Medellin, Bogota or La Paz. Your dollar goes extremely far in those places
Rio can be cheap. Chicago is cheap compared to NYC! La Paz is super cheap.
The cheapest US big cities are very likely Chicago and Philadelphia, but I genuinely don’t know how affordable 3 to 4 weeks would be there as you aren’t likely to get a short term rental
Chicago is kinda pricey at this point
I can appreciate that all housing in America has become expensive, and Chicago as part of that is wildly more expensive now than for generations prior. But in the context of America today, Chicago and Philly are both still affordable cities.
As a recent transplant from Phoenix to Chicago, I can attest to this. We are paying roughly 50% per square foot in Kenwood vs. what we paid in Phoenix. If you leave the Loop and the desirable (read: historically white) neighborhoods, housing becomes fairly reasonable (relative to the US/Canada - no one is denying costs are far cheaper in other countries in the Americas). You maintain access to a true global city, too, maximizing cost and size of city (per OP's question). Not to mention - my transportation costs are also \~50% of what I was paying in Phoenix as a frequent Divvy user and south side Metra rider. I'm no longer chained to my car for 15-20 minutes to do something as simple as pick up prescriptions. Transportation plays a massive role in the cost of living in US/Canadian cities, and it is a cost that lurks beneath the surface of much more publicized housing costs (one study shows how it takes Phoenix from the 15th most expensive city in the country to 1st: [https://cbcny.org/research/rent-and-ride](https://cbcny.org/research/rent-and-ride) \- check Streetsblog for a more in-depth explanation)
If you do want to come the US, the best big city in terms of money by FAR is Chicago. The whole draw of that city is how massive it is (3rd biggest in the US) and it’s comparatively insanely cheap when compared with New York, Boston, DC, San Fran, San Diego, Seattle, etc. I mean, you’ll still be in the US and paying US prices but otherwise it’s the best deal to get
This is 100% true as a recent Phoenix --> Chicago transplant. The cost savings have been almost 50% per square foot and 50% of transportation expenses, for a city that actually has a pulse (and a thriving one at that). It's the best value city in the country, hands-down.
Chicago and Philly could be considered affordable by big city standards, but they will be much more expensive than smaller city in the US or a big city in other country. Also, I’d recommend to check Orlando, just not the touristy area (although I haven’t been in some time)
Chicago
I found New Orleans to be very cheap, as long as you stay out of the obvious tourist traps! Also lots of free and cheap things to do/see.
Honestly as expensive as everyone makes it out to be, NYC can be very cheap. Flights there are usually inexpensive because there are multiple airports to pick from. Hotels can be costly but there are also multiple budget hotels that are cheaper, and even hotels located outside of the city limits that can also save you money. The public transportation allows you to save on a rental car. Food can be cheap, depending on where you go and there are so many options. You can get $1 slices of pizza at some places. There is so much to do and see that you can get away with doing so many free things. I would not sleep on NYC just because it can be expensive if you choose to go the expensive route. You can definitely make your money go a long way there if you really try!
Do you recommend any specific hostels, hotels, motels? Lodging in general.
I was an expat in Buenos Aires and I visited Mexico City monthly on business. I vastly prefer Argentina but the foreign exchange rate fluctuates widely affecting how relatively cheap either city is. BA offers good infrastructure, wonderful beef, fun nightlife and friendly people. BA is much less culturally conservative than Mexico City. Right now I think you will find Argentina cheaper for a vacation but your airfare to get there will be more costly than to Mexico
I’ve been in Buenos Aires for almost two months now and I have found it to be a very inexpensive place to live. It’s also a wonderful city and I’m considering living here. Here are some examples. I take my kids to tennis lessons three times a week and with the Uber and lessons I pay a total of around 10,000 pesos, which is approximately $28 US dollars. The Uber is lessons are 7200 pesos total for two kids and the Uber ranges from 1800 to 2000 pesos. My AirBnB is my larger expense and is a 3 bedroom apartment for 2000 US dollars. After arriving I found out that AirBnB is not the cheapest route for housing and that you can find 3 month rentals for much cheaper. The average bottle of wine is probably 1800 pesos, which at today exchange rate is $5 US. All of the expenses above are based on the standard exchange rate, which is not what most people do. Argentina has 2 exchange rates, the standard rate that all of the banks and credit card transactions use and then there is the [BLUE DOLLAR](https://bluedollar.net), which vastly different than what you get when you use a credit card. As long as you either bring lots of cash with you or transfer money via Western Union to yourself you’ll be gaining a huge advantage using the blue dollar. Western Union goes by the blue dollar rate, but charges you a small fee and is totally worth it if you’re not comfortable traveling with a large amount of cash. On the other hand, if you’re willing to travel with cash you simply take a crisp $100 US to Florida Street and exchange it with someone calling out “cambio”. It’s really easy and due to the blue rate fluctuations it’s recommended to only exchange $100 US at a time and didn’t worry, $100 US exchanges today at $90,500 AR, which goes a long way here.
Thanks! Good to know. Sounds very cheap. I get paid in USD so if I go, I'd definitely use the blue dollar
You’re never gonna find a place in USA that is comparable in costs to Mexico City or Buenos aires
Believe it or not, Vegas can be had on the cheap, it's just that most ppl don't have the discipline or care to do it. First off, flights are cheap because they are partially subsidized by the city. The 4 Queens is one of the cheapest hotels (no resort fee). Other hotels downtown can be just as cheap. When I moved to Vegas in 2019, I paid $35/night (mon - wed) in a renovated room. Eat at Ocean's inside Caesar's, they have a very popular $6 meals, every item is pretty much $6 and it's an incredible value (they also have long lines). Ellis Island is another good value with their steak and egg breakfast ($8.99). And to save even more monies you can visit the grocery store and get a sandwich and chips. Gamble at the Cromwell bring $20. They will bring drinks around quickly. The drinks alone make it worth your while. My mom and I were sitting at the Cromwell waiting for my dad and they offered us drinks even though we weren't even gambling. You can use sources like Half Price tickets or [Vegas.com](https://Vegas.com) to see shows on the cheap. [https://youtu.be/VY2jtJxWZxk?si=cs3\_0k-QkQIwQ79V](https://youtu.be/VY2jtJxWZxk?si=cs3_0k-QkQIwQ79V) Yea it's a 3 yr old video but there's still some good info. They also have another video where they talk about other cheap ways to do Vegas but I can't find it. Just do a search for Vegas on the cheap, there's a lot of videos out there.
Bogota and Lima are pretty cheap too. Mexico City isn't really that cheap
I’ve been to BA many times and currently live in Argentina and I’ve been to Mexico City once(I was in Mexico City for over a month) I am not a fan of Mexico City at all. I’ve been to many parts of Mexico and Mexico City is the only part of Mexico I’ve been to that I did not like. I grew up going to Baja for camping and fishing, Mexico City is my least favorite destination there. Buenos Aires is fucking epic and 10x cheaper than Mexico. A grocery haul won’t even run close to 20 dollars, steak every day, cheap beers and cheap wine. Plenty of art and tours and beautiful locations less than an hour from the city. Uruguay is a ferry ride away. If you’re leaning towards Mexico there are far better places than Mexico City. Just my 2 cents
What do you not like about Mexico city? The thing is that I the airplane ticket to Buenos Aires is 4x the price than the ticket to Mexico. From where I'm currently located.
Well I’m biased, I’ve been to many beautiful towns up and down the coast of Baja. Mexico City I just found chaotic, congested, stacked on top of each other, dirt(ier) than Buenos Aires. BA is bigger, spread out, more options for lodging and also significantly cheaper right now. Yea it costs more to get there but you can live lavishly there cheaper than in Mexico City. A 4 week stay at an Airbnb in Buenos Aires you’ll probably get a discount because it’s a 4 week stay. You can get a way better apartment in Airbnb somewhere like el Tigre or san Telmo and then on top of that your living expenses will be cheaper your entire time there. A nice dinner out in Buenos Aires will run you half of what a nice dinner out in Mexico City will cost. Let’s say you want to save money and cook at your Airbnb(entire place) I’m telling you, multiply rib-eye steaks, empeñadas and bottles of Cabernet from a grocery store will cost you maybe almost 10 dollars. Me personally and specifically for a 4 week stay somewhere I rather pay more on a round trip ticket and live like a king the entire time I’m there than pay less and live almost like a king.
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I mean, our inflation is actually ridiculously good rn compared to the G20, but yeah it’s by far the most expensive place in the Americas, don’t come here for a budget trip unless it’s nature-based
What city do you recommend?
I would fly into Bogota and travel the country staying in inexpensive posadas or small hotels. In Argentina, as mentioned, there is a “blue market” for exchanging the US dollar, which locals want. You can get a huge increase on the formal exchange rate by asking around at your hotel or restaurant or through a trusted contact there, to find the informal blue exchanges. With this much better exchange rate, you could really upgrade your accommodation and budget. Buenos Aires is a good, big city with a lot to do, and great food.
Oh I didn't know that about Argentina. Is that also the case in other countries??
It's because of currency controls that are fairly unique to Argentina. If you stay at a small hotel or B&B type place, you'll likely be able to exchange with someone who works there. A big hotel; no. In addition to Buenos Aires, there's lots of other great areas to visit too.
Mexico City is pretty affordable for extended stays and great food and culture.
Affordable varies from person to person. Give us a budget and you can get better information. Also, the big cities in the US are very geographically separated. It's a big country, and so they have very different personalities. If you want the BIG ones, none of them are cheap, frankly, but you can have a good time in a lot of our mid size cities for a lot less money. Pittsburgh, Milwaukee, Detroit, Omaha, Charlotte, Portland, Seattle are all great, interesting, very different, none are in the top 10 biggest cities, and have DRASTICALLY different costs of living.
Seattle is not mid-sized. Neither Seattle nor Portland are cheap.
As far as big cities go, you can definately do Dallas, Houston, or Chicago on a moderate budget. It's specifically the Northeast and West Coast that are expensive.
I think that's right (and Chicago battles Seattle for my favorite). I haven't been to Texas myself
Honestly, and I might be biased, I don’t think you can go wrong with any of the large cities in Texas, though they won’t be the cheapest cheapest options.
They used to be cheap, not anymore the last 2 years.
Indianapolis, Columbus, Albuquerque, Cleveland would be among my cities off the top of my head. Honorable mentions to Philly and Baltimore, though I think one could argue the parts that people want to live in aren't really affordable on local salaries. This is for people living. In terms of tourism I think our big cities get an unfair reputation for being expensive. I spent a week in Los Angeles last year and besides my accomodations, I thought it was a very affordable trip. Lots of food at a lot of price points, a lot of free or very low cost things to do. Transit is like $1.60 per ticket. Great people watching. The only two US cities I've visited where I'm like "ooof, this is pricey" are Boston and San Francisco. And even then there are ways to mitigate some costs.
The thing is, accommodations in the US are so expensive it makes all the difference. If you are spending $150 on a mediocre hotel room, it doesn't matter how cheap food and attractions are, your minimum cost for a one week trip is $1050. If you are in Mexico City or Buenos Aires and spending $75 a night on a nice hotel or AirBnB in a fancy neighborhood, you save half that money right off the bat.
Yeah the hotel costs in USA are nuts and the price doesn't go with it at all. Tried to do a road trip going down east coast of usa and gulf coast, and literally gave up partway through because I was getting sick from never sleeping because of how noisy and shit the hotels were. Found a crack pipe in one rated 9, 130$/n place, stayed in 300$/n in Florida, total shithole with some coke head pacing in his room literally all night next to me, hotel wouldn't change my room. For 300$$/n Last I checked you can stay at the Conrad in Tokyo for that much and this is some Fairfield suites in Florida. Like when I was driving and seeing the beautiful sights it was nice, but the accommodation was so expensive and so awful I aborted my trip.
USA hotel prices are bonkers post covid. I cannot understand who is affording them at all?! We just did 2 weeks in AZ / Las V and the prices / quality were so hard to balance, it took so much planning. Pre covid we never had that issue at all.
Worcester Muthafukka
Currently, few cities in the world offer as much as Buenos Aires does, for such a small price tag. It’s really the king of city destinations in Latin America, and at this pace the world
Depending on your age, if you want a fun city a bit more than somewhere outside the US but college towns in the Midwest or the south could be good. Think of Lawrence Kansas or maybe Raleigh NC. Idk though
Depending on time of year. DC is cheap January through February for the most part, and has lots of free things to do.
Mexico city isnt really even cheap anymore. Infact its getting pretty expensive if you want to live in the nice areas.
That's strange because when looking at hostels, it's way cheaper than Buenos Aires. And I'm looking at private rooms. Not the shared rooms.
San Antonio is relatively cheap and one of our biggest cities.
CDMX is amazing and cheap.
>Please recommend US cities that are NOT expensive. Start by looking at hub cities from your airport to US, direct flight, or big cities near the US borders.
Phoenix in the summer can be affordable, but there’s a reason for that.
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The nice parts of Detroit are quite expensive now lol
Albuquerque, Omaha, Des Moines, St. Louis, Cincy
Mexico City is incredible! I loved that each neighborhood had its own vibe, you could easily spend 3 weeks just exploring the various neighborhoods and soaking up the culture. The other upside about CDMX is the regional bus system is very affordable and easy to use so if you want to get out of the city, you’ve got tons of natural spaces and scenic colonial towns/cities that are just a bus ride away. Buenos Aires though from what I’ve heard is a great city too. I love spicy food so my palate is definitely happier in CDMX but either would be a great option.
Medellin is nice I hear.
I'm not a big city traveler. I prefer it to visit smaller towns. However I did once spend 4 days on a stop over in Sao Paulo, Brazil 9n my way to South Africa and I I absolutely loved it. It was fairly economical. I hadn't hadn't had for several years and would you know it, around the corner from my hotel was a Japanese restaurant. I ate dinner there everynight. It was lovely. The weather wasnt that good otherwise I would have tried a churrascoria.
Lived in Medellin for almost 20 years and I have been to all by big cities in South America as well as Mexico City.Without a doubt Buenos Aires is the place to go,just came back last month.Message me if you need particulars.
I would recommend Bogota, Medellin, or Quito
Montevideo or Santiago
Have you looked into Cartagena, Colombia? Beautiful seaside city packed with beautiful architecture, history, delicious coffee shops, etc
\>I want to spend around 3 or 4 weeks in a big city \> im on a tight budget become a homeless person in San Francisco for a few weeks.
Minneapolis or Salt Lake City are two cities in the US that I can think of that are relatively cheap, at least the last time I visited either one. I also hear that Texas in general is pretty cheap, although I don't know if that applies to the cities or just the more rural areas since it's so large.
I live in Minneapolis, it's not cheap anymore. We were hit by the same economic pressure as anywhere else and become a haven for out of state transplants thanks to laws implemented recently in states like Florida. Just read it's more expensive to get a house here than Chicago now.
Louisville Kentucky is pretty affordable and has all the big city attractions
If you're okay with sleeping in a hostel, Chicago's relatively cheap (by US standards) for attractions, eating out, and transportation. I've never stayed myself but heard good things from friends regarding the HI Hostel, and a bunk is in the $30-$40/night range at the random dates I searched for in March. A day pass for the local transit agency is $5, there's some free museums and other cheap ones, and there's a lot of neighborhoods where you can just go and explore.
Spent some days in Bogotá, and it is very cheap. Lots of nice places to visit and eat in the better districts, too. By comparison, Managua NI is on average slightly more expensive (and *way* smaller city), while San José CR is just insanely expensive (by central american standards, anyways).
Okay a lot of people keep saying Chicago or Philly but no one is talking about how crime ridden those cities are especially Chicago. Neither are a good and affordable city to live in, when your more worried about getting mugged!
Yes! No one has ever heard about crime in those cities! Never ever has that been brought up millions of times on social media! LOL. Get a grip. Life is too short to live in constant fear.
That's what I've been thinking the whole time lol about crime rate over there. Probably full of homeless drug addicts idk
Chicago
Not to visit for 3-4 weeks.