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Completely updated for 2013 and now in its third year, the World Backpacker Index is an easy snapshot to help travelers find bargain destinations. No one should be surprised to find that Asia is where the lowest prices are, taking the 8 cheapest spots on the list.
Fortunately for most of us, prices during 2012 were mostly quite stable around the world. In fact, many popular European cities have seen hostel prices come down a bit, and general inflation in things like food and attractions has been very low as well. For those with the time and money, the world continues to offer some excellent deals, at least for those who can afford airfare to get there in the first place.
Detailed information available by region
- Africa and Middle East Backpacker Index for 2013
- Asia Backpacker Index for 2013
- Australia/New Zealand Backpacker Index for 2013
- Europe Backpacker Index for 2013
- North America Backpacker Index for 2013
- South and Central America Backpacker Index for 2013
What the prices below mean
There is a longer explanation of the Backpacker Index on each of the regional pages, but the short version is that we found the price for a group of things for each destination, and then translated that into US dollars in late January 2013. While this data is meant for backpackers and budget travelers, the proportions will be nearly identical, so the list should also be useful to those with more money to spend.
For each city this daily total includes:
- A dorm bed at a good and cheap hostel
- 3 budget meals
- 2 public transportation rides
- 1 paid cultural attraction
- 3 cheap beers (as an “entertainment fund”)
Backpacker Index: 116 global destinations for 2013
(Converted into USDs in late January, 2013)
Cheapest to most expensive
- Pokhara, Nepal – US$14.75
- Hanoi, Vietnam – $16.50
- Kathmandu, Nepal – $17.91
- Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam – $18.34
- Phnom Penh, Cambodia – $19.45
- Chiang Mai, Thailand – $19.55
- Delhi, India – $19.60
- Goa, India – $19.68
- Quito, Ecuador – $20.30
- Hoi An, Vietnam – $20.50
- La Paz, Bolivia – $21.47
- Vientiane, Laos – $21.72
- Luang Prabang, Laos – $22.66
- Bangkok, Thailand – $24.12
- Bucharest, Romania – $24.33
- Sofia, Bulgaria – $24.76
- Krakow, Poland – $25.06
- Cairo, Egypt – $25.48
- Kiev, Ukraine – $25.85
- Marrakech, Morocco – $25.90
- Sarajevo, Bosnia and Herzegovina – $26.08
- Kuta, Bali, Indonesia – $26.17
- Siem Reap, Cambodia – $27.21
- Amman, Jordan – $27.41
- Belgrade, Serbia – $27.96
- Riga, Latvia – $28.08
- Cusco, Peru – $28.10
- Beijing, China – $28.20
- Phuket, Thailand – $28.22
- Panama City, Panama - $28.90
- Mexico City, Mexico – $29.17
- Lima, Peru – $29.45
- Antigua, Guatemala – $30.00
- Manila, Philippines – $30.10
- Mumbai, India – $30.35
- Fez, Morocco – $30.58
- Dakar, Senegal – $30.69
- San Jose, Costa Rica – $30.70
- Taipei, Taiwan – $30.86
- Budapest, Hungary – $33.69
- Macau, China – $33.14
- Montevideo, Uruguay - $33.65
- Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia – $33.82
- Shanghai, China – $34.41
- Beirut, Lebanon – $34.74
- Antalya, Turkey – $35.11
- Warsaw, Poland – $35.78
- Seoul, South Korea – $36.70
- Santiago, Chile – $38.26
- Cartagena, Colombia – $38.85
- Zagreb, Croatia – $39.43
- Cape Town, South Africa – $40.36
- Istanbul, Turkey – $41.03
- Prague, Czech Republic – $41.15
- Bratislava, Slovakia – $41.33
- Hong Kong, China – $42.74
- Singapore, Singapore – $42.76
- St. Petersburg, Russia – $44.53
- Cancun, Mexico – $44.91
- Buenos Aires, Argentina – $47.72
- San Pedro, Belize – $48.51
- Moscow, Russia – $49.22
- Tenerife, Spain – $50.53
- Rio de Janeiro, Brazil – $51.16
- Tallinn, Estonia – $53.52
- Tel Aviv, Israel – $56.29
- Las Vegas, USA – $57.90
- Ibiza, Spain – $58.04
- Lisbon, Portugal – $58.27
- New Orleans, USA – $58.90
- Berlin, Germany – $62.67
- Auckland, New Zealand – $63.33
- Athens, Greece – $63.33
- Montreal, Canada – $63.59
- Reykjavik, Iceland – $63.79
- Washington DC, USA – $63.80
- Bruges, Belgium – $64.00
- Madrid, Spain – $64.27
- Caracas, Venezuela – $65.27
- San Francisco, USA – $65.40
- Naples, Italy – $66.00
- Florence, Italy – $66.53
- Dubai, UAE – $68.01
- Barcelona, Spain – $68.67
- Hamburg, Germany – $68.93
- Dublin, Ireland – $69.07
- Los Angeles, USA – $69.99
- Honolulu, USA – $70.10
- Dubrovnik, Croatia – $70.76
- Galway, Ireland – $72.53
- Luxembourg City, Luxembourg – $72.67
- Nice, France – $73.60
- Munich, Germany – $73.87
- Miami Beach, USA – $76.20
- Tokyo, Japan – $77.25
- Rome, Italy – $78.13
- Queenstown, New Zealand – $78.50
- Toronto, Canada – $78.59
- Chicago, USA – $79.60
- Milan, Italy – $79.73
- Edinburgh, Scotland – $80.94
- Paris, France – $81.53
- Vancouver, Canada – $82.02
- Vienna, Austria – $83.33
- New York City, USA – $84.25
- Copenhagen, Denmark – $85.48
- London, England – $86.67
- Melbourne, Australia – $87.16
- Brussels, Belgium – $89.07
- Sydney, Australia – $90.53
- Amsterdam, Netherlands – $90.53
- Helsinki, Finland – $92.80
- Stockholm, Sweden – $97.54
- Venice, Italy – $99.19
- Oslo, Norway – $111.31
- Zurich, Switzerland – $115.96
Nice list. Based on my experience, there is no way that kuta is more expensive the phnom penh. Just no way. Also, KL cheaper than Vientiane? 3 beers in KL is enough to blow any backpacker budget whereas these costs are negligible in Laos…