Updated and expanded for 2017, the Africa and Middle East Backpacker Index once again shows that travel is quite inexpensive to many popular cities, but some in this area are among the most expensive in the world. Generally speaking, Africa and most of the Middle East get very little tourism compared to the rest of the world, so one major problem is infrastructure. In other words, there may be a few international-standard hotels in the larger cities, but there aren't many hostels or quality budget hotels.

Many people who travel in this region do so partly because it hasn't been well trodden like Europe or most of Asia. Those travelers are probably best off with traditional guidebooks because there just isn't much information online, at least that gets updated regularly. Fortunately, adventurous backpackers can spend a long time in this region and get very good value to go along with unforgettable experiences. Click to read more

It's actually not difficult to find “cheap” travel destinations in many corners of the globe. The real trick is to find cheap places that combine low prices with gorgeous scenery, great food, interesting cultures, and/or enough of a tourist infrastructure that makes them easy to visit.

The list below features the best cheap-destination recommendations from dozens of experienced travel bloggers, so you can be sure that these places are the real standouts. Some of the choices are favorites of many, while a few choices are obscure and surprising. At the very least, the list below should provide you with some ideas of places you might like to explore where value for money is a guarantee. Click to read more