For the first time ever, Cape Town has supplanted Bali as the top value long-haul destination, with local prices on the Indonesian island now as much as 50 percent higher than a year ago.
Here’s a new study that’s guaranteed to leave your head spinning.
According to research conducted by the UK’s Post Office Travel Money’s annual Long Haul Holiday Report, Cape Town in South Africa is now the best value long-haul destination for international travellers, even beating Aussie favourite Bali and burgeoning Sri Lanka.
The report was conducted by comparing the cost of ten tourist ‘items’ (e.g., a coffee, a beer or cocktail, a bottle of water, a three-course meal with wine, etc) in 34 resorts and cities around the world. And the results were particularly surprising, with Cape Town – The Mother City – the clear winner in terms of bang for your buck.
As you can see above, Cape Town was followed by Bali, Tokyo (Japan), Mombasa (Kenya), Colombo (Sri Lanka), Cancun (Mexico) and Phuket (Thailand) in terms of what your money can buy.
At the other end of the spectrum, Jumeriah (Dubai) was the most expensive destination to have a holiday, followed by Muscat (Oman), English Harbour (Antigua) and Auckland (New Zealand). Indeed, it costs roughly four times more to flop and drop at the Jumeriah in Dubai than in Cape Town!
Source: www.postofficeholiday.co.uk/the-travel-blog/long-haul-report-2016
Interestingly, the report found that local prices in restaurants, shops and bars fell below 2015 levels in 40 per cent of the 34 destinations surveyed. But not in Bali.
Hell no.
Local prices here have been on the increase, especially in the last 12 months, with the cost of dining out at a restaurant significantly more expensive now than in previous years. Compared to Cape Town, the report found that tourist prices are now 28 percent higher in Bali than in the Mother City.
Ouch!
Source: www.globaladventure.com
Another surprise from the report was the inclusion of Tokyo in the top three value destinations. This is explained by the drop in local prices for the second year in the row, making a short break in the Japanese capital more affordable now than ever before.
In the US, Orlando (Florida) came out as the lowest-priced of the six American destinations, rising to ninth place in the list – it’s highest placement in three years. Orlando was followed by New York, San Francisco, Austin, Miami, and Washington DC, respectively.
And finally, here in Australia, Darwin made the best-value list, with the cost of ten tourist items coming in just shy of $200.
