Hi all,
Currently looking at options for our next holiday and am wondering with current exchange rates which out of California and the UK would likely work out cheaper for a typical trip, 3-4 star hotels, low to mid range restaurants etc.
Any insights you could offer would be much appreciated.
Cheers!
USA. But it will depend on your individual itinerary.
USA yes. California not so much.
I didn't find California overly expensive compared to other parts of USA that I have visited. Plenty of cheap options in LA and SF but expensive to stay in the middle of everything.
Was in California July last year and the UK this June. By far the UK is cheaper.
Accommodation in California is expensive, and you will always pay more than advertised due to taxes (& sometimes resort fees) which are always added after.
Eating out is more expensive in California, but the portions and bigger, and then there's the 'tip tax' 15-20% on your bill is the norm.
car hire is cheap and so is petrol in USA,, but petrol is very expensive in UK.
London is generally expensive, but regional cities and towns are very reasonable, plus you are only a cheap flight or train ride to Europe.
And regional cities in California are cheaper for accommodation as well, so your point is?
Also eating in both are cheap if you avoid restaurants with wait staff, especially in the US. (No tipping required)
Eat at Macca's, Burger King, Taco Bell, InandOut burger, Subway(and subway like stores) even buy Salads from Safeway/WalMart etc. Most are tasty, and can be healthy in some cases, and its not like this is going to be your lifetime diet.
However for travel as you say, in UK, its cheaper with public transport, whereas in US its got to be a car. In US this also gives you easy access to cheaper accommodation and food. In essence US is a decentralised economy whereas UK its more centralised, so travelling which takes advantage of those features works best.
Dont explore California like you explore the UK, you need different styles of travel to get best out of each.
OP asked for insights. I gave a personal insight. I disagree with your first three points, but agree with your last two points.
OP specifically asked about 3-4 star hotels
I found all accommodation more expensive than the UK including regional cities. Even Air bnb is relatively expensive….my point.
OP specifically asked about restaurants.
i personally don't eat fast food, and never went to those places you mention. When on holiday i like to eat in restaurants, bars pubs etc. I found eating out in those establishments with wait staff more expensive than the UK. My point.
I do agree with your personal insights into travel though.
(edited for clarity)
And thats exactly what they get, different viewpoints.
My way of travelling maybe different from yours (and theirs)
For example there are very few "pub" like establishments in the US/California, so looking for those as a place to eat makes them a little more exclusive (expensive) compared to our/uk counter lunch type meals. Restaurants have bars attached to them. and out of town areas are even more different than the city bars, Its just so different.
I agree we can disagree….😀
This is like asking how long a piece of string is …
Exactly.
I'm not sure how you could compare a holiday in the UK or in California.
If OP wants to have a cheap holiday (regardless of the activities on offer, types of sights to see, weather, culture, etc.) maybe they should just go to Bali.
Double half its length.
I'm not sure what OP try to achieve, you can have expensive holiday in cheap city or cheap holiday in expensive city.
One thing to remember is that California is massive. You'll likely spend 3/4 of your holiday stuck in traffic. And I'm not talking extra 30mins traffic, im talking 2-3 hours traffic
California is bigger than Brazil and Canada put together.
California as you said is massive, drive LA or the Bay area and you get traffic, go further and it can get quite sparse
however the comment above me makes no sense.
Canada alone is about 25 times bigger than California.
Zedsdeadbabyzedsdead hasn't seen a map recently…
Probably been influenced by those Arnie S pills that made him believe everything in California was bigger
California is 1/5th the size of NSW. I feel the traffic isn't that bad in LA and SF, similar to any big city.
Try again
California (US) (423,970 km²) is 0.53 times as big as New South Wales (Australia) (800,640 km²).
More like 1/2
Problem with LA is that its huge and the attractions are spread out. Public transport is pretty much non-existent. Its well covered in freeways, but still the distances between attractions is pretty bad.
For example disneyland to beverly hills is 70 km. Thats like nearly Sydney to Blue Mountains kind of distance. And the whole way is completely urbanised, means a lot of potential congested spots. Even if there's no traffic it would take a while. But there's traffic all day which slows it down. And during peak hours it could be 2 hour plus
SF has decent public transport at least. And the attractions are far more concentrated.
Where are you planning on going in the UK? That varies things a lot.
Staying in Chelsea costs a bit more than staying in Romford for instance.
I've done both and thought they were about the same price but it totally depends what you want to do and where you go.
You are better off deciding what "experiences" you want and select your holiday that way. Disregard the cost while you are away because it's unlikely you'll do the same holiday again.
Obviously the answer depends on what you want to do, but here's my observation
I’ve been to both as a family and for us UK was a lot cheaper. Lots of the popular things you might do in UK/London like galleries/parks/museums are free or at very least much cheaper for the kids (and for public transport).
In California you’ll need a car for a start + petrol + parking costs. Every activity costs and child prices (if they exist at all) are often not much less than an adult. Food was about the same as AU but + taxes and unless you’re braver than me you’ll end up tipping on the higher end for fear of being called out as a cheapskate.
Thanks to all for your thoughts and insights.
I probably should have made it clear that we're not looking for a cheap holiday as such, just currently weighing up both options, with cost being one of the factors.
Depends what the exchange rate is for getting shot in a mass shooting, or by the cops, or by one of the randoms walking around with guns. You also have to participate in the harmful tipping system, one of the dumbest ideas in the entire world.
Plan two itineraries with what you want to do and stay.
Cost them both up.
I tracked down the local 99c stores for snacks and drinks. Saved a bundle.
Purely from a literal cost point of view, the AU is very low against the US. However the AU is still doing OK against the pound, due to Brexit uncertainties dragging down the pound against everything. So for value, you're better off converting to pounds than dollars.
So in other words, you want other people to do your homework for you?
Yeah, no. Pass.