On December eighth, 2010, I flew from my dwelling close to Salt Lake Metropolis, Utah and after a protracted sequence of flight, landed virtually someday later within the metropolis of Lima, Peru. Since then, I’ve rented an residence within the metropolis of Lima for 2 complete weeks, traveled to the small desert city of Nazca Peru and flown over the mysterious Nazca Strains, and now I’m within the metropolis of Arequipa, the place we simply rang within the New 12 months with a large fireworks celebration.
Once I traveled via Europe in 2009, I saved monitor of each single penny I spent… and I chronicled my spending habits with you right here on Bicycle Touring Professional. When my travels in Europe have been over, I used to be shocked that I had spent so little (a median of $1,247 USD per thirty days). However greater than that, I noticed that touring in Europe for 9 months really price me much less that what it prices me to easily sit at dwelling again within the United Stats and doing nothing! In different phrases, I discovered that it was cheaper and extra enjoyable for me to journey than it was for me to easily keep at dwelling and pinch pennies.
With this superb discovery in hand, I believed it might be each enjoyable an informative if I saved monitor of my bills as soon as once more as I journey via the South American nation of Peru on a 6-month backpacking and “bicycle touring” journey.
So, right here it’s: These are all of my bills throughout my first month in Peru.
Airfare: 923 SOL ($350.10 USD)
Earlier than I even left dwelling I needed to spend a major sum of money as a way to even get to Peru. That’s proper! I needed to buy my round-trip airline ticket. After searching round for some time, the most affordable ticket I may discover was $700.20 USD, so I ordered it and I’ve cut up the price of that ticket in half for this primary month of journey as I’ve actually solely used half of the ticket worth at this time limit. Once I fly dwelling across the finish of Could, 2011, I’ll tack on one other $350.10 USD to my ultimate journey bills.
Lodging: 1,414 SOL ($503.83 USD)
That is the place issues get attention-grabbing. That is additionally the place my journey bills won’t match the journey bills of a typical backpacker or bicycle vacationer. You see, I’m not simply touring in Peru for six months. I’m working right here as properly. A part of the work I do is operating this web site right here at Bicycle Touring Professional, however I additionally run a small advertising enterprise and function numerous different Web properties that are both presently being constructed or have to be maintained regularly. So I’m touring for six months, however I’m additionally working on the similar time… and which means that as an alternative of leaping from one location to the subsequent for months on finish, I’m staying put in sure locations for lengthy durations of time and dealing whereas I’m there. Then, after some time, I pack up my belongings and transfer on to the subsequent location.
And that is precisely what I’ve performed throughout my first month in Peru. Upon arriving in Lima, Peru, I rented an residence for two complete weeks and that set me again $450 USD. Then I took a bus to town of Nazca and stayed in a small hostel there for 4 nights. That price me $35 USD. And eventually, I traveled to town of Arequipa, the place I stayed in a hostel for one evening (complete price: $8.90 USD) after which discovered an residence to remain in for the subsequent three weeks without charge in anyway (I’ll clarify how I discovered this free lodging in one other publish).
For now, it ought to be famous that it will most likely be my most costly month so far as lodging is worried. I believe that in month two of my travels, my price for lodging will likely be drastically much less. And nonetheless, this quantity ($503.83 USD) for lodging is lower than half of what I usually pay for the mortgage on my apartment again at dwelling in the USA.
Taxis: 38 SOL ($13.54 USD)
I’ve solely taken three taxis in Peru up to now. I took one which dropped me off at my residence once I first arrived on the airport in Lima… one which drove me from my residence in Lima into the middle of city… and one other once I was leaving Lima and touring to the bus station in the midst of town.
Museums & Archeological Websites: 54 SOL ($19.24 USD)
I’ve performed quite a lot of touring prior to now the place I failed to go to the museums and historic websites within the space. I did this largely to save cash, however since most museum and archeological website entrance charges right here in Peru are round $3-$5 USD I’ve been going to virtually very museum and historical website I can discover. I’ve most likely visited no less than a dozen completely different museums and/or archeological websites since first getting into Peru and my price for these entrance charges has been lower than $20 USD.
Meals & Drink: 322 SOL ($114. 73 USD)
Once I first began planning my journey to Peru, I had a sense that meals and drinks have been going to by one in all my largest bills. I’ve discovered that lots of the meals objects are (to no shock) cheaper than related objects again dwelling. However in some locations, the meals and drinks really price an entire lot extra. For instance, whereas in Lima I paid greater than $3 USD for a small package deal of cream cheese. Again dwelling, I may need paid $1 – $1.50 for that very same merchandise. A small jar of spaghettti sauce right here in Peru may cost a little $5 USD. However again dwelling that very same jar would price not more than $1.5 – $3.00 USD. (Only a observe: cheaper spaghetti sauce is on the market right here in Peru, nevertheless it is available in a bag – not in a jar). The opposite main expense that I’m paying for right here in Peru that I don’t need to pay for again house is clear ingesting water. Each single day I’m buying about 5 liters or extra of bottled water… and over time this actually provides up.
Nazca Strains Flight: 245 SOL ($87.13 USD )
Whereas within the metropolis of Nazca I dished out $80 USD to take a 30 minute flight over the Nazca Strains and was compelled to pay a 20 SOL payment simply to make use of the companies there on the Nazca airport.
Nazca Cemetery Tour: 35 SOL ($12.47 USD)
Whereas in Nazca I additionally went on a brief tour of the Chauchilla Cemetery the place a dozen or extra mummified our bodies could be discovered. This tour was a pair hours in size and included a trip from my hostel in Nazca 30 kms south to the cemetery website out in the midst of the desert and a tour information who took us via the assorted mummy pits and defined what it was that we have been seeing.
4×4 Sandboarding Tour: 85 SOL ($30 USD)
My different large splurge in Nazca was the 4×4 sandboarding tour I went on throughout my final day within the metropolis. This was a 4-hour tour the place I rode alongside in an 8-person dune buggy and traveled into the deserts west of Nazca. Touring on bumpy grime roads we made stops on the aqueducts of Ocongalla, the Ruins of Cahuachi (proven beneath), and a pre-Inca cemetery the place the bones of a whole bunch of individuals lay scattered within the sand. After visiting these varied vacationer websites we headed into the sand dunes and spent an hour coasting down the dunes on wood snowboard formed planks.
Web: 1.1 SOL ($0.39 USD)
It wasn’t till I arrived in Arequipa on the twenty seventh of December that I wanted to make use of an Web cafe. Till then, I had had Web entry in all of my lodging areas.
Leisure: 75.5 SOL ($26.90 USD)
Whereas in Lima I spent some cash on the native casinos, purchased just a few Peruvian CDs, and rented a bicycle so I may cycle to the close by Pachacamac Ruins.
Bus: 167 SOL ($59.50 USD)
Lastly, I took two completely different long-distance buses this month. The primary bus took me from Lima to Nazca (an 8-hour trip that price me 67 SOL ($23.87 USD) and a second bus from Nazca to Arequipa, which took 10 hours and price me 100 SOL (35.63 USD). It ought to be famous that these bus rides have been taken with an organization referred to as Cruz Del Sur (not pictured above), which is essentially the most top-of-the-line bus service in Peru. If I had taken a less expensive bus, my prices right here would have been an entire lot much less.
TOTAL COST THIS MONTH: $1,217.80 USD (3,359.6 SOL)
Ultimately, my complete price for twenty-four days of journey within the nation of Peru set me again $1,217.80 USD.
Truthfully, this is a little more than I anticipated to have spent throughout my first month, however while you issue within the airfare to get to Peru and the $450 I paid for my residence in Lima, I can perceive how my prices shortly grew to become so excessive.
Nonetheless, it ought to be famous that this quantity ($1217) is lower than what it prices me to dwell again at dwelling in the USA. So touring in Peru, although I spent over one-thousand US {dollars}, remains to be saving me cash in comparison with my life again within the States.
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