Kiev, Ukraine is the best value option for Valentine’s day.
PAUL McKenna,
a British stage hypnotist, recently revealed that he chose his current fiancée
with the aid of a Microsoft Excel spreadsheet. Taking inspiration from this
application of accounting software to the business of love, The Economist is
delighted to share its “cost of loving” ranking, just in time for #Valentine’s_day.
Using
indicators from a “cost of living” survey*
run by our sister company, the Economist Intelligence Unit (EIU), you can now
discover which cities offer the best monetary value for a romantic mini-break.
Topping the table is Sofia,
Bulgaria, where taxis to and from the airport, a fancy meal, a night in a
quality hotel with top-shelf drinks in the bar and a bottle of champagne
smuggled up to your room will set you back a little over $200. Head to New
York though,
and the equivalent trip will cost you over five times as much, largely due to
hotel costs, the second highest in the survey after Doha,
Qatar. In comparison, $689 for one night in Paris, France seems almost
reasonable.
Yet there are
plenty of bargains to be had around the world if you are prepared to economise:
cancel the restaurant and Kiev, Ukraine is the best value
option, while ditching the taxis in Tokyo more
than halves the cost. And if you’re only planning to see the inside of a hotel
room and the bottom of a jeroboam of champagne, you can save over $2,000 by
choosing Cairo over Caracas where
a shortage of imported goods and multiple exchange rates have drastically
inflated some prices. Just don't ruin the mood by mentioning this ranking as
you gaze into each others’ eyes.
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