26 Feb 2018
New York, San Francisco, Boston, Tokyo and Zurich have topped the list of the world’s most expensive cities to travel to in 2017, according to a survey by Expert Market.
The study reveals that at $549 a day, New York ranks as the world’s most expensive city. In the top 10, at least half of the world’s most expensive cities are in the USA, and three Swiss cities – Zurich, Basel and Geneva.
Says Oz Desai, Corporate Traveller South Africa GM: “When we travel for business, our choice of destination has little to do with how expensive it is to visit that city. Rather, we travel to cities where we have business interests even if it costs a great deal to fly there, stay in a hotel and buy a meal.
“The bulk of the daily spend will usually be the cost of a hotel room, but other business expenses like taxis, food and drink and even the cost of WiFi quickly add up when you’re travelling for business.”
To make it more cost-effective when travelling to the world’s most expensive cities, Corporate Traveller has compiled this list of handy rand-savers in five popular South African business haunts.
1. New York (Number 1 at $549 a day)
Accommodation prices in New York are subject to extreme fluctuations depending on the season and whether there’s a large-scale event in town. Plan your business travel so that it takes place at off-peak times. Rule of thumb is that from mid-January to mid-March is a good time to visit New York for business even though it’s winter. Also look for hotels uptown or downtown instead of staying midtown. Public transport is excellent in New York so provided you’ve clustered your meetings smartly you will have no issue getting down to business speedily.
2. Tokyo (Number 4 at $489 a day)
Cash is king in Tokyo and if you want to avoid exorbitant ATM charges every time you draw cash, make sure you have a pre-paid currency or multi-currency card. You will be surprised at how many establishments do not take credit or debit cards. For a well-priced, on-the-go meal, look no further than Tokyo’s convenience stores. They are literally everywhere and you can get a warm snack for under R50, which is a bargain in Tokyo. Planning to stay overnight in Tokyo? Opt for the city’s eastern neighbourhoods and avoid early May and mid-August.
3. London (Number 6 @ $467 a day)
One of the first things you should do when travelling to London on business is getting a Visitor Oyster Card. Not only is it much cheaper than buying a one-day pass to use on buses and tubes, holders of a Visitor Oyster Card also qualify for other discounts including up to £150 worth of discounts on food, drinks, shopping and entertainment in London.
4. Hong Kong (Number 13 @ R417 a day)
If you want to eat cheap in Hong Kong, consider taking a foodie tour after hours where you’ll be introduced to some of the lively local hotspots and indulge in dim sum, noodle soups and barbecued meat. If you don’t have time to go on a foodie tour, take a trip to Hong Kong Island and find Dim Sum Square, or be adventurous and visit one of the night markets which always serves up an array of delectable street food.
5. Lagos (Number 1 in Africa)
Book your hotel close to the airport or near where you will be conducting business. Traffic in Lagos is unbelievably congested. It is expensive to get around by private transfer, which is really your only option, and it takes hours to escape the gridlock. Since time is money, you can achieve real savings by being very careful about the location of your hotel, ensuring you spend minimal time dodging bad driving on the roads of Lagos.