Cheapest countries

If you’re looking for the very cheapest place to travel in the world, Nepal is certainly close to the top. It was one of the world’s best destination bargains the first time I landed there in the mid-90s and it still is today. Travel prices in Nepal are a perpetual bargain. Looking back at my …

Indonesia has long been near the top of the list of the cheapest places to live in the world, having a starring role in all four editions of The World’s Cheapest Destinations. The visa policy there has always been baffling to me though. You have to buy a visa on arrival, which increased to $35 …

Where are the cheapest places to travel in the world? And how does City A compare to City B? How well does perception match reality? Every few years I put out a new edition of the book you see to the right and if you’re about to embark on a year-long trip around the world, …

“If you make $1,000 a month, you can drive a small car, take your family out to decent restaurants sometimes, and visit a place like this on the weekends.” That was an offhand comment from my Nicaraguan guide Pablo when we were at the overlook area checking out Lake Apoyo between Managua and Granada. “On …

There was a time when people rode trains all over Ecuador, from the capital of Quito to Otovalo, Cuenca, and the coastal port of Guayaquil. More than 60 trains a day departed from the main station in southern Quito. Then came the age of the automobile, which killed off the trains in a lot of …