Should you visit Cafayate or Arica?
Which city is more affordable and which is best for your travel style? If you're trying to figure out where to go next, comparing the travel costs between Cafayate and Arica can help you decide which place is right for you.
Cafayate
Cafayate is located in the province of Salta, in the central zone of the Valles Calchaquies. The small town has about 12,000 residents and is 1,329 kilometers from Buenos Aires.
People head to the small town of Cafayate to explore its vineyards and unique rock formations. It has become an important tourist destination in the area and there is a large golf course under construction just outside of town.
Cafayate is an important wine production center. The wines in the area thrive from the low humidity mild weather of the valleys. The town receives less than 250 millimeters of precipitation a year.
Arica
A mixture of coastline, desert and high Andean plateau, Arica is a seaside resort town, known for its surfing beaches located at the tip of Northern Chile. Arica boasts that it is "the land of the eternal spring," but its temperate climate and beaches are not the only reason to visit this small city. Arica's tourism is still principally geared toward domestic visitors and those from southern Peru and La Paz, who flock to its beaches mid-December through February. It is very easy to spend a few days in Arica in the sand, or seeing the sights in town, at a slow pace but the city also offers plenty of fun activities and exciting day trips.
Which city is cheaper, Arica or Cafayate?
These are the overall average travel costs for the two destinations.
The average daily cost (per person) in Cafayate is $86, while the average daily cost in Arica is $84. These costs include accommodation (assuming double occupancy, so the traveler is sharing the room), food, transportation, and entertainment. While every person is different, these costs are an average of past travelers in each city. Below is a breakdown of travel costs for Cafayate and Arica in more detail.
Accommodation
Double occupancy rooms typically run around $64 in Cafayate For nicer amenities and a premiere location, you can expect to pay a bit more.
For a normal double-occupancy room in Arica, $74 is the average cost for a hotel room. Also in Arica, the typical price for a place to stay for one person is $37, such as in a hostel.
Food
While meal prices in Cafayate can vary, the average travelers spends about $35 per day on food. Based on the spending habits of previous travelers, when dining out, an average meal in Cafayate should cost around $14 per person. Breakfast prices are usually a little cheaper than lunch or dinner. The price of food in sit-down restaurants in Cafayate is often higher than fast food prices or street food prices.
Food in Arica costs travelers about $30 per day on average. Restaurants can vary significantly in price, so choose wisely if you're trying to save money. Fast food and street stalls are typically your cheapest options, which sit down restaurants can be significantly more expensive.
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Food
Meals for one day
Cafayate $35
Arica $30
Typical Food prices in Cafayate
Here are some examples of typical meal expenses from previous travelers to Cafayate:
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Dinner (Empanadas)
$0.22
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Sandwich
$0.10
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Pizza
$0.17
Local Transportation
Public transportation tends to be much less expensive in Cafayate than paying for a taxi or private car service, as is expected. Typically, people spend $18 on transportation in Cafayate on average per day.
To get around in Arica, the average visitor spends $19 per day, per person. This includes the costs of taxi rides and private drivers as well as public transportation, which tends to be much more affordable.
Typical Local Transportation prices in Arica
Some typical examples of transportation costs in Arica are as follows:
Hired Cars and Shuttles in Arica
Also for Arica, here are a few examples of actual transportation services:
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Arica Airport Private Transfer:
$76
Entertainment
Sightseeing expenses in Cafayate, including the cost of admission tickets for day tours, museums, and attractions, usually cost an average of $38 per day, per person.
In Arica, the costs for things to do, activities, admission tickets, and other sightseeing expenses are on average $21 per person, per day.
Tours and Activities in Cafayate
Also, here are some specific examples of entertainment, tickets, and activities for Cafayate.
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Cachi Full-Day Tour:
$58
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Cafayate and Calchaqui Valley Winery Tour:
$50
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From Salta: Full-Day Wine and Valley Tour to Cafayate:
$53
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Half-Day Wine Road Premium Tour From Cafayate:
$109
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Quebrada De Las Conchas Bike Tour from Cafayate:
$182
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Tour Quebrada De Las Conchas - Cafayate - Salta:
$27
Tours and Activities in Arica
For Arica, here are a few prices for actual activities, tours, and tickets provided by various companies:
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4-Days Unique Experience at the Chilean High Plateau:
$1,038
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Archeological Sightseeing tour in Arica:
$82
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Arica Private City Tour:
$262
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Arica Private Sightseeing Tour:
$76
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Arica Sightseeing Tour:
$41
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Half day Panoramic City Tour:
$23
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Full Day Tour to Tacna from Arica:
$72
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Private Arica and Ancient Cultures Tour:
$346
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Private Tour to Tacna from Arica:
$165
Alcohol
Alcoholic beverages can often be a significant portion of a traveler's budget, and the costs can vary greatly from person to person. In Cafayate, the average amount that a visitor spends on alcoholic beverages per day is $36.
Typically, people visiting Arica spend on average $20 on alcoholic beverages per person, per day.
When comparing the travel costs between Cafayate and Arica, we can see that Cafayate is more expensive. However, the two cities are actually relatively comparable in price, as the difference is somewhat minimal. Generally, this means that you could travel with generally the same travel style and level of luxury in each place. Since both cities are in South America, it's no surprise that their costs are relatively close, as many destinations here have somewhat similar travel prices overall.
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