Which place is cheaper, Santiago or Ho Chi Minh City?
These are the overall average travel costs for the two destinations. These travel costs come from the actual spending of real travelers.
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Should you visit Ho Chi Minh City or Santiago?
Which is cheaper to visit? Which is more expensive for vacation?
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 Ho Chi Minh City and Santiago can help you decide which place is right for you.
Where Should I go: Ho Chi Minh City or Santiago?
Ho Chi Minh City
Ho Chi Minh City, formerly Saigon, is the largest city in Vietnam. It previously served as the capital of the Republic of Vietnam (South Vietnam). The metropolitan area, including Ho Chi Minh City, Thu Dau Mot, Di An, Bien Hoa, and other surrounding towns, has a population of more than 9 million people and continues to grow.
Santiago
Santiago is the capital city of Chile. It is centrally located in the long and narrow country, making it a good jumping off point to explore everywhere else. It's convenient location means that you can go skiing in the Andes one day, and hang out at the beach the next.
Santiago has a cool semi-arid climate that is similar to Mediterranean climates. The summers, which are between November and March, are warm and dry. The temperatures climb to around 95 degrees Fahrenheit. The winters, between June and August, are humid with cold mornings. The daily highs are around 55 degrees Fahrenheit and the lows stay a few degrees above freezing. Rain is more common in the winter months and the dry season is between December and March.
For some great organized tour ideas, see The Best 2-Week Tours from Ho Chi Minh City, The Best Family-Friendly Tours to Vietnam, The Best Romantic Tours for Couples in Chile, and The Best Luxury Tours to Chile.
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Ho Chi Minh City Prices
Vietnam PricesSantiago Prices
Chile Prices -
Average Daily Cost Per person, per dayHo Chi Minh City $88Santiago $154
The average daily cost (per person) in Ho Chi Minh City is $88, while the average daily cost in Santiago is $154. 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 destination. What follows is a categorical breakdown of travel costs for Ho Chi Minh City and Santiago in more detail.
Accommodation
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Accommodation Hotel or hostel for one personHo Chi Minh City $47Santiago $112
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Accommodation Typical double-occupancy roomHo Chi Minh City $94Santiago $224
Compare Hotels in Ho Chi Minh City and Santiago
Looking for a hotel in Ho Chi Minh City or Santiago? Prices vary by location, date, season, and the level of luxury. See below for options and compare which is best for your budget and travel style.
Kayak helps you find the best prices for hotels, flights, and rental cars for destinations around the world. Compare prices for multiple destinations when planning your next trip.
Our Analysis
We've analyzed the average and typical hotel prices based on guest reviews, star ratings, and hotel amenities here: Ho Chi Minh City Hotel Prices and Santiago Hotel Prices.
Local Transportation
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Local Transportation Taxis, local buses, subway, etc.Ho Chi Minh City $15Santiago $5.53
Typical Local Transportation Prices in Ho Chi Minh City
Here are some examples of typical transportation prices from actual travelers in Ho Chi Minh City:
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Short Taxi Ride$1.35
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Taxi From Airport$7.69
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Cyclo Ride (One Hour)$1.54
Hired Cars and Shuttles in Ho Chi Minh City
Also for Ho Chi Minh City, here are a few examples of actual transportation services:
- Mui Ne Beach: Bus transfer from/to Saigon City: $8.67
- Can Tho: Bus transfer directly to/from Saigon City: $9.92
- Ho Chi Minh City airport transfer: $10
- Nha Trang: Bus transfer from/to Saigon City: $12
- Private Transfer to/from SGN Airport: $13
- Ho Chi Minh Airport Arrival Or Departure By Private Car Transfers: $14
- Ho Chi Minh city Private Airport Transfer: $14
- Ho Chi Minh Airport Transfer Service: $14
- Ho Chi Minh Airport Arrival Or Departure By Private Car Transfers: $14
- Try find better than us! Airport Transfer in Ho Chi Minh HTL-APT (SGN): $15
- Transfer from Ho Chi Minh to Airport Tan Sơn Nhat: $15
- Private Departure Transfer: Ho Chi Minh City Hotels to Tan Son Nhat Airport: $15
Typical Local Transportation Prices in Santiago
Below are a few samples from actual travelers for transportation costs in Santiago:
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Metro Ride$1.16
Hired Cars and Shuttles in Santiago
Some specific examples of transportation prices in Santiago:
- Private Scenic Transfer to Mendoza.: $467
- Private Transfer from Santiago or Santiago Airport to Colchagua or Santa Cruz: $300
- Private Transfer from Santiago Airport to Valparaíso,Viña del Mar or San Antonio: $300
- Private Transfer Round trip From the Airport to Valle Nevado : $299
- Transfer Private hotel to Cruise ship in Puerto San Antonio or Valparaiso: $270
- Santiago de Chile : private transfer in SUV to Viña del mar or Valparaíso: $270
- Maipo Valley Wine Tour, Concha y Toro, Private Transfer from Santiago: $262
- from Santiago airport private arrival transfer to the Valparaiso pier: $251
- Private Transfer from Arturo Merino Benítez (SCL) Airport to Viña del Mar: $249
- Private Transfer from Arturo Merino Benítez (SCL) Airport to San Antonio: $249
- Private Transfer from Santiago Airport to Valparaiso Viña del Mar: $248
- Santiago Airport (SCL) to Santo Domingo - Round-Trip Transfer: $229
Is it cheaper to fly into Ho Chi Minh City or Santiago?
Prices for flights to both Santiago and Ho Chi Minh City change regularly based on dates and travel demand. We suggest you find the best prices for your next trip on Kayak, because you can compare the cost of flights across multiple airlines for your prefered dates.
Food
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Food Meals for one dayHo Chi Minh City $23Santiago $23
Typical Food Prices in Ho Chi Minh City
Here are some examples of typical meal expenses from previous travelers to Ho Chi Minh City:
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Street Food Dinner (for Two)$4.11
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Pizza$5.00
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Sweet Rice$1.15
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Pork Sandwich$0.58
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Casual Lunch (for Two)$6.52
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Western Lunch (for Two)$11
Food Tours and Cooking Classes in Ho Chi Minh City
For Ho Chi Minh City, here are some samples of tours and activities related to meals and dining experiences:
- Saigon: Street Food Tour and The Local Life: $3.20
- Vietnamese Cooking and Craft Workshop by the Lake: $10
- 1 hour Egg Coffee Cooking Class with Snack and Local Instructor : $13
- HCM:Mekong Delta 4 Islands Boat Tuk Tuk Try KhotCake Cooking: $15
- Saigon Food Tour & Culture Explore Ho Chi Minh City Walking Tour: $15
- Midnight Street Food Tour In Saigon By Motorbike: $16
- Saigon Sightseeing & Street Food Tour By scooter with Student: $20
- Saigon: City Day Sights & Local Food Tour|Opt: Ao Dai Riders: $24
- Walking Food Tour in HCM: 10 Must- Try Local Dishes & Hidden Gems: $25
- Committed Non-Touristy Saigon Street Food Tour By Scooters/Car : $25
- HO CHI MINH Street Food Tour and Vietnamese Coffee: $25
- Saigon: Night Sights & Local Food Tour w Ao Dai Rider Option: $25
Typical Food Prices in Santiago
Some typical examples of dining costs in Santiago are as follows:
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Empanada$1.93
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Hamburger$2.56
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Dinner$26
Food Tours and Cooking Classes in Santiago
Also, here are some specific examples of food and dining related activities in Santiago.
- Best Street Food Tour With A Local Guide: $79
- Street Food Tour in Santiago with a Local Guide: $80
- Santiago Street Art History and Local Food Tour: $99
- Traditional Chilean Show with Dinner and Private Transportation in Santiago: $107
- Traditional Dinner Show in Santiago: $107
- Dinner Show in Bali Hai with Wine refill and transportation: $114
- Sunset at Alyan Family Wines Winery with Dinner: $114
- Small-Group Tour: Night City Tour with Santa Lucia Hill and Dinner Show: $116
- Private Dinner & Chilean Folk Show with Transfers: $116
- Alyan Winery Sunset with Wine Tastings and Dinner: $117
- San Cristobal Hill Night Tour with Dinner Show: $129
- Sunset Alyan + 6 wines + individual snack + rustic dinner : $130
Entertainment
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Entertainment Entrance tickets, shows, etc.Ho Chi Minh City $19Santiago $48
Typical Entertainment Prices in Ho Chi Minh City
For Ho Chi Minh City, here are some examples of average entertainment and activity prices from previous travelers:
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Massage$5.38
Tours and Activities in Ho Chi Minh City
Also, here are some specific examples of entertainment, tickets, and activities for Ho Chi Minh City.
- Vietnam War Essentials Free Walking Tour: $0.40
- Highlights & Hidden Gems Walking Tour: $0.60
- Ho Chi Minh City private walking tours with young local volunteers: $1.82
- Walking Tour with Local Guide: $3.20
- Saigon Local Sightseeing Free Walking Tour: $3.91
- Essential Ho Chi Minh City Free Walking Tour: All Must-see: $5.00
- Personalized Experience in Hidden Gems with Local Photographer: $5.00
- Ho Chi Minh city Street Food by scooter tour | female driver: $5.00
- Hop-On Hop-Off Bus Tour by Vistra: $5.00
- Saigon Slum tour, Chillspots tour by scooter | Female driver: $5.00
- Saigon Market Tour by motorbike ( different markets in HCMC) : $5.00
- Ho Chi Minh City Sightseeing, nightlife Saigon, Local Markets: $5.00
Tours and Activities in Santiago
Some specific costs of activities, tours, and entrance tickets for Santiago are as follows:
- Experience Wildlife Encounter in Provincia Mountain of Chile.: $235
- Private Adventure at 4200 meters above sea level in the Chilean Andes Cerro Pintor: $300
- Tour Tasting Colchagua Valley: $300
- "Tour Tradicional" Viña Cousiño Macul Oficial portugués: $26
- 1 Day Tour of Viña Concha y Toro from Santiago: $120
- 2-Hour Walking Tour of Yungay The Coolest Neighborhood in Chile: $35
- 3 Hours Santiago Blend Walking Tour: $20
- A Fabulous Walking tour by the Old Santiago of Chile -small group: $25
- An Architect's Tour of Downtown Santiago: $55
- Andean Adventure: Cajón del Maipo & El Morado Lodge and Spa: $132
- Andean Horse Ride Yerba Loca Sanctuary - Private tour from Santiago: $240
- Andean Tour: $200
Alcohol
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Alcohol Drinks for one dayHo Chi Minh City $7.68Santiago $8.58
Typical Alcohol Prices in Ho Chi Minh City
Below are a few samples from actual travelers for alcohol and nightlife costs in Ho Chi Minh City:
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Beer$0.38
Sample the Local Flavors in Ho Chi Minh City
Here are a few nightlife and alcohol tours and activities from local tour providers in Ho Chi Minh City:
- Pub Crawl with Drinks and Guide: $50
Sample the Local Flavors in Santiago
Also in Santiago, these are the prices for nightlife and alcohol related activities from various tour providers:
- Traditional Wine Tour in Viña Cousiño Macul Official English: $26
- "Premium Wine Tour" Viña Cousiño Macul Oficial portugués: $40
- Premium Wine Tour in Viña Cousiño Macul Spanish official: $40
- Viña del Mar, Valparaiso, with Wine Tasting: $60
- Undurraga Winery Tour with Entry and Wine Tasting: $63
- Undurraga Wine tour: $70
- Undurraga Wine Tasting Tour from Santiago: $75
- Premium Wine Tasting in Santiago de Chile: $77
- Half Day Trip to Concha y Toro Vineyard from Santiago - Wine Tasting Included: $87
- Maipo Valley Wine Tour with 4 vineyards from Santiago.: $89
- Kross Brewery Tour: A Craft Beer Tasting Experience: $93
- Concha y Toro semi-private tour with 3 wine tastings: $99
When we compare the travel costs of actual travelers between Ho Chi Minh City and Santiago, we can see that Santiago is more expensive. And not only is Ho Chi Minh City much less expensive, but it is actually a significantly cheaper destination. Since Ho Chi Minh City is in Asia and Santiago is in South America, this is one of the main reasons why the costs are so different, as different regions of the world tend to have overall different travel costs. So, traveling to Ho Chi Minh City would let you spend less money overall. Or, you could decide to spend more money in Ho Chi Minh City and be able to afford a more luxurious travel style by staying in nicer hotels, eating at more expensive restaurants, taking tours, and experiencing more activities. The same level of travel in Santiago would naturally cost you much more money, so you would probably want to keep your budget a little tighter in Santiago than you might in Ho Chi Minh City.
If you're trying to decide if either of these two destinations are within your price range, also see Is Ho Chi Minh City Expensive? and Is Santiago Expensive?.
Which is Bigger, Ho Chi Minh City or Santiago?
Santiago has a larger population, and is about 40% larger than the population of Ho Chi Minh City. When comparing the sizes of Ho Chi Minh City and Santiago, keep in mind that a larger population does not always imply the destination has more attractions or better activities. So, always research the type of place that you want to visit along with the activities and attractions that interest you.
Budget Your Trip is all about finding out how much everything costs so that you can travel cheaper and longer. Created by avid travelers Laurie and Bryan, our goal is to help you plan your next trip on the right budget. With average daily travel costs that are calculated from the budgets of real travelers, plus an analysis of hotel and tour prices, you can find out how much money you need to plan your next adventure. We also have plenty of travel advice, accommodation reviews, and activity suggestions.