Which place is cheaper, Puerto Varas or Recife?
These are the overall average travel costs for the two destinations.
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Should you visit Recife or Puerto Varas?
Which is cheaper to visit? Which is more expensive for vacation?
Trying to figure out where to travel next? This travel comparison between Recife and Puerto Varas can help. It includes a travel cost comparison in addition to other factors. For many travelers, the cost of a destination is a primary consideration when choosing where to go.
Where Should I go: Recife or Puerto Varas?
Recife
One of the largest cities on Brazil's northeast coast, Recife is also the capital of the state of Pernambuco. The city gets its name from the Portuguese word for "reef," as it was built around a landscape of natural reef beaches. Many people visit to enjoy these beaches, experience the culture, and explore the history of this important Brazilian city.
Puerto Varas
Puerto Varas is a city in Southern Chile, in the Los Lagos (Lakes) Region, Llanquihue Province. It is a charming town, only 23 km away from Puerto Montt and surrounded by the Osorno and Calbuco volcanoes as well as the impressive Llanquihue lake. In terms of landscape, accommodation and activities, Puerto Varas is well served! Kayak, paddle, canyoning, rock climbing, trekking, ski, fishing, you name it! If you decide to stop in that area, we recommend that you stay in Puerto Varas, as it provides the perfect starting point for many memorable excursions in the area.
For some great organized tour ideas, see The Best Jungle Trekking Tours in Brazil, The Best Luxury Tours to Brazil, The Best G Adventures Tours to Chile, and The Best One-Week (7-Day) Tours from Santiago.
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Average Daily Cost Per person, per dayRecife $166Puerto Varas $109
The average daily cost (per person) in Recife is $166, while the average daily cost in Puerto Varas is $109. 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 Recife and Puerto Varas in more detail.
Accommodation
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Accommodation Hotel or hostel for one personRecife $88Puerto Varas $67
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Accommodation Typical double-occupancy roomRecife $176Puerto Varas $134
Compare Hotels in Recife and Puerto Varas
Looking for a hotel in Recife or Puerto Varas? 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: Recife Hotel Prices and Puerto Varas Hotel Prices.
Local Transportation
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Local Transportation Taxis, local buses, subway, etc.Recife $8.47Puerto Varas $21
Hired Cars and Shuttles in Recife
Some specific examples of transportation prices in Recife:
- Departure Transfer from Olinda to Recife Airport: $100
- Instituto Ricardo Brennand with transfers from Recife: $41
- Private Transfer from Igarassu to Recife (REC) Airport : $101
- Private Transfer from Olinda to Recife (REC) Airport: $46
- Private Transfer from Recife to Carneiros Beach: $114
- Private Transfer from Recife to Olinda: $46
- Private Transfer from Recife to Serrambi Beach: $101
- Private Transfer from Recife to Tamandare Beach: $114
- Recife Boat Tour with Transfers: $72
- Airport to Maragogi Hotels Private Transfer: $85
- Airport to Porto de Galinhas Transfer: $65
- Shared Transfer from Recife to Cabo de Santo Agostinho: $33
Hired Cars and Shuttles in Puerto Varas
Some specific examples of transportation prices in Puerto Varas:
- Puerto Varas to Puerto Montt Airport - Departure Private Transfer: $21
- Frutillar to Puerto Airport (PMC) - Departure Private Transfer: $21
- Transfer to Puerto Montt Airport: $22
- Frutillar to Puerto Montt Airport PMC- Departure Private Transfer: $23
- Transfer from Hotel in Puerto Varas to Puerto Montt Airport: $24
- Puerto Varas to Puerto Montt Airport (PMC) - Departure Transfer: $33
- Transfer from Puerto Varas to Puerto Montt Airport: $50
Is it cheaper to fly into Recife or Puerto Varas?
Prices for flights to both Puerto Varas and Recife 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 dayRecife $70Puerto Varas $25
Entertainment
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Entertainment Entrance tickets, shows, etc.Recife $11Puerto Varas $19
Tours and Activities in Recife
Some specific costs of activities, tours, and entrance tickets for Recife are as follows:
- Recife (Historic Centre) Scavenger Hunt and Self-Guided Tour: $7.66
- Olinda Scavenger Hunt and Sights Self-Guided Tour: $7.83
- City Tour Recife & Olinda: $27
- Colonial North Coast beaches - Full-Day Tour: $35
- Olinda City Tour and Instituto Ricardo Brennand: $94
- City Tour Recife with Catamaran included: $150
Tours and Activities in Puerto Varas
Here are a few actual costs in Puerto Varas for available activities, ticket prices, and tours:
- Tour Frutillar: $31
- Half day Frutillar and Llanquihue Town tour: $34
- Half day Osorno Volcano tour: $35
- Half-Day Tour to Frutillar and Llanquihue: $35
- Todos los Santos Lake and Villa Peulla Tour: $48
- Todos los Santos Lake and Villa Peulla Tour: $48
- From Osorno Volcano & Petrohue Falls Day Tour: $49
- Half-Day Small-Group Rafting Experience in Petrohué River: $50
- From Puerto Varas or Puerto Montt: Chiloé Island Tour: $60
- FullDay Chiloe Island Tour Castro and dalcahue: $62
- Full-Day Tour Chiloe Island: Castro and Dalcahue : $62
- Puerto Varas Mountain Biking Experience: $67
Alcohol
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Alcohol Drinks for one dayRecife -Puerto Varas $6.51
When we compare the travel costs of actual travelers between Recife and Puerto Varas, we can see that Recife is more expensive. And not only is Puerto Varas much less expensive, but it is actually a significantly cheaper destination. So, traveling to Puerto Varas would let you spend less money overall. Or, you could decide to spend more money in Puerto Varas 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 Recife would naturally cost you much more money, so you would probably want to keep your budget a little tighter in Recife than you might in Puerto Varas.
If you're trying to decide if either of these two destinations are within your price range, also see Is Recife Expensive? and Is Puerto Varas Expensive?.
Which is Bigger, Recife or Puerto Varas?
Recife has a larger population, and is about 60 times larger than the population of Puerto Varas. When comparing the sizes of Recife and Puerto Varas, 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.
When is the best time to visit Recife or Puerto Varas?
Both destinations experience a temperate climate with four distinct seasons. And since both cities are in the southern hemisphere, summer is in January and winter is in July.
Should I visit Recife or Puerto Varas in the Summer?
The summer attracts plenty of travelers to both Recife and Puerto Varas.
Recife is much warmer than Puerto Varas in the summer. The daily temperature in Recife averages around 26°C (79°F) in January, and Puerto Varas fluctuates around 16°C (60°F).
People are often attracted to the plentiful sunshine in Puerto Varas this time of the year. In Recife, it's very sunny this time of the year. Recife usually receives more sunshine than Puerto Varas during summer. Recife gets 246 hours of sunny skies, while Puerto Varas receives 204 hours of full sun in the summer.
Recife gets a good bit of rain this time of year. In January, Recife usually receives more rain than Puerto Varas. Recife gets 108 mm (4.3 in) of rain, while Puerto Varas receives 90 mm (3.5 in) of rain each month for the summer.
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Summer Average Temperatures JanuaryRecife 26°C (79°F)Puerto Varas 16°C (60°F)
Should I visit Recife or Puerto Varas in the Autumn?
The autumn brings many poeple to Recife as well as Puerto Varas.
In the autumn, Recife is much warmer than Puerto Varas. Typically, the autumn temperatures in Recife in April average around 26°C (79°F), and Puerto Varas averages at about 11°C (51°F).
In the autumn, Recife often gets more sunshine than Puerto Varas. Recife gets 185 hours of sunny skies this time of year, while Puerto Varas receives 104 hours of full sun.
It's quite rainy in Puerto Varas. Recife receives a lot of rain in the autumn. Recife usually gets more rain in April than Puerto Varas. Recife gets 338 mm (13.3 in) of rain, while Puerto Varas receives 143 mm (5.6 in) of rain this time of the year.
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Autumn Average Temperatures AprilRecife 26°C (79°F)Puerto Varas 11°C (51°F)
Should I visit Recife or Puerto Varas in the Winter?
Both Puerto Varas and Recife are popular destinations to visit in the winter with plenty of activities.
In July, Recife is generally much warmer than Puerto Varas. Daily temperatures in Recife average around 24°C (76°F), and Puerto Varas fluctuates around 7°C (45°F).
Recife usually receives more sunshine than Puerto Varas during winter. Recife gets 170 hours of sunny skies, while Puerto Varas receives 67 hours of full sun in the winter.
It rains a lot this time of the year in Puerto Varas. It's quite rainy in Recife. In July, Recife usually receives more rain than Puerto Varas. Recife gets 388 mm (15.3 in) of rain, while Puerto Varas receives 229 mm (9 in) of rain each month for the winter.
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Winter Average Temperatures JulyRecife 24°C (76°F)Puerto Varas 7°C (45°F)
Should I visit Recife or Puerto Varas in the Spring?
Both Puerto Varas and Recife during the spring are popular places to visit.
Recife is much warmer than Puerto Varas in the spring. The daily temperature in Recife averages around 25°C (77°F) in October, and Puerto Varas fluctuates around 11°C (51°F).
It's quite sunny in Recife. In the spring, Recife often gets more sunshine than Puerto Varas. Recife gets 247 hours of sunny skies this time of year, while Puerto Varas receives 151 hours of full sun.
Puerto Varas gets a good bit of rain this time of year. Recife usually gets less rain in October than Puerto Varas. Recife gets 63 mm (2.5 in) of rain, while Puerto Varas receives 121 mm (4.8 in) of rain this time of the year.
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Spring Average Temperatures OctoberRecife 25°C (77°F)Puerto Varas 11°C (51°F)
Typical Weather for Puerto Varas and Recife
| Recife | Puerto Varas | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Temp (°C) | Rain (mm) | Temp (°C) | Rain (mm) | |
| Jan | 26°C (79°F) | 108 mm (4.3 in) | 16°C (60°F) | 90 mm (3.5 in) |
| Feb | 26°C (80°F) | 148 mm (5.8 in) | 15°C (59°F) | 93 mm (3.7 in) |
| Mar | 26°C (80°F) | 257 mm (10.1 in) | 13°C (55°F) | 99 mm (3.9 in) |
| Apr | 26°C (79°F) | 338 mm (13.3 in) | 11°C (51°F) | 143 mm (5.6 in) |
| May | 25°C (78°F) | 319 mm (12.5 in) | 9°C (49°F) | 234 mm (9.2 in) |
| Jun | 25°C (77°F) | 378 mm (14.9 in) | 8°C (46°F) | 224 mm (8.8 in) |
| Jul | 24°C (76°F) | 388 mm (15.3 in) | 7°C (45°F) | 229 mm (9 in) |
| Aug | 24°C (75°F) | 205 mm (8.1 in) | 8°C (46°F) | 209 mm (8.2 in) |
| Sep | 24°C (76°F) | 122 mm (4.8 in) | 9°C (47°F) | 146 mm (5.7 in) |
| Oct | 25°C (77°F) | 63 mm (2.5 in) | 11°C (51°F) | 121 mm (4.8 in) |
| Nov | 26°C (79°F) | 36 mm (1.4 in) | 12°C (54°F) | 110 mm (4.3 in) |
| Dec | 26°C (79°F) | 57 mm (2.2 in) | 14°C (58°F) | 103 mm (4.1 in) |
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.