Which place is cheaper, Rio de Janeiro or Santorini?
These are the overall average travel costs for the two destinations.
Jump to 
Should you visit Santorini or Rio de Janeiro?
Which is cheaper to visit? Which is more expensive for vacation?
If you're trying to decide where to visit between Santorini or Rio de Janeiro, this travel comparison, which includes costs, can help. The overall cost of travel is usually a consideration when deciding where to go next, and the cost comparison down below can help you decide based on the average prices from other travelers along with your own travel budget.
Where Should I go: Santorini or Rio de Janeiro?
Santorini
Santorini is a volcanic island that is part of the Cyclades group of the Greek Islands. It has some spectacular views, beautiful sunsets, and excellent beaches. As one of the most popular of the Greek Islands to visit, Santorini sees many tourists every year. However, it's for a good reason, as the famous white-washed buildings that spill down the hill, some with blue domes that match the gorgeous color of the water, are set against the beautiful mountainous backdrop of one of the most scenic areas of the Mediterranean. Home to several of these small and scenic towns such as Oia, Kamari, Perissa, and Fira, visitors can explore the large island, enjoy delicious food, swim at the beaches, hike the hills, and sail the blue waters.
Rio de Janeiro
Rio de Janeiro is the most popular travel destination in Brazil. It is the second largest city in Brazil and the sixth largest in the Americas. A portion of the city has been designated a World Heritage Site. It's also famous for Carnival, it's gorgeous beaches, and world-famous landmarks. Rio's appeal as a travel destination is apparent year round due to the great weather and plenty of fun activities. The city has a wonderful natural harbor that is surrounded by Sugar Loaf Mountain, Corcovado Peak, and the hills of Tijuca, creating an absolutely breathtaking and awe-inspiring setting.
For some great organized tour ideas, see The Best Luxury Tours to Greece, The Best Budget Tours to Greece, The Best Contiki Tours to Brazil, and The Best G Adventures Tours to Brazil.
-
Average Daily Cost Per person, per daySantorini €175Rio de Janeiro €99
The average daily cost (per person) in Santorini is €175, while the average daily cost in Rio de Janeiro is €99. 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 Santorini and Rio de Janeiro in more detail.
Accommodation
-
Accommodation Hotel or hostel for one personSantorini €93Rio de Janeiro €62
-
Accommodation Typical double-occupancy roomSantorini €186Rio de Janeiro €124
Compare Hotels in Santorini and Rio de Janeiro
Looking for a hotel in Santorini or Rio de Janeiro? 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: Santorini Hotel Prices and Rio de Janeiro Hotel Prices.
Local Transportation
-
Local Transportation Taxis, local buses, subway, etc.Santorini €28Rio de Janeiro €7.48
Hired Cars and Shuttles in Santorini
Also for Santorini, here are a few examples of actual transportation services:
- Private Round-trip Transfer from Santorini Thira Airport (JTR) to Kamari,Greece: $50
- 24h Luxury Santorini Transfer.Arrival/Departure one way: $76
- Airport, Port and Hotel Private Transfer in Santorini: $20
- Arrival Private Transfer Santorini Airport JTR or Port to Santorini by Sprinter: $32
- Blue Dome And Oia Sunset Small Group Transfer: $37
- Departure Private Transfer Santorini to Santorini Airport JTR by Sedan Car: $23
- Departure Private Transfer Santorini to Santorini Airport JTR or Port by Van: $32
- Departure Private Transfer Santorni to Santorini Airport JTR or Port by Sprinter: $46
- Departure Transfer To Santorini Airport: $17
- Economy Departure Transfers To Santorini Airport: $15
- Economy Roundtrip Transfer Santorini Airport ( Max 4 stop ): $15
- Helicopter Transfer between Mykonos & Santorini: $3,725
Typical Local Transportation Prices in Rio de Janeiro
Here are some examples of typical transportation prices from actual travelers in Rio de Janeiro:
-
Taxi Ride€2.75
Hired Cars and Shuttles in Rio de Janeiro
Some specific examples of transportation prices in Rio de Janeiro:
- From Private Transfer to São Paulo: $650
- 2025: Rio Carnival Parade at Sapucaí with Transfer Sector 7: $466
- 2025 Sambadrome Carnival Parade: Transfer Included Sector 5: $466
- Rio Carnival 2025: Sambadrome Parade + Transfer Sector 5: $466
- Rio's 2025 Carnival Parade at Sapucaí + Transfer Sector 5: $466
- Rio Carnival 2025: Sambadrome Parade + Transfer (Sector 7): $466
- Rio: Sambadrome Carnival Parade + transfer 2025 Sector 7: $466
- All Private Transfer from Rio de Janeiro to Ilha Grande: $275
- From Private Transfer to Vila do Abraão: $244
- Arrival Private Transfer: GIG or SDU Airport to Arraial do Cabo by Sedan Car: $241
- From One-way Private Transfer to Búzios: $235
- Transfer Rio x Búzios, ARRAIAL DO CABO AND ANGRA DOS REIS: $227
Is it cheaper to fly into Santorini or Rio de Janeiro?
Prices for flights to both Rio de Janeiro and Santorini 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
-
Food Meals for one daySantorini €48Rio de Janeiro €19
Food Tours and Cooking Classes in Santorini
For Santorini, here are some samples of tours and activities related to meals and dining experiences:
- Santorini Caldera: Sunset Cruise with Dinner: $69
- Romantic Sunset Caldera Cruise with Dinner: $69
- Volcanic Sunset Cruise with Dinner: $80
- Catamaran Tour with BBQ Dinner, Drinks, and Music: $90
- Volcano and Hot Springs Sunset Dinner Cruise: $96
- Santorini Cooking Class with Wine Tasting: $108
- The Aegean Cooking Class: $109
- Santorini Sunset Sailing Cruise: Dinner, BBQ, Open Bar, Transfers: $118
- Sunset Cruise with Swim Stops, Dinner, and Drinks: $120
- Cooking Class in Traditional cave house in Santorini!: $120
- Fira: 4-Hour Walking Food Tour With Tastings: $122
- Half-Day Sunset Wine Tasting Tour in Santorini with dinner: $123
Typical Food Prices in Rio de Janeiro
Below are a few samples from actual travelers for food and meal costs in Rio de Janeiro:
-
Popcorn€0.55
-
Corn on the Cob€0.73
-
Hamburger€0.92
Food Tours and Cooking Classes in Rio de Janeiro
Also, here are some specific examples of food and dining related activities in Rio de Janeiro.
- Waterfront Dinner & Live Music Experience: $46
- Barra da Tijuca Food Tour with Drinks: $72
- THE BEST FOOD TOUR: $79
- Rio Bar Food Tour with a Local: $82
- Dinner & Rio Scenarium Nightclub Admission with Transfer: $85
- 9-Recipe Boozy Brazilian Cooking Class: $85
- Rio Scenarium Entrance, Dinner, and Open Bar: $105
- Brazilian Cooking Class: $129
- Samba Show Admission & Transfer with Dinner Option: $130
- Brazilian Cooking Class in Copacabana with Hotel Pickup: $140
- Rio: Ginga Tropical Folkloric Show & Optional Dinner: $142
- Samba Show Ginga Tropical with Optional Dinner : $143
Entertainment
-
Entertainment Entrance tickets, shows, etc.Santorini €36Rio de Janeiro €20
Tours and Activities in Santorini
Also, here are some specific examples of entertainment, tickets, and activities for Santorini.
- Megalochori: Lost Atlantis 9D Experience Museum Entry Ticket: $15
- E-Ticket to Akrotiri with Audio Tour on your Phone: $15
- Skip the Line Lost Atlantis Experience Ticket: $15
- Akrotiri Archaeological Site Entry Ticket: $16
- Santorini Volcano and Hot Springs Cruise Tour from Fira Old Port: $27
- The Beer Tasting and Pairing Experience: $27
- Volcanic Islands Cruise with Hot Springs Visit: $28
- Santorini Caldera Cruise Tour (Volcano, Hot Springs, Thirassia): $33
- Santorini Volcano Tour: $37
- Mesa Gonia, Pyrgos and Oia Tour: $44
- Ferry Ticket to Paros or Naxos with Hotel Pickup: $45
- Sunset In Oia & Traditional Villages Bus Tour: $45
Tours and Activities in Rio de Janeiro
Here are a few actual costs in Rio de Janeiro for available activities, ticket prices, and tours:
- Favelas do Vidigal or Rocinha's experience: $49
- Ilha Grande Tour Full day - Rio de Janeiro by Rio Eco Trip: $105
- 03 - Guided Tour to the Grande Rio Academics Barracão: $120
- 1 day tour Rio de Janeiro to Christ and Cable car and much more: $97
- 14 - Guided Tour to Quadra Do Salgueiro with Samba Show: $75
- 15 - Guided Tour to Santa Marta Favela: $150
- 19 - Guided Tour to the Museum of Tomorrow and Olympic Boulevard: $90
- 2 Days in Rio: Tijuca Forest & Two Brothers Hiking Tours: $273
- 2 Hours Paradisiac Sailboat Tour in Rio de Janeiro: $273
- 2 hours Hang Gliding Paragliding Full Package experience in Rio : $171
- 20 - Guided Tour to AquaRio and Olympic Boulevard: $120
- 25 - Full Day Tour to Angra dos Reis and Ilha Grande: $80
Alcohol
-
Alcohol Drinks for one daySantorini €26Rio de Janeiro €11
Sample the Local Flavors in Santorini
Also in Santorini, these are the prices for nightlife and alcohol related activities from various tour providers:
- Half Day Simply Santorini Tour with Wine Tasting: $60
- Top Sights Day Trip, Wine Tasting, & Oia Sunset: $62
- Fira Town Walking Tour with Wine Tasting: $74
- Top Sights of Santorini with Wine Tasting and Sunset in Oia: $75
- Notos Day Tour through History & Wine Tasting: $98
- Santorini 4 Hour Private Oia Tour & Wine Tasting : $105
- Wine Tour with Sunset in Oia: $105
- Santorini Highlights Small-Group Tour with Wine Tasting from Fira: $109
- 3-Hour Wine Tasting in Santorini : $126
- Wine tasting and Carving lesson in Santorini: $131
- Santorini Wine Adventure with 12 Wine Tastings, Tapas and Sunset: $131
- Small Group Local Wine Tasting Tour In Santorini : $131
Sample the Local Flavors in Rio de Janeiro
Here are a few nightlife and alcohol tours and activities from local tour providers in Rio de Janeiro:
- Pub Crawl in Lapa: $29
- Rio: Pub Crawl in Lapa with Cachaça Tasting and Live Samba: $33
- Rio de Janeiro Pub Crawl (Lapa district): $35
- Petropolis Bohemia: Historic tour and visit to the Bohemian Brewery: $55
- Walking tour + Pub crawl + Samba in Lapa: $57
- Rio: Sitio Burle Marx and Cachaça Distillery Private Tour: $131
When we compare the travel costs of actual travelers between Santorini and Rio de Janeiro, we can see that Santorini is more expensive. And not only is Rio de Janeiro much less expensive, but it is actually a significantly cheaper destination. Since Santorini is in Europe and Rio de Janeiro 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 Rio de Janeiro would let you spend less money overall. Or, you could decide to spend more money in Rio de Janeiro 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 Santorini would naturally cost you much more money, so you would probably want to keep your budget a little tighter in Santorini than you might in Rio de Janeiro.
If you're trying to decide if either of these two destinations are within your price range, also see Is Santorini Expensive? and Is Rio de Janeiro Expensive?.
Which is Bigger, Santorini or Rio de Janeiro?
Rio de Janeiro has a larger population, and is about 10 times larger than the population of Santorini. When comparing the sizes of Santorini and Rio de Janeiro, 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.