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London loses top spot in "most expensive city" lineup

by Scott Carmichael (RSS feed) on Sep 25th 2009 at 9:00AM

For years, London dominated the top spot in almost every "most expensive city in the world" lineup. The city also took top spots with its expensive hotels and even expensive food.

That dubious honor is starting to crumble - the city is slowly turning into a budget destination instead of a luxury destination.

UBS Bank used to rank London the most expensive city in the world - but it has now plummeted to the 21st spot. All in just one year. In the 2009 list, Oslo has been crowned the most expensive city in the world, followed by Zurich and Copenhagen.

It gets worse when you see the results from the Hotels.com Hotel Price Index. The "HPI" shows that hotels in London have become 25% cheaper compared to last years rates.

Combine this data with a weak Pound and cheap airfare, and London is suddenly more affordable than ever.

Now, before you pack your bags, a "cheaper" London still won't mean you'll be able to stay in the city for $100 (unless you like hostels). A decent hotel will still set you back about $250 a night, but when you realize that those same hotels were asking about $100 more just 12 months ago, you'll realize that you may have some Pounds left to buy some tacky London souvenirs.

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Filed under: Europe, United Kingdom, Hotels and Accommodations

Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)

Unexpected Traveller Sep 25th 2009 1:41PM

London was the most expensive spot? That's amazing considering that Oslo has always been rather expensive, as far as I know. Perhaps the exchange rate with the dollar has been good in recent years so maybe we poor Euro-souls saw it in a different light that anyone state-side would.

One other thing that you should be aware of when in Norway is their Viking taxi drivers: http://unexpectedtraveller.wordpress.com/2009/02/02/the-viking-taxi-driver/

The Unexpected Traveller

max Sep 26th 2009 9:28AM

Why on earth do people want to go to London anyway? I've been all over the world and London has got to rank as one of the most unfriendly, rude, expensive and just down right rip-off places I know. Few places can combine squalor, ugliness and rude thuggish behaviour quite like London.