Headed to the World Cup? Prepare Your Wallet

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Enjoying World Cup soccer in Brazil = money, and lots of it.

Travel site TripAdvisor.com has released a daily cost comparison of what travelers will spend in Brazil’s 12 World Cup host cities. The average daily cost factors in the price of one ticket to a group round match, a taxi ride to and from the match, one night in a hotel, dinner and a snack.

One thing is for sure: While watching the World Cup in Brazil sounds inviting, the cost does not.

TripAdvisor’s Soccer TripIndex named Cuiaba the most budget-friendly host city in Brazil at $457 per day. If money is no object, Rio de Janeiro is the most expensive host city, with a daily price tag of $682.

For soccer fans traveling to watch the U.S. team’s group round matches, Natal is the most affordable option at $532 per day. Manaus, where the U.S. will face off against Portugal, will cost about $554 per day. And fans can watch the U.S. play Germany in Recife for about $541 per day. According to TripAdvisor:

“With U.S. traveler interest in Brazilian host cities up nearly 80 percent on TripAdvisor year-over-year, it seems Americans are eager to join in on the soccer celebrations and take in the countries’ sites,” said Brooke Ferencsik, director of communications for TripAdvisor. “However, the increased demand means travelers should budget more for a stay in Brazil, with hotel prices more than doubling since last year.”

These daily costs don’t include airfare. Economy flights from major U.S. cities are priced from $1,200 to $4,200, CNN Money wrote in mid-May. And with the FIFA World Cup kicking off on June 12, most travel bargains are now long gone. According to CNN Money:

Total costs can vary widely, but a quick trip to see a match or two would set you back about $3,000, including flights, budget hotels, soccer tickets and spending money. If you hope to follow your team all the way to the final on July 13 in Rio de Janiero — and upgrade to smarter hotels — costs could balloon to over $30,000.

What amount of money would you be willing to shell out to enjoy a world class sporting event? Share your comments below or on our Facebook page.

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