We all want to save money on our travel. So here’s a good study; a report from www.kiwi.com that looks at the cost of flights in 80 countries around the globe and comes up with what they call a Flight Price Index.
Suffice to say Canada came out as fairly expensive, but not nearly as bad as Belgium. More on that in a minute. For now, here’s background from the Kiwi press release so you can see what they did.
“We took into account short-haul and long-haul flights from 80 of the world’s most frequently visited countries and cities, calculating an average ticket cost per 100 km of travel, using high and low season flight costs for over a million journeys. The research includes a clear split between low cost and full service airlines to arrive at a conclusive country to country price index. All currency conversions are correct as of April 25, 2017.”
Kiwi.com says Malaysia offers the cheapest flights on the planet.
So that’s the methodology. And here are some of the results! If you want to save money, try Malaysia. If you like over-priced air tickets, try Belgium.
CHEAPEST TICKETS (USD)
1. Malaysia, $4.18 per 100 km of flying
2. Bulgaria, $4.65
3. India, $4.96
4. Turkey, $6.28
5. Romania, $6.46
6. Indonesia, $6.49
7. Portugal, $6.50
8. Thailand, $6.74
9. Sweden $6.96
10. Spain, $7.08
I’m surprised by Sweden being there, given it costs something like $15 or more for a Big Mac and a week’s salary for a beer at a cafe. Not surprised to see Southeast Asia well-represented, as it’s consistently one of the cheapest places on earth to travel. Also not surprised to have Portugal in the numbder 7 spot as it’s one of the cheaper places in western Europe. Eastern Europe also is well-represented and has almost always been a good travel bargain.
Looking for cheap plane tickets? Kiwi.com suggests it’s probably best to avoid Belgium.
TEN MOST EXPENSIVE COUNTRIES
71. Oman, $33.54
72. Lebanon, $36.92
73. Austria, $37.06
74. Serbia, $41.15
75. Solomon Islands, $43.14
76. United Arab Emirates, $44.42
77. Chile $53.53
78. Qatar, $53.94
79. The Netherlands, $54.51
80. Belgium, $54.63
It’s probably no surprise to see countries like Qatar on this list. Chile prices are possibly skewed by the fact that Easter Island is part of Chile and is a five-hour flight. Belgium is a bit of a surprise to me, but then again the country is so small that it must be expensive to run 8.5 minute flights between Belgian cities. I really don’t know.
Okay, so I’m in Canada. Where does the True North fit in? Try 65th. That’s not good, but the average price per 100 km for Canadians comes out to $23.90. Which is high compared to Malaysia but not bad compared to Belgium.
The U.S., you asked? That would a 30th position, at just $11.50 USD per 100 km. That’s less than half what we Canadians pay. Not surprising, but it does kinda piss me off.
Other notables include the UK in 27th spot at $11.06 and China in at #28 ($11.43).
Happy Flying!
