Peru. How cheap is it?

G'Day Groundswell. Still thinking of Peru? It's dirt cheap. As cheap if not cheaper than Indo if you stay off the lubrication.

Actually even the lubrication is cheap in relative terms

GS, I emailed a friend yesterday who's wife is a low level diplomat. They were stationed in Lima for 3 years just recently, so I posed a few cost of living questions to them. Still waiting on a reply but hopefully can have something to add to this soon.

Good mate travelled throughout most of South and Central America including the Galapagos for 15 months. His budget was $50 per day for everything - food, accommodation, internal travel, and activities (trekking, sailing & diving). He stayed in hostels and ate local food. He avoided the big cities and party hostels. In the end he was under budget by several thousand dollars.

I got two emails back from friends (non-surfers) so I'll summarise what they told me about Peru. One lived there for 3 years, the other visited as a tourist.-

General cost of living? Cheap. You can pick up a decent meal anywhere for about 10-20 Soles (about $5-$10USD). Like everywhere, the small mama and papa places are the places to go. In a fancy place, you may pay 60-80 Soles or about $20-$25 US. Beers are cheap, $2 a bottle. Food is varying with different local, national and even fusion dishes to choose from. Portion siizes are good. You shouldn't go hungry.

Taxis are unmetred and you usually agree on a price before getting in. In Lima, a company called 'easy taxi' seems to be the most honest. They usually give a fare estimate before you actually call them. Hailing a taxi can be risky. A 10km taxi ride should be around 16-20 Soles or around $10USD. You can also negotiate a taxi for the day and that could be for about $50USD.

A decent, clean hotel will be around $30 per night for a bed or around $70 per night for some place nice. I'm not sure of their definition of nice but they have their partners so I7m guessing it's of an acceptable standard for a woman. National holidays make it a bit more expensive.

Peru doesn't have a train network but they apparently have an excellent coach service the length and the bredth of the country. If you don't mind racking up the hours, it's an inexpensive and good way to get to the more out of the way places. A 5 hour journey (often including food will be about $25USD.

Getting back to food, street food is dirt cheap and plentiful. You can do a ceviche for $2 If you eat cheap, it will be simple and tasty. Titicaca (just wanted to say that) specialises in trout and you can get that with rice or quinoa or potatoes and a beer for about $4.

Safety wise, international rules apply, use common sense, trust your instincts and you'll be sweet. Obviously the obnoxious gringo stands out so don't make yourself a target.

Anyway GS, that's what i got back, hope it helps.

Edit: Ps, a street dish called 'Lomo Saltado' is very popular and dirt cheap. Strips of steak fried with onions and peppers and kinda finished off in a salty/soy like sauce. Local favourite.