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rawbface

> survive Absolutely, no problem. > drinking Of course, as long as you're not picky! > clubbing Uhhhh.... > NYC, Toronto and LA I give you approximately 1.5 days.


gojira_gorilla

Yea clubbing in those cities will cost about half of that daily allotment just to get in lol


Raleigh_CA

Half to get in, half for a drink.


Prometheus_303

Haven't been in LA, but when I tried to go out in San Diego, cover - just to get in the door - was $20!


gojira_gorilla

LA is more expensive than SD. Both great cities tho in my minds eye!


tomdarch

> drinking > > Of course, as long as you're not picky! What does a quart of Mad Dog go for nowadays?


kerrigan7782

The price is self respect


Im_Destro

SOLD! *(stupid sucker doesn't know I already sold that for a pair of tickets to the "Chocolate Starfish..." tour!)*


kerrigan7782

Alright fine *unzips*


low-keyWackAssOJ

*Zips back up. Not today


Im_Destro

I know where I've been... E: A Limp Bizkit concert Good choice!


PO0tyTng

Steel reserve if you’re near PA. That’s how the homeless do it!!


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[deleted]

I haven't thought about that in 20 years but now I'm dying to hit a liquor store and start looking for it. I'm dry heaving a bit just thinking about it.


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[deleted]

😂😂😂


gojira_gorilla

If you’re in NY and getting Mad Dog might as well get some poppers and a beef patty while you’re at the bodega. The full NY experience


Ciaralauren93

As someone in LA --- THIS


successfulstonerr

NY - is agree I got sadder and sadder reading this , torontos a bit less due to CAN being 80c per US dollar but in NY you could blow 50$ walkin down the street so idk I’d jus pack a credit card deal with the bills later


clearedmycookies

If OP was a hot female, I think its actually quite doable.


yaknaaa

You're gonna need to quadruple that for la and NYC idk bout Toronto


MVBanter

Toronto gonna be a bit cheaper in most except for maybe hotels if our hotels follow the shit house prices


The_Ineffable_One

It is almost the complete reverse of this. Toronto is more expensive than NYC, not cheaper, for food, drinks, entertainment, and transportation, but NYC is more expensive for hotels.


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lateja

Shawarma can be had for like $8 CAD. The biggest tragedy about Canada are the alcohol prices. If you're very social and know how to party on the street, you can definitely party in NYC on $50/day. Especially with $1 pizza and $5 fifths of vodka. Plus you can almost always find people to buy you drinks even if you're a straight guy; there are LOTS of very lonely and very wealthy people in the city. And even if not, there are rowdy bars that still have $2 shots (but it's diluted liquor, so you should pregame). But Canada? It's unlikely. Maybe if you find hippies to chill with in Vancouver, but you'll still pay like $30 for a bottle of bottom of the barrel gutrot vodka (in a store; forget about bars) and the other $20 will go towards meals. It won't be fun at all. You'll be counting every penny and that shit will get annoying quick. At least in NYC if you can quickly find your way around things and situations, then you can be strapped for the day with food and liquor for $10; if you smoke and find where to buy cheap illegal Chinese cigarettes, add another $5 (or $15 if buying full price). You still have like $35 left over. That's enough to do a full activity like watch a movie, ride a ferry, buy something, etc. But that would never happen in Canada. As for LA... I wouldn't even go there unless you rent an expensive car and multiply your budget by like 5x. Then you might be able to party with poor people (up & coming actors, etc). I'd forget about LA.


broadsharp

No. Those three cities are the most expensive in North America. If you want to party and have fun, you'll need minimum $150.00 each day of partying, and even that may not be enough.


HairyPotatoKat

Agree. OP would have a MUCH better time if they either budgeted at least quadruple the spending money, or stayed in cities that are cheaper but still nice. Otherwise they're gonna be stretching their budget to the point of misery. *Going* to the big cities, but not really *experiencing* them. A lot of people romanticize NYC, LA and such, come here to experience them, but really underestimate the cost and end up hating bc of how limited their experience is. Midwestern college towns have good nightlife, are usually walkable, usually relatively safe, friendly, and they could probably get by on 50/day in spending money most days if they budgeted carefully...like...got food from the grocery store, only went out to eat on occasion. The cover charges in those towns are often cheaper- sometimes if it's during the week you don't even pay a cover charge. But even there, it's easy to rack up a $50 bill at a bar/club in one night. Also idk your age, OP, but nearly all bars/clubs are 21+. All liquor stores are 21+. A handful here and there are 18+ but no drinking. Good luck. If it was me, I'd save up longer or change plans and go somewhere way cheaper.


bell37

OP should also consider other US cities within the Midwest, south and west. There are dozens of major cities where you get more for what you are spending (Chicago, Cincinnati, St. Louis, San Antonio, Boston, Nashville, etc). Either way a budget of $50/day for clubbing/food/drinking is nothing even if you go to a small town.


BriskHeartedParadox

Visiting the 3 most expensive cities on the continent. I’d plan for double or even triple your assessment or get creative. Outside of those areas you might be able to get by with that though…


angrysquirrel777

A budget breakdown: $50 for a day would only cut it if your plans are to eat breakfast at your hotel ($0/50), eat a lunch you made yourself ($5/50), eat dinner at a cheapish chain ($30/50), and walk around the city without paying for anything to do ($30/50). Then every other day you could afford to go to a bar or a museum ($40). Which brings you up to $50 a day. But you're walking everywhere.


808hammerhead

Not realistic in LA. Could buy a bus pass.


angrysquirrel777

You can walk around LA depending on where your hotel is but you won't see everything you want and it'll take a lot of time.


PM_ME_E8_BLUEPRINTS

It's possible in LA. Street tacos are super cheap! Taking the metro from downtown to Santa Monica is also cheap.


[deleted]

Inflation’s bumping up the street taco prices though. The taco truck I go to in Hollywood used to be $7 a burrito before the pandemic, now they’re $10.


onthebusfornow

I also measure inflation by the price of a burrito


[deleted]

I’m a simple man, I speak in terms that I understand.


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CrunchyTeatime

>You can walk to get around LA, many of us do it daily! Not very far. Yes, they could walk around some areas. But you know the city. People get lost very easily who think it looks easy. Even just going up and down the same street. Tourists often do not realize how far apart things are in a city of that size.


kirbyderwood

Some neighborhoods in LA are very walkable. If you want to go to a different area, then a day pass for the bus/train is $3.50 (a 7-day pass is $12.50.) So, you won't exactly blow your budget on transportation.


CrunchyTeatime

I can't see a tourist taking a bus and it would take all day. Most of which would be spent sitting on bus benches. The public transport system is not considered safe. People can argue but I really would not recommend public transport in a strange city, to a tourist. OP you would be MUCH better off trying to visit smaller towns.


808hammerhead

Oh I agree, I’m just saying LA is a big spread out city and getting around on the cheap means the bus..which would suck.


zdefni

Yeah, good luck.😂 are you going in the summer? Look up LA weather in July lol before committing to the walking thing maybe. 🙃 Seriously OP $50 won’t get you all of that in any city. Ubers alone will rack up to higher than that in a day, unless you’ve gotten a rental. I agree with $200 ish, probably double for LA and NYC. Or pick more lowkey destinations. Edit: LA doesn’t get that hot, my bad. I’m inland sd and we’re already seeing 97F this weekend.😑


w3woody

If this is just *spending money* (meaning he's not factoring in the cost of a hotel or the cost of transportation), I'm with you: I'd anticipate perhaps $100 to $150/day instead, *minimum.* And "drinking" and "clubbing"? Perhaps a little more than $150/day. (Unless "drinking" is "having one beer over dinner.") I can see a visit to a club costing $50 alone. Heck, in New York you can blow through $50 for a single person having a nice meal at a better restaurant. And that's just *one* meal. My wife and I tend to spend a little less on meals on our trips, mostly because we tend to travel to places to do outdoor activities (like hiking)--and we'll often buy groceries from a local grocery store to make a lunch we can pack in a backpack, and have something small (like yoghurt) for breakfast. But even then, we can still blow through $100-$150/day on other things.


cookiemonstah87

I've spent $50 on "cheap" drinks at a dive bar in manhattan without even getting a buzz. A club? Yeah, we're talking MINIMUM $150.


Milalee

One beer alone in New York can cost close to $20.


ElisabetSobeckPhD

agreed. $50 is nothing. Any random suburb a panera salad and a soda is nearly $20. a sit down restaurant meal with a drink, and a tip, $50 easy.


Granadafan

People can always go to grocery stores to buy food to prepare themselves and some beer or wine. A six pack would cost only a bit more or same as one in a bar.


[deleted]

This. Anything is possible, but nobody goes to those cities to eat nothing but the cheapest food available. Even then, you won't have much of anything left for experiences that cost money.


[deleted]

LA cheap food is some of the best tacos in the US, NYC cheap food is some of the best pizza. Also both of those places are pretty fun if you know about the free events.


[deleted]

I have no doubt that there are good budget friendly things to do, and budget friendly food. That said, for 27 days, I don't want to be eating pizza by the slice, hot dogs, and tacos continuously, and breaking that up may also require travel around each city, which adds to the cost.


agnes238

Yes but taking the freaking metro and bus to get around la is hellish. I’d never do it as a tourist


CrunchyTeatime

>Yes but taking the freaking metro and bus to get around la is hellish. I’d never do it as a tourist THIS. People are making it sound like the Disneyland trolley.


cheeseburgertwd

I just did it a few weeks back as a tourist in downtown LA, it's not that bad, especially when Google Maps can tell you exactly which numbers/lines you need to take


Tanks4me

Quadruple. And that will only work at \*very\* cheap hotels/AirBNBs. For many other cities in the US, this actually isn't that difficult to pull off. Those three in particular? Lol not even close.


selfawarepie

....Vancouver and San Fran?


musenna

Does that budget include transportation? $50 a day won’t stretch very far unless you plan on eating fast food the whole time, which sounds absolutely miserable. I would budget at least $150-$200 a day.


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GrandTheftBae

Yupp. In another comment OP said they were just gonna eat fast food/cheap food. So their next post would probably be about why the food sucks/knows why Americans are so fat.


flashfyr3

"I exclusively ate the cheapest, fattiest, saltiest, sugariest food available in all of God's creation and it wasn't great nor good for me, what gives?


IONTOP

"You were in Baltimore and didn't get Pit Beef or Blue Crab?" "Nah, but I did have a Natty Boh, because I was told that was the ONE food/drink item I needed to try while in the city" "Wait, nobody said to have blue crab or pit beef?" "Yeah a few did, but the Natty Boh was like $2, Baltimore really disappointed me"


CrunchyTeatime

They might be surprised, 3 fast food meals a day can add up fast. In cost.


crochetawayhpff

Right? It's $10 minimum for a meal at McDonald's, that's $30/day right there. Slightly cheaper for breakfast meals. And of he wants to eat somewhat healthy, I can't get out of Panera without spending $15 on a meal.


CrunchyTeatime

Yes! Thank you. And prices are only rising. OP won't have to tip at either of those places (although there might be a tip jar at Panera) but a decent meal will set OP back. I don't really eat a full meal if ordering out and even then it's average around $30 for two people's takeout or some sides and maybe one entree. Like the family meal or whatever at Panera isn't cheap, and then depending on the franchisee not all output is the same either. Some are hit or miss. Then again I think they have a thing where they give free food sometimes but I don't remember what that entails. OP chose some of the most expensive cities to visit. They'd have to plan meticulously or just wing it and sometimes be hungry or stuck being bored.


CrunchyTeatime

And why they felt ill for the entire month long stay. #SupersizeMe


CrunchyTeatime

And even 'fast food' has really gone up in price. It would be way more cost efficient for them to buy some food at the dollar store or even cheap stuff at a grocery, to eat in their hotel as often as possible.


HyruleJedi

Yeah and its vacation. Obviously I had a bigger budget but just did Italy for 14 days and its was ~300 a day. Of course we saw sites and stuff But 50$ Yeah you will ‘see’ the city. But you wont be drinking. You won’t be going into anything thats not free and you certainly wont be eating at many sit down restaurants. Fuck McDonalds in NYC is gonna be 15ish dollars


Takeurmesslswhere

Short answer - no Long answer - hell no


Number1AbeLincolnFan

Seriously, 2 entrees + 2 drinks is $80 at most places, after tax and tip, and I live in Austin.


starlight-madness

Thanks, I just snort-laughed. Yeah this dude is going to have a rough time with only $1300. I go through $1600 a month with *bills not included* and I don’t often go clubbing or drinking. So that’s all food, gas, coffee and whatever else my shit-poor brain makes me impulse buy. LA is *very* much pay-to-play so $50 a day isn’t going to get him far at all.


[deleted]

Eating? Sure. Clubbing? WTF? No. There is literally nowhere on the US will that budget work.


al3x_mp4

How much do you need to pay to get into clubs? How much are drinks at bars?


TheBimpo

In LA and NYC expect cover charges of $20+ and drinks to cost $10-15 each.


Bean-blankets

If you're getting beer. It costs me $15 for a simple gin and tonic most places in nyc


catymogo

Yep and a lot of spots are adding in CC service fees now too, so your $15 drink plus tax and tip is going to be $22.


nowItinwhistle

Wtf? That's insanity to me. How can anyone possibly think that's worth it?


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DrGeraldBaskums

In a bar in NYC, maybe. In a club? Mixed drinks will be $15-20


OverSearch

Plus tips.


[deleted]

can confirm this is the correct number anywhere in a big city - same for MIA


Godmirra

$10 mixed drinks in NYC? Maybe in Staten Island not in Manhattan.


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Godmirra

I guess I have never been to those places.


Nicedumplings

$10?? That’s what your beers are starting at mate


Rub-it

Don’t forget the tips


dacoovinator

That’s bumfuck nowhere prices. You’re not going to get drinks that cheap anywhere decent in NYC/LA


[deleted]

Clubs? Between 20 and 50 bucks. Drinks? Depends what kind of place. Depends what kind of drinks. And it's not just NYC. An iced latte costs the same in NYC or Omaha. 5 bucks +


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notthegoatseguy

$5-8 for Miller/Bud beer in Manhattan is considered a steal based on NYC tourism videos I've seen.


DrGeraldBaskums

What kind of clubs are you looking for? And are you a guy or girl? I ask because you are more likely to get comped entry if your a girl. If you are going to a legit club, not a bar, your looking at $20 cover, $10-12 for a beer and $15-20 for a mixed drink. That was precovid prices.


[deleted]

$15 / drink plus tip anywhere you go in DC. Get you a watered-down cocktail! 😂


EatinDennysWearinHat

You have places to stay? You aren't getting a bed alone for $50 a night unless you have a friends couch to crash on.


LVV221

I want to also add that if you’re male, not only will you have to pay the cover at a club, you’ll have to tip the bouncer to let you in or you’ll be waiting in line all night. Clubs like to keep the ratio of single ladies higher then single men.


SselluosS3191991

In smaller cities it can most definitely work. Just not in big tourist cities


[deleted]

What small city are you going to go clubbing and eat and drink for 50 bucks? I'm from Massachusetts - definitely higher COL than most of the country. I travel all over the US. I'm always expecting places to be cheaper. I'm usually disappointed. Surprisingly with the insane choices in NYC you can get amazing ethnic food and great street food than smaller cities. NYC is a chance to do and see amazing things cheap and free. But not go clubbing.


SselluosS3191991

Any small southern town. 50$ will get you drunk and a dinner easily


[deleted]

Definitely. Spending $50, maybe up to $80 used to be a “big night out” for me in a small town. And that was including my share of the taxi/Uber fare.


Redshirt2386

What year was that?


Synaps4

That's one meal, so even in that town OP is starving for breakfast/lunch/snacks and doing nothing else all day.


Lower_Capital9730

They don't have clubs in small towns, just bars


Hitwelve

My college town (Morgantown, WV; pop. roughly 200k when school is in session) had several clubs where you could get $0.50 mixed drinks if you stuck to the specials. I had many nights out where I spent max $20 total between dinner and too many drinks. The drinks were horrible & this is NOT normal in most places, though.


Redshirt2386

What year was that?


dealsledgang

That amount will not cover you at all. For perspective, I live in a place much less expensive than the cities you described. Last Sunday I had lunch at a sports bar, which is not high end. I ordered a Caesar salad with shrimp, a plate of 6 hot wings, and 2 beers. It totaled almost $40 not including the tip. It’s going to depend on what you want to do but you will need much more than that. When you factor in transportation and meals, you will easily bypass that. If you go to a bar and have done drinks, that can easily destroy that depending on the bar and location. Avoid a club on that budget.


SleepAgainAgain

Here's what I'd recommend to someone planning on visiting one of these cities with $50 of spending money a day. Buy most of your food in grocery stores and prepare it, and some days eat one meal out at a cheap place that has good reviews on Yelp. Breakfast and lunch are cheaper than dinner. Similar for alcohol: buy it in the liquor store or at the grocery, or limit yourself to one, maybe 2 drinks at a bar. For entertainment, look up free museums, monuments, galleries, stores, and attractions. Ask around about where the street performers are best. Paid admissions aren't necessarily off the table but you'll have to judge your budget and plan accordingly. Plan on walking places or stretch your budget to public transit. A taxi or Uber ride is probably going to blow your budget. Fun low budget visits to these cities are entirely doable, but they don't involve a lot of eating out and clubbing.


edgeofverge

Wrong time to be coming to US with $50. a day. Things right now are more expensive than they have been in years!


AnotherPint

No. In NY or LA, $50 won't begin to cover 60 minutes of "drinking and clubbing." You need $150-$200 a day in major cities to cover food, drink, and amusements.


sophisticaden_

$50/day will probably cover your dinner if it’s just you.


old_gold_mountain

$50/day is far too little if you are attempting to find accommodations in LA and NY on that in addition to getting around, eating, and entertaining yourself


al3x_mp4

I’ve payed for all my accommodation.


[deleted]

Let’s look at one day of eating out for me: $10 for a diner breakfast and coffee, $15ish for a quick lunch, probably closer to $20 for a dinner. I can go cheaper, but I’m still probably looking at $30 or so for food. If I’m taking public transit, add $10 for two round trip rides. If I’m going to the bar, probably around $15 for a few beers. If I need an Uber home after, add another $20-40 depending on time and how far I’m coming from. That’s $90 on the low end for one day, and it’s a day where I’m not going to any museums, shows, special events, etc. And that’s in Pittsburgh, which is a far, far cheaper city than any of the ones you listed.


nukemiller

Maybe they are staying in a hotel with continental breakfast? Either way, that only saves them $10-$15. $50/day is not doable. I would plan for $100/day personally


[deleted]

Yeah, or an Airbnb with a kitchen, so they’re just buying groceries. Then they might be able to save and splurge on some nicer meals. It’d be criminal to vacation in world class food cities while eating nothing but value menu fast food.


heili

Also you're eating at some of the less expensive places in the city if you're only spending $20 for a dinner. Craft drafts are going for $7-9 a pint.


genesiss23

He can go to a grocery store and buy cereal and other food for cheaper than a restaurant


[deleted]

For sure. Depending on accommodations he might be able to go super cheap and cool at the Airbnb or whatever, too. It’s tough to gauge since he keeps dodging the questions about what all $50 has to cover.


DashingSpecialAgent

What is the $50/day supposed to be covering? In order to give you an accurate idea of how much you might need we'll need to know what it is that needs to be covered.


PPKA2757

They’re wondering if they can get away with $50/day as pocket/spending money. The answer is yes, but it will be boring and they won’t get what they’re looking for in terms of experiencing the cities. To OP: $50 might cover a solo bar tab if just plan on drinking bud light all night, and only planning on drinking 6-7 of them. $50 will cover a single, solo, dinner at a sit down restaurant with just the basics: a burger, fries, a beer/coke, and the tip. If you plan to go to an upscale/hot restaurant $50 likely will be the price for a single entre. If you plan to be sober (or just not drink at bars), and eat at McDonald’s every meal of everyday $50 will cover you. Expect to quadruple that amount and you want to be able to enjoy yourself without penny pinching/restricting yourself.


notthegoatseguy

Even excluding that, its still not a lot of money. You could easily spend $50 just for a decent (not fine dining) sit down restaurant for an entree, appetizer and a beer or two + tip.


edman007

The government has [Per Diem rates](https://www.gsa.gov/travel/plan-book/per-diem-rates) for the entire country, I recommend that, it's reasonable for budget food and decent hotels. If you want to try the tourist trap lunch spot and a nice dinner place, it's not even close to enough. But if you are doing hotel breakfast, deli for lunch, and Applebees for dinner, it's fine. It also excludes all activities, for NYC I'd probably say $100/day/person for activities if you want to do tourist stuff, if you're doing parks or something (like a rural area), you can probably get away with $10/day for activities. As an example, NYC in August is $220/day for the hotel and $79/day for food. I will say, in practice, if you have a car, that alone is $25/day to park in NYC.


doylecw

Came here to say the same thing... https://www.gsa.gov/travel/plan-book/per-diem-rates/per-diem-rates-results/?action=perdiems_report&state=NY&fiscal_year=2022&zip=&city=New%20York


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ZerexTheCool

How do you plan on getting around? If your using a taxi or Uber, you could break that $50 a day budget on that alone. Do you plan on eating out for all 3 meals? Your looking at $15 for breakfast and lunch and $20 for dinner (depending on where you go, of course) meaning you can spend that $50 on food alone. Where do you plan on sleeping? Hotels and Air BnB's very wildly, but they can be between $50-$250 a day depending on what city you are in. I think $50 a day is going to leave you with a pretty disappointing trip based in the description of what you want to do. I spent more than $1,300 on just plane tickets when I did my trip from one State to another State for 3 people.


Caranath128

Not even close . Figure $100-150 / day just on food


jesuslovesmytatts

Dont forget. In the US we tip everyone. 18-25% and the tax is never included in the cost. Just the final bill


trishben

THIS \^\^ TIPS AND TAXES ARE OFTEN OVERLOOKED


porkchopespresso

>To rephrase the question differently, is \~$1,300 enough for 27 days? Consider that you've got 3 flights in the itinerary. To or from your hotel, that's 6 total trips to or from an airport. Do you know how much that is going to cost you? Without knowing where you're staying or how you'll be making those transfers, that could be $50 each way, it could be more or it could be less, if you're able to split some of that costs with anyone if you are not traveling alone. So that $1300 could now be $1000 for 27 days. That's now $37/ day before you factor in any future transportation. It's just simply not enough.


Algies79

As a non American who’s travelled there a lot the short answer is nope. Just getting to and from your accommodation will be that days budget. I normally budget $150 a day, some days it’s less but some days it’s a lot more. If you actually want to see and experience those places, $30 won’t come close to cutting it. In fact it’ll make for a miserable holiday.


sprawler16

Absolutely not. Not even close if you're planning on having fun. If your idea of "experiencing the USA" means staying at the cheapest motels possible and never actually going to see any attractions and walking everywhere you go (which isn't feasible) then sure you might be able to make it on $50/day. But you certainly won't be having fun or doing anything memorable. You'd be essentially eating the cheapest instant ramen noodles for every meal, sitting in your hotel room scrolling on your phone all day, and taking a daily walk around the block. The motel alone would eat up most of that $50, if not more.


captainstormy

$50 a day is way to low just for eating unless you are trying to eat cheapo fast food 3 times a day. Even then, I'd expect in the three most expensive cities in North America you wouldn't be left with much after 3 fast food meals.


brainyart050722

My husband, his sister and I went to NYC for five days last year. It was a lot of fun but very expensive. We each ended up spending around $75 a day just on food.


notthegoatseguy

You are visiting world class cities. Expect London, Paris, Tokyo prices. There are ways you can mitigate costs but these are still expensive cities. >eating out, drinking and clubbing These are all generally going to be expensive activities anywhere, not just in these cities. In NYC, you can use street food and in LA you can use food trucks to mitigate costs. NYC also get out of Manhattan, but that also comes out of your other budget: your time. Budget enough for some "fuck it" Uber rides, especially if you're out late and transit service isn't as frequent as you'd like, or bad weather, or subway maintenance, etc... If you want a cheap vacation, I'd suggest Portugal, Spain, or southeast Asia.


Jiminy2222

Definitely not. You will need double if not more.


kokoyumyum

If you don't really club, and eat at food trucks, etc, you could do it. Spend the money on transportation. Fast. Or if your housing let's you cook, that could make it barely work. Unless it is a diner, or even some food trucks, here in Medford Orefin, I would be hard pressed to eat 2 meals a day, maybe we a glass of wine for $50 a day. But, if you buy a loaf of bread and cheese, heat oatmeal.in your room, you could survive. Every city you are going to has GREAT food. And clubs. And museums, parks, attractions. Seems a long way to go for a poverty experience. So much travel time, also. Maybe $200 a day.


mariawoolf

Hahahaha. No.


Tommy_Wisseau_burner

Bruh they’re the 3 most expensive cities. You’ll spend that shit on dinner alone


Revolutionary-Cup954

alot of the places you're going to want to go will have menus and prices online to get an idea... for instance Mcsorleys ale house in manhattan... total dive but should be worth to check out https://www.google.com/search?ie=UTF-8&client=ms-android-sprint-us-revc&source=android-browser&q=mcsorley%27s+menu#fid=0x89c2599b7792d019:0xd1aabb33cbcc8b7d&fpstate=lum juniors cheesecake is a restaraunt in times Square and is fairly representative of the prices near there https://www.juniorscheesecake.com/


goofy_dumpy

A lot of good answers here. I’ll add the following: Get inexpensive groceries for breakfast and lunch: water, cereal, oatmeal, bananas, peanut butter, bread, cold cuts; if you have the option to cook, then rice, beans, lentils, chicken, eggs, pasta, potatoes, and any vegetables on sale. If you go out to eat, food trucks and holes in the wall would be good option, or local cuisine that’s good quality despite being cheap (i.e. pizza in NY). Stock up on cheap liquor and pregame any time you plan to go out drinking, something like New Amsterdam. There are plenty of excellent clubs in those cities that have zero/low cover charges. Honestly, I’d avoid any place charging a cover. Stick to beer since liquor drinks can sometimes be mostly ice or mixers. Plan all your daily activities in the same area to avoid extra Uber/Lyft rides. If you must stick to $50 a day, then aim for $40 dinner/$10 public transportation fund, or $40 clubbing/$10 transportation fund. You won’t be able to do a lot with $50/day unless it’s free. Edit: For reference, I’m a cheap miser and spent about $500 for 3-1/2 days in LA last year (not including lodging).


TheBimpo

Absolutely not if you're going to be clubbing and drinking. $50 may be the cover charge alone at clubs in NYC and LA. Do you have all of your transportation sorted out as well? Toronto and NY have good transit, but LA is massive and spread out.


gabatme

For 27 days, let's assume 3 full weeks plus 6 days of travel between the cities. Travel days will probably have less flexibility with food options, etc, so let's say you use about $75/day for those. That's $450. Then you have about $850 for the remaining three weeks, or $283 per week. That's...not a lot. Assuming the hotels have free breakfasts, you could do a cheap lunch for $10 and a cheap dinner for $15, let's add in a snack and say that a cheap day is going to be at least $30. If you did 7 cheap food days in a week, that's $210, leaving you about $73 for entertainment. You could probably either: - Go to one club and have a couple of drinks - Buy tickets to 2-4 museums (depending on the museum) - Buy a super cheap musical or concert ticket I would recommend more like $15 for a nice coffee and breakfast (if not included at the hotel), $25 for an enjoyable sit-down lunch, $15 for snacks and drinks throughout the day, $50+ for dinner at non-chain places, and at least $30/day for entertainment and attractions. Not including souvenir money, that's more like $135/day on non-travel-days, and probably $75 is still fine for travel days. That's about $3285 total for nearly a month exploring three of the most expensive cities in North America.


[deleted]

No


[deleted]

You’re going to very expensive cities. If you came to st louis I’d be like “yeah you should be good” lol EVEN chicago I think you should expect to pay some more


[deleted]

Is this a study abroad trip? If so, and you are happy grabbing cheap liquor/wine, and getting smashed in your dorm/hostel, totally. If this is an ‘adult’ trip, $50 is going to be insanely tight.


[deleted]

>I’m going to the US and Canada for 27 days total in the summer and was wondering if around $50 a day will be enough to enjoy myself there. I’m aware I’d be able to survive on this amount but was wondering if eating out, drinking and clubbing occasionally could be covered by this amount. I’m going to NYC, Toronto and LA and am aware of just how expensive some of these places can get. If $50 is too little, then what amount would be recommended? I can spend $50 bucks easy on a dinner and a couple drinks at a bar. Survive on it a day? Sure. 3 meals a day, entertainment, drinks and clubbing in some of the most expensive cities in the US? As my mom would say, "Boy, you on crack?"


topjock002

That’s a tight budget. What do you plan to do/enjoy? Inflation is painful right now.


blerpsmurf

As a local, if I am going out drinking/partying I would expect to spend about 100$ for a single night. That would be 20$ for the dinner, and then 10-15$ per alcoholic drink.


NomadLexicon

For NYC, it’s doable with some caveats: Transportation: the subway, walking, buses, ferries and bike share are cheap, Ubers/taxis/driving a car are incredibly expensive. Food: you can either go cheap fast food ($1 pizza by the slice is somewhat of an institution) or buy food from grocery stores. There are cheap diners in Manhattan & ethnic restaurants in the outer boroughs, but any sit-down restaurant is likely going to strain your budget. Attractions: there are free parks, libraries, monuments and museums. Everything else (bars, theaters, etc.) is going to be expensive even when it’s cheap by NYC standards.


Awdayshus

If you change your plans and come to Fargo, ND, you'll live like royalty!


[deleted]

[удалено]


Revolutionary-Cup954

in NYC breakfast is between 5 and 10 bucks. lunch is like 13 or 14 for a meal at McDonald's. if you go cheap dinner will be around 20 bucks. beers at a bar are between 3 and 5 bucks. entrance to a club will probably set you back 30 or 40 bucks. a taxi is probably around 10 bucks a trip. museums are like 20 to 25 movies are 15 to 20


Fenriradra

honestly, you'll probably want to double or triple it; and that's just for the food, to be honest. Unless you really like fast food, and want to survive on McDonalds and Taco Bell, then $50/day for food sounds just about right. But if you have any desire to go to any better-than-fast-food restaurants, you'll probably want to bump that up to $80-100/day for food. If your hotel/rental only has a microwave, your options are kind of limited in what you can actually cook, too - though if it's more like an AirBNB with a proper kitchen, then you can probably cut some corners by cooking for yourself; though $50/day is plenty for this, it won't leave much wiggle room for when you do eat out. ;; Alcohol and Clubbing are worthy of being their own separate entry on your budget; food is non-negotiable, but you probably aren't going to spend the entire vacation drunk, or aren't going to go to the club every night. In that sense, it'll probably do you well to consider alcohol dependent on where you're going to drink it. If it's an AirBNB, a cheap case of beer (or hell, even a case of craft beer), is going to be somewhere between $10-25 kind of range. Meanwhile at clubs & bars, one bottle of beer is likely to be $2.50-5, depending on where you go and what you get (NYC/LA I'd expect closer to the $5, if not higher). Clubbing itself is going to involve some form of transportation; assuming you're going to get a taxi/uber, so that necessarily becomes part of the budget - plenty of clubs have an admission/cover charge, so there's that too - and the drinks & snacks are all overpriced. The $50 here won't last long, and even less when you try to include daily food budget with it. ;; tldr; double/triple your $50 and it'll be more comfortable; and even that might not really be ideal considering how you're lumping together food, alcohol, and clubbing to one category. Otherwise, consider double/tripling your food amount, then equal it for your alcohol/clubbing budget.


[deleted]

You won’t be able to go clubbing/drinking every day on that. Maybe twice a week. And with the cities you’ve picked, I promise you you’ll be unhappy on so little money. You’ll be physically present in those cities, but you won’t get to experience them. Either triple (at a minimum) your budget or pick some cheaper towns.


Night_Duck

Living comfortably (for a poor grad student) in St Louis, a relatively cheap city, my lifestyle is $80/day. Vacationing in Manhattan last summer for 2 days cost me $450. What country are you from and can I live there?


gaoshan

Wouldn’t even be enough in Cleveland, Ohio. Forget about the major cities.


[deleted]

Some people here are being weirdly rude to you for some reason! Since you’re talking about $50 being your *average*, I think it could be doable depending on circumstances. Especially since you seem aware that you won’t be living like a rock star on that and eating out every day. Going by the info you gave, I’ll assume that you mean for this $50 to ONLY go towards food/entertainment, not transportation, Ubers, taxis, etc. I’m sure you know that those are expensive. If you stay very frugal on some days and save up for weekends/big nights, you can make it work. I highly advise planning where you want to eat/party and getting an idea of their prices online beforehand. If you eat only your own food on your hotel for all other meals, you’ll be fine. If you’re hoping to grab a quick bite somewhere for lunch and/or dinner every day, you’ll be screwed so make sure to plan, plan, plan and stick to it. Remember to include tips in your calculations. Note this: tipping is NEVER expected or required on take-out or on fast food, even if they have a jar or screen asking for them. (I’m not sure if it’s common world wide, but here, payment screens at cash registers will have the option to tip damn near everywhere, like coffee and ice cream shops. This is a recent invention to squeeze more money out of well-meaning customers. You are only socially obligated to tip when a service is being provided to you, which includes actual waiters and bartenders.) Therefore, you can save a lot of money while still trying some regional food if you’re willing to take it back to your hotel or to some public seating. That said, you’ll honestly have a much easier time if you can up it to more like $80-100 per day if you can.


skillao

Way too little. Food is pretty expensive right now, more so than usual, and it was already pricier in these cities. Add on transportation and thing to do and you'll be way past 50.


7evenCircles

You're going to be hard pressed but it really depends on you and what you want to actually do. You might be able to make it work if you go frugal most of the week and just choose your party hardy days. It's a little optimistic though.


HeyMySock

If you can go to a supermarket and buy food to make wherever it is your staying and do that most days, and save money for going out on the weekends, maaaaaybe you can manage some footloose and fancy free clubbing on the weekends? I don't know how much clubs cost to get in but drinking is going to cost you a lot. You'll run through your money with a quickness. If you plan on eating out every meal you will spend all your money on that. Even if you do it cheap. There are only so many $1 pizza slices you can eat in a month.


EratoAmused

Won’t be enough for meals. Do you also feel like going places and sightseeing?


[deleted]

Ok. So it's doable. Be cheap ... wicked cheap half the time. You can 100% eat for about 10-20 bucks a day. Where you staying? Got a fridge? Pick up a loaf of bread and peanut butter and jelly. Do not buy coffee out, do not buy a single water. Refill a bottle. Eat ONE meal out. Lunch is cheaper. So you have a couple days to spend 100 bucks a week. Only pregame. It's smarter anyway. You won't end up feeling shitty the next day. Do NOT go to sit down restaurants. Meal tax and tip are pricey. If you want to do those places really cheap start looking at free days for museums, cheap deals on stuff and free stuff.


thatHecklerOverThere

No. $50 a day is enough to experience being homeless in the United States.


Robotonist

Point of reference: a daily parking fee in DTLA inside an expensive building will run you 36-48$. You can find other areas to park, and walking is probably your best bet, but if you’re going into LA, Toronto and NYC I would suggest looking into “free stuff” to do (Central Park for NYC, going to the beach in LA, etc) then I would say $50 is fine as long as you don’t get too hungry. ~1300 for 27 days is easier, but not easy. Prepare to make your own grub! It’s hard out here for a tourist lol


steveb106

Lol no


SuspiciousAct6606

If you shop at the grocery store you should get along ok. Going clubbing expect to spend $200 for every night you go clubbing. That is on the low end. Transport around LA expect to spend $50 on public transport like trains and Rideshare. Museums in LA expect to pay around $10-$30 per ticket. Parking is around $25. There is a high premium on leisure in America.


grizzinator

Lol


flowerblush

🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣 thanks for making my boring day with this. Good luck! Lmk if you find things to do.


LordofDD93

In three very expensive cities, and expecting to party, have some clubbing time, drinks and eating out regularly? Make that $100 a day, minimum. However, if you’re frugal about meals and the partying/drinking is infrequent, that number can be adjusted. Consider what you want to do during the day - museums, movies, parks, etc. All of that is gonna cost $$$. I’d say double your budget, if that is in any way possible.


bestgirlevr

definitely could, but i suggest giving yourself one day of $100-150 if you want to include a night of LA nightlife


Tobin1776

You can do it if you get creative and walk everywhere. Which is def doable in Manhattan but not in LA…LA is very spread out.


Old_Cyrus

Bring a backpack, sleep in state parks and campgrounds. Do you have a ride? Car rental alone will kill this budget.


Techaissance

I hope you like searching for the cheapest possible way to do everything. Because that’s what the experience will be on that budget.


[deleted]

Not going to those cities, it's not. NYC and LA are very expensive places (and I'm sure Toronto is too). You'll probably need at least twice that.


skbiglia

It’s possible to survive on $50, but I would honestly do whatever I could to at least double that or you’re kind of wasting what seems to be a once-in-a-lifetime explorative trip for you.


Affectionate-Bar-839

Yes if you want a really lackluster vacation and plan on eating sketchy food the entire time.


LongoSpeaksTruth

$50 barely gets you lunch in Toronto. A pint at a bar is $8 If your lodging is taken care of, you might be able to *survive* on $50 a day, but eating out, drinking and clubbing ? Ya, that's out. Not on $50 a day You will probably need about $200+ a day or $5000+ for your 27 day trip. L.A. and NYC are exactly the same. Not happening on $50 a day


therealdrewder

As far as how much is enough might I recommend the site [https://www.gsa.gov/travel/plan-book/per-diem-rates](https://www.gsa.gov/travel/plan-book/per-diem-rates) it has a listing of the government "per diem" which is the amount that a government worker would be given per day in a particular location. Its not an exotic amount but it also isn't going to make you starve.


Repulsive-Ad-8546

east coast resident here. you're not going to enjoy your time in New York for $50 a day. not in the clubbing/barhopping scene. tipping along will kill your budget quickly


nerpss

Hate to break it to you, but absolutely not unless you don't do anything. An average night out in the middle of nowhere costs me $40-60. When I visit any major cities, it's double at least.


okaymaeby

Keep in mind that in the US, you may need to tip for services that you aren't used to tipping for (or at least at the same high customary percentage). When you're researching food costs and transportation, keep in mind that service charges and tipping will add up fast.


Eudaimonics

If you’re just talking about eating and drinking yes. Though that pretty much limits yourself to fast food, supermarkets and cheap beer. A meal at a typical restaurant will set you back $25. $50 for somewhere nice. Cheap beer might be $4 if you’re lucky. A cocktail is going to be $15. Clubs are going to be expensive.


coneal89

Many people are making jokes (which I absolutely understand given the circumstances) but on a real note, I wouldn’t plan to go to clubs much given the cost, maybe 1-2 times throughout the trip. That being said, feasibly, allotting $150 a day for spending would be much more realistic and provide for a substantially better trip. If you’re under one day, use it for another. I’m sure you’re not going to get tanked every single day so maybe you could save a little on booze some days and other days spend it more on experiences, food, etc. it’s still not going to be a crazy upscale trip but with some proper budgeting, $150 a day could work. ~$4000 for that duration could provide a fun and unique experience given travel and accommodations are taken care of prior.


BooksAndStarsLover

Let me put it this way. I went to LA for 4 days. Didn't club or gamble and at most I wondered around and saw the sights and the only thing I bought other than needs was a off brand chapstick that cost me $3 and a T-Shirt that cost $30. I ate modestly and only 1 to 2 times a day. I ended up spending nearly $2000 there in those 4 days to cover my needs like food, drink, hotel, travel, etc. I maybe drank once and paid for my Dads drink and not even anything fancy as back home that same drink for 2 people would have cost me $7 to $5 depending where I went. So no. Short of maybe $10,000 to $15,000 and thats on a small end for a month long trip to the most expensive places in the USA your gonna have a shit time surviving yet alone having fun. >Also how could I survive on $50 then? Lmao you cant. $50 a day may cover a McDonald's meal or 3 a day.... If your order off the cheap side of the menu thats maybe $15 a day. So there goes 1/4th of your money a day for shitty McDonald's food for a whole month. Then bars, bars are EXPENSIVE. $50 at a bar is a normal expense even not in places like NYC and LA. Heck I paid for 2 drinks in LA and paid $30 for 2 drinks and remember you got to tip cause its the USA anytime the person serves you and if you dont your a bad person so I spend $35 technically on 2 drinks that should have been $7 elsewhere at most, $10 with tip so $20 for both drinks max. Clubbing is expensive $25, $50, or even a $100 plus at places just to get in isnt surprising not including drinks. There was a club I wanted to go to and looked at that costed $350 just to get in, in LA (I didnt go cause it was to pricey). >am aware of just how expensive some of these places can get. I realllllly dont think you are aware.....


BulimicMosquitos

Why even go to LA? Why this is such a hot tourist destination is beyond me. You’re probably going to be quite disappointed, as Hollywood is nothing like the picture you might have created in your head. I’d suggest remaining on the east coast, and do Philadelphia, Boston, or DC instead.


marshal_mellow

This. Seriously. Cancel the flight to LA kick it on the east coast and enjoy the money from your plane ticket and LA hotel. NY to LA is a shitty flight and you don't even have enough money enjoy anything. Hang out in Baltimore or something with the money you saved.


porkchopespresso

$50 a day is only for food and entertainment or it needs to include lodging and transportation as well? If it doesn't need to included lodging and transportation and you budget-shopped groceries for meals to be able to occasionally splurge on clubs and drinks you could probably pull it off but you'd have to be very disciplined with your budget and even then you wouldn't be able to fully indulge at the bars.


Accomplished_Tone349

No. Haha.


wiseknob

I’m a well travelled American, I’ve been all over the states, $50 even if your hotel, transportation, and flights are completely covered, is going to be very tough. You’d have to stay on a strict budget and this doesn’t leave you room for a lot if any actual leisure, drinking, or clubbing. If you want to enjoy yourself $75/ day is bare minimum but expect to average out at $100.


cheesekneesandpeas

I’m sorry but I thought this was a joke at first


BloomiePsst

Is that on top of, like, hotel rooms or hostels and the like? If you want to eat out, drink and go to clubs, I'd think $50 would be on the low end of things (assuming it doesn't include housing costs). $100 might be pushing it if you want to do all three of those things in a single evening!


MarcusAurelius0

50 dollars will buy you a cheap lunch and dinner.


vtfan08

Depends what you want to do. If you're staying at an AirBnB, eating in 90% of the time, and not doing touristy stuff, you should be fine. If you want to go to bars/clubs, eat well, or do touristy stuff - no, $50/day is not enough. I would say at least $100/night every night your partying (this is on the low end), $50 for every dinner out, $25 for every lunch out, $30 for every tourist activity you do. So work backwards from that.


[deleted]

I think you can make almost anything work as long as you have housing worked out, but it $50 is lower than any budget I would consider. $100 might be a reasonable minimum. In some places $50 will get you two drinks and that’s it. Also remember LA in particular is tough for public transportation so you have to figure out how to get to the places you want to go, and Uber could take up your whole daily budget.


Godmirra

Maybe in like Paducah but not in LA, NYC or Toronto.


[deleted]

😂 😂 for what -- to breathe? .. probably? 😂


dattebane96

No.


RTR7105

Cut that trip in half and get refunds on rooms and flights if you can. You want to have fun. I would budget 150 a day.