January Sunspots - Vacation Suggestions

[flylock shox]

Hey folks.

I'm living in Vancouver right now, and if you've ever been to Vancouver in the winter you're already aware that it's the most insufferably miserable craphole in Canada from November - January (and whenever the Canucks are doing well).

I'm looking to cut my suffering by 1/3 this winter by travelling somewhere that has at least 1 photon within a hundred miles of it during the daytime. Here are my criteria for a travel destination:

There must be sunshine;

There must be beaches;

The food must be edible;

The place must not be impoverished (I work in Vancouver's DTES, so I see enough of that as it is);

and here's the big catch:

I'd like to make the trip for an average of around $100/day, including flight.

I was in Thailand a couple of months back, which was good, but was thinking maybe somewhere else in Asia or possibly the Caribbean this time around.

Anybody got any ideas or have any experiences they'd like to share?

Your input is mucho appreciado.

[Sylvanfan]

Depends on what you can get your flights for but Brazil isn't a bad option. Yes it is a bit impovershed, but if you stick to like the Ipanema/Leblon regions of Rio it's actually quite nice. You just don't want to get caught too far off the beaten path late at night. At that time of year you can go further South to Santa Catarina State which has great weather. Just off of Florianapolis is an Island called Ilya Santa Catarina which has several little beach towns and a lot of decent bed and breakfasts that are unbelievably cheap. The food is good and cheap, the beer is cheap, and the women are as advertised. There are also a couple of other good places along the way that are well worth visiting. I had the intention of spending like $150 a day when I went 5 years ago and I think with bus transportation and the like I averaged about $60 a day spent, and that was with me spending a week in Rio for Carnival which is far more expensive than any other time of year. If you do head down there though you owe it to yourself to see Foz do Igaucu, puts Niagra Falls to shame.

[flylock shox]

Thanks Sylvanfan.

I'd thought about heading to South America but wasn't sure how pricey it was going to be. I've also talked to a few folks who mentioned there's a bit of a security concern there, so it's nice to be able to narrow down destinations within the country. I'll definitely look into the places you suggested.

[ken0042]

^^ I was thinking the same thing- at least not with the condition of "The place must not be impoverished."

You might be able to swing that on a last minute trip to the Dominican or Mexico.

[The Goon]

For that budget, you'd be stuck with a last-minute vacation. You could also try San Diego, but the weather there, while nice, can't always be guaranteed.

If you can increase your budget slightly, try Cabo San Lucas.

[Sylvanfan]

I got a seat sale to Brazil and than with what I spent while I was there came to about $3200 for 35 days there and that included being there for Carnival. If I hadn't been there for Carnival I would have shaved off a few dollars...but nothing real significant as the airfare was such a big part of the cost. I didn't think Security was a huge issue in the Southern part of Brazil, but as you move North it certainly becomes more of an issue. I met two Sweedish guys who started out in the North and got robbed twice and refused to leave the hostel after dark. Just be careful of where you are, what time it is, and try not to stand out. In the Southern part of Brazil there is a fair amount of European immigrants and it is easier to blend in if you are caucasion.

[Tyler]

Try and avoid the Sao Paolo airport if you can

[flylock shox]

I should have been more clear in my original post. I'm looking at going for a whole month, which means that so long as the cost of living day-to-day is fairly low, it should balance out the flight.

For example, a flight to Thailand runs about $1400. Living in Thailand (if you're takin' er easy) can cost $20 - $50 a day. Over the course of a month you end up balancing out to less than $100/day including flight.

I know that most of the Americas are a bit pricier to live in, but lots cheaper to get to. So if a flight somewhere were say, $800, that would leave $2200 for 30 days: or roughly $70 beans per day to live on to still make the $100/day budget.

Of course, I'm not wedded to $100/day, but I wanted to weed out some of the resort-style holidays that would kill my bank account.

Sorry for the confusion there. Thanks all for your input.

[zukes]

If you are wanting to go to a resort, go to the Royal Decameron in Panama. The food there is good, you are on the Pacific side and there is tonnes to do especially if you stay a month. You can do the Panama Canal tour which I would have liked to do when I was there, but it's a 12 hour day. You can go zip-lining, visit local tribes. There is a golf course where everything is free except the caddy gratuities, you can tour the jungle, you can go ATV'ing, the women are gorgeous, they have great booze. I could go on and on.