Is It Cheaper to Vacation Abroad Than in the US? A Reddit Discussion Guide
From Los Angeles, the European trip is cheaper in 3 of 15 US-versus-Europe matchups we price, the US trip is cheaper in 8, and 4 are within 8 percent. These are sample estimates for 2 adults and 7 nights with flights, not live prices.
. Fares and totals are estimates, not live prices.
An independent discussion guide
Independent site. Not affiliated with Reddit. HomeOrAbroad compares sample trip costs. It is not Reddit, it does not speak for Reddit users, and it does not publish reviews, ratings, or quotes from forums. Updated November 8, 2026.
A public thread is a stack of personal trips. The trips differ by city, month, exchange rate, and whether the writer counted flights, so a thread is a poor place to copy a price from. This page answers the question with the sample estimates already on this site, and lists a few discussions at the end if you want to read other people's trips yourself.
What our estimates show from Los Angeles (LAX)
The comparison below uses the same model as Is it cheaper to vacation in Europe than the US?. Each matchup is one US trip beside one European trip: 2 adults, 7 nights, round-trip economy flights, one mid-range room, and daily food, local transport, and activities. "Within 8 percent" means the two midpoints are close enough that the model calls them roughly even. These are sample estimates, not live prices.
| Result in our model | US-versus-Europe matchups |
|---|---|
| European trip cheaper | 3 of 15 |
| US trip cheaper | 8 of 15 |
| Within 8 percent | 4 of 15 |
The full pair-by-pair table, including other departure cities, stays on the Europe versus US cost guide. This page does not repeat it.
How to read a "cheaper abroad" discussion
When you compare two trips, or when you read someone else's, these are the pieces that move the answer. The right-hand column is only what our 7-night model includes.
| Question | What our 7-night estimates include |
|---|---|
| Which two places are being compared? | A named US trip versus a named trip in Europe, priced the same way. |
| Are flights in the total, and from which airport? | Round-trip economy flights from Los Angeles (LAX) for both travelers. |
| How many nights? | Fixed at 7. Flights are a per-trip cost, so a much longer or shorter stay would move the result. Other lengths are not priced here. |
| Is the trip a flight and a hotel, or a drive and a campsite? | A flight and a mid-range room. A road trip or a campsite is a different trip, and it is not in these totals. |
| What standard of food and daily spending? | The daily food range stored for each destination. Sources for those ranges are on the comparison pages. |
| Is the exchange rate from this month? | Foreign daily costs were converted when the estimates were edited. They are not a live currency feed. |
Further reading
These are public discussions of the same question. They are other people's posts, not a price list and not a recommendation from HomeOrAbroad. Read them if you want more trips to compare with the estimates above.
- reddit.com/r/travel/comments/1vp541y/
- reddit.com/r/Vacations/comments/1q579lq/
- reddit.com/r/TravelHacks/comments/1d5nmix/
- reddit.com/r/personalfinance/comments/d57ql8/
Sources for the numbers
- Europe versus US vacation cost, the page these matchup counts come from.
- How we price a trip. Every figure is a sample estimate.
Related comparisons and guides
- Maui vs. Lisbon · Is Hawaii really cheaper than Europe? Once you add up the hotel bill, maybe not.
- New York City vs. London · Big-city week vs. big-city week: what does crossing the Atlantic actually add?
- San Francisco vs. Lisbon · Hills, trams, a big red bridge and fog: the two cities even look alike. Which week costs less?
- Is it cheaper to vacation in Europe than the US?
- US alternatives to a Europe trip
How we priced this
Every total is 7 nights for 2 adults: round-trip economy flights for both travelers, one mid-range room, and daily food, local transport and activities for two (plus lift tickets and rentals on ski trips). Flight ranges come from published typical fares or, where marked "cached fares," from airline fare data from our flight search partner that updates automatically. Lodging and daily costs are the same figures used on each comparison page, where every source is listed. These are sample estimates, not live prices. Read the full methodology.