Which City is Cheaper: Philadelphia or Florence?

File this one under, “why didn’t I think of that…” When I was at dinner with Kit Burns (Dream of Italy subscriber and president of Doorways Villa Rentals) in Sardinia last month, she told me about a comparison her staff put together showing that despite the weak dollar, visiting an Italian city isn’t really any more expensive than visiting an American city.

To prove their point, they put together a chart directly comparing the cost of breakfast, dinner, a bus ticket, a hotel room in Philadelphia vs. Florence. The results might surprise you. Of the eleven comparison items, eight were more expensive in Philadelphia, one (the hotel room) was more expensive in Florence and two were about the same (cup of coffee and train ticket).

So for all of those who think Italy is so expensive, its not any more expensive than an American city. Sure the plane ticket is a significant added expense but once you get past that…