South Africa among 'cheap' leisure destinations for Indians: Survey

Kolkata, April 25 (IANS) South Africa has emerged as the new popular destination for Indian leisure travellers on a budget, followed by Egypt and Morocco, according to a survey by an international travel site.

Indians vying for a holiday abroad can fly to Cape Town (South Africa), Sharm-el-Sheikh (Egypt) and Marrakesh (Morocco) -- shown as the top three destinations in a list of 10 least expensive cities in the survey.

The comparison, called TripIndexRoom Service 2013 by TripAdvisor, is a cost-comparison of common incidental items and services that travellers purchase when staying at a hotel, across key destinations around the world.

It includes combined cost of a club sandwich ordered on room service, a bottle of water, peanuts, a mini-bottle of vodka, a can of coke from the mini-bar and the dry cleaning of one shirt.

According to the index, for a can of coke and a mini vodka bottle, Cape Town is the cheapest option, while Sharm el-Sheikh (Egypt) is the most economical for dry cleaning charges for a shirt.

A few hours away, closer home in Asia, Indians can choose between Jakarta (Indonesia) and Taipei (Taiwan) placed at eighth and tenth place, respectively, on the list of least expensive cities, the survey said.