Club Sandwich Index 2.0 Uncovers Dining Costs Worldwide: Geneva Is the Priciest City for a Club Sandwich and a Full Day of Hotel Dining

LONDON, June 25, 2015 /PRNewswire/ --

• Hotels.com^® unveils expert tips on hotel dining for hungry guests
• South Korea emerges as the most expensive destination to enjoy a teatime cuppa, according to Hotels.com's elevated Club Sandwich Index
• Mexico City replaces New Delhi as the destination with the most affordable club sandwich
• A glass of house red wine in a 5-star hotel in Paris costs more than a club sandwich in 19 other cities, including New York City, Dublin, Sydney and Berlin 

The Hotels.com Club Sandwich Index (CSI) continues to uncover the dining costs of hotels worldwide with its annual price barometer, the Club Sandwich Index. This year, the elevated report by Hotels.com - the CSI 2.0 - added three more hotel dining items to make the Index a more comprehensive indicator for guests to understand the costs associated with a full day of hotel dining in hotels worldwide.

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Bogota bags best bang for buck while Geneva offers a more pricey menu 

Based on findings from the CSI 2.0, Geneva is not only the priciest city for a club sandwich, but the Swiss city has also topped the charts as the most expensive destination to enjoy a full-day hotel dining experience (£56.53), while Bogota, Colombia is the most value-for-money destination with an average price of £19.60.

The improved CSI report incorporates the prices of four main dining options available to hotel guests throughout the day:

1. A CLUB SANDWICH for supper
2. A BURGER MEAL, consisting of a burger, fries and soda for lunch or dinner
3. A cup of COFFEE for teatime
4. A glass of HOUSE RED WINE for post-dinner drinks

The average prices are calculated from real prices (including taxes and fees) paid by guests for all four items in 30 hotels, in the capital or an important tourist city of the 28 countries surveyed, across 5-, 4- and 3-star hotel categories.  

While hungry travellers can get the most bang for their buck in Bogota, which clocked an average dining cost of £19.60, Rio de Janeiro (£22.28) and Buenos Aires (£26.26) also gave the Colombian capital a run for its money with their affordable dining costs.

Hotel guests in South Korea paid the most to get their caffeine fix, with Seoul dominating the list for the priciest cuppa at £6.34 on average. Interestingly, patrons to a 5-star hotel in Paris found it more expensive to indulge in a glass of house red wine (£15.01) than club sandwiches in 19 other cities, including New York City, Dublin, Sydney and Berlin!

Carolina Annand of the Hotels.com brand said, "Hotels.com continues to enhance our customers travel experience with the elevated Club Sandwich Index, by providing travellers with an insightful and comprehensive price comparison guide and giving them a more accurate overview of the costs associated with a full day of hotel dining. The findings from the CSI 2.0, coupled with the wide range of hotel options available on our website allow travellers to easily locate a hotel that suits their budget - while some may indulge in a burger meal in a hotel in Geneva, other guests may opt to kick back with a glass of house red wine at less than six times the price in Bogota!"

Table 1: Average prices of hotel menu items and total dining costs based on city (2015) 

   
                 Average price per Items, including taxes and fees (in GBP)
                                                             A glass              Total
                                        A burger  A cup of  of house   A club   cost (in
     Ranking            CITY              meal     coffee   red wine  sandwich    GBP)
        1     Switzerland - Geneva       24.64      4.04      7.91      19.94     56.52
        2     France - Paris             19.31      3.77      8.35      15.90     47.33
        3     Hong Kong                  19.93      4.82      8.01      13.75     46.50
        4     Norway - Oslo              20.33      3.13      8.03      13.12     44.60
        5     UK - London                16.78      3.98      7.52      14.39     42.67
        6     South Korea - Seoul        14.27      6.34      8.87      13.10     42.59
        7     Sweden - Stockholm         15.32      2.60      7.41      14.89     40.23
        8     Japan - Tokyo              14.69      5.54      7.19      12.20     39.63
        9     Singapore                  15.31      3.95      9.11      11.10     39.47
       10     USA - New York             15.82      3.51      8.02      11.53     38.87
       11     China - Beijing            15.44      5.01      8.12      10.10     38.66
       12     Finland - Helsinki         13.24      2.66      5.35      13.06     34.32
       13     Denmark - Copenhagen       13.23      3.21      6.70      11.17     34.30
       14     Australia - Sydney         15.11      2.56      4.91      10.67     33.25
       15     Italy - Rome               14.40      2.20      5.83      9.47      31.90
       16     Netherlands - Amsterdam    14.32      2.53      3.87      9.91      30.63
       17     Taiwan - Taipei            12.13      4.46      5.87      7.61      30.07
       18     Ireland - Dublin           12.59      2.14      4.73      8.98      28.43
       19     Russia - Moscow            10.01      2.71      6.40      8.95      28.07
       20     India - New Delhi           9.66      2.52      8.22      7.33      27.74
       21     Germany - Berlin           10.80      2.38      4.31      9.80      27.28
       22     Canada - Toronto            9.54      2.30      5.70      9.55      27.09
       23     Argentina - Buenos Aires   11.44      2.30      4.50      8.01      26.26
       24     Thailand - Bangkok          8.96      2.86      6.84      7.11      25.77
       25     Spain - Madrid             11.79      2.17      2.95      8.33      25.24
       26     Brazil - Rio de Janeiro     8.64      1.34      5.65      6.66      22.28
       27     Mexico - Mexico City        8.70      1.61      4.27      6.37      20.95
       28     Colombia - Bogota           7.67      1.02      4.08      6.84      19.60

Here are the highlights: 

Geneva retained top position on the chart for the priciest club sandwich on average. Italy's price decreased by 32%, while club sandwiches in Finland and Spain became more affordable 

• Geneva (£19.94) and Paris (£15.90) retained their positions in first and second place respectively as destinations where travellers paid the most for a club sandwich, despite experiencing a fall in their average prices from 2014 to 2015.
• Rome decreased by 32%, dropping 9 places from 2014, with an average price of £9.47
• India increased by 28%, jumping up 4 places from 2014, still making it one of the most affordable places to enjoy a club sandwich.
• Mexico City saw practically no change with the price only increasing by 0.08%, now costing £6.37, the cheapest on average globally.
• Travellers in Finland and Spain enjoy more affordable club sandwiches, whereby the average price in Helsinki dropped by 18% to £13.06, while prices in Madrid fell 20% to £8.33.
• India's New Delhi (£7.33) lost its title as the cheapest destination for a club sandwich, with the claim to fame now going to Mexico City at £6.37.

Costly cuppas in Asia 

• Asia dominates the list for the costliest cups of coffee on average globally
  • All top five most expensive cities for a cup of coffee on average come from Asia - Seoul (£6.34), Tokyo (£5.54), Beijing (£5.01), Hong Kong (£4.82) and Taipei (£4.46).
• On average, the cheapest spot for a cup of coffee goes to Bogota, Columbia (£1.02)
• Guests also paid high prices for their caffeine fixes at 5-star hotels in London (£5.70) and Singapore (£5.24).

Guests pay the least for a glass of house red wine in Madrid 

• France is home to the most expensive glass of house red wine at £15.01 at a 5-star hotel. In fact, the average price of a glass of house red in a 5-star hotel in the French city costs more than a club sandwich in 19 other destinations, including New York City, Dublin, Sydney and Berlin.
• The most affordable glass of wine can be found in Madrid, with guests paying only £2.95 on average.

Geneva home to the world's priciest burgers and club sandwiches 

• Geneva emerged as the most expensive destination for a burger, fries and soda meal, with guests paying an average of £24.64 - more than triple the price for a meal in the cheapest destination, Bogota (£7.67). This was followed closely by Oslo with an average of £20.33 for a burger meal deal.

Notes to editor 

• All prices stated include taxes and fees
• 2015 Club Sandwich Index (CSI 2.0) items were converted from USD to Pounds Stirling - exchange rate correct as of 29 May 2015  (i.e. 1USD to 0.6519).
• 2014 Club Sandwich Index 'average Club Sandwich price' was converted from GBP to Pounds Stirling, exchange rate correct as of 15 April 2014 (i.e. 1GBP to 1.675)

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