New York City may draw thousands of people every year for its world-famous New Year's Eve celebrations, but surprisingly it's not the most expensive city to spend the holidays.
New Orleans is the most expensive city in the US – and the world – to book a hotel room to ring in the new year, according to a new study from TravelMag.com.
The research compared the cost of the most affordable double room in 60 major world cities for a three-night stay from December 30 to January 2.
The cheapest room in New Orleans cost $1,190 for three nights. This is 182 percent – or almost three times – more than the regular rate during the month of January, the research showed.
In addition to parties and music events, New Orleans is known for the annual Sugar Bowl college football game played on January 1. The skyrocketing hotel prices in the Louisiana city are partly due to the large numbers of fans attending the game.
New Orleans is the most expensive city in the world to book a hotel room to ring in the new year, according to a new study from TravelMag.com
Only slightly cheaper than The Big Easy are Miami Beach and New York City, according to the study.
A three-night stay in Miami Beach costs $1,184 – 120 percent higher than the regular January rate.
The cheapest room in New York City, home of the famous Times Square Ball on New Year's Eve, costs $1,164. This is 218 percent – or more than three times – the regular January rate for accommodation in the city.
The study only looked at hotels in a central location – close to the centre, the main tourist district or the beach – with a rating of three stars or more.
For comparison purposes, rates for each hotel from January 13 to January 16 were also recorded using the same criteria.
The top five most expensive cities to spend New Year's Eve were rounded out by the world cities Rio de Janeiro, Brazil and Sydney, Australia.
In Rio de Janeiro, a hotel for three nights will cost $1,089, and in Sydney it will cost you $1,087, the study found.
Punta Cana in the Dominican Republic is the sixth most expensive place to visit in 2024, with accommodation costing $940 – a huge 341 percent increase over usual rates in January – and Cancun, Mexico, is the seventh most expensive.
In Cancun, a three-night hotel stay costs $905 over New Year's – 115 percent more than the going rate for the popular American holiday destination.
New Orleans is known for the annual Sugar Bowl college football game played on January 1. The skyrocketing hotel prices in the Louisiana city are partly due to the large numbers of fans attending the game (photo: The Alabama Crimson Tide vs. the Clemson Tigers in 2018)
Miami Beach was the second most expensive place in the world to buy a hotel during New Year's
New York was the third most expensive place for New Year's. Here, revelers celebrate in Times Square in 2018.
In Europe, London and Edinburgh are the most expensive places to spend New Year's Eve, with rates of around $300 per night in both places.
The Scottish capital is slightly more expensive than the English: a three-night stay in Edinburgh costs $902, compared to $894 in London.
Rounding out the top ten is Honolulu, Hawaii, where a three-day stay during the holidays costs $858.
According to the study, Los Angeles, Las Vegas, Nashville and Seattle are also among the 20 most expensive cities in the world to spend New Year's Eve.
Of the US cities surveyed, Chicago and Boston were the most affordable options, both costing around $500 for a three-night hotel stay.
Of the 60 destinations in the survey, the least expensive destinations in the world to spend New Year's Eve were Hanoi, Vietnam and Phnom Penh, Cambodia, where hotel rooms were available for less than $40 per night.