Guate is Not as cheap as it was, been coming/and living here for 9 years. Average meal in Antigua now is about 60Q, or over $10 Canadian, for a lunch, w no drink. That is not high end, not low end, it's mid range.
We travel, average basic private room with bath for 2 people, is 300 Q a night (or $53 Cad) in Xela, the lake, Rio Dulce. No where near as cheap as it used to be, and Mexico is far cheaper IMO. We were there last month and maybe just the Peso is low...but all the same kind of stuff was 1/3 of the cost of Antigua easily.
You can do it cheaper, for sure, but even a (private) room in a Hostel at Lake Atitilan, a month ago, was 130Q. That is over $20 Canadian, for a crappy hostel...I was surprised. Seems to me its getting more expensive here all the time.
Yes, vancouvert, this is definitely the impression that I got from my Mexican friend who was there in October where he initially paid 60Q for a basic meal of chicken, beans and rice in Antigua, or just under 8.50 US dollars! Later he did find meals in the $6 range, but I gathered that from everything he bought there (coffee and cocoa), it was all a good 50% more than here in Mexico. And now "foreigners" pay close to $21 for a day to Tikal. I'm not really against that if it is good for the park, though. It's hard to believe that tourists pay so much in a country that is definitely much poorer than Mexico. I think it has something to do with the quetzal being pegged to the dollar. Guatemala used to be considered dirt cheap. I am still making plans to go to Flores, but I am already bracing myself to pay 50% more than I pay for anything here in Mexico.
I get clean, cute, safe, well-located rooms with friends owners for $20-30 US/double in Antigua, various towns on Lake Atitlán, Rio Dulce, Flores, etc. I generally pay closer to $3/meal for traditional food at locals places in Antigua and on Lake Atitlán. The places we've traveled in México were more, even though it's been 6+ years - various stops in Yucatán, Quintana Roo, and Chiapas. Lots of cheap and plenty of spendy in both countries imho.
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